All Integrated Biology, English, and Technology (IBET) students ended the year’s curriculum with the presentation of their experiments and research at the tjSTAR symposium on May 28.

Students were required to give a 12 to 14 minute presentation regarding an organism which they used as a test subject, and present their findings to groups of parents, fellow classmates and other guests.

Freshmen Sara Warrington, Jeffrey Liu, and Ginny Sun gave a presentation of their experiment testing the effects of various radiation types on the treatment of fecal coliform colonies. Because of the ever-increasing problem of fecal matter running off into freshwater lakes and streams, the bacterium from the fecal pollutants ends up in drinking water.

They tested both incandescent and ultraviolet rays on the growth of fecal coliform, by taking freshwater samples from a local lake and counting the fecal coliform bacteria colonies that grew after exposure to the light.

For most freshmen, presenting in front of such an age-varied and diverse audience is a new experience.

“Presenting in front of peers, upperclassmen, adults, and teachers in a professional environment was a new experience,” Ginny Sun said, “and a great way to wrap up a year of hard work.”