The Google Science Fair, which is now the largest online science fair in the world, is back again and offer students from around the world a chance to showcase and pursue their interest in science and technology. Last year, Canadian student Ann Makosinski, walked away winning the entire event with her “Hollow Flashlight,” a thermoelectric flashlight that operates solely from the heat of the human hand.
This year, Calgary student Haley Todesco was selected as the first winner of the new Local Award for Canada for her idea called “Waste to Water: Biodegrading Napthenic Acids Using Novel Sand Bioreactors.” This uncovers a sustainable way to decrease the time required for detoxification of oil sands tailings ponds from centuries to decades. Here is the video:
Haley will go onto compete worldwide against 90 Google Science Fair Finalists. The winners will be announced at the finalist event at Google headquarters in Mountain View on September 22nd. According to Google, the winner will receive the following:
“This year’s grand prize winner will receive a $50,000 scholarship; a chance to join the Virgin Galactic team at Spaceport America in New Mexico as they prepare for space flight and will be among the first to welcome the astronauts back to Earth; a 10-day trip to the Galapagos Islands aboard the National Geographic Endeavour; and a full year’s digital access to Scientific American magazine for their school. Students who win in their age category will have a choice between going behind the scenes at the LEGO factory in Billund, Denmark or an amazing experience at either a Google office or National Geographic.”