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Three NRI teenagers including Indian-origin identical twin sisters have bagged a scholarship worth $100,000 in a science competition for their innovative research that will help doctors diagnose health problems like schizophrenia.

The scholarships were awarded to the NRI teens in the 17th annual Siemens Math, Science and Technology Competition with their medical projects.

Shriya and Adhya Beesam, 16, who are grade 11 students in Plano, Texas won the competition in the 17th annual Siemens Math, Science and Technology Competition for their project entitled, ‘Linked Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System: A Novel Approach to Schizophrenia Diagnosis’.

In their research, the twins developed a new approach to diagnose schizophrenia earlier in patients using both brain scans and psychiatric evaluations. The Beesams created a new system for diagnosing the disease by combining qualitative and quantitative approaches to assess patients.

Accrding to the NRI teens, they had lost their uncle to schizophrenia few years ago. Their uncle was misdiagnosed for several years before eventually being diagnosed as schizophrenic. The twins say the late diagnosis and delay of care, ultimately contributed to his suicide. The Beesams say actually this loss of their uncle served as motivation during their research and work.

Another Indian-origin teen Vineet Edupuganti, a senior at Oregon Episcopal School, won the top individual award for developing an ingestible battery that could transform the way doctors diagnose and monitor health problems deep in the body. He calls his invention “a high-performance biodegradable for transient electronics.

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