2 local students win national STEM championship with projects focused on desert sun
LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Las Vegas is known for its beautiful sunny skies, but its rays could do more harm than good. Two young innovators are working to limit the risk of the rays while maximizing the reward.
Ivan Sun and Noah Lee were announced among the winners of EXPLR’s National STEM Champions for their outstanding projects and proposals in the National STEM Challenge – both focused on the positive and negative effects of the sun. They will be recognized at the first-ever National STEM Festival in Washington, D.C., co-presented by EXPLR and the U.S. Department of Education.
Sun, a junior at Ed W. Clark High School in Las Vegas, developed an app called UVBuddy to help prevent skin cancer by tracking sunscreen usage.
“Growing up in Las Vegas, I (experienced) firsthand the heat and here we have a UV index that averages around eleven and that’s very dangerous for your skin and could potentially cause skin cancer,” Sun said. “The most common solution for this is sunscreen, but that’s been marketed as more of a cosmetic item, so fewer people use sunscreen than is necessary.”
The app tracks the UV index at a person’s location and uses data from the World Health Organization and the American Academy of Dermatology to suggest a unique sunscreen SPF level and a reapplication period. The app also uses weather data to determine the UV level, automatically sharing important sun facts and setting a sunscreen reapplication timer for sunscreen application.
Lee, a junior at Advanced Technologies Academy in Las Vegas, hopes his proposal will change how we use solar panels.
“Solar panels themselves produce a lot of waste,” said Lee.
His project is titled “Implementation of Graphene Electrodes In Polymer-Based Tandem Solar Cells.” It explores how the solar panels usually used are made of silicon, are expensive, and not very flexible. Scientists are looking into using cheaper, more flexible solar cells called polymer solar cells, but these cells need special electrodes, which are complicated to find and costly.
Lee concludes that using graphene electrodes in solar cells will make them thinner, cheaper, and more flexible because graphene is more effective at allowing light through and conducting electricity than the materials we use now. However, more tests and research are needed to understand how well graphene works with these solar cells.
Sun and Lee will receive an expense-paid trip, including lodging and travel, to attend the first-ever National STEM Festival and showcase their projects from April 12-13, 2024 in Washington, D.C. During the National STEM Festival, students will showcase their work to top government and corporate leaders, and network with other exceptional students from around the country. In addition, they will each receive free access to EXPLR’s educational streaming video and curriculum platform for the teacher of their choice.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KLAS.
