North Allegheny student is top 10 scientist in challenge

North Allegheny incoming freshman Sritej Padmanabhan is a 3M Young Scientist Challenge Top 10 finalist for his study of hand tremors suffered by those with Parkinson’s disease.

The grand winner of the competition in October wins $25,000 and is named 3M America’s Top Young Scientist for 2022.

Parkinson’s disease is a brain disorder that causes unintended or uncontrollable movements, according to the U.S. National Institute on Aging.

Sritej, 13, said the idea for his entry came from watching his grandfather’s hands.

“Last year, my grandpa was diagnosed with Parkinson’s, and I noticed firsthand how much hand tremors can affect someone’s ability to do daily tasks. When he was visiting us from India, his hand tremors could not be monitored by his neurologist in India. After researching, I learned that access to a qualified neurologist is a challenge even in the United States for the rural population,” said Sritej, who will be a freshman at North Allegheny Intermediate in the fall.

He felt there had to be a way to measure and monitor hand tremors remotely that would greatly improve access to qualified neurologists for underserved and rural populations.

“This was my inspiration for my project, and it further led me to create my video analysis algorithm to remotely measure and monitor the hand tremors,” he said.

Sritej, of Franklin Park developed an algorithm that analyzes videos of hand tremors to provide an accurate measure of tremor frequency to aid in the diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease, according to 3M.

Preetha Padmanabhan, Sritej’s mother, said that her son got the call informing him that he was a finalist while he was visiting his grandfather in India, “and his grandpa was elated.”

The 3M Young Scientist Challenge asks potential entrants “how can you improve lives for the future?” And provides examples in several categories, such as health, safety, mobility, environment, energy consumption, and community.

Students had to submit a short video entry online earlier this year that demonstrated creativity and passion for science.

Like all of the finalists, Sritej is working with a 3M scientist in a summer mentorship program to turn his concept into reality. He said they work remotely one day a week, but will collaborate more frequently closer to the final competition, which will be held in St. Paul, Minn., on Oct. 17-18.

At that event, finalists will compete in a series of challenges and complete a presentation of their innovation, according Britania Weinstein, a media specialist with Ketchum, a public relations and marketing communications firm assisting 3M in promoting the competition.

The Young Scientist Challenge, she said, “targets students in the years when research indicates their interest in science begins to wane and encourages them to explore scientific concepts and creatively communicate their findings.”

The finalists will be judged on creativity, scientific knowledge, persuasiveness and effective communication and overall presentation.

The next two highest-scoring finalists will be deemed runners-up and the remaining seven finalists will each receive an honorable mention.

The grand prize winner will also receive a special destination trip to be determined by Discovery Education after the event.

All top 10 finalists received $1,000.

The competition recognizes students in grades five through eight, who use scientific thinking to create an innovation that will improve lives both in their local communities and globally.

Sritej, who submitted the entry when he was in eighth grade, said in an interview with 3M Young Scientist Lab that his favorite invention in the last 100 years is the 3D printer. And he hopes to become a medical professional, “possibly a neurosurgeon, combining my robotics skills and interest in medicine.”

3M also partners with Discovery Education in the annual competition.