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Students of the Month

HERMON – Students of the Month for October at Hermon High School are:

. Freshman Chelsea Sinclair, daughter of Doug and Kim Sinclair of Hermon.

. Sophomore Jessica Devou, daughter of Joe and Mary Devou of Levant.

. Junior Meghan Burnett, daughter of Scott and Stacey Burnett of Hermon.

. Senior Nick Russell, son of Zach and Cathy Russell of Carmel.

Students of the Month are selected for a variety of reasons, among them academic excellence, showing improvement, community service and willingness to go the extra mile.

Penobscot Christian School

BANGOR – Sarah Sedgwick and her kindergarten class from Penobscot Christian School visited Westgate Manor on Nov. 26 to give a presentation of patriotic and Thanksgiving songs to residents there.

The children were dressed in costumes reflecting the first Thanksgiving. They greeted residents after the program.

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BANGOR – Penobscot Christian School fifth- and sixth-grade classes, and their teacher, Cathy Gordon, visited Manna Ministries in Bangor on Nov. 25 to present at least 40 $10 Hannaford gift cards to assist families with Thanksgiving expenses.

The class raised the money through weekly bake sales that began in mid-September and through a weekly chapel offering.

Manna director Bill Ray expressed gratitude for the gift cards for families who do not eat turkey because of dietary or other reasons, saying that the Hannaford cards give him options to help more hardworking families in the community.

After their trip to Manna, the schoolchildren were treated to pizza at Uno Chicago Grill.

Colleges

Golden Key Honour Society

ORONO – Nicole Yeo of Glenburn accepted membership in the Golden Key Honour International Society during a recent induction ceremony at the University of Maine.

Golden Key is a premier collegiate honor society with more than 1.7 million members in 360 chapters. The global nonprofit organization provides academic recognition to top-performing students, scholarships and awards, career and internship opportunities, networking, service and leadership opportunities. Membership is by invitation only to students in all fields of study.

Golden Key was founded in 1977 in Atlanta and is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies. For information, visit www.goldenkey.org.

Chem-E-Car competition

ORONO – The University of Maine placed 10th out of 29 universities in the Nov. 16 national Chem-E-Car competition in Philadelphia, according to the American Institute of Chemical Engineers.

The Chem-E-Car competition, first raced in 1999, allows students to apply their knowledge of chemical engineering principles while helping build interest and expertise in alternative fuels.

Team members design and construct a chemically powered vehicle within certain size constraints that also must be able to carry a specified cargo. The winner was determined by a combined score that includes points for traveling the correct distance and creativity.

“We feel that UMaine had a good showing,” said team leader and UM junior Gregory Worster. “We experienced a few setbacks at the competition and feel that we overcame them to the best of our ability. All of the competing teams performed exceptionally this year, and we look forward to a strong showing at the next competition.”

This year, students were challenged to transport 250 milliliters of water for 60 feet. Each team received two chances to run their cars with the final score their best attempt at reaching the distance.

UMaine’s hydrogen fuel cell car was designed by a group of 14 students during the spring 2008 semester, most of them seniors who graduated in May. Starting in September, the current eight members continued with the work.

Team members are sophomores Mathew Pagurko and Jeffrey Galle; juniors Mike Subilia II, Ian Hamilton, Thomas Schwartz and Gregory Worster; and seniors Jessica Englehart, the team leader, and Sarah Hodgins.

“Fine-tuning, calibration and preparation were done almost every day between the beginning of September and the competition,” Schwartz said. “In the weeks before the competition, we worked long days to ready the car as well as complete our regular schoolwork.”

UMaine’s car first competed in April in the Northeast Regional Competition at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where it took first place.

The cars aren’t very large – about 24 inches long, 12 inches wide and 10 inches tall – but the technology behind them is somewhat complex. The car is powered by a proton exchange membrane hydrogen fuel cell, 15 membranes separated by graphite plates. The hydrogen gas reacts with oxygen from the air to produce power which is sent to the motor.

“Our car was designed to be very safe, and safety is a large part of the Chem-E car competition,” Schwartz said. “The materials of construction and the design of the car were selected with safety in mind, encompassing both chemical and mechanical aspects.”

Cornell University came in first, taking the top prize of $2,000 with a hydrogen fuel cell car nicknamed “The Bender.”

Finishing in second place and taking home $1,000 was Louisiana State University, using citric acid and sodium carbonate. Taking third for $500 was Texas A&M, which used chemicals making hydrogen gas to propel their car.