Broadcom MASTERS awards honor science, invention and teamwork
Middle school competition awards students for thinking creatively and using science smarts
Nobel Prize winner H. Robert Horvitz with the 30 finalists of the 2016 Broadcom MASTERS.
L. Doane/SSP
WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Tuesday night, 30 excited teens and tweens cheered each other on at the Carnegie Institution for Science. Over the previous few days, they had competed in teams to solve scientific problems and showed off their winning science fair projects. Now, they were receiving honors and recognition, and $100,000 in prize money, at the Broadcom MASTERS competition.
The Broadcom MASTERS (which stands for Math, Applied Science, Technology and Engineering for Rising Stars) was created by Society for Science & the Public. It’s sponsored by the Broadcom Foundation. Society for Science & the Public also published Science News for Students and this blog. Every year, this competition brings together middle-school science fair winners from around the country. These hardworking teens then get to celebrate their achievements at a gala dinner. Eureka! Lab was on hand to live-tweet the event on November 1.
We’ve put together a Storify of the night’s events below. Congratulations to all of the winners on their creativity, teamwork and effort!
Edit
Broadcom MASTERS 2016
The awards ceremony for the 30 finalists of the Broadcom Math, Applied Science, Technology and Engineering for Rising Stars competition
-
Getting excited for the Broadcom MASTERS awards ceremony! Follow along with us here! #brcmMASTERS pic.twitter.com/MGyZ6Oa49B -
Our master of ceremonies tonight is Joe Palca @joesbigidea from NPR. #brcmMASTERS
-
Joe’s Big IdeaJoe’s Big Idea is a new project by NPR Science Correspondent Joe Palca that examines where scientists’ big ideas come from, how they pursue those ideas and how something goes from an idea to a discovery. -
-
“I look before me, and I see tomorrow’s innovators.” – @MayaAjmera #brcmMASTERS
-
“You are all winners” @MayaAjmera says to the finalists #brcmMASTERS
-
But success doesn’t come on its own. Remember to thank your parents, teachers, mentors and friends. – @MayaAjmera #brcmMASTERS
-
Now from Broadcom, Paula Golden, who is committed to expanding STEM knowledge #brcmMASTERS pic.twitter.com/j3tKggyaac -
“You may end up somewhere you never dreamed, just because you followed your passion” @PaulaGolden48 encourages the 2016 #brcmMASTERS
-
Next up is the McGregor award, a #brcmMASTERS finalist picked by his peers for his leadership.
-
The McGregor award goes to Nickolai Ortiz! #brcmMASTERS our new class speaker! pic.twitter.com/i5SL3E0jsq -
“As a #brcmMASTERS I feel like I’ve found my people.” Nickolai Ortiz.
-
Our keynote speaker tonight is Lindsay T. Aitchison, from NASA’s Johnson Space Center. #brcmMASTERS pic.twitter.com/Xg4TxrhdEG -
Aitchinson says her parents took her by NASA on the way to Disney. Doesn’t remember Disney but boy did she remember NASA. #brcmMASTERS
-
I never thought I’d be designing space suits, but you have to be open to changing your path. – Lindsay Aitchison #STEM #brcmMASTERS
-
Aitchison says don’t be afraid to fail, shared funny stories of spacesuit flubs, including ending up on your back “like a bug” #brcmMASTERS
-
“Don’t be afraid to fail: you learn a lot from failing smart.” – Lindsay Aitchison #STEM #STEMadvice #brcmMASTERS
-
These finalists are definitely not afraid to fail. Listen below to some of the times their science projects blew up in their faces, and what they learned from the fallout.
-
When science blew up in my face, I learned…Everyone working on a science project sometimes fails. Listen to these Broadcom MASTERS finalists share what their failures taught them. -
Time for the prizes! #brcmMASTERS
-
First award is about to be presented! #brcmMASTERS pic.twitter.com/YqkxgayDgA
-
Guess what?? The names of the #brcmMASTERS have been submitted to get their names on an asteroid!!!
-
The finalists and their teachers got their names entered in a lottery at MIT Lincoln Lab’s Ceres Connection. If they get chosen, their name will end up on a minor planet!
-
MIT Lincoln Laboratory: Ceres ConnectionThis site serves as a starting point for students and teachers to learn more about how a minor planet is located and named and how to learn more about a specific minor planet. All minor planets named in the Ceres Connection program have been discovered by LINEAR, the Lincoln Near-Earth Asteroid Research program. -
The team award goes to team purple! Nathan Deng, Aria Eppinger, Anushka Naiknaware, Rachel Pizzolato, Lucas Ritzdorf! #brcmMASTERS
-
-
The rising star award goes to the #brcmMASTERS who most serve others. This year, Ashini Modi and James Fagan!
-
Ashini Modi studied dark matter. #brcmMASTERS
-
James Fagan studied what would be required to fly on Mars. #brcmMASTERS
-
STEM award winners get scholarships to summer camp! #brcmMASTERS
-
2nd place in science: Cynthia Chen, who studied how to sprout seeds with less water, to help farmers in drought. #brcmMASTERS
-
1st place in science: Ananya Ganesh, who studied muscle signals to treat teeth grinding. #brcmMASTERS
-
2nd place in tech: Shreya Ramachandran, who studied the effects of soap nut grey water on the environment. #brcmMASTERS
-
1st place in tech: Adishree Ghatare, who made software for helping people learn new words. #brcmMASTERS
-
2nd place in engineering: Emhyr Subramanian. He studied super absorbent polymers to get rid of waste. #brcmMASTERS
-
1st place in engineering: Brendan Crotty, who studied the best way to insulate a gas forge. #brcmMASTERS
-
2nd place in math: Olivia Lazorik. Her project studied the effects of ocean acidification on shrimp. #brcmMASTERS
-
1st place in math: Anushka Naiknaware, who developed a sensor for when to change bandages on wounds. #brcmMASTERS
-
A new award this year, the Lemelson award! #brcmMASTERS
-
The @LemelsonFdn Award for Invention is given to a young inventor creating promising solutions to real-world problems. #brcmMASTERS
-
The Lemelson award goes to a #brcmMASTERS who embodies invention! Winner gets $7,500.
-
This year’s Lemelson award goes to Nathan Deng, who manipulated surface tensions of cleaning fluid. #brcmMASTERS
-
The Marconi/Samueli Award for Innovation is awarded to a student that demonstrates prowess in electrical engineering. #brcmMASTERS
-
The Marconi/Samueli award for innovation takes home $10k. #brcmMASTERS
-
The Marconi/Samueli award goes to Kaien Yang, who designed a tool to detect depression early. #brcmMASTERS
-
The @RWJF Award recognizes a student whose work shows the most promise in health-related fields. #brcmMASTERS
-
Another new award this year, from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation for health advancement. #brcmMASTERS The winner gets $20k!
-
The Robert Wood Johnson award goes to Aria Eppinger, who studied the effect of a pesticide on gut bacteria. #brcmMASTERS
-
The #SamueliFoundation Prize is awarded to a student who exemplifies how research, innovation, & teamwork come together to impact our lives
-
The teacher of the #SamueliFoundation Prize winner also receives $1000 for his or her classroom, courtesy of @Deloitte.
-
The Samueli foundation grand prize is our last prize, winner takes home $25k. For science, inspired thinking and leadership. #brcmMASTERS
-
The Samueli prize goes to Eleanor Sigrest, who studied rockets, nozzles and thrusts! #brcmMASTERS pic.twitter.com/aNHfBlIXI3 -
Congratulations to all the finalists! You are all incredible and all winners! #brcmMASTERS pic.twitter.com/ODG4ApoT4x
