It seems that every day new technology is being invented in order to save lives and better the living situation around the world. Each device, whether a step closer to curing an illness or simply an original, faster cell phone, changes how we think and interact in the world.

Striving to get students involved in this innovative and inventive process, Bioengineering Projects for the Future (BPF) hosts an annual contest for teens across the nation in which students take a common problem and invent a solution using future technologies that are currently being developed by scientists. Many students across all grade levels at Jefferson submitted their projects on Jan. 26 for a shot at first prize.

“This year in BPF has been incredible for us in terms of the number of great projects we’re submitting,” junior Ramya Radhakrishan said. “We have over fifteen entries ranging from freshmen to juniors this year, and as a President and ExporaVision alumni it has been great to mentor the teams over the last three months from brainstorming to prototyping.”

This year, more teams than ever at Jefferson have been submitting projects. As a result, many officers believe that this year will have more awards to reflect this.

“Given the number of innovative projects being submitted, I think that we have a greater chance this year to have national finalist teams, as well as honorable mentions, in both junior and senior divisions, something we have never had as a club before,” junior Ramya Radhakrishan said. “Our team of officers looks forward to mentoring with the selected finalist teams in the next stage of the competition, and hopes that we can improve turnout for the competition even more next year.”

Though many of the projects focus on cancer and other chronic diseases such as Cerebral Palsy and Alzheimer’s, others focus on hiding scars more successfully or a more effective way of healing soldiers wounded in battle. It seems a consensus that all the students involved in BPF learn a lot throughout their research process.

“This was my first year doing BPF but I enjoyed it because I had the chance to investigate and learn about some seriously interesting science and technology that has the ability to save lives both in the military and civilian sector,” junior Zoe Wang said. “I am amazed by the capacity of humanity for good.”