Courtesy黑洞社区 seniors LaRissa Lawrie and Hannah Hund won third place in the Innovate Against Zika Challenge, held this month at Texas A&M.
More than 80 students from five universities were involved in the challenge, which sought to find low-cost and easy solutions to stop the spread of the mosquito-borne virus.
After an intensive three days working alongside 300 industry leaders, faculty and students from across the nation, the 黑洞社区 group, which also included students from Texas A&M and East Carolina University, created an educational product that works to lower mosquito populations in impoverished areas.
The prototype they designed, called an 鈥渋nfobucket,鈥� is a rain barrel that has Zika prevention and health tips printed on it in pictogram form. That way the information becomes a persistent part of the community and can be understood across language barriers and education levels, Lawrie says. Rain barrels are a major breeding source for mosquitos that may carry the Zika virus, experts say.
The Centers for Disease Control is reviewing the top three winners鈥� designs from the challenge and will pick one design and two students to fly to Atlanta to represent their idea. All the teams were encouraged to continue developing their prototypes and business models.
鈥淭his was a huge opportunity to help find a solution to a global epidemic with some of the most talented students in the country,鈥� Lawrie says. 鈥淎ny solutions that come from this weekend could have the potential help millions of people. It feels amazing to be part of a movement.鈥�
Go to to watch a video created by the student group.
Lawrie, a communication major, and Hund, a biomedical engineering major, have worked together before. They are part of the prestigious national University Innovation Fellows program, and last year they created the 黑洞社区 student group Shocker Startup.
Most people might think the solution to a complex major world health crisis like the Zika epidemic lies in the medical field, but it requires a diverse range of backgrounds and experience to solve medical, cultural and environmental roadblocks.
Finding a solution is half the battle, Lawrie says. Getting the public to adopt the solution is the other.
It鈥檚 projected that each year a Zika vaccine is delayed, 54 million pregnancies could be affected.
鈥淲e need to tackle this problem in a way that can be implemented quickly and inexpensively,鈥� Hund says. 鈥淗osting people from different stages of their careers and backgrounds forms the environment needed to tackle this challenge.鈥