Category Archives: Awards

Intel Science Talent Search Results

photo of Shannon Lisa Babb

Shannon Babb of Utah Named Top High School Scientist:

With a rare ability to combine research and remediation in environmental science, Babb, 18, of American Fork High School, conducted a six-month study to identify water quality problems in the Spanish Fork River. Babb, who started researching water quality at age 13, analyzed the chemical and physical properties along the river drainage system. She concluded that humans, through urban and agricultural factors, have a negative effect on the water quality of the river. She contends that the water quality problem can be resolved with a combination of restructuring and educating the public that household chemicals should not be poured down storm drains.

Yi Sun, 17, of The Harker School in San Jose, Calif., received second-place honors and a $75,000 scholarship. Sun discovered new geometric properties of random walks, a mathematical theory with applications to computer algorithms and polymers.

Yuan “Chelsea” Zhang, 17, of Montgomery Blair High School in Rockville, Md., received third-place honors and a $50,000 scholarship. Zhang researched the molecular genetic mechanisms behind heart disease. Specifically, Zhang implicated CX3CL1 molecules as contributing to plaque build-up in the arteries. This knowledge can lead to the development of new medicines for atherosclerosis.

Intel Chairman Craig Barrett, a long-time advocate for improving science and math education, praised the contributions these young scientists are poised to make.

“The talent represented at Intel STS is a dramatic illustration that investing in science and math education will pay great dividends for the future of American innovation,” Barrett said. “The seed of the next big scientific discovery could very well be planted in this room tonight.”

Photos from News.com

Read about more science talent search winners.

$10 Million for Science Solutions

$10m. To win, just solve these science problems by Ian Sample. Building off the success of the X-prize for a space transport:

Now the foundation is looking to repeat its success in other areas of science. Dr Diamandis is cagey about the finer details of future prizes, but one will offer $10m for the first company to sequence the genetic code of 100 people in a matter of weeks.
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A second prize is aimed at kicking America’s self-proclaimed addiction to oil, by spurring research into greener vehicles. “This is a hot button that can effect our reliance on energy from around the world and our production of pollution
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The foundation is also planning prizes in nanotechnology and education and is considering a second space prize, which could see the first commercial team to put a person into orbital spaceflight win $50m to $100m.

X-prize foundation

2004 National Medal of Science and Technology

Dr. Borlaug receives National Medal of Science

The United States National Medals of Science and Technology were presented today at the White House. The photo shows Dr. Norman E. Borlaug, Texas A&M, receiving the National Medal of Science from President Bush. Eight National Medals of Science were presented (Dr. Dennis P. Sullivan, City Univ. of NY; Dr. Phillip A. Sharp, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Dr. Robert N. Clayton, The University of Chicago; Dr. Stephen J. Lippard, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Dr. Kenneth J. Arrow, Stanford University; Dr. Norman E. Borlaug, Texas A&M University; Dr. Edwin N. Lightfoot, University of Wisconsin – Madison; Dr. Thomas E. Starzl, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine). George Lucas, of Star Wars fame, received a National Medal of Technology awarded to his company: Industrial Light & Magic.

UW’s Lightfoot to get major science award:

Developers of heart-lung machines, kidney dialysis equipment and pressure chambers to simulate the deepest oceans have used Edwin N. Lightfoot’s research.

The 80-year-old UW-Madison chemical and biological engineering professor is to receive the National Medal of Science today from President Bush at the White House.

“Ed’s work formed the foundation for a great deal of the work in chemical and biomedical engineering,” said Tom Kuech, 51, chairman of the UW Chemical and Biological Engineering Department.

“What’s even more remarkable is that he can run circles around most people. He’s a very sought-after speaker for his views on changes in engineering education.”

National Technology Medals were awarded to: Roger L. Easton, Ralph H. Baer, Motorola, IBM, Gen-Probe Inc., Industrial Light and Magic and PACCAR Inc.

