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A complete enumeration of the noble polyhedra

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Connor Hill · State College, Pennsylvania
First Place ($250,000) · Regeneron Science Talent Search · 2026

Abstract

A computational classification of noble polyhedra — polyhedra whose faces are all alike and whose vertices are all alike — completing the enumeration of a family that had never been fully catalogued.

What they found
The result, in the terms the project itself reported it.

Proved two infinite families of noble polyhedra together with 146 isolated examples.

Why it worked
ResearchForge's reading of the public record — not the students' words, and not the judges' reasoning.

A classification is a closed question: the answer is a complete list, and completeness is provable. Very few student projects can end with "and there are no others", which is exactly why this one lands.

Key methods
  • Computational enumeration
  • Polyhedral symmetry classification
  • Proof of two infinite families
  • Exhaustive search with a completeness argument
What to take from this
ResearchForge's reading of the public record — not the students' words, and not the judges' reasoning. Borrow the habits and decisions, never the project itself.
  • A finite, provable answer is worth more than an open-ended survey when you can reach one
  • Computation used in service of a proof is different from computation used to produce a chart — say which you are doing

Archive entries are summaries compiled for study. Read them for how a project was structured, argued, and defended — not as a template to reproduce. Copying someone else's project is the one thing that will end yours.

Compiled by ResearchForge from the Society for Science public award announcement linked on this record. Names, hometowns, project titles and reported results are as published. The "why it worked" and "what to take from this" notes are ResearchForge's editorial reading of that public record — they are not statements by the students and not the judges' rationale. All rights to the original projects remain with their authors; no project materials are rehosted here.