Day 6

Friday, the Grand Awards Ceremony was slated to begin at 9 AM.
We woke early and walked a few blocks to Marie's, a small breakfast/lunch spot we had found earlier in the week. Bagels and cream cheese in the room, then the last walk to the convention center.

Kim and Priya had a Friday morning flight and would not be able to attend the entire ceremony. Our plans were to collect and pack Priya's project board with Dylan's for shipping back to Pensacola after the awards ceremony.

The awards presentation was a very organized and exciting event. We had our fingers crossed the entire time, hoping to hear Priya or Dylan's name. All the fourth place winners for each category gathered on the stage for both divisions, physical and life sciences after having there named announced. Unfortunately, the names of our Pensacola finalists did not make the list. We remained hopeful, sometimes you just have to wait. The lady we were sitting next to in the audience, also from Florida, fell the same anxiousness as we did. Her son was competing in his first ISEF in the engineering category with a project that used solar air conditioning.

The announcer again started listing the winners of the third place awards. As the category of computer science came up, we listened and then jumped when we heard "from Pensacola, Florida".  How proud we were to have Dylan's project lauded by the judges. He was beaming as he ran up to the stage to join the other winners. It's not often that he gets to see himself on a jumbotron screen.

Shortly there after we heard the name of our neighbor's son to recieve his third place award in engineering.
The boys headed of stage with the other winners to receive their white ribbons and have their photo taken. We had a lot of luck going on in our row of seats.

Then, the second place and first place winners were called and the excitement just grew with each higher level and finally the best of show for each category were announced. What an amazing group of finalists with the most ingenious science projects in the world.

With much celebration, the three winners of an all expense paid trip to the European Union Contest were announced. Dudley R. Herschbach, presented the award that bears his name to two deserving finalists to attend the Stockholm International Youth Science Seminar. The Intel Foundation presented two finalist with the $50,000 Young Scientist award. Finally the time came for the presentation of the Gordon E. Moore Award to the best of the best of show winners. Two young men from California won this award for their project titled "Treatment of Simulated Cancer Cells with Compton Scattering-Produced Secondary Radiation". Wow!

Day 5 continued.......

The fun never stops at Intel ISEF.

Thursday night was the Special Awards Ceremony for the finalists. Sponsoring companies, Special Award Organizations, academic institutions, and government agencies proudly awarded hundreds of students for their outstanding science and engineering projects.

The Master of Ceremonies promptly started the presentations and one of the first companies, Aligent Technologies awarded three paid internships and two large monetary prizes to very deserving finalists.

As each company or organization's representative walked across the stage for presentation, Tami and I felt a sense of pride for each winner as we had talked to several finalist in each of the seventeen categories. We still wanted to hear the woman's voice on the sound system call out Dylan or Priya's name. Many of the Florida finalists names were called and we applauded for our home state team. But we still waited......

Fortunately and finally, the woman's voice said " in the category of Computer Science, from Pensacola, Florida, Dylan Dalrymple."! Yes, we hooped and hollered.

SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering presented him with the 1st place award!!  So glad for him to receive an award for his hard work. Proud parents is an understatement.
What a way to conclude a fantastic day..........

Day 5

Today was public day, when the general public and thousands of school children got the chance to view the science projects and meet the budding scientists and engineers.  ISEF was open to the public from 9 am till 9 pm while the finalists received them from 10 to 2. Dylan spoke with lots of kids about his project and quite a few adults. Who doesn’t want to talk about robots?

Tami and I took this day to check out some of the interesting parts of downtown LA, in particular the grand Central market and the Walt Disney Music Center designed by Frank Gehry.

The market was full of life, fruit, vegetables and some great eating.  Established in 1917, the Market is home to vegetable vendors and several ethnic food cafes. Japanese, Chinese, and Mexican food made with amazing fresh vegetables from the farms that surround LA can be ordered. Dining at wrought iron tables under the market canopy while people watching was great. Tami had sushi and I choose an assorted bento box from the local vendor. Fresh food abounds with pricing less than half what we pay in Pensacola. i.e. Bananas 5 lbs. for $2 and avocados 7 for $1!

