By Jennifer Saavedra
But three students from New York City were listed as finalists with two from Manhattan and one from Staten Island, the administrator of the contest said last week. Long Island carried the most weight with six finalists. Of the 300 semifinalists, only 40 were chosen as finalists, with New York state grabbing the most finalists in the contest. New Jersey, California, Maryland and Michigan tied in second place with three finalists each. This 2007 finalist list was especially sweet because as Intel Chairman Craig Barrett said “for the first time in the history of the competition, this year's finalists comprise an equal number of young men and women.”The finalists in the competition, often dubbed the “junior Nobel Prize” because former finalists have gone on to win Nobel Prizes and other coveted awards, will fly to Washington, D.C. in March. They will present their research projects and compete for the top scholarship prize of $100,000. In addition, the finalists will receive scholarships totaling $530,000 and all will be awarded laptops.
