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Seventeen-year-old T.J. Wilkason says his deep involvement with scientific research began in the seventh grade.

            “Science fair projects were mandatory for middle school honors students,” Wilkason said. “I became heavily interested in the research, and I wanted to continue it even though it wasn’t mandatory, so I found a way to participate in high school.”

            Upon entering high school, Wilkason researched local science fairs that he could still enter. Throughout the last three years of his high school career at Mount de Sales Academy, Wilkason has immersed his creativity and dedication into science fairs. Wilkason said he won Best in Show at the Georgia College & State University Regional Science and Engineering Fair as a freshman, sophomore, and junior. During his sophomore year, Wilkason placed in the top 10 percent at the International Science and Engineering Fair, and on April 15 he traveled to Houston, Texas to compete in the International Sustainable Project Olympiad, where he placed in the top 30 percent.

            Wilkason’s latest project, which he calls “Robust Video Tracking Through Multiple Occlusions,” is a computer program that can track an object based on its texture and hue. When the item is hidden, the program can predict its location and acquire it once it reappears.

            “The program can be used to significantly improve military and security because it provides a much more effective means of surveillance,” Wilkason said. “It can be used to get constant feedback on the location of objects of interest, whether they are people or vehicles or whatnot. Also, it can be used for human-computer interaction, as the movement of someone’s face can be tracked and recorded to get a response from the computer.”

            “T.J. has been involved in science fair projects since I first knew him as a freshman,” said Mr. Ron McLachlan, Wilkason’s AP Chemistry teacher. “Mr. [Todd] Freeman [Wilkason’s freshman Physics instructor] and I were both impressed with his project design as a freshman. He’s a superb Physics and Chemistry student with tremendous breadth and depth in both subjects.”

            Though Wilkason also enjoys reading, playing the piano, hanging out and talking with friends, science has significantly affected his life.

            “My interest in science stems from the fact that I am very curious about the world around me, and I like to learn about how things work, and then use that knowledge to create something new that I feel would be useful in some way,” Wilkason said. “It has affected my life in that I have been able to express my interest through these fairs, and they have provided me with opportunities to meet people from all over the world and learn new things from the smartest people in the world.”

 

Reviews

[Ross]

good journalism!!!