Eric Chen wins 2014 Intel Science Talent Search
March 11 gala honors 40 brilliant finalists for their research and service
WASHINGTON – The Intel Science Talent Search concluded on Tuesday, March 11, with a gala at the National Building Museum. Run by Society for Science & the Public, the Science Talent Search brings together 40 of the brightest high school seniors to share their research projects. Participants spend a whirlwind few days touring Washington, D.C., presenting their research and even meeting President Obama. At the gala, the top 10 projects received awards of $20,000 or more, and the first-place winner received $100,000.
This year’s first place winner was Eric S. Chen, who designed a computer simulation used to find drugs to treat influenza. Second place went to Kevin Lee, who used a mathematical simulation to better describe the shape of the heart as it beats. Eureka! Lab live-tweeted the event (follow @eureka_labs), and we have collected the tweets and articles about the finalists below. Congratulations to all 40 of the finalists for their hard work!
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The Intel Science Talent Search Awards Gala!
The Intel Science Talent Search Awards Gala Took place Tuesday night! Run by the Society for Science & the Public, the Intel Science Talent Search brings 40 of the brightest high school students in the country to Washington, D.C. to share their research projects with the public.
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The kids who make it to the top 40 are amazing. They start non-profits, write plays, lead the track team, and win debate championships. And in their spare time, they study cancer, water quality, heart rhythms, mortgages and much more. The Intel Science Talent Search Gala is where one of these brilliant students will be named the winner, taking home a prize of $100,000.
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Off to the #intelsts gala! Looking fancy! http://ow.ly/i/4RNQW -
Tonight is the #IntelSTS Gala! They are going to announce the winner of the Science Talent Search and @eureka_labs will be live tweeting!
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The national building museum is beautiful today for the #intelsts gala! http://ow.ly/i/4RPwc
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Great crowd surveying the poster at the #intelsts! Worlds swankiest poster session? http://ow.ly/i/4ROP4
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The program begins at #intelsts! http://ow.ly/i/4RPOe
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From here the tweets came fast and furious. Please pardon any misspellings!
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The program began with a statement from Intel. The company had an extra surprise for all the finalists: the latest computer!
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Keep those science projects, parents! You never know when you might want to show them off as your child wins the Nobel Prize!
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We were very excited to hear Horvitz talk about Science News and Science News for Students, where we make the latest science findings available to anyone ages 12 and up.
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Science NewsScience News online features daily news, blogs, feature stories, reviews and more in all disciplines of science, as well as Science News magazine archives back to 1924. -
ScienceNews for Students | Student ScienceScience News for Students offers news and feature stories covering all fields of science, technology, engineering and math for students ages 12 and up. Formerly called Science News for Kids. -
Rajiv ShahDr. Rajiv Shah serves as the 16th Administrator of USAID and leads the efforts of more than 9,600 professionals in 80 missions around the world. Since being sworn in on Dec. 31, 2009, Shah managed the U.S.
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Shah noted that in some ways, doing science is very adult, but that child-like enthusiasm and curiosity drives everyone who pursues science.
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He noted how many of the projects this year tackled problems like human health, climate change and poverty. He said how glad he was to see so many students who cared so deeply about the world around them.
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Shah just name checked Thabit Pulak, who has built a DIY filter to get arsenic out of the water. http://bit.ly/1lTn9Rk #intelsts
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Alec worked at Duke University to create a computer program that can trace the cornea of the eye. It will be used to help match corneas from donors to the patients who need them. He also loves the theater.Katherine Camenzind used a microscope and a laser from an undergraduate laboratory to make optical tweezers, which use lasers to capture microscopic particles. Normally, such tweezers would cost $20,000! She likes to go backpacking in the Sierras.
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Introducing finalist #intelsts Eric Chen, who used a computer simulation to screen for new drugs to fight the flu! http://bit.ly/1fSnYHE
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Intel STS finalist finds new flu fightersIntel Science Talent Search finalist Eric Chen used a computer simulation to narrow down chemical targets to fight influenza. The drugs that he identified could be the next big weapons against flu.
