60th Annual STS (2000–2001)
Finalists
Kimberly Ann Kempadoo

NEW YORK
Kimberly Ann Kempadoo, 17, of Hillcrest, studied the behavioral effects of the neurotransmitter dopamine on the locomotor performance of goldfish for her behavioral and social sciences entry in the Intel Science Talent Search. In her experiment, conducted at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University, the swimming behavior of fish with increased and decreased dopamine levels was digitally videotaped and analyzed by motion analysis software. Calculations of velocity and other measurements indicated that higher dopamine levels enhanced fish behaviors. Kimberly believes that understanding the effect of dopamingeric pathways on behavior could have important implications in the battle against neurological disease. At Ramapo Senior High School in Spring Valley, she is class president, president of the science honor society, vice president of the math honor society and captain of the varsity volleyball team. An active church-group and community-service volunteer, she is the daughter of Nelson and Oreann Kempadoo. Kimberly hopes to study neuroscience and biomedical engineering at MIT.