Innovation Challenge - NYAS

Fresh New Methods for Clean Air and Water

A drop of water splashes into a large puddle.

Winners of the Junior Academy Innovation Challenge Spring 2023: “Water Sustainability”

Published July 1, 2023

By Nicole Pope

Sponsored by the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA)

Team members: Yuanning (Helen) H. (Team Lead) (United States), Aadi M. (United States), Riya K. (United States), Nachammai A. (United States), Sheila M. (United States), Ayazhan K. (Kazakhstan)

Mentor: Kalyani Neti (India)

As climate change continues to threaten water supplies around the world, the ability to access clean water– a right taken for granted by many people in developed countries– is an ongoing struggle for many populations around the world, particularly in tropical regions. According to the World Health Organization, only 53% of medical facilities in these tropical regions have secure, clean water sources. This results in epidemics of cholera (3 million annually) and diarrhea (1.7 billion cases annually).

Additionally, sepsis from dirty water causes 670,000 infant deaths per year. Six enterprising teens from the United States and Kazakhstan heard the call. The formed Cleaners of Warm Water: Air to Water to Healthcare. They won the Spring 2023 Innovation Challenge on Water Sustainability, sponsored by the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA). The team consisted of Yuanning (Helen) H. (United States. Team Lead), Aadi M. (United States), Riya K. (United States), Nachammai A. (United States), Sheila M. (United States), and Ayazhan K. (Kazakhstan). They worked under the guidance of their mentor, Kalyani Neti (India), to devise an ingenious solution for an acute problem. That problem: Lack of access to sterile, medical-grade water, crucial for healthcare in the tropics.

A Broad Range of Skills

The team began their mission, coordinating across time zones to meet online, swapping ideas, and considering various approaches. The multidisciplinary nature of the challenge meant they had to draw on a broad range of skills.

“I got to use knowledge from biology, chemistry, and physics to devise a coherent plan for our prototype and to identify a legitimate target group,” says Team Lead Yuanning (Helen). “I learned so much from all my teammates whose different personal experiences led to their different approaches to problems. For example, I, who lives in the cold and moist Northeast of the United States, would never have come up with the idea of creating sterile water for tropical regions.”

Dividing and Conquering the Workload Across Time Zones

Eventually, the six students decided to develop an affordable air-to-water generator that uses fans to capture humidity in the air (typically between 77% and 88% in tropical countries) and turn it into water. Drawing on their respective strengths, they divided the tasks among the group and created focused roles.

Sheila took on a research-centered role. “I read multiple reports of the World Health Organization and the United Nations in addition to research papers to gain a deeper understanding of the numbers and the types of people affected. I am passionate about global, equitable healthcare, so I was excited to use our water sustainability project to address both the problems of water insecurity and inadequate healthcare.”

Her teammate Ayazhan gathered and organized statistical data on water issues in the tropics. “I searched a lot for statistics and learned that water pollution is a really big problem in tropical regions, justifying it with metric research results,” she explains.

The team members’ intense online sessions soon generated exciting new ideas. “It is a rewarding experience to meet every week, share ideas, plan our solution and work on implementing our idea in the real world,” says Nachammai. “I worked on data confirmation, conducted interviews, and evaluated the results produced through our surveys. I also did research on future collaborations and on ways we could improve our prototype and solution as a team.”

Designing Blueprints — and 3D Models

Their efforts resulted in the development of an affordable 3D prototype of their machine, which can generate 63 liters, (half a bathtub) of water. By trapping groundwater molecules before they get contaminated by germs, parasites or chemicals, the air-to-water generator reduces the need for filtering and delivers small amounts of clean water cheaply, using sustainable energy sources.

Team member Aadi was in charge of designing and developing the blueprints as well as the 3D model. “I also created the simulation where I demonstrated the construction along with the explanation of each part of our prototype,” he says. To complement their air-to-water generator, the students also developed an app that facilitates the maintenance of the machine and enables users to find the nearest source of sustainable hydropower to fuel it.

During the third phase of their project, the students focused on marketing their invention, building a website that details the technology used and touts its benefits to potential users. “Each team member brought with them a different skill set and perspective,” says Riya, who worked on the website design. “I really loved working with a team of dedicated and passionate individuals interested in STEM fields.”

And it doesn’t end there. The team members plan to use 3D printing to turn their model into a functioning and marketable machine, and seek to take their project even further by collaborating with local governments and non-profit organizations in the targeted countries.

