Global Indianstory Cyber ExpertWatch out for the cyber criminals: 22-year-old cyber expert Vaibhav Jha upskills natives and foreigners

Watch out for the cyber criminals: 22-year-old cyber expert Vaibhav Jha upskills natives and foreigners

Written by: Amrita Priya

(May 8, 2022) Young India is making its mark. From teen entrepreneurs running unicorns to prodigies in science and the arts, India’s youth are shining. Take, for instance, 22-year-old cyber expert Vaibhav Jha, who was lauded for being one of the youngest cyber security trainer in May 2021. By that time, he had already worked as external cyber security researcher with the Ministry of Electronics and IT providing inputs for framing DPR for cyber security labs in India.

Cyber Security Expert

An expert at 19

On April 28, 2022, CERT-in, a government-appointed nodal agency, issued a new cybersecurity directive. As cyber threats loom, for individuals and nations alike, ‘hack the world before it hacks you’, maintains Vaibhav which incidentally happens to be the title of the book that he has written. The young ethical hacker has been keenly spreading awareness on security online through various initiatives.

Over 25,000 school and college students have learned the ropes of the cyber world through Vaibhav’s training sessions under Niti Aayog’s Atal Innovation Mission. His research paper on car hacking and cloud security fetched him the budding researcher award at an international conference at Amity Dubai.

Vaibhav was only 19 when he trained Indian Audit and Account Service (IAAS) officers, and also conducted a joint training session for cops, bureaucrats and delegates from over thirty countries on safeguarding critical security infrastructure and enjoyed a short stint as a cyber security researcher for Gurugram Police as well.

Climbing the ladder

Vaibhav was in his first year of college at Manav Rachna International Institute of Research and Studies when he discovered cybersecurity and ethical hacking. A student of computer science engineering at the time, he knew instantly that this would be his chosen domain. He did extensive research by himself, which bore fruit in his second year of college when it led to Vaibhav being asked to chair a cybersecurity conference attended by Dr Gulshan Rai, the erstwhile Cyber Security Chief at the Prime Minister’s Office. It was a magnificent turning point, Vaibhav remarks, saying it ignited his desire to delve even deeper.

When he collated his knowledge, he had the material for his debut book. “My book teaches beginners on how to avoid the trap of cyber-crime,” Vaibhav tells Global Indian.

By the time he was in his second year, Vaibhav had also taken his first steps as an entrepreneur. With support from the institution, he co-founded a cyber security firm with a batchmate. After he graduated, the computer engineer switched to the corporate world, associating himself with Coforge (earlier NIIT Technologies).

Driving dialogue

Led by the desire to promote cyber security as an integral fabric of our digitally-inclined society, he has organised two cyberspace conferences (CIACON) in 2018 and again in 2020. Officials from the US’ Department of Homeland Security and the Indian government participated as speakers. “The conferences are for security enthusiasts,” Vaibhav explains. “The idea has been to bring together cyber experts, policy makers, think tanks and cyber wizards on a single platform to discuss issues and challenges in the sub domains of cyber security.”

It meant big steps for Vaibhav too, a journey that involved becoming comfortable with himself and his abilities. “I used to be nervous at the start but I have worked on my confidence levels. Now, delivering lectures, conducting training and interacting with people is my passion,” he says.

That apart, spending time with family and friends, swimming, body building, reading books and doing his research keep Vaibhav occupied. He also has his own YouTube channel, Scorpion VJ, through which he engages people on a variety of topics that range from tech and travelling to lifestyle.

“Cybersecurity and cyber-forensics are fields that needs passion and the mindset of always being open to learning, otherwise you will not be able to counter attack the cyberattacks,” he says, to young cyber security aspirants everywhere.

