Alana is a Science Fair

Winner!
Alana's mother Vicki wrote:
Feb 6, 2006
I just had to share this with you. The science fair was today and out of 60 entries,
Alana placed third and qualifies to go to the provincial science fair in Edmonton in
April. But what thrilled her even more was the number of people who, after
looking at her display, commented that they were never going to drink alcohol
again (lots will not or will not be able to keep that promise but it meant a lot to her
that they were saying it). What she did was take seven bowls, in each bowl she
broke an egg, to the first she added nothing, 2 - milk, 3- distilled water, 4 - vodka,
5 beer, 6 wine and 7 cooking oil to demonstrate how destructive the alcohol was to
the egg compared to the other substances - worked wonderfully!
Several students wrote in their home journal that night that their favourite science
fair project was the one on alcohol. A parent phoned me because her two sons
want to make T-shirts with a picture of a brain superimposed on a heart with the
slogan "If you love your brain... Say no to alcohol and drugs!"
What thrilled her the most was the number of people who looked at her exhibit and
then said, "Oh man, I am never going to drink alcohol again!" She was so excited
by their reactions that she was dancing. It created a lot of dialogue around the
school which I think was wonderful. Those little butterfly wings are fluttering and
causing a tiny stir, at least here!
Thanks for your help and suggestions.
Vicki
Update February 1, 2008:
I just got home from the local science fair where this year Alana place FIRST!
with her experiment with alcohol and brain cells from a pig. One of the judges
also judges at the National Competition and said that Alana's project was of the
caliber that could win at the National Competition! She will compete the first
weekend in April in Edmonton at the Regionals. Wooohooo!
Alana's teacher was tickled when Alana presented to the class because of the

discussion it sparked about drinking in general and drinking during pregnancy

specifically.
Vicki

Hypothesis:
My Hypothesis is that the substances that contain alcohol will cause the most
damage to the egg.

Testable Question:
Will the alcohol have a different affect on the egg as compared to other
substances?
* 6 identical containers (enough to hold 100 mls)
* 1% milk
* distilled water
* Black Stone Vodka = 40% alcohol
* Mountain Crest Beer= 5.6 % alcohol
* Gray Fox Chardonnay 13.5% alcohol
* Canola Oil
* Canada Grade A large eggs
* A small clock, 6 small cups
and a small square dish

Manipulated
Variable:
Substances added to the egg

Constant
Variables:

* Eggs
* Containers
* Amount of liquid
* Amount of time
between observations

Responding
Variable:
* consistency &
color of egg
* separation of egg
* toughness of egg

Bibliography:
http://www.oregoncounseling.org/ArticalPaper/Documents/ETOHBIOF.htm
http://seredip.brynmaur.edu/bb/neuro/neuro00/webl/kim.html
http://www.come-over.to/FAS/FASbrain.htm
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/alco/htm
http://come-over.to/FAS/ScienceProject.htm
http://www.kidshealth.org/kid/stay_healthy/body/alcohol.html
http://www.kidshealth.org/PageManagery.jp?
dn=KidsHealth&lic=l&ps=307&cat_id=46&art
http://www.sfn.org/briefing

http://www.alcohol-drug.com/neuropsych.htm
http://www.alcohol-drug.com/myopia.htm1
http://www.alcohol-misuse.com/? doxalcohol_and _the_brain&column=left
http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/ publications/arh283/125 - 132. htm
http://www.benbest.com/health/alcohol.html

Procedure:
1. Label containers 1,2,3,4,5,6,7
2. Measure out the following substances in this order:
3. Container 1= nothing
4. Container 2= 60 ml milk
5. Container 3= 60 ml water
6. Container 4= 60 ml beer
7. Container 5= 60 ml vodka
8. Container 6= 60 ml wine
9. Container 7= 60 ml cooking oil
10. Put one egg in each container and insure that the membrane is not broken
11. Observe changes once after 4 hours
12. After 4 hours pour the egg into the small square bowl.
13. Poke or lift up the yolk until it breaks
14. Observe when broken
15. Stir egg into liquid with fork and observe

Glossary:
* Neurogenesis= new nerve cells born in certain brain areas, which, with the right
health and nutrition migrate, differentiate and form connections with other brain
cells
* Chronic alcohol= drinking almost everyday
* Acute alcohol= drinking a whole lot at once
* Inhibited = stops or slows down
* Chalazae = the ropes inside the egg that holds the yolk in place
* Hydrophilic = attracted by water
* Hydrophobic =repelled by water
* Cognition = come to know, (learning) recognize or acknowledge
* Albumen = white of an egg

Conclusion:

Yes. I was right. The alcohol does have a different effect than the other substances.
It caused lots of white swirls in the albumen and it is only the containers that have
the alcohol that the egg yolk is sticky and the membrane had turned to mush. The
eggs exposed to alcohol broke down to a greater degree than those that were
exposed to nothing, milk, water or oil. Although the eggs exposed to water had
white chains in the albumen, this can be explained by the hydrophobic as well as
hydrophilic properties of the eggs cells but the eggs exposed to water did not break
down like those in the alcohol.
*********************************************************************

Alana's Alcohol Report:

