TARRYTOWN, N.Y. and WASHINGTON, March 12, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Regeneron
Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Society for Science & the Public
announced that Ana Humphrey,
18, of Alexandria, Virginia, won
the top award in the Regeneron Science Talent Search, the nation's
oldest and most prestigious science and math competition for high
school seniors. Forty finalists were honored tonight at the annual
Regeneron Science Talent Search awards gala. Regeneron provided
awards totaling more than $1.8
million for the finalists, who were evaluated for their
research projects, as well as their exceptional scientific and
mathematical knowledge, problem-solving abilities and potential as
future scientific leaders.
Ana Humphrey won
$250,000 for her mathematical
model to determine the possible locations of exoplanets — planets
outside our solar system — that may have been missed by NASA's
Kepler Space Telescope. Hypotheses in the field say planetary
formation creates dynamically packed systems, so Ana used her model
to find "unpacked" spaces where as many as 560 new planets might
fit and identified 96 locations as primary search targets. Her
research could aid our understanding of the formation of planets
and inform our search for life in outer space. Ana is the
first Hispanic first-place winner in 20 years.
Second place and $175,000
went to Samuel Weissman, 17,
of Rosemont, Pennsylvania, for his
project analyzing the genetic makeup of HIV in two patients on
long-term anti-retroviral therapy to understand why they continued
to have "reservoirs" of treatment-resistant HIV-infected cells.
Sam's research suggests that HIV-infected cells both clonally
expand and are killed, therefore forming a reservoir of infected
cells, which expands our understanding of HIV and may impact future
treatment approaches.
Third place and $150,000
went to Adam Ardeishar, 17, of Alexandria, Virginia, for his project
combining a classic previously unsolved math problem called the
"coupon collector problem" with extreme value theory. The theory is
used to determine the likelihood of a maximal event, such as a
1,000-year flood. By integrating these two concepts, Adam developed
a way to calculate the average maximum values of distributional
datasets, which could be applied to predicting the expected amount
of time for a given number of different randomly-timed events to
occur.
"I couldn't be prouder of this year's Regeneron Science Talent
Search top winners, who are already leading the way in scientific
research and innovation," said Maya
Ajmera, President and CEO of Society for Science & the
Public, Publisher of Science News and 1985 Science Talent
Search alum. "Their talent, dedication and desire to make a
difference in the world is commendable. Congratulations to Ana, I
know her example will inspire other young people to get involved in
STEM."
In 2017, Regeneron became the third sponsor of the oldest and
most prestigious science and math competition for high school
seniors, now known as the Regeneron Science Talent Search following
Westinghouse from 1942-1997 and Intel from 1998-2016.
"Congratulations to this year's Regeneron Science Talent Search
top winners who embody true scientific and mathematical ingenuity,"
said George D. Yancopoulos, M.D.,
Ph.D., Co-Founder, President and Chief Scientific Officer of
Regeneron, and a 1976 Science Talent Search top winner. "We are
always inspired by the work of these talented young people, and
this year's winners have impressed us with their curiosity and
desire to improve the world around them. My experience as a winner
in the Science Talent Search changed my life and was an important
early step on my path to a life devoted to using the power of
science to do good. I hope it has the same impact on these young
scientists, since now more than ever, we need brilliant minds like
theirs to find solutions to our world's most pressing
challenges."
Other top honors from the competition include:
Fourth Place: Madeleine Yang of Beverly Hills, Michigan, received a
$100,000 award for her work towards a
faster and more effective way to manufacture vaccines for
influenza, which she hopes one day might help researchers develop a
universal vaccine for influenza – an illness that, along with its
complications, kills hundreds of thousands of people around the
world each year.
Fifth Place: Carolyn Beaumont of McLean, Virginia, received a $90,000 award for her studying of molten rock
mixed with hot water and the resulting effect on the magma's
viscosity. Her work may lead to a better understanding of volcanic
eruptions.
Sixth Place: Samuel Ferguson of West Windsor, New Jersey, received a
$80,000 award for his design of a
blended wing body aircraft that is lighter and more fuel efficient
than traditional tube and wing airplanes because the entire surface
of the airplane, not just the wings, provides lift.
