Quito, May 15, 2017

Rosalia Arteaga Serrano

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AN OPPORTUNITY

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A few days ago, I was fortunate enough to participate in a conference organized by the New York Academy of Sciences, in which young college students from various parts of the world demonstrated their abilities achieved thanks to their mentors, whom they knew only online, and also among the students, there had been, in some cases for months, that virtual contact, through which they developed their projects.

Young boys and girls of 12, 14, 15, 17 years old, interacted with world-class scientists, including some Nobel laureates, knowing the importance of science, but also the need to interact.

The experience reached its peak, at least for me, when a young man of no more than 17 years, from India, aware of my Ecuadorian nationality, approached me to talk about earthquakes, his specialty and his passion.

He told me that when he was young (14 years old!) He made his first prediction of an earthquake, based on mathematical analysis and calculations and other sciences, and showed his interest in our country, due to its high vulnerability.

The seriousness with which he conducted himself, his professional air, impressed me a lot, especially since we know that our young Ecuadorians are equally talented and enthusiastic, they alone and many times, lack an opportunity.

And we have to create those opportunities ourselves.