2009 Siemens Competition Regional Winners Announced at The
University of Texas at Austin; Will Move on to National Finals for
Chance at $100,000 Peter Hu Wins Top Individual Prize; Sean Karson,
Dan Liu and Kevin Chen Win Top Team Prize AUSTIN, Texas, Nov. 14
/PRNewswire/ -- Research projects in the areas of materials science
and mathematics scored top marks this evening, as Peter Hu of
Denton, Texas and the team of Sean Karson of Winter Park, Florida,
Dan Liu of Austin, Texas and Kevin Chen of Missouri City, Texas
received the highest honors at the Region Two Finals of the 2009
Siemens Competition in Math, Science & Technology, the nation's
premier high school science competition. (Logo:
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070904/SIEMENSLOGO )
Tonight's winners will receive thousands of dollars in college
scholarships and be invited to compete at the National Finals in
New York City on December 3-7, where the winners of six regional
competitions across the United States will vie for scholarships
ranging from $10,000 to the top prize of $100,000. The Siemens
Competition, a signature program of the Siemens Foundation, is
administered by the College Board. "These students have just earned
their place among the nation's greatest high school scientists,"
said James Whaley, President of the Siemens Foundation, based in
Iselin, New Jersey. "Each year, the students' work becomes more
impressive, and in a record-setting year such as this one, their
achievements become even more outstanding. We are proud to welcome
them into our family of Siemens Scholars and look forward to their
participation at the national finals in New York City." The
students presented their research this weekend to a panel of judges
from The University of Texas at Austin, host of the Siemens
Competition Region Two Finals. Individual Winner Peter Hu, a senior
at the Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science in Denton, Texas,
won the individual category and a $3,000 college scholarship for
his materials science project that aimed to develop a novel and
biologically compatible material for protein drug delivery. While
similar delivery systems for therapeutic proteins are known in
scientific literature, many of these materials were found to be
carcinogenic. Mr. Hu's research, titled Novel Thermogelling
Dispersions of Polymer Nanoparticles for Controlled Drug Delivery,
focused on an alternative FDA-approved material to mimic the
behavior of these previous delivery systems, effectively avoiding
prior toxicity issues. "While all of the projects were very
impressive today, Mr. Hu's research was successful on many levels,"
said Dr. Christopher Bielawski, Associate Professor in the
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at The University of Texas
at Austin. "This research project established a key proof of
concept in the laboratory and the materials presented are poised
for examination in living systems. Mr. Hu's work is very advanced
and comparable to that of a second or third year graduate student;
with minimal tweaks, this research project stands an excellent
chance at being published in a top-tier scientific journal and will
likely make quite a splash in many scientific communities." Mr. Hu
is a senior who aspires to one day lead a research team at a
university or facility, such as the National Cancer Institute.
Currently, he is the Vice President of the Junior Engineering
Technical Society, and is organizing a science demonstration team
in order to promote interest in math and science among elementary
and middle school students. Mr. Hu is also a member of his school's
Research Organization. Both of Mr. Hu's parents are physicists,
spurring his interest in science at a young age. In addition to his
academic pursuits, Mr. Hu plays piano and violin, as well as
basketball and table tennis in his free time. His mentor for this
research project was Professor Liping Tang of the Department of
Bioengineering at The University of Texas at Arlington. Team
Winners Sean Karson, a senior at Trinity Prepatory High School in
Winter Park, Florida; Dan Liu, a junior at the Liberal Arts and
Science Academy High School in Austin, Texas; and Kevin Chen, a
junior at William P. Clements High School in Sugar Land, Texas, won
the team category and will share a $6,000 college scholarship for
their mathematics project entitled Relating Missing and Decycling
Edges in Directed Graphs. The team's mathematics project has the
potential to increase efficiency in real world networks by
establishing an upper bound on the minimum number of connections
that must be removed to destroy all cyclic pathways in systems like
the World Wide Web and transcontinental trade routes. "The team's
work was truly impressive in that it focused on a topic in pure
mathematics," said Dr. Haskell Rosenthal, John T. Stuart III
Centennial Professor Emeritus in Mathematics at The University of
Texas at Austin. "With new and delicate techniques, they have
advanced the infrastructure and knowledge of graph theory by
providing better bounds, which is of fundamental importance to the
mathematics community. Their depth of knowledge was remarkable, and
their work was on the same level of that of a Ph.D." Mr. Karson is
a senior who has received Excellence Awards for Honors Computer
Programming C++, Graphics I, Honors Chemistry, Honors Precalculus,
AP JAVA and AP Chemistry. He has also received the Rensselaer
Polytechnic Institute Math & Science Award, and is recognized
as a National Merit Semifinalist. Mr. Karson is Captain of the Quiz
Bowl Team, President of Mu Alpha Theta, a member of the Spanish
Honor Society and the National Honor Society and volunteers for the
Center of Math, Arts and Science Achievement. He has also received
the Varsity Baseball Coach's Award and the Most Valuable Defensive
Player Award, and has been the starting third baseman on the
Varsity Baseball Team since his sophomore year. Mr. Karson has also
leveraged his love of puzzles to create a club called Rubik's
Revenge, aimed to teach middle school students how to solve Rubik's
Cubes. Mr. Liu is a junior who aspires to one day become a computer
or electronics engineer or programmer. He is currently Vice
President of the InvenTeams Club, Co-Director of his school's Math
Team, and a member of the Liberal Arts and Science Academy's (LASA)
National Honor Society Chapter. Mr. Liu is also a part of the LASA
Camerata Orchestra and Science Olympiad Team. He is a part of the
Circle C Swim Team, and also plays badminton and ping-pong. Mr.
