Spring 2013 URSP participant Stephen Lippi:
After switching to a
major in Psychology from Chemistry, I decided to get involved in research here
at Mason. When I worked with a graduate student in the Cognitive and Behavioral
Neuroscience (formerly biopsychology) program under Dr. Jane Flinn, my interest
in research increased. After working in the animal lab and learning about the
research that was being done, I knew I wanted to be involved. I applied and was
accepted into the Accelerated Master’s program in Cognitive and Behavioral
Neuroscience and soon began to think about some way I could apply my chemistry
knowledge to a project. That ended up being working with biometals. After
reading research that the lab had conducted with animals and biometals and
knowing just how important metals can be in the body, I applied to the OSCAR
program and decided to work with Dr. Flinn to form a question and project that
involved biometals and behavior. After reading background literature and
research done by Dr. Flinn and the lab, Cu deficiency was seen to be an
exciting and interesting metal to look at and connect to behavioral measures.
My research project, “The Effects of Cu Deficiency on Fear Conditioning”
combines my interest in Chemistry with my training in Behavioral and
Physiological Psychology.
After graduating, I will
continue to earn my M.A. from GMU in Cognitive and Behavioral Neuroscience and
will apply to Ph.D. programs in order to pursue a Ph.D. in some form of
biological psychology or neuroscience. I want, wholeheartedly, to become a
professor after I earn my doctorate degree. Teaching is what I truly want to do
with my life and conducting original research not only allows me to continue
learning myself, but also provides experience that I can transfer into my
classroom and with future undergraduates and graduate students.
On a weekly basis, I
read background literature and maintain a research binder with all my articles
that relate to my research topics and continue to work on my project’s plans
and goals. Once my rats arrive to GMU, my weekly schedule will include handling
and monitoring their health in order to maintain a healthy and happy life for
them.
One thing I discovered
this week was exactly how much work truly goes into doing
research with animals, particularly in formulating a diet. In choosing to
research Cu deficiency, I thought we could simply order a diet with lower Cu
levels and that would be it. However, working with a great
nutritionist, I've learned that so much planning is required and
ingredient interaction occurs in diet development and that it takes much more
work than simply saying “I want the Cu levels lower” in order to create a
special diet for a study.
