As you gather, I really like it when young people manage to achieve worthwhile discoveries and inventions. This time it’s the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair. They announced the top winners of their high school science research competition. Ionut Budisteanu, 19, of Romania won $75,000 for using artificial intelligence to create a viable model for a low-cost, self-driving car. Second was Eesha Khare, 18, of Saratoga, Ca., winning $50,000, who developed a super-capacitor that can charge a mobile phone within 20-30 seconds, and has potential applications for the batteries of electric vehicles. Third was Henry Lin, 17, of Shreveport, La., who also won $50,000. By simulating thousands of clusters of galaxies, Henry has provided scientists with valuable new data. Hats off to Intel for promoting such an imaginative competition, and hats off to the 1,600 kids who were chosen to take part, and to the schools, teachers and parents who encouraged them. Tomorrow’s world will offer more choices and more chances to enrich the lives of more people, and it’s youngsters like these who will help bring it about.
Filed under: Updates |
Madsen Pirie 
The rapid charging from the capacitor sounds interesting but if a lithium ion battery was charged with the necessary current flow it would either explode or have a very, very short life. Perhaps advances in battery design could ultimately allow this method of charging, but I fear the transference of a large amount of energy in a very short space of time would have dire consequences with present battery designs. However,
” from little acorns mighty oaks grow “.