Five teenage girls have been chosen as the five winners of the Biology Olympiad for high-school pupils, with the boys tailing behind them.
By JUDY SIEGEL-ITZKOVICH
Five teenage girls have been chosen as the first five winners of the Biology Olympiad for high-school pupils, with the boys tailing behind them.The recipients of the 14th annual competition were announced on Wednesday, with Tal Ben-Shimon of Jerusalem’s Boyer School coming first, receiving a year’s scholarship at Bar-Ilan University.Second was Bana Awad from a high school in Tamra and third was Maya Ziv of ORT School in Ma’alot. The fourth was Michal Wolman of the Orot School and then Keren Tokatly of Telma Yellin School in Givatayim. Around 250 pupils competed for the title, which was awarded by the Bar-Ilan Life Sciences Faculty.Only pupils who have taken five units of biology students were eligible. The candidates were judged on their knowledge of biology; their skill in research and thinking by writing a research paper on the breakdown of protein in the body; a test on the cell; and the presentation of personal research they each conducted.Honey as a natural antibiotic was investigated by Ben- Simhon, while other research subjects included pine needles and the ripening of wheat seeds.Thirty pupils who took part in the second stage of the Biology Olympics were asked to prepare posters on one research question such as the effects of onions on the development of bacteria.BIU’s Dr. Yanai Ofran also gave a lecture heard by all on the subject of planning drugs using computers.Among those involved are the Weizmann Institute of Science, the Education Ministry, ORT, the Bloomfield Science Museum and the Shimoni Group.