Developing a New App to Empower Urban Farmers

Winners of the Junior Academy Innovation Challenge Spring 2023 “Urban Gardens”

Published July 1, 2023

By Nicole Pope

Team members: Tianze H. (Team Lead) (United States), Tianlai H. (United States), Radwa A. (Egypt)

Mentor: Olusola Ladokun (Nigeria)

Urban gardening can be an effective way to provide fresh and healthy food at a low cost, particularly in parts of the world where food security remains elusive. But it involves many variables– climate, soil, location, sun exposure, type of crop– and urban residents often need education and guidance in order to be successful gardeners right from the start.

Three students — Tianze H. (United States, Team Lead), Tianlai H. (United States), Radwa A. (Egypt) — worked under the guidance of their mentor, Olusola Ladokun (Nigeria) to address this knowledge gap, and ultimately won the Spring 2023 Junior Academy Innovation Challenge with their project, “Family Farming: The Ultimate Planting Companion”. The project aims to promote urban gardening around the world by providing useful tips to city dwellers that enables them to supplement their diet with home grown crops.

“After long discussions we finally settled on the current idea,” says Tianlai. “Personally, I contributed creative ideas for our projects, like using deep learning algorithms in our application. I also worked with my teammates on the slides, adding things that they might have missed.” To identify what information would-be gardeners might need, the team conducted a small survey before designing an eco-friendly app called Family Farmers. The app contains a scanner that taps into existing plant and weather databases in order to identify the best potential garden locations based on available amount of space and local climate. The app also provides information about farming methods. It also shows how common household items can help reduce gardening costs.

Adding a Fun Factor to Urban Gardening

Family Farmers is designed to be the ultimate tool for aspiring gardeners, with an AI search engine that can be used to find suitable plants, an option to share progress and tips with a community of like-minded garden enthusiasts, and a calendar to remind users when to water and take care of their plants. The students also added an element of entertainment to their app, with plant-related games that provide fun facts about gardening.

Developing this innovative solution required hard work. The small but mighty team size (just three people) did not deter the committed students– in fact, it helped with the difficult task of coordinating online meetings across time zones.

Strengthening Relationships

“The size of the group does not matter. In fact, it might have even helped everyone strengthen our relationships,” says Team Lead Tianze.

“We were also able to help each other and make up for what we may not be good at. The teammates were willing to cooperate and overcome the time differences that we have,” says Tianze. “We were also able to help each other and make up for what we may not be good at. Helping to solve a real-world problem was a great experience.”

Team member Radwa enjoyed researching the issues surrounding gardening in an urban environment and collaborating with international students. “This was my first time in a program that involves meeting students from different nationalities and working together on new ideas,” he said. “This is a wonderful thing and I’m very glad to have gone through this experience, meeting new friends and learning many things in a field that I’m passionate about. I hope to do something that is related to it one day.”

The Junior Academy was supported by the Stevens Initiative, which is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, with funding provided by the U.S. Government, and is administered by the Aspen Institute.

Technology for More Sustainable Agriculture

Winners of the Junior Academy Innovation Challenge Fall 2022: “The Green Redesign”

Published December 1, 2022

By Nicole Pope

Challenges in Agriculture

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has identified lack of innovation as one of the biggest challenges in agriculture. In a world facing multiple challenges such as depleted natural resources, climate change, and pollution, developing more efficient agricultural systems is crucial for our survival.

Through online brainstorming, the team concluded that emerging technologies like the Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) can address some of these issues and can help farmers who often lack the skill set to optimize agricultural methods. Overuse of fertilizer, for example, can pollute waterways, burn crops, deplete the soil of minerals and increase air pollution.

“It was an amazing experience to have connected with like-minded individuals and research world-changing approaches!” says Riya.

Greetopia team members decided to develop a web application that would tackle the excessive use of non-renewable resources.

“I got to research and learn more about the important crises around the world, such as concrete pollution, irrigation, etc.,” says Arshroop. “The constant communication within the team allowed us to keep up with the information and learn a lot of valuable lessons through the program.”

Utilizing the Internet of Things

In particular, the students opted to use the Internet of Things (IoT) to increase efficiency in irrigation and modernize farming practices that have remained unchanged for centuries.

“As team lead, I worked on planning our work, informing each member of what they have to do until certain target dates, creating documents to make the process efficient, and of course, conducting research about our research topic and filling in the milestones,” explains Team Lead Jiho.

The team devised “Kanad”, a farming application that delivers four main functions. First, it senses soil moisture levels by using a machine-learning component called Long Short-Term Memory Network (LSTM), which gets more accurate with use. Second, farmers can enter information on the Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium (NPK) content in the soil, (also analyzed by sensors) to identify the most optimally adapting crops for these soil characteristics and locations.

