美国少年科技新星编写救助精准配对应用软件受关注

The internet often does a good job of playing matchmaker. Potential buyers can find sellers. Dating websites help guys meet girls, and girls meet guys. Now, two teens in the United States have come up with apps to link donors of aid with people who need assistance.

Akshaya Venkatesh, 14, from Scottsdale, Arizona, wants to help the hungry. Shreyas Kar, 13, a ninth grader in Louisville, Kentucky, wants to aid people in dire straits after natural disasters. These might include floods and hurricanes.

Both young researchers were among 30 finalists at the annual Broadcom Math, Applied Science, Technology and Engineering for Rising Stars competition.

Helping the hungry

A lot of food ends up in the trash. In the United States, more than 38 million tons of food gets thrown away each year. That’s according to a 2016 study by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. A good-sized fraction of this waste consists of spoiled vegetables and fruit, notes Venkatesh.

This teen had been volunteering to help the hungry. She collects fruit from neighbors’ trees, for instance, and then carries it to charities that feed the needy.

A couple of years ago, Venkatesh decided to use her computer programing skills to help even more.

The app she created lets people log in and list the type of produce that they have: vegetables, fruit, whatever. They can also list other information, including their address. Then, any charity worker that logs in to the app can see what’s available. Users can contact the donors to arrange for workers to harvest or pick up the fresh produce.

One non-profit group has helped Venkatesh test her app. She hopes to expand use of this program soon. If that happens, more organizations, including local food banks, should be able to receive donations of fresh food that might otherwise go to waste.

After disasters strike

When hurricanes, fires or floods devastate an area, large numbers of people can suddenly become very needy. People, companies and organizations often rush in to help. Big problems can arise, though, in linking up these donors and the people who need their aid.

Hurricane Harvey hit Houston, Texas, in August 2017. Storm damage there was followed by severe flooding. The next month, Hurricane Maria slammed into Puerto Rico. For much of a year, many residents of that U.S. island had no electricity.

Kar saw that many people wanted to help end the suffering. “But many times, the donations didn’t match the need,” he notes. Right after such disasters, some of the greatest need is for basic items. This might be water, soap and toiletries, he points out. So he developed an app where a community could report what it needs.

First, he talked to people who work with charities to get their ideas. Then, he came up with ideas about what the pages in his app should look like. After that, he started programming. Finally, he ran a few tests. And they were largely successful, he notes.

Once logged in, someone “should be able to identify the most needed items,” the teen says, “and then donate them.” Donors can even schedule when and where to drop off their items. Or, charities that need aid could log in to the app and see what donations are available. Then they could contact the donors to arrange for a pickup. As matches are made, the app could automatically update the inventory of available goods, Kar explains.

He has shared the app with some charities in his home town. He hopes the matchmaker app will become increasingly useful. For now, this teen is studying to become a mathematician. “I want to do more research and find new ways to solve problems,” he says. (SD-Agencies)