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Tuesday, March 19 2024
Bengaluru

2 B’lureans make it through to Breakthrough Junior Challenge finals

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bjc final mainBengaluru: The Breakthrough Prize Foundation, on September 27, announced the top finalists in the fourth annual Breakthrough Junior Challenge, a group of 15 impressive students from around the world, as well as the recent top scorer of the online ‘Popular Vote’ portion of the global competition. Two of the finalists are Samay Godika and Nikhiya Shamsher from Bengaluru city.

The finalists of the event are: Ayesha Ahmed, 18, Australia; Jason Chen, 15, United States; Sam Cryan, 18, United States; Victor Elgersma,18 (Belgium); Samay Godika, 16, India; Artem Kirsanov, 17, Russia; Diogo Afonso Leitão, 16, Brazil; Luciana Lozano, 14, Mexico; Srishti Mishra, 17, Cambodia; Adelyn Moore, 17, United States; Kavya Negi, 18, India; HP Park, 16, Republic of Korea; Grace Patenaude, 15, United States; Avideep Pradhan, 17, United States; Nikhiya Shamsher, 16, India and Matthew Walak, 18, United States.

One of the 16 entrants will be announced the winner of the 2018 Breakthrough Junior Challenge on the Breakthrough Facebook page, live from the 2018 Breakthrough Prize ceremony in Silicon Valley on Sunday, November 4.

The winner of the Breakthrough Junior Challenge will be awarded a $ 250,000 college scholarship. The science teacher who inspired the winning student will win a $ 50,000 prize. The winner’s school will also receive a state-of-the-art science lab valued at $100,000.

Nikhiya Shamsher (16), a student of Greenwood High International School, Bengaluru, was the top scorer in the Popular Vote contest with more than 25,000 likes, shares and positive reactions for her video on spacetime and gravity posted on the Breakthrough Facebook page. Shamsher will receive an automatic entry into the final round. Shamsher has a passion for theoretical physics and math and has always had a fascination with gravity and how it can work over large distances between objects that are not connected. This fascination led her to explore Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity and Spacetime in her video for which she built a device to help people understand the concept. She wants to pursue a career in theoretical physics with the goal of revealing the secrets and resources of the universe.

Samay Godika (16), a student at the National Public School Koramangala, Bengaluru, is passionate about studying life sciences and entrepreneurship. He is fascinated by how simple daily activities such as waking up for school or travelling on a plane can affect people. For his video, he explored the phenomenon known as Circadian Rhythm, which examines the 24-hour biological rhythm. Because he has family members who suffer from Parkinson’s disease and other neurological illnesses, Samay is particularly interested in the co-relation between circadian rhythm and the effectiveness of medical treatments. Last summer, Samay attended the MIT Entrepreneurship Program, developing concepts for two startup companies. But first, Samay wants to study Neuroscience.

The 15 finalist videos were chosen by the Selection Committee, comprising Salman Khan, CEO, Founder, Khan Academy; author and educator Lucy Hawking; Mae Jemison, science literacy expert, former astronaut, and Principal, 100 Year Starship; retired NASA Astronaut Scott Kelly; Nima Arkani-Hamed, Professor of Physics, Institute for Advanced Study and Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics Laureate; Rachel Crane, Space and Science Correspondent, CNN; Huda Zoghbi, Professor of Pediatrics and Professor of Neuroscience and Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine and Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences Laureate; Ijad Madisch, CEO, Co-Founder, ResearchGate; Pete Worden, Chairman, Breakthrough Prize Foundation, Executive Director, Breakthrough Starshot; Esther Wojcicki, Founder, Palo Alto High Media Arts Center; and Terence Tao, Professor of Mathematics, UCLA and Breakthrough Prize in Mathematics Laureate.

About Breakthrough Junior Challenge

Breakthrough Junior Challenge is a global initiative to develop and demonstrate young people’s knowledge of science and scientific principles; generate excitement in these fields; support STEM career choices, and engage the imagination and interest of the public-at-large in key concepts of fundamental science.

Since its launch, the Breakthrough Junior Challenge has reached 190 countries, and the 2018 installment of the global competition attracted more than 12,000 registrants. The contest is designed to inspire creative thinking about fundamental concepts in the life sciences, physics, and mathematics. The field was reduced to 29 semifinalists, which represented the top submissions after two rounds of judging: first, a mandatory peer review, followed by an evaluation panel of judges.

2 B'lureans make it through to Breakthrough Junior Challenge finals
2 B'lureans make it through to Breakthrough Junior Challenge finals

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