iNDICA NEWS BUREAU-
Indian-American students are among the winners of the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair 2024 (Regeneron ISEF), the world’s largest pre-college science competition.
While Grace Sun, 16, of Lexington, Kentucky, won first place and received the $75,000, Krish Pai, 17, of Del Mar, California, joined Michelle Wei, 17, of San Jose, California to receive the second Regeneron Young Scientist Award of $50,000.
Sun was awarded for her research on building a better organic electrochemical transistor that she hopes will be used to develop new electronic devices that could help detect and treat serious illnesses like diabetes, epilepsy and organ failure. Grace developed a way to chemically treat their organic parts, thus improving their laboratory performance.
Pai used machine learning to identify microbial genetic sequences that can be modified to biodegrade plastic. In tests, his Microby software identified two microorganisms whose modified sequences could degrade plastic at a cost he believes could be 10 times less than traditional recycling.
Wei, 17, from San Jose, California, won for her work quickly approximating solutions to complex programming problems, allowing her algorithm to outperform existing approaches.
Maya Ajmera, president and CEO of the Society for Science and executive publisher of Science News, congratulated the winners, saying, “Coming from around the world with diverse backgrounds and academic disciplines, these students have shown that it is possible to come together in unity to tackle some of the toughest challenges facing our world today. I could not be prouder.”
“The talent, intelligence, and potential of this year’s Regeneron ISEF finalists are truly inspiring, and I congratulate each on their remarkable achievements,” said George D. Yancopoulos, M.D., Ph.D.,
co-founder, Board co-chair, president and Chief Scientific Officer of Regeneron. “Science competitions like ISEF were pivotal in shaping my own career and fueling my passion to fight back against disease. I look forward to seeing these students continue to push the boundaries of science and technology to create positive and sustainable change for all humanity.”
Other top honors from the competition include Tanishka Balaji Aglave, 15, and Ria Kamat, 17.
Aglave, from Valrico, Florida, received the H. Robert Horvitz Prize for Fundamental Research of $10,000 for her work on a natural treatment for citrus greening, a disease that threatens citrus farming globally. It is currently treated only with antibiotics. Aglave’s method involves injecting infected trees
with an extract from the curry leaf tree. This has the potential to sustainably manage the disease.
Ria Kamat, from Hackensack, New Jersey, was recognized for her research to control the spread of
osteosarcoma, a primary bone tumor. Her work focused on addressing imbalances in the bone growth involved that could become cancerous.
Regeneron ISEF is a platform for the world’s talented young scientists and engineers. It nurtures the next generation of STEM leaders. Since 2020, Regeneron has offered STEM experiences to around 2.4 million students. Started 70 years ago by the Society for Science, ISEFis the world’s largest global science and engineering competition for 9th to 12th grade students. In total, over $9 million was awarded to finalists based on their projects’ creativity, innovation, and depth of scientific inquiry. The competition featured nearly 2,000 young scientists representing 49 U.S. states and nearly 70 countries, regions, and territories across the world.
