Newsletter of the Texas Academy of Science
Issue 2007-2 September 2007
Education, Service, Research
Greetings! What an exciting time to be involved with the Texas Academy of Science! Let me fill you on on several initiatives of the Academy that are going to bring change and growth in the near future.
First, TAS has an opportunity to acquire the Texas
System of Natural Laboratories (TSNL). TSNL is a non-profit organization that maintains a list of private properties in the state where scientific research is permitted. Through TSNL, researchers can find private land that may be suitable sites for scientific research. Property owners receive a tax break when their property is used for research. TSNL since its inception in 1967 was administered by Nevenna
Travis. As Ms. Travis is in her 90s, she is no longer able to lead TSNL. Over the past few months, the
TAS Board of Directors has discussed this opportunity. The general consensus is that TAS is the appropriate entity to run TSNL and this move is in line with the society’s purpose, i.e. to promote scientific research. There are still some unanswered questions which the Board is trying to get answered, but if resolved we will go ahead with the move this fall.
The TAS web site has not changed significantly from its original version. In the past few years, Baylor
University has graciously hosted the web site on its servers. We are in discussion with the Houston
Advanced Research Consortium to both redesign the web site and to host it. It is anticipated that these changes will occur over the next year so hopefully by the fall of 2008 you will be seeing a shiny new web site!
As you may already know, the 2008 annual meeting will be at Texas A&M University in Corpus Christi.
I have known the chair of the local host committee,
Roy Lehman, for many years and am sure that he will put on an outstanding meeting (no pressure, Roy!).
You can expect to see meeting information posted on the web site in late September.
I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E
2
2008 Annual Meeting in Corpus Christi
3
Junior Academy of Science 2007
4
Undergraduate Oral Presentation Winners
4
Winners of Junior Academy Competition
5
St. Edward’s University Chapter Update
6
Undergraduate Poster Competition Winners
7
Texas Science Olympiad
8
Current Section Chairs Contact Information
Texas Tech University has graciously offered to host the 2009 meeting at their field station in Junction.
The field station is nestled by the Llano River and offers great opportunities for collecting and exploring. Tom Arsuffi is director of the facility and chair of the local host committee.
Beyond 2009, we have no invitations. If your university is looking for a chance to showcase itself, this is an excellent opportunity. Yes, it is a lot of work, but TAS is a successful organization only because it has an involved membership. I would be happy to talk with potential hosts.
Lastly, to the students… plan ahead - abstracts will be due in early December! See you in March in
Corpus Christi.
Respectfully,
Hudson DeYoe, TAS President
The Texas Scientist - page 1

Photo courtesy of TAMUCC
Program Chair
Ray C. Mathews, Jr.
Texas Water Development Board
OPFCA/Environmental Section
1700 N. Congress Avenue
Austin, TX 78711-3231
Phone: 512/ 936-0822
Fax: 512/ 463-9980
Ray.Mathews@twdb.state.tx.us
Local Host
Dr. Roy L. Lehman
Professor of Biology
Director, Laguna Madre Field Station
Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi
6300 Ocean Drive, Unit 5802
Corpus Christi, Texas 78412
Phone: 361/ 825-5819
Fax: 361/ 825-3719 roy.lehman@tamucc.edu
The 111 th
Annual Meeting of the Texas Academy of Science will be held March 3-5, 2008 in Corpus
Christi, Texas .
NOT CONVINCED?!
Check out the smiles and excitement captured at this year’s Annual Meeting on the photo pages near the end of this newsletter. Where else can you go to be surrounded by people who understand the importance of science, and who are interested in you and want to hear about your work?
Come mingle with the brightest minds of your generation, get advice from someone whose work you admire, and help guide those who are following in your footsteps!
Stay tuned - the Texas Academy of Science web site will have all the information you need for registration, abstract submittal and lodging. We look forward to seeing senior members, students, and new faces at the meeting!
Meeting information: www.texasacademyofscience.org
The Texas Scientist - page 2

