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Bishop's junior does research on epidemics

By Jenna Jay
Contributor
A study on the spread of epidemics has yielded $25,000 for 14-year-old Meredith Lehmann, a scholarship recipient selected by the Davidson Institute for Talent Development in Arizona as a 2010 Davidson Fellow.

Lehmann, a junior at The Bishop's School, used trip data from every county in the continental United States to track epidemic evolution in air and auto travel for her project, titled "Transportation Networks and the Propagation of Novel H1N1 Swine Flu-Like Epidemics."

Lehmann's research on the spread of H1N1 is ongoing and has been a work in progress for three years. Her interest in studying epidemic patterns of influenza stemmed from learning about the Spanish flu in the U.S. in 1918-19.

"I found out there was this thing that killed about 50 million people and I never heard about it in history," Lehmann said. "It was something that was really intriguing to me because I had never been exposed to the idea of influenza being dangerous, except for old people and little kids, and during that time people were being affected when they were in their 20s and 30s.

"The other thing was that I realized there was data available for that, and the availability of data made it something that was not only interesting to me but something that I had access to resources."

Connecting curiosity with available materials, Lehmann's initial study on the Spanish flu pandemic has evolved into tracking the spread of H1N1. She has plans to continue the study with expanding research focusing on probabilities of travel and recovery and also including research on European and Asian rail travel.

Lehmann's work with epidemics is just one time-consuming project she is currently balancing. She is also involved with academic and musical activities at Bishop's and beyond. These include Math Club, Science Club, Art History Club, Academic League, Science Olympiad, San Diego Math Circle and San Diego Youth Symphony.

Studying is also an important part of Lehmann's daily regimen. She typically spends an hour per subject per day on homework.

"I sometimes end up spending more (time) than that because I find something interesting in what we're learning about," Lehmann said.

The La Jolla teen also spends free time practicing cello, which she has played since the third grade.

Lehmann's musical background also includes training in piano and opera, and while she specializes in classical music, she also plays folk and jazz. A passion for classical music has the 14-year-old enthralled with listening to and playing tunes like Albinoni's "Adagio" and Liszt's "Liebesträume."

In addition to her interest in music, Lehmann also enjoys reading, citing J.R.R. Tolkien's novels as some of her favorite books.

With two more years left in high school, Lehmann continues to explore her passions, hoping to further her education in a field where she can combine her interests. She has taken summer session courses in Latin, calculus and chemistry at UCSD, where her father, Bruce, is an economics professor, and she is contemplating a similar career path.

"I don't know what I will do in my career. I have a feeling it will be something with science and math," Lehmann said. "At this point I really like the idea of being a professor, just because I get to see what it's like to be one. My dad is one and I get to see how happy he is and what he gets to do with his life. Being able to just do research and teach looks like a lot of fun."

Lehmann's scholarship prize money from her distinction as a 2010 Davidson Fellow will go toward her continuing education. (Click here to read full article)

3 September 2010, 10:16am

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