Editorial: Science students hit on life-saving idea

Wednesday, April 10, 2002 | 9:02 a.m.

Three Hyde Park Middle School girls have designed a product that would warn parents if they were about to leave a baby in a hot car. Their design has already earned them distinction as semifinalists in the National Science Foundation annual competition for middle-school students. Out of 2,500 entries, theirs is among 30 remaining in contention for a spot in the finals. They will learn in two weeks whether their design is among the 10 finalists that will be judged at Disney World's Epcot Center in Orlando, Fla. If it's chosen, it will be the fifth time in the six years of the competition that Hyde Park has sent a team to the finals.

It is inspiring to know that the students, Kelsey Hand, Athena Pisanello, and Rochelle Taylor, have a chance to win a national academic competition. But there's an even more important reason to hope their design goes places. In Southern Nevada alone last summer, three babies died after being left in cars. Additionally, 606 others had to be rescued by paramedics and many of them were seriously injured. The girls' design links a baby's car seat to a weight-activated "Baby Beeper" the parent could wear on a key ring. The beeper would go off if the parent walked a few feet away from the car. Tragic statistics each summer show the need for such a product. The girls have distinguished themselves not only as fine science students, but also as thoughtful and caring young entrepreneurs.