2 Smithtown Seniors Named Intel Semifinalists

Two Smithtown students have been selected among a group of 50 Long Islanders and 300 nationwide to be a semifinalist in the 2014 Intel Talent Science Search.

Catherine Feldman, at High School West, and Yongpen Tang, of High School East, were recognized for their scientific research conducted at school and with mentors at Stony Brook University. 

Feldman, a Smithtown resident, has been a student in the Science Research Program at High School West for the past three years where she worked closely with Dr. Joanne Figueiredo.

For her paper,  "Phylogenic and Dietary Signals in the Dentition and Mandible of Carnivora (Mammalia, Placentalia): A Geometric Morphometric Approach" Feldman studied 27,000 specimens from teeth and jaws of more than 101 species with different dietary preferences to determine what plays a more significant role in the formation of teeth and bone structure in animals. 
Feldman did her research under the mentorship of Stony Brook Ph.D. student Matthew Borths in research group of Dr. Erik Seiffert. 

Tang, a Saint James resident, is a student of the Science Research Program at High School West under teacher Maria Zeitlin. 

Tang's paper, "Data Sonification of the Seismic Signature of Ocean Surf," he sough information on how best to bring big data into recognizable pieces of information, such as seismic information recordings near ocean surf, under the mentorship of Dr. Henry Bokuniewicz at Stony Brook University. 

Both students will receive $1,000 for being named an Intel semifinalist. Smithtown Central School District will receive $1,000 for each semifinalist in their schools. 

Out of the 300 semifinalists named, 40 finalists will be chosen to attend the Intel ScienceTalent Institute in Washington, DC in March where they will undergo further judging and share $630,000 in awards. The finalists will be announced on Jan. 22.