Concentrating Solar Collector wins UW-Madison Engineering Innovation Award

Solar Collector

An inexpensive, modular solar-energy technology that could be used to heat water and generate electricity (see photo) won $12,500 and took first place in both the Schoofs Prize for Creativity and Tong Prototype Prize competitions, held Feb. 9 and 10 during Innovation Days on the UW-Madison College of Engineering campus.

In a package about the size of a small computer desk, the winning system uses a flat Fresnel lens to collect the sun’s energy and focus it onto a copper block. Then a unique spray system removes the energy from the copper block and converts it into steam, says inventor Angie Franzke, an engineering mechanics and astronautics senior from Omro, Wisconsin. The steam either heats water for household use or powers a turbine to generate electricity.

Other 2006 Schoofs Prize for Creativity winners include:

* Second place and $7,000 — William Gregory Knowles, for the OmniPresent Community-Based Response Network, a personal, business or industrial security system that draws on networked users and devices to more efficiently verify burglar alarms, fire alarms or medical emergencies.
* Third place and $4,000 — Garret Fitzpatrick, Jon Oiler, Angie Franzke, Peter Kohlhepp and Greg Hoell for the Self-Leveling Wheelchair Tray, a stowable working surface for wheelchairs that self-levels, even when the wheelchair is tilted or reclined up to a 45-degree angle.

Read more about the 2006 competition

Intel Science Talent Search Semifinalists

Intel Science Talent Search Semifinalists Named

300 teens have been named semifinalists in the Intel Science Talent Search (Intel STS). The Intel STS is America’s oldest, most highly regarded pre-college science competition and heir to more than six decades of science excellence. View a list of the semifinalists.

The Intel Foundation will award $1,000 to each semifinalist with a matching amount going to their schools. Intel implemented the school award in 2000 and since then has contributed more than $2 million to help improve math and science in U.S. high schools.

Over the past 65 years, STS alumni have received more than 100 of the world’s most coveted science and math honors including six Nobel Prizes, three National Medals of Science, 10 MacArthur Foundation Fellowships, and two Fields Medals.

This year’s semifinalists were selected from 1,558 entrants representing 486 high schools in 44 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and an overseas school. Their research projects cover all disciplines of science including biochemistry, chemistry, physics, mathematics, engineering, behavioral science and medicine and health. Students range in age from 15 to 18 with females representing 53 percent of the total entrants.

More than 100 top scientists from a variety of disciplines review and judge all Intel STS entries and examine each individual’s research ability, scientific originality and creative thinking. From these 300 semifinalists, 40 finalists will be announced on Jan. 25. These students will take an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C. to attend the Intel Science Talent Institute. There they will participate in final judging and compete for college scholarships totaling more than $500,000. Winners will be selected based on rigorous judging sessions and announced at a black-tie banquet on March 14.

Science Service is the nonprofit organization which has administered the Science Talent Search since its inception in 1942. The mission of Science Service is to advance the understanding and appreciation of science. In addition to its education programs, Science Service publishes the weekly magazine Science News.

2006 Draper Prize for Engineering

Draper Prize for Engineering Medal

2006 Charles Stark Draper Prize Won by Inventors of Charge-coupled Devices

The 2006 Charles Stark Draper Prize will be presented by the National Academy of Engineering to the inventors of charge-coupled devices (CCDs), Willard S. Boyle and George E. Smith, on Feb. 21 in Washington , D.C. Boyle and Smith will share the $500,000 prize for inventing CCDs, which are imaging sensors or optical elements that convert light to digital data. CCDs are widely used in consumer products, such as camcorders and cell phone cameras, as well as in advanced electronic imaging tools, such as telescopes and imaging satellites.

CCDs are the first practical solid-state imaging devices. They were invented in 1969 by Boyle and Smith while working at Bell Laboratories. Because CCDs are silicon-based devices, they are fairly inexpensive to produce, compact, and fairly rugged, making them suitable for commercial product use. Their high sensitivity, excellent stability, and lack of distortion make CCDs attractive for use in scientific research imaging systems. CCDs are capable of imaging a variety of sources, including optical, x-ray, ultraviolet, and infrared emissions.

