Intel Science Talent Search Honors 40 Young Scientists as Finalists

New York, Maryland and California Lead with Most Finalists

WASHINGTON, D.C., Jan. 25, 1999 - Science Service and Intel Corporation today announced the names of 40 high school seniors from across the country as Finalists in the Intel Science Talent Search (Intel STS), America's oldest and most highly regarded pre-college science competition. The finalists will travel to Washington, D.C., March 3-8 for a week of activities, including final judging and awards. The top 10 winners will be announced on Monday, March 8. Intel assumed sponsorship of this 58-year-old national treasure -- often considered the Nobel Prize of science competitions for U.S. high school seniors -- from Westinghouse Electric Corporation in 1998.

"Congratulations to this year's 40 Finalists and to all the students who applied to the Intel Science Talent Search. We applaud your hard work, your creativity and your dedication," said Dr. Craig R. Barrett, Intel's president and chief executive officer. "The success of the United States depends in large measure on continuing to lead the world in innovation and production of high-tech products. The next better ideas will come from these young scientists who are comfortable with technology and have a good grounding in science and math."

The Finalists, who range in age from 14 to 18, were selected from a group of 300 Semifinalists announced earlier this month. New York captured the most Finalists with 12 (30 percent), followed by Maryland with six (15 percent) and California with five (13 percent). Louisiana and Puerto Rico each have one Finalist for the first time in over 10 years. A student from Berkeley, Cailf., is the second Finalist in the program's history to be home schooled. A 14-year-old Finalist from Colorado is the youngest Finalist since 1978. Of the Finalists, 22 were male (55 percent) and 18 were female (45 percent), a 20 percent increase over the number of female finalists in 1998. Two students were born outside of the United States - China and India.

Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, Md., captured the most Finalists with six, the largest number from one school since 1991. The other high schools with multiple Finalists were Great Neck South High School (three), Bronx High School of Science (two) and Roslyn High School (two), all in New York. See attachment for a complete list of the 40 Finalists, their biographies and statistics, or visit www.sciserv.org.

Finalists were judged on their individual research reports for their research ability, scientific originality and creative thinking. Among this year's Finalists, mathematics, physics and biology were the most popular fields of study with five projects each. The other research projects cover all disciplines of science, including chemical, engineering, social and biological. All Intel Science Talent Search entries were reviewed and judged by top scientists from a variety of disciplines and overseen by J. Richard Gott, Ph.D., professor of astrophysical sciences at Princeton University and former Science Talent Search Finalist in 1965.

From March 3-8, the Finalists will travel to Washington, D.C., to the Science Talent Institute. During that week, they will participate in a variety of activities and undergo final judging, a rigorous round of interviews with top scientists and experts from a variety of different scientific disciplines. Finalists will compete for scholarships totaling $330,000, an increase of $125,000 from 1998. The top prize will be a $50,000 four-year scholarship; the second-prize winner receives a $40,000 scholarship and the third-prize winner receives a $30,000 scholarship. Fourth- through sixth-prize winners receive $20,000 each; seventh- through 10th-prize winners each receive $15,000. The other 30 finalists each receive a $3,000 scholarship award. In addition, students gain national recognition and visibility at some of America's top universities.

During the Science Talent Institute, students will join Nobel Laureates, Intel executives and representatives from agencies such as the National Academy of Sciences and the National Institute of Health at a variety of venues, including a congressional reception and dinner at the National Academy of Sciences on March 5. Ted Hoff, Intel co-inventor of the first microprocessor introduced in the market in 1971 and former STS Finalist, will address the students at the dinner. In addition, Barrett will speak and present awards on March 8.

Intel Science Talent Search Background

While safeguarding the traditions and heritage that have made the Science Talent Search such a prestigious competition, Intel is working closely with Science Service, the administrator of the STS since its inception, to increase the number of high school students and teachers involved, increase public awareness of the program, and infuse computer technology and the Internet into the program as it moves into the 21st century.

Science Service is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that has promoted public understanding and appreciation of science through publications, outreach programs and science education programs, including the Intel Science Talent Search and the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, for over 75 years. For more information on Science Service or the Intel Science Talent Search, visit www.sciserv.org.