Chinese Teen, in US Just 3 Years, Wins Invention Competiton

David Rosenblatt of Burns & Levinson LLP, student Min Zhong, and high school headmaster Margaret Bledsoe (photo: Boston Public Schools)

High school senior Min Zhong – who immigrated to the US three years ago from China – is the winner of a $15,000 scholarship prize for her medical-alert invention in a student competition.

Called “The Power of an Idea,” the competition was open to students at high schools in Boston, who each had to submit an invention and explain its benefits.

“I am so excited to win this scholarship.  Competition is always very fierce, and this makes me realize that I can achieve my dreams with hard work and perseverance,” said Min, a student at Charlestown High School in Boston, in a press statement issued by Boston Public Schools.

Burns & Levinson LLP, a Boston-based law firm that deals with intellectual property, sponsored the invention competition.  The $15,000 prize goes toward post-high school educational expenses, including tuition, as well as legal patent services from Burns & Levinson.

The law firm recently filed a provisional patent on Min’s behalf with the United States Patent and Trademark Office for her winning “New Medical Alert System” invention.  Within one year, the firm will file a full patent application.

Min’s invention includes an elaborate locking system that would be useful for persons in emergency situations at home.  Through a remote-controlled electric door lock and a remote-controlled personal help button, medical responders would be able to easily enter persons’ homes without needing to break down doors.

“The purpose of my invention is to create a uniform procedure for medical teams to gain access to the homes of elderly residents in need of aid,” Min wrote in her winning report, according to the Boston Public Schools.

This fall, Min expects to attend Tufts University, where she will study chemical engineering. 

At the “Power of an Idea” ceremony last week, Rhonda Edwards, a senior at John D. O’Bryant School of Mathematics & Science, received honorable mention.

She and four other finalists – sophomores Sohanny Hernandez, Binyam Sirmollo, Twonnisha Winbush and senior Christine Umeh – each received gift certificates to the Museum of Science in Boston and certificates of commendation from Mayor Thomas M. Menino.  The five teens are also students at the O’Bryant School.

Source:  EthnicNEWz.org 

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