Google girls continued: Naomi Shah
Our series on the amazing Google girls continues today with a Q&A with Naomi Shah, 16, whose award-winning work focuses on asthma. Her dream is to become an inventor and entrepreneur focusing on environmental public health. Doesn’t that make you feel just a little bit better about the future of the whole frickin’ planet?
Without further ado, Naomi on her TEDxWomen experience and more:
What was the most memorable moment of your TEDxWomen experience?
TEDxWomen, LA, Paley Center, live streaming in New York. Listening on the phone, all of these things went in one ear and traveled up to brain, not completely registering. I had been invited to present my science research amongst some of the most influential and inspirational women of our times.
When I landed at LAX, I had a feeling that the coming couple days held a unique energy that was a once in a lifetime type of experience. All the positive energy and ideas that flowed in that small auditorium bounced around in my head, resonating with everything that I have witnessed in society and in the media in my sixteen years of life. Presenting alongside such people, I knew that my strong convictions regarding the environment and the implications of my research were respected and heard.
To pick one memorable moment from the experience is to find a needle in a haystack. However, I clearly remember when I was approached by many attendees during the break between talks who had heard about the Google Global Science Fair and wanted to hear more about my research. At these moments, as I explained my research to others, it felt amazing to be able to explain the implications of my research and help people who knew others suffering from allergies, asthma, or another lung disorder. I felt that all my research and time spent was well worth it. Of course, the biggest adrenaline rush moment came just as my talk came to an end and I saw the audience rise in a standing ovation. I couldn’t help but smile.
How do you think we can get more girls involved in the sciences?
Personally, I believe that the tides are changing and more girls are participating in science activities. In my biology class, I feel that there is equal participation from both girls and boys. However, in terms of science research side, I feel that girls represent a minority because they may not be as interested in fields such as math, engineering, and hardcore science which are traditionally male-driven. For example, in my Java class, there are very few girls and the class is almost completely male. This is an indication to me that girls are not interested in taking the class, possibly because of the number of boys interested or perhaps because of the content of the class.
I feel that if more girls ventured into these fields, they would be pleasantly surprised by how interesting it is and how easy it is to get involved and maintain focus. As a nation, I believe that we need to encourage more girls to become interested in science and technology at a younger age by providing them with programs and camps that are fun and interesting. These will facilitate a new generation of women interested in science for the sake of discovery and innovation, to make their own mark in the field based on questions and curiosities derived by what they see in the natural world.
If you could meet one scientist, living or dead, and ask them one question, what would it be and why?
Called “mother of the environment,” Rachel Carson has always been an inspiration to me because she used her environmental science research and curiosity to cause change in her society, which was very difficult for a women in the 1950s. Her underlying philosophy was that humans are interdependent with nature, which is something that I have come to realize through my own research. If I were to ask her one question it would be something along the lines of how she, an independent researcher, was able to create so much environmental concern and change even at a national level, armed with only her research and observations.
Do you know the next Rachel Carson? Or the next Naomi Shah for that matter? Make sure they hear about today’s newly launched challenge for the 2012 Google Global Science Fair!
Excellent presentation by all three ladies. Further on Naomi’s research into respiration and environment, please include diet in your investigation. My wife was on the daily controller puffer and Ventolin 3 times a day until she stopped eating dairy and land animal meat. Within a few weeks there was no more need for the asthma drugs. At all, even jogging in an eastern North American city known for smoggy air. This is anecdotal, yes, but the effect was significant. And eating dairy occasionally (tasty cheese is too hard to resist sometimes) has predictable congestive effects on her lungs, lasting about a half-day. It’s worth considering. Cheers.