b" plasticsKids robot sniffs out plastic in the ocean Anna Du 3M Discovery Young ScientistBy Fit Flyer staffAnna named her robot The Nereid. A William Cramp Elementary School Nereid is a spirit that guards salt water Anna Du has a mission to get plastic outin Greek mythology. She thought the of the oceans. She created a robot to helpname was fitting because her invention find where tiny plastic pieces pile up onseeks to help make the salt water safer the ocean floor, and then she wrote a bookfor all the animals that might live there.Read a review of about what she did.The Nereid has a camera that can scan the She accomplished all that before sheocean floor to spot where microplastics Anna's book on turned 17, when we interviewed hermight be building up, Anna says. Then people can know exactly where the last winter. For her achievements,dirtiest parts of the ocean floor might Page 25!she was honored when she was 12 as a finalist in the 3M Discovery Youngbe, so that we can concentrate all of our Scientist Challenge, and she has wonresources and cleanup efforts to those other prestigious science awards sinceplaces.then. She also has been featured on TVAnna has tested her robot many times in and in print and digital media, includingdifferent parts of Boston Harbor to make the Huffington Post, Fox25 News, andsure that I was able to predict where Smithsonian magazine. microplastics were located, she says. The tiny pieces that Anna wants removedWhen she was puzzled about a problem are called microplastics. They areshe faced, she reached out to university less than 5 millimeters wideunder aprofessors for their advice. Anna also fifth of an inchaccording to Nationalcredits her parents for being supportive Geographic magazine. Plastics can takeof her work. Her dad is a softwarePage 12 illustration by hundreds or even thousands of years toengineer. Her mom is a businesswoman. Lorraine Brown-Gause, break down and can end up inside sea8th grade, DePaul Healthy Because she learned so much alongTrailblazer Journalanimals and in drinking water. Scientists are researching what health risks theythe way, she wrote a book for may pose to humans, according to thekids between 9 and 12. Its called United Nations Environment Program. Microplastics and Me. She says she wanted to share how we all can use Anna says she decided to create hera little bit of science and engineering robot when she learned how big thein our lives to hopefully make the problem of plastic pollution is. It affectsworld a better place.the whole world, including the beaches in Massachusetts where she lives, she says.12B Y K I D S , F O R K I D S | S p r i n g 2 0 2 3"