Welcome to the
19th Annual Awards Ceremony
April 21, 2009
And we are proud of you all!
You Took the Challenge!
Master of Ceremonies
Dr. Shaun Cooper, Supercomputing Challenge
Board of Directors and CIO at NMSU
Los Alamos National Laboratory
Dr. Duncan McBranch, Deputy
Principal Associate Director
A Welcome to the Mid school
GUTS clubs
GUTS stands for Growing Up
Thinking Scientifically
Project GUTS is...
Presentation of the Finalists
David Kratzer, Consult
The Finalists
Desert Academy Team 35
La Cueva Team 4
Los Alamos High Team 52
Los Alamos High Team 55
Los Alamos Mid Team 65
Manzano High Team 66
Melrose High Team 71
Sandia Prep Team 95
Silver High Team 98
Los Alamos National Laboratory
Environmental Modeling Award
Presenter, David Janecky, LANL
Los Alamos National Laboratory
Environmental Modeling Award
Winners: “Where Oh Where Did The Jumping
Mice Go?” Team 16, Aspen Elementary
Jacob Holesinger
Emma Martins
Talia Dreicer
Sponsor: Zeynep Unal
Mentors: Jared Dreicer
Society of Technical Communication
Written Report presented by
Kathy Pallis and Sue King
Society for Technical Communication
Winners: “A Novel Approach to Asteroid
Identification Using Image Processing of
Existing Data” Team 4, La Cueva High
Erika DeBenedictis
Chris Hong
Tony Huang
Mentor: Dr. Erik DeBenedictis
Encryption Award
Presented by Dr. Lorie Liebrock, NMT,
NM CAC, Challenge Board Member
Encryption Award
Winners: “The Implementation and
Optimization of the RSA Encryption
Method” Team 35, Desert Academy
Colton McDonald
C. Rose Morris-Wright
Avery Rowlison
Bjørn Swenson
Mentor: S. Thomas Christie
Best Web Presentation of
Final Report
Presented by Michele Jacquez-Ortiz,
Senator Udall's staff
Best Web Presentation of
Final Report
Winners: “Universally Accessible Distributed
Computing on Public, Heterogeneous
Networks, Applied to the Search for
Mersenne Primes” Team 105, Monte del Sol
Charter School & Capshaw Middle School
Max Bond
Harsha Dodda
Sponsor: Natalie Martino
Mentor: Nick Bennett
Recognition of Judges
Mike Trahan, Sandia National Laboratories, Principal
Member of the Technical Staff, Laser &
Computational Initiatives.
Eleanor Walther, Sandia National Laboratories,
Principal Member of the Technical Staff, Emergent
Threats.
Best Agent-Based Modeling Project
Presented by Irene Lee,
Project GUTS, Santa Fe Institute
Best Agent-Based Modeling Project
Winners: “The Control and Spread of Wildfires”
Team 71, Melrose High
Kyle Jacobs
Angel Lucero
Richard Rush
Ramon Arenivar
Sponsors: Alan Daugherty
Rebecca Raulie
Community Focus Award
Presented by Nick Bennett,
Grass Roots Consulting
Community Focus Award
Winners: “Get on the Bus --- Simple or Not?”
Team 45, Los Alamos High School
Issac Koh
Sponsor: Aik-Siong Koh
Crowd Favorite
Presented by Francisco Vigil, graduating
senior from McCurdy High, and Deb
Loftin, Teacher Member of the Board
Crowd Favorite
Winners: “Hawk EyE” Team 76,
Melrose High
Brandon Mitchell
Brian Hemminger
Quinton Flores
Victoria Northrup
Sponsors: Alan Daugherty
Rebecca Raulie
Mentor: Brent Mitchell
Albuquerque Journal Award
for Best Professional Presentation
Presented by Raam Wong
Albuquerque Journal
Journal Award
for Best Professional Presentation
Winner: “Astrophysical N-Body
Simulations of Star Clusters” Team 61,
Los Alamos Middle School
Sam Baty
Peter Armijo
Sponsor: Robert Dryja
Mentors: Christopher Fryer
Stephen Diehl
Senator Jeff Bingaman's
Middle School Award
Presented by Julia Maccini,
Senator Bingaman's Office
Senator Jeff Bingaman's
Middle School Award
Winner: “Rocky Planet Formation as the
Universe Ages” Team 18, Aspen Elementary
Devon Conradson
Sponsor: Zeynep Unal
Mentor: Steven Conradson
Senator Jeff Bingaman's
Video Message
Cray High Performance Award
Presented by Mike Davis and
Victor Kuhns of Cray, Inc.
