🌵 Teen invents smart bandage for dying saguaro cacti
Seventeen-year-old Jorge Covarrubias built KáktosPatch, a smart bandage to catch bacterial necrosis in saguaro cacti early. He developed this in Yuma, Arizona, after getting interested during a desert ecology field trip. The project won first place at the Southern Arizona Regional Science and Engineering Fair and was accepted to the 2026 Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair. This biodegradable system uses color changes read by a smartphone app to signal potential infection. Further testing is needed, but it could offer a low-cost monitoring tool for desert conservation. 🌵