R.C. Murphy Junior High School Takes Fifth Place in the National Science Bowl

May 7, 2010

UPTON, NY — Students from R.C. Murphy Junior High School in Stony Brook placed fifth in the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Science Bowl, competing against 37 middle school regional champions from across the nation. The team received a cash prize of $1,000 for its school’s science department.

5th Place Science Bowl Winners enlarge

With U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu (left) are students in the R.C. Murphy Jr. High School team who took fifth place in the 2010 National Science Bowl: (from left) Harrison Li, Akilesh Tangella, Yifan Wang, Daniel Redlinger, Raymond Yin, and their coach Patrick McManus. Photo courtesy of Dennis Brack/National Science Bowl.

In March, the R.C. Murphy team took first place competing against 20 teams from 13 Long Island middle schools in the Regional Middle School Science Bowl at Brookhaven Lab – the second consecutive year that the school took first place in the contest. The Science Bowl is a fast-paced question-and-answer tournament designed to test students’ knowledge of life sciences, physical sciences, earth sciences, mathematics, and general science. DOE funded the winning team’s all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C. to participate in the national contest, held April 29 to May 4.

First Lady Michelle Obama asked the bonus questions in the championship middle school match, which ended with the Albuquerque Academy in New Mexico taking first place. The First Lady also spoke to the more than 500 students and 100 teacher/coaches in attendance about the importance of science education to the nation’s economic and technological future.

Energy Secretary Steven Chu congratulated all the students who reached the final stage of the competition, adding, “They represent the next generation of scientific leaders, and can be rightly proud of what they have accomplished.”

DOE created the National Science Bowl in 1991 to encourage students to excel in mathematics and science and to pursue careers in these fields. More than 200,000 students have participated in the National Science Bowl over its 20-year history.

2010-11128  |  INT/EXT  |  Newsroom