Utilizing Machine-Learning

Machine-learning can also recommend the optimal amount of fertilizer based on the same NPK levels in the field. Finally, farmers can enter images of their crop into the web-based application, which will use the Convolutional Neural Network deep learning system to identify potential crop diseases with an accuracy of 95.25%.

Arriving at this successful solution did not prove easy: the team decided to change direction halfway through the Challenge.

“I’m glad that the team members understood the sudden change in our projected target in the middle of the program, which led to a successful ending,” says Ansh. In the end, perseverance paid off and the outcome amply justified the effort involved.

“Despite the obstacles we encountered, we made it till the end,” says Rawnaq. “We did not just complete the challenge but the result was awesome.”

[1] Source: UN Food and Agriculture Organisation
[2] Source: US Department of Agriculture
[3] Source: World Wildlife Fund (WWF-UK)

An Innovative Approach to Predicting Forest Fires

Winners of the Junior Academy Innovation Challenge Fall 2022: “Forestry for a Sustainable Future”

Published December 1, 2022

By Nicole Pope

Sponsored by Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA)

Prolonged droughts, caused by climate change, have amplified the risks of forest fires around the globe– making blazes bigger, more frequent, and more intense.

These fires devastate vast swathes of forests and often spread into residential areas, threatening lives and housing. Research by the University of Maryland suggests that fires cause forests to lose 3 million more hectares annually than in 2001. Furthermore, the UN Environment Program estimates that by 2100, the number of forest fires will increase by 50%.

The team Intelligent Forest — Chinmay R. (India, Team Lead), Rohan S. (India), and Soumik P. (India) — worked under the guidance of their mentor Malarvizhi Arulraj (United States) to tackle this critical issue as part of the “Forestry for a Sustainable Future” Fall 2022 Junior Academy Challenge, sponsored by the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA). Intelligent Forest bested the field among 175 competitors. Their innovative method to predict the risk of fire helped them to win.

“It was great taking on real world problems and using our intellect to solve them. I learned various things throughout the course of the challenge such as AI, weather patterns, machine learning applications and much more,” says Rohan. “We worked hard as a team and came up with a solution in the end together.”

Understanding Forest Fires

Forest fires can be triggered by natural factors, such as lightning, or by human factors, such as the careless dropping of a cigarette or the lighting of an unnecessary fire in severe drought conditions. Crown fires burn the entire length of the trees while surface fires only scorch dried leaves and grass.

In some cases, fire can rage under the ground. As the team discovered over the course of their research, climatic conditions play a critical role– the hotter and drier the weather, the more destructive the fire is likely to be.

Finding ways to mitigate the impact of these now-frequent infernos required hard work, but the team members worked collaboratively to achieve results.

“There were times when I was uncertain as to whether we would even reach the end, but here we are,” says Soumik. “It was a fun experience working with my team members, and I had the opportunity to add and develop my skills. My main contribution was helping with the research side of things and suggesting ideas and edits.”

Utilizing Artificial Intelligence

With support from their mentor, the students decided to focus on harnessing the power of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to analyze forest and temperature data, in the hope that it would be possible to predict the risk of fires.

“I was impressed by the plans and ideas the team put together and was absolutely delighted to mentor the team,” says their mentor, Malarvizhi. “They chose a problem and approach that was hard and challenging. Especially, finding the best dataset and creating working machine-learning algorithms needs a lot of effort.”

Using data on fire alerts and meteorological information (minimal and maximal temperatures, rainfall, solar radiation and daily evaporation) collected in the Brisbane area in Australia between 2012 and 2022, the team tested two different AI approaches: Decision Tree and Random Forest.

The Results

The goal was to create four categories: no risk, low risk, medium risk or high risk of fire. The results provided the proof-of-concept the team expected. With the Decision Tree approach, they were able to predict fire risk with 70% accuracy, while the accuracy was 79% using the Random Forest approach.

These findings demonstrated that with the help of AI, it is possible to predict the risk of forest fires with 70–80% accuracy, which, in turn, allows for increased preparedness and limited impact.

“The project was a great learning experience for me,” says Team Lead Chinmay. “I had taken Artificial Intelligence as a subject in high school and this project taught me how I could apply what I had learned in a real-life situation.”

Meeting Electricity Needs in the Philippines

A shot of planet Earth taken from space.

