>> A 15-YEAR-OLD FROM WILBUR HAM IS AMONG 32 SCIENTISTS FROM
ACROSS THE COUNTRY BEING CONSIDERED FOR THE NATIONAL
SCIENCE FOUNDATION'S IDEA MACHINE 2026 COMPETITION.
CONRAD GOMEZ IS ONE OF THE YOUNGEST ENTRANTS OUT OF A
COMPETITIVE FIELD OF 800.
CARRIE SALDO SAT DOWN WITH CONRAD AND HIS MOTHER MARIA
GOMEZ TO LEARN MORE.
>> THE NSF IDEA MACHINE WAS CREATED WITH THE INTENTION OF
GATHERING A LOT OF BIG IDEAS FOR THE NSF TO DIRECT THE U.S.
SCIENCE STUDIES.
SO THEY WANT TO HAVE AN AREA FOR WHICH THEY -- OR IDEA FOR WHICH
THEY WILL FUND THEIR -- THE SCIENTISTS INVESTIGATIONS IN
THAT PARTICULAR AREA.
>> SO CERTAIN RESEARCH AREAS THAT ARE CURRENTLY NOT BEING
LOOKED AT?
THEY WANTED IDEAS SO YOU'RE ONE OF THE ENTRANTS FOR THIS
CONTEST.
TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOUR SUBMISSION.
>> MY IDEA WAS TO HAVE A VIDEO GAME IN WHICH THE PLAYERS WOULD
ENTER PUZZLES OR CHALLENGES TO HELP SCIENTISTS WITH THEIR
STUDIES, SO THE SCIENTISTS WOULD CREATE -- CREATE THESE
CHALLENGES TO SEND INTO, I GUESS, A PART OF THE VIDEO GAME
IN WHICH THE PLAYERS WOULD GO TO SOLVE PUZZLES AND GET REWARDS.
>> OKAY.
SO GIVE ME AN EXAMPLE OF THE TYPES OF PUZZLES OR THINGS THEY
WOULD BE LOOKING AT TO SOLVE.
>> WITHIN EXAMPLE OF A PUZZLE WOULD BE A FOLDING PROTEINS.
AND BECAUSE SCIENTISTS, EVEN NOW, STILL DON'T TOTALLY
UNDERSTAND PROTEINS AND THEIR STRUCTURE, GAMERS COULD HELP THE
SCIENTIST STRUCTURE BY FOLDING PROTEINS.
SOMEBODY HAS ALREADY DONE THIS IN A VIDEO GAME CALLED FOLD IT.
>> THIS IS REALLY INTERESTING SO HERE YOU HAVE THIS 15, ALMOST
16-YEAR-OLD SON OF YOURS WHO'S COMING UP WITH REALLY INGENIOUS,
YOU KNOW, AS FAR AS BRINGING TOGETHER THE VIDEO GAME
COMPONENT INTO AN AREA OF RESEARCH AS WELL.
HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THIS HE'S THE TOP 32 OUT OF 800; RIGHT?
>> I WAS VERY EXCITED.
HE LOVES PLAYING GAMES BUT WHEN HE HEARD ABOUT THE NSF, 2016
IDEA COMPETITION, HE THOUGHT WELL, WOULDN'T IT BE GREAT IF I
COULD SET UP SOMETHING THAT I ENJOY DOING BUT WITHIN THERE
LEARN SOME SCIENCE IN DIFFERENT PIECES AND I WAS REALLY EXCITED
THAT HE GOT INTO IT AND THEN WORKED HARD TO SEE WHAT WERE
AVAILABLE POSSIBILITIES ALREADY AND THEN HOW HE COULD MAKE HIS
PIECE DIFFERENT.
>> DID YOU EVER THINK HE WOULD GET THIS FAR?
>> I WASN'T SURE BECAUSE IT WAS A BRAND-NEW PROGRAM BY THE
NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION.
I HAD NO IDEA HOW MANY ENTRIES THERE WOULD.
TYPICALLY, I THINK MOST PEOPLE WHO SUBMIT THINGS TO THEM ARE
FROM UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES, ALREADY, PROFESSIONALS IN THEIR
CAREER, BUT IT WAS AN UNUSUAL COMPETITION WHERE THEY ACTUALLY
ALLOWED ONE TO BE -- I THINK THE MINIMUM AGE WAS A LITTLE BIT
YOUNGER THAN HIM BUT I FORGET THE EXACT AGE.
>> BUT BY FAR YOU ARE THE YOUNGEST, YOU KNOW, TO RISE TO
THE TOP OF THIS VERY EXCLUSIVE GROUP.
HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THAT?
>> WELL, I WAS VERY EXCITED AT FIRST.
IT WAS, LIKE, WELL, WINNING THE WHOLE COMPETITION ALTHOUGH THIS
WAS RATHER SHORT-LIVED BECAUSE I HAD TO FOCUS ON DOING THE SECOND
PART IMMEDIATELY AND CREATING THE VIDEO TO MAKE IT THROUGH THE
SECOND STAGE.
>> SO THAT YOU'RE CURRENTLY IN THE SECOND STAGE RIGHT NOW.
