Two Loudoun County Public School Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair Finalists Win Special Awards

Loudoun County Public School (LCPS) Zoe DeWitt and Jagadeepram Maddipatla won special awards at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) in Dallas, TX.

Zoe DeWitt, a junior at Stone Bridge High School and the Academies of Loudoun, won a first-place award from the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in the Behavioral and Social Sciences category. Her research, “Determining the Impact of Hericium erinaceus on Aggression in Socially Isolated Drosophila melanogaster,” investigated the effect of lion’s mane mushrooms on socially isolated fruit flies.

Jagadeepram Maddipatla, a junior at Rock Ridge High School, won a second-place award from the National Security Agency in the Embedded Systems category. He designed and developed a computer chip that operates on light as part of his project, “Creating a Light Speed Linear Algebra Accelerator with Silicon Photonics.”

In addition to the two Regeneron ISEF winners, three LCPS students also competed in the Regeneron ISEF finals. They are:

• Aryaa Agarwal, a senior at Broad Run High School and the Academies of Loudoun

• Samantha Brown, a senior at Broad Run High School and the Academies of Loudoun

• Tyler Smith, a senior at Heritage High School and the Academies of Loudoun

Students earned the right to compete at the Regeneron ISEF 2023 by winning a top prize at a local, regional, state or national science fair. 

To view the virtual project displays as well as a full list of award winners, go to the Virtual Project Booth on the Society for Science website.

Published May 24, 2023