Chen is a junior and is a member of his school's Mu Alpha Theta,
Junior Engineering Technical Society and Computer Science Team. He
is also an active volunteer at a local middle school Math Club. Mr.
Chen's dad is a computer engineer and has taught mathematics and
physics in the past, playing a large role in sparking his interest
in math when he was young. His mother is also very encouraging and
supportive of his passion for math and science, helping to foster
his current academic interests. He enjoys practicing piano, playing
tennis and programming games in his free time. The team's mentor
was Dr. Jian Shen, Professor of Mathematics at Texas State
University in San Marcos, Texas. Regional Finalists Regional
Finalists each received a $1,000 scholarship. Regional Finalists in
the individual category were: -- Sai Achi, Texas Academy of
Mathematics and Science, Denton, TX -- Somak Das, Texas Academy of
Mathematics and Science, Denton, TX -- Prianka Ghoshal, Westlake
High School, Austin, TX -- Sahil Khetpal, Texas Academy of
Mathematics and Science, Denton, TX Regional Finalists in the team
category were: -- Fayen Bastani and Jonathan Lin, Jasper High
School, Plano, TX -- Sumit Gogia and Patrick Kim, The Science
Academy of South Texas, Mercedes, TX; and Vincent Yu, Sha Tin
College, Sha Tin, Hong Kong -- Sunil Pai, The Kinkaid School,
Houston TX; and Aneesh Sampath, Ward Melville High School, East
Setauket, NY -- Tianjiao (Tom) Zhang and Liang Gu, Bellaire High
School, Bellaire, TX The Siemens Competition The Siemens
Competition was launched in 1998 to recognize America's best and
brightest math and science students. In another record-setting
year, 2,151 students registered to enter the Siemens Competition in
Math, Science and Technology in 2009 - more than ever before - for
a total of 1,348 project submissions - a 14% increase in project
submissions over 2008 figures and more than a 12% increase in the
number of registrations. Entries are judged at the regional level
by esteemed scientists at six leading research universities which
host the regional competitions: California Institute of Technology;
Carnegie Mellon University; Georgia Institute of Technology;
Massachusetts Institute of Technology; University of Notre Dame;
and The University of Texas at Austin. Winners of the regional
events are invited to compete at the National Finals at New York
University in New York City, December 3 - December 7, 2009. Visit
http://www.siemens-foundation.org/ on December 7, 2009 at 9:30 am
EST to view a live webcast of the National Finalist Award
Presentation. You can also log into and follow the Siemens
Foundation on Twitter (http://twitter.com/SFoundation) for the
latest information and announcements throughout this year's
competition. About the Siemens Foundation The Siemens Foundation
provides more than $7 million annually in support of educational
initiatives in the areas of science, technology, engineering and
math in the United States. Its signature programs, the Siemens
Competition in Math, Science & Technology and Siemens Awards
for Advanced Placement, reward exceptional achievement in science,
math and technology. The newest program, The Siemens We Can Change
the World Challenge, encourages K-12 students to develop innovative
green solutions for environmental issues. By supporting outstanding
students today, and recognizing the teachers and schools that
inspire their excellence, the Foundation helps nurture tomorrow's
scientists and engineers. The Foundation's mission is based on the
culture of innovation, research and educational support that is the
hallmark of Siemens' U.S. companies and its parent company, Siemens
AG. For further information, visit
http://www.siemens-foundation.org/. The College Board The College
Board is a not-for-profit membership association whose mission is
to connect students to college success and opportunity. Founded in
1900, the College Board is composed of more than 5,700 schools,
colleges, universities and other educational organizations. Each
year, the College Board serves seven million students and their
parents, 23,000 high schools, and 3,800 colleges through major
programs and services in college readiness, college admission,
guidance, assessment, financial aid, enrollment, and teaching and
learning. Among its best-known programs are the SAT®, the
PSAT/NMSQT® and the Advanced Placement Program® (AP®). The College
Board is committed to the principles of excellence and equity, and
that commitment is embodied in all of its programs, services,
activities and concerns. For further information, visit
http://www.collegeboard.com/.
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070904/SIEMENSLOGO
http://photoarchive.ap.org/ DATASOURCE: Siemens Foundation CONTACT:
Valerie Francois of Siemens Foundation, +1-732-590-5292, or ; Judy
Huang of Weber Shandwick, +1-212-445-8346, or , for Siemens
Foundation Web Site: http://www.siemens-/ foundation.org
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