‘Hacks’ for being cyber smart

Keep all your devices, apps and browsers up to date
Think before you click
Be vigilant while reading mails or opening attachments from unknown sources
Verify identity before sharing personal information online
Keep all your passwords unique and don’t reveal it to anyone
Report if anything seems suspicious in the cyber world

Follow Vaibhav Jha on YouTube, LinkedIn and Instagram

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Published on 08, May 2022

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All the right moves: Indian chess prodigy Prraneeth Vuppala journey to grandmaster status

(June 8, 2023) Prraneeth Vuppala’s parents introduced him to a variety of sporting activities when he was just six. Tennis interested him and so did football. Like most children, he loved swimming too. But it was chess that fascinated him the most. He only took about a week to learn the basics and how to make the right moves. The young Indian chess prodigy and his early passion for the game led him to a chess academy where he sharpened his skills in no time. Thereafter, he went about checkmating his opponents across the globe, winning national and international tournaments one after the other. All of 16, he recently became the India’s 82nd Grandmaster after he achieved the required 2,500 FIDE rating points. “Despite all the wins, I don’t think one can still master the game of chess,” smiles Prraneeth in an exclusive chat with Global Indian. The Indian chess prodigy defeated Grandmaster Hans Niemann of USA in the penultimate round of the Baku Open 2023 held from May 4 to 22 in Baku, Azerbaijan. “I don’t get distracted by anything during a game and remain focused on it completely. Without bothering about winning or losing, I just go out there and play. The

n. “I don’t get distracted by anything during a game and remain focused on it completely. Without bothering about winning or losing, I just go out there and play. The grandmaster title is part of the process and I feel great about it,” says the teenager, who has become a role model for many budding chess players not only in his home state of Telangana but across the world.

[caption id="attachment_30877" align="aligncenter" width="487"] Chess prodigy Prraneeth Vuppala[/caption]

The Baku Open

In the Baku Open, Grandmaster Niemann’s attack on the kingside did not work out the way he wanted and Prraneeth scored a win. “Prior to the game, I do prepare against the opponent, try to analyse their moves and check their opening lines. But when the tournament actually starts, I don’t think about the opponent at all. I just play,” says the young grandmaster. He is the sixth from the state of Telangana to have achieved the title.

Prraneeth was among the 119 players, including 32 Grandmasters, 29 International Masters, 11 World Grandmasters and Women International Masters) from 14 countries who took part in the Baku Open. The nine-day, nine-round Swiss League tournament was organized by the Azerbaijan Chess Federation and the Ministry of Youth & Sport of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Upon his return to Hyderabad after winning the grandmaster title, Prraneeth was accorded a grand welcome by the Telangana state government.

He was felicitated by Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and announced a reward of Rs 2.50 crore. “Meeting the Chief Minister along with my parents was a matter of great pride. He congratulated me and wished me well for my future tournaments and assured all support,” says Praneeth, whose intelligent moves on the chess board in a short span of time surprised many.

Earning his grandmaster norms

[caption id="attachment_30878" align="aligncenter" width="535"] Prraneeth with Telangana CM, K. Chandrashekar Rao[/caption]

Prraneeth has achieved three Grandmaster norms during the course of his chess career. In March 2022, he earned the first one and achieved the International Master title in Hungary. In July the same year, he achieved his second norm at Biel Master Tournament in Switzerland. He achieved third GM norm at the second Chessable Subway Formentra Open in Spain, Sunway Sitges and Lorca tournaments in Italy.

“The tournament in Hungary was tough. I lost the first round but that did not bother me. I kept my focus on the game, analysed where I was going wrong and improved it. I won other rounds to win my first grandmaster norm,” recalls the chess prodigy, who also participated in world chess tournaments held in Armenia and Budapest earlier besides Asian Games and Commonwealth Games. He also achieved his second International Masters norm in the Vergani cup in Serbia.

The prodigy’s journey

Hailing from Allagapada village in Miryalaguda Mandal of Nalgonda district of Telangana, Prraneeth’s father V Srinivasa Chary works as Assistant Commissioner in GST while his mother Dhanalaxmi is a junior lecturer at a Government college. “They encouraged me all through which made me what I am today,” says Prraneeth, a Standard XI student of Viswa Chaitanya Junior College, Tarnaka in Hyderabad.

