Vishnu Dantu, a student in UNT's Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science program, received the inaugural Sherman/Barsanti Inspiration Award April 11 at the UNT Alumni Awards ceremony, winning the $10,000 top prize. Runners-up Jaicheng (Jason) He, also a TAMS student, and Eva Polgar, a piano performance graduate student, each earned $2,000 prizes.

The awards, established by longtime UNT supporters Bob and Bette Sherman, were open to students in any discipline and welcomed entries in any medium, from original works of art to new medical technologies. UNT President Neal Smatresk, who served on the judging panel for the award, says Dantu's entry -- a smartphone-based blood glucose monitor -- could "rock the medical world."

Dantu, who was nominated for the award by Srinivasan Srivilliputhur, materials science and engineering professor, says the monitor could provide cost-effective and painless health information to diabetic patients worldwide, particularly those in rural areas and Third World countries who may not have access to reliable health care.

"The Inspiration Awards celebrate what happens when you combine knowledge, creativity and innovation -- everything that makes up the UNT spirit," Smatresk says. "These students are truly remarkable."