15-year-old Shambhavi Mishra from the Queensland Academy for Science, Mathematics and Technology has been crowned the 2016 Queensland Brain Bee Champion.
Shambhavi outsmarted 126 other finalists from 48 Queensland schools at The University of Queensland today to take the title.
The state final of the Australian Brain Bee Challenge (ABBC) was held at UQ’s Queensland Brain Institute, with a strong field of competitors making for a nail-biting finish.
Shambhavi was elated to have won the state final.
“I would really like to have a future in science,” she said.
“Neuroscience is a really interesting field: there’s so much happening in it right now, and there’s so much more to discover.”
After a tense sudden-death round, Freshwater Christian College took out the Queensland Team Challenge title later in the day.
Queensland champions are strong Brain Bee contenders
Shambhavi will now go into the Australian national final, which will be held in Hobart in December.
Queensland champions have a history of strong performance at the ABBC, where in the last five years two students have won the national title and gone on to also win the International Brain Bee.
Brain Bee Queensland Co-ordinator Associate Professor Bruno van Swinderen congratulated Shambhavi on her neuroscience knowledge and outstanding performance.
“Shambhavi should be very proud of her achievement.
“She joins the long line of remarkable state champions Queensland has produced,” A/Prof van Swinderen said.
Queensland's best students get a taste of neuroscience
Finalists had an opportunity to tour QBI’s state-of-the-art facilities and be exposed first-hand to neuroscience and science of learning research.
“The Queensland Brain Bee Challenge brings together some of the brightest young minds in the state,” A/Prof van Swinderen said.
“Some of these students travelled for hours to be here today.
“It was fantastic to see so many students with a keen interest in neuroscience, and we hope that they consider a rewarding career in research.”
About the Australian Brain Bee Challenge
The ABBC is a competition for year 10 school students to learn about the brain and its functions.
The challenge was founded in 2006 by QBI’s Deputy Director (Research), Professor Linda Richards.
Media: Associate Professor Bruno van Swinderen, +61 7 3346 6332, +61 420 365 450 or b.vanswinderen@uq.edu.au; QBI Communications, communications@qbi.uq.edu.au.