Winners of the Junior Academy Innovation Challenge Spring 2022: “Flexible Use of Electricity”

Published July 1, 2022

By Roger Torda

Team Members: Abhi G. (Team Lead) (India), Marianne I. (Philippines), Shreya J. (Canada), Angel I. (Philippines), Elijah U. (Nigeria)

Mentor: Muhammad Mahad Malik (Pakistan)

For this Junior Academy challenge on Flexible Use of Electricity, the five Power On team members chose to address a thorny issue: the energy deficit in the Philippines, where electricity demand is growing rapidly, and supply falls short of demand– leaving close to 30% of the population without electricity or facing significant fluctuations in electricity supply known as brownouts. Constraints on access to power are especially acute in rural areas and on the country’s numerous islands.

“The flexible electricity challenge is one of the most complex research projects I’ve ever worked on as it took quite a while for me to decipher the exact problems that needed to be tackled,” explains Elijah. “However, this pushed me to engage more in extensive readings, and actively be a part of reaching out to and interviewing numerous experts.”

After conducting a survey in nine countries, consulting their mentor and experts, and brainstorming through the Academy’s Launchpad platform, the team members narrowed down potential solutions to focus on three approaches.

“Asking questions and making sure that we understood the concepts fueled me to keep on collecting more knowledge,” says Marianne. “Interviewing different experts from different fields gave us new perspectives when we dealt with this challenge. Because a problem has deep roots, it is important to look at it from different angles.”

Raising Public Awareness

First, based on the results of their survey, the students determined it was important to raise public awareness of electricity issues such as peaks/non-peaks, flexible use of electricity, and supply, storage and distribution. They’ve addressed this need for awareness with an entertaining game designed to educate consumers.

“I had to meet experts from around the globe to hear their perspectives on flexible electricity,” explains Angel. “It made me realize that people may have different geographies and have various living standards, but what we have in common is that we face similar problems, such as balancing the demand and supply of electricity.”

The second pillar of the students’ project is Demaflex, an app to forecast demand and improve the response. The app would analyze data to predict times of high demand and encourage consumers to reduce the pressure on the power grid by scheduling their use of various appliances (such as dishwashers or washing machines) during off-peak periods. By sending recommendations to power users, the app would promote flexible use of electricity.

Finally, the team focused on developing Electrade, an app-based, decentralized, user-friendly energy trading platform that would allow people to buy energy and sell excess electricity back to the grid. The enterprising students will be working with the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and the Philippine Council for Industry, Energy, and Emerging Technology Research and Development (PCIEERD), which have created a partnership program to grant startup funding towards commercializing their solutions.

An Eye-Opening Experience

Seeing their project take shape has given the team members a great sense of achievement.

“Electricity, in particular, always seemed like an intimidating challenge to tackle, but now, I’ve learned so much,” says Shreya. “I’m proud of the solution that we created and the work we’ve done to create, test, innovate, and communicate our project to the world.”

Participating in the Junior Academy challenge has been an intense learning experience and the students are delighted that their hard work has paid off– winning the challenge is merely the icing on the cake.

“The Flexible Electricity Challenge, for me personally, was quite an eye-opener. From all the research done by everyone on the team, I’ve learned quite a few things about the grid, electricity supply, and the demand response system,” says Team Lead Abhi. “The late nights and the sheer amount of work each and every one put in on our project is something I’ll always remember and be grateful for.”

Raising Awareness about Water Quality in Ukraine

Meet Sea Saviors, the winning team of the Fall 2021 Junior Academy Challenge “Restoration of Aquatic Ecosystems.”

Published December 15, 2021

By Roger Torda

In the fall of 2021, six budding scientists entered the Junior Academy Challenge and teamed up online to address eutrophication in the Black Sea area and the Dnieper River that runs across Ukraine. Team members were Anzhelika-Mariia H. (Team Lead) (Ukraine), Kusum S. (Nepal), Aman Kumar F. (India), Manan P. (India), Ksheerja S. (India), and Viktoriia L. (Ukraine); the team worked under the mentorship of Pratibha Gupta (India).

Eutrophication is a naturally-occurring process that affects the chemical composition of water bodies. When this process is accelerated by human factors like industrial waste, sewage and fertilizers from farms, it causes excessive growth of algae and phytoplankton, oxygen deficiency, and dead zones – thus threatening ecosystems, biodiversity, and public health.

As a first step, the Challenge participants conducted research to better understand the root causes of the problem in the Dnieper River basin.

“I got tons of insights on eutrophication and how it is destroying our planet’s life,” explains Aman Kumar.

