What got you
interested in this project?
I fell in love with
chemistry my junior year of college. With that being said I never considered
research an option for me. It wasn’t until my old organic chemistry lab professor
Carol Ajjan reached out to me to help with her own research that I saw myself doing
anything chemistry related. Once I started helping her, I got really sucked
into the project and I wanted to start doing some experimenting on my own. I
talked to her and Dr. Abul Hussam, and they motivated me to pursue my own
research and to do it through OSCAR.
How do you see it
being related to your long-term goals?
Lab work is definitely
something that I need more experience in. This opportunity was a great way for
me to be introduced to this type of work and to make me comfortable working
with professionals. I am studying to be a dentist. Not only has my summer
research allowed me to work more with my hands but I also see it as a good way
to help me stand out when applying for dental school.
What do you actually
do on a weekly basis?
I went into the lab
about three days out of the week. I spent anywhere from 4-7 hours in lab per
day. In lab I would measure out different reagents and create the solutions
needed for the day. I got familiar with using a spectrofluorometer and
controlling a computer which had the program we used to perform our experiment.
When I was not in lab, I was doing my own research to learn more of the theory
behind what I was actually doing. While I definitely stayed busy this summer, I
thoroughly my enjoyed summer research.
What is one thing you
discovered this term?
Apart from my own
discoveries about the way antibiotics behave and react when in different
conditions, I learned what it was like to perform my own work, write my own
findings and to really take pride in what I have accomplished. There was a lot
of work behind this poster I just created, when I sit back and reflect on it, I
remember how exciting and fun the whole experience was.