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Steven Chen studied supercooled fluids, which remain liquid even though they are cooled past their freezing points. He’s a junior chess champion.John Anthony Clarke was able to show that NASA’s Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array should be able to see the complete X-ray spectrum produced by the auroras of Jupiter. To get past the light pollution of his home area, he relies on his mountain bike.Aron Coraor studied how two different types of lunar rocks may have formed. It was one of three projects that he could have brought to the Science Talent Search!
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Motivated by the hardships of his friends during the recent mortgage crisis, Soham developed improved economic models to predict hwho might be at risk for delinquency. He also likes digital photography.Saun Datta performed studies to understand “strong nuclear force” which may help us better understand atomic particles. He sings at the lunchtime open mics at his school.Neil Davay created a device that can label and isolate cancer cells. He hopes to develop it into a rapid blood test for cancers. He has also submitted several patents.
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Benjamin Freed studied Ras, an enzyme connected with a variety of cancers. He’s hoping to get to the Junior Pan American Triathalon championship.Anubhav Guha studied fluorescence microscopy, trying to stop dyes that glow from bleaching over time. The scientist is also a classical pianist who has performed twice at Carnegie Hall.Yushi Homma brought together probability and theoretical physics, finding asymptotic behavior for two points on a coordinate axis holds, a finding that could influence computational physics. Yushi has another passion: tournament golf.
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Preeti Kakani studied how brain activity might change signal pathways in the brain. In her spare time, Preeti is on a mission to read the World Library’s 100 best books of all time.Joyce Blossom Kang created a fast-charging low-cost supercapacitator that might, one day, help power electric vehicles. She also plays tennis.
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Angela Kong studied how normal cells might become cancerous in breast cancer. In her free time, Angela has worked to raise funds for an orphanage in Nepal.
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Breast cancer research may bring “stardom” to teens http://wapo.st/1fRKiRF @Society4Science @eureka_labs @SaraSakowitz @scicurious #IntelSTS -
William Kuszmaul developed a new approach to modular enumeration, something that could be used in computer science and computational biology. He created some lovely origami roses that he showed off on the Science Talent Search video.
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Introducing STS finalist Kevin Lee, who uses math to model the shape of our beating hearts. http://bit.ly/1fqhn6b #intelsts
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Teen finds the ‘shape’ of our beating heartsKevin Lee used math to probe how the shape of a beating heart relates to electrical signals from the brain. He unveiled it at the 2014 Intel Science Talent Search.
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Charles Liu analyzed a huge database to find a relationship between two diseases, systemic sclerosis and lupus. He is also the senior editor of his high school magazine.Esha Maiti developed a mathematical model to predict where breast cancer is likely to spread, and which may be applied to other cancers as well. Esha loves math, but she also loves to watch football!Rahul Mehta studied the “maximum flow problem,” and his solutions could be applied to improve things like plane take off and landing schedules. Rahul has already gotten started on his career, working at an energy startup as a software developer.Joshua Meier studied why adult stem cells grow “old” so quickly, and then used what he found to make cancer cells old fore their time. He founded a non-profit that helps abused youth gain their voices, by teaching them debate.
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Introducing Anne Merrill, who harnessed the power of biochar and earthworms to improve tomato growth. http://bit.ly/1kKn8i9 #intelsts
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Intel STS finalist brings earthworms to the big timeEarthworms and charcoal help plants resist infections, according to research by Anne Merrill, a finalist in the 2014 Intel Science Talent Search.
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Lisa Michaels worked in flies to slow down the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. Don’t get on her bad side, she likes mixed martial arts.Sreyas Mirsa redesigned the PET scanner, taking it from the size of a car to the size of a tablet! He says that medicine is his passion and he hopes to become a physician.Vioa Mocz used wave-particle nature to learn more about subatomic matter. She also plays…the viola.