The 2007 Texas Junior Academy of Science was held April 3-4 on the campus of Texas A&M
University in College Station. Eighty-two students from 18 schools presented research papers in 12 scientific categories and were each given a classification of One, Two, Three, or Honorable Mention.
A banquet was held that night, at which the students judged best in each of the categories were announced. These 12 students presented in either the Natural Science or Physical Science finals on
Wednesday morning. The 15 students who received rankings of One are eligible to present their papers at the American Association for the Advancement of Science Annual Meeting in Boston,
February 14-18, 2008. Judges are consistently impressed by the level and quality of the research performed by the high school students in TJAS, as well as the dedication of their teachers, coaches, and sponsors. The 2008 TJAS will be held April 1-2 at Texas A&M University. See list of winners on page 4.
First Place Physical Science Division Winner Kevin Mader
First Place Natural Science Division Winner Andrew Emerald
The Texas Scientist - page 3
Junior Academy of Science
2007 Statistics and Details
Natural Science Categories - number of papers
Behavioral and Social Sciences – 4
Biochemistry – 5
Environmental Science – 7
Medicine and Health – 7
Microbiology – 10
Zoology – 4
Physical Science Categories
Chemistry – 10
Computer Science – 5
Earth and Space Sciences – 4
Engineering – 10
Mathematics – 7
Physics – 9
Participating Schools (numbers of students qualifying for finals)
Austin: Harmony Science Academy
League City: Clear Creek
Plano: Clark (1), Jasper, Plano (2), Plano
East, Shepton, Williams
San Antonio: Alamo Heights (1), Earl
Warren, John Jay (3), John Marshall (1),
Keystone, Northside Health Careers,
Tom C. Clark (2)
Seguin (1)
Sugar Land: William P. Clements (1)
The Woodlands: Sterlingridge
Homeschool

1 st
Place (tie) - Candace Wise, Sam
Houston State University, Botany Section:
“Using High Performance Liquid
Chromatography To Identify Gibberellin
And Gibberellin-Like Compounds From
Anemia mexicana Gametophyte Culture
Media.”
1 st
Place (tie) - Brianna Murphy, St.
Edward’s University, Cell and Molecular
Biology Section: “Age-Related Deficits In
Learning: A Study in C. elegans Showing the Ability of the Anti-Oxidant Alpha-
Lipoic Acid To Restore Learning Ability in Older Organisms.”
3 rd
Place - Den Davis, Hardin Simmons
University, Botany Section: “Application
Of Image Processing Methods For
Determining Stomatal Density Of
Several Woody Plant Species.”
Hon. Mention - Leah Lawdermilk, Angelo
State University, Botany Section: “Amino
Acid And Carbohydrate Content Of
Winecup Nectar And Pollen.”
Hon. Mention - Aaron Lehnhoff, Schreiner
University, Chemistry and Biochemistry
Section: “Best Quality Tryptic Peptide
Maps by Capillary Electrophoresis.”
Hon. Mention - Margaret Brown, St.
Edward’s University , Cell and Molecular
Biology Section: “A Study In
Caenorhabditis elegans : The Involvement
Of Serotonin And Octopamine In Neural
Modulation Of Thermotaxis.”
2007 TJAS First Place Winners (in alphabetic order) Kenneth Barshop,
Christina Chang, Andrew Emerald, Alexander Huang, Mustafa Iqbal,
Chang-woo Lee, Kevin Mader, Usman Mohammed, Hannah Perry, Neeraja
Prabhakaran, Neil Redfield, Sachein Sharma, Ashley Van Ooven, Nabeel
Vira, and Allen Zhong, pictured with Dr. Jane Schielack, Associate Dean for
Assessment and PreK-12 Education.
Junior Academy Winners
First Place: Andrew Emerald, Medicine and Health, the Major Outer Membrane Protein (MOMP) of
Chlamydia trachomatis into Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic
Expression Vectors.
Second Place: Kenneth Barshop, Biochemistry, Alamo
Heights: AIDS Susceptibility on the Human Genome
TSG101.
Third Place: Chang-Woo Lee, Environmental Science,
William P. Clements: Effect of Plants on the Relative
Abundance of BTEX Catabolic Genes in a
Contaminated Soil.
Physical Science
First Place: Kevin Mader, Computer Science, Tom C.
Clark: Simulating Efficiently Boarding Humans Onto a
Commercial Aircraft Using Java.
Second Place: Christina Chang, Chemistry, Plano: The
Synthesis and Properties of an Electrochemical Sensor for Mercury (II).
Third Place: Alexander Huang, Mathematics, Plano:
Van der Pol Oscillator Studies and Applications to
Heartbeat Regulations.
The Texas Scientist - page 4

