7 Indians among finalists of Intl Sc Talent Search
New York, Jan 31: Forty high school students, including seven Indian-American, have been named finalists for the Intel Science Talent Search 2008.
The
Intel
STS
competition,
often
called
the
''junior
Nobel
Prize,''
is
said
to
be
America's
oldest
and
most
prestigious
high
school
science
competition.
The
finalists
will
travel
in
an
all-expenses-paid
trip
to
Washington
in
March
to
compete
in
a
week-long
event
for
individual
scholarships,
with
the
top
winner
receiving
a
100,000
dollar
scholarship
from
the
Intel
Foundation,
a
statement
said
adding
each
finalist
will
receive
at
least
5,000
dollar
in
scholarships
and
a
laptop.
This
year's
Intel
STS
finalists
hail
from
19
states
and
represent
35
schools.
New
York
(state)
boasts
the
most
finalists
from
any
state
with
15,
followed
by
Pennsylvania
(four)
and
Texas
(three),
said
the
statement
issued
by
the
Intel
Corporation,
based
in
Santa
Clara,
California.
The seven Indian-American finalists are -- Avanthi Raghavan (Orlando, Florida), Shravani Mikkilineni (Bloomfield Hills, Michigan), Hamsa Sridhar (Kings Park, New York state), Ashok Chandran (Nesconset, New York state), Shivani Sud (Durham, North Carolina), Isha Jain (Bethlehem, Pennsylvania) and Vinay Venkatesh Ramasesh (Fort Worth, Texas).
The finalists' independent research projects include 'Further understanding of the relationship of nicotine to breast cancer chemotherapy efficacy', 'An economic study of the cross-influence of public and private funding for Iowa's public libraries', and 'The design and construction of affordable microbial fuel cells that could generate clean water and clean energy anywhere.' Over the past 67 years, STS alumni have received more than 100 of the world's most coveted science and math honours, including six Nobel Prizes.
''2008 not only marks the 10th anniversary of Intel's sponsorship of the STS, but falling in a presidential election year, this competition highlights more than ever the importance of supporting math and science education in the United States,'' Intel Chairman Craig Barrett said.
''Intel STS showcases the incredible advancements made by students across the nation when we get the system right and demonstrates the capabilities of the next generation,'' he added.
UNI