A short needed walk up the hill was all it took to get to the Gehry designed Walt Disney Music Center.  Wow, is all I can say. This shiny stainless steel mass of flow and interest draws your eye, especially when under the cloudless California sky. I just wanted to touch it. Was it hot? Smooth? How do the seams fit? Is it dirty? what is it like inside? where’s the door? Question after question ……….

The building is cool to the touch, smooth, and clean, and we found the door. Once inside, the eye is pulled upward by the symbolic tree trunk columns.

A garden terrace is along the west side of the building access from an outdoor staircase. Trees with multi-horned red flowers protect the smaller shrubs, flowers, and a lotus flower sculpture made broken china.

A downhill walk from the Music Center to our hotel for a short rest before meeting Dylan and taking a look at a few of the incredible ISEF projects. The fellow next to Dylan’s booth was from the Czech Republic and had designed an eye-tracking mouse that could help those with limited hand mobility. Another finalist had a precision sundial made with what looked like a magnesium wheel. Another mixed seaweed and tapioca to create a protein enhanced gelatin. Lots of amazing projects and I’m glad I didn’t have to select the winners of any category.

Day 4

Wednesday’s schedule was the judgment day for all the finalists. Starting at 8:30 to 12:00, then lunch break and back to judging at 1:30 t0 3:30, another short break then special awards judging until 6PM. Needless to say, it was going to be a full day for both Dylan and Priya. On top of all that, Priya was to take a test afterwards from 6:30 till 9 PM!

Intel setup a Universal Studio Park night for finalist and attendees from 7:00 till ` to celebrate the efforts of all over the past few days and all the work before that. Free rides, food, and a ton of fun for all on Intel’s tab.  A very generous gift for everyone and a great way to show the finalists from other countries the hospitality of the host country.

Tami and I determined that this way a great time to take one of the available tours to the Getty Museum. We got Dylan and his equipment to the convention center and shortly thereafter boarded the bus and headed to the Getty. Once at the complex, we boarded a cable operated tram to ascend to the top of the hill where the Getty Museum is located. Along this approach you start to see the beauty of the landscape and outline of the Richard Meier designed Getty. Leaving the tram station, we walked across the sun lit plaza to the visitors’ center where we watched a short film about the Getty. (It took 13 years to design and build at a cost of 1.3 bil)

We decided that a quick lunch on the plaza would be a great way to start our visit. Afterwards we began our visit by strolling the grounds and enjoying the great views of the city and valley below. Meier did a fantastic design as every view draws you to it and then sends you on a quest of discovery.

School children played in fountains, drew pictures, and skipped in the plaza while adults relaxed and soaked in the views under a cloudless sky.  You could not have ordered a more perfect California day.

Upon entry into any of the 5 buildings that house the exhibits, the beauty of the various artworks is staggering. From oil paintings, sculpture, and decorative art (i.e. furnishings.) to the illustrated books from the 14^th century, the Getty collection is fantastic. The current featured exhibit was the Paris Fine Arts that was an entire building focused on the aristocratic class of France during the Baroque period.

The displays were vignettes of French life during that era in history with elaborate furnishings, paintings, clothing, and jewelry. Many rooms in the museum were completed ordained from top to bottom with finery, from the painted paneled casework to the inlaid and patterned oak flooring.  It was truly amazing.

An uneventful bus ride and we were back at the Convention Center again to relax and do a little connecting via the e-lounge available to the attendees.  Soon, Dylan and the other finalists completed the special judging period and were released to prepare for a long night of celebrating at Universal Studios. Intel provided shuttle busses from each of the affiliated hotels to Universal. Chaperones, teachers, attendees and 1600 high school geniuses descended on to the park to have fun and food all courtesy of Intel. A good end to a good day.

Day 3

This day began with another breakfast at the "Pantry Cafe" with the entire gang in order to stock on carbs before setting out on a full schedule of ativities. Dylan had a list of symposiums he wished to attend and a discussion panel with several Nobel Laurates. Priya once again faced a AP or IB exam, Kim was also attending symposiums and SRC meetings, and Tami and I had scheduled at "shopping" tour.

Our bus mates and we met the tour guide at the entrance to the convention center and boarded the short bus. I was the only man besides the driver and was given a few stares and words of praise for being so adventurous.

