New York: The annual 3M Young Scientist Challenge that recognizes and rewards innovative minds in the United States is back with 10 finalists including six Indian Americans. From 2012 until 2020, America’s Top Young Scientist title has gone to six Indian-origin children including Deepika Kurup (2012), Sahil Doshi (2014), Maanasa Mendu (2016), Gitanjali Rao (2017), Rishab Jain (2018), and Anika Chebrolu (2020).
The winner of 3M Young Scientist Challenge 2023 will be announced at the culminating event scheduled in October.
The inventor of the Tactile Electronic Braille Display Device 2.0, Los Angeles-based Ishaan Iyer is the youngest of all ten finalists of the Discovery 3M Young Scientist Challenge 2023. He designed a cost-effective device to simplify the labor-intensive method of Braille writing with a slate and stylus. His model encodes the English alphabet into Braille language and aids the visually impaired in reading the Braille Alphabet easily.
Have you ever heard of ptosis? It’s a condition that causes eyelids to droop abnormally, sometimes even blocking vision. Ptosis can be a result of aging, but most people do not even realize that they have this condition until it turns worse. This, along with the fact that it can be a symptom of 48 diseases and disorders, inspired Florida’s Adhip Maitra to develop a computer program for the early detection of ptosis. According to him, it helps with the timely detection of any serious underlying conditions that generally go undetected until the final stage. The 8th grader from Jackson Heights Middle School in Oviedo, Florida employed deep learning and other technologies to develop this computer program.
Shruti Sivaraman, a young app developer from Austin, Texas created an application to diagnose Diabetic Retinopathy (DR), a vision-threatening complication plaguing the diabetic population. Her smart app detects Diabetic Retinopathy by examining the retinal images, unlike the conventional dilated eye exam that involves the use of dilation drops.
The World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report 2021 lists cybersecurity failure among the highest possible risks of this decade. San Jose-based Anish Kosaraju’s invention is centered on developing a new method powered by machine learning for enhanced cybersecurity. He developed a model to find the legitimacy of login attempts and prevent cyber takeovers of accounts that aren’t protected by multi-factor authentication.
A grade-8 student at Joaquin Miller Middle School, Shripriya Kalbhavi from San Jose introduced EasyBZ microneedle patches as an affordable solution for painless medication. An active form of drug delivery, her microneedle patches, Belousov-Zhabotinsky reaction-automated, enable the administration of customized doses of medication into the body.
Portland’s Anisha Dhoot’s environment-focused project for building a sustainable planet promotes the utilization of kelp seaweed to improve soil nutrition and fight climate change.
The ‘America’s Top Young Scientist’ title winner will earn a $25K grand prize while all the 10 finalists get $1000 each along with an opportunity to participate in an exclusive summer mentorship program with a 3M scientist.
