High school students receive an insider’s view of STEM fields

COLUMBUS, Ohio (May 30, 2017) — 

Twenty Ohio high school students were selected to attend the Ohio Supercomputer Center’s 28th annual Summer Institute, June 4-16 at The Ohio State University. These academically gifted students will investigate complex science and engineering problems while discovering the many career opportunities in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields.

Photo from SI 2016
Summer Institute students receive a tour of the Ohio State University Center for Automotive Research.

The Ohio Supercomputer Center (OSC) began the Summer Institute (SI) in 1990 to provide high school students with real-world, hands-on experience in high performance computing (HPC) and networking fields. In small groups, SI students apply the scientific method to solve complex problems using OSC resources. OSC is inviting experts from science, engineering, HPC, and networking fields to speak with the students about STEM topics and careers, and to give students an insider’s view of these fields.

Brian Guilfoos, HPC client services manager at the Ohio Supercomputer Center, explained how the Summer Institute can be a life-changing experience for students.

“The Summer Institute allows students to gain a better understanding of what scientists and engineers do,” Guilfoos said. “SI gives students real-world knowledge and experience that they can use for the rest of their lives.”

SI students take science- and engineering-related field trips, as well as complete projects such as conducting network forensics to catch hackers, studying the spread of the bird flu and designing computer games. Students also receive a behind-the-scenes experience of OSU’s campus, and experience a taste of campus life by living in dorms.

Birce Onal, who has been an SI residential adviser and career panelist, has witnessed the benefits of SI for its students. “I see the campers get really excited about these activities,” Onal said. “By the end of the week the campers have all had a chance to talk with women and men who got their degrees in physics, computer science, statistics, mathematics, and engineering. They start learning about all the different career options that are out there.”

OSC also provides programs for STEM enrichment through the Young Women’s Summer Institute for middle school-aged girls, which allows them to engage in scientific research while working with some of the nation’s best supercomputers.

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EDITORS: The following identifies the students selected for SI. The list is arranged alphabetically by last name and identifies each student’s high school.

 

Gabrielle Adams, Upper Arlington High School

Karan Agrawal, Olentangy High School

Himani Akula, Dublin Jerome High School

Samiya Alam, Scioto High School

Joseph Bertrand, Walnut Hills High School

Sounak Dey, Thomas Worthington High School

Leon Durrenberger, Upper Arlington High School

Alan Guo, William Mason High School

Eric Killian, Dublin Coffman High School

Smera Palanivel, Olentangy High School

Hannah Parsons, William Mason High School

Connor Ryan, Gahanna Lincoln High School

Colin Sullivan, Columbus Academy

Karuna Suresh, Olentangy Orange High School

Anru Tian, Athens High School

Sridhar Uppalapati, Beachwood High School

Alex Wang, William Mason High School

Leon Wu, Upper Arlington High School

Matthew Yuan, Dublin Coffman High School

Carolyn Zhang, Columbus Academy

The Ohio Supercomputer Center (OSC), a member of the Ohio Technology Consortium of the Ohio Department of Higher Education, addresses the expanding computational demands of academic and industrial research communities by providing a robust shared infrastructure and proven expertise in advanced modeling, simulation and analysis. OSC empowers researchers with the vital services essential to make extraordinary discoveries and innovations, partners with businesses and industry to leverage computational science as a competitive force in the global knowledge economy, and leads efforts to equip the workforce with the key technology skills required to secure 21st century jobs. For more, visit www.osc.edu(link sends e-mail).