Chappaqua Central School District
2023 Regeneron Scholars
Congratulations CARLY GOOGEL, ELVIN LO, JULIA SUN and AMY YANG!
On January 10, 2023, the Society for Science announced the top 300 scholars in the Regeneron Science Talent Search 2023, the nation’s oldest and most prestigious science and math competition for high school seniors. Greeley's four Regeneron Science Talent Search scholars were selected from 1,949 applications received from 627 high schools across 48 states, Washington, DC, Puerto Rico and 4 countries. They were chosen based on their exceptional research skills, commitment to academics, innovative thinking and promise as scientists. The 300 scholars will be awarded $2,000 each and their schools will be awarded $2,000 for each enrolled scholar.
Dr. Lisa Papernik, science research teacher at HGHS stated, "The Horace Greeley Science Research program provides a supportive environment where a student can begin with a kernel of an idea, build confidence and skills with the help of peers, teachers and outside mentors, and then develop their idea into a nationally recognized research project.” Science research teacher Dr. Haroula Argiros added, "Our four scholars have worked extremely hard and they deserve such a merit. We are incredibly proud of them!” Dr. Lisa Papernik continued, "We are so proud of Carly, Elvin, Julia and Amy! Each of their projects is the result of incredible creativity, initiative and hard work.”
CARLY GOOGEL
The Connection Between Stress and a Person’s Ability To Understand Their Own Mind and the Minds of Others
Carly’s research focuses on stress and anxiety, studying the effects of stress on a person's ability to mentalize (understand their own mind and the thoughts and feelings of others). The findings indicate that when people are stressed, they have a lessened ability to understand the thoughts and feelings of another and exhibit more negative emotions – traits which are believed to be tied to diminished compassion for others.
Carly recently was accepted into the Jerome Fisher Program in Management & Technology at the University of Pennsylvania where she plans to learn critical skills at the intersection of business and technology that would help with her ultimate goal of launching her own tech startup. "My fascination of human’s limited ability to perceive the universe makes me eager to advance technology to expand the capacity of the human mind," she explained.
ELVIN LO
An Empirical Evaluation of Zeroth-Order Optimization Methods on AI-Driven Molecule Optimization
Artificial intelligence techniques have shown great potential to accelerate pharmaceutical drug discovery by efficiently solving molecule optimization, the problem of identifying organic molecules with desirable properties. Elvin's research thoroughly investigated the application of a class of methods called zeroth-order optimization to molecule optimization.
Elvin stated, "I hope to continue studying AI in college and eventually become an AI researcher. Currently, I am especially interested in applications in healthcare and pharmaceuticals."
JULIA SUN
Deregulated Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor (AhR) and Malignant Transformation
Julia researched AhR, a ligand-activated transcription factor known to detoxify xenobiotics. She studied how B[a]P, an AhR ligand and cigarette smoke component, affects ferroptosis, iron-dependent cell death. This research can help create cancer therapies targeting AhR signaling.
"I plan to continue research in college, and I am interested in pursuing a career in medicine and healthcare policy," Julia said.
AMY YANG
Image-Based Deep Learning on Air Quality Using a Nine-Layer Residual Neural Network
To improve upon current air quality monitoring systems, Amy built a machine learning model that can detect levels of air pollution by analyzing webcam images. This new method increases efficiency and will help mitigate the effects of climate change.
Amy plans on attending college and hopes to study either Mathematics or Environmental Science, . .or a mix of both.
About the Regeneron Science Research Talent Search
The Regeneron Science Talent Search recognizes and empowers our nation’s most promising young scientists who are generating innovative solutions to solve significant global challenges through rigorous research and discoveries. It provides students with a national stage to present new ideas and challenge conventional ways of thinking. Now in its one hundred and first year, Society for Science has played a significant role in educating the public about scientific discoveries as well as in identifying future leaders in science, technology, engineering and math. Regeneron has sponsored the Science Talent Search since 2017 as part of its deep commitment to STEM education and to supporting young scientists.
This year, research projects cover topics from analyzing the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war, to developing eco-friendly biofuel, and improving methods used to detect diseases and neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s, bladder cancer, monkeypox, autism and more. Other students chose to focus on social issues, such as exploring ways to reduce social media-induced emotional distress and violence, as well as studying how mask mandates impact how accurately people can recognize emotion on others’ faces.
“Congratulations to the top 300 scholars in this year’s Regeneron Science Talent Search,” said Maya Ajmera, President and CEO, Society for Science and Publisher, Science News. “The enthusiasm and quality of projects from this year's participants were just outstanding. Each year, I am tremendously impressed by the ingenuity that the students bring to the competition. Their hard work, creativity and perseverance should be applauded.”
On January 24, 40 of the 300 scholars will be named Regeneron Science Talent Search finalists. From March 9-15 all 40 finalists will compete for more than $1.8 million in awards provided by Regeneron.