Accomplishments

• Nora Xu of Naperville, 17, was honored Sept. 26 in Washington, D.C. where she was awarded a Davidson Fellows scholarship by the Davidson Institute for Talent Development. Nora is one of this year’s 17 Davidson Fellows scholarship recipients.

Nora will receive a $10,000 scholarship for her achievement in physics. She developed a unique method of determining the crystal structure on nanocrystalline superlattice (NCS) thin films, which has the potential to assist drug delivery to cancerous tumors, among other possible applications. Focusing her research on nanocrystals, Nora proposed treating the NCS multilayer thin films as a set of two-dimensional lattice points with each basis in three-dimensional space.  Using this breakthrough model, Nora confirmed X-ray scattering pattern intensities, which will enable scientists to more accurately understand the fundamental structures of these important nanoscale particles, particularly at a molecular and atomic level. Nora’s work will help researchers improve future functions of nanotechnology, and has potential applications in optical and electron microscopes, artificial photosynthetic materials, biochemical sensors, and as a delivery system for biomolecules.

Bachelor’s degrees

• Illinois State University
Bolingbrook: Stephanie Broeske and Anthony Fiaccato
Lisle: Christopher Garland and Regina Saul
Naperville: Katherine Lloyd, David McManigal, Patrick Meyer, Mary Nyez, Daniel Simnick, Robert Micensky, Christopher Piasecki, Joanna Runge, Angela Verlee
Woodridge: Stefanie Jachimiak

Educational opportunities

• Applications for admission to the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy class of 2011 are now available online at http://www.imsa.edu/admissions/apply. Talented Illinois students enrolled in the equivalent of a ninth-grade program are eligible for consideration to the three-year (grades 10-12) advanced college preparatory program.

All students live on campus. Tuition and most room and board expenses are provided by state funds, however some fees are charged based on family income. A written application must be completed and returned to IMSA, postmarked no later than March 1. Students can also contact their high school guidance counselor or IMSA’s office of admissions at (630)-907-5028 to receive an application.