Oviedo high school student named top scientist
Ella Pilacek was named one of the top 10 young scientists in the Regeneron Science Talent Search Oveniedo high school student, ELLA POLASEK, has been named one of the top ten young scientists in the Regeneron SCIENCE TALENT SEARCH. She shares her personal experiences, including creating an endangerered flower and training dogs to absorb the scent of honeybees. She credits her achievement to a massive SCHOLARSHIP that allows her to attend university without worrying about financial implications. The project she created was inspired by the use of bees as a way to introduce the flower to the hive. She also credits her efforts to create a sustainable environment for future generations of science.
प्रकाशित : दो महीने पहले द्वारा में Science
WAS NAMED ONE OF THE TOP TEN YOUNG SCIENTISTS NATIONWIDE. AND JOINING US NOW IS ELLA POLASEK. ELLA, CONGRATULATIONS AND WELCOME. THANK YOU. WHAT A GREAT HONOR. RIGHT. OKAY. SO TELL US ABOUT THIS. SO THIS IS THE REGENERON SCIENCE TALENT SEARCH. AND YOU’RE ONE OF THE TOP TEN SCIENTISTS THAT RECEIVED THIS ACCOLADE. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO YOU? UM, FOR ONE THERE’S A MASSIVE SCHOLARSHIP ATTACHED TO IT. THAT MEANS THAT I CAN AFFORD TO GO TO UNIVERSITY IN A PLACE THAT I ACTUALLY WOULD REALLY LIKE TO ATTEND WITHOUT WORRYING ABOUT THE DEBT ATTACHED TO THAT. AND THEN, OF COURSE, IT’S ALSO LIKE AN AMAZING DISTINCTION. IT BRINGS A LOT OF ATTENTION TO OUR PROGRAM AT OUR SCHOOL, AND IT ALSO JUST IS REALLY ENCOURAGING. AS FAR AS LIKE HEARING BACK FROM ACTUAL EXPERTS IN THE FIELD THAT THE WORK THAT I’M DOING IS VALUABLE IN ANY CAPACITY. HOW WONDERFUL. OKAY, YOU SAID SO MANY THINGS THAT I WANT. I WANT TO TOUCH ON SEVERAL OF THOSE. FIRST OFF, TELL US ABOUT THE PROJECT. WHAT EXACTLY DID YOU CREATE? I UNDERSTAND THAT IT’S AN ENDANGERED FLOWER. AND HONEYBEES, YOU FILL ME IN. YEAH. SO BASICALLY I TRAINED BEES AS MY FAVORITE WAY TO INTRODUCE IT. IT’S A LITTLE BIT SENSATIONALIZED, BUT BASICALLY, UM, IF YOU’RE FAMILIAR WITH PAVLOVIAN CONDITIONING, WHERE HE TRAINED DOGS TO SALIVATE AT THE SOUND OF A BELL BY RINGING THE BELL AND THEN FEEDING THE DOGS, THEY WEREN’T TO ASSOCIATE THE TWO. YEAH, DID THE SAME THING, BUT WITH THE SCENT OF THE ENDANGERED PLANT SPECIES THAT I’M WORKING WITH TO PROMOTE ATTRACTION TO AND EVENTUALLY, HOPEFULLY POLLINATION OF THAT PLANT SPECIES. AND WHAT DID YOU FIND IN YOUR RESEARCH? I OPTIMIZED THE CONDITIONS FOR THIS METHOD IN A WAY THAT HASN’T REALLY BEEN EXPLORED IN DETAIL BEFORE. AND I WAS ALSO ABLE TO MAKE SURE THAT THIS WAS A POSSIBLE METHOD WITH THIS SCENT SPECIFIC