Downingtown East senior Luke Shannon was one of 30 semi-finalists from around the world in the Breakthrough Junior Challenge competition, writes Bill Rettew for The Daily Local News.

The seventeen-year-old made an original science video that put him in the running to win $400,000 worth of prizes which include a college scholarship for him and a new science lab for his school.

The video manages to explain black holes in just two minutes in a way that almost anyone can understand.

“I like how math and science explain everything,” he said. “When you have a question there is an exact way to answer it – either right or wrong – there is no in between. This applies to everything I do.”

The straight “A” student is planning to major in both Nuclear and Mechanical Engineering. He has narrowed his choice of schools to four finalists (University of Michigan, Purdue University, Georgia Tech, and North Carolina State) and is already looking forward to college.

“I hope I can contribute to the scientific community and discover something new,” he said.

Read more about Luke Shannon in The Daily Local News.

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