Fan Yang is a Davisite who, when she was a teenager, discovered a chemical compound that stops bacteria from attaching to contact lenses, reducing the possibility of eye infections.
She won second place in the biochemistry category of Intel's International Science and Engineering Fair and the 2005 grand prize at the Sacramento Regional Science and Engineering Fair. She will attend John Hopkins University.
She came up with the need for such a chemical when she was told by her eye doctor that contact lenses carry the risk of eye infection.
Her mother works as a lab technician at UC Davis