Physics books, poetry anthologies and papers from math contests cover the floor in his suburban Albany, N.Y., bedroom.
Next weekend is the Science Olympiad in Syracuse.
Throw in nearly perfect grades, a 1,590 sat score and a passion for doing independent research, and you have a student who can name his college. For Stanford, luring the Calvins of the world away from schools like Harvard, Yale and Princeton is a challenge. But for the top 10 percent or so of accepted students, those whose intellectual drive stands out even in the most impressive applicant pool, the yield is lower. In 1998, it was just 36 percent. One tool the University is using to attract them is the President's Scholars Program, launched in 1995.