High School Essay Contest

Brookhaven National Laboratory and the U.S. Department of Energy are please to announce the winners of the 2009 Science and Society Essay Contest.

The Science and Society Essay Contest aims to challenge students to question and deliberate the purposes and social implications of scientific research. Essays are expected to contain substantive, well-reasoned arguments (rather than simply opinions) that indicate a depth of understanding of scientific and societal issues. All high school students (9th-12th grade) who attend school in Suffolk or Nassau County are eligible.

2009  Topic: The focus of the scientific community is rapidly shifting to clean and/or renewable energy sources, carbon sequestration, and mitigating global warming. Brookhaven National Laboratory conducts basic research that contributes to all of these. Students must use an aspect of BNL research related to one or more of these specific areas of focus and forecast how that emerging research/technology will translate into effectively implemented solutions. Aspects such as economies of scale, necessary or consequential changes to society/lifestyles, pragmatic implementation, and viability should be addressed.

Some example areas to explore related to Brookhaven National Laboratory research:
- Viable methods of carbon sequestration
- Plants that may help mitigate global warming, and what might limit their capacity to do so, for example plants with C3 versus C4 photosynthesis
- Biofuel development and efficacy
- Fuel cell technologies
- Superconducting materials
- Energy storage

• Contest Registration
• Rules
• Key Dates - Essays and registration forms are due on April 17, 2009.  Prize-winning students will be invited to an award ceremony to be held Wednesday, May 20, 2009.  Invitations to the award ceremony will be mailed on May 8, 2009.
• PLEASE NOTE: Photos will be taken and may be used in publications and on the web.

Prizes will be awarded as follows:

Grand Prize Winner: $500.00
Second Prize: $300.00
Third Prize: $200.00
Honorable Mentions (up to 10 awards): $50.00 each
All students who submit essays will receive a Certificate of Participation.

Previous Winners

• Contest Winners
• 2009 Essay Contest Winners
• 2008 Essay Contest Winners
• 2007 Essay Contest Winners
• 2006 Essay Contest Winners
• 2005 Essay Contest Winners
• 2004 Essay Contest Winners
• 2003 Essay Contest Winners

Essay Contest contact at Brookhaven:

Ken White
Brookhaven National Laboratory
Bldg. 438, P.O. Box 5000
Upton, NY 11973-5000
(631)344-4503
(631)344-5832 fax

Last Modified: June 26, 2009
Please forward all questions about this site to: Sarah Maine

One of ten national laboratories overseen and primarily funded by the Office of Science of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Brookhaven National Laboratory conducts research in the physical, biomedical, and environmental sciences, as well as in energy technologies and national security. Brookhaven Lab also builds and operates major scientific facilities available to university, industry and government researchers. Brookhaven is operated and managed for DOE's Office of Science by Brookhaven Science Associates, a limited-liability company founded by Stony Brook University, the largest academic user of Laboratory facilities, and Battelle, a nonprofit, applied science and technology organization.

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