Prraneeth held the titles of national champion (under- 7 to under-14) before he earned the international masters and grandmaster titles. Till 2021, he trained with noted chess coach Rama Raju at the RACE academy. Now, he trains with Israel Grandmaster Viktor Mikhalevski.

Earlier, the 16 year old used to do yoga and meditation. “Now I mostly rely on normal workouts in between the tournaments which helps me remain focussed on the game and agile to all the moves by opponents,” informs Prraneeth, an admirer of Norwegian world champion Magnus Carlsen.

What’s next

The chess Grandmaster says his next target is to reach 2,600 rating points and is already working towards it. “My ultimate goal is to become the world champion by achieving 2,800 rating points,” says the youngster who is all focused on his next tournament — the Asian Continental tournament in Kazakhstan which starts this month.

While he regularly practices in chess to fine tune his skills, Prraneeth likes to read books about chess and chess players. “It not only motivates me, it is also interesting to read and analyse their moves which helps me in my game as well,” explains the prodigy who puts in 8 to 10 hours of practice everyday. He even plays chess online with multiple players.

In between his academics, which he also excels at, Praneeth makes it a point to indulge in football and tennis with his friends. “There are many more tournaments to come and I constantly prepare myself for them,” he says.

Reading Time: 6 mins

Arunima Sen: The innovator solving the world’s pressing problems

(September 5, 2024) "Kalpana Chawla's story inspired many people. She came from a small town but nothing could beat her determination to dream big and achieve it. At a time when her field was largely male-dominated, she broke stereotypes to convert her dreams into a reality. Little did she know that she would inspire millions of girls like me, who were forced to back off from their dreams or not." That's how innovator and technologist Arunima Sen begins her TedX Talk. The girl whose curiosity about science and technology led her to become an innovator and a designer, is now finding solutions to the world's most pressing problems. From developing a device that determines micronutrient levels in the human body using hair strands to building a prototype of an energy-efficient solar hybrid bus to a green building, the 23-year-old is keen to find answers. The STEM enthusiast, who aspires to work towards achieving the United Nations Sustainable Goals, was named a 2020 Global Teen Leader of the We Are Family Foundation and is one of The Mars Generation’s 24 under 24 Innovators in STEAM and Space. An innate love for science Growing up in Bengaluru, Sen was always surrounded by

c="https://www.globalindian.com/youth/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/arunima1.jpg" alt="Arunima Sen | Global Indian" width="613" height="633" />

An innate love for science

Growing up in Bengaluru, Sen was always surrounded by discussions on varied scientific research projects, thanks to her parents, who worked at the Indian Space Research Organisation. The environment helped ignite a scientific temper and fanned her curiosity. This early interest in science found her gravitating toward global problems, for which she decided to find solutions using STEM. As she tended to her autistic brother's special needs, she would often ponder over the various problems that humans face, and try to look for solutions. For this, she would spend hours reading on the internet about scientific advancements. As she did her research, she found that technology is at the root of everything, and when combined with engineering, it can positively impact society. "As youngsters, we are the future of this country and the world. We need to come up with solutions," she told a daily.

Solving global problems

As early as Class 10, she was selected for The Junior Academy conducted by The New York Academy of Sciences - a program meant for teenagers interested in science and finding solutions to different problems. Her first project was measuring the micronutrients in a person's body, for developing countries like South Africa, India, and South-East Asia, providing data on health problems is essential. Sen, who believes that micronutrients play an important role in health, worked on a prototype called Arduino Pro Mini that gives an exact measure of micronutrients in the body. "We wanted to make this method non-invasive, so what we do is collect strands of hair and dip them in a particular chemical solution. Once the solution absorbs the nutrients from the hair, it is analysed via spectrophotometry. To put it in layman's terms, we measure the wavelength that the nutrients emit using spectrophotometry. By observing these wavelengths, we get to know if there is a deficiency of micro-nutrients or not," she told edexlive.

