> ## Content Index
> Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further.

# Local youngster vies to win national contest SM’s youngest scientist
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/local-youngster-vies-to-win-national-contest-sms-youngest-scientist/
- Published: 2007-09-04T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-24T02:46:14.000Z
- Author: Kevin Herrera
- Tags: Education, Downtown, #archive-import

DOWNTOWN We’ve all heard it a million times: Blondes have more fun. But is it true?

Not according to Catherine Haber’s award winning science project that has her in the running to be named America’s top young scientist by the Discovery Channel.

The 13-year-old student at St. Martin of Tours School earlier this year conducted an experiment to see how one’s hair color influences how others perceive them. She surveyed 100 people in and around Santa Monica and discovered that while being blonde may get you more dates, it can be a serious burden as blondes are generally considered to be less intelligent than brunettes.

“Blondes were definitely seen as being more attractive, but brunettes were more intelligent,” said Haber, who conducted the survey as part of a school project and later entered it into the Los Angeles County Science Fair, where she took second prize and advanced to the state championship, where she also came in second and advanced with 400 other students in grades 5 through 8 to the Discovery Channel Challenge.

“I didn’t expect this to go this far,” Haber said. “It’s gone much farther than I thought it would.”

Haber said she got the idea for her project after watching a lot of television and movies. She noticed that the blonde stereotype was prevalent in many titles.

“I also heard a lot of people saying things like ‘Oh, you’re blonde. You’re stupid.’ So why not check it out,” said Haber, who has brownish blonde hair. “I get pretty curious about things that come up. I’ve always been like that … I’ve kind of always been interested in science. Whether it’s things like plants, animals or minerals, I just find something really interesting and fascinating about it.”

Haber’s science teacher and her parents are proud of her accomplishments so far and could care less if she wins or loses.

“It doesn’t matter how she does at this point,” said Haber’s father, Richard Haber. “This is a great experience for her. It’s something different and will teach her a lot about the real world. She loves science and is very good at it. We are very proud of her.”

Haber said she isn’t too concerned about the outcome. She’s just happy to be included. She would like to be one of the 40 finalists that get to fly to Washington, D.C. in October to compete in the finals. The finalists receive $500, while the winner gets $20,000\. Haber would like to use the money to buy a car when she turns 16.

However, if she doesn’t make it that far, she won’t be crushed. After all, she has other interests to keep her occupied, including basketball and dancing, something which she has done since she was 3, taking after her mother, a professional dancer from Poland.

“I just have to sit and wait,” Haber said. “I’m just excited to be starting my last year at St. Martin of Tours.”

Haber looks forward to high school and eventually college, where she thinks she’ll major in psychology. The most important thing is that she has learned a valuable lesson that will stick with her for years to come.

“I learned how much stereotypes affect us in society today and what kind of impact they really do make on a subconscious level,” Haber said. “You don’t think that someone’s hair color makes a difference, but it does. It just makes me more aware of what I’m thinking when I look at someone for the first time, and to not make judgments just based on what someone looks like.”

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/090407-05_01.jpg)

YOUNG BRAINIAC: Catherine Haber’s project for the Discovery Channel Challenge delves into the differences between blondes and their brunette counterparts. (Photo: Photo courtesy Catherine Haber)

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on September 4, 2007.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/090407.pdf?ref=smdp.com)