一等獎

生物時鐘可對生物體的行為與生理造成影響，在探討晝夜節律特徵的差異時，過去研究常侷限於北美大陸的品系，缺少赤道及南半球品系的晝夜節律特徵探討。有鑒於黑腹果蠅在全球各大洲的廣泛分佈，因此我們以黑腹果蠅（近赤道與中高緯度品系）為材料，研究果蠅是否因緯度而有相異的晝夜節律特徵？結果顯示不同緯度的果蠅品系展現出相異的晝夜節律特徵。赤報品系在全暗狀態下仍維持原本光暗12小時的穩定節律，而南北半球的中高緯度品系則具有相似節律特徵，即在全暗狀態下的節律不對齊原本正常光源的穩定節律，其他如活動量、週期、及節律強度等皆有著品系間的差異。更進一步比對實驗中各個品系基因序列，研究發現per和tim在調控區段有許多SNP變異，顯示其與晝夜節律特徵的關係，有助於後續尋找更多造成晝夜節律特徵差異的可能遺傳變異並探討。

Climate changes that include ocean acidification and global warming are serious problems in the ecosystem, affecting marine phytoplankton, including Nannochloropsis oceanica. In the effort to further explore the impact of rising temperature and carbon dioxide (CO₂) concentrations on oceanic ecosystems, the phytoplankton Nannochloropsis oceanica was used as a model organism. This study explored the effect of temperature change and CO₂ concentration on the growth of Nannochloropsis oceanica, achieving 243 samples that were tested with three different temperatures (24 degrees Celsius (°C), 28°C, 32°C) and CO₂ concentrations (0 milliliter (ml)/min, 0.4 ml/min, 0.6 ml/min), utilizing a hemocytometer counting method. Results indicate that the CO₂ concentration has a significant effect on the population of Nannochloropsis oceanica. But the temperature doesn't affect a lot. The Nannochloropsis oceanica in the lowest temperature and highest concentration of CO₂ in its environment had the highest population growth, and in the highest temperature and lowest concentration of CO₂, it had the lowest population growth. Results show the serious negative effect of climate change on the cosystem and the importance of environmental protection. Population blooms due to excess CO₂ taking up ocean resources causing dangerous ecological imbalances.

生物時鐘可對生物體的行為與生理造成影響，在探討晝夜節律特徵的差異時，過去研究常侷限於北美大陸的品系，缺少赤道及南半球品系的晝夜節律特徵探討。有鑒於黑腹果蠅在全球各大洲的廣泛分佈，因此我們以黑腹果蠅（近赤道與中高緯度品系）為材料，研究果蠅是否因緯度而有相異的晝夜節律特徵？結果顯示不同緯度的果蠅品系展現出相異的晝夜節律特徵。赤報品系在全暗狀態下仍維持原本光暗12小時的穩定節律，而南北半球的中高緯度品系則具有相似節律特徵，即在全暗狀態下的節律不對齊原本正常光源的穩定節律，其他如活動量、週期、及節律強度等皆有著品系間的差異。更進一步比對實驗中各個品系基因序列，研究發現per和tim在調控區段有許多SNP變異，顯示其與晝夜節律特徵的關係，有助於後續尋找更多造成晝夜節律特徵差異的可能遺傳變異並探討。

We invented the Midori which means green Bioreactor (MBR), beads of euglena and other microalgae fixed in calcium alginate that absorbs carbon dioxide (CO2). We examined the effect of 19 different solutions and two different organisms on MBR cultivation. Surprisingly, when the MBR was supplied with carbon dioxide or cultured with yeast, they became drastically darker green. Chromatography revealed this green color to be that of microalgae such as green algae or Euglena because chlorophyll a and chlorophyll b were detected. Under sunlight, MBR absorbed CO2 and the absorption rate was 1.5 L CO2/day/1L of MBR. Furthermore, when we put MBR in the water tank, they increased the amount of dissolved oxygen without polluting the environment. These results indicate that MBR can absorb CO2 by photosynthesizing without leaking out the inside microalgae.

本作品由2023年IMO的第五題出發，希望探索在忍者通道中的其他性質，首先思考改變每排中放入的球數並觀察規律，進而推廣到三維圓圈塔中的性質，最後使用hyper-cube(超立方體)的情況進行一般化的推廣與構造的優化，完成最小值問題的求解，另外也對於特例部分探索解的總數。

