[applause] >> it is my pleasure to introduce john fitzpatrick. >> thank you so much. i think you are one speaker away from the main attraction so i promise to be brief but i want to say first of all congratulations to the california academy of sciences, the board, and the staff. congratulations to the city of san francisco and the arts commission. congratulations to maya for bringing all of those thoughts and images and connections that this project has gone through to fruition here in this megaphone. it just occurred to me sitting right over there that endangered species and extinct species and threatened ecosystems and migrations around the world that are in peril of being lost because of the human endeavor, they all had a megaphone at this point. congratulations to the city of chicago for having this. what occurred to me is that this is pointed straight at the north american continent. it is broadcasting to the citizens of the entire country and it is carried out all over the world. what we have in store, we hope, the reversal that has begun over the past month. wh

. >> reporter: 11-year-old john fitzpatrick has dreams of being a professional basketball player. or maybe a pop star. while he's got the moves there's one thing holding him back. john has severe asthma. >> when i run it gets me out of breath fast. >> reporter: he's not alone. 20% of children and 37% of adults living in west oakland have asthma. children here are seven times more likely to be hospitalized for asthma than in the rest of the state. >> i wish we could live in a better area where there's not as much traffic continuously down the streets all day. we can't even really walk out of our door to school without coughing or perhaps throwing up on the way. >> reporter: 10,000 trucks pass through oakland each day, not to mention the emissions from 880, 980, 580 and the ships coming in and out of the port. >> we are in a good part of town but we need to find a place safer for him to live where the air quality is much better. >> reporter: the children at this school are doing just that. this freshman is testing a prototype developed by intel labs to measure air quality in realtime

. >> reporter: 11-year-old john fitzpatrick has dreams of being a professional basketball player. or maybe a pop star. there is one thing holding him back. john has severe asthma. >> when i run, it gets me out of breath fast. >> reporter: and he's not alone. 27% of children and 37% of adults have asthma. children here are seven times more likely to be hospitalized for asthma than in the rest of the state. >> i wish we could live in a better area where there's not as much traffic continuously up and down the streets all day. you can't even really walk out of our door to school without coughing or perhaps throwing up on the way. >> reporter: 10,000 trucks pass through oakland each day, not to mention the emissions from 880, 980, 580 and the shift coming in and out of the port. >> we're in the good part of town where it's safe or more safer for him to live, where the air quality is much better. >> it takes air every second that we walk. >> reporter: they're testing a package on your cell phone. >> someday you may be able to test air quality indoor or outdoor. before you make a run, be