The Intel Foundation awarded each of the  three  top  winners  of  the Intel Engineering and Science Fair (Intel ISEF),  presented  by  Agilent Technologies, $50,000 college scholarships.

Dayan Li of Greenbelt, Md., Philip Streich of Platteville, Wis., and Dmitry Vaintrob  of  Eugene,  Ore.,  were  selected  from  more  than  1,500 young scientists  from  51 countries, regions and territories for the three Intel Foundation  Young  Scientist  Awards  at  Intel  ISEF,  the world's largest science fair.

·     Li  focused  on  angiogenesis,  the  growth  of  new capillaries from existing blood vessels, which is essential for tumor growth and metastasis. Thrombospondin-1 (TSP1) is one of the most powerful angiogenesis inhibitors and  interacts  with  nitric  oxide  (NO),  which  can inhibit or stimulate angiogenesis.  This  study  developed  a  quantitative, highly accurate and precise  method  to  simultaneously monitor the expression of several tumor marker genes in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) in response to TSP1 and NO.  Li's project may be able to provide invaluable information on  drug  targets  and their potential to be regulated for the treatment of cancer.

·     Streich's  research  study  provided  the  first evidence that carbon nanotubes,  which  are among the strongest and most conductive materials in the  world,  are  thermodynamically  soluble.  He  further  quantified this solubility  and  its  limits  by using static light scattering to measure a parameter called the second virial coefficient B. These findings may be the key to finally realizing the potential of nanotubes as a supermaterial.

·   Vaintrob's sophisticated mathematical investigation evaluated ways to associate  algebraic structures to topological spaces. Vaintrob proved that loop  homology and Hochschild cohomology coincide for an important class of spaces.  He  also  was  the  third-place finisher at the 2007 Intel Science Talent Search, which has often been called the "junior Nobel Prize."

"These three winners ? and indeed, all 1,500 Intel ISEF participants represent  some  of  the  most  innovative thinking around the world," said Craig  Barrett,  Intel  chairman.  "Intel  ISEF  is  part  of our company's commitment to foster young innovators like these who will one day transform the  world  in  ways  we  can hardly imagine. I want to congratulate Dayan, Philip and Dmitry on their very meaningful scientific accomplishments."

In  addition  to  the  three  Intel  Foundation  Young Scientist Award winners,  more  than  500 Intel ISEF participants received scholarships and prizes for their groundbreaking work. Intel awards included the 18 "Best of Category" winners, selected from the categories, who each received a $5,000 Intel  scholarship  and  an  Intel®  Centrino®  Duo Mobile Technology-based

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Intel  has  been  committed to helping students realize the promise of education for decades. Intel annually invests more than $100 million around the  world, to improve the quality of education, particularly in the fields of  math, science and technology. Since Intel assumed the title sponsorship of  Intel  ISEF  in  1996,  student  participation  has increased nearly 40 percent,  and  the  number  of  countries,  regions and territories sending participants to the competition has increased 70 percent.

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