The Taoiseach was present yesterday when the 1999 Young Scientist of the Year, 16-year-old Sarah Flannery, was welcomed back and saluted by her school, Scoil Mhuire Gan Smal, in Blarney, Co Cork.
Mr Ahern, in a packed assembly hall, said students like Sarah were proof that we were producing young people capable not only of dealing with high technology but of advancing it.
She had devised a highly complex encryption system, so complex that the adjudicators had to call in outside experts to verify her astonishing achievement.
The Taoiseach also had warm praise for Vincent Foley, aged 17, who won the Intel award at the ESAT Young Scientist competition, and for Mr Sean Foley, his father and science teacher, who has guided the two winners.
Mr Donal O'Grady, principal of the co-ed school, said: "Our teachers make an effort to be conscious not only of the academic side but of the students' personal and sporting potential."
This year's two award winners, he went on, were popular with their classmates and totally unassuming about their achievements.
Sarah could go the commercial route with her discovery, and already internationally-known computer firms have been seeking talks with her. But, together with her family, she has decided to concentrate on her studies and, instead of selling her formula, she is considering making it freely available on the Internet.
The Taoiseach also presented awards to three former pupils - Mr Maurice Hallissey, Ms Aubrey McAuliffe and Ms Samantha Ryan, who recently took first, second and third place in their Masters of Law degree examinations at UCC. He also acknowledged the achievements of Paula Sheehan, the 3,000 metres Irish school champion, and Liam Long, the Irish pole vault champion.