Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge
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The Young Scientist Challenge is a youth science and engineering competition administered by Discovery Education and 3M for middle school students in the United States, similar to the European Union Contest for Young Scientists. Students apply by creating a 1-2 minute video detailing their idea for a new invention intended to solve an everyday problem. Ten finalists are chosen annually to work alongside a 3M scientist during a summer mentorship and receive a trip to the 3M Innovation Center in St. Paul, Minnesota, to compete for $25,000 and the title of America's Top Young Scientist.
Selection process
The entry period is from December until April each year. A panel of judges from Discovery Education and its partner organizations, educators, and science professionals score qualifying entry videos and choose 10 finalists and up to 51 merit winners, one from each state and the District of Columbia, based on the following criteria:
- Creativity (ingenuity and innovative thinking) (30%)
- Scientific knowledge (30%)
- Persuasiveness and effective communication (20%)
- Overall presentation (20%)
Students are required to address an everyday problem and articulate how the problem directly impacts them, their families, their communities, and/or the global population.[1][2] The idea must be a new innovation or solution, and cannot be a behavioral change or a new use for an existing product. Judges also look for the level of understanding of scientific concepts and confidence in communicating science in general exhibited in the videos.
The ten finalists undergo a summer menotoship and in the fall travel to 3M's headquarters in Minnesota to participate in the Young Scientist Challenge Final Event. They visit 3M labs, meet 3M scientists, and tour the 3M Innovation Center, and also participate in a series of other scored challenges to demonstrate their scientific knowledge and communication abilities. For their final challenge, they then present the innovation that they developed during their mentorship. Here the finalists are judged by a panel of judges selected by Discovery Education and its partner organizations according to the following guidelines:
- Creativity (ingenuity and innovative thinking) demonstrated in the presentation (30%)
- Scientific knowledge demonstrated in the presentation (20%)
- Effective use of a 3M technology in the innovation (10%)
- Ranking from the Final Event's scored scientific challenges (40%)
After the Final Event, participants attend an award ceremony and dinner, at which the winner of the title "America’s Top Young Scientist" is announced.[3]
Prizes
First Place (America's Top Young Scientist)
- $25,000
- Trip to Costa Rica (or similar destination)
- Contest trophy
Three Runner-Up Prize winners
- A trip to Costa Rica (or similar destination)
Six Second Prize winners
- "Excitations" for a $500 excursion
Minor Planets Named After Finalists[4]
- NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Small Body Database[5]
Up to 51 Merit Winners (one from each state and the District of Columbia)
- 3M Innovation Prize Packs[6]
History
Formerly known as the Discovery Channel Young Scientist Challenge (DCYSC), the Young Scientist challenge was created in 1999 as an engineering research and exhibit competition for students in grades 5 through 8.[7] It was sponsored primarily by Discovery Communications, Society for Science and the Public, and Elmer's Glue. Competitors were originally qualified for DCYSC by entering an International Science and Engineering-affiliated science fair and being nominated by a teacher or professional.
Students completed an application that included several essays, which were then evaluated for communication abilities by DCYSC judges, who selected 400 semi-finalists and 40 finalists who received an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C. to compete in the final competition. The finals consisted of two parts. The first was a research presentation, accounting for 20% of the total score, held at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, the National Academy of Sciences, or another academic national association that varied from year to year. The second was a series of six science-related challenges at the National Institutes of Health or the University of Maryland. Each challenge concluded with some type of presentation (e.g., a radio show, a TV show, or a news conference) worth 10% of the students' total score. Students also presented a simple science experiment, known as a Whelmer, in front of cameras for 15% of their score. The remaining 5% came from teamwork, as the finalists were split into eight teams consisting of five members each for the science challenges.
In 2008 the contest became the Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Students no longer have to be nominated and now submit a 1-2 minute video clip as their form of entry.