Cray High Performance Award
Winners: “A Novel Approach to Asteroid
Identification Using Image Processing of
Existing Data” Team 4, La Cueva High
Erika DeBenedictis
Chris Hong
Tony Huang
Mentor: Dr. Erik DeBenedictis
CHECS Research Award
Presented by Dr. Shaun Cooper,
NM CHECS
CHECS Research Award
Winners: “Elliptic Curve Computations”
Team 66, Manzano High School
Kristin Cordwell
Chen Zhao
Sponsor: Stephen Schum
Mentor: William Cordwell
CHECS Teamwork Award
Presented by Dr. Shaun Cooper,
NM CHECS
CHECS Teamwork Award
Winners: “Interplanetary Travel in a Closed
Ecosystem” Team 15, Aspen Elementary
Colin Redman
Matthew Ticknor
Michael Englert-Erickson
Dhaivat Pandya
Sponsor: Zeynep Unal
Mentors: Elizabeth Cooper
Jim Redman
Best Computational Science
Award
Presented by Mike Trahan,
Sandia National Labs
Best Computational Science
Award
Winners: “A Novel Approach to Asteroid
Identification Using Image Processing of
Existing Data” Team 4, La Cueva High
Erika DeBenedictis
Chris Hong
Tony Huang
Mentor: Dr. Erik DeBenedictis
Teacher Appreciation Award
Presented by Randall Rush
Teacher Appreciation
Winners: Alan Daugherty and
Beckey Raulie, Melrose High
Technical Poster Award
Presented by Mike Trahan,
Sandia National Labs
Technical Poster Award
Winners: “Programming
Agents to Locate Items
in Buildings” Team 75,
Melrose High School
Randall Rush
Kaleb Broome
Sponsors: Alan Daugherty
Rebecca Raulie
Graphical Poster Award
Supercomputing Challenge Logo for the 2009-2010
Presented by
Dr. Shaun Cooper, NMSU
Graphical Poster Award
Winners: “Modeling the Sun-Earth-Moon
System” Team 98, Silver High School
Powell Brown
Ted Benakis
John McCauley
Sponsor: Peggy Larisch
Mentors: Berry Estes
Reid Wistort
Sandia National Laboratories’
Creativity and Innovation Award
Presented by Dr. Tom Laub,
Sandia National Labs
Sandia National Laboratories’
Creativity and Innovation Award
Winners: “Machine Vision and Alternative Game
Control” Team 106, Monte del Sol Charter
School
Tenzin Lekden Lungtok
Cole Tuffli
Sponsor: Natalie Martino
Mentors: Stephen Guerin
John Paul Gonzales
New Mexico Network for
Women in Science and Engineering
Presented by Dr. Eleanor Walther,
Sandia National Labs
New Mexico Network for
Women in Science and Engineering
Winners: Kristin Cordwell, Manzano
High, "Elliptic Curve Computations"
Dr. Berry Estes Memorial Award
Presented by
Teri Roberts, LANL
Dr. Berry Estes Memorial Award
Winners: “Modeling the Sun-
Earth-Moon System”
Team 98, Silver High
Powell Brown
Ted Benakis
John McCauley
Sponsor: Peggy Larisch
Mentors: Reid Wistort
Berry Estes
Challenge Teacher Sponsors
Presented by the
Challenge Girls
Best Use of Multiple
Languages Award
Presented by John Paul Gonzales,
Project GUTS
Best Use of Multiple
Languages Award
Winners: “Magnetosphere Particle
Interaction” Team 68, McCurdy High
Brandon Ramirez
Dennis Trujillo
Francisco Vigil
Sponsors: John Paul Lorenzen
Irina Cislaru
Mentors: Michelle Thomsen
Robert Robey
Passion for Science Award
Presented by Dr. Eleanor Walther,
Sandia National Labs
Passion for Science Award
Winner: “Fractal Illuminations” Team 41,
Freedom High
Amy Ronan
David Montoya
Shelby Parker
Donny Kruse
Holly Campbell
Sponsor/Mentor: Joe Vertrees
Judges Special Award
for Biotech
Presented by
Dr. Cleve Moler, MatLab
Judges Special Award
for Biotech
Winner: “Vibrational Spectroscopy and
Normal Mode Analysis Applied to
Human Prion Protein E200K”
Team 95, Sandia Preparatory School
Jeff Fenchel
Christopher Parzyck
Evan Hughes
Sponsor: Neil McBeth
Mentor: Mark Fleharty
Sponsor Recognition
Let's hear it for all our sponsors
listed on our web page!
Congratulations from Wolfram
Research
Look for a special offer of the
student license of Mathematica
in your email.
Governor’s Award
Presented by Bob Robey, past
recipient of the Governor's Award
Governor’s Award
Winner: Tom Laub, Sandia National Labs
Scholarship Winners
Presented by Willard Smith, Retired
from Tennessee State
University and NASA
Division of Computer,
Computational, and Statistical
Sciences Division
Los Alamos National Laboratory
Thanks, thanks, and more thanks!
For the generous funding of
Challenge scholarships
Scholarship Winners
And now, the moment we have all
been waiting for….
Bill Blackler, the envelopes
please.
Third Place
“Energy Efficiency through Smart
Wall Design”
Team 65, Los Alamos Middle School
Rachel Robey
Gabe Montoya
Sponsor: Bob Dryja
Mentors: Bob Robey
Derrick Montoya
Second Place
“Elliptic Curve Computations”
Team 66, Manzano High School
Kristin Cordwell
Chen Zhao
Sponsor: Stephen Schum
Mentor: William Cordwell
First Place
“A Novel Approach to Asteroid
Identification Using Image
Processing of Existing Data”
Team 4, La Cueva High School
Erika DeBenedictis
Chris Hong
Tony Huang
Mentor: Dr. Erik DeBenedictis
The Last Word
David Kratzer, Consult
Delicious burritos will be served in
the kitchen behind the auditorium
after the awards ceremony.
Your choice of Bacon/Green,
Ham/Red, Sausage/Red or
Veggie/Green