By Devin Powell
PITTSBURGH — New ways to detect cancer, search online social networks and link atoms using quantum physics took the highest honors this week at the 2012 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair in Pittsburgh.
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The event, which is the world’s largest international precollege science fair, brought 1,549 finalists to the Steel City. Over the course of a week, students presented their research to a stream of judges, reporters and members of the public. Winners divvied up more than $3 million in awards, including a top prize of $75,000 announced during a May 18 ceremony. Society for Science & the Public, or SSP, runs the competition.
“As a group, you are a force for profound good,” SSP president and publisher of Science News Elizabeth Marincola told the finalists. “Your innovative thinking can help humanity adopt more effective responses to natural and man-made disasters, transition to safer and smarter vehicles, and discover new ways of treating and preventing disease.”