Wantagh High School senior Analise Keym turned her passion for badminton into a groundbreaking research project — and now, a published academic paper.
Keym, who has been on the varsity badminton team since her sophomore year, spent nearly a year studying the impact of different racquet strings, work she began as part of her Advanced Placement Research class. That effort culminated in her research being published Dec. 5 in the Journal of High School Science.
“I wanted to find the right strings for my racquet,” she said. “There was a gap for me to fill in.”
As an attacking-style player, Keym sought to determine which racquet strings produce the most effective results. Using an accelerometer, she tested the acceleration of the shuttlecock across three different string types — gathering empirical data to answer a question that, to her surprise, hadn’t been thoroughly studied.
“Now I have empirical-based evidence, supporting which ones are best,” she said.
Her work earned her a 5 — the highest possible score — from the College Board on her 5,000-word AP Research paper and accompanying 20-minute presentation.
Wantagh launched its AP Capstone program a decade ago. Keym is only the second student in the program’s history to have her research accepted for publication. Getting her paper journal-ready took time — she spent the summer and early part of the school year expanding her methodology and revising her work for a professional science audience, nearly doubling the paper’s original length.
Her published paper is titled, “Polymer microstructure effects on impact response, frequency dynamics, and vibrational signatures in high-performance badminton racket strings.”
Heather Naughton, who teaches AP Research, said she encouraged Analise to explore publishing options and was thrilled to see her student’s work reach a wider audience.
“Analise is probably one of the most motivated students we’ve had in the 10 years of this program,” Naughton said. “The quality of the work and the dedication over the year and a half that she put into her research is exemplary. Analise really is the epitome of the determination and drive and intellect expected in AP Capstone.”
In addition to badminton and research, Keym is co-president of the Creative Writing Club, vice president of the Heroes Among Us Club, and an editor for Escapers, the school’s creative writing magazine. She’s also a member of Mathletes.
By the time she graduates in June, she will have taken 15 AP classes — including one via self-study — and scored a 3 or higher on every AP exam through her junior year. She is on track to earn both the AP Capstone Diploma and the Seal of Biliteracy.
Keym is still exploring college options, but says she hopes to continue pursuing academic research in the future.