Carbon capture and storage technology (CCS) has tremendous potential to enable the use of fossil fuels while reducing the emissions of CO2 into the atmosphere, and consequently combating climate change. CCS faces several challenges such as energy consumption, cost, low practical applications and environmentally friendliness. This research presents the first carbon capture device capable of capturing CO2 while generating green energy. By integrating advanced materials science with sustainable energy principles, the device addresses the dual challenges of CO2 mitigation and renewable energy production in a single, cost-effective platform. Beyond its technical innovations, this research highlights the device’s scalability and potential to revolutionize carbon capture deployment. The device can be integrated into industrial emissions systems, transportation systems, urban infrastructure, or even wearable technologies, providing versatile applications across different sectors. Furthermore, the device’s lightweight and flexible form factor ensures accessibility as it improves the applicability of CCS technology in remote or developing regions. This study demonstrated a novel approach to carbon capture by implementing carbon capture into a thin-film moisture electricity generator. The developed thin-film supercapacitor successfully demonstrated the capacity for supercapacitive swing adsorption of CO2, which is a relatively novel approach to CCS that is cheap, environmentally friendly, and efficient while generating green energy from ambient humidity.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) represents a significant public health challenge, often referred to as a “silent disease” due to its asymptomatic progression during early stages (1–2). Consequently, most diagnoses occur during advanced stages (3 and beyond), where treatment options are more complex and outcomes are less favorable. Globally, CKD affects over 850 million individuals, with 434.3 million cases in Asia alone. Despite its prevalence, early-stage awareness remains alarmingly low, with only 5% of affected individuals aware of their condition. Existing screening methods are predominantly hospital-based, expensive, and time-intensive, limiting their accessibility, particularly in resource-constrained settings. This underscores an urgent need for more accessible and efficient diagnostic tools to enable early intervention. In response to this critical problem, we developed KidneyLifePlus+, an AI-powered platform that leverages advanced machine learning models, including U-net, ResNet-50, and YOLO v8, to analyze retinal images for early CKD detection. These models are integrated to ensure high screening accuracy by identifying subtle biomarkers indicative of CKD progression. Complementing the software, we designed proprietary hardware capable of capturing high-resolution retinal images, delivering performance comparable to hospital-grade equipment. By ensuring affordability and ease of use, the system extends screening capabilities beyond clinical environments, making it suitable for deployment in community healthcare settings. KidneyLifePlus+ addresses key limitations of traditional methods by offering a rapid, cost-effective, and highly accurate diagnostic solution. The platform’s potential to enhance early detection rates could significantly improve clinical outcomes and quality of life for CKD patients. Furthermore, this innovation contributes to global efforts to reduce the burden of CKD by promoting equitable access to diagnostic services, particularly in underserved regions.

Problem • Rice is the primary cereal crop consumed by nearly half the population worldwide • By 2050, there will be a 50% increase in demand for rice • The world’s poor populations depend more on rice, both for income and consumption, than any other food. Rice is the single-largest source of employment and income for rural people • Worldwide, 51–82% of agricultural crop yield is lost annually due to abiotic stress due to climate change • Climate change causes extreme temperatures, erratic rainfall, dangerous droughts, and increased salinity from rising sea levels Solution • To adapt to abiotic stress, rice has intricate signaling pathways, particularly those mediated by the phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA), that cause an increase in stress tolerance • Clade A genes of the Protein Phosphatase 2C (PP2C) gene family are known to be negative regulators of the ABA signaling pathway. • “Deleting” these genes activates the ABA pathway and increases stress tolerance in rice without inducing stress CRISPR gene editing technology is the ideal solution Research Goal • While the role of PP2C genes in stress response is recognized, there is a gap in understanding the specific genes within this family that contribute significantly to stress signaling. Furthermore, there is a need for a detailed investigation into the effects of targeted CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) genome editing on rice stress response pathways.

Increasing energy needs alongside the urgent issues of chemical pollution has prompted the need for developing novel green energy sources. Nitrogen-based fertilizers are of fundamental importance for the ecosystem as their usage has increased eight times in the last fifty years [1]. On the other hand , increased use of nitrogenous fertilizers is followed by higher ammonia emissions, which are dangerous pollutants responsible for deterioration in biodiversity by means of eutrophication, acidification of soil and water, and climate change [2]. Ammonia has the2apacityy to bond with other pollutants including sulfur oxides and nitrogen oxides to create particles that cause smog, which is associated with lung disease. Ammonia also increases frost sensitivities and causes necrosis of many plant species [3.] Therefore, there is a need to properly manage the ammonia-rich nitrogen waste to decrease the environmental threat factors. Of the possible approaches suggested for ammonia waste treatment, the ammonia electro-oxidation reaction (eAOR) has various promising features for application in the energy sector. It is economically appealing because Ammonia can serve as an excellent hydrogen carrier due to its storage capabilities and existing transport infrastructure alongside having no net carbon emissions. Apart from this, it requires 95% less of the theoretical energy [4] to perform the process. But the reaction is kinetically slow [5], which has been a research obstacle during the development of (eAOR), due to factors ofmslow reaction rate and large catalytic overpotential that this process consumes an unnecessary amount of power [6]. Nickel-based catalysts are a promising solution to these problems, they are cheaper , more stable and easier to produce than electrocatalysts for water electrolysis which makes it highly energy efficient for widespread use on the industrial scale. N films deposited on the anodic side also allow the creation of N-containing products such as (NH42SO3) and nitrates, which can be converted into fertilizers or renewed into the nitrogen cycle to make the process more environmentally friendly while enhancing the (eAOR) process [7,8]. Compared to Pt and Ir which are the most used noble metals, they are less poisoned on the potentials less than 0.65V and are more stable [9,10]. However , noble metals are scarce, and their cost is high for industrial applications as well as the energy they waste during (eAOR) [11].

量子電腦是近年來新發展的科技，利用量子糾纏態的量子位元進行計算。本文希望可以利用量子電腦計算諧振子隨時間演化算符。而這也是我第一次在量子電腦上模擬諧振子隨時間演化系統。首先我找出可以用於諧振子算符的合適算符矩陣大小、空間步長(Δ𝑥)、質量(m)、角頻率(ω)並且在位置基底下表現時間演化算符矩陣。設計並簡化量子電路後，使用IBM公司提供的量子電腦模擬並計算數值。我透過矩陣修正減少修正輸出錯誤產生的誤差，達到較精確的結果。模擬出在一個時間單位內的數值與理論值大致相符，未來希望可以利用此量子電路尋找矩陣的特徵值或是模擬更大型的系統。