Jugend forscht: Where Young Minds Push the Boundaries of Science

Article by Nuriah Helms (10.04.2025)

Over the past few months, several talented students from our school participated in Jugend forscht — Germany’s most prestigious science and technology competition for students under 21. From developing independent research projects to presenting their findings to expert juries, our students have shown exceptional creativity and dedication.

What is Jugend forscht?

Jugend forscht (which literally translates to: “Youth Researches”) is the largest and best-known youth science and technology competition in Europe, with over 10,000 participants annually. It was created in 1965 by Henri Nannen and continues to inspire young minds to explore the world through science.

The competition invites aspiring young scientists to conduct independent research in one of seven fields: Biology, Chemistry, Geosciences and Astronomy, Mathematics and Computer Science, Physics, Technology, and Work Environment.

What makes the competition so unique is its open format — students get to choose their own topics, write a formal research report and present their results to expert juries, often through posters and physical demonstrations. Winners may then receive scholarships, internships, and even national-level awards, including honors from the President and Chancellor of Germany. But beyond the awards, the real prize is the experience one gains from participating — learning how to think like a scientist, solve real problems, and communicate ideas effectively.

Meet Our School’s Contestants

This year, six students from our school entered the competition in three groups. For the most part, our students chose different fields of study, demonstrating just how diverse the world of science can be. I interviewed each group to learn more about their projects, the challenges they faced and what this experience has meant to them.

The five participants of Jugend Forscht - A group picture

Group One: “Können synthetisch generierte Trainingsdaten KI-Objekterkennungs-Modelle verbessern?”

(tr. “Can synthetic training data improve AI object recognition models?”)

by Tom Smee IB12 - first place winner in Mathematics/Computer Science for the state competition

Tom’s project addresses the challenge of training AI for autonomous vehicles, particularly in difficult weather conditions, like through fog. “One explanation for the slow progress in the development of autonomous vehicles is a lack of photos depicting traffic situations in difficult weather conditions such as fog, as these are needed to train the necessary AI models," Smee said in an interview. To solve this, he used a 3D graphics program to generate 45,000 realistic images of cars in foggy conditions, which were then used to train neural networks.

In terms of motivation, Tom said, "I’ve always really enjoyed computer science and maths. Computer science is a fun way of applying mathematical ideas." Despite facing challenges, like coding to label synthetic data and long compute times, Tom learned valuable lessons, saying, "I learned a lot about synthetic data and how it’s used to train models."

Tom Smee pictured along the presentation of his project

Tom’s advice for others considering Jugend Forscht? “Go for it! I don’t think there is a chance at all that you will regret it!”

He also offered his assistance to anyone in need, saying, “If you need any help or want someone to read through your work, I am available.”

Tom earned first place in Mathematics/Computer Science for his project and has secured a spot in the national finals in Hamburg.

Tom Smee accepting the first prize in the Mathematics/Computer Science category!

Group Two: “Wie hängt die Beschleunigung eines Wasserflaschen-Raketenstarts von dem anfänglichen Luftdruck, dem Wasserfüllvolumen und der Flaschenform ab?”

(tr. “A Study of Lift-Off Dynamics and Acceleration Optimization for water rockets built out of conventional water bottles.”)

By Vibbodh Somani IB12, Bhuvana Reddi IB12, Kerem Semiz (11B) - Third place winner in the physics category for the state competition

This project investigates the dynamics of water, air and pressure in a bottle. As Bhuvana described, "Basically, if you have a bottle with water and pump it with air, pressure builds up, and if you release the bottle, it'll go shooting up. We looked at various factors like the perfect ratio of water to air and pressure, the peak acceleration, and so forth."

The inspiration for the project came from a previous competition. "Initially, the three of us participated in “GYPT”, a physics competition, and this was one of the questions that Vibbodh had attempted. It worked out and was pretty creative with almost completely worked-out theory without it being too theoretical."

The team’s passion for physics is clear. Bhuvana shared, "I am interested in studying physics and have spent quite a bit of time watching cool physics channels on YouTube, which led me to do a research internship at a university two years ago. That definitely inspired me to pursue physics. I’m even working on building up a podcast with a researcher."

Kerem Semiz and Vibbodh Somani in action at Jugend forscht!

Motivated by the opportunity to dive deeper into a topic of interest, they said, "We came to know about the competition through other schools that are more STEM-focused. It's a pretty amazing competition since you can take any topic you are interested in and go in-depth, research, and experiment on it. It’s like a giant science fair that opens up all types of opportunities."

Vibbodh Somani, Kerem Semiz and Bhuvana Reddi presenting their findings at the Jugend forscht convention

When asked about the biggest challenge, they mentioned the complexity of data collection: "It was figuring out why the data wasn’t aligning with the different sensors due to various reasons and the massive amount of data collection." Despite these obstacles, the team learned invaluable skills. Bhuvana noted, "Vibbodh learned how to simulate theoretical physics, and I learned to use tracker systems for visual data tracking."

