We are proud of Okezue Bell '23 who was recognized as a Regeneron Science Talent Search Scholar for his project: "On Selecting Distance Metrics in n-Dimensional Normed Vector Spaces of Cells: A Novel Criterion and Similarity Measure Towards Efficient and Accurate Omics Analysis."

Regeneron STS is the nation’s oldest and most prestigious science and math competition for high school seniors. Okezue is among 300 Regeneron Science Talent Search scholars, who hail from 194 American and international high schools in 35 states and China. They were chosen from an applicant pool of 1,949 students from 627 high schools across 48 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and four other countries. The 300 scholars will be awarded $2,000 each and their schools will be awarded $2,000 for each enrolled scholar.

The Regeneron Science Talent Search recognizes and empowers our nation’s most promising young scientists who are generating innovative solutions to solve significant global challenges through rigorous research and discoveries. It provides students with a national stage to present new ideas and challenge conventional ways of thinking. Now in its one hundred and first year, Society for Science has played a significant role in educating the public about scientific discoveries as well as in identifying future leaders in science, technology, engineering and math. Regeneron has sponsored the Science Talent Search since 2017 as part of its deep commitment to STEM education and to supporting young scientists. 

This year, research projects cover topics from analyzing the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war, to developing eco-friendly biofuel, and improving methods used to detect diseases and neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s, bladder cancer, monkeypox, autism and more. Other students chose to focus on social issues, such as exploring ways to reduce social media-induced emotional distress and violence, as well as studying how mask mandates impact how accurately people can recognize emotion on others’ faces. 

On January 24, 40 of the 300 scholars will be named Regeneron Science Talent Search finalists. The finalists will then compete for more than $1.8 million in awards during a week-long competition in Washington, D.C., taking place March 9-15.