[caption id="attachment_23347" align="aligncenter" width="422"] Arunima Sen with PM Narendra Modi while receiving Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar[/caption]

The Global Indian collaborated with like-minded students from Poland, Finland, and the USA to develop a cost-effective device. "It is small and has a spectral response range of 320-1000 mm, a range that works for all micronutrients that our project is working with. It is designed to be used either via Bluetooth with a compatible phone or a tablet or with an integrated touchscreen display to allow use in the most varied conditions,” Arunima said in an interview. Her research will help patients in India on a micro level.

Creating impact

Apart from it, she also worked on Homestead Greens - the high-rise buildings that can save energy and lower the emission of carbon - with students from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Norway, and Romania. While living in a locality that had frequent power cuts, she realised it wasn't a green building and produced a lot of carbon dioxide, thus adding to global warming. That's when she decided to work on a prototype of a building that was energy efficient as well as helped with harvesting rainwater - a design meant for commercial and non-commercial purposes. "One part of the building wall is covered with solar panels that help in trapping a lot of natural energy. We also have automatic lights that turn off or become dim when you leave the room. The building will also have a trellis of vines and climbers that run down the building. These plants will be watered by the rainwater harvesting system. This helps us save over a thousand litres of water," she added.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=38&v=XjVlvH5LV_E&feature=emb_title

The recipient of Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar, who is pursuing her bachelor's in Computer Science and Physics from Ashoka University, is also a Yale Young Global Scholar of Yale University and a member of the Junior academy of the New York Academy of Sciences.

Even during the pandemic, she didn't put brakes on her work. During an interaction with the press, Arunima said, "I am currently being mentored by professionals from Sidewalk Labs — an urban innovation company working to make cities more sustainable and affordable for all. Since the pandemic had brought many discussions and assignments to a halt, my friend and I are working to resume it soon."

Arunima's journey is a powerful demonstration of the impact that determination, curiosity, and the relentless pursuit of knowledge can have. Despite the challenges she faced, she has consistently pushed the boundaries of what is possible, using her passion for science and technology to address some of the world's most pressing issues. Her work is not just about innovation; it is about making a tangible difference in the lives of people and the environment. She is a true changemaker, proving that age is no barrier to making a global impact.

Follow Arunima Sen on Linkedin

Manvi Tiwari: Turning lived experiences of OCD and anxiety into survival strategies for people with mental health issues

(January 24, 2023) “One in seven people worldwide deal with a mental health issue. I am one of them,” remarks Manvi Tiwari. Turning her adversity into advantage, the nineteen-year-old youngster has built her identity as a well-known mental health activist. She was one of the youngest speakers at 2022’s World Health Summit held in Berlin, Germany in October. She began writing - describing her own experiences with mental health, which she sent out to online media platforms. That grew, leading to full-fledged activism and global collaborations for the teenager. [caption id="attachment_26828" align="aligncenter" width="604"] Manvi Tiwari[/caption] One significant association includes the Global Mental Health Peer Network (GMHPN). Based out of Johannesburg, South Africa GMHPN reaches out to people in 30 countries with the agenda to create a network of experts with lived experiences to be on board of initiatives to combat the global challenge. Manvi has been the country executive of India for GMHPN. “I am associated with a lot of projects on mental health and coincidentally most are based in Europe,” says the Kanpur girl, who has been pursuing her Bachelor’s degree in Mumbai over the last two years. Global associations Manvi is associated with Women in Global Health (WGH),

ca GMHPN reaches out to people in 30 countries with the agenda to create a network of experts with lived experiences to be on board of initiatives to combat the global challenge. Manvi has been the country executive of India for GMHPN.

“I am associated with a lot of projects on mental health and coincidentally most are based in Europe,” says the Kanpur girl, who has been pursuing her Bachelor’s degree in Mumbai over the last two years.

Global associations

Manvi is associated with Women in Global Health (WGH), a women-led movement challenging power and privilege for gender equity in global health. Another association has been working as a lived experience expert for MQ Mental Health Research, an organisation working to identify world-wide longitudinal datasets that can be best used to advance the understanding of how brain, body and environment interact in the trajectory of anxiety, depression and psychosis.

