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12-year-old designs ‘fast and affordable’ fire-detection device, wins $25,000
12-year-old Shanya Gill wanted to design a device that detects fire faster than the standard devices after a restaurant behind her house burned down.
A 12-year-old won $25,000 and the Thermo Fisher Scientific ASCEND (Aspiring Scientists Cultivating Exciting New Discoveries) Award after she developed a fire-detection system that is ‘fast and affordable’. The young STEM student decided to work on this particular project when a restaurant behind her house was destroyed because of a delay in fire detection by the installed devices.
“Since then [restaurant fire], my mother became increasingly cautious, always asking me to double-check that the kitchen stove was turned off before leaving our house,” winner Shanya Gill told Society for Science, one of the organisers of the competition.
She continued that one day she realised that thermal cameras can detect heat loss, and she decided to test if they can spot house fires more quickly than standard devices. “With an early warning system, we could save thousands of lives every year,” Shanya added.
What is the future of her project?
“In order to deploy at a large scale, I am doing experiments where the device would be placed on the ceiling like a smoke detector,” Shanya said. She also explained that the device can “draw power from existing electric lines and view a wider area.”
Society for Science also took to YouTube to share a video showing Shanya explaining her project. It also captures her receiving the award.
Take a look at the video:
The video was shared five days ago and since then, it has accumulated close to 2,000 views. While an individual congratulated her, another wrote, “Congratulations! You're inspiring and will be an asset to this world!” A third added, “Wow, that is amazing. Keep up the good work, you will go far.”
About Shanya Gill:
Sanya studies in sixth grade in California-based Sunnyvale Raynor Middle School. Besides engaging in experiments, she also loved to swim, play water polo, coding, and teaching others. Sanya wants to pursue a career in biomedicine. “By combining my love for biology, desire to make a difference and passion for innovation, biomedical engineering is the perfect fit for me,” she said.
