Young Innovators from India Win Top Honors at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF) 2015 in Pittsburg USA

NEWS HIGHLIGHTS:

• Seven winning projects from India across Plant Sciences, Embedded Systems, Systems Software, Materials Science and Mathematics categories.

• Onkar Singh Gujral from La Martiniere for Boys School in Kolkata wins a First Award of US$1,000 from the Association for Computing Machinery and an Intel ISEF Second Grand Award of US$1,500 for his project ‘Image Processing Algorithms towards Optical Detection of 2D Nanomaterials’.

• Other teams from Kochi, Mangalore, Panipat and Mumbai win US$5000 in cash awards and special mentions

 

Seventeen young innovators from India put up a brilliant show at the highly-acclaimed Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF), bagging 5 Grand awards and 6 Special awards. These young innovators represented Team India at the Intel ISEF, which was held this year in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, USA from 10-15 May, 2015.

 

From India, Arsh Shah Dilbagi from DAV Public School, Panipat won First Awards of $1000 and $500 from the American Intellectual Property Law Association and Patent and Trademark Office Society respectively. Arsh was also awarded an Intel ISEF Third Grand Award of $1000 in the Embedded Systems category, and a Third Award of $500 from the American Psychological Association for the project, ‘Breath into Speech for the Disabled’.

 

Onkar Singh Gujral from La Martiniere for Boys School in Kolkata won a First Award of $1,000 from the Association for Computing Machinery, and an Intel ISEF Second Grand Award of $1,500 in the Systems Software category for his project ‘Image Processing Algorithms towards Optical Detection of 2D Nanomaterials’.

 

An Intel ISEF Third Grand Award of $1,000 went to Ravi Pradip from the Dayapuram Residential School in Kerala for his project ‘Plumeria Blooms for Organic Electronics!’ in the Materials Science category.

 

In the Plant Sciences category, Maharaja Agarsain Public School Delhi’s Mansi Aggarwal and Harshit Jindal received the Intel ISEF Fourth Grand Award of $500 for their project ‘Begonia nepalensis: An Effective Herbal Ointment against Enterobiasis.’ Also winning the Intel ISEF Fourth Grand Award of $500 were Aditya Bhargava and Komal S from Sharada Vidyanikethana Public School, Mangalore, for their Materials Science project ‘Highly Sensitive Nano-Ferrite for Detection of Carbon Monoxide in Air’.

 

Certificate of Honorable Mentions went to Aditya Ashish Bhople from Narayana Vidyalayam, Nagpur for his project ‘Autoreader: A Wearable Assistant for the Visually Impaired’ in the Embedded Systems category, as well as Dhirubhai Ambani International School Mumbai’s Abhimanyu Pallavi Sudhir for his project ‘A Generalisation of the Determinant to Rectangular Matrices: Implications in Gauge Theory’ in the Math category.

 

2015 marked 15 years of India’s participation at Intel ISEF, and the largest ever Indian team comprising of 30 young innovators. 17 of these young innovators showcased 12 innovative projects and ideas at the event, spanning a range of topics from wearable technology to big data analytics to renewable energy. Over 1,700 finalists from over 70 countries, regions and territories, at the world’s largest pre-college science competition, vied for the top slots at Intel ISEF, which featured over USD 4 million worth in awards, scholarships and honors such as a chance to be present at the Nobel Laureate ceremony or to have a minor planet named after them (courtesy MIT’s Lincoln Laboratory).

 

“Intel believes young people are key to future innovation and that in order to confront the global challenges of tomorrow, we need students from all backgrounds to get involved in science, technology, engineering and math,” said Kumud Srinivasan, Intel India President. “We hope these winners will inspire other young people to pursue their interest in these fields and apply their curiosity, creativity and ingenuity to the common good.”

 

“We are extremely proud of this remarkable achievement by these young scientists from India. Their success at Intel ISEF is a celebration of the spirit of innovation and scientific inquiry that will bring relevant, practical and innovative solutions to social situations by intelligently leveraging technology.” said Dr. Rajiv Sharma, Executive Director, Indo-US Science & Technology Forum (IUSSTF).

 

“These young people are the future of India; and it is when they go beyond the boundaries of the country to explore their potential on the world stage that they truly gain exposure and experience and prove their mettle” said Dr. B P Singh, Head, NCSTC Department of Science and Technology (DST) Government of India.

 

This year’s Team India at Intel ISEF featured 20 bright students from the country- the winners of the Initiative for Research and Innovation in Science (IRIS) national fair 2014. This year Department of Science and Technology (DST) in association with Indo US Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF) sponsored 10 student observers from IRIS and affiliated national fairs to Pittsburgh USA, to attend the Intel ISEF and experience a week-long scientific exposure visit in Washington DC after the fair.

 

Over the years, IRIS has contributed significantly towards nurturing and fueling the spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship amongst students in India and in providing them the opportunity to represent India at the world’s largest pre-collegiate Science and Engineering Fair – Intel ISEF.

 

About Intel ISEF

The Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF), a program of Society for Science & the Public, is the world's largest pre-college science fair competition. Each year, more than 6 million young innovators from around the world vie to attend and 1,700 are selected as finalists to share ideas, showcase cutting edge ideas and compete for over USD 4 million in awards and scholarships. The winners are selected based on their creative ability and scientific thought, as well as the thoroughness, skill, and clarity shown in their projects. To judge the projects, more than 1,000 science, engineering, and industry professionals volunteer at the Intel ISEF. http://www.intel.com/education/isef/

 

About IRIS

The Initiative for Research and Innovation in Science (IRIS) is a research-based National Science Fair for students. It promotes science and research amongst young Indian innovators and recognizes and rewards their outstanding projects and originality of thought. It is an exemplar of a public – private partnership between the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Indo US Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF) and Intel India for empowering the next generation of innovators. Launched in 2006, IRIS conducts science fairs annually for middle and high school (Grades 5-12) students. It recognizes and rewards outstanding projects and provides a platform for these geniuses to represent India at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF).

 

About Department of Science and Technology (DST)

The Department of Science and Technology was established in May 1971, with the objective of promoting new areas of S&T and to play the role of a nodal department for organizing, coordinating and promoting S&T activities in the country. The Department mandate includes formulation of policy statements and guidelines, support to basic and applied research in national institutions, support of infrastructural facilities for R&D and instrumentation, technology development and commercialization, fostering international cooperation in S&T, and supporting science and technology manpower development including entrepreneurship development for promotion of knowledge-based technology-driven entrepreneurs.

 

About Indo-US Science & Technology Forum (IUSSTF)

The Indo-US Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF) established under an agreement between the Governments of India and the United States of America in March 2000. IUSSTF is an autonomous, not for profit society that promotes and catalyzes Indo-US bilateral collaborations in science, technology, engineering and innovations through substantive interaction among government, academia and industry. As its mandate, IUSSTF provides an enabling platform to the scientific enterprises of the two nations by supporting a diverse program portfolio that fosters sustainable interactions and build long term collaborations. For more details www.indousstf.org

 

About Intel

Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) is a world leader in computing innovation. The company designs and builds the essential technologies that serve as the foundation for the world’s computing devices. As a leader in corporate responsibility and sustainability, Intel also manufactures the world’s first commercially available “conflict-free” microprocessors. Additional information about Intel is available at newsroom.intel.com and blogs.intel.com, and about Intel’s conflict-free efforts at conflictfree.intel.com.

 

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