Junior Scientist Award: Westport Student Earns Prestigious STEM Program Award

A Connecticut middle school student impressed a national STEM competition with a potential study that could be out of this world.

Ziggy Zhao, a 12-year-old student of the Pierrepont School in Westport, recently won one of five Junior Scientist Awards from the Genes in Space program. The prestigious STEM award asks students to create studies that could be tested aboard the ISS.
Photo Credit: *Genes In Space*

Josh Lanier

05/13/2023 3:30 p.m.

Fairfield County resident Ziggy Zhao, who attends the Pierrepont School in Westport, won one of the five Junior Scientist Awards from the Genes in Space contest, which asks students from across the country to design biology experiments that address real-world challenges in space exploration.

The winning study will be carried out by astronauts aboard the International Space Station next year.

The 12-year-old Zhao created an experiment that would study blood samples of mice aboard the space station to see if space travel could help unlock a longer lifespan for humans.

The Genes in Space program was created by Boeing and miniPCR bio to get the next generation of scientists interested and involved in studying genetics and space travel at an earlier age.

The finalists for the prize will be announced on Monday, May 22 and organizers will name the winner over the summer.

More than 820 students submitted proposals to the program, organizers said.

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