Bacteria Bombs, Fat Tongues and Microrobots: The Winners of Our STEM Writing Contest – The New York Times

Have you ever wondered why the world doesn't go black every time you blink? Or how incompetent people can seem so confident in their abilities? Or what all that plastic in the ocean means for our food?

These students have answers.

For our first-ever STEM Writing Contest, The Learning Network teamed up with Science News to challenge teenagers to choose a STEM-related question, concept or issue that interested them and, in 500 words or fewer, explain it to a general audience in a clear and engaging way.

We received 1,618 entries touching on topics in medicine and psychology, chemistry and biology, geometry and astronomy. Of those, our judges, including science reporters from The New York Times and science educators across the country, selected 44 finalists eight winners, 14 runners-up and 22 honorable mentions whom we are listing below.

Were never quite sure what to expect with a new contest like this one, but we hoped students would take to this task with a spirit of inquiry and discovery. And they did.

One of our winners told us she was inspired to study antlike microrobots after noticing the anthills dominating her backyard. Another wanted to know what caused the sleep apnea so many of her friends and family suffered from. A runner-up questioned what made spicy foods, a staple of her Mexican heritage, so appealing.

To find answers, they scoured news articles and scientific journals, interviewed experts and even performed their own experiments.

But what set our winners apart wasnt just what they wrote about or the evidence they drew on to support it it was the way they skillfully explained their topics so a general audience could understand them. This was a writing contest, after all. With engaging hooks, relatable analogies, clever metaphors and a strong sense of voice, these writers not only helped translate complex subjects; they also made them enjoyable to read.

But dont take our word for it. Were publishing the eight winning essays in full and you can read them for yourselves by clicking on the links to their work below. We hope, like us, youll learn something new and have fun doing it.

Thank you to all the students who participated and congratulations to all our finalists. If you have feedback on this contest, please write to us at LNFeedback@nytimes.com. And dont forget about our 10-week Summer Reading Contest, which begins June 12.

Telomeres Turning Back the Biological Clock by Hubert Chen

The Promise of Hot Garbage by Michael Dekhtyar

The Death of Classical Geometry by Elias Leventhal

Egg Stem Cells May Mean the Creation of New Eggs After Birth by Erin Li

How the Phishermen of Today Cast Their Lines by Amy Liu

Far-off Galaxy Collision Foretells the Tail of Our Future by Diya Naik

Gravitational Waves and General Relativity by Maximilian Niebur

A New Hope for Bees: Genetically Modified Gut Bacteria by Eva Panin

A Zombie Apocalypse? by Tisya Raina

Is it the End for the Silver Bullet? by Jia Cheng Anthony Shen

Sizzling Steaks and Crusty Bread: The Science of the Maillard Reaction by Victoria Tong

Black Holes: The Universes Biggest Subwoofers by Will

Can We Really Heal Ourselves? Demystifying Placebos by Phoebe Yu

Could Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicles Be the Future of Transportation? by Quinn Alami

What Are the Effects of Delaying School Start Times on Teens? by Aylin Ardali

Should We Trust Our Memories? by Jessie Gaither

No, Amazon Does Not Produce 20% of the Worlds Oxygen. Our Breath Is a Gift From the Wanderers-on-the-Oceans by Devanshi Guglani

Using Rat Urine and Chewing Gum Science Could Thwart Climate Change by Kwangjun Jung

Must-Fix-It: Energy Poverty by Logan Kim

The Science Behind Tattoos by Julia Luyk

The Future of Cancer Imaging Lies in The Starry Night Under the Sea by Camilla Martinez

How Microbes Decide Whether We Live or Die by Gus Morrill

The Unexpected Legacy of Our Digital Founding Fathers by Ellee Nakamura

Forensics Fiction? The Reliability of Facts in Our Courtrooms by Mackenzie Pavlik

How Caffeine Can Help You Stick to Your New Years Resolutions for Longer by Joshua Pixley

Premature Glaucoma by Marina Lupercio Sanchez

The Rusty Patched Bumblebee: A Ticking Time Bomb by Erin Saunders

Marshmallow Experiment True or All Fluff? by Rose Sawilowsky

The Magic Behind Flu Vaccines Secret Weapons Against Influenza Virus in the Everlasting Arms Race by Yihan Shen

Making Toilets Sustainable by Ana-Maria Skaricic

Keeping You in the Loop About Your Poop by Kenna Sondhelm

Learning? Sleep On It. by Heather Szczesniak

The Effects of Noise Pollution on Marine Wildlife by Hadley Weathers

Why Gray Matter, Matters: Inside the Brain of a Psychopath by Paige Williams

Being Sustainable After Death by Tiffany Wu

From The Learning Network: Jeremy Engle, Michael Gonchar and Natalie Proulx

Other judges, including science educators from schools and education organizations around the country: Victoria Bampoh, Amanda Christy Brown, Terianne Hall, Annissa Hambouz, Meghan Hess, Shira Katz, Allison Lee, Simon Levien, Keith Meatto, Mariam Naraine, Dawn Parker, Melissa Slater and Vanessa Vieux

The rest is here:
Bacteria Bombs, Fat Tongues and Microrobots: The Winners of Our STEM Writing Contest - The New York Times