09.25.07

Featured Student: Ben Goodwin

If you know a high school student who really loves exploring the world of science, email us why they should become our next Featured Student.

Nominated by: John Snyder

Ben is a senior science student at Advanced Technologies
Academy Magnet School in Las Vegas, Nevada. He is a gifted student in
the sciences who has deep interests in chemistry, astronomy and
herpetology (study of reptiles and amphibians). Diagnosed with
Asperger's syndrome, he finds himself becoming obsessively interested
in a single field of study. Currently his interest is in computer
science, yet in the past he has focused on herpetology.

In My Own Words:

My love for herpetology originated in
the summer of 2002 before seventh grade. My family was spending the
summer in an apartment complex. The only entertainment available to me
was the TV, so I would spend hours in front of "the box" watching Steve
Irwin and his contemporaries wrangle creatures on Animal Planet.

Eventually,
my love of these shows spiraled into an all-out obsession. I bought
every book on reptiles and amphibians I could lay my hands on. I was
especially interested in snakes. The thought that a predator could be
so successful without legs amazed me. Unfortunately, my Mom's dislike
of the creatures prevented me from getting near one, so I had to learn
all I could about snakes from books.

To the best of my
knowledge, I have only touched a reptile once, when my seventh grade
science teacher brought her pet corn snake to school. My total
obsession with the field ended with the death of Steve Irwin, but I
still watch documentaries on reptiles, and I often revisit my books on
them. My favorite reptiles and amphibians are:

Snakes: The Green Anaconda, the Black Mamba and the Boomslang

Lizards: The Gila Monster and the Komodo Dragon.

Amphibians: Toads.

Extinct Reptiles: Any of the various species of ancient Super Crocs.

A video that describes me well is a Weird Al music video called "White and Nerdy."


Favorite Science Video:

Solar Size - computer animation which shows relative sizes of planets and stars in the universe

Favorite Websites:

BYOND Games -- A site that provides free tools to create, host, and play multiplayer online games.

Uncyclopedia -- A humorous spoof of Wikipedia. Good for those who are looking for a good laugh.

Neopets
- A site that serves as a great single-player game, as well as
(usually) a warm and welcoming online community. I recommend this site
for the young and young at heart.

Tags: Amphbians, Asperger's Syndrome, Biology, Episode 101, Herpetology, Reptiles, Steve Irwin, Zoology

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