St. Vincent 7th-grader wins Diocesan Science Fair

SALT LAKE CITY — A ‘killer’ experiment garnered a Saint Vincent de Paul 7th-grader awards at both the Diocese of Salt Lake City Science Fair and the Salt Lake Valley Science and Engineering Fair.

Matthew Benvegnu’s project, "Killer Breath," earned him first place in the diocesan science fair categories of 7th grade biology, overall 7th grade, overall biology and the Young Scientist Award. However, because of a tabulation error at the Feb. 25th event, he wasn’t presented with his awards until later.

Benvegnu also entered the Salt Lake Valley Science and Engineering Fair March 28-30, taking second place in the microbiology category.

"My hypothesis was if the bacteria eradication efficacy of toothpaste and mouthwash is tested, and the subjects’ brushing time, gargling time, testing environment, amount of toothpaste, amount of mouthwash and agar plate handling and storage remain the same, then the toothpaste will eradicate more bacteria," said Benvegnu, who took first place in his category at last year’s diocesan science fair.

The subjects for his experiment this year were himself, his parents and his older sister. After testing, his hypothesis was proved wrong; according to the results of his experiment, mouthwash killed more bacteria than toothpaste.

Benvegnu’s experiment was scientifically very thorough, said Deborah McFarlane, St. Vincent middle school science and math teacher, adding that it covered significant details, the hypothesis was clear and provable, and his approach was highly scientific. Also, "He spent the time and energy to make it just perfect," she said.

Attending the diocesan science fair wasn’t required, but "I just wanted to go because I like competing against other people," said Benvegnu, who would like a career in dentistry.

In addition to preparing his graphs and other elements on the board for the fair, he worked on his oral presentation. "For about five days before the science fair, every night I would do my oral report with my parents and then they would critique it, and then I would do it again until they thought it was perfect," he said.

That exacting preparation doesn’t surprise McFarlane. "He always wants to do his best. It’s not just about the grade, he wants to know the right answer, and I think that drive has helped him in science, especially, because it’s about inquiry: wanting to know why and how."