For release: May 8, 2008

Contacts: 
Steve Karsjen, Science Bowl coordinator, 515-294-5643

IOWA TEAM PARTICIPATES IN DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY'S NATIONAL SCIENCE BOWL

Cedar Rapids-Marion Home Schools finishes fourth in its division

AMES, Iowa – Cedar Rapids-Marion Home Schools placed fourth in its division at the U.S. Department of Energy National High School Science Bowl held May 1-5 in Washington, D.C.

Cedar Rapids-Marion defeated teams from Oak Ridge, Tenn.; Lafayette, La.; Columbus, Miss.; and Glastonbury, Conn., to win fourth place in its eight-team Galileo bracket. The winner of each of the eight divisions went on to compete in the double-elimination portion of the competition, which was won by Santa Monica High School from Santa Monica, Calif.

“I congratulate all of the students who competed in this year’s U.S. Department of Energy National Science Bowl,” U.S. Secretary of Energy Samuel W. Bodman said. “As proud as I am to celebrate the impressive accomplishments of these students – and they truly are impressive – the truth is that the National Science Bowl is more than just an academic contest. It's an important part of the effort to reinvigorate science in America, and it is my hope that these young competitors will help raise awareness of the great need to support scientific education and inspire students across the nation to pursue this discipline.”

The National Science Bowl is sponsored annually by the DOE. This year’s competition consisted of 67 teams of students from high schools around the United States. To get to nationals, teams have to first win regional Science Bowl competitions held in their respective states. The Ames Laboratory/Iowa State University Regional Science Bowl was held on Jan. 26, 2008. Forty-eight teams from Iowa high schools across the state participated in the Ames Lab/ISU bowl. Cedar Rapids-Marion Home Schools beat out Des Moines Central Academy to advance to the National Science Bowl

The Cedar Rapids-Marion team included seniors Leif Gaebler and Edward Talmage, juniors Evan Gaebler and Andrew Baskerville and freshman Alan Talmage. The team was coached by Sally Gaebler.

Ames Laboratory is a U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science laboratory operated for the DOE by Iowa State University. The Lab conducts research into various areas of national concern, including the synthesis and study of new materials, energy resources, high-speed computer design, and environmental cleanup and restoration .

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Cedar Rapids-Marion Home Schools team: (l-r) Lief Gaebler, Alan Talmage, Evan Gaebler, Edward Talmage, and Andrew Baskerville. (For a high-resolution copy of this image, contact Kerry Gibson.)

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