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Salinas High student Audrey Mu os, 14, speaks with Frank Martin, a plant pathologist with the USDA Agricultural Research Service, during the Monterey County Science and Engineering Fair.

A Carmel High School freshman won the grand prize at the annual Monterey County Science Fair Sunday at CSU Monterey Bay.

Ailis Dooner, student of science teacher Jason Maas-Baldwin took the prize and first place for her project in the pharmacology/toxicology senior division, titled "The Effects of Ambient Nitrate and Phosphate on Intracellular Zooxanthellae of Aggregating Anemone."

First runner-up for grand prize was Jimmy Lin, senior at Robert Louis Stevenson Upper School, first place in biochemistry/molecular biology, for "Investigating the Inhibitory Effect of Resveratrol on Ovarian Cancer Cells." Second runner-up was Aradhana Sinha, a junior at Salinas High School, first place in plant biology for her project,

"Triforine Sensitivity in Lettuce: Year Two."

Prizes were awarded in 22 junior and 14 senior categories, with 24 top projects becoming eligible to participate in the California State Science Fair. The top three senior division projects may be eligible to participate in the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, which will be held in Pittsburgh, Pa., in May.

The students entered 375 projects in the fair, said fair director Ginny Brown of the county Office of Education.

Other first-place winners at the fair were: Austin Aldrich and Ari Freedman, eighth grade, Carmel Middle School,, applied mechanics and structures; Trevor Bianchi and Andrew Grogin, eighth grade, All Saints Episcopal Day School, materials science; Michael Bigley and

Victoria Kvitek, eighth grade, Santa Catalina Lower School behavioral and social sciences; Sarah Levi and Amanda Radner, eighth grade, All Saints Episcopal Day, product science - biological; Mary Liu, eighth grade, Buena Vista Middle School, environmental science; Jenna Mazza, eighth grade, Santa Catalina Lower School, applied mechanics and structures.

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Carmel freshman wins top science fair prize