Jamaican makes wave in NY with dog-food discovery
Published:Monday | January 10, 2011 | 12:00 AM
Laura Redpath, Senior Gleaner Writer
At age 19, André Smithson has already accomplished what many still aspire to after completing their bachelor's degrees.
The Jamaican, a graduate of Wolmer's Boys' School, who now resides in New York while pursuing studies at Queensborough Community College, has discovered there is more to dog food than just a wide variety of it.
While testing for the presence of metals in holistic, fish-based dry food meant for man's best friend, Smithson discovered large amounts of lead.
His research was supervised by the college's chemistry professor, Irina Rutenburg.
Smithson, who is in his second year at Queensborough, was able to present his findings in New York, Boston and Detroit.
"I felt intimidated," Smithson told The Gleaner yesterday. "There was a lot of stuff I didn't understand and I thought, 'Oh these people are very smart'.
"There was an adrenaline rush in that I knew something and was able to tell people about it. When they asked questions, I could answer them."
Commenting on his lead findings, the young scientist quipped: "I advise all Jamaicans to stick to the Jamaican diet of turn cornmeal and scraps from the table."
Smithson's research opened a door through which he was able to get into the CUNY Summer Undergraduate Research Programme.
He is now working on fast-tracking to complete his associate degree in engineering science, which means he would have just one semester left.
From Queensborough, Smithson, who currently holds a 4.0 grade point average, said he hopes to be accepted into the general engineering programme at Cooper Union School of Engineering in New York.