A young scientist's life: it's not all in the lab.It was the final week of the Intel Science Talent Search The Intel Science Talent Search (Intel STS) is a prestigious research-based science competition in the United States primarily for high school students. The Intel STS is administered by the Science Service, which began the competition in 1942 with Westinghouse; for many years, the last March in Washington, D.C., and I was having dinner with some new friends. Boris and Linda were sitting on my right. They were exploring math problems on a dinner napkin. To my left was Andrei--he was talking about The Simpsons. I had a tie around my head (as did Boris) as we ate. It was silly and smart--the perfect culmination of our time together. All of the talent-search finalists got to experience the intellect, interests, and good humor Noun 1. good humor - a cheerful and agreeable mood amiability, good humour, good temper humour, mood, temper, humor - a characteristic (habitual or relatively temporary) state of feeling; "whether he praised or cursed me depended on his temper at the time"; of some of the brightest science students in the nation. The young researchers I met there were not the same kind of students I was used to seeing in school, where at times I felt I didn't belong. Crass humor was replaced with scientific wit: "A bar walks into two guys. Oh, wait! Wrong frame of reference." It may not have been the funniest joke in the world, but I surely appreciated it more than the jokes I was used to hearing from some of my high school peers. Another thing I love about meeting fellow students through science competitions is their diverse interests. My roommate at the Intel finals was a rock climber. The aforementioned Linda taught me how to swing dance. As for me, in addition to now being a swing dancer and a novice rock climber, I love playing my alto saxophone The alto saxophone is a variety of the saxophone, a family of woodwind instruments invented by Adolphe Sax. The alto is the third smallest of the saxophone family, which consists of ten sizes of saxophone (see saxophone). in the jazz band. I love watching the New York Mets
No matter how one-tracked we young scientists may seem, we do have other interests. But research has lately been at the forefront of our lives. The first thing I was told about professional research is that you must love what you do. That is the only way to succeed. Personally, if I'm not in the lab, I'm probably walking to it. My project for the Intel talent search was an investigation into the effects of commercial fishing on the North Atlantic cod population. I analyzed fish bones excavated from an early Icelandic fishing station to get a sense of the size of the North Atlantic cod population going back to the 15th century. I made it into the top 40 finalists. What's next? My favorite word: college. The thought of getting a fresh look at life and research makes me glow. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology Massachusetts Institute of Technology, at Cambridge; coeducational; chartered 1861, opened 1865 in Boston, moved 1916. It has long been recognized as an outstanding technological institute and its Sloan School of Management has notable programs in business, in Cambridge will be my home for the next four years. It will give me a chance to explore my scientific desires with peers as amazing as those from the Intel finals. Send us your 500-word story, along with your name, address, and phone number. If we publish it, we'll pay you $100. The New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of Times Upfront, 557 Broadway. New York, NY 10012; or upfront@scholastic.com. Shaye Storm, now a freshman at MIT MIT - Massachusetts Institute of Technology , graduated in June from Midwood High School Midwood High School, at Brooklyn College, is a public, urban, co-ed high school located on Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn, New York City. The school, which is administered by the New York City Department of Education, has over 3,500 students and is overcrowded; the school is in Brooklyn, N.Y. |
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