The teen is also part of a collaborative initiative of London-based The McPin Foundation and British magazine, Economist Impact for a project titled the ‘Common Metrics in Mental Health (CMMH) Programme’. “I’m on the advisory board for this much needed project,” she tells Global Indian.

[caption id="attachment_26829" align="aligncenter" width="973"] Manvi Tiwari with delegates at World Health Summit in Berlin[/caption]

World Health Summit in Berlin

As representative of Global Mental Health Peer Network, Manvi got the opportunity to represent the organisation and be a speaker at World Health Summit, co-organised by WHO and GMHPN. High profile participants from across the globe, including presidents and prime ministers of several countries were part of the summit. “I remember seeing the presidents of France and Germany at the breakfast table,” recalls Manvi. There were other dignitaries like Dr Mansukh Mandavia, minister of health and family welfare, Dr Amar Patnaik, member of Parliament in Rajya Sabha, and UNICEF representatives from several countries.

It was a ‘surreal experience’ for the teen, being a member of the panel that included representatives from the health ministry of Egypt and director of non-communicable diseases and mental health, WHO. This was also her first foreign exposure, as well as her maiden attempt at speaking on such a large platform.

She was nervous at the start but soon found her feet. “To my surprise, many people whom I met at the World Health Summit knew me already.” One such person was Dr Shubha Nagesh, heading the South Asia region of Women in Global Health. “She just walked up to me and said, ‘you are Manvi Tiwari, right, I have been looking for your number for quite some time’,” recalls Manvi. Having admired Dr Shubha Nagesh, Manvi was pleasantly surprised to learn that Dr Nagesh was following her work too. Today, Manvi is part of Dr Shubha’s project – Women in Global Health.

[caption id="attachment_26833" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Manvi Tiwari with panel members of her session on mental health at World Health Summit, Berlin[/caption]

Manvi’s lived experiences

“I am a lived experience expert. It means an expert who has experienced mental health issues,” tells Manvi. She wasn’t even a teenager yet when she first began dealing with mental illnesses like obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and depression. “I was 11 or 12 when my mother was diagnosed with OCD and depression. Right now, there is lots of awareness about mental health but that time it was close to zero. I remember how I used to search for keywords on the internet to find a solution to my mother’s problems, but was led to concepts like superstition to describe her situation.” It took time for Manvi and her family in Kanpur to realise that the condition that her mother has been suffering from was a mental health issue and that there are specialised doctors to treat her condition.

“Even today there is a very niche audience comprising youngsters, well-to do people, or those staying in metro cities who are aware of what mental health means. Outside of these segments, most people remain unaware, like we were eight years ago in Kanpur,” she remarks.

With psychiatric interventions, Manvi’s mother’s condition gradually started to improve and has shown drastic progress since. Her mother, Manvi says, showed great determination, handling her job as the principal in a government school, taking care of a family of four and working with psychiatrists at the same time to lift herself out of her mental health situation.

[embed]https://twitter.com/Manvi_Tiwari_/status/1585967392202821633?s=20&t=mswgfaY1oPePLO6R0ejeaw[/embed]

Manvi had a great role to play in her mother’s successful journey. She often found herself talking and behaving like a therapist around her parent. However, as her mother began showing signs of improvement, Manvi began to develop OCD and anxiety herself. “I did not share it for long with others except my family,” she says. Her teachers noticed a change in her behaviour and asked her what had happened. She was reluctant to talk but as they persisted, she began to open up.

“I still have OCD moments; I still get anxiety. I still seek help from professionals but I am more or less cured,” says the activist, who has been using her personal experiences to help others transform their lives. “My source of strength is certainly my mother,” she smiles.

“Even now just because I speak regularly about it, it’s still hard to speak about my experiences, but a person gradually adapts to the condition. And there are forces that compel me to speak for benefit of others,” she tells.

Speaking out is important

Manvi had written the first-person account of her entire journey of helping her mom deal with her OCD and depression, experiencing it herself and rising above it. The purpose was to help de-stigmatise mental health ailments and make people understand that they should not be ashamed of it.