COLLEGIATE CHAPTER UPDATE
St. Edward’s University in Austin
Last year Academy of Science students at St. Edward's
University participated in several events, including judging a middle school science fair and raising money for the chapter through a plant sale (pictured below).
We are excited about starting the new 2007-2008 year.
With the opportunities offered by the establishment of the John Brooks Williams Natural Science Center last year, we are eager to participate in new research and undertake challenging learning experiences.
Our chapter will be keeping busy by participating in the annual Texas Academy of Science meeting,
Founder's Day Service Project, plant sales, and camping trips.
- Anna Meier, President
Proceedings
Do you have copies of old Proceedings of the
Academy? If so, we want them! The Gale
Group is the organization that digitizes copies of the Texas Journal of Science and makes them available on their website: http://infotrac.galegroup.com/itweb/texasacad
(to access the Journal use the ID “Texas”).
They are planning to digitize copies of the proceedings that were once published after each annual meeting of the Academy.
Email Ned Strenth at ned.strenth@angelo.edu
if you have copies of the old Proceedings that we can digitize and make available to everyone.
The Texas Scientist - page 5

1 st
Place (tie)- Constance Cole, Baylor University, Botany Section: “Periderm Initiation and Early Development in Platanus occidentalis L.”
1 st
Place (tie) - Phillip Scott, Howard Payne University, Cell and Molecular Biology Section:
3
“Photosynthetic Effects of Different Light Intensities on Mutant and Wild-Type Arabidopsis thaliana .” rd
Place - K.C. Seilheimer, Southwestern University, Cell and Molecular Biology Section:
“Cytotoxicity of Anthrapyrazoles in (AP-10 and AP-11) on Human Prostate Cancer (DU-145) and Testicular
Cancer (Netra-2) in Culture.”
Hon. Mention - Ana Collins, University of Texas at Austin, Geosciences Section: “The Geochemistry of Beryl and Its Implication for the Classification of Granitic Pegmatites.”
Hon. Mention - Mike Carolan, University of Houston, Downtown, Environmental Science Section:
“Evaluation of Microbial Communities Within Potatoes with and without Zebra Chip Symptoms to Determine
Causal Disease Organism.”
Hon. Mention - Binh Nguyen, University of Houston, Downtown, Chemistry and Biochemistry Section:
“Nickel Salt Based Sensors for Determination of Small Organic Compounds.”
Some of the winners of the
Undergraduate
Poster
Competition at the 2007 Annual
Meeting
The Texas Scientist - page 6

By Nancy Magnussen, Ph.D., Director of Educational Outreach and Women's Programs,
College of Science, Texas A&M University
Exciting, captivating, thought-provoking – not words that are traditionally used by teachers and students to describe science education programs … at least not until they have experienced Texas Science Olympiad!
On April 27/28, 2005, sixty two 15-student teams representing schools from across Texas, and special guest team High
School Thomas Jefferson from Mexico, gathered on the campus of Texas A&M University in College Station to compete in the state-level science competition comprised of 28 diverse events per age division. These events covered a gamut of topics within science and engineering, including events involving rocks/minerals, insect, and amphibian identification; remote sensing; airplane design and flight; robotics; chemistry and physics labs; genetics; epidemiology; forensics and environmental impact.
Texas Science Olympiad, a program for middle and high school students, offers something for every child – from the academically gifted to the student that is a talented hands-on problem solver. This program also reaches segments of the population that might otherwise be left out of science education programs – one teacher shared her experience of how Science Olympiad provided for the first time a program where English as a Second Language students and their families could participate and excel in many of the Olympiad science activities.
Texas Science Olympiad is in its 6 th
year at Texas A&M.
Over this time period the program has expanded from 50 teams in the Houston and Austin areas, to 143 teams from all parts of Texas. The formation of regional competitions has been instrumental in promoting this growth. This year qualifying regionals were held at Texas A&M - Kingsville,
Tarleton State University -- Stephenville, the University of Texas - Dallas, Blinn College - Bryan, Texas A&M
International University – Laredo, South Texas College – McAllen, Cy-Fair Community College – Cypress, and the
University of Texas – Austin.
The winners of this year’s competition were:
C-Division (high school):
* Liberal Arts and Science Academy, LBJ High School –
Austin
* William P. Clements High School -- Sugarland
B-Division (middle school) winners were:
* Kealing Middle School – Austin
* Hyde Park Baptist -- Austin
These 4 teams went on to represent Texas at the 2007 National
Science Olympiad held at the Wichita State University, in
Wichita, Kansas. The Texas teams each received a travel award to help defray travel expenses, thanks to the generous sponsorship of the Texas Academy of Science. Many thanks to the Texas Academy of Science for their continued enlightened support!!!
The Texas Scientist - page 7

