Well there is hope for humanity after all. If we have 16-year-olds leading technology in the fight against cancer then I would say there's plenty to look forward to in the coming years.
I wasn't aware such a contest existed let alone can I comprehend how a teenage youth could be so brilliant, but then, what a pleasant surprise on both accounts.
A Grade 11 student from an Alberta high school has just been awarded the top prize in an annual BioGENEius Challenge Canada contest that seeks to find the nations best and brightest when it comes to world science. Competing against some of Canada's most brilliant youth, Arjun Nair came up with a potential treatment to combat cancer. Nair researched into an experimental therapy that uses nanoparticles to kill cancer cells. I won't get into details because I won't pretend to understand the science behind it all but if a panel of renowned Canadian scientists were impressed with Nair's concept then so am I.
I was worried about what to wear, school dances and passing math class in Grade 11, I can't imagine buckling down and coming up with ideas to save the world. Wow.
Judges describe Nair's research as being of "world class masters - PHD level quality." Not bad for a young Alberta boy. Naturally the youth is excited and inspired and rightly so. With a $5,000 prize in hand he says, "The idea that a kid's idea can be transplanted into the real world and that those ideas can be potentially down the road save the lives of people, that's a very exciting thought for me to have," says Nair. "And that's what's really pushing me forward."
The teen, who hopes to become a medical doctor and also conduct research, was one of 11 students aged 16 to 18 who took part in the national finals. As a result of his win he'll move on to an international event slated for later this month in Chicago.
"This is a 20-year partnership," says Jon Fairest, CEO of Sanofi Canada, sponsor of the contest. "And it's a true partnership between government health institutions and universities and clearly us, with industry, to try to develop the next generation of researchers that hopefully will keep Canada on the map in terms of innovation and research... When you sit in a room with these 16- and 17-year-olds and listen to what they're uncovering, what they're working on, it's pretty phenomenal."
It is phenomenal indeed, and refreshing. Look out world, there's a whole lot of brilliance brewing.
