ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico, 20 May 2007 — To the cheers of thousands of scientists, educators and students from 51 nations, Saudi student Ahmed Khalid Al-Nuaimi received a scholarship for his work in behavioral and social sciences Friday at the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) at the New Mexico Expo in Albuquerque.
Earlier, Al-Nuaimi received a special award for best use of the scientific method in a project display and was given membership in the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence.
Judges were impressed with the project of the 16-year-old student from Dammam’s Al-Ansar School titled “A Smart Shoe for Blind People,” in which he detailed shoes with electronic sensors and audible alarms that can guide the blind or visually impaired.
Becoming an ISEF medalist places Al-Nuaimi in an elite group of the best high school science students in the world, and he was awarded a total of $1,500 in scholarships for his college education.
Amal Al-Hazza of the King Abdul Aziz and his Companions Foundation for the Gifted announced that the foundation would provide a scholarship for the young Saudi to take summer courses in English to advance his education and communication skills.
One of a nine-member team of Saudi boys and girls competing at the event, Al-Nuaimi, wearing the traditional Saudi thobe, gutra and igal, was hoisted onto the shoulders of his countrymen as students proudly displayed the Saudi flag and cheered. Students of other nations joined to honor the Saudi. For Saudi Aramco engineer and Talents Center partner Amr Al-Madani, who organized the qualifying science fair on behalf of the foundation, it was an emotional moment.
“I felt tears of pride welling up in my eyes — not just for Ahmed but for all of our students who have shown the world what our young people can do,” Al-Madani said. “Every Saudi should be very proud of their incredible accomplishments.”
Brenda Musilli, director of Intel Education (which co-sponsored the event), commended the Saudi team after the ceremony and said it was rare for a nation fielding an ISEF team for the first time to gain such distinction and win prizes. Al-Nuaimi and his colleagues, Khaled Al-Turkestani and Yazeed Al-Turki of Riyadh’s King Faisal School, and Chaima Bouhlel, Marya Al-Jeshi, Jumana Baghabra, Nadia Menouar, Noor Al-Sharif, and Lujain Al-Momen, all of Dhahran Ahliya School, will now return to the Kingdom for final exams at their schools where they will likely be recognized for their achievements.
“This is the Super Bowl of high-school science,” Albuquerque meteorologist Larry Rice, who hosted the awards ceremony, told the more than 1,500 student finalists, referring to the annual American football championship. “And you are the best in the world.”