Alcohol and the Brain Report
Today, many people, like me, are trying to tell people that alcohol is the worst
thing for you. Take Dr. Kim Nixon for instance. Doing a series of studies he found
that drinking any amount of alcohol, at any time, inhibited the neurogenesis. These
results have been confirmed by many other studies as well (see bibliography).
Neurogenesis is the growth of new nerve cells born in certain brain areas, which,
with the right health and nutrition, will migrate, differentiate and form connections
with other cells.
When alcohol is consumed, the central nervous system (which is made up of the
brain, the spinal cord and the nerves) functions decline. First, intellectual, then our
senses and motor control, and finally automatic functions, such as breathing and
heart action.
Adolescence is a time of great growth, not just physically, but in brain growth as
well. This makes adolescence a time of tremendous vulnerability to disruption of
neurogenesis with the drinking of alcohol. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse
and Alcoholism (NIAAA) in their publication The Effects of Alcohol on
Physiological Processes and Biological Development states that early alcohol use
may have detrimental effects on the developing brain, perhaps leading to problems
with cognition later in life. Later in the article they go on to say alcohol exposure
during adolescence actually may alter neurodevelopmental processes in such a way
that the likelihood of later abuse is increased. For example, alcohol use could
promote rewiring or alter normal maturation and pruning within the nervous
system. Ample evidence exists that exposing rats to low or moderate doses of
alcohol during the prenatal or early postnatal period yields a greater preference for
ethanols odor and its consumption later in life.
Michaele P. Dunlap states, from his studies, that patients with a history of chronic
alcohol consumption have smaller, lighter, more shrunken brains than non-

alcoholics of same age and gender. This finding has been repeatedly confirmed
using structural imaging techniques, such as CT scans and MRIs. Structural
imaging reveals a consistent association between heavy drinking and physical brain
damage.
The most vulnerable to the brain damage caused by drinking alcohol is an unborn
baby. Alcohol crosses the placenta freely and must then be metabolized by the
babys underdeveloped liver. This often results in the baby floating in the alcohol
long after the mothers blood alcohol level has dropped to zero. In their report
Alcohol Teratogenesis: Mechanisms of Damage and Strategies for Intervention,
Goodlett et Al State: More than 3 decades of human clinical research has provided
direct evidence that alcohol during pregnancy produces permanent brain damage in
the conceptus (baby) and associated life-long behavioural, social and cognitive
disorders. These individuals are diagnosed with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder
or FASD.
In study after study it has been shown that the brain is the organ most damaged by
alcohol. The Society for Neuroscience states Overall, the research adds fire to an
often-repeated message : just say NO
Ben Best, in his article Alcohol Health Benefit or Hazard? , he discusses the
health hazards and risks of brain damage from alcohol and he recommends For
those who highly value their brains/minds, this should be a matter of great
concern.
You may be wondering how the alcohol gets to the brain. Well, it goes in this
order:
1. mouth, 2. stomach, 3. small intestine, 4. heart, 5. brain, 6. liver. The brain is
number 5 because the heart pumps the alcohol through the body including the
brain. Different amounts or dosages cause different things like comas (at very high
amounts), slurred speech and reduced coordination (lower amounts). You can
usually tell if a person is drunk if they cannot walk properly. The police also carry
an object called a breathalizer which measures the amount of alcohol in your
blood.
Even though many parts of the body are vulnerable, the brain is the most because
alcohol is not digested like other food; it goes directly into the blood stream from
the stomach and small intestine. Alcohol then melts into the water of our body and,
vital organs, especially the brain, which contains large amounts of water, are more
vulnerable to the effects of alcohol.
In my experiment the egg represents a single cell, made mainly of amino acids or
proteins, which is similar to our brain cells. There is a germinal disc attached to the
yolk of the egg. This germ cell is the single cell from which life develops.

Surrounding and protecting the egg is the white or albumen. The Chalazae anchors
the yolk and keeps it from touching the shell as well as keeping the germ cell on
the top.
I hope that after my research more people will think twice before starting to drink
alcohol.
*********************************************************************

Note from Mom:

April 11, 2006
This past weekend was the regional science fair in Edmonton. The judging started
at 10 went to noon, then a lunch break, then judging from 1 -3:30. When I went to
have lunch with Alana she was quite excited because one of the judges is a
professor of biology at the University of Alberta and she excitedly told me, "We
have a lot in common, we both know a lot about FASD!" After the fair when Alana
received her judging notes the professor had given her a perfect score, there were
two more judges, another man who gave her almost perfect and then a woman who
gave her not very good marks at all - interesting eh? Anyway the professor had
written her a note that said, "You showed a great knowledge of problem from not
only your research but life experience. All parts of society should know the
damaging effects of alcohol and I think your experiement truly demonstrates a way
we can educate people using your experiment."
Thanks for your support!
Vicki
June 28, 2008
This year Alana did her project on Alcohol effects on Worm Behaviour. She took
72 worms (regular earthworms) and divided them into 12 terrariums. In three
terrariums she soaked leaves and oatmeanl in vodka, in three, beer, in three juice
and three just water. Her results were amazing. She researched "normal" worm
behaviour. She found out that if you layer the terrarium with dirt, sand, leaves, dirt,
sand, leaves, dirt sand leaves and put the worms on top they would burrow in and
around and within three weeks everything would be mixed up evenly. That is what
happened in the water. The vodka worms died within 10 days, the juice worms did
not mix things up as thoroughly, but the beer worms hardly mixed things up and
appeared to be very disorganized!?!?!?!? When she dumped the worms out to look
at them and compare them I commented on how bloated and fatty the beer worms
looked compared to the water or juice worms and Alana laughed and said "they
have beer bellies!"

At the Edmonton Science Fair she was interviewed by the Edmonton Journal.
When the reporter asked her what the conclusion to her project was she stated
"Alcohol causes abnormal behaviour in worms just like it does in humans" Another
person came up and looked at her project and said "cool ,you got the worms
drunk!" Alana just glared at him and said "I have personal experience with the
damage alcohol causes and I don't happen to think that getting anything drunk is
funny!" The guy apologized and left.
Alana received an honourable mention this year but there were four other students
doing their projects on alcohol and/or FASD, one of whom was her younger
brother Brian who did his on Alcohol and Bean Plants and focussed on the effects
of alcohol on living cells and it relation to cancer. I told Alana she had started a
trend!