Bangalore kids in Google Science Fair finals

BANGALORE, INDIA: : Two students from Bangalore, one from Lucknow and one an Indian origin American are among the 15 finalists in this year's Google Science Fair, the global science competition that challenges the young minds to conduct experiments that they think can change the world.

Rohit Fenn (16 years) and Raghavendra Ramachanderan (17 years), qualified for the final round from Bangalore, while Sumit Singh (14 years) has made it from Lucknow. Another proud finalist is Yamini Naidu (17 years) an Indian origin American.  

These three students from India will fly along with 12 other finalists to Google's headquarters in California in July to present their projects to the panel of judges and compete for prizes that include $100,000 in scholarship funds, a trip to the Galapagos Islands and more. 

Rohit Fenn's qualifying science project is a partial-vacuum assisted flush that conserves over 50 per cent of the overall water used in a toilet to flush. Raghavendra Ramachandran, also from Bangalore, won a place in the final 15 with a project that involves re-converting the partially oxidized fuel (alcohols) into usable fuel.

Sumit Singh, the other finalist from Lucknow, designed a low-cost Vertical Multi-Level Farm, which could be used by small farmers to increase crop yield in agriculture and horticulture. Yamini’s project is about creating a homology model of a human receptor protein using a computer modeling program.

Also read: Indian students among Google Science Fair finalists

While felicitating these winners at the Google Bangalore office, Lalitesh Katragadda Country Head-India, Products for Google said, “It’s amazing to see the concepts and talent displayed by these young students where they are not just trying to solve the real-world problems but also producing groundbreaking science that is challenging the current conventions. It’s heartening to see talent and innovation from India going global. We are proud to have them as finalists and wish them luck for the big event ahead.”

On 23 July, the finalists will present their projects before a panel of acclaimed scientists and tech visionaries. A winner will be selected from each of the age categories: 13-14, 15-16, 17-18 and one of the finalist winners will be crowned the Grand Prize Winner. For more details on the award visit: http://www.google.com/intl/en/events/sciencefair/prizes.html