Kara Fan from San Diego won the 2019 top prize, with a nano-particle bandage concept.[8] She made an anti-bacterial bandage with a silver particle solution to win the 2019 3M Young Scientist Challenge.[9]
Challenge themes
Since 2003, themes for the Young Scientist Challenge have followed scientific curiosities and been built on the activities and innovations around them.
- In 2003, the activities were based on the 100th anniversary of the first flight of the Wright Brothers on December 17, 1903, and included a reproduction of the Wright Brother's 1901 wind tunnel and lift balance, which allowed contestants to test various wing designs for lift, and rocket-propelled go carts powered by compressed carbon dioxide gas.
- In 2004, the activities were based on the 100th anniversary of Einstein's Theory of Relativity, celebrated in the World Year of Physics 2005.[10]
- In 2005, inspired by the events of Hurricane Katrina and the 2004 Indonesian tsunami, the activities were about understanding natural disasters[11] and included a 20-foot tall vortex (tornado) generator, a 40-foot tsunami wave tank simulator, and procedures to safely dispose of biological waste after a natural disaster.
- In 2006, the activities were based on the theme "Disease Detectives" inspired by the H5N1 avian influenza scare. Contestants participated in virtual colonoscopy screening, mold identification and remediation, and avian flu containment using herd immunity models.
- In 2008, the activities centered on NASA-themed challenges. Finalists met NASA scientists and had the opportunity to work in a 1/6th gravity simulation, attempt a repair to the Hubble Telescope, and look for water on Mars.
- In 2009, the finalists went through four rounds of challenges based on the theme "The Science of Everyday Life".
- In 2010, activities focused on ways to keep humans safe. Contestants were judged on their knowledge of science and their ability to apply it to areas of safety and security.
Finalists
2006
- Joel Tinker: Alabama
- Theo Jones: Arizona
- David Cohn III: California
- Otana Jakpor: California
- Sophie Klimcak: California
- Mikael Matossian: California
- Radhika Rawat: Colorado
- Aarthi Shankar: Colorado
- Theresa Oei: Connecticut
- Kushal Naik: Delaware
- Joseph Church:District of Columbia
- Almas Ugurgizi Abdulla: Florida
- Nicholas Anthony: Florida
- Isabella Dominguez: Florida
- Collin McAliley: Florida
- Lindsey Precht: Florida
- Paige Thompson: Florida
- Trevor van Voorthuijsen: Florida
- Jason Lloyd: Georgia
- Shalila Baena: Hawaii
- Nolan Kamataki: Hawaii - Winner
- Jack Grundy: Kentucky
- Jacob Hurwitz: Maryland
- David Tao: Maryland
- Scott Yu: Maryland
- Nicholas Lemp: Michigan
- Michael Sewell: Michigan
- William Garrett Pete: Minnesota
- Mackensie Quade: Minnesota
- Shilpi Ganguly: Missouri
- Jayleen McAlpine: Montana
- Kushal Naik: Pennsylvania
- Taylor Jones: Tennessee
- Aaron Phillip Burrows: Texas
- Cyanna Skye Edwards: Texas
- Manpreet Kaur: Texas
- Philip Ricker: Texas
- Erin Edwards: Utah
- Anthony Hennig: Virginia
- Amy David: Wyoming
- Jayne Thompson: Wyoming[12]
2008
- Megan Gleason: Arizona
- Shyamal Buch: California
- Mathew McGuthry: Georgia
- Jack Uesugi: Hawaii
- Avni Bavishi: Illinois
- Margaret Botros: Kansas
- James Kruse: Minnesota
- Melissa Rey: Missouri – Winner
- Peter Ku: New Jersey
- Michael Koehler: Pennsylvania[13]
