Blog Challenge #5

Part 1
This year was Duquesne University's 16th annual Undergraduate Research Program symposium. The program lasts for 10 weeks and gives the students essential research experience for a possible future career. At the end of the 10 weeks all of the students come together to present their research in poster format at the symposium. This was my second year that I presented my research here at Duquesne. I couldn't even begin to explain how nervous I was last year about having to talk to people about what I did for those 10 weeks. Although, it really wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. Then again, not many people came up to my poster last year. I think only my family and a few fellow SEED students came to view my poster. Though, I am not sure why considering they probably heard enough of my project from our group meetings! This year I was expecting the same thing to happen and only talk to a few friends and family members. However, many people came up to my poster and started asking questions about my project. There were even people standing at my poster before I got there! It actually surprised me to know that people were that interested in my project. I figured that mainly teachers would be interested in my work rather than students from Duquesne and Pitt. They all had great questions and it was an awesome feeling knowing that I had all of the answers to them. When I told a few people I was still in high school they were completely shocked. They thought it was so cool that I was able to be working at Duquesne over the summer. I also feel that this was a good practice for when I go to Indianapolis for the ACS meeting this year! For me the symposium went extremely well! My father and brother(a new grad student here at Duquesne) came to the lunch and then afterwards came to my poster so I could show them all of the work I had done over the summer. Sadly my mom wasn't able to make it but she heard all about it when we got home. I can't tell you how much I will miss working here during the summer. It was such an amazing experience and I feel like  have learned so much over the past two summers. If I ever get another opportunity like this I am definitely taking it!

Part 2
Possible candidates to be interviewed:
1. Joseph Janicki
2. Dr. Wheeler
3. Jackie

Possible interview questions:
1. What was your initial interest in science?
2. When you started college did you know that grad school was in your future?
3. Why did you choose to come to Duquesne University for grad school?
4. How are you enjoying your grad school experience thus far?
5. What are your future career goals?

Blog Challenge #4

                Yesterday was the first celebration of Project SEED we have ever had here at Duquesne University.  This celebration was put together to really exxagerate how great Project SEED is and how it really does help kids in their future endeavors. A few of the Project SEED alumni were brought back to talk about how Project SEED has helped them and how it has influenced their career paths. The current SEED students were also asked to present. The year one students had to give a brief sumarry of their project, whereas the second year students(Charlie and I) had to give a 10 minute presentation about their projects.

I feel that the presentation I gave yesterday could have been much better. I feel that I did really well at our group meeting and it gave me a lot of confidence about the whole public speaking ordeal. However, when we got there, I saw how many people there were and I started to feel the pressure. Not to mention that everyone who presented before me did a fantastic job! That was my first time speaking in front of a large group of people with such a high stature. I remember just sitting there during Charlie’s presentation knowing that I was next up to the podium as I tried to keep myself from shaking.

If I were able to go back and do it all over again I would have done it way differently. I could tell that my voice sounded a bit shaky yesterday and I wish I would have stopped myself to calm down and take a deep breath. I feel that if I would have done that my whole presentation would have flowed a lot better and I wouldn’t have spoken so quickly.  I know that as I went through my PowerPoint there were a few things I forgot to mention that I probably should have. After I messed up a few times I became really nervous and I was so focused on getting it done and over with. I was pretty disappointed in myself about that and I just wish that I would have done as well as I did during our group meetings.                                                                 \

 Overall, I think I learned more about myself than from what the other people were presenting. I realized that presenting in front of all those people shouldn’t have been something to be nervous about. It’s just too bad that I didn’t come to that actualization sooner! It was still a great learning experience for me and I know that I will be better prepared in the future for when I have to speak in front of a group like that again. I feel that not a lot of people get to experience something like this and I am so grateful that I had the opportunity.  

Everyone that I met at the SEED celebration yesterday was incredibly nice to me. They all only had nice things to say. A few actually gave me advice on the career I am thinking of pursuing. The two that I remember the most were Kristine Olejar(not sure if that is spelled right) and the grad student from Carnegie Mellon University. Kristine is actually a student here at Duquesne and she will be in her 5th year in the pharmacy program they have here. It was really cool that I got to talk to her about that considering that could be a possible career for me one day. I actually found out that we live on the same street! I can't believe she has lived there my whole life and I have never even seen her before! So I thought that was really awesome that I got to meet her. The grad student from CMU was also really helpful. We discussed my future and what I plan on doing after high school. She gave me suggestions for colleges in case I decide to become a nurse practitioner rather than going into pharmacy.

I feel that the Project SEED celebration was an amazing idea. We were able to experience our first time of public speaking, see how previous SEED students benefited from the program, and got to make connections with many of the important people who attended yesterday. I know that I would love to come back in a few years and give public speaking another shot and hopefully be able to help the future generations of SEED students. To conclude blog challenge #4, I hope you all have a beautiful day and amazing weekend! :)

Abstract

Design and Development of High School Science Laboratories Utilizing Remote-Access Scanning Electron Microscopy

Janicki, Emily L.; Gault, Joe H.; Rosmus, Kimberly A.; Larry, Nolan R.; Aiken, Jennifer A.
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Duquesne University
 

Abstract:

Four laboratory experiments utilizing a scanning electron microscope (SEM) were designed to be implemented into local high school science classrooms following the Pennsylvania State Standards and the Science Keystone Assessment Anchors. SEM is used to observe the surface morphology of a material and to measure sample features such as crystallite size. The students will be introduced to basic techniques of electron and light microscopy with an introductory lab that uses a copper penny. Observing differences between the morphology of salt and sugar (rock candy) as well as differentiating between NaCl and KCl will also be examined. The microscopy experiments were developed to include the following teaching resources:  remote access guidelines, pre-lab presentation, teacher and student edition laboratory instructions, and SEM videos and micrographs. This projected was funded by the National Science Foundation, Grant No. CHE-0923183.

