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COLLEGIATE INVENTORS COMPETITION WINNERS ANNOUNCED
Six teams of collegiate inventors and researchers selected for their ideas to shape the world

NEW YORK (November 14, 2002) – What will be the next technological breakthrough? What new invention will change our lives? If the six winners of this year's Collegiate Inventors Competition are any indication¾fast and inexpensive eyeglass lens production will find its way into third world countries, genetically encoded novel amino acids will modify bacteria to produce new and useful proteins, and nanotechnology, non-invasive tests for colon cancer, and protein mapping will impact our lives in the next five to ten years.

Hosted by the National Inventors Hall of Fame, the Collegiate Inventors Competition is the largest collegiate competition of its kind and is designed to identify the most advanced technology research in all fields of science. Each year, it solicits entries from more than 900 college and university campuses across the country and received nearly two hundred entries this year¾from which sixteen finalists were chosen. The 2002 Collegiate Inventors Competition winners are:

Jeffrey Anker "MagMOONs - Magnetically MOdulated Optical Nanoprobes"
(University of Michigan)
A new approach to conducting more sensitive, accurate chemical and biological measurements. When used in place of traditional chemical dyes, these nanoprobes can be magnetically prompted to flash, making the tested material clearly visible.

Saul Griffith "Lens Molding Method and Apparatus"
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
A simplified method of producing eyeglass lenses inexpensively enough to serve Third World countries. The technique involves a single mold whose shape can be changed in the field. Other applications may include advanced optics, rapid prototyping, and injection molding.

Yu Huang "Nanocircuits"
(Harvard University)
An approach to fabricate extremely small electronic circuits. These integrated nanoscale circuits hold the potential of powering computers and miniaturized electronic devices that may outperform those on the market today.

Zachary Knight "Phosphorylation Mapping of Proteins"
(University of California, San Francisco)
A fast, thorough method to determine the structure and behavior of proteins by mapping their phosphorylation sites. This method may prove useful for understanding, at a minute level, almost any process of life-growth, aging, disease, or reproduction.

Carlo Giovanni Traverso "Non-invasive Test for Colorectal Cancer"
(Johns Hopkins University)
Stool test for early detection of mutations that may lead to colorectal cancer without the need for expensive, invasive procedures. This test analyzes fecal DNA and offers the ability to detect potential cancers at very early stages.

Lei Wang "Genetically Encoded Novel Amino Acids"
(University of California at Berkeley)
A new technique for modifying bacteria so that they use amino acids never
before found in nature to build proteins. The approach may open up broad
avenues of research and enable the manufacture of new, useful proteins for
industrial and pharmaceutical applications.

Winners were chosen based on the originality, inventiveness, potential value to society and the range or scope of use of their invention. Each of the six winners is taking home a $20,000 cash award for themselves and $10,000 for their advisors. All sixteen finalists are taking home a $1,000 cash award, an ipaq handheld computer from Hewlett-Packard and a set of tires from the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, both sponsors of the event.

For the first time in the competition's thirteen-year history, finalists were asked to travel to New York City and defend their inventions before a panel of judges. This year's eight-member panel included two inductees to the National Inventors Hall of Fame, along with research and technology executives from the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, Hewlett-Packard, NASA's John Glenn Research Center, and the United States Patent and Trademark Office. All of the finalists will be recognized later today at a special ceremony at the New York City Public Library, when the winners receive their awards.

Just as inductees to the National Inventors Hall of Fame are honored for their contributions to the welfare of mankind and promotion of the progress of science and technology, Collegiate Inventors Competition winners are the next generation of scientific researchers and innovators with an extraordinary idealism, persistence and talent that will produce a safer, healthier, productive environment for all humanity.

The not-for-profit National Inventors Hall of Fame® is the premier organization in America dedicated to honoring and fostering creativity and invention. Each year a new class of inventors is inducted into the Hall of Fame in recognition of their patented inventions that make human, social and economic progress possible. Founded in 1973 by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office and the National Council of Intellectual Property Law Associations, the Hall's permanent home is Akron, Ohio, and serves as both a museum and an educational programming resource. For information on the National Inventors Hall of Fame, you can visit the organization's web site at www.invent.org.

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