Miles Wu is miles ahead of most students his age when it comes to science: He’s already something of an inventor, having discovered that a kind of origami might one day be used to engineer strong, lightweight shelters that can be rapidly deployed to areas during natural disasters.
The Hunter College High School ninth grader’s research earned him the $25,000 top prize in the 2025 Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge run by the Society for Science in Washington, D.C.
Wu, 14, who has been teaching himself the intricate Asian art of paper folding for half his life, made a pattern that’s so strong that it can support up to 10,000 times its own weight.
“It’s scale independent, so you can make it really large, and it’s also material independent,” Wu explained to ABCNews.
The project impressed Wu’s teacher, Jonathan Murtaugh.
“Right away, I knew it was pretty special,” Murtaugh said.
Wu’s status as a finalist in the competition also gave Hunter College High a $1,000 to be used for science materials.
“Hunter College High Schools is so very proud of Miles for his extraordinary work and for following his passions,” said Hunter College Campus Schools Director Lisa Siegmann. “He joins the legacy of other great science scientists who got their start at our schools.”
About the Hunter College Campus Schools
The Hunter College Campus Schools consist of an elementary school (kindergarten to sixth grade) and a high school (seventh to 12th grades). The schools have produced many American luminaries, including scientist Mildred Dresselhaus; composer, lyricist, and actor Lin-Manuel Miranda; actor and writer Ruby Dee; Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan; and poet and activist Audre Lorde.
