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Indian-American student wins America's Top Young Scientist title
Sirish Subash won for inventing PestiSCAND, a device detecting pesticide residues, earning a $25,000 prize.
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Sirish Subash. / Image - 3M
Indian-American teenager, Sirish Subash was named America’s Top Young Scientist after winning the 3M and Discovery Education competition on Oct. 15 for his innovative project, PestiSCAND.
A ninth-grader from Snellville, Georgia, Subash designed a handheld device to detect pesticide residues on produce, addressing a significant public health concern.
According to the United Nations’ Food and Drug Administration (FDA), approximately 70.6 percent of produce items carry pesticide residues, which have been linked to serious health issues, including brain cancer and Parkinson’s disease.
Subash’s PestiSCAND achieved an accuracy rate exceeding 85 percent in identifying pesticide residues on common vegetables like spinach and tomatoes. He explained that he wanted to create a tool that helps everyone check for pesticide residues at home.
“If we could detect them, we could avoid consuming them. We could reduce the risk of those health issues,” he said, as quoted by USAtoday.
Subash was inspired to enter the competition after learning about previous winners. He encourages other young STEM enthusiasts to pursue their passions. “Anything that you want to work on in life, just find something you’re really passionate about,” he advised.
The 3M Young Scientist Challenge is a youth science and engineering competition administered by Discovery Education and 3M for middle school students in the United States. The annual competition, which has highlighted young STEM innovators for 17 years, features finalists who are mentored by 3M scientists over several months before the event. Participants are judged based on creativity, communication, and ingenuity.
HUGE congratulations to the 2024 @3M #YoungScientist Challenge winner, Sirish Subash, who developed an AI-based handheld pesticide detector for produce! We're so proud of Sirish and all of this years' the finalists. You inspire us! https://t.co/EsguTTHnBe#STEM pic.twitter.com/Nfe0IEfRdh
— Discovery Education (@DiscoveryEd) October 16, 2024
In addition to the title, Subash received a $25,000 cash prize for his achievement. Minula Weerasekera from Beaverton, Oregon, and William Tan from Scarsdale, New York, secured second and third place, respectively, with projects focusing on energy storage solutions and marine life conservation.
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