Biomimetic MicroElectronic Systems

High School Researcher (Now Undergraduate) Wins Top Honors for Visionary Work

Most precollege programs offered by universities aim to give young students a glimpse into the fascinating world of science and engineering, in order to spark their interest in these subjects for further study. The ERC for Biomimetic MicroElectronic Systems (BMES), at the University of Southern California (USC), found one precocious student in whom that spark became a flame. Noelle Stiles, then an 11th-grader at Villa Park High School, began working with BMES Prof. Armand R. Tanguay, Jr., in Fall 2003 after she was introduced to him at a science fair. Initially, Tanguay mentored her science fair project, and then accepted her as a full member of his Optical Materials and Devices Laboratory at USC when it became apparent that she was deeply committed to her research. She is the only high school student ever to become a full member of the lab.

At the outset, all of Noelle's research work was on a volunteer basis, under the auspices of various science fairs. When she became a member of Tanguay's research group, she also became affiliated with the BMES ERC and began participating in weekly meetings of the Retinal Prosthesis Research Group at the USC Keck School of Medicine. She has been present at an FDA surgical trial of a retinal prosthetic microelectrode array (implanted by BMES Director Dr. Mark Humayun), and participated intensively in the successful surgical implantation of the first intraocular camera in a dog's eye in July 2004.

As for Noelle's performance in science fairs and competitions, her accomplishments are notable. In the 2004 Orange County Science & Engineering Fair, her project, "Intraocular Camera for Retinal Prostheses: Restoring Vision to the Blind," took the Grand Sweepstakes Award, Senior Division (9-12) (the top prize of the entire Fair); First Place, Physiology, Senior Division (9-12); and First Place, Center for Inquiry West (an organization founded by Carl Sagan and Murray Gell Mann), for the best project demonstrating critical thinking.

Continuing with the same project, in October 2004 Noelle was named a semifinalist in the 2004-5 Siemens Westinghouse Competition in Math, Science, and Technology at the national level. As such, she was recognized as one of an elite 300 math, science, and engineering students in the entire country.

Now an undergraduate at USC, Noelle continues her research within Dr. Tanguay's research group and the BMES ERC on the visual psychophysics and optical systems design criteria applicable to both intraocular and extraocular camera designs for retinal prosthetic devices. Less than three years after discovering her passion for biomedical research as a high school junior, this remarkable young student routinely presents her research at professional conferences and is accepted by them as a peer!

To learn more about this topic:
Visit the education and outreach page at the Center for Biomimetic
MicroElectronic Systems at: http://bmes-erc.usc.edu/eop.htm

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USC undergraduate Noelle Stiles, then a high school
student in the lab at the BMES ERC, displays the
first-generation intraocular camera.

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Last modified: May 16, 2006