Blog Challenge #2

For our second blog challenge we were told to take action shots of the other five Project SEED students while engaged in their projects. The photos can be viewed below. We were also assigned partners to interview and my partner was Kelly Pesta. Kelly is from Boardman, Ohio and will be going into her Junior year of high school. She is 16 years old and says that science is one of her favorite subjects. Her project is on the identification of organic gunshot residue. She told me how she wanted to go into Forensics after high school and I think that her project will be extremely helpful with her future endeavors!

Kelly Pesta creating her dilutions and properly cleaning her equipment

Cheyenne Simmons removing the solvent from her crystal mixture

Deion Grant creating a PGN file

Melissa Fowkes as she reviews vibrational frequencies for C₆H₅O₂

Charles Thornton selecting a buffer to use for cell lysis

Blog Challenge #1

My love for science has grown immensely over the past few years, but it was not until recently that I decided I wanted to go to school for Pharmacy. I think it would be a great field for me to get into because I love all of the chemistry aspects of it. I would be able to help people through dispensing medicine rather than actual hands on medical work. I know of a few people who will be attending their final year of Pharmacy school this upcoming year and I can always go to them for when I need more information. I know that a lot of people are telling me that I should go away for college, but I really have my heart set on staying in Pittsburgh. I have a few colleges in mind that will keep me closer to home. Although, I am considering colleges that are a little further away. These colleges include: St. Francis University, Duquesne University,  and Lake Erie College.

St. Francis University
When applying to St. Francis it is required that you have at least 4 years of English, 3 years of Math, 2 years of Science, 2 years of Social Studies, 4 years of Academic Electives, and your standardized test scores. The University of St. Francis and Midwester University have created a dual acceptance program in pharmacy. You must apply to both schools and once accepted you may begin to obtain your associates degree at St. Francis and then finish your pharmacy education at Midwestern. St. Francis does not offer a specific pre-pharmacy major but they do offer a biology degree for students interested in pursuing pharmacy.
http://www.sf.edu/sf/chemistry/undergrad-programs/pharmacy-dual-acceptance
http://www.stfrancis.edu/academics/pre-pharmacy/#.UcsglaPJaSo
 
Duquesne University's Mylan School of Pharmacy
It is required that you have your standardized test scores for admissions and the classes that were recommended for admissions are as the following: 4 years of English, 2 years of a Foreign Language, 2 years of Math, 2 years of Science, 2 years of Social Studies, and 4 years of Academic Electives. Anyone who is looking to attend the Mylan School of Pharmacy at Duquesne University must first apply to their two-year Pre-Professional Pharmacy study. Once you complete this program you will be able to apply for placement into their School of Pharmacy. If accepted into the program you will then begin your four-year professional phase. The University gives a strong preference to those students who started their pre-pharmacy education at Duquesne as Freshman. Most of the students in the professional phase completed their pre-pharmacy at Duquesne University.
http://www.duq.edu/academics/schools/pharmacy/become-a-student/doctor-of-pharmacy

Lake Erie College
To be excepted into Lake Erie College, your high school requirements must include: 4 years of English classes, 2 years of a Foreign Language, 3 years of Math, 3 years of Science, and 3 years of Social Studies. It is very important for admissions to a have a great GPA, application essay, and standardized test score. As for the programs they offer, you would have to attend two years at an accredited undergraduate school followed by 3-4 years of professional pharmacy education at the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine. They also offer a year round curriculum which allows students to graduate one year early. The main campus is in Erie, Pennsylvania with 3 additional locations. One of which is Seton Hill University. Seeing as I would like to be closer to home, I would be able to attend Seton Hill for my undergraduate education and then attend LECOM to finish my education in their pharmacy program.
http://schoolpages.pharmcas.org/publishedsurvey/423
http://www.setonhill.edu/academics/undergraduate_programs/pharmacy

Post #1

This is my second year being a part of Project SEED and I can't tell you how excited I am to be back! This year went by so fast and it feels like I've never even left. However, I am a little upset that a lot of the grad students who were in my lab last year won't be here this year. We are almost through our first week being here at Duquesne and it has gone pretty well, so far! These past few days I have been mainly refreshing my memory and learning more about the SEM and EDS through reading. For my project last year, an experiment was designed that remotely utilizes the SEM in high school chemistry laboratories via internet connection. This year I am going to continue working on high school outreach, but also begin quantitative analysis on the following: Cu₂ZnSiS₄, Cu₂CdSnS₄ doped with Mn or Co, and AglnSe₂ doped with Mn. I am really excited to be doing more analytical research this
summer opposed to what I was working on last year. I can't wait to get started! :)

Here are some of the images I took last year using the SEM.

Increased magnifications of the penny imaged using the SEM




                                     SEM images of the crystallized salt candy      
                        

                                  SEM images of the crystallized sugar candy