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What have you been doing since YSC?
Since 1999, I have continued in the pursuit of scientific knowledge. In high school, I began as a lab assistant at a physics laboratory at Florida International University (FIU). There, I helped prepare experimental apparatuses for atomic laser cooling and the related applications of nanotechnology. I was even given the opportunity to test some of my own ideas to determine the optimal conditions for the apparatuses.
I quickly realized that my true passion, however, was in the biochemical sciences and decided to go back to researching plant biochemistry (the general topic of my YSC project). I researched the effects of electromagnetic radiation on the floral development of a certain species of plant at FIU and submitted my research to the South Florida Science and Engineering Fair as well as the State Science Fair of Florida.
In 2001, I began my most successful and most serious scientific endeavor thus far. That summer at the University of Florida (UF), I worked with plant biochemist Alice C. Harmon and began researching the function of a particular protein kinase (an enzyme-like molecule involved in biochemical cascades). This protein kinase, known as PPCK, has a very particular function in the photosynthesis of C4 plants. The discovery of PPCK in C3 plants (whose biochemistry is not known to need PPCK) led to the question of its function in these plants. I continued this research until my senior year in high school, corresponding with professors at UF and doing the physical work at the University of Miami. The results of the research were submitted to the local science fair; the state science fair; the Florida Junior Science, Engineering, and Humanities Symposium; the Florida Academy of Sciences; the Florida Science Talent Search; the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair; and the Intel Science Talent Search (Intel STS). I placed first at the local and state competitions and went on to be one of the 40 finalists in the Intel STS.
I am now studying at Harvard, where I plan to major in biochemical sciences.
When you're not studying, what do you like to do?
Does lab research count as a hobby? (Just a joke, though the lab is where I spend the greater part of my life.) Besides science, I enjoy playing the piano. I have been playing since my middle school days, and I still take an occasional music theory course here and there. At school, I am involved with the Harvard Students for Israel.
How did participating in YSC affect you?
Participating in YSC was a critical and highly catalytic factor in my high school science endeavors. After YSC, a flood of opportunities came my way—from invitations to science conventions abroad to invitations to make commercials. By discovering my science talent and recognizing me for it, YSC gave me the confidence that pushed me to venture into laboratory research. After gaining the confidence and reputation YSC gave me, I found it far easier to knock on a college professor's door as a mere 14-year-old high school freshman and ask for a position in his physics laboratory. The competition that Science Service and Discovery Communications has put together had been long needed, and is no doubt a life-changing point for many young, yet-to-be-discovered scientists. YSC finds talented students and tells them, "Hey, we think you're good at this and you should pursue it," and it does so at a time when a student is looking for this guidance, at a time when a student wants to know what it is he or she is good at.
What are your career goals?
I plan to continue studying biochemical sciences with a concentration in genetics and genetic engineering. I am interested in the medical applications of genetic engineering and biochemistry (i.e., gene therapy, drugs). Hopefully, one day I'll have a research facility of my own: Lemus International Genetics, Inc.
What's your favorite memory of YSC?
It came after the awards, when all the finalists were gathered in a room, free of worries, and playing the don't-let-the-balloon-touch-the-floor game that I've yet to find a proper name for and that we all enjoyed playing so much as kids.
How did you first become interested in science?
It was a natural interest first inspired, most probably, by my father. I have fond memories of my father taking me to the science museums and planetariums. We would also go stargazing with a telescope and star charts.
Who is your science hero and why?
I don't know that I have a science hero, but I can give you this quote, which is my favorite:
"Imagination is more important than knowledge..."
˜Einstein
At the heart of science research lives this quote. The daily struggles of laboratory research are overcome (and the greatest of discoveries are made) not by knowledge alone, but with the aid of creativity and that special ability that makes a scientist a scientist—the ability to "think outside the box."
What advice would you offer to someone hoping to participate in YSC?
Fill out the application not for the sake of competition but for a true interest in what you have done—science. Do not be intimidated by others. Don't think your project is any less than someone else's. And most importantly, be passionate about what you have done! YSC is about discovering talent, both science talent and the talent of communicating that science. If you follow this advice, YSC is sure to be a learning experience from which you will gain confidence and maturity as a science communicator.
