Irish Teens Win Google Science Fair by Taking on Global Hunger

At 16 years old, most kids are thinking about cars and parties. The winners of the Google Science Fair — Irish teenagers Ciara Judge, Émer Hickey and Sophie Healy-Thow — were thinking about how to stamp out world hunger. They discovered that a kind of soil-dwelling bacteria called Diazotroph is able to speed up the germination process of certain grains, like barley and oats, by 50 percent. No, Google did not give them a car for their efforts, but they were named grand prize winners of the contest and given $50,000 scholarships and a 10-day trip to the Galapagos Islands. There were some pretty impressive teens in other categories too, like Mihir Garimella, winner of the 13-14 age category, who built a flying robot inspired by the fruit fly. Kenneth Shinozuka, 15, won the Scientific American award for building a wearable sensor for seniors like his grandfather who wander because of Alzheimer's disease. And finally, Arsh Dilbagi, 16, captured the voters' choice award by inventing Talk, a device meant to help people communicate with only their breath.

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For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

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FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

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FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

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IN-DEPTH

• Girls Make the Grade at the White House Science Fair
• Teen Invents Sensor to Help Alzheimer's Patients
• Three Irish Teens Win Google Science Fair Using Bacteria to Grow Food (National Geographic)

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— Keith Wagstaff