EDUCATION REPORT - Intel Science Talent Search Winners

EDUCATION REPORT - Intel Science Talent Search Winners
By Nancy Steinbach

Broadcast: Thursday, April 01, 2004

This is Steve Ember with the VOA Special English Education Report.

A seventeen-year-old boy from the northeastern state of Massachusetts has won the top prize in the Intel Science Talent Search. The competition is the oldest program in the United States that honors¹ the science projects of high school students. The Intel Science Talent Search is sixty-three years old this year.

The winners receive a new computer and money for a college education. A record one-thousand-six-hundred-fifty-two students from forty-six states entered projects for the competition this year. Their research involved nearly every area of science, including chemistry, medicine, physics, mathematics, engineering², computer science and social science.

Forty students were invited to Washington, D.C. for the final judging. A group of well-known scientists judged them on their research abilities, critical thinking skills and creativity. The judges also questioned the students about scientific problems before deciding on the winners.

 
First-place winner Herbert Mason Hedberg
The top winner is Herbert Mason Hedberg of North Attleboro, Massachusetts. He received one-hundred-thousand dollars for his college education. He developed a faster, more effective method to tell if a person has cancer. He explored a way to separate telomerase, an enzyme³ found in most cancer cells. His findings⁴ have helped advance research into ways of stopping cancer cells from growing. Herbert said he started the project after watching his grandmother struggle against cancer. He plans to be a doctor and continue doing medical research.

The second place winner is seventeen-year-old Boris Alexeev of Athens, Georgia. He received a seventy-five-thousand dollar scholarship. His research in computer science could be used in the study of genetics.

The third place winner is seventeen-year-old Ryna Karnik of Aloha, Oregon. She won fifty-thousand dollars for describing a new way to build microchips used in computers.

Andrew Yeager of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center was chairman of the judges for the Intel Science Talent Search this year. He said the competition is an excellent way to discover future leaders in science and technology. Past competition winners have gone on to receive many of the world's highest honors for science and mathematics.

This VOA Special English Education Report was written by Nancy Steinbach. This is Steve Ember.

1 honors   

n.礼仪；荣典；礼节； 大学荣誉学位；大学优等成绩；尊敬( honor的名词复数 )；敬意；荣誉；光荣

参考例句：

• He aims at honors. 他力求名誉。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• We did the last honors to his remains. 我们向他的遗体告别。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 engineering   

n.工程，工程学，管理，操纵

参考例句：

• The science of engineering began as soon as man learned to use tools. 人类一学会使用工具,工程科学就开始了。
• It was the first great engineering works in the world. 这是世界上第一家大型的工程工厂。

3 enzyme   

n.酵素，酶

参考例句：

• Above a certain temperature,the enzyme molecule will become unfolded.超过一定温度，酶分子将会展开。
• An enzyme that dissolves the fibrin of blood clots.能溶解血凝块中的纤维的酶。

4 findings   

n.发现物( finding的名词复数 )；调查（或研究）的结果；（陪审团的）裁决

参考例句：

• It behoves us to study these findings carefully. 我们理应认真研究这些发现。
• Their findings have been widely disseminated . 他们的研究成果已经广为传播。