Innovative Minds: Alexander Wang

Germantown Academy | 7th grade grade | 13 years old

L1ong-Lasting Values

About the Idea

I extracted oleanolic acid from olive leaves, and turned it into a solution to prevent spoilage of food.

Why did you enter the 3M Young Scientist Challenge?

I wanted to do something useful for my own household, and soon after, I found out about this competition. I noticed that my own family was throwing out foot quite often, as we had to stock up large amounts during the pandemic. Throwing out food not only wastes food grown, but also wastes money and damages our environment. The food that we throw out might not be composted, and/or recycled for better uses. I wanted to know if there was any way I could keep the food fresh, and help saving the environment.

What is your favorite invention of the last 100 years, and why?

Penicillin. This is because it was an accidental discovery, driven by curiosity. Yet, the accidental discovery followed by persistent invention saved lives from infections that were previously severe and often fatal. Penicillin is still used today, around 93 years later. This accident occurred when Alexander Fleming forgot to put a Petri dish in the incubator and left for a vacation. When he came back, he discovered a mold growing in the Petri dish. He took interest into this mold and found out that it prevented cell wall synthesis. Later, he named the mold penicillin. After 20 or so years of research and development, the first antibiotic was brought to use. However, penicillin was overused so much that infection began to gain immunity and became resistant. It was shown that doctors could no longer give large doses to their patients anymore. Finally, I find it very interesting and fascinating that penicillin can prevent cell wall synthesis, and that it showed scientists that bacteria could gain antibiotic resistance.

In 15 years I hope to be...

In 15 years I hope to be a computer engineer. Personally, I find coding fun and interesting, and I want to develop or create something that can bring fun and happiness, which I hope will become a norm in the future.