Herbert Levine, PhD

We are nearing the tenth anniversary of the first papers applying methods of computational systems biology to the study of the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and its relevance to cancer metastasis. This undertaking has been a major success, leading to a much-improved understanding of EMT itself and its connection to tumor initiation and drug resistance. But of course, new questions have arisen. After surveying the state of the field, this talk will focus on one of those new questions, namely how EMT circuits may couple to epigenetic factors. Specifically, we will argue that epigenetics can play a critical in enabling EMT or its reverse (MET) and that constructing models of these effects must take into global competition for epigenetic modifying enzymes.

Hosted By; Dr. Shuyi Nie

Event Details

A visit to any new country would be incomplete without exploring the local culture and history. This summer, eight Georgia Tech students did some of their exploring of Lyon, France in an unlikely place: a biology lab.

The biology, neuroscience, and biochemistry undergraduates were enrolled in a special offering of the Cell and Molecular Biology Laboratory (BIOS 3451) as part of the Georgia Tech Biomolecular Engineering, Science, and Technology study abroad program in Lyon (BEST-Lyon). As it was the first time the lab was offered as part of the program, the instructors took the budding course as an opportunity to try something new, aiming to mesh the lab with the local culture surrounding them while abroad. And for Lyon, that meant incorporating silk. 

Read more about the unique experience on the College of Sciences website.

Join us for the Fall 2023 GT Astrobiology Distinguished Lecture and Social Event on Sep 22nd!

We’re excited to host Dr. José C. Aponte, Research Scientist from NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) as our distinguished lecturer. Please see the below flyer for more info

In the afternoon, there will be a social event with lawn games, food and refreshments beginning at 4:00 PM, located at the Molecular Science and Engineering (MoSE) outdoor patio, ground floor. We will also be taking a group photo at this time, so bring your GT Astrobiology(grey) shirts! If you are a new member or didn’t receive a shirt last year, we have extra shirts to hand out.

Learn more:
https://astrobiology.gatech.edu/category/events/

Event Details

Aja Carter, PhD

Postdoctoral Researcher, Robomechanics Lab

Carnegie Mellon University | LIVESTREAM

A Paleobiological Search for Dynamic Gaits in our Paleozoic Ancestors
Modeling locomotor gaits of extinct taxa is a well-established focus of paleo-
biological, and results from such studies have interactions across other biological
and ecological inquires, such as the evolution of novel forms compared to novel
functions and changes in ecological composition through deep time. Generally,
locomotor studies either generate plausible configurations of single joints and
combine them in series to predict limb poses or use myological information such
as muscle insertion and torque across a joint to generate hypothetical gaits.
However, these studies cannot capture the other necessary mechanical under-
pinnings of gaits, such as the function of joint capsules during dynamic loco-
motion. Moreover, many of these studies focus exclusively on the appendicular
skeleton, occluding any role of the axial column in stable gaits. Currently, no
methodologies are proposed to capture such mechanical information in extinct
taxa. However, paleobiologists can experimentally extract information akin to
that arising from such extant animal study through a process of modern fossil
reconstruction as a proxy of once-living organism morphologies.
In this talk, I will briefly review the process of defossilization. I will sub-
sequently discuss my current work using defossilized models to investigate ver-
tebral joint damping and stiffness metrics toward my ultimate goal of under-
standing the nature of mechanical work performed by spine and, finally, its role
in total body locomotion. I will conclude by discussing the next steps in further
defossilization and collaborations with bio-inspired roboticists

 

Hosted by: Dr. Jennifer McGuire

Event Details

The College of Sciences congratulates six of its graduate scholars who have won Herbert P. Haley Fellowships for the 2023-24 school year.

The new Haley Fellows are:

Haley scholars receive a one-time merit award of up to $4,000 thanks to the generosity of the late Marion Peacock Haley. Haley’s estate established the creation of merit-based graduate fellowships at Georgia Tech in honor of her late husband, Herbert P. Haley (ME 1933). It is an award which may be held in conjunction with other funding, assistantships, or fellowships, if applicable. 

Meet the Haley Fellows

Jessica Deutsch

Jessica Deutsch is a fifth-year Ph.D. student studying analytical chemistry. “One of the most intriguing aspects of analytical chemistry is that the field focuses on studying invisible things in order to make sense of the visible,” Deuthsch says. “I am researching a deadly coral disease that affects Florida and Caribbean reefs. I aim to provide insight into how this disease impacts the production of small molecules using a mass spectrometry-based approach, which can provide insight into how relationships between the coral animal, algae, and bacteria may be impacted by this disease.”