LEE. AND HOPEFULLY AGAIN LAY THE GROUNDWORK FOR A BASIS IN CONSERVATION MOVING FORWARD WITH THIS METHOD. SO OBVIOUSLY PROMISING. AND IT GOT YOU THIS HUGE ACCOLADE AND COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIP MONEY AND ALL THAT GREAT STUFF. TELL ME. HOW DID YOU GET INTO SCIENCE? HOW DID YOU FIND ALL OF THIS? YEAH, SO I’VE ALWAYS BEEN INTERESTED IN SCIENCE IN PARTICULAR ANIMALS AND ANIMAL BEHAVIOR IN PARTICULAR, HAS BEEN REALLY INTERESTING TO ME FOR BASICALLY MY ENTIRE LIFE. SO IT WAS JUST KIND OF A NATURAL PROGRESSION OVER THE YEARS, ESPECIALLY, UM, LIKE. LIKE GETTING INTO KIND OF THE LATER YEARS OF LIKE HIGH SCHOOL SCIENCE AND EVERYTHING. IT JUST REALLY HEIGHTENED THAT FOCUS OF THIS IS DEFINITELY WHAT I WANT TO DO, I LOVE THAT WHY, IF ANY, YOU KNOW, YOUNG STUDENTS ARE WATCHING RIGHT NOW, OR SCIENCE TEACHERS OR BIOLOGY TEACHERS. WHY WOULD YOU ENCOURAGE A YOUNG LADIES TO GET INVOLVED? OH, UM, ONE, I MEAN, DIVERSITY IS ALWAYS REALLY IMPORTANT IN STEM. AND THEN. IN GENERAL INVOLVEMENT IN STEM, I FEEL LIKE IS A VERY CONCRETE WAY TO ENGAGE WITH THE WORLD. I SEE IT AS KIND OF LIKE AN EXTRA SENSE IN WHICH TO EXPERIENCE REALITY, BECAUSE IT IS SO CONCRETE AND LOGIC BASED AND THEN ALSO WITHIN THAT, IT’S LIKE SUCH AN IMPACTFUL WAY TO ENGAGE WITH DIFFERENT SUBJECT MATERIAL BECAUSE YOU ARE ACTUALLY CONTRIBUTING TO A NEW KNOWLEDGE BASE AS OPPOSED TO JUST ASSIMILATING EXISTING KNOWLEDGE, IF THAT MAKES SENSE. AND YOU’RE A SENIOR IN HIGH SCHOOL AT A VITO HIGH SCHOOL, WHAT KIND OF RECOGNITION HAS THIS BROUGHT. TO YOUR SCIENCE CLASSES THERE? YOUR BIOLOGY CLASSES THERE? YEAH, I THINK A LOT MORE PEOPLE ARE KIND OF AWARE OF THE FACT THAT WE HAVE A RESEARCH PROGRAM FOR A LONG TIME, IT WAS KIND OF LIKE WE ALWAYS GOT RECOGNITION FROM OUR SCHOOL. OUR SCHOOL HAS ALWAYS BEEN EXTREMELY SUPPORTIVE OF US, BUT IT’S LIKE WHENEVER SOMETHING BIG HAPPENS AS FAR AS COMPETITIONS, WE KIND OF GET A LITTLE BIT MORE INTEREST FROM THE STUDENT POPULATION. AND SO THAT’S ALWAYS BEEN REALLY INTERESTING. AND REALLY IMPORTANT IN THAT REGARD. FOR. GETTING MORE PEOPLE TO JUST TRY IT OUT FOR A YEAR AND SEE IF THEY LIKE IT FOR SURE. AND CONGRATULATIONS AGAIN. AND I KNOW JUST QUICKLY HERE, WE ALMOST HAVE TO WRAP IT UP. BUT YOUR PLANS NEXT YEAR, BECAUSE I KNOW YOU’RE A SENIOR. SO WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO BE UP TO? UH, SO I’M STUDYING ABROAD. HOPEFULLY. I’M WAITING TO HEAR BACK FROM A COUPLE OF UNIVERSITIES, BUT I’M SPECIFICALLY TRYING TO APPLY WITHIN. SCOTLAND, AND I’VE GOTTEN A COUPLE OF OFFERS THERE ALREADY. EXCELLENT. AND YOU’LL BE STUDYING BIOLOGY? YES. EXCELLENT. ALEX, CONGRATULATI