65th Annual STS (2005-2006)
Finalists
Sarah Kate Rapoport

NEW YORK
Sarah Kate Rapoport, 17, of New York, investigated early embryonic development on a molecular level for the bioinformatics and genomics project she entered in the Intel Science Talent Search. Through in vitro experiments and mathematical modeling, she illustrated the importance of motor proteins myosin and kinesin in propelling neuron migrations. These enable the early mammalian embryo to distinguish right from left, resulting in the asymmetric arrangement of organs and the lateralization of specific brain functions. At Horace Mann School in Riverdale, Sarah is president of the science and math club, captain of the fencing team and first chair oboist in the symphonic wind ensemble and jazz band. Her many honors include the Neuroscience Creativity Prize sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology and The Child Neurology Society. She holds a provisional patent for her signature verification machine and methodology for minimizing identity theft, and is author of the recently published History's Real-Life Cinderellas: Four Remarkable Stories of Women Who Changed the World. The daughter of Dr. Samuel and Sandra Rapoport, she hopes to attend Brown or Harvard.