Seventh Place: Brent Perlman of Armonk, New York, received a $70,000 award for his project designing a process
to induce photosynthesis in human stem cells, allowing them to
produce their own oxygen, by inserting chloroplasts from spinach,
which could have implications in the treatment of heart attack,
stroke and cancer.
Eighth Place: Rachel Seevers of Lexington, Kentucky, received a $60,000 award for her project developing a
Virtual Winglet, which works by ejecting high-speed air at the
leading edge of the underside of a plane's wingtip to potentially
improve the stability and efficiency of the aircraft.
Ninth Place: Vincent Huang of Plano, Texas, received a $50,000 award for his computer model to better
predict refugee migrations on a regional scale and tested his
results using data from the 2015-2016 refugee crisis following the
civil war in Burundi, Africa.
Tenth Place: Eshika Saxena of Bellevue, Washington, received a $40,000 award for creating a 3D-printed
smartphone attachment and artificial intelligence software to
automatically identify blood diseases.
The remaining 30 finalists each received $25,000. These students will join the ranks of
Science Talent Search alumni who have gone on to receive more than
100 of the world's most esteemed science and math honors, including
the Nobel Prize and the National Medal of Science, to start
successful biotechnology and technology companies, and to change
the world through their groundbreaking inventions. In total,
Regeneron awarded $3.1 million in
prizes through the Regeneron Science Talent Search 2019, including
$2,000 to each of the top 300
scholars and their schools.
About the Regeneron Science Talent Search
The Regeneron Science Talent Search, a program of Society for
Science & the Public since 1942, is the nation's oldest and
most prestigious science and math competition for high school
seniors. Each year, around 2,000 student entrants submit original
research in critically important scientific fields of study and are
judged by leading experts in their fields. Unique among high school
competitions in the U.S. and around the world, the Regeneron
Science Talent Search focuses on identifying, inspiring and
engaging the nation's most promising young scientists who are
creating the ideas that could solve society's most urgent
challenges.
In 2017, Regeneron became only the third sponsor of
the Science Talent Search, increasing the overall awards
distribution to better reward the best and brightest young minds.
Through its 10-year, $100 million
commitment, Regeneron nearly doubled the overall award distribution
to $3.1 million annually, increasing
the top award to $250,000 and
doubling the awards for the top 300 scholars and their schools to
$2,000 each to inspire more young
people to engage in science.
Program alumni include recipients of the world's most coveted
science and math honors, including 11 National Medals of Science,
five Breakthrough Prizes, 18 MacArthur Foundation Fellowships, two
Fields Medals and 13 Nobel Prizes.
Learn more
at https://student.societyforscience.org/regeneron-sts.
About Society for Science & the Public
Society for
Science & the Public is dedicated to the achievement of young
scientists in independent research and to public engagement in
science. Established in 1921, the Society is a nonprofit whose
vision is to promote the understanding and appreciation of science
and the vital role it plays in human advancement. Through its
world-class competitions, including the Regeneron Science Talent
Search, the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, and
the Broadcom MASTERS, and its award-winning
magazine, Science News and Science
News for Students, Society for Science & the Public is
committed to inform, educate, and inspire. Learn more
at www.societyforscience.org and follow us
on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat
(Society4Science).
About Regeneron
Regeneron (NASDAQ: REGN) is a
leading biotechnology company that invents life-transforming
medicines for people with serious diseases. Founded and led for 30
years by physician-scientists, our unique ability to repeatedly and
consistently translate science into medicine has led to
seven FDA-approved treatments and numerous product candidates
in development, all of which were homegrown in our laboratories.
Our medicines and pipeline are designed to help patients with eye
diseases, allergic and inflammatory diseases, cancer,
cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, neuromuscular diseases,
infectious diseases and rare diseases. We believe that scientists
should be the world's heroes and are committed to fostering the
next generation of scientific talent through STEM (Science,
Technology, Engineering, Math) education efforts. For additional
information about the company, please
visit www.regeneron.com or follow Regeneron
on Twitter and Facebook.
Media Contact at Society for Science & the
Public
Gayle Kansagor
Phone: 703-489-1131
gkansagor@societyforscience.org
Media Contact at Regeneron
Ella Campbell
Phone: 914-572-4003
ella.campbell@regeneron.com
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SOURCE Society for Science & the Public