"A Doll That Looks Likes Me...with Down's Syndrome"

Down Syndrome's Dolls.

One of this year's top finalists in the Intel Science Talent Search is a High School student studying self image of children with Down's Syndrome, using dolls.

Such creativity gives me hope for our next generation of scientists. This competition has launched many careers, including my own when I was a finalist in the then Westinghouse Science Talent competition {my topic was not as interesting, in retrospect.}

Below are the top 40 finalists. I love the diversity of topics!

California

Arcadia

Li, Jiacheng (Arcadia High School)
Algorithm-Based Fault Tolerance for Cascading Designs via Diagonal Check Values

Cerritos

Saha, Sayoni (Gretchen Whitney High School)
A Doll That Looks Likes Me: A Study of Self-Concept in Children with Down Syndrome

Davis

Fannjiang, Clara Louisa (Davis Senior High School)
Better Images, Fewer Samples: Optimizing Array Configuration for Compressed Sensing in Radio Interferometry

El Segundo

Li, Jack Zhihao (El Segundo High School)
Novel pH-responsive Encapsulated Phenylalanine Ammonia Lyase as an Enzyme Replacement Therapy for Phenylketonuria

Fullerton

Yao, Leon (Troy High School)
A Novel Scheme for Achieving Quasi-Uniform Rate Polarization Scrambling at 752krad/s

La Jolla

Lehmann, Meredith Paloma (La Jolla High School)
The Spread of Epidemics on the US Transportation Network: The Role of Air and Long Distance Auto Travel

Palo Alto

Pan, Jin (Henry M. Gunn High School)
A Novel Protein Translation Kinetics Model Supports the Ribosomal Pause Theory

San Jose

Sharan, Saurabh (Bellarmine College Preparatory School)
Parameter-Free Graph-Based Nuclear Segmentation in Cellular Images Using Morphological Cues

Saratoga

Zhang, Alissa Yuan (Saratoga High School)
Molecular Fingerprinting of Glucose with Raman and SERS for Noninvasive Diabetes Monitoring

Connecticut

Woodbridge

Yu, Zizi (Amity Regional High School)
Investigating the Hygiene Hypothesis: A Case-Control Study of Food Allergies and Age of Food Allergen Exposure in High School Teenagers

Florida

Oviedo

Patel, Neel S. (Oviedo High School)
A Four-Year Analysis of Sonifications for Use in Innovative Human-Computer Interfaces

Georgia

Duluth

Chen, Sitan (Northview High School)
On the Rank Number of Grid Graphs

Illinois

Aurora

Kalinich, Adam Orval (Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy)
Flipping the Winner of a Poset Game

Northbrook

Cotler, Jordan Saul (Glenbrook North High School)
A Relativistic Orthogonal States Quantum Key Distribution Protocol for Secure Satellite Communication

Indiana

South Bend

Fein, Eric Edgar (John Adams High School)
Characterizing Engineered Nanoparticle Adhesion to Soil Minerals: Implications for Environmental Transport and Remediation

West Lafayette

Prabhu, Anirudh (West Lafayette Junior-Senior High School)
Lower Bounds for Odd Perfect Numbers

Maryland

Silver Spring

Koehler, Frederic (Montgomery Blair High School)
Quick and Efficient: Fast Algorithms for Completion Time and Batch Minimization on Multiple Machines

Massachusetts

Acton

He, Xiaoyu (Acton-Boxborough Regional High School)
On the Classification of Universal Rotor-Routers

Andover

Ding, Fengning (Phillips Academy)
Infinitesimal Cherednik Algebras of gln

Michigan

Bloomfield Hills

Jena, Siddhartha Gautama (International Academy)
Elevated Cholesterol Impairs Water and Gas Transport in Red Blood Cells

Okemos

He, Philip Cody (Okemos High School)
A Novel Role of an Actin Capping Protein in Plant Immune Signaling

Port Huron

Tumma, Nithin Reddy (Port Huron Northern High School)
Elucidating Pathways in Cancer Pathogenesis: Establishment of Interaction Between TGF-β/Ras Pathways and Identification of gC1qR as an Oncoprotein

Minnesota

Plymouth

Chen, Evan Matthew (Wayzata High School)
CD24 Induced Muscular Regeneration: Unraveling the Mystery Behind Satellite Cell Differentiation

New Jersey

Hackensack

Kim, EunBe (Academy for Medical Science Technology)
Tamoxifen: Novel Approach for the Treatment of Estrogen Receptor Negative Cancers

New York

Bronx

Goldman, Danielle (Bronx High School of Science)
The Role of GABA in the Comorbidity of Adolescent MDD and GAD

Commack

Kim, Savina Dine (Commack High School)
Cognitive Deficits in Neuropsychiatric Disorders: A Schizophrenia Model Associated with Neuronal Alpha7 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Localization

East Setauket

Sato, Anna (Ward Melville High School)
A Novel Adsorptive Filtration Approach for the Removal of Radioactive Isotopes of Iodine and Cesium from Water

Huntington

Coraor, Juliana Mathea (Huntington High School)
The Impact of Compressive Misfit Strain on Improper Ferroelectricity in Lead Titanate/Strontium Titanate Superlattices

Jericho

Mehta, Neil Kamlesh (Jericho Senior High School)
Co-restoration of Type III Nrg1 Back Signaling through Depolarization:

Implications for Schizophrenia

Latham

Wang, Angela (Shaker High School)
A Comparison of Montages to Optimize Classification in an Auditory Brain-Computer Interface

New York

Fan, Huihui (Stuyvesant High School)
Root Nutrient Foraging: A Morphometric Approach to Quantifying the Developmental Plasticity Space of Arabidopsis Ecotypes in Laboratory and Natural Environments

Yen, Mimi (Stuyvesant High School)
Characterizing the Behavior and Genetics of Headplugging in C. elegans

Saint James

Davis, Rachel Michelle (Smithtown High School East)
Engineering Biodegradable Flame Retardant Polymers

White Plains

Van Doren, Benjamin Mark (White Plains High School)
Meteorological, Topographical and Behavioral Correlates of Diurnal Autumn Morning Flight Migration in the Northeastern United States

Pennsylvania

Landisville

Bechtel, Marian Joan (Hempfield High School)
A Stand-Off Seismo-Acoustic Method for Humanitarian Demining

Texas

Denton

Carsch, Kurtis Mickel (Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science)
DFT Modeling of a Methane-to-Methanol Oxy-Insertion Catalytic Cycle via Group 6 Organometallics: A Computational Analysis

Plano

Chyao, Amy Cindy (Plano East Senior High School)
Lights, Quantum Dots, Action!

The Woodlands

Quintero, Oliver Adolfo (The John Cooper School)
On the Synthesis of a New Wide Electrochemical Window Ionic Liquid for Advanced Electrochemical Endeavors

Virginia

Sterling

Dyckovsky, Ari Misha (Loudoun County Academy of Science)
Analysis of Photon-Mediated Entanglement Between Distinguishable Matter Qubits

Washington

Richland

Sushko, Andrey (Hanford High School)
Electrowetting for Novel Electromechanical Applications