Encouraged by their mentor Pratibha (a.k.a. “Power Girl”), the students also looked at existing solutions before brainstorming new approaches that could improve the aquatic environment.

“Our mentor’s enlightening advice and expertise showed me just how vital the role of mentor is,” says Manan. “Hopefully, some day, I can become a Junior Academy mentor!”

Focusing Ecological Ditches

The team eventually opted to focus on ecological ditches, a traditional drainage system that developed in Ukraine in the 1960s, when the country was still part of the Soviet Union. Located at the edge of fields, eco-ditches allow excess rainwater to be carried away. In their conventional form, the drainage channels are inefficient at filtering unwanted fertilizer or nutrients and the team sought ways to improve them with better engineering.

“The diversity of our group, not only geographical, but also the unique personality that each of us carried added immense value to our work,” says Kusum.

The students identified a potential solution of adding plants with strong filtration capacity to eco-ditches, and looked at hydraulic flow rate control.

“I met hardworking individuals who helped me improve my own skills and taught me many valuable lessons in teamwork and analytical thinking,” says Ksheerja.

Eco-ditches require regular maintenance to remove sediments. While polluting industries can be easily identified, farms are harder to locate – yet farms release nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers that affect the delicate chemical balance of water bodies. The students saw a potential path to a sustainable solution: by mapping agricultural farms and existing canals, they could be linked into common drainage systems that could be monitored.

Raising Awareness Through Gaming

Raising awareness of the threats posed by eutrophication is also crucial. The Sea Saviors designed a web-based computer game aimed at children aged 8-13 to sensitize them to environmental issues.

“My role was to be a game designer and developer. Because of the Junior Academy, I found out about different ways of creating the video game and practiced one more game developing engine,” says Viktoriia.

In the two-level game, a friendly sea monster tries to make the aquatic environment more habitable for his fish buddies. In the process, Bob the Monster introduces young players to ecological ditches and the cultivation of oyster shells as ways of regulating the aquatic ecosystem.

“My team was tenacious and industrious from the beginning,” says Pratibha, thrilled with her mentees’ achievements. “Each member had faith in the other one to work diligently.”

For the winning team members, the project has been a stimulating learning experience that allowed them to form strong bonds.

“Working on this project boosted my motivation to continue my studies in the hope of becoming a scientist one day,” said Anzhelika-Mariia.

Advancing Science of the Global Public Good

A shot of various hands coming together in unity.

Teams, made up of 28 students from 11 countries, win international challenges in Space Exploration, Smart Technology for Home and Health, Cybersecurity, Sustainable Transportation, and the battle against COVID-19.

Published August 12, 2020

By Roger Torda

Five international teams made up of 28 students from 11 countries have demonstrated they can solve challenges that vex the most experienced scientists and engineers. The students are among more than a thousand that competed in 2020 Challenges run by teams, made up of 28 students from 11 countries, won international challenges in various fields of science as part of The New York Academy of Sciences’ Global STEM Alliance. The teams collaborated across borders to develop solutions related to the coronavirus pandemic, routine healthcare monitoring, cybersecurity, lunar exploration, and sustainable transportation.

The Combating COVID-19 Challenge

“I didn’t want to stand by and passively wait for the pandemic to be over,” said Young Chen, explaining why he assembled a team to enter the Combating COVID-19 Challenge. “It was a combination of curiosity, risk-taking, and desire to help my community.” Chen, from Ashburn, Virginia, four other students from the United States, and another from New Delhi, India, won first place among 200 entries in the global competition. Their winning project, called GOvid-19, was a chatbot to provide users with information about government responses, emergency resources, and statistics on COVID-19, and ways they can help fight the pandemic.

The Academy’s goal with the competitions is to help students develop capabilities necessary for effective work and leadership in STEM fields. “Providing opportunities for students to build 21^st-century skills like problem solving, collaboration and communication are core goals of our challenge programs,” said Hank Nourse, Senior Vice President & Chief Learning Officer for the Academy, in announcing the winners of the Challenges. This year, several of the Challenges were especially valuable as non-classroom projects for students whose schools had closed because of COVID-19. “Several of these teams completed their work during shutdowns due to the pandemic,” Nourse explained. “We are happy to know that our digital tools allowed students to continue working and learning without interruption.”

The Intelligent Homes & Health Challenge

Zoe Piccirillo, leader for the team that won the Intelligent Homes & Health Challenge, described some of what she learned: “I have become a more open-minded, collaborative and creative individual from working with the motivated and bright members of our team… My team members also helped make our final solution more inclusive. The diversity of the group provided new perspectives regarding what values and concerns are prevalent across the world.” Zoe’s Health Sync team designed a secure, in-home health monitoring system connecting patients, doctors, and pharmacists. Zoe, from New York City, worked with another student from the United States, two from Sweden, and one each from the Philippines and Australia.