Administered by the National Academy of Engineering, the Draper Prize is endowed by The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, Inc., and was established in 1988. The Prize is awarded for outstanding achievement, particularly innovation and reduction to practice, in engineering and technology contributing to the advancement of the welfare and freedom of humanity. The Prize honors the memory of Draper Laboratory’s founder, Dr. Charles Stark Draper, who pioneered inertial navigation. It is intended to increase public understanding of the contributions of engineering and technology. Originally biennial, the Prize is now awarded annually.

Previous years awards include:
2002: Dr. Robert S. Langer for extraordinary contributions to the bioengineering of revolutionary medical drug delivery systems
2001: Drs. Vinton Cerf, Robert Kahn, Leonard Kleinrock, and Lawrence Roberts for the invention of the Internet

NASA Telerobotic Competition

NASA Announces Telerobotic Construction Competition

“The Telerobotic Challenge may directly affect how exploration is conducted on the moon,” said NASA’s Associate Administrator for the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate, Scott Horowitz. “If the Challenge can successfully demonstrate the remote assembly of simple and complex structures, many aspects of exploration in general will be affected for the better.”

This Challenge will be conducted in an arena containing scattered structural building blocks. The task is to assemble the structure using multiple robotic agents remotely controlled by humans. The operators may only see and talk to the robots through communications’ equipment that simulates Earth-moon time delays and restrictions. The robots must be smart enough to work together with only intermittent human direction to be successful.

Rules will be finalized in early 2006 and the competition will go into 2007. This is part of the NASA Centennial Challenges in which prizes seek to stimulate innovation and competition in solar system exploration and ongoing NASA mission areas.

Formula One Race Car Engineering by Students

Schools Innovation Design Challenge National Finals, Australia:

Victoria University set up the Victorian arm of the project, which involved 18 secondary schools from metropolitan and regional Victoria for Years 7-10 students to design, manufacture, test and race model F1 cars.

VU’s Program Manager Schools, Joe Micallef said: “This has been a fantastic opportunity for secondary students, who have been able to use sophisticated engineering technology – some of which professional engineers haven’t even used yet.”
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And the students are not just competing for honour, the outright national champions will receive an all-expenses -paid trip to the UK to represent Australia at the World Finals next January.

Formula One team success for Longreach students

Fast-tracking engineering knowhow:

“We’re trying to get kids interested in engineering and manufacturing careers,” said Re-Engineering Australia national project manager Paul Bray.

“So we’re giving them access to the same tools that are being used by industry to design and make these things so they can see that it really is practical and fun.”

For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST)

Students at FIRST Robotics competition

For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST) is a “multinational non-profit organization, that aspires to transform culture, making science, math, engineering, and technology as cool for kids as sports are today.”

FIRST Robotics Competition – In 2005 the competition reached close to 25,000 high-school-aged young people on close to 1,000 teams in 30 competitions. Teams came from Brazil, Canada, Ecuador, Israel, Mexico, the U.K., and almost every U.S. state.

The FIRST Vexâ„¢ Challenge (FVC) is a pilot, mid-level robotics competition for high-school students. It offers the traditional challenge of a FIRST competition but with a more accessible and affordable robotics kit. FIRST is currently piloting the FIRST Vex Challenge as a potential FIRST program.

Siemens Westinghouse Competition Winners

Siemens Westinghouse Competition press release:

Michael Viscardi, a senior who is home schooled, won the $100,000 Grand Prize scholarship in the individual category for mathematics research with real-world engineering implications. Anne Lee, a senior at Phoenix Country Day School in Paradise Valley, Arizona, and Albert Shieh, a junior at Chaparral High School in Scottsdale, Arizona, won the $100,000 prize in the team category, which they will share equally, for developing new software that more accurately analyzes genetic data.

Articles on the competition (I like the local focus of the headlines):

Siemens Westinghouse Competition in Math, Science and Technology web site. Their web site, and the articles above, provide interesting details on the highly advanced work of the participating high school students.

The Siemens Foundation provides more than $2 million in college scholarships and awards each year for talented high school students in the United States.