2009
- Nate Bloom: Colorado
- Jason Liu: Delaware
- Nicholas LaJoie: Maine
- Marina Dimitrov: Montana – Winner
- Nico Seamons: New Mexico
- Devin Dwyer: New York
- Nikita Gaurav: Oregon
- Claire Sheen: Pennsylvania
- Hugh Finch: Rhode Island
- Emily Grover: Utah[14]
2010
- Riya Chandra: California
- Liam O'Brien: Connecticut
- Sehee Kim: Georgia
- Matthew Shimura: Hawaii
- Raj Raina: Michigan
- Christopher Riedman: North Dakota
- Kai Klocke: Oregon
- Sydney Clark: Texas: Oregon
- Alexander Mataloni: Virginia
- Liam McCarty: Wisconsin – Winner[15]
2011
- Nolan Lenard: Alabama
- Albert Tung: California
- Braeden Benedict: California – Winner
- Divya Ravinder: Florida
- Austin Curtis: Indiana
- John Holtgrewe: Kentucky
- Jack Andraka: Maryland
- Cheyenne Hua: New York
- Caroline Boschetto: Pennsylvania
- Shayan Farmand: Pennsylvania[16]
2012
- Anin Sayana: California
- Gabriel Mesa: Connecticut
- Patrick Shea: Illinois
- Carolyn Jons: Minnesota
- Deepika Kurup: New Hampshire – Winner,[17] later named in the Forbes 30 under 30 list.[18]
- Brandon Gong: New York
- Aidan Dwyer: New York
- Chase Lewis: North Carolina
- Naren Gaurav: Oregon
- Anishaa Sivakumar: Pennsylvania[19]
2013
- Daniel Culver: Colorado
- Peyton Robertson: Florida - Winner
- Maureen Botros: Kansas
- Timmy DeMember: Maryland
- Katie Hudek: Massachusetts
- Anish Chaluvadi: South Carolina
- Edward Kim: Texas
- Aishani Sil: Texas
- Srijay Kasturi: Virginia
- Brooke Martin: Washington[20]
2014
- Mythri Ambatipudi: California
- Christopher Isozaki: California
- Anthony Kim: California
- Nikita Rafikov: Georgia
- Katherine Wu: Maryland
- Andrew Masek: Massachusetts
- Sahil Doshi: Pennsylvania - Winner[21]
- David Cohen: Texas
- Ana Humphrey: Virginia
- Jai Kumar: Virginia[22]
2015
- Raghav Ganesh: California
- Sanjana Shah: California
- Connor Pettit: Colorado
- Arthur Frigo, III: Florida
- Hannah Herbst: Florida - Winner
- Iris Gupta: Maryland
- Alec Lessing: New York
- Amulya Garimella: Pennsylvania
- Peter Finch: Rhode Island
- Krishna Reddy: Texas[23]
2016
- Sara Makboul: Georgia
- Will Paschal: Georgia
- Mrinali Kesavadas: Illinois
- Rohit Mital: Michigan
- Maanasa Mendu: Ohio - Winner, later named in the Forbes 30 under 30 list.[24]
- Rohan Wagh: Oregon
- Meghna Behari: Pennsylvania
- Sofia Tomov: Tennessee[25]
- Kaien Yang: Virginia
- Amelia Day: Washington State[26]
2017
- Kathryn Lampo: Colorado
- Gitanjali Rao: Colorado - Winner, later named in the Forbes 30 under 30 list.[27]
- Samu Shrestha: Colorado
- Anika Bhagavatula: Connecticut
- Devin Willis: Florida
- Austin Crouchley: New York
- Laalitya Acharya: Ohio
- Allie Weber: South Dakota
- Rithvik Ganesh: Texas
- Simone Jacobs: Washington State[28]
2018
- Mehaa Amirthalingam: Texas
- Sriram Bhimaraju: California
- Anna Du, Andover: Massachusetts
- Julia Gelfond: Maryland
- Zachary Hessler: Florida
- Rishab Jain: Oregon - Winner, later named in the Time (magazine) 25 Most Influential list.[29]
- Theodore Jiang: California
- Cameron Sharma: Virginia
- Krish Wadhwani: Georgia
- Leo Wylonis: Pennsylvania
2019
- Caroline Crouchley: New York
- Jaya Choudhary: Michigan
- Kara Fan: California - Winner
- Yosef “Joey” Granillo: Mo
- Reshma Kosaraju: California
- Nishant Lahiri: New York
- Jordan Prawira: California
- Camellia Sharma: Virginia
- Samyak Shrimali: Oregon
- Faraz Tamboli: N.J.
