California teen wins $100K national science prize for new cancer treatment

[Sledgstone 8,672]

http://washingtonexaminer.com/news/2011/12/calif-teen-takes-home-100k-science-prize/1975546

A high school student from California won a $100,000 scholarship Monday for research that created a tiny particle she likened to a "Swiss army knife of cancer treatments" because of its precision in targeting cancer tumors.

Angela Zhang, 17, of Cupertino, Calif., won top individual honors at the Siemens Foundation's annual high school science competition, which announced winners in Washington. Top team honors went to a pair of students from Oak Ridge, Tenn., for their research using gaming technology to analyze the motion involved in walking. Cassee Cain and Ziyuan Liu, both 17, will share a $100,000 scholarship.

Six individuals and six teams were competing for the awards, which are in their 13th year. Zhang, the only female individual finalist, said her research was in part motivated by her family. Her great grandfather had liver cancer and her grandfather died of lung cancer when she was in seventh grade.

"I asked, 'Why does this happen. Why does cancer cause death? What are we doing to fix this and what can I do to help,'" said the Monta Vista High School senior.

Zhang said the particle she designed improves on current cancer treatments because it delivers a drug directly to tumor cells and doesn't affect healthy cells around it. The particle is also able to release a drug when activated by a laser. The idea is still years away from being used in patients, however. Zhang says it could take 25 years between clinical trials and other steps before her research is helping patients.

The team winners, Cain and Liu, got their inspiration from video game technology normally used to track a person's movements for dance, sport and fitness games. The pair of seniors from Oak Ridge High School developed software that uses the technology to analyze the way a person walks. They hope their software can ultimately be used to help people who wear prosthetic limbs improve their walk. Currently, people who have prosthetic limbs generally have to travel to labs to get that kind of help, but Cain and Liu say that because their software uses readily available technology it could be more widely used and also taken to developing countries.

"Anything that has a joint we can track, really, just depending on what we're interested in or what the doctor is interested in," said Cain, who is also the drum major in her high school marching band and a costume designer for the drama club.

The runners-up in the team and individual competitions went home with $50,000 scholarships. Second place in the individual competition was Brian Kim of New York, who studied ways to more efficiently pack objects into a space. The second-place team winners were Edgar Wang, Wayne Shu and Justin Yuan of Troy, Mich., whose research could help treat Alzheimer's disease and stroke.

Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://washingtonexaminer.com/news/2011/12/calif-teen-takes-home-100k-science-prize/1975546#ixzz1g5RNIpWk

Wow.

[CabbitGirl 4,018]

that's amazing!!! atleast if it take 25 years. she's got a head start only being 17

[Ladywriter 7,783]

imagine the career she'll have

[michal 100]

Nice really keep it up.!

[Pchan 5,162]

She should give that money to me. I will be her guide in the world of Berserk statues.

[Bartender 141]

Amazing. We need more people like that in this world. Not to rant, but a friend of mine was talking about this and I hate how in this world people like this get 100k, while stupid idiots get millions and millions for stupidity, reality shows, jersey shore, etc. Makes me want to buy a big rifle and get some work done

[Sledgstone 8,672]

lol. I hear that.

[Pchan 5,162]

Think of it this way - you pay people for entertainment and the bigger the entertainment appeal, the bigger the pay. I watch Jersey Shore for it's stupidity which is entertaining to me. It's the way the world has worked since day 1. Why go to a circus or the movies when you can pay a scholar 150 million dollars in grants versus giving that money to a studio to make the new Sherlock Holmes movie. It's the way the world works for centuries.

[Sledgstone 8,672]

Good counter argument.

[Bartender 141]

Yes, you are right and i agree with you. I don't deny it works like that, all i am saying is that it's still wrong, even though things work this way, and the important things are underpaid and the bad are overpaid. and Day 1, eh, personally i believe that with time and technology, we've started to waste more money on stupid things. Before we were more focused on needs, not so much entertainment and luxuries. We just live in an era in which our needs are taken for granted. ( food, water, shelter, health care, etc. )

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