ANTHROPOLOGY
Chair: Roy B. Brown
Instituto Nacional de Antropología y Historia
748 C Espada
El Paso , TX 79912-1945
Ph: 915.833.0508
E-mail: rbbrown@utep.edu
Vice chair: Robert Mallouf
Big Bend Museum
Sul Ross State University
Alpine, Texas
Ph: 915.837.8179
CELL AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY
Chair: Jon B. Scales
Biology Department
3410 Taft
Midwestern State University
Wichita Falls, Texas 76308
Ph: 940.397.4297
FAX: 940.397.4831
E-mail: jon.scales@mwsu.edu
Vice chair: Magaly Rincon-Zachary
Biology Department
Midwestern State University
Wichita Falls , Texas 76308
Ph: 940.397.4254
FAX: 940.397.4831
E-mail: magaly.rincon@mwsu.edu
BOTANY:
Chair: Alan W. Lievens
1000 West Court Street
Texas Lutheran University
Seguin , Texas 78155
Ph: 830.372.6037
FAX: 830.372.6968
E-mail: aliwcwna@tlu.edu
Vice-chair: Joan Hudson
Department of Biological Sciences
Sam Houston State University
Box 2116
Huntsville , Texas 77341
Ph: 936.294.1541
FAX: 936.294.3940
E-mail: bio_jxn@shsu.edu
CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY:
Chair: Benny E. Arney, Jr.
Department of Chemistry
Sam Houston State University
Box 2117
The Texas Scientist - page 8
Huntsville , Texas 77341-2117
E-mail: chm_bea@shsu.edu
Vice-chair: CMB 6260
Scheiner University
Kerrville , Texas 78208
E-mail: Kpmiller@schreiner.edu
COMPUTER SCIENCE:
Chair: Laura J. Baker
Department of Computer Science
St. Edward’s University
3001 S. Congress Avenue – Box 910
Austin , Texas 78704
Ph: 512.448.8675
FAX: 512.448.8492
E-mail: laurab@stedwards.edu
Vice-chair: James McGuffee
Department of Computer Science
St. Edward’s University
CMB 795
Austin , Texas 78704
Ph: 512.448.8465
FAX: 512.448.8492
E-mail: jamesum@stedwards.edu
CONSERVATION ECOLOGY:
Chair: Cathy Early
Department of Biology
University of Mary Hardin Baylor
Belton , Texas 76513
E-mail: cearly@umhb.edu
Vice-chair: Diana Comuzzie
Department of Biology
CMB 6233 – Schreiner University
Kerrville, Texas 78028
Ph: 830.792.7244
FAX: 830.792.7439
E-mail: comuzzie@schreiner.edu
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE:
Chair: Kenneth R. Summy
1201 West University Drive
University of Texas-Pan American
Edinburg , Texas 78539-2999
Ph: 956.316.7927
FAX: 956.381.3657
E-mail: krsummy@panam.edu
Vice-chair: Forrest M. Mims III
433 Twin Oak Road
Seguin , Texas 78155
Ph: 830.372.0548
E-mail: forrest.mims@ieee.org
(continued on next page)