“If first person accounts of mental health struggles had been available to me when I was 12-years-old, I would have had more clarity and been less scared,” she says. “The lack of voices of lived experiences compelled me to write down my thoughts,” she adds.

[caption id="attachment_26839" align="aligncenter" width="577"] Manvi Tiwari speaking at World Health Summit, Berlin[/caption]

Manvi wanted people with mental health issues to know that many others are going through the same condition and it is absolutely possible to come out of the situation with help from experts.

When the teenager started writing, she had approached several digital media platforms to publish her work and is grateful to organisations like Livewire and iViva who published her thoughts. “When positive feedback started pouring in with people thanking me for sharing my story, my fear of how people would react slowly vanished. Sharing became quite empowering,” tells Manvi.

The course of life

While Manvi was sending her first-person account to different media platforms, she sent it to the Global Mental Health Peer Network as well, mistaking it for a media house. However, this error proved to be a boon, changing the course of her life. “The non-profit organisation, which works with people with lived experiences, approached her and made her the country executive of India. Thus began her journey of global collaborations.

The multimedia and mass communication student wishes to pursue a career which is at the intersection of her degree in media studies and passion for mental health. Writing a book on her lived experiences is also one of her future goals.

Follow Manvi Tiwari on Twitter and LinkedIn

Reading Time: 5 mins

Licypriya Kangujam: 11-year-old activist seeking climate action

(April 21, 2023) At COP27 in Egypt, 11-year-old Indian climate activist Licypriya Kangujam had an iconic moment when she determinedly questioned UK's climate minister Zac Goldsmith about the climate activists who were detained in the United Kingdom following protests against environment policies. This sudden confrontation made headlines, and Licypriya was praised for standing up to world leaders and asking pertinent questions. She might be just 11 but Licypriya has been raising her voice against the climate crisis since she was six. Hailing from Manipur, she saw the devastating effects of cyclones like Fani and Titli in Bhubaneswar at a young age, and this prompted her to take up climate activism. In few years, she has become one of the leading faces in the world of child climate activists, and the girl is not ready to stop anytime soon. [caption id="attachment_29429" align="aligncenter" width="680"] Licypriya Kangujam[/caption] Born in the carbon-negative state of Manipur, Licypriya's relocation to Bhubaneswar triggered her interest in climate change at a young age after she witnessed the destruction caused by two devastating cyclones Titli in 2018 and Fani in 2019, when they hit the eastern coastal region. "Many people lost their lives. Many children lost their parents and

she witnessed the destruction caused by two devastating cyclones Titli in 2018 and Fani in 2019, when they hit the eastern coastal region. "Many people lost their lives. Many children lost their parents and many people became homeless," she said during a TedTalk, adding that she couldn't sleep or eat for days. This emotion was exacerbated when she moved to Delhi a year later, as her life was completely "messed up" owing to the air pollution and heat wave crisis. All these incidents prompted her to become a child climate activist.

But it was as young as five, that she first heard the terms 'climate change' and 'natural disasters' while accompanying her dad to raise funds for the Nepal earthquake 2015 victims that made her concerned about the environment. However, she refers to the United Nations Disaster Conference in Mongolia in July 2018 as a "life-changing event" as it made her start her own organisation The Child Movement at the age of six, to call on world leaders to take immediate climate action to save the planet. Over the years, it has become a people's movement for climate justice in India and abroad. "I travelled to over 32 countries as a part of my movement and spoke in more than 400 institutions on climate change," she said.

In February 2019, she protested outside the Parliament in the capital demanding three things - to pass the climate change law in the parliament as soon as possible, to make climate education compulsory in every school in India, and to ensure plantations of minimum of 10 trees by every student in India. Her efforts yielded result as Gujarat and Rajasthan have made climate change a compulsory subject in the school education curriculum, thus making India the second country after Italy to do so. "Climate education is very important if we really would like to fight the climate crisis. Adults are not doing enough already, and I don’t have much faith in them to come to the frontline and save our planet and future. The last hope is children. If we include climate education in schools, then we can fight climate change from the grassroots," she told the Harvard International Review.

