LIMESTONE, Maine — Two high school students were recently honored guests at the annual meeting of the Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG).
The series of awards that landed the duo at this international event for working professionals started in the spring at the Maine State Science Fair, but the journey could be considered years in the making.
Ben Schade of Phippsburg and Justin Hamilton from Woolwich are both seniors at the Maine School of Science and Mathematics (MSSM). Although from different towns, the pair first met while competing on a Bath math team. Since their freshman year at MSSM, they have partnered together each year, progressively creating more and more sophisticated science fair projects.
In March, Schade and Hamilton submitted their project, ‘Calculating Horizons with Perspective Projection,’ at the Maine State Science Fair in Bangor. Like many revolutionary ideas, their concept was, in fact, simple. They reasoned that instead of having robots expend large amounts of computing power on sensing their environments, they could instead utilize existing topographical data for navigation. In practice, this required the team to develop complex mathematical algorithms to simplify the three dimensional map by selecting critical peaks and valleys.
Their efforts were recognized with a first prize award in the computer science category and second place overall in the state. Deborah McGann, MSSM’s dean of faculty, joined the two scholars on the trip to Pittsburgh, Penn., later in May to attend Intel’s International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF). There the young men received prestigious accolades from the Society of Exploration Geophysicists, who declared their project worthy of SEG’s Distinguished Achievement Award.
Schade and Hamilton were invited to submit their work for publication in SEG’s annual journal to be included with the works of scientists from around the world. Although there was time to see some of the sights in Pittsburgh, the boys were more impressed with the lecture by one of CAPTCHA’s originators, an acronym for “Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart,” but did manage time to tour Three Rivers Stadium before returning to school.
The next phase wouldn’t occur until school resumed in the fall. Winning the SEG’s award meant they were now invited on an all-expense-paid trip to attend the Society’s Annual Conference in New Orleans. This time, the youngsters were accompanied by their advisor, Dr. Gregory Hamlin, where they joined fellow scholars and scientists from over 170 different countries.
The trio attended presentations on reflecting the work of research scientist in the field of geophysics.
Ben Schade reflected on his adventure: “It was a true privilege to be in the midst of professional scientist from around the world; I truly loved sharing our work with others while also taking in the accomplishments of so many dedicated to the world of science.”
At the conclusion of the conference, the team from MSSM did manage to absorb some of the local culture while enjoying the sounds of authentic jazz at the renowned House of Blues.
Both Schade and Hamilton are looking forward to the spring Maine State Science Fair during the Maine Science Festival in Bangor.
