[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 113 (Monday, September 12, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9926-S9927]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         2005 DAVIDSON FELLOWS

  Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I would like to take a few moments to 
recognize some of the most brilliant and hardest working young adults 
in our Nation and in the world today. These seventeen outstanding 
scholars have recently been named 2005 Davidson Fellows and are being 
rewarded for their cutting-edge and distinguished work. The Davidson 
Institute Fellowships promote and reward under-18 year olds who have 
undertaken invaluable projects and studies for the greater good of our 
country and the world. The Davidson Institute awards scholarships to 
each of the Fellows to assist them in furthering their education. I 
don't believe the Davidson Institute could have found a more 
distinguished or more deserving group of young scholars. I would like 
to detail their accomplishments for a moment.
  Karsten Gimre was just 11 years old when he became a Davidson Fellow 
based on his project entitled ``Conversation Without Words.'' This 
young pianist from Banks, Oregon has performed with several 
professional orchestras and has been winning awards for his exceptional 
abilities since the age of 6 when he earned first place at the 
International Young Artists Concert here in Washington, D.C. At the age 
of 12 he is now studying math and physics at the Pacific University 
while continuing his musical instruction.
  As a young writer from Canton, MI, Heidi Kaloustian's unique talent 
and creative genius allowed her to explore complex relationships and 
personal identity in her portfolio entitled ``The Roots of All Things'' 
while still allowing the reader to emotionally connect with the work 
and characters. Heidi plans to continue creative writing at the 
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor and I have no doubt that she will be 
very successful as a professor and as a writer.
  Tiffany Ko, a 16 year old from Terre Haute, IN, put herself on the 
cutting edge of technology and science when she used electric field 
sensing to design a new type of computerized security system. Her 
project is a significant advancement from current security systems and 
could be used to make people and businesses safer than ever before.
  At the age of 17 years old, Milana Zaurova from Fresh Meadows, NY has 
begun developing a new way to treat the most deadly form of brain 
cancer, malignant glioma. She combined chemotherapy and gene-therapy to 
develop a creative new method that has the potential to save many 
lives.
  As a 12-year old from Chapel Hill, NC, Maia Cabeza has already 
developed an extensive resume as a violinist. She has earned praise in 
the United States and abroad for her technical proficiency and 
musicality. Maia has the noble goal of using her music to breach 
cultural and language barriers, and I wish her the best of luck and 
success.
  When Brett Harrison was just 16 years old he was able to develop a 
mathematical proof that actually improved upon a conjecture developed 
by a Princeton University professor. This Dix Hills, NY native's work 
is applicable to numerous fields such as communications, structural 
design, and computer networking systems.
  Tudor Dominik Maican is a gifted and talented 16-year-old composer 
from Bethesda, MD. He has already been commissioned by the Dumbarton 
Musical Society for a piano solo and has been the recipient of numerous 
awards for his imaginative and wide-ranging compositions.
  Justin Solomon, from Oakton, VA, designed an algorithm to recognize 
an object based on its three dimensional features. Most recognition 
programs only use two dimensions, so Justin's new algorithm increases a 
program's accuracy and can potentially be used in the fields of 
security, robotics, and artificial intelligence.
  John Zhou of Northville, MI took an interest in biomedicine because 
of its scientific and humanitarian aspects, and has now studied the DNA 
replication process with the goal of understanding and ultimately 
halting mutations and cancer development. John is also accomplished in 
many other fields including mathematics, physics, and Spanish.
  Kadir Annamalai's project focused around building nanowires, or wires 
only about two molecules thick that could be used in devices like power 
generators and circuit boards. In addition to this extremely technical 
work, Kadir, who is from Saratoga, CA, is also an Eagle Scout and is 
the recipient of numerous Future Business Leaders of America awards.
  Motivated by a strong desire to help those affected with Alzheimer's 
disease, Stephanie Hon, from Fort Myers, FL, investigated a creative 
method that her study suggests could possibly reverse some of the 
effects of Alzheimer's. Stephanie is considering continuing her 
Alzheimer's research at Harvard University this fall and we all wish 
her continued success.
  Benedict Shan Yuan Huang's project, Changed Particle Production in 
High Energy Nuclear Collisions, is as technical and advanced as it 
sounds. He has created a new technique that promises to achieve quicker 
and more accurate results when studying the structure of matter. 
Benedict, who is from Coram, NY, will attend Harvard University in the 
fall and will most likely study science as well as the piano.
  At the age of 16 Lucas Moller from Moscow, ID has already worked with 
NASA, the European Space Agency, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. His 
study on Martian dust and its effect on Martian lander missions has 
been incorporated on the Mars Surveyor lander and the Mars Express/
Beagle 2 mission.
  Nimish Ramanlal from Winter Springs, FL was able to advance the field 
of quantum computing by creating a new framework for quantum computing 
that overcomes the limitations on the effectiveness of quantum 
computers. His work could help a new form of computing to emerge with 
profound implications in nanotechnology, medical research, and advanced 
physics.
  With the internet growing every day, Tony Wu of Irvine, CA created a 
new internet search method that could be highly useful in the 
information society of the 21st century. He has competed successfully 
in numerous science competitions and plans to study computer science or 
electronics engineering in college.
  Fan Yang, a 17-year-old young woman from Davis, CA, developed a 
method of preventing eye infections by

[[Page S9927]]

using three compounds that prevent bacteria from forming and growing on 
the contact or intraocular lenses. This is a promising line of research 
that demonstrates the combination of Fan Yang's love of science and 
desire to help people.
  At the age of 6 years old, Marc Yu, who is from Monterey Park, CA, 
has already won numerous awards and competitions for both his piano and 
cello performances including both first place for the cello and second 
place for the piano at the Southwest Youth Music Festival.
  Mr. President, despite their relatively young age, these seventeen 
outstanding young men and women have all achieved remarkable things and 
fully deserve the awards that they have earned. Their past is 
overshadowed, however, by their even brighter futures and careers made 
easier by becoming 2005 Davidson Fellows. I would like to thank these 
young scientists, mathematicians, writers, and musicians for their 
accomplishments, past, present, and future, that will no doubt improve 
the lives of a great many people in this country and abroad.

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