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Regeneron Science Talent Search 2026 Recognizes America’s Top Young Scientists, Awarding More Than $1.8 Million to High School Seniors for Innovative Research in Computational Mathematics, Neural Science, and Blood Cancer Treatment
$250,000 top award goes to Connor Hill in America’s longest running and most distinguished science and math competition TARRYTOWN, N.Y. and WASHINGTON, March
About this update from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"$250,000 top award goes to Connor Hill in America’s longest running and most distinguished science and math competition\nTARRYTOWN, N.Y. and WASHINGTON, March 10, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: REGN) and Society for Science (the Society) announced that Connor Hill, 17, of State College, Pennsylvania, won the top award of $250,000 in the 2026 Regeneron Science Talent Search (STS), the U.S.’s oldest and most prestigious science and math competition for high school seniors. Key Takeaways: This year marks the 85th anniversary of the Science Talent Search and Regeneron’s 10th year as the title sponsor; Regeneron is extending its title sponsorship through 2036, pledging $150 million to fuel the next generation of science and technology leaders.Forty finalists were honored at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., receiving more than $1.8 million in awards recognizing groundbreaking research, exceptional analytical rigor, exceptional problem-solving skills and potential to shape the future of STEM. Top Three Winners: Connor Hill, 17, of State College, Pennsylvania won first place and $250,000 for discovering a way to identify all the possible \"noble polyhedra,\" highly symmetric shapes with flat sides and straight edges. He wrote a computer program to do the computations and proved there are two infinite families of noble polyhedra, as well as 146 isolated examples.Second place and $175,000 went to Edward Kang, 17, of Hackensack, New Jersey for using retinal images to train AI models on subtle patterns linked to autism and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder to create a screening tool called RetinaMind. He also created retinal cell models to study gene changes that may help explain why these differences occur.Third place and $150,000 went to Iris Shen, 17, of The Woodlands, Texas, for testing a potential cancer drug in clams to see if they could serve as an animal model for blood cancer drug discovery. In the clams, the drug had a similar effect to what researchers observe in human cells. She also tested a mix of other potential cancer drugs, which slowed the clams' tumor growth. \"Congratulations to the winners of this year's Regeneron Science Talent Search,\" said Maya Ajmera, President and CEO, Society for Science and Executive Publisher, Science News. “Their bold vision and persev...