Europe crowns top young scientists
The 2016 European Union Contest for Young Scientists (EUCYS) award ceremony in Brussels saw cash prizes totalling €49,500 and science trips to Europe’s leading research laboratories handed out to 45 winners.
The first three prizes went to 18-year-old Ane Espeseth and 17-year-old Torstein Vik, both Norwegian, for ‘Motivic Symbols and Classical Multiplicative Functions’; Italy’s Valerio Pagliarino, 16, for ‘LaserWAN: laser broadband internet connection’; and the USA’s River Grace, 17, for “Shining a Light on the Blind: Evolutionary Regression and Adaptive Progression in the Micro-vertebrate Ramphotyphlops braminus, a Model for Understanding Brain Organization and Complex Neurological Disorders’.
German and Canadian projects in the areas of computing, physics and medicine took second place, while three third prizes went to Ireland, the Czech Republic and South Korea.
“This year’s winners were picked in a tough competition involving 138 young researchers who all came to Brussels with brilliant new ideas,” said Science and Innovation Commissioner Carlos Moedas.
“It is reassuring to see that Europe has so many bright young minds who also have the determination and skills to turn their dreams into reality. I hope to see many of them in a few years’ time as part of the next generation of top scientists, working hard to solve the multiple challenges Europe and the world are facing,” he added.
The EUCYS was set up by the European Commission in 1989 to boost young people’s participation in STEM and encourage co-operation and exchange between young scientists. This year’s contestants were aged between 14 and 20 and had already claimed first prize in their home country’s national science competitions in their specific field. They presented their projects to an international independent jury chaired by Dr Lina Tomasella of Italy’s Astronomical Observatory of Padova.
Projects covered everything from biology to physics, computing, the environment, mathematics and medicine, with non-cash prizes including trips to the London International Youth Science Forum and the Stockholm International Youth Science Seminar, as well as prizes from corporate sponsors.
Almost one-third (31%) of this year’s contestants were female.
