Ahmed Mohamed, the Texas teenager arrested after teachers mistook his homemade clock for a bomb, met Barack Obama at the White House on Monday night.
The 14-year-old chatted with the president during astronomy night – an annual event honouring science, space exploration and youthful endeavour – but left the clock that had sparked so many column inches at home.
“We have to watch for and cultivate and encourage those glimmers of curiosity and possibility, not suppress them, not squelch them,” Obama told the audience on the South Lawn, which included astronauts, scientists and students. “Not only are the young people’s futures at stake, but our own is at stake.”
In September, President Obama invited Mohamed to the White House after hearing about his detainment by law enforcement, posting an encouraging message to the student on Twitter.
Cool clock, Ahmed. Want to bring it to the White House? We should inspire more kids like you to like science. It’s what makes America great.
— President Obama (@POTUS) September 16, 2015