After a relativly short drive (by LA standards) with casual and informative commentary by our guide we arrived at Beverly Hills shopping district.(aka Rodeo Drive). We debarked in front of the Louis Vitton store and were struck by the elegance of the street on this beautiful cloudless day. A sloped side street with cobblestones beckoned us to explore, where we discovered the Versace store and Tiffany & Co. I didn't panic! This upscale via ends with cascading steps and water fountain to the avenue where we continued to stroll past designer storefront after designer storefront with names like Michael Kors, Cartier, Harry Winston, etc.....

After an hour or so of window shopping and siteseeing (sans celebrity) we got back on the bus and headed to Santa Monica. We stopped at a place called the 3rd Street Promenade, a walking only street flanked by stores and eateries. Street musicians were on every block and central cafes surrounded by sidewalk dining were filled with shoppers. Our intial move was to head the block or two west to Ocean Drive and the Pacific Ocean. Another bucket list item chacked off. The breezy salt air was cool as it crossed the sand (it looked like dirt compared to Pensacola Beach sand) and rose up the embankment to street level.

Bus riding and then back to the convention center to collect Dylan and get ready for the night of excitement that Intel had arrange for the finalist and attendees.



LA Live, a complex that includes several venues was reserved for the finalist. A bowling center, ESPN Zone,  discoteque (Nokia room), and a latin themed bar (21 and over) were set up with free food for everyone. Only the finalist were allowed in the Nokia disco, letting the kids have some safe unparented time to burn off a little stress. Tami and I dined at the taco bar setup at the Congo room and listen to the latin band before heading to the Strike Zone to watch the kids bowl and mingle. We went back to the Conga Room and danced a few Sambas.You should have been there.   Sorry no pictures.

Day 2

A late dinner gave our appetites the flexibility to have a later breakfast at "the pantry cafe", a 24 coffee cup type of establishment that has been open 24 hours a day since 1924. A simple protein and potatoes type place with the menu on the wall. Quick and comforting breakfast before our walk to the fashion district for a little window shopping and people watching.

Several blocks from the main street we had been traversing to the convention center is a place called 'Santee Alley" where various shops line a bazaar type alleyway, hawking an assortment of wares, ranging from straw hats to socks. While the local culture was interesting, nothing called out to us to purchase.

Back to ISEF to check out the available merchandise and visit the e-lounge, where Dylan met the NAO robot developed by Intel. This is not your average robot as it speaks 25 languages, can recognize faces, and seems to have emotion. The mobility of the NAO was amazing as it stood up from a resting position. It's hand had two fingers and a thumb, allowing it to grasp items and gesture. We'll try to post a youtube video that can better explain the NAO.

Dylan and I also attempted to go through a laser maze with limited success, definitely a situation where age is not an advantage. A photo of our attempts was then posted by Intel on facebook for viewing on the web.

We then headed to the expo portion of  the center where the sponsoring companies and several universities had booths to display the newest gadgets or solicit attendance. The Navy also had a display to fly a fa-18 via simulator, which Dylan proved to be much better at than laser maze.

We also cruised back through the project area and again were amazed by the scope  of the projects. Tami and I spoke with one young man from Taiwan whose project was on the use of computer aligned origami patterns. Dylan visited a discussion with the only finalist from Romania who explained his project on  facial recognition. (I hope he spoke in Romanian so I would have an excuse why I did not understand)

I kinda understand.



Huh?





Another aspect of ISEF is the symposia lectures by many scientists and engineers. We attended one by Dr. Hsu of Symaptics on a concept phone called the Fuse which had a back touch panel, side scroll bars, and 3d display. It also had a tilt sensitivity and was setup to be used by one hand.

The Opening Ceremony was proceeded by a buffet for about 3000 finalists, teachers, student observers, and parents. It was quite a well orchestrated meal by the convention center caterers with a healthy selection of chicken, halibut, and vegetables.  Dylan ate with his friend from last years ISEF, Gavin who has been selected as a Google Science Fair semi-finalist. (one of sixty selected out of over 10,000 on-line entries!!)

