STUART: I'M SMILING BECAUSE WE
HAVE A FINE YOUNG MAN SITTING
NEXT TO ME, HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT
IN NEW YORK AND HE WON
250,000-DOLLAR PRIZE FOR SCIENCE
PROJECT THAT COULD BE USED TO
HELP FARMERS PREVENT CROP
DAMAGE.
IT'S BENJI FIRESTER, 18-YEAR-OLD
AND HE'S WITH ME NOW, BENJI,
CONGRATULATIONS.
>> THANK YOU.
STUART: WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO
DO WITH THE IRISH POTATO THING.
>> KILLED ALL THE CROPS IN
IRELAND IN 1840's WHICH WAS
PART OF THE FAMINE.
DISEASE IS PREVALENT ALL OVER
THE WORLD AND CAUSES BILLIONS OF
DOLLARS IN DAMAGES IN EPIDEMICS,
I INVENTED A MATHEMATICAL MODEL
WHICH PREDICTS THE SPREAD OF THE
DISEASE AND GIVES FARMERS
INFORMATION TO PROTECT FIELDS
AND PREVENT EPIDEMICS.
STUART: THAT WAS PRETTY GOOD.
I DIDN'T THINK THAT YOU COULD
EXPLAIN IT SO THAT I COULD
UNDERSTAND IT.
VERY GOOD.
YOU LOOK AT WEATHER PATTERNS, I
TAKE IT, WHERE THE DISEASE,
INFECTION IS LOCATED AND THE
WIND PATTERNS AND YOU PREDICT
THIS THING IS GOING?
>> EXACTLY.
STUART: THAT'S IT?
YOU INVENTED THE ALGORITHM WHICH
IS E OCCASION WHICH TAKES ALL
THE WEATHER PATTERNS AND BRING
IT ALTOGETHER.
>> THE PART I INVENTED HOW
THINGS INTERACTS, WHAT TIMES WE
NEED TO LOOK AT WIND DIRECTIONS,
WHICH FIELDS WE NEED TO LOOK AT
AND HOW DOES ALL CORRESPOND WITH
A PROBABILITY OR WHAT'S YOUR
RISK OF INFECTION AND ALGORITHM
JUST PUTS TALL DATA TOGETHER
FROM ALL THE INFECTED FIELDS AND
ALL THE TIMES THE WINDS
DIRECTION AND ALL THE TIMES THE
WINDS CAN MOVE THE DISEASE AND
SEE WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN.
STUART: ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF
INFORMATION, IS THAT ANOTHER
WORD FOR ALGORITHM?
>> YES.
STUART: PULL IT ALTOGETHER FROM
EVERYWHERE.
>> PART OF THE MODEL IS WHAT'S
IMPORTANT AND WHAT'S NOT
IMPORTANT. YOU LOOK AT THE WIND
THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE DAY IT'LL
BE HARD FOR THE COMPUTER TO
FIGURE OUT WHAT'S HAPPENING BUT
THE DISEASE CAN ONLY SPREAD
WITHIN A VERY SPECIFIC AMOUNT OF
TIME, SO THE FIRST THING THE
MODEL DOES IS IT LOOKS FOR THE
TIMES WHERE THE DISEASE CAN
ACTUALLY SPREAD TO LIMIT THE
DATA TO SOMETHING IT CAN
ACTUALLY CALCULATE WITH HIGH
ACCURACY.
STUART: IF I WERE LOOKING AROUND
FOR A SCIENCE PROJECT TO WIN
$250,000, I DON'T THINK I WOULD
HAVE HAD SOMETHING TO COME UP
WITH THE IRISH POTATO FAMINE.
HOW DID YOU COME UP WITH?
>> I WAS LOOKING TO DO RESEARCH
IN SCIENCE AND MATHEMATICS, THEY
WERE LOOKING AT MANY DIFFERENT
WAYS TO MODEL DISEASES AND TRACK
IT, IT'S FIELD CALLED
PLANTOLOGY, HAS BEEN STUDIED OUT
FOR YEARS, SO IT WAS A PROBLEM
THAT'S BEEN AROUND FOR A WHILE
AND CONTINUES TO BE SO AND I
WANTED TO EXPLORE NEW WAYS --
LOOK AT THE DISEASE AND HOW IT
SPREADS USING THE TOOLS OF MASS
IN COMPUTER SCIENCE.
STUART: 250,000 BUCKS, THAT'S A
LOT OF MONEY?
>> THAT'S ONE COLLEGE TUITION.
STUART: THAT'S WHAT IT'S GOING
FOR?
>> YEAH.
STUART: I HATE TO BREAK BAD NEWS
FOR YOU BUT I BELIEVE THE MONEY
IS TAXABLE.
[LAUGHTER]
>> SO GLAD TO HAVE WON.
[LAUGHTER]
STUART: WHICH COLLEGE DO YOU
WANT TO GO TO?
>> I HAVE BEEN ACCEPTED TO
HARVARD.
NOW HE TELLS US.
STUART: DO YOU OBJECT, PEOPLE
THAT DO ALGORITHMS AND THINGS,
THEY ARE GOOD AT MATH, THEY ARE
CALLED GEEKS, DO YOU AGREE?
>> NO, THAT'S OKAY, I ACCEPTED
THE TERM.
STUART: IS THAT A TERM THAT YOU
PREFER?
>> NO.
STUART: RICH GEEK?
WHEN DO YOU GO TO HARVARD?
>> I'M A SENIOR NOW AND I WILL
BE GOING TO COLLEGE.
STUART: WHO PRESENTED THE PRIZE?
>> THE PRIZE IS FOR SCIENCE
TALENT AND IT'S RUN BY SOCIETY
SCIENCE FROM PUBLIC.
STUART: GREAT TO HAVE YOU ON THE