The sixth grader at Ryan International School also encourages youngsters to plant more trees through her initiative Monday for Mother Nature that will help India become green in the next five-ten years. " India has over 350 million students. If they all plant a minimum of 10 trees every year, then we will plant 3.5 billion trees," she added.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjKAZRXwRvI

Licypriya, who urged the world leaders to act on climate change at COP 25 in Spain, made headlines during the COP27 in Egypt when she confronted UK climate minister on the release of climate activists who are in prison because of protesting against oil and gas licenses across the UK. In an interview with WION, Licypriya said, "Instead of answering my question, he ran away but I followed him for a couple of minutes and repeatedly asked him the same question. Later he told me that he had no idea about it and that he can't do anything.”

However, this Global Indian is unfazed by these snubs, and continues to raise her voice asking for world leader to act. The girl, who likes to swim, paint and watch her favourite cartoon, Doraemon, in her free time, never misses a chance to accept invitations to speak at schools and conferences about climate change. Though she is only 11, she thinks age is just a number. "Many people told me that I’m too young to get involved in such activism, but … I strongly believe that children can lead the change. We need to keep speaking up about the climate crisis and … to hold lawmakers accountable for their political decisions," she told Washington Post.

Follow Licypriya Kangujam on Twitter

Reading Time: 4 min

To the stars: Arushi Nath’s planetary defense algorithm won her the Canada-Wide Science Fair twice in a row

At the 2023 Canada-Wide Science Fair awards gala in Edmonton, nearly 900 attendees celebrated the achievements of Canadian students. Among them, fourteen-year-old Arushi Nath, the founder of MonitorMyPlanet, became the first back-to-back best project award winner since 1989-1990, claiming the prize in 2022 and then again 2023. Her project on planetary defense, focusing on detecting unknown asteroids using open data, mathematics, and Python – her algorithm did actually manage to locate three unknown asteroids. Arushi already has a long list of achievements to her name - she came in second at the European Union Contest for Young Scientists in 2023, the winner of the 2023 Young Astronomer Award from the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. In 2020, at the age of 11, she won the NASA SpaceAppsGlobal Challenge and in 2017, was the Canada SpaceApps Winner when she was eight years old! A young genius For as long as Arushi can remember, she was fascinated by the night sky, and the many mysteries it represented. "I remember using binoculars to pick out planets and trying to identify patterns. And I still remember seeing the rings of Saturn for the first time, when I was nine" says Arushi, in an interview

says Arushi, in an interview with Global Indian. Academically, she had long since surpassed her school work, and wanted to spend her time taking deep dives into the subjects she loved most – math, coding and astronomy. Her parents – her father is an environmentalist and her mother a writer – supported their daughter fully and when Arushi was six, her dad drove her to her first ever hackathon.

[caption id="attachment_34734" align="aligncenter" width="485"] Arushi Nath, winner of the Best Project award at the Canada-Wide Science Fair 2023[/caption]

The hackathon veteran

This was 2014 and Arushi was the youngest competitor there, by far. NASA's Curiosity rover had just landed on Mars and Arushi was "so fascinated by the idea of being able to land and control something on a whole other planet," she smiles. So, at the hackathon, she and her team made a little robot that could identify obstacles and avoid them. Very complex work for a six-year-old - "We created the physical structure, then coded it," Arushi explains. The robot's ultrasonic sensor could detect obstacles and avoid them. And all this was possible because Arushi had already familiarised herself with Arduino - an open-source electronic prototyping platform that allows users to create interactive electronic objects.

As far as Arushi was concerned, doing projects was the best way to learn. She also wanted to bring her scientific acumen together with the things she cared about. So, in 2018, when she and her friends attended the School Strike for Climate started by Swedish Climate activist Greta Thunberg, Arushi wanted to do more “than raise slogans or wait for others to act,” she said.

S.N.A.C.K.

