This was abundantly clear when this year's group of promising young scientists and mathematicians gathered beneath the grand rotunda of the National Academy of Sciences for two days in March to present their projects to the public.

Here's a look at some of the research projects conducted by the 2006 Intel STS finalists.

Sheela Krishnan
Sheela Krishnan became interested in bees on a visit to India a few years ago when she first learned of the natural health benefits of honey. Curious about the antimicrobial properties of the substance, Krishnan returned home to Suffern, New York, and researched the subject. When she came across an article on American Foulbrood Disease (AFD), a virulent bacterial disease that decimates bee populations worldwide and causes severe economic loss to farmers, she was inspired to find a way to treat the disease.

	Sheela Krishnan

Working under her mentor, Dr. Randy Worobo, at Cornell University, the Suffern High School student spent the next two years examining bacteria isolated from the honey sacs of honeybees, including the bacteria behind AFD. In short, she says, "I took the bacteria from the stomachs of honeybees and tested them against the bacteria that causes the disease. I found that a number of them actually inhibited its growth, which means that they may serve as a potential cure for the disease."

Based on her findings, Krishnan created a cocktail for preventative therapy against AFD in honeybees. It has "far-reaching implications," she says, "because it can potentially lead to a safe, non-invasive and inexpensive preventive measure to combat the lethal AFB disease in vivo."

Next year, Krishnan plans to study medicine and anthropology at Brown, with the ultimate goal of becoming a physician. "I feel is it important to learn about the cultures and beliefs of people in order to better administer medicine to them," she says.

	Lucas Edward Möller

Fast forward to the present where Möller, now 17 and a senior at Moscow High School in Moscow, Idaho, is conducting ever more serious investigations of the dusty red planet. His STS entry investigates new approaches for understanding dust behavior on Mars. "The project is the equivalent of piling sand on top of a basketball, and looking at how much sand collects on the top of that basketball, but instead I am using Mars dust and a small stainless steel sphere," Möller explains. By examining the dust collection patterns on the sphere and how the particles interact with each other, one can determine qualities of the dust itself: their size and shape, what they are made of.

The project also has applications closer to home. Möller's research in granular physics may be of value in industrial processes involving mineral ores, as well as agricultural commodity and industrial powder transport. Additionally, it may apply to the analysis of landslides, avalanches, and shifting sand dunes.

Möller hopes to attend Stanford or the University of Washington, and ultimately pursue a career in bio-engineering and space science. "Human space exploration would be a great field to go into," he says.

	Eric Allan Meyerowitz

The results of his research could improve the specificity of drug applications, Meyerowitz explains. For example, drugs intended for neurological treatment often carry gastrointestinal side effects as a result of similar binding properties. Knowledge of structure and binding properties could be used to decrease such side effects.

Meyerowitz plans to continue his studies next year at Columbia, Harvard, or Stanford. Ultimately, he hopes to pursue a career as a physician and research scientist. "I would like to contribute to the alleviation of suffering, due to malnutrition and disease, in third-world countries," he says.

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