萨拉·沃尔兹：将海藻“变”石油的女孩

Evan+Chao

Algae1）-based biofuels2） are serious business these days. Serious enough that the U.S. Department of Energy recently bet $18 million in research grants3） on theviability4） of such fuels； a combination of universities and private companies will reap5） the benefits of that governmental largesse6）. Yet those big-ticket7）researchers arent the only ones interested in， or actively working on algal biofuels； theres Sara Volz too； as a 17-year-old high school junior8）， Volz won the 2013 Intel Science Talent Search （Intel STS）， and the $100，000 grand prize that went along with it. Shes now continuing her studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

The Intel STS is "the nations oldest and most respected science competition. It honors exceptional high school seniors for their scientific research and their potential as future leaders in the scientific community." Sara certainly epitomizes9） that kind of excellence. Sara， the 2013 Intel Science Talent Search winner who beat out about 1，700 other nationwide whiz kids， is taking algae to a new level.

Algae-based biofuels have great promise， but also serious challenges. On the positive side， algae-based fuel is environmentally responsible， capable of beingconverted10） into gasoline， diesel11） and jet fuel， and even can provide viable by-products， such as pet food， fertilizer12）， and feed stock. While all that sounds great， the disadvantages are equally as momentous13）； as the research exists today， algae biofuels are much too expensive， and very sensitive to contamination14）. One of the key considerations， then， is the ability to generate more algae for less cost， and thats where Sarahs research really shines.

Sara found the challenges of algae biofuel too attractive to only pursue at school， so she literally built a research lab in her bedroom， in fact， under her loft bed. As her work progressed， she decided that waking and sleeping in synchronicity15） with her algaes light/dark cycles was the best way to stay on top of16） her research， so thats exactly what she did.

Saras greatest insight was in the development of a stable， reproducible17） way to encourage the growth of specific algae that would produce the most oil. She employed "artificial selection" to isolate and reproduce these desired algae. She achieved this by growing the algae in a medium that contained Sethoxydim18）， acyclohexanedione19） family chemical thats the active ingredient in many grass and weed killers. The Sethoxydim killed off algae that were poor producers of acetyl-CoA carboxylase， an enzyme20） critical to lipid21） synthesis22）. That elegant control meant that the algae that remained were particularly adept23） at producing substantial amounts of oil； that result quite possibly could mean commercially viable algae biofuel production in the not too distant future.

As noted， Sara has continued her research at MIT， and its evident that her passion hasnt become weak at all. She gave a very inspirational Ted Talk lecture thats definitely worth watching.

Science is， without question， a vital component to straightening out24） all the challenges facing humans on earth in the 21st century. The best solutions， the ones that really have a chance of making a difference simply must have passion behind them； expertise isnt enough. Sara Volz epitomizes all that is promising about the next generation of passionate， effective scientists.

藻类生物燃料是当今一项重大课题，其重大程度足以令美国能源部最近（编注：英文原文发表于2015年9月）拨出1800万美元的款项，用于这类燃料的可行性研究。政府慷慨赠送的这份大礼将惠及一批大学和私人企业。不过，热心关注或积极从事藻类生物燃料项目的可不单只有这些地方的高身价研究人员，还有萨拉·沃尔兹。沃尔兹17岁读11年级的时候获得了2013年英特尔科学天才奖（简称“英特尔STS”）以及该奖附带的十万美元高额奖金。目前，她正在麻省理工学院继续她的研究。

英特尔科学天才奖是“全美最为悠久、最受尊崇的科学竞赛，表彰的是科研突出且具备科学界未来领袖潜质的、拔尖的高中高年级学生”。萨拉无疑是这类拔尖生的典型代表。她从约1700位来自全美范围内的其他天才青少年中脱颖而出，夺得了2013年英特尔科学天才奖的冠军，将藻类研究推向了新的高度。

藻类生物燃料具有广阔的前景，但同时也面临着严峻的挑战。从积极的一面来说，藻类燃料利于环保，能够被转化成汽油、柴油和喷气燃料，甚至能够提供可用的副产品，比如宠物食品和肥料，还能用作牲畜饲料。尽管所有这些听上去都十分可喜，但其缺点也同样显著。就现有的研究来看，藻类生物燃料太过昂贵，而且非常容易被污染。因此，其中一个关键问题就在于如何能做到以更低的成本培育更多的藻类，而这正是萨拉的研究真正大放异彩的地方。

萨拉发现藻类生物燃料的挑战太过迷人，只在学校钻研根本不够，索性就在自己的卧室里——其实是在她的高架床下——真的建起了一个研究实验室。随着研究工作的推进，她断定监控这项研究的最好办法就是让自己的作息时间与海藻的生物钟保持一致；于是她就这么做了。