This led to her designing ‘Schools and NASA Aiding Climate Action by Kids’, which comes with the catchy abbreviation, ‘S.N.A.C.K.’. The project uses satellite imagery to calculate tree densities of schools in Toronto, than ranks and maps them. She also designed a pollution sensor to measure levels in parks and schools across the city, using Arduino, the open source electronics platform that lets users create interactive models. “I wanted school children to come up with local solutions to global challenges,” she says.

Her efforts resulted in her being named the NASA SpaceApps Global Nominee – she had already won the Space Apps Challenge in 2014 and again in 2018. In fact, by the age of 10, she had been at a jaw-dropping 29 hackathons. This was a special win, though, she says, of S.N.A.C.K, as it was her first solo attempt. ” I had to do all the work myself, from thinking of the idea, making it, coding and presenting it to the judges in 40 hours.”

The dragonfly drone

As far as Arushi was concerned, doing projects was the best way to learn. During the Covid-19, she began work on her first major endeavour – building a drone – quite a feat for the young scientist, who was only 10 years old at the time. The idea for the directional dragonfly drone was born during the COVID-19 lockdown. Disturbed by the news of locusts devastating crops in Asia and Africa, Arushi saw an opportunity to make a difference. "These locusts often travel in large swarms, are very fast, and can change direction unpredictably," the Global Indian explained, underlining the urgency of the problem.

Arushi's solution was to use drones for locust control, "as they can fly, follow the locusts, and monitor their behavior," she explains. She also wanted to biomimic nature, choosing the dragonfly because it is by far the most efficient hunter, with a 95 percent success rate in catching prey (in comparison, the success rate of lions is 25 percent and sharks have a 50 percent chance of success). "I made a protoype using a soda can, a motor and a distance sensor I created on Arduino," Arushi says. When she returned from the Ellehacks hackathon, she refined her model, using lego pieces to create a drone "I programmed it to identify all red objects as locusts," she said, describing the functionality of her creation.

The planetary defense system

Given her involvement with the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, her prowess with Python and her love for Maths, Arushi was casting around for a way to bring all her passions together. That's how she the idea for planetary defense against unknown asteroids was born. She had learned about robotic telescopes through the RASC and utilised images from these devices – “I took images from robotic telescopes in Canada, Spain, the US, and Australia to get full sky coverage," Arushi explains. She had to sift through these to pinpoint the unknown asteroids, using the Gaia Star Catalogue for information on star positions, and the NASA Horizon dataset, for predictions on the locations of known asteroids. Then, using her coding and math skills, she developed an algorithm to filter out known entities - “I created custom masks to remove all these objects, leaving me with the unknown objects," she explains.

She couldn’t always go it alone, though, often turning to online forums for help. "When I got some errors, I would try for days, even weeks, on my own to find the answer, but if not, I would reach out to specific forums," she says. She also reached out to experts, including Christina Thomas, the lead investigator on NASA’s DART mission. “"I sent her a message, told her about my current project, and asked if I could have a Zoom meeting to talk to her about her project and how it could relate to mine," Arushi smiles. Thomas responded and the two did get on that Zoom meeting. "I actually asked her for pointers on my project and what I could do," she adds.

Finding acclaim

[caption id="attachment_34735" align="aligncenter" width="594"] Arushi receiving her award at the Canada-Wide Science Fair 2023[/caption]

“The whole thing took about ten months to complete,” Arushi says, Her goals changed along the way, so much so that her first goal and the end result were very different.” Finally, her findings were sent to the Minor Planet Center database. Then came waiting for a response. “A couple of weeks later, I got an email and three of the asteroids had my name next to them,” Arushi smiles. She submitted her project to the Toronto Science Fair and won gold, qualifying for the prestigious Canada-Wide Science Fair, where she also went on to win. “I was watching the results with my family and wasn’t expecting my name to pop up again but it did,” she says.

Now, Arushi is continuing work on her planetary defense project. Now that the DART Mission has successfully entered the Didymos (asteroid) system, she wants to measure the changes of the system during this impact. "I began studying the Didymos binary system for a copule of months before the DART impact," she says, "To fully understand how it has been affected."

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