She wishes to thank Assistant Professor Neha Garg “for her mentorship and the opportunities she has provided that have enabled me to develop my research skills.”
 

Quynh Nguyen

Quynh Nguyen is a third-year Ph.D. student looking into phase- and shape-controlled synthesis of nanocrystals for catalysis and energy-related applications. “What fascinates me is the ability to manipulate matter at the nanoscale to drive sustainable advances,” Nguyen says. “This field places me at the exciting intersection of chemistry, materials science, and nanotechnology, aiming to address current challenges in sustainability and renewable energy.”

Nguyen’s Ph.D. advisor is Younan Xia, professor, Brock Family Chair and Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar in Nanomedicine. “Xia's guidance and expertise have been instrumental in shaping my research focus and methodology. Beyond the lab, he has consistently encouraged me to pursue opportunities that contribute to both my academic and professional development, for which I am immensely grateful.”

Eliza Gazda

Eliza Gazda, a fifth-year graduate scholar, is working in the field of multi-messenger particle astrophysics.

Gazda designed, tested, and integrated a telescope camera which was the payload on a scientific balloon launched in May. “The telescope launched is the first optical balloon of this type that operated at high altitudes over 30 kilometers,” Gazda says. “Our telescope observed radiative air showers from high energy cosmic rays and particles which travel across the Earth from extreme astrophysical objects like neutron stars and black holes. Once analyzed, this work will give us insight into high energy events that occur in space, and allow us to design and launch future similar telescopes.”

 Gazda’s mentor is Associate Professor Nepomuk Otte, “who guided me in the past through a summer internship at Georgia Tech and inspired me to come back to work on my Ph.D. here. Not only has he taught me lab skills, but he helps me with my career goals, and guides me in exploring our research field, networking, and learning about various disciplines within the field.”

Sydney Popsuj 

A fifth-year Ph.D. student, Sydney Popsuj is researching the gene Dkk3 and how it might regulate neurodevelopment and neurodegeneration in tunicates, close siblings to vertebrates. “This gene is implicated in Alzheimer's disease and dementia, but because it is hard to study in disease models, we don't have a strong grasp on the general functionality of the gene. I am using tunicates as a model system to study because they are biphasic, meaning they have both a larval and adult stage. This work is very exciting to me because it incorporates large scale evolutionary questions, while also having an impact on better understanding a gene that seems quite important to diseases and disorders.”

Popsuj thanks Georgia Tech faculty members Shuyi Nie, Joe LaChance, Patrick McGrath, Tim Cope, and Billie Swalla at the University of Washington “for pushing me to find new and exciting avenues into how to relate and generalize my work. These mentors have also encouraged me to expand outside my comfort zone in academics and to embrace new technologies and approaches that will hopefully further expand methods and protocols available to tunicate researchers.”

Jose Luis Ramirez-Colón

A third-year graduate scholar, Jose Luis Ramirez-Colón “has always been fascinated by the question of where we come from, and my time at Georgia Tech has been dedicated to using science as a tool to further explore this question.” His research focuses on exploring the organic inventory present in carbonaceous chondrites, meteorites that are like time capsules from the early days of the Solar System. 

“Many organic classes present in all life as we know it, such as amino acids, sugars, and nucleobases, have been detected in these meteorites; therefore, there’s this idea that these meteorites might've delivered these essential building blocks to early Earth to kick-start life as we know it,” Ramirez-Colón says. His mission at Georgia Tech is to develop methods to detect, extract, and characterize those building blocks. 

Ramirez-Colón wants to acknowledge “the remarkable contributions of my advisor and mentor, Christopher Carr, who has played a pivotal role in propelling my journey as an advancing Puerto Rican scientist. Carr not only granted me the freedom to pursue the questions that have always ignited my passion for science, but also equipped me with the essential tools and resources needed to conduct meaningful research.”

Sidney Scott-Sharoni

Sidney Scott-Sharoni is entering her fourth year of Ph.D. studies. An engineering psychology major, Scott-Sharoni focuses on “understanding how humans interact and conceptualize artificial intelligence devices,” she explains. 

“Specifically, I investigate creative methods to convey information to calibrate users’ trust, and understand their psychological well-being, most often in automated vehicles,” Scott-Sharoni says. “I love my area of research because it combines the study of people with the study of innovative technology. I feel like I am researching the people of the future!”