I have become a more open-minded, collaborative and creative individual from working with the motivated and bright members of our team.
Zoe Piccirillo

After assembling their teams, the students use the Academy’s Launchpad platform to connect with a volunteer mentor and then to reach out to other experts as they conduct research. “Mentors are often early career scientists, from academia and industry, who volunteer their time to help guide the students with their projects,” explained Kaari Casey, GSA program manager.

“I’m incredibly proud of my teams,” said Jessica Black, the mentor for Health Sync and a veteran of nine previous Challenges. “Often, the topics that are presented for these challenges are varied and out of the scope of what most students are studying in school,” Black continued. “They have to integrate their knowledge base with newly acquired information that must be obtained through research. It’s a new process for many of them. To see the resolutions and presentations they formulate by the end of the challenge is incredible.”

Black is a fellow in pediatric oncology at New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center in New York City. “As a female in STEM I feel it’s really important to act as a role model not just for my female students, but for all of my students,” she added. The Intelligent Homes and Health Challenge was sponsored by the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences, AstraZeneca, and Chalmers University of Technology.

The Cybersecurity in the Age of IoT Challenge

A team calling itself Cybercastle won the Cybersecurity in the Age of IoT Challenge, with a system that uses blockchain technology to encrypt medical records. Team lead Rasmus Häggkvist, from Norrbotten, Sweden, described his criteria for forming a team using Launchpad, saying he “was looking for kind, organized, diligent, and prudent perfectionists.” He found them in all corners of the world, including India, Morocco, Canada and the Philippines. The Cybersecurity Challenge was sponsored by the S&P Global Foundation, with 25 employees from S&P Global serving as mentors to student teams.

The Space Challenge

The LunarX team won the Space Challenge for its plan to colonize the Moon, including designs for shelters, sustainable food and water systems, and artificial intelligence tools for energy and mobile transport. Sachee Kachchakaduge, the team’s leader from Vancouver, Canada, pointed to the importance of using digital communications in a global project: “We used asynchronous collaboration to work on our own time. Distance and time zones did not prove to be issues, and we were able to work as if we were school friends or classmates.”

Sachee also pointed to opportunities to expand skills in sometimes unexpected ways: “At the surface, challenges seem like they only teach you about the topic at hand. However, in reality, you learn many other things. The team provides a safe space for everyone to try new software, and to learn from others and to test out your ideas.” Sachee’s teammates were from the United Arab Emirates, the Republic of Moldova, India, and the United States.

LunarX team mentor Garret Schneider, a retired aeronautical and astronautical engineer who worked in the Air Force and in industry, said the team worked hard to avoid becoming overwhelmed: “I think their biggest obstacles were digesting all the information and possibilities, and also deciding where to focus their energies…. [This] contributed to their success, as well as their dedication to tie all the elements of their solution together in a thorough, coherent manner.” Garret, who has volunteered with the Academy for close to 20 years, said he benefits as well as the students: “I have a renewed respect for the intelligence and capability and spirit of our youth – I feel pride to have been associated with them.”

The Chain of Transportation Challenge

A team calling itself LiFe won the Sustainable Chain of Transportation Challenge. The team designed a battery, a vehicle and an app to match specific transportation needs with the most efficient transportation solutions. Team member Abby Liang, from Troy, Michigan, said: “My new knowledge about the scientific research and design process, as well as both technical and creative skills from coding to policy frameworks to project management, will stay with me as I continue in my studies… I am so proud of our final comprehensive design.”

Members of the team were from Mexico, New Zealand, Egypt and the United States. The Sustainable Chain of Transportation Challenge was sponsored by the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences and the Volvo Group.

Winning teams will receive a trip to New York City for next year’s annual GSA Summit, as this year’s Summit was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. In lieu of the in-person event this year, a virtual summit was held last month. Nicholas B. Dirks, the Academy’s President and CEO, addressed almost a thousand students and mentors, with a message about the importance of cross-discipline curiosity.

Laura Helmuth, Editor-In-Chief of Scientific American, delivered a keynote address, describing career pathways to science journalism and explaining the importance of good communication in the practice of science.

