Approximately 12 million American adults experience panic attacks or a panic disorder at some point in their lives. These are defined by the National Institute of Mental Health as unexpected and repeated episodes of intense fear accompanied by physical symptoms like chest pain, heart palpitations or shortness of breath.
After conducting their research, Warner Middle School eighth-graders Donna Huynh and Maryan Nguyen set out to help prevent these symptoms by designing an on-the-go panic attack treatment — earning them the title of Region 6 winners in the 2023 ExploraVision Regional Fair Competition.
Created by the National Science Teaching Association and sponsored by Toshiba, this competition engages K-12 students in the United States and Canada to utilize STEM in solving real-world problems. The ExploraVision program challenges students to envision and communicate new technology 20 years in the future through collaborative brainstorming and research of current science and technology.
Donna and Maryan’s project, called “Live-posome: On-the-go panic attack treatment,” targets the cause of mental and physical symptoms that can be triggered by anxiety and panic attacks. By decreasing the availability of the corticotropin-releasing hormone, or CRH, in the brain, the solution they created can stop the neural pathway of panic attacks before they occur.
Warner Middle School biology teacher and ExploraVision team coach Travis Garwick said his students took on new roles in hands-on activities by testing hypotheses, monitoring their experiments, collecting data and documenting the growth of their project.
“Middle school is notorious for youth being disconnected from community, family and self,” Garwick said. “This project helps many of them reconnect and redirect their passion around a STEM topic of their choice. Working on solving problems firsthand within our society or natural systems instills a sense of pride that is contagious.”
Since its inception in 1992, more than 450,000 students from across the United States and Canada have participated in the competition.
The Westminster School District team will go on to compete in the national competition for a chance at scholarship awards and a trip to Washington, D.C. in June.
Here are the other stories we’ve been following this week:
- The Fullerton School District recently unveiled its new community center at Nicolas Junior High to provide thousands of students and their families with wrap-around services from health care to free healthy meals.
- On April 29, 10 school districts will join the Orange County Department of Education recruit future classroom teachers, clerical support staff and additional positions at the 2023 Spring Career Fair.
- While California public school enrollment has declined for the last six years, new data from the state Department of Education suggests student population numbers are stabilizing.
- Four Northwood High School sophomores were declared winners of the NASA TechRise Student Challenge, landing a spot for their experiment to be launched into the stratosphere this summer.
- A student-run organization in the Capistrano Unified School District is holding its fourth engagement fair to connect elementary through high school students with volunteer opportunities.
- The Laguna Beach Unified School District has proposed facility upgrades to four of its school campuses, including a new aquatics facility for the community and a shared administrative building for district and school staff.
- Orange County students who celebrate the Muslim holy month known as Ramadan are learning how to navigate their academics and extracurricular activities with the almost 14-hour fasting period, which started March 23 and is observed for 30 days.
- More than 130 Edison High School students with special needs joined high school and college athletes to try interactive sports as part of Special Forces Sports Day. On April 6, Edison students also competed in relay races and sprints alongside other Huntington Beach Union High School District teams at the Unified Sports track meet.
- A group of fourth- and fifth-graders at Weaver Elementary School in the Los Alamitos Unified School District have published the campus’ first student-run school newsletter.
- A parent in the Orange Unified School District filed a lawsuit alleging that the school board majority violated California’s Brown Act, the Register reported.
- Nicolas Junior High staff organized a town hall meeting Tuesday to address parents’ concerns following an investigation conducted by the Fullerton Police Department of a student’s social media post, the Register reported.
- More than 650 Irvine Unified School District students performed ensemble musical selections at the 39th annual Donald Bren Honors Concert.
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