FRESHWATER AND MARINE
SCIENCE:
Chair: Brian W. Brooks
Center for Reservoir & Aquatic Systems Research
One Bear Place - #97266
Baylor University
Waco , Texas 76798
Ph: 254.710.6553
FAX: 254.710.3409
E-mail: Bryan_Brooks@baylor.edu
Vice-chair: Romi Burks
Southwestern University
1001 East University Avenue
Georgetown , Texas 78626
Ph: 512.863.1280
FAX: 512.863.1696
E-mail: burksr@southwestern.edu
GEOSCIENCES:
Chair: Carol Thompson
Box T0540
Tarleton State University
Stephenville, TX 76401
Ph: 254.968.9739
FAX: 254.968.9953
E-mail: ctompson@tarleton.edu
Vice Chair: Joe Satterfield
Physics Department
Angelo State University
P.O. Box 10904, ASU Station
San Angelo , Texas 76909
Ph: 325.942.2577 ex.226
E-mail: joseph.satterfield@angelo.edu
MATHEMATICS:
Chair: William Clark
Dept. of Mathematics and Statistics
Stephen F. Austin State University
Nacogdoches , Texas 75962
Ph: 936.468.3805
E-mail: clark@sfasu.edu
Vice Chair: Sandra Luna McCune
Department of Elementary Education
Box 13017 – Stephen F. Austin State University
Nacogdoches , Texas 75962-3017
Ph: 409.468.2904
FAX: 409.468.1701
E-mail: smccune@sfasu.edu
PHYSICS:
Physics Department
Angelo State University
San Angelo , Texas 76909
Ph: 325.942.2524
E-mail: David.Bixler@angelo.edu
The Texas Scientist - page 9
Department of Physics
3410 Taft Blvd.
Midwestern State University
Wichita Falls , Texas 76308
Ph: 940.397.4184
FAX: 940.397.4442
E-mail: Jackie.dunn@mwsu.edu
SCIENCE EDUCATION:
Chair: Kaycee Sullivan
P.O. Box 186
Junction , Texas 76849
Ph: 325.446.2301/210.289.1668
FAX: 325.446.4011
E-mail: kaycie.sullivan@ttu.edu
Vice-chair: Song Gao
Environmental Studies
Baylor University
Waco , Texas
Ph: 254.710.6581
E-mail: song_gao@baylor.edu
SYSTEMATICS AND EVOLUTIONARY
BIOLOGY:
Chair: Allan W. Hook
Department of Biology
St. Edward’s University
Austin , Texas 78704-6487
Ph: 512.448.8466
FAX: 512.448.8764
E-mail: allanh@stedwards.edu
Vice-chair: Tracy Maginnis
Department of Biology
St. Edward’s University
Austin , Texas 78704-6487
Ph:512.637.5635
FAX: 512.448.8764
E-mail: taram@stedwards.edu
TERRESTRIAL ECOLOGY AND
MANAGEMENT:
Chair: Christopher M. Ritzi
Department of Biology - Box C-64
Sul Ross State University
Alpine, Texas 79832
Ph: 432.837.8430
FAX: 432.837.8262
E-mail: critzi@sulross.edu
Vice-chair: Danial Leavitt
Department of Biology - Box C-64
Sul Ross State University
Alpine, Texas 79832
FAX: 432.837.8262
E-mail: dlea886@sulross.edu

Memories from the 110 th Annual Meeting at Baylor University, March 2007
The Texas Scientist - page 10

Request from the Editor
The Texas Scientist is distributed solely through electronic means, using email and the Academy website, www.texasacademyofscience.org
. Please take the opportunity to print this newsletter, share it with your colleagues who are not members of the Academy, and post it on bulletin boards at your university or place of work.
Contact Cindy Contreras at (512) 912-7095 or cindy.contreras@tpwd.state.tx.us
for any questions or suggestions regarding The
Texas Scientist .
Research is what I'm doing when I don't know what I'm doing. -
Wernher Von Braun
Cindy Contreras
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
3000 S. IH-35, Suite 320
Austin, TX 78704
Graduate Student Winners
At press time the list of graduate student winners from the 2007 Annual Meeting was not available – be looking for this in the January 2008 issue of
The Texas Scientist.
The Texas Scientist - page 11