萨拉最了不起的发现在于研发出了一种能够促进产油最多的特定海藻生长的方法，而且这一方法稳定可靠，可以推广。她采用“人工选择”的方式分离和培育所需要的海藻。通过在含有烯禾定的培养基里培育海藻，她达到了这一目的。烯禾定是一种环己二酮族化学物质，是许多除草剂中的活性成分。它能够杀死乙酰辅酶A羧化酶生成量不佳的海藻，而这种酶正是脂质合成的关键。这一精巧的操控手段意味着剩下的那些海藻都特别擅长生产大量燃油。这一成果很可能意味着，在不远的未来，藻类生物燃料将会实现商业生产。

前文说过，萨拉已经进入麻省理工学院继续开展她的研究，显然，她的干劲丝毫未减。她发表了一场非常鼓舞人心的TED演讲，绝对值得一看。

科学，毫无疑问，是人类应对21世纪全球各种挑战的一个重要因素。那些最好的解决之道，那些真正有望带来改变的解决之道，背后必须有激情的支撑——光靠专业知识是不够的。萨拉·沃尔兹代表了所有有关下一代科学家们的希望，他们富有激情，做事高效。

当我们还在学校里疯玩的时候，七年级的萨拉·沃尔兹发现自己对生物燃料产生了极大的兴趣。当我们沉浸在题海战术中不能自拔的时候，读高中的萨拉·沃尔兹将自己的卧室变成了实验室，试图将海藻“变成”燃料，替代石油。这个痴迷科研的女孩不仅获得了2013年英特尔科学天才奖冠军，还受到了美国总统奥巴马的接见。你可以说她明明可以靠颜值，却偏偏靠才华，但其实这与颜值和才华都无关。她靠的是内心那份对科学的热忱以及想把世界变得更好的渴望。

萨拉获得英特尔科学天才奖冠军

How

Algae

Becomes

Biofuel

Whats More

Teen Topics

These steps show how Sara Volz got algae to produce more oil.

1. After initial growth， algae is treated with herbicide （除草剂）. Surviving algae yield more oil.

2. A press squeezes out 70 to 75 percent of the oil from the algae.

3. Solvents （溶剂） are used to separate sugar from the oil. The solvents then evaporate.

4. The oil is ready to be used in diesel engines or refined （精制） further for cars， jets， and more.

萨拉在自己床下的实验室工作

9. epitomize [??p?t?ma?z] vt. 成为……的典范；作为……的缩影

10. convert [k?n?v??t] vt. 使改变；更改；使转变

11. diesel [?di?zl] n. 柴油

12. fertilizer [?f??t?la?z?（r）] n. 肥料；化肥

13. momentous [m??ment?s] adj. 重大的；关键的；有影响的

14. contamination [k?n?t?m??ne??n] n. 污染

15. synchronicity [?s??kr??n?s?ti] n. 同时性；同步发生

16. stay on top of： 保持密切关注；监控

17. reproducible [?ri?pr??dju?s?bl] adj. 可重复进行的

18. Sethoxydim： 烯禾定，是一种除草剂成分。

19. cyclohexanedione： 环己二酮

20. enzyme [?enza?m] n. 酶

21. lipid [?l?p?d] n. 脂质

22. synthesis [?s?nθ?s?s] n. （通过化学或生物反应进行的）合成

23. adept [??dept] adj. 熟练的；擅长的；内行的

24. straighten out： 解决（问题）；成功应对（困境）

萨拉与其他两位获奖者

Sara Volz：

2016 College Women of the Year

2016年4月，Sara Volz被英国高端时尚女性杂志Glamour评选为“2016年度女大学生”。Sara Volz说：“Theres a saying I love： Science is a verb. Its something you do， not something you study. Its exciting to question the world. At MIT Im researching genome （基因组） editing using a tool called CRISPR. Its a game changer—CRISPR is like scissors for DNA that can cut out bad genes and insert good ones. In 2014 my professor and I， along with a Ph.D. student， discovered how to turn one specific protein on and off in a cell. To think Im helping push this biotechnology forward so that someday we can cure diseases？ Im proud of that. Not every experiment is successful； science is about failure. But each time you learn something.”

Whats More

在新西兰，有一个地方被称为“世界的第九大奇迹”，那里布满了成千上万的萤火虫，它们聚集在一起，形成了奇妙的景观，就像夜空中璀璨的繁星。让我们走进这个被誉为“奇景”的洞穴吧！