[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 5631]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      HONORING ERICKA DeBENEDICTIS

  (Mr. HEINRICH asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. HEINRICH. Mr. Speaker, I have often said that innovation is what 
America does best. Recently, I had the honor of meeting one of our 
great current and future innovators, Ericka DeBenedictis. Ms. 
DeBenedictis is an 18-year-old Albuquerque student who recently won the 
prestigious Intel Science Talent Search, which recognizes our best and 
brightest young scientists. This long-standing award has been 
characterized as the equivalent of winning a junior Nobel Prize.
  Ms. DeBenedictis received the top prize because of her research in 
low energy orbit software, a program which would enable space vehicles 
to navigate the solar system using gravity's pull and minimal fuel.
  On behalf of everyone in New Mexico's First Congressional District, I 
want to say how incredibly proud we are of Ms. DeBenedictis and the 
hard work that she put into her project. As I've said, innovation is 
what America does best. And it looks like innovation might be what Ms. 
DeBenedictis does best too.

                          ____________________