Eureka! An express test has been invented to detect Ebola virus by not a grownup scientist but a female teenager from Connecticut, who grabbed the top prize at the Google Science Fair for this invention.
The virus can be detected by 16-year-old Olivia Hallisey’s breakthrough in just 30 minutes at a cost of 25$.
“Current methods of Ebola detection utilize enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (“ELISA”) detection kits which cost about $1,00 each, require complex instrumentation, trained medical professionals to administer, and up to 12 hours from testing to diagnosis. The kits require the unbroken refrigeration of reagents from point of manufacture to point of use (the “cold chain”), making the ability to diagnose in remote areas, where refrigeration is often nonexistent or unreliable, highly problematic if not impossible,” Hallisey explained on her project’s website.
Hallisey said it was novel, temperature-independent, rapid, simple and inexpensive Ebola detection platform.
The fifth Google fair was also attended by Ahmed Mohamed, the 14-year-old Muslim boy from Texas who became famous after being arrested for bringing a homemade digital clock to school.
Hallisey was awarded with a $50,000 scholarship for her breakthrough as a prize at Google’s annual Science Fair, an online competition for children between the ages of 13 and 18.
The Connecticut teenager was one of 22 young scientists from around the world who were showing off their scientific projects.