One of S&P Global’s 25 Challenge mentors echoed the belief that the exchange of ideas is a two-way process. “I wanted the chance… [to] get some exposure to what the next generation thinks about the problems the world is facing,” said Ryan Duve, a senior data scientist. Ryan worked with several teams and mentored a team called Symblot, which competed in the Cybersecurity Challenge. “I think the most important part of mentoring is just being a positive example of what you can be when you grow up,” he continued. “Too many young people only hear about different professions in articles and never really get a chance to do Q&A with a practitioner, which is a role I thought I could help fill.”

Winning Teams for the 2020 Global STEM Alliance Challenges

Combatting COVID-19

Abhay Sheshadri, Monroe Township, NJ, US; Anshul Mahajan, New Delhi, India; Regan Razon, Morrisville, NC, US; Tanush Swaminathan, Monroe Township, NJ, US; Young Chen, Asburn, VA, US.

Cybersecurity in the Age of IoT

Rasmus Häggkvist, Norbotten, Sweden; Sneha Pullanoor, Mumbai, India; Ouahib Timoulali, Kenitra, Morocco; Subaita Rahman, Toronto, Canada; Ma. Rizza Cerilles, Cavite, Philippines; Max Kenning, Stockholm, Sweden.

Space

Sachee Kachchakaduge, Vancouver, Canada; Sreenidhi Vijayaraghavan, Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Andreea Bujor, Ungheni, Republic of Moldova; Abhinav Agarwal, Jaipur, India; Arnav Hazra, San Francisco, CA, US; Naveen HV, Mysore, India.

Intelligent Homes & Health

Sara Rydell, Stockholm, Sweden; Jana Montanez, Parañaque City, Philippines; Ansh Gadodia, Princeton Junction, NJ, US; Sophia Li, Melbourne, Australia; Alice Forslund, Göteborg, Sweden; Zoe Piccirillo, New York, NY, US.

Sustainable Chain of Transportation

Cynthia Ramirez Meneses, Texcoco, Mexico; Izabela Zmirska, St. Augustine, FL, US; Evie Rose Grace, Dunedin, New Zealand; Ishita Bhimavarapu, Princeton, NJ, US; Abby Liang, Troy, MI, US.

Learn more about educational opportunities at the Academy.

Improving the Diagnosis of Rare Diseases

Five high school students pose for the camera.

Meet the winning team of the 2019 Junior Academy Genomics Challenge.

Published October 18, 2019

By Marie Gentile, Richard Birchard, and Mandy Carr

According to the World Health Organization, there are 5,000 to 8,000 rare diseases, most of them with a genetic basis. But errors in diagnosis can delay the implementation of proper treatments, especially for those in poor areas of the world where access to healthcare is limited.

Now, six high school students who participated in the Junior Academy’s Genomics Challenge, sponsored by Regeneron and Medidata, have developed a prototype for a better way to test the genetic code and thereby improve the diagnosis of rare diseases.

The students (Evangelos Kassos, 18, from Karditsa Greece; Ana Stratan, 18, from Bucharest, Romania; Aditi Gupta, 18, from Delhi, India; Monish Singhal, 14, from Bengaluru, India; Athena Yao, 17, from Wantagh, New York, USA; and Ana Bonavides-Aguilar, 17, from Cuernavaca, Morelos, México) impressed the Challenge judges with their comprehensive four-step approach, which addressed rare disease diagnosis, access to consultation, patient privacy, and knowledge distribution.

An Innovative Approach

Their innovative “iDNA Protocol” utilizes blockchain technology to ensure patient privacy, while increasing data sharing across research entities through their Doc2Doc platform model. Better data sharing facilitates collaboration between researchers, doctors, and patients, leading to more efficient and personalized diagnosis and treatment.

A “Prion Detection Kit” will help patients identify neurodegenerative disorders through at-home urine tests. This early detection kit complements the “GenePack” testing and treatment protocol, which tests newborns for genetic diseases and connects people living in isolated areas with research centers.

For their solution, the team received an all-expenses-paid trip to New York City to attend the 2019 Global STEM Alliance Summit.

Here, the students share their thoughts on the project and why they’re excited about its potential impact on medically underserved communities:

“Most of all, we thought about who we could help. We fashioned our project to cater to the needs of underserved communities.”
Ana Stratan

Diverse Perspectives

“I had no idea what was waiting for me when I posted ‘Wanna be the next Watson?’ on Launchpad. Five amazing people from around the world joined me in taking on the Genomics Challenge,” explains Evangelos Kassos. “Along with our mentor, we created a fantastic space full of creativity, where we could all thrive.”

