Wonder + tape + worms = $

"Correlation between Peel Speed and Intensity of Triboluminescence in Adhesive Tape" sounds a little sticky for the nonscientist. But it means basically looking at how fast you peel tape off something and how much light is generated when you do (it has a medical application), and it won Mooresville's Elizabeth Schroder about $11,000 in scholarships at the Intel International Science & Engineering Fair (ISEF) in Los Angeles in June. Schroder, a student at the N.C. School of Science and Mathematics in Durham, won an $8,000 Navy and Marine Corps award, and a $3,000 Army award.

Alexander Cecil of E.E. Waddell High wondered how silver nanoparticles in everyday products might affect organisms in soil. So he did a project titled "The Assessment of Silver Nanoparticles in the Environment on Gene Expression in C. Elegans." (C. Elegans is a roundworm.) That placed first in the Environmental Science category for an Air Force Award at the ISEF, winning him $3,000, and second in Environmental Science overall, for another $1,500.

Picturing the future

Adelinne Buchanan loves learning and hopes to convey that love through a massive mural she's painting at the Rock Hill schools' Applied Technology Center. Buchanan, a 16-year-old rising junior, is doing the mural as her final Girl Scout project; so far she's spent $150 and more than 85 hours on the 14-foot mural, and has enlisted friends to help. It depicts a student at his desk, surrounded by images of options he has on campus - from culinary arts to automotive technology. "So often, I hear old people like me say the world is going to pot," said Tech Center Director Don Gillman. "There seems to be a lessening of confidence in the younger generation ... . But I'm fortunate enough to work with that generation every day."

Trees rock: A winning ode

"I think we wouldn't be here if it weren't for trees," wrote Krishna Majithia, named one of three national winners of the Scotties ReLeaf USA "Trees Rock" essay contest. Majithia, a rising fourth-grader at David Cox Elementary, got two Johnny Appleseed trees planted in her honor at her school: The trees come from the American Forests' Historic Tree Program, meaning they are direct descendants of trees that "shaded the lives of famous people or events." She also won a computer and $500 for her school to buy supplies. "When you read the essays submitted by these third-graders (in Charlotte)," said Joe Richards of Scotties' parent company, "you can tell they really do appreciate the importance of trees in their lives."

National Merit winners

Ten Mecklenburg County high school graduates and 16 overall from the Charlotte region have been awarded National Merit scholarships - college-sponsored awards of $500 to $2,000 annually for up to four years of college. Four are from Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools: Andrew Bowen from Myers Park, headed to Vanderbilt; Abigail Cooksey from Myers Park, en route to UNC Chapel Hill; Sunjay Jumar from Mallard Creek, going to Northwestern; and Aubrey McGrath from Northwest School of the Arts, also going to Northwestern. Anthony Lopez of Charlotte Catholic will attend UNC Chapel Hill; Patrick Panuski of the N.C. School of Mathematics and Science will attend Georgia Tech; Alexander Sanz of Charlotte Latin will go to Northwestern; Mark Taylor of Chattanooga (Tenn.) McCallie School will attend UNC Chapel Hill; Mark Wedding of Hickory Grove Baptist will attend Virginia Tech; and Andrew Younts of Charlotte Latin will go to UNC Chapel Hill.

Three other Charlotte-area students from North Carolina won the awards: Brett Leslie of East Rowan, who will attend UNC Chapel Hill; Tejong Lim of Waxhaw (N.C. School of Mathematics and Science), who will attend the University of Chicago; and Keagan Sacripanti of Monroe (N.C. School of Science and Mathematics), who will attend the University of the South.

From South Carolina, winners include Samuel Anderson of Rock Hill (home-schooled), attending the University of Alabama; Caitlin Lindberg of Fort Mill (Nations Ford High), going to Clemson; and Charmee Mehta of Fort Mill High, attending UNC Chapel Hill.

The 8,300 National Merit winners will receive scholarships worth a total of nearly $35 million.