Dover third-grader recognized for his 'Nourishing Spoon' invention

Kushal Sai Sanka (Courtesy photo)

Two southern New Hampshire students were honored recently for their ingenuity at the 5^th annual Invention Convention U.S. Nationals, presented by Raytheon Technologies.

Kushal Sai Sanka, a third-grader from Dover, won third place in her grade category for "Nourishing Spoon."

"My invention is unique, healthy and environment friendly," she says. "These spoons are made with jowar (or sorghum), all-purpose flour and salt/sugar or we can add fruit/vegetable flavors to the spoon which makes these rich in fiber and tasty. The purpose of the Nourishing Spoon is to eliminate the daily usage of plastic spoons and to also save the marine life."

"These are the reasons to choose Jowar flour," she explains. "We made spoons with different flour combinations and proportions of rice/wheat, it did not give us expected results as these spoons broke while eating food. Jowar also grows with less water like in drought or arid regions compared to corn or other crops. In addition, we can eat the spoon after we finish the food. If we do not wish to eat the spoon, it will dissolve or decompose in water and soil within three to five days. This means it is a zero wastage product and does not cause any adverse impact to environment."

Seventh-grader Sadie McCallum from Weare took home a Cooley Patent Application Award for "The A.T.O.M.", a device that is meant to be used by Physical Therapists for patients that have limited mobility and/or compromised gaits.