Maya Burhanpurkar facts for kids

Maya Burhanpurkar (born February 14, 1999) is a Canadian who became famous as a teenager for her incredible science projects. She is now an investment banker.

Early Life and Education

Maya Burhanpurkar was born in Orillia, Ontario, Canada. She graduated from Barrie North Collegiate Institute in 2016. After high school, she went to the famous Harvard College to study physics.

Later, she earned a Rhodes scholarship. This is a very special and prestigious award that allows talented students from around the world to study at the Oxford University in England. At Oxford, she studied Computer Science and the Philosophy of Physics.

Amazing Science Projects

Maya's love for science started at a young age. Her amazing journey shows how curiosity can lead to great discoveries.

A Lab in the Basement (Age 10)

When she was only 10 years old, Maya built a science lab in her family's basement. She was inspired to start her own experiments after volunteering at a hospital in India.

Two years later, at age 12, she created a type of "smart antibiotic." This medicine was designed to attack harmful germs like E. coli while leaving the good bacteria in our gut unharmed.

Alzheimer's Research (Age 13)

When her grandfather passed away from Alzheimer's disease, Maya was inspired to help. At 13, she studied two new drugs for Alzheimer's to see if they were safe for the heart and stomach.

For this important research, she won the Platinum Award at the Canada-Wide Science Fair. This is one of the top prizes for young scientists in Canada.

Physics and Climate Change (Age 14)

At 14, Maya explored the world of physics. She worked with a team in scientist Steve Mann's lab and became the first person to physically detect something called absement (a concept in physics related to displacement). This work won her another Platinum Award at the Canada-Wide Science Fair. She also competed in the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair and was a finalist in the Google Science Fair.

That same year, she traveled to the Arctic to see how climate change was affecting the local Inuit communities. She made a documentary about her trip that featured famous Canadians like astronaut Chris Hadfield and author Margaret Atwood.

Awards and Recognition

Maya's hard work has been recognized with many awards.

• In 2010, she was named the Ontario Junior Citizen of the Year.
• In 2012, she received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for her service to Canada.
• In 2013, she was named one of Canada's Top 20 Under 20.
• She also won the international Gloria Barron Prize for her documentary on climate change.

See also

In Spanish: Maya Burhanpurkar para niños