That's because the seventh-grader at Ted Polk Middle School in Carrollton-Farmers Branch learned that darkness is the best way to prolong the life of the fruit after conducting a science experiment.

"My dad really likes bananas, and he gets disappointed when they turn brown," said Lisa, whose experiment included covering the bananas in oil, water or flour and storing them with a drying agent, in darkness or in the open to determine what conditions kept them yellow and firm the longest.

Lisa, 13, had a chance to show off her project Saturday during the Beal Bank Dallas Regional Science and Engineering Fair in the Automobile Building at Fair Park.

She and about 800 other seventh- through 12th-graders from eight counties participated in the 49th annual regional science fair. Since its inception in 1957, it has grown to be one of the largest in the country, organizers said.

"Most of these students may never wind up being scientists or engineers, but they have so much energy and ingenuity," said Fred Olness, director of the event and a physics professor at Southern Methodist University.

"While you're having fun on the outside, your body is under stress," said Nannan, explaining that during game time the body tenses up, the blood vessels constrict and the blood pumps through the heart at a higher rate.

He wasn't the only student to explore deep topics. Students examined eating disorders and their effects on the body; black children with sickle cell anemia; obesity; depression and the effects of exercise; and whether nature could help treat cancer.

Tami Tran and Lindley Maryoung, seniors at North Garland High School, conducted an experiment that revealed that bacteria existed on the goggles they used in school science classes.

The 17-year-olds learned that the school's process of keeping the goggles boxed up with ultraviolet lights and mirrors helps sterilize them about 90 percent of the time, but that's still not quite enough for their comfort.

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