Multidisciplinary Focus

“All of us had a focus—biology, technology, informatics—and we thought about the Challenge through these different lenses. Most of all, we thought about who we could help. We fashioned our project to cater to the needs of underserved communities,” says Ana Stratan. “Periodically we asked for input from people outside of the project to better understand our target audience.”

People Aren’t Numbers

“Our mentor explained to us how dire situations could get. We realized that while everyone was looking at the numbers, no one was realizing that these numbers are people,” laments Aditi Gupta. “I have lived in both a first world country and a third world country. I’m thankful for having access to the American healthcare system because India is still developing theirs.”

A Diagnosis-Focused Solution

”We realized that treatment is a different problem. The mere diagnosis of the disease can be troublesome,” says Monish Singhal. “We spoke with Prasanna Shirol, the co-founder and board director of the Organization for Rare Diseases India (ORDI), whose daughter suffers from Pompe disease. His daughter was diagnosed inaccurately several times. This example led to our diagnosis-focused solution, which emphasizes early identification of a disease.”

“We realized that while everyone was looking at the numbers, no one was realizing that these numbers are people.”

A Unified Approach

“Our solution has the potential to improve lives and be implemented effectively in existing communities globally, in a cost-effective manner,” says Athena Yao. “Our approach involves changes in the rare disease diagnosis and treatment process, addressing the different aspects of the problem. We employed our knowledge, resources, and understanding of global perspectives to create a solution that is viable for various areas.”

Achievable Impact

”The ideas we are proposing are groundbreaking, innovative, and achievable,” concludes Ana Bonavides-Aguilar. “Even though some are more challenging to attain (like creating the iDNA Protocol) there are others that if research begins, they could change the way genetic diseases are being detected, like the Antibody Testing Kit. Therefore, people suffering from rare diseases could—and will—have a chance at a high quality of life.”

Want to tackle global problems like this one? Learn more about the Junior Academy.

A Need for Sustainable Urban Ecosystems in the Future

Imagine an “Intellicity,” where neural networks ensure everything works together.

Published May 1, 2018

By Lori Greene

Today’s students will be the inhabitants of tomorrow’s cities, so they want more sustainable ways of living and working in urban ecosystems.

That was the premise behind United Technologies’ Future of Buildings Innovation Challenge. This event was created by The New York Academy of Sciences and launched in September 2017.

Fifty-two teams of students 13 to 18 years old from across the globe competed. Their goal: to conceive the most inventive green building solution.

Imagining an “Intellicity,” was the creation of one team. Here, neural networks run a building’s systems to ensure people, machines and the environment work in concert to adroitly use and conserve resources.

Reducing Waste

In the “Intellicity” paradigm, little is wasted. Solar panels and wind turbines create an on-going source of clean, abundant, renewable energy. Rainwater collected from the roofs of buildings provide water for indoor plumbing and hydroponic systems. Once inside, hydroponic walls can repurpose rainwater for food growth. Intellicity’s student founders want to ensure that people are harnessing energy generated by city activity and putting it to use.

Floor tiles in larger structures convert footsteps into electrical energy, and waste is turned into fertilizer. Solar panels on windows maximize sunlight and capture the energy to help run a building’s lighting and temperature systems. Revolving doors connected to electric generators can be used to capture energy as people walk in and out. This creates another source to power the structure’s electricity, heating and cooling needs.

The Applications of Artificial Intelligence

Using artificial intelligence (AI), energy is redistributed to increase the comfort and productivity of building occupants. The AI system that would run the integrated interior and exterior building networks “learns” from several inputs and the resulting outputs. For example, during high usage times, the power could go towards controlling lighting as well as heating and cooling rooms. Over time, the network records occupant preferences and automatically adjusts the room, heat and light depending on who enters and leaves.

Similarly, the team sought to give people an opportunity to interact with their building using a “neural network.” This computer system was developed around the human nervous system. It aims to allow the building to communicate back through an app detailing the energy being collected, used and wasted in the structure.

Retrofitting Existing Infrastructure

With the flexibility of AI, the team theorizes that this can also be implemented in a variety of structures. This includes transportation hubs such as airports as well as offices and apartment buildings. According to the plan, each section of the building could provide sustainable energy with minimal impact to the environment around it. Rather than redesigning structures, the team suggests using sensors in every room. They also suggested monitoring software that can help devise a customized solution to precisely redistribute energy.

Integrating neural networks into buildings to create an energy efficient sustainable future is Intellicity’s ultimate goal.

Check: nyas.org/challenges for information about the UTC Future Buildings and Cities Challenge winners.

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