At first glance, Malachi Flucker and Immanuel Christian do not appear to have much in common. Immanuel is a 15-year-old sophomore attending the Charlotte Amalie High School while Malachi is a 17-year-old first-year student attending the University of the Virgin Islands.
While unaware of each other and their circumstances, they share something in common. Both found themselves enrolling in summer residential programs for high school students at UVI where they used their unique perspectives to develop the concept for their final projects.
For Malachi and his teammate, Nesicha Cardin, a 17-year-old biology major at UVI, their concept was the perfect solution to complete the project requirements of the Math Behind the Data Science (MBDS) program. MBDS is a bridge program that enhances the math skills of college-bound students interested in pursuing careers in science, data science, mathematics, engineering, technology, or medicine.
The duo, otherwise known as the Terra Tumblers, used Malachi’s vision condition – amblyopia or lazy eye to develop a game using the programming language, Python. Amblyopia usually occurs in one eye causing that eye to have worse vision than the other, resulting in the brain focusing on using the stronger eye and ignoring the weaker eye.
Modeled after the game of Tetris, the pair designed Terra Tumble to help people with amblyopia. It incorporates the primary theme colors of red and blue, combined with special glasses that also use blue and red lenses. The exercises integrated into the game were designed to help train both eyes to work together and over time, strengthen the weaker eye.
At the same time, while enrolled in a different summer program at UVI, Immanuel, who also has a vision condition, used his condition to fuel his business idea as a participant in the Entrepreneurial Business Institute (EBI). EBI is designed to help students develop entrepreneurial, leadership, and business skills while providing insight into the college experience and campus life.
Immanuel has always had a passion for taking things apart and rebuilding them. His dream was to become a pilot but is slightly limited due to his eye condition (this mild/slight disability). Based on his condition of being nearsighted, he developed the concept of Immanuel’s Night Vision Eyewear, which uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Augmented Reality (AR). AI would use a voice system to describe what the system is seeing while AR would assist the individual in seeing their surroundings. “Despite any disability, I firmly believe that there is more than one way to achieve your goals,” said Immanuel. “This program has helped me to bring my ideas together to help people.”
Both Malachi and Immanuel refuse to let their medical conditions deter them. Malachi has enlisted in the Marines and plans to study computer science while Immanuel hopes to pursue a career in Engineering.
As to what is next for Terra Tumblers, the pair are still considering options to turn their game into an app that can be shared on the App or Google Play store. They both agree that although quite rigorous, the MBDS program was beneficial. “The program helped to make math a lot easier and has allowed me to go straight into Math 143, the basic math course required for my major instead of taking skills courses,” said Malachi.
“Math has never been my strong suit, but the program has helped me better understand many of the concepts,” said Nesicha. “Before the summer program, I’d never tried coding but thanks to the program, I learned to code from scratch.”
MBDS and EBI are among a handful of UVI residential summer programs that allow high school students from diverse backgrounds to spend weeks on a college campus exploring their passions and diving into the world of discovery. These programs are instrumental in shaping the minds of future scientists, aspiring entrepreneurs, and innovators. The programs are donor-supported and provide students with the resources and mentorship needed to gain invaluable skills, forge meaningful connections, kindle lifelong passions, and bring ideas to life.