Political Quotes

“today, I have the great honor and pleasure to recognize this year's Fellows for the Davidson Institute for Talent Development. This year, 18 young people under the age of 18 have been awarded scholarships of $50,000, $25,000, or $10,000 for having demonstrated superior ability and achievement and having completed a significant piece of work in the areas of science, music, literature, mathematics, or technology. I would like to take this time to introduce each of these scholars and the various projects they have undertaken. In the area of science, we have eight young students with remarkable projects that have contributed to scientific progress. Among this group of scholars is Shalini Ramanan. A 17-year-old young woman from Richland, WA, Shalini Ramanan worked with a natural dietary component of the spice turmeric called BC to test its effectiveness in treating cardiovascular diseases. Through cell migration assays and western blot techniques, she discovered that BC inhibited platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-induced vascular smooth muscle cell migration and signaling. Using bioinformatics, she identified target genes connected with signaling pathways. PDGF-stimulated cell-migration and proliferation are key pathological events in a variety of diseases including atherosclerosis and cancer. Her studies may help design and characterize novel drug molecules with clinical applications.…”