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Natalie Ng used statistics to predict how breast cancers might develop. She has also founded a local organization to raise money for Parkinson’s research.Emily Pang manipulated two proteins to increase or decrease tumor progression. She also runs the Science Alliance, which aims to help children develop science skills.Jiho Park studied the structure of an enzyme associated with breast cancer. She’s already published a scientific paper in the Journal of Chemical Information and Modeling.Inspired by his mother’s battle with cancer, Ivan Paskow designed a tool to predict the effectiveness of cancer drugs. Ivan also brought digital note taking to his high school.
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Brianna Periera used a drug designed for HIV to attack lung cancer cells. She has already moved forward in her future career, volunteering at Englewood Hospital and Medical Center.
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Introducing Thabit Pulak, who has built a DIY filter to get arsenic out of the water. http://bit.ly/1lTn9Rk #intelsts
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Intel STS finalist takes on arsenic poisoningConcerned about arsenic poisoning in Bangladesh, Intel Science Talent Search finalist Thabit Pulak invented an affordable filter to help people remove this toxic pollutant from their drinking water.
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Introducing Zarin Rahman, who studies the relationship between cell phone use and sleep. http://bit.ly/N4pZnk #intelsts
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Waking up teens about cell phones and sleepZarin Rahman was losing sleep, and did her own research to figure out why. She brought her study on sleep and electronic use to the 2014 Intel Science Talent Search. -
Ajay Saini created a model of social networks that determines who in a social network should be targeted to make sure an idea spreads. He holds a third Dan black belt in Taekwondo.Sara Sakowitz studied a protein that she hopes can be targeted to prevent breast cancer. She also recently published an op-ed on her all-girls robotics team in the Washington Post.
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I’m an engineer, not a cheerleader. Let’s abandon silly rules about gender roles.The woman standing in front of us turned around to face me. “Are you the cheerleaders?” she beamed. I glanced at my all-girls robotics team with a look of disbelief. As their proud captain, I’ve spent hundreds of hours working with them to build and program a fully-functional robot. -
David Seong studies tiny bits of microRNA, and how they might help combat Huntington’s disease. He did his research while a summer intern at Massachusetts General Hospital.Vishnu Shankar studies how receptors and molecules that target them might fit together. But he doesn’t keep it too serious, and likes to perform stand-up comedy.Jessica Shi studied graphs, and how many solutions are possible for intersections formed by lines. She is also technical director of her high school’s online newspaper.
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Anand Srinivarsan used computer science to help disease screening. He has also helped to make mobile molecular biology labs for 5th grade classrooms.Parth Thakker studied quantum dots, and is also a former Civil Air Patrol staff sergeant.
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http://ow.ly/i/4RSdP #intelsts finalists!!
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Dr. Seaborg was known as someone who was, above all, inspiring. Each year, the Intel Science Talent Search finalists choose one among them who they feel is the most inspiring to others.
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The #intelsts pick the Seaborg winner, someone they feel inspires others. Congratulations William Kuszmaul!!!
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7th place, Zarin Rahman, who studies the relationship between cell phone use and sleep. http://bit.ly/N4pZnk !! #intelsts
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The winners were coming too fast to tweet!6! Aron Coraor5! Natalie Ng
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Second place, STS finalist Kevin Lee who uses math to model the shape of our beating hearts. http://bit.ly/1fqhn6b #intelsts
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Teen finds the ‘shape’ of our beating heartsKevin Lee used math to probe how the shape of a beating heart relates to electrical signals from the brain. He unveiled it at the 2014 Intel Science Talent Search.
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The winner of the 2014 #intelsts Eric Chen, who used a computer simulation to screen for new drugs to fight the flu! http://bit.ly/1fSnYHE
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Intel STS finalist finds new flu fightersIntel Science Talent Search finalist Eric Chen used a computer simulation to narrow down chemical targets to fight influenza. The drugs that he identified could be the next big weapons against flu.
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Great time last night covering the #intelsts! Congrats to all the finalists and to winner Eric Chen! https://www.societyforscience.org/press-release-intel-sts-2014-winners …
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