Louisville Magazine is Louisville's city magazine, covering Louisville people, lifestyles, politics, sports, restaurants, entertainment and homes. Includes a monthly calendar of events.
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44 LOUISVILLE MAGAZINE 11.17 Edward Zhong Age 15, 11th grade, Kentucky Country Day In addition to maintaining a 4.55 GPA and scoring a perfect five on four AP tests, Edward spends time at a U of L immunology laboratory to study cancer cells. He's one of the founders of STEMy, a program to encourage young people to get into STEM fields. He edits the group's journal, Innovation, which publishes scientific studies from local high school students. To add to his already impressive resume, he has won numerous awards in math and science competitions. How do you manage your ঞme? "I just have to make sure I stay on top of my homework every night. So when I get home I have to knock it all out and see if I have any time leftover to do other stuff." Tell us about your research. "I'm researching how these chemical compounds from yeast cells can help the immune system fight cancer." What hobbies do you have? "In my free time, I like to play basketball and travel. My favorite place was Switzerland. It was really nice and pretty. Plenty of mountains." What is your dream job? "Being in health management, like running a health program. Or doing research at a major university." What's your favorite thing to play on the piano? "I like a lot of Elton John songs. I'm in to Elton John's piano." Shannon Robertson Age 13, eighth grade, Thomas Jefferson Middle After starting on her school's chess team in sixth grade, Shannon quickly rose to first board, which is the top player. Within a year of being on the team, she was ranked as Kentucky's No. 1 female player in middle and high school. She represented Kentucky at a national chess championship in Norfolk, Virginia. How did you get started with chess? "My dad taught me when I was five." How do you pracঞce chess? "I go with my coach and other teammates to food places and we play and practice. Then we go to tournaments twice a week." Describe a chess tournament. "There's a tournament director. He puts up the pairings, and you find your partner. And then you play them. (There's a timer) to make sure you don't play too long. If your opponent runs out of time, then they lose and you win." What's your favorite subject in school? "Math. I have algebra and I like that because it's kind of challenging." What do you want to be when you grow up? "An architect." What are your study habits? "Sometimes I put it off and do it later."