Obama praises Indian-American kids, extols 'power of ideas'

Washington, March 24, 2015: President Barack Obama praised the work of young Indian-Americans as he exhorted budding American scientists to "keep exploring...keep dreaming" and use the power of their ideas to change the world. "Keep asking why. Don't settle for what you already know," he said as he welcomed young scientists and engineers from across the country to showcase their inventions, robots, and discoveries at the 2015 White House Science Fair Monday. "Never stop believing in the power of your ideas, your imagination, your hard work to change the world," said Obama after personally viewing 12 of the exhibits by more than 100 students from 30 states. "So Nikhil Behari is here from Pennsylvania," he said calling out the winner of a second place award in Technology at the 2014 Broadcom MASTERS national finals. "He's a freshman -- right? -- in high school, interested in how we can better protect ourselves against hackers and data thieves online. So scientists are already using biometrics to prove that each of us walk in our own distinct ways. "And Nikhil wondered, what if we each type in a distinct ways? So he collected all kinds of data about how a person types -- their speed, how often they pause, how much pressure they use; built a special keyboard to test it. "And he proved that his hypothesis was correct -- that even if somebody knows your password, they don't necessarily punch it in exactly the way you do. "And he asked why -- and made discoveries that now could help keep our online accounts more secure. "So in the future, if keystroke-based authentication keeps your siblings from breaking into your Facebook account or your Instagram account, you will know who to thank," Obama said amid laughter. "It will be Nikhil. Congratulations," he added amid applause.