The Opening Ceremony was a posted with a sign explaining loud noise and flashing lights would be involved. Awesome! The kids were ready, thumping bass and disco beats made you want to "throw your hair back" and a bunch did. We could tweet shout outs to be selected to be shown on the jumbo screens and my "go Florida!" was posted. The pounding of drumsticks on a trash can started the ceremony in high gear as a drummer came through the crowd and up to the stage where he met up with the rest of the gang on stage. That was followed by a rousing and pounding demonstration of thrash can groove.

Chad Zdenek of G4 networks "effin science" was the emcee and Jeffrey Katzenberg,CEO of Dreamworks was the keynote speaker. He talked about the technologists with his company and showed several clips of the various animated movies he produced. Even a premiere of "Kung Fu Panda 2" that has yet to be released. He answered several questions selected from the tweets sent to Intel and Priya's question was selected as the first one. Did I tell you she is headed to MIT?

The night ended with all the countries selected representatives joining on stage for a global shout out. Lots of cheering and dancing by all to celebrate all that is ISEF. 

Day 1

Wires, computer chips, cameras and wheels were what the TSA agent saw on his monitor screen. “Excuse me, but we need to pass that box through the x-rays again" Yes, TSA that’s a robot and he’s headed to the International Science and Engineering Fair in Los Angeles...

That’s how we started our trip to LA with Dylan, Priya, Kim (Science teacher) Tami, and me.  Nothing like backing up the security line to make friends with the other passengers waiting to board the plane bound for our first stop, Houston. Then on to LA…

We are on our way to experience the annual wonderment called ISEF.  Sponsored by Intel this year, the fair is a 6 day event at the LA Convention Center.  Imagine 1600 finalists (aka teenage geniuses) from over 60 countries displaying their award winning science projects in 17 different categories spanning the gambit of discovery.  We can’t wait!!!

The ISEF will have not only the judging of these projects but a slew of science oriented symposia that will include Nobel Prize Winners and scientists from all over the world. These finalists will have the opportunity to be judged by an average of ten experts in the field of science and present their project on the world’s stage.  But don’t underestimate the "have fun" attitude of these so called “geeks” as there are planned events at Universal Studios and LA Live. Not to mention several social gatherings and activities throughout the fair. 

Day 1-

A smooth flight in to LAX, where we were met by a young lady with a placard indicating ISEF finalists were to gather and then get shuttled to their respective hotels. (a glimpse of the level of organization in place) Our hotel is the Wilshire Grand on Wilshire Blvd. just 6 blocks from the LA Convention Center which is home to ISEF.  I believe this is the same hotel the Beatles stayed in when they played the Hollywood Bowl. After a quick registration, we dropped off baggage and walked to the convention center to register and setup the projects.

Lots of finalists, identified by the credentials hanging by lanyard around their necks, were parading down the sidewalks of downtown LA. All were very excited teenagers from just about every county on the globe.

An easy registration by the courteous ISEF staff and we too, became excited teenagers . We each received a bag full of info; programs, schedules, isef pin, and brochures.

Up the escalator and through the doors, we entered the expo hall filled with 1400 science fair project booths surrounding a hub that contained ISEF staff and supplies ready to assist the finalists with setting up their projects. Each booth contained the materials of each finalist that had been shipped from around the world and the hub had the needed materials and tools for student to create, repair, or install their display board. These boards are made with as much variety as the finalists themselves, and show as much amazing creativity as the projects.

Dylan’s board arrived unscathed and went up quickly as did the setup of the robot and it’s peripherals. And it all worked!!!  Priya wisely sent her display materials in a tube and then purchase the necessary board materials and in no time had her board ready, thanks to her two sisters who came to town also.

The next thing on the agenda was a pin exchange setup at the Marriot Hotel. Thanks to the Blue Angels and the City of Pensacola, both kids had about 50 worthy pins to trade with the other finalists. The pin exchange is a great way to meet other kids from the various countries without having to speak their native language. Dylan and Priya met kids from places like Argentina, Pueto Rico, China, Japan, Texas, and even Alabama…  They collected a lot of pins and some quick friends.

Tami, Kim, and I finally got to eat at a nice restaurant next to the Marriot and enjoyed a Cali kind of meal with items like raw Ahi tuna over cucumber relish with soy vinaigrette and jerk chicken.  It was a great way to end a full day and store some energy for the next day..