See also
References
- ^ Carletta (April 9, 2013). "Discovery Education And 3M Search For America's 2013 Top Young Scientist". eSchool News (press release). Retrieved December 4, 2017.
- ^ Weekley, Heather (March 1, 2013). "Is your youngster a budding scientist? Encourage them to enter a contest sponsored by 3M and Discovery Education". Columbus Parent (blog). Retrieved December 4, 2017.
- ^ "Judging". Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
- ^ "Prizes". Wikipedia Minor Planets Named After People. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
- ^ "Prizes". NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Small Body Database - Willipete. Retrieved October 14, 2006.
- ^ "Prizes". Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
- ^ O'Leary, Nancy K.; Shelly, Susan (2003). The Complete Idiot's Guide to Science Fair Projects. Indianapolis, Indiana: Alpha. p. 9. ISBN 9781592571376.
- ^ October 30, CBS News; 2019; Pm, 1:01. "14-year-old crowned America's top young scientist with nano particle liquid bandage invention". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 2019-11-24.
{{cite web}}:|last2=has numeric name (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ wysk (2019-11-05). "14-Year-Old Inventor, Kara Fan, Named 'America's Top Young Scientist' For Her Nano-Silver Liquid Bandage". Women You Should Know®. Retrieved 2019-11-24.
- ^ "World Year of Physics Flies High At Young Scientist Challenge". APS News. 13 (11). American Physical Society. December 2004.
- ^ Hanlon, Mike (October 18, 2005). "Discovery Channel Young Scientist Challenge finals underway". New Atlas. Retrieved December 4, 2017.
- ^ "2006 Finalists". Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Archived from the original on November 4, 2006.
- ^ "Contest Archives 2008". Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Archived from the original on March 26, 2016.
- ^ "Contest Archives 2009". Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Archived from the original on March 26, 2016.
- ^ "Contest Archives 2010". Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Archived from the original on March 26, 2016.
- ^ "Contest Archives 2011". Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Archived from the original on March 26, 2016.
- ^ Choudhury, Uttara (October 20, 2012). "Deepika Kurup wins America's top young scientist award". Firstpost. Retrieved December 4, 2017.
- ^ "2015 30 Under 30: Energy". Forbes. January 2015.
- ^ "Contest Archives 2012". Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Archived from the original on August 10, 2016.
- ^ "Contest Archives 2013". Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Archived from the original on March 26, 2016.
- ^ "Discovery Education and 3M Announce 2014 Science Competition Winner". Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
- ^ "Contest Archives 2014". Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Archived from the original on August 21, 2016.
- ^ "Contest Archives 2015". Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Archived from the original on December 24, 2015.
- ^ "A local high school student on Forbes 30 Under 30 list? It's true". WHIO-TV. January 10, 2017. Retrieved December 4, 2017.
- ^ "Knoxville girl is finalist in Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge". Knoxville News Sentinel. August 2, 2016. Retrieved December 4, 2017.
- ^ "Contest Archives 2016". Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Retrieved December 4, 2017.
- ^ "Gitanjali Rao: Girl of 11 takes US young scientist prize". BBC News. October 19, 2017. Retrieved December 4, 2017.
- ^ "Young Scientist Lab: 2017 Video Entry finalists". Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Retrieved December 4, 2017.
- ^ "Young Scientist Lab: 2018 Video Entry finalists". Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Retrieved December 8, 2018.