Teen Engineer Invents System to Improve Air Quality on Airplanes
Raymond Wang of Canada Wins $75,000 Top Prize at Intel International Science and Engineering Fair
The world’s largest high school science research competition, the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, a program of Society for Science & the Public, announced its top winners inPittsburgh.
Raymond Wang of Canada received the Gordon E. Moore Award, a US$75,000 prize named in honor of the Intel co-founder and fellow scientist.
Two Intel Foundation Young Scientist Awards winners – Nicole Ticea of Canada and Karan Jerath of Friendswood, Texas – each received prizes of US$50,000 from the Intel Foundation.
PITTSBURGH, May 15, 2015 – Raymond Wang, 17, of Canada was awarded first place for engineering a new air inlet system for airplane cabins to improve air quality and curb disease transmission at this year’s Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, a program of Society for Science & the Public.
Wang’s system improves the availability of fresh air in the cabin by more than 190 percent while reducing pathogen inhalation concentrations by up to 55 times compared to conventional designs, and can be easily and economically incorporated in existing airplanes. Wang received the Gordon E. Moore Award of US$75,000, named in honor of the Intel co-founder and fellow scientist.
Nicole Ticea, 16, of Canada received one of two Intel Foundation Young Scientist Awards of US$50,000 for developing an inexpensive, easy-to-use testing device to combat the high rate of undiagnosed HIV infection in low-income communities. Her disposable, electricity-free device provides results in an hour and should cost less than US$5 to produce. Ticea has already founded her own company, which recently received a US$100,000 grant to continue developing her technology.
Karan Jerath, 18, of Friendswood, Texas, received the other Intel Foundation Young Scientist Award of US$50,000 for refining and testing a novel device that should allow an undersea oil well to rapidly and safely recover following a blowout. Jerath developed a better containment enclosure that separates the natural gas, oil and ocean water; accommodates different water depths, pipe sizes and fluid compositions; and can prevent the formation of potentially clogging methane hydrate.
“Intel believes young people are key to future innovation and that in order to confront the global challenges of tomorrow, we need students from all backgrounds to get involved in science, technology, engineering and math,” said Wendy Hawkins, executive director of the Intel Foundation. “We hope these winners will inspire other young people to pursue their interest in these fields and apply their curiosity, creativity and ingenuity to the common good.”
This year’s Intel International Science and Engineering Fair featured approximately 1,700 young scientists selected from 422 affiliate fairs in more than 75 countries, regions and territories. In addition to the top winners, approximately 600 finalists received awards and prizes for their innovative research, including 20 “Best of Category” winners, who each received a US$5,000 prize. The Intel Foundation also awarded a US$1,000 grant to each winner’s school and to the affiliated fair they represent.
The following lists the 20 Best of Category winners, from which the top three were chosen:
Category First Last City State/Country
Animal Science
Nattapong Chueasiritaworn Muang Thailand
Thananon Hiranwanichchakorn Sutthiluk Rakdee
Behavioral and Social Sciences
Sophia Korner Louisville Kentucky
Diya Mathur
Biochemistry
Amol Punjabi
Worchester Massachusetts
Biomedical and Health Sciences
Nicole Ticea Vancouver Canada
Cellular and Molecular Biology
Demetri Maxim Bethel Maine
Chemistry
Arne Hensel Homburg (Efze) Germany
Computational Biology and Bioinformatics
Michael Retchin Richmond Virginia
Matthew Retchin
Earth and Environmental Sciences
Joshua Zhou Chapel Hill North Carolina
Embedded Systems
Niklas Fauth Marbach am Neckar Germany
Energy: Chemical
Kathy Liu Salt Lake City Utah
Energy: Physical
Sriharshita Musunuri Mill Creek Washington
Engineering Mechanics
Raymond Wang Vancouver Canada
Environmental Engineering
Karan Jerath Friendswood Texas
Materials Science
Catherine Li Orlando Florida
Mathematics
Sanath Kumar Devalapurkar Torrance California
Microbiology
Carly Crump Jacksonville Florida
Physics and Astronomy
Ruochen Hao Jinan China
Plant Sciences
Abdul Jabbar Alhamood Dhahran Saudi Arabia
Robotics and Intelligent Machines
Ava Lakmazaheri Alexandria Virginia
Systems Software
Charles Noyes Villa Park California
Society for Science & the Public, a nonprofit membership organization dedicated to public engagement in science and science education, has owned and administered the competition since its inception in 1950 as the National Science Fair.
“Congratulations to Raymond, Nicole and Karan! Their selection as top winners really demonstrates the extraordinary work they have been able to accomplish at a young age in diverse topics,” said Maya Ajmera, president and CEO of Society for Science & the Public. “We look forward to watching not only them, but the rest of the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair finalists as they progress further and pursue their interests in STEM. These talented young students are the problem solvers and innovators of their generation.”
The Intel International Science and Engineering Fair honors the world’s most promising student scientists, inventors and engineers. Finalists are selected annually from hundreds of affiliated fairs. Their projects are then evaluated onsite by approximately 1,000 judges from nearly every scientific discipline, each with a Ph.D. or the equivalent of six years of related professional experience in one of the scientific disciplines.
A full listing of finalists is available in the event program. The Intel International Science and Engineering Fair 2015 is funded jointly by Intel and the Intel Foundation with additional awards and support from dozens of other corporate, academic, governmental and science-focused organizations. This year, approximately US$4 million was awarded.
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Contacts:
Sarah Wood
Society for Science & the Public
202-872-5110
swood@societyforscience.org