PHOTO: Second from left, Mitchell Kaiser, from Vancouver, Wash., participated in SciTech in 2013.  

BY DEBORAH MOON

Local high schoolers with an aptitude in STEM are invited to apply for SciTech 2021, the Technion Israel Institute of Technology’s summer international science research camp on Technion’s campus in Haifa, Israel. The application is open to current 11th and 12th graders (graduating in 2021 and 2022). 
“Even with the COVID-19 worldwide situation, we hope that by July 2021 we will be able to operate SciTech 2021 safely,” says Tal Neeman of Technion’s SciTech team. If the camp cannot be run, a full refund of the application fee will be made.
In 2013, a teen from Vancouver, Wash., participated in the summer research camp. At age 17, Mitchell Kaiser participated in SciTech, where he was paired with an Israeli researcher to work on his long-term passion for fresh water. He had participated in StreamTeam since he was 11. He learned the value of tikkun olam (healing the world) at Congregation Kol Ami, where his family are still members. Mitchell’s research at the Technion involved the development of a quick way to detect bacterial contamination in drinking water.
Mitchell is now a third-year graduate student in the University of Washington’s Department of Chemistry. He works in the lab of Professor Jun Liu studying the physical properties of the surface of two-dimensional semiconductors and their interface with liquids and solutions.
“Looking back on my experience at SciTech, it was instrumental in preparing me for a career in advanced scientific research,” says Mitchell. “It was a unique opportunity to work with incredibly knowledgeable and passionate scientists on real research to solve important problems.”
Of his current research, he says: “Through this research, we hope to learn how to intentionally tune the properties of a material for a desired application, such as sensing or catalysis. Previously, the general process of material development was first to discover a material, then figure out what it was useful for. We hope to replace this process of trial and error with a method of understanding what material properties are needed for a specific application and then synthesizing a new material with those properties.”
Applicants for this summer’s program can choose from two disciplines: medicine/life science/biology or exact science/engineering.
This will be the 27th anniversary of SciTech. This English language program is intended for students with exceptional ability in mathematics, science or computer technology. Students gain hands-on experience in the Technion’s modern research laboratories under the supervision of faculty members. 
Registration for SciTech 2021 is open until Feb 7. 
More information about SciTech2021 and application information are available online at scitech.technion.ac.il.