>> THAT'S RIGHT.
>> SO WHAT'S NEXT?
WHAT ARE THE NEXT COMPONENTS OF THIS COMPETITION?
>> I BELIEVE THERE ARE TWO OR THREE MORE STAGES.
UNFORTUNATELY, I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENS IN THE FINAL STAGE BUT
THE NEXT THING I HAVE TO DO AN INTERVIEW WITH THE NSF.
>> OKAY.
ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT?
>> IT'S A LITTLE BIT NERVE-WRACKING ALTHOUGH -- I AM
LOOKING FORWARD TO MAKING IT THERE.
>> SO HOW DID YOU FIRST BECOME INTERESTED IN SCIENCE IN THE
FIRST PLACE?
>> WELL, I -- IT DIDN'T START SO MUCH WITH THE FACT THAT BOTH OF
MY PARENTS ARE SCIENTISTS SO MUCH AS A LOT OF THE TIME, I
WAS -- I WAS CURIOUS ABOUT WHY THINGS HAPPENED AND BECAUSE IN
SCIENCE I GET TO DISCOVER A LOT OF WHY THINGS HAPPEN, IT
INTRIGUES ME. >> AND WERE YOU SURPRISED, YOU
KNOW, THE LEVEL OF HIS INTEREST -- SO YOU'RE A
SCIENTIST AS WELL.
SOMETIMES KIDS WANT TO DO NOTHING THEY'RE PARENTS DO.
THEY GO IN THE COMPLETE OPPOSITE DIRECTION.
WERE YOU SURPRISED?
WERE YOU HAPPY?
>> I WAS VERY HAPPY.
AND I WOULD SAY THERE'S STILL SOME OF THAT.
MY HUSBAND AND I ARE CHEMISTS AND CONRAD WANTS NOT SO MUCH
CHEMISTRY BUT COMPUTER SCIENCE WHICH HAS BEEN MORE OF AN AREA
FOR HIM.
I GUESS THE NICE THING IS THAT SCIENCE IS VERY BROAD SO YOU CAN
HAVE YOUR TEEN REBELLION DIFFERENCES WITH YOUR PARENTS
AND STILL DO LOTS OF REALLY COOL THINGS.
>> COMING BACK TO VIDEO GAMES.
YOU LIKE TO PLAY VIDEO GAMES?
>> YES, YES, I DO.
PROBABLY BECAUSE OF THE QUICK REWARD.
BUT I ALSO LIKE TO COME UP WITH IDEAS FOR HOW TO IMPROVE THE
VIDEO GAMES AS WELL AND ALSO IDEAS FOR NEW VIDEO GAMES.
>> AND CERTAINLY, THERE'S SO MANY KIDS, YOU KNOW, WHO REALLY
ENJOY AND LOVE VIDEO GAMES BUT I THINK IT'S SO INTERESTING TO USE
SOMETHING THAT YOU LOVE TO ADVANCE, YOU KNOW, THIS
SCIENTIFIC AREA OF RESEARCH.
WHAT ARE YOU HOPING TO DO AS YOU MOVE FORWARD?
ONCE WE'RE PAST THIS, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER HAPPENS IN THIS
COMPETITION, WHAT ARE YOU HOPING TO DO WHEN YOU GRADUATE FROM
HIGH SCHOOL?
>> WELL, I INTEND TO GO TO COLLEGE AND I'LL PROBABLY GOING
TO TAKE COMPUTER SCIENCE -- COMPUTER SCIENCE CLASSES.
ALTHOUGH AFTER COLLEGE, I AT THE MOMENT I'D LIKE TO BECOME A
DESIGNER.
>> WHICH IS FANTASTIC.
YOU KNOW, WHAT AN INDUSTRY THAT IS AS WELL.
SO WE'LL HAVE YOU BACK IN A FEW YEARS.
[LAUGH] >> ONCE YOU'RE INTO THAT PART OF
YOUR COMPUTER.
TELL US HOW PEOPLE CAN FIND OUT OBAMA ADMINISTRATION COMPETITION
AND HIS VIDEO THAT'S ONLINE.
>> THEY GO IF GO TO -- IF THEY GOOGLE NSF 2026 IDEA MACHINE,
THEY'LL GET TO A SITE WHERE THERE'LL BE A POSTING THAT SAYS
THAT THE ENTRIES ARE IN.
THEY CAN CLICK ON THAT TO GO TO THE ENTRIES, AND AT THE ENTRIES,
THEY CAN LOOK FOR HUMAN VERSUS AI.
THT'S THE TITLE OF CONRAD'S ENTRY AND THEY'LL SEE HIS
PICTURE AND THEY'LL BE ABLE TO CLICK ON THAT AND THERE'S A
VIDEO AS WELL AS THE TEXT ENTRY THAT HE SUBMITTED AND AT THE
BOTTOM, THERE'S A COMMENT BUTTON AND IT WOULD BE GREAT TO GET
COMMENTS 'CAUSE THIS NEXT STAGE IS PARTICULARLY JUDGED ON PUBLIC
COMMENTS. ♪