Reflecting on the competition's importance, they offered advice for future participants, "They give quite a bit of importance to the story your project tells. Our project got us far, but we weren’t able to win because of a lack of a story, even though we had a near-perfect project."

“Story” refers to the creative, engaging aspect of the project that makes it attractive to the general audience.

The experience also led them to appreciate the power of collaboration. "It’s incredibly helpful to reach out to other people; they can be quite insightful," said Kerem participant.

Lastly, they encouraged others to pursue ambitious projects: "Find something that might seem ambitious but just try it out. Work on it throughout the months given—it’s definitely manageable. If you enjoy it, which you should, it’ll definitely be worth it. And free food was also served!"

Vibbodh Somani and Bhuvana Reddi accepting the 3rd place certificate for their project!

Group three: “Erstellen von effizienteren Tastaturen mit Kl und Stenographie”

(tr. “Enhancing Keyboard Efficiency with Genetic Algorithms and Shorthands”)

By Yahman Tanjour, Sarah Ali, Vibbodh Somani - Third place winner in the “Arbeitswelt” (tr. “Workplace) category for the state competition

This project centers around creating a keyboard that can save users up to one hour of typing every day. The primary feature of this keyboard is its personalized layout, which adapts to the user's needs. As Vibbodh explained: “If you're a doctor, you would have a different keyboard layout than if you were a programmer because the needs are different. The words you type on average are different. So it would be easier to type words like patient on the doctor layout than the programmer layout.” They also added shorthand, which Vibbodh clarified is a “journalistic approach where you write words in their shortened form and later expand them to their full version.” For example, words can be typed in their abbreviated form (e.g., "PT" for "patient") and the system automatically expands them to the full word when the user presses space.

The inspiration for this project stemmed from a YouTube video on genetic algorithms for creating efficient keyboard layouts, combined with the concept of stenography used in courtrooms. As Vibbodh explained, 'Really, it was first a YouTube video, which I watched. It talked about genetic algorithms making more efficient keyboard layouts and then I was also looking at stenography in courtrooms. This idea sort of combined both of them.' The project also drew inspiration from Karakorder, a company attempting something similar. However, the group felt their software-only approach was more practical, as otherwise “you had to buy a whole new keyboard”.

Vibbodh Somani, Yahman Tanjour and Sarah Ali presenting their findings

The team’s passion for the project stemmed from their natural curiosity, with one member saying, “Life” was what inspired their interest in the field.

The biggest challenge they faced was keeping the team motivated and focused, as they had no designated time in their school schedule to work on the project. “It’s very hard to sort of… keep the whole project glued together,” said one team member, as well as “It’s one thing to say you’re going to do something, but another to actually do it.” Though the project ultimately felt too niche to be widely applicable, they learned valuable skills in coding genetic algorithms, with Yahman noting, “Coding genetic algorithms is pretty cool.”

Their advice to future competitors includes having a reliable team, a creative idea and to seek feedback from others, particularly teachers. “Ideas matter a lot in Jugend forscht,” they emphasized, encouraging others to make their projects as impactful as possible.

Vibbodh Somani, Yahman Tanjour and Sarah Ali accepting third place for their project!

There were many other impressive projects at Jugend Forscht. A 15 year old student built a 3D printer entirely from scrap materials!

And these two seventeen-year-olds worked on ways of reducing hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) in sewage systems.

Reflections and Final Thoughts

Across all three groups, one thing became increasingly clear: these students didn’t just learn about science, they lived it. They turned questions into experiments, setbacks into solutions and ideas into real, working results. Whether it was learning how to design a proper test, analyzing unexpected data or explaining complex concepts to a jury, they’ve all grown in ways a textbook can’t teach.

As one student put it, "They came, they hypothesized, they conquered—proof that with enough curiosity and caffeine, anything is possible," and then added “...Caffeine and free food…”, showing how determination and a little caffeine (and free food of course) can go a long way.

Don’t think you got what it takes for Jugend Forscht? Start with something you're curious about. You don’t have to be a genius with top grades in maths or have a big, fancy laboratory to be able to create something spectacular. You just need a question and the courage to answer it.

So if you’ve ever wondered how something works — or why — maybe next year, you’ll be the one presenting your ideas at Jugend forscht. And who knows? It might just be the beginning of something big.

Sources:

"Präsentation und Bewertung." Jugend forscht, Jugend forscht e.V., https://www.jugend-forscht.de Accessed 27th March 2025

"The Federal Chancellor Welcomes Young Researchers." Federal Government, 26 Sept. 2023, www.bundesregierung.de/breg-en/news/federal-chancellor-meet-and-greet-jugend-forscht-2225934. Accessed 29th March 2025.

Technische Universität Berlin. "Jugend forscht." InnoCampus, Technische Universität Berlin, www.tu.berlin/innocampus/jugend-forscht. Accessed 1 Apr. 2025.

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