A Competition for Undergraduate Students at CUNY
The Nobel Prizes in Physiology or Medicine, Physics, Chemistry, and Economics are among the world's most prestigious awards for humanity's most complex and far-reaching ideas.
Now, CUNY undergraduates are invited to explain the science behind the 2009 Nobel prizes – to describe how these concepts are influencing our world today, and to predict the future significance of this research to humanity.
Essays must make the science
accessible to the lay person.
Program Description
CUNY undergraduate students are invited to submit an essay of
1000-1500 words
that describes the science behind one of this year's Nobel Prizes. Essays will be read and
judged by a distinguished CUNY faculty committee.
Three prizes will be awarded in each category (Physiology or Medicine; Physics; Chemistry; and Economics). A Grand Prize will be
awarded to the best essay submitted among the four First Place winners.
- Essays must be your
own original and independent work
- Essays will be
judged on accuracy, clarity, and accessibility to the general public
- The Challenge is open to
all undergraduate students currently registered in a degree program at
CUNY
- A student may submit one essay only
Prizes
There will be a First, Second and Third Prize winner in each category:
First Prize: Apple iMac Computer with MS Office & Adobe Photoshop software
Second Prize: Dell Mini 10 Netbook with MS Office & wireless printer
Third Prize: Amazon Kindle wireless reading device
First Prize winners from each category will be forwarded to a second faculty committee that will select the Grand Prize winner for the best essay submitted overall. The winner will receive a Grand Prize of $5,000.
Nobel Prizes winners for 2009
Physiology or Medicine
Discovery of how chromosomes are protected by telomeres and the enzyme telomerase
Elizabeth H. Blackburn, Carol W. Greider, Jack W. Szostak
Physics
(Shared prize - choose either)
Groundbreaking achievements concerning the transmission of light in fibers for optical communication
Charles K. Kao (half prize)
and
Invention of an imaging semiconductor circuit - the CCD sensor
Willard S. Boyle, George E. Smith
Chemistry
Studies of the structure and function of the ribosome
Venkatraman Ramakrishnan, Thomas A. Steitz, Ada E. Yonath
Economics
(Shared prize - choose either)
Analysis of economic governance, especially the commons
Elinor Ostrom
and
Analysis of economic governance, especially the boundaries of the firm
Oliver E. Williamson
Essays must be submitted
by December 7, 2009.
Submissions should include the student's name, college, and major (declared or intended). Essays must be in Microsoft Word or pdf format and submitted by email with subject heading "CUNY
Nobel Science Challenge" to:
Visit the
Nobel Science Challenge F.A.Q.
for more details.
Questions not addressed in the F.A.Q. may also be submitted to the email address above.
Winners will be announced in February, 2010.