 Scott-Sharoni’s advisor, Professor Bruce Walker, “has significantly helped my personal and professional development as a researcher. I am very grateful for his continued mentorship throughout my graduate education.”

 

The College of Sciences congratulates six of its graduate scholars who have won Herbert P. Haley Fellowships for the 2023-24 school year.

The new Haley Fellows are:

Haley scholars receive a one-time merit award of up to $4,000 thanks to the generosity of the late Marion Peacock Haley. Haley’s estate established the creation of merit-based graduate fellowships at Georgia Tech in honor of her late husband, Herbert P. Haley (ME 1933). It is an award which may be held in conjunction with other funding, assistantships, or fellowships, if applicable. 

Meet the Haley Fellows

Jessica Deutsch

Jessica Deutsch is a fifth-year Ph.D. student studying analytical chemistry. “One of the most intriguing aspects of analytical chemistry is that the field focuses on studying invisible things in order to make sense of the visible,” Deuthsch says. “I am researching a deadly coral disease that affects Florida and Caribbean reefs. I aim to provide insight into how this disease impacts the production of small molecules using a mass spectrometry-based approach, which can provide insight into how relationships between the coral animal, algae, and bacteria may be impacted by this disease.”

She wishes to thank Assistant Professor Neha Garg “for her mentorship and the opportunities she has provided that have enabled me to develop my research skills.”
 

Quynh Nguyen

Quynh Nguyen is a third-year Ph.D. student looking into phase- and shape-controlled synthesis of nanocrystals for catalysis and energy-related applications. “What fascinates me is the ability to manipulate matter at the nanoscale to drive sustainable advances,” Nguyen says. “This field places me at the exciting intersection of chemistry, materials science, and nanotechnology, aiming to address current challenges in sustainability and renewable energy.”

Nguyen’s Ph.D. advisor is Younan Xia, professor, Brock Family Chair and Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar in Nanomedicine. “Xia's guidance and expertise have been instrumental in shaping my research focus and methodology. Beyond the lab, he has consistently encouraged me to pursue opportunities that contribute to both my academic and professional development, for which I am immensely grateful.”

Eliza Gazda

Eliza Gazda, a fifth-year graduate scholar, is working in the field of multi-messenger particle astrophysics.

Gazda designed, tested, and integrated a telescope camera which was the payload on a scientific balloon launched in May. “The telescope launched is the first optical balloon of this type that operated at high altitudes over 30 kilometers,” Gazda says. “Our telescope observed radiative air showers from high energy cosmic rays and particles which travel across the Earth from extreme astrophysical objects like neutron stars and black holes. Once analyzed, this work will give us insight into high energy events that occur in space, and allow us to design and launch future similar telescopes.”

 Gazda’s mentor is Associate Professor Nepomuk Otte, “who guided me in the past through a summer internship at Georgia Tech and inspired me to come back to work on my Ph.D. here. Not only has he taught me lab skills, but he helps me with my career goals, and guides me in exploring our research field, networking, and learning about various disciplines within the field.”

Sydney Popsuj 

A fifth-year Ph.D. student, Sydney Popsuj is researching the gene Dkk3 and how it might regulate neurodevelopment and neurodegeneration in tunicates, close siblings to vertebrates. “This gene is implicated in Alzheimer's disease and dementia, but because it is hard to study in disease models, we don't have a strong grasp on the general functionality of the gene. I am using tunicates as a model system to study because they are biphasic, meaning they have both a larval and adult stage. This work is very exciting to me because it incorporates large scale evolutionary questions, while also having an impact on better understanding a gene that seems quite important to diseases and disorders.”

Popsuj thanks Georgia Tech faculty members Shuyi Nie, Joe LaChance, Patrick McGrath, Tim Cope, and Billie Swalla at the University of Washington “for pushing me to find new and exciting avenues into how to relate and generalize my work. These mentors have also encouraged me to expand outside my comfort zone in academics and to embrace new technologies and approaches that will hopefully further expand methods and protocols available to tunicate researchers.”

Jose Luis Ramirez-Colón

A third-year graduate scholar, Jose Luis Ramirez-Colón “has always been fascinated by the question of where we come from, and my time at Georgia Tech has been dedicated to using science as a tool to further explore this question.” His research focuses on exploring the organic inventory present in carbonaceous chondrites, meteorites that are like time capsules from the early days of the Solar System. 

“Many organic classes present in all life as we know it, such as amino acids, sugars, and nucleobases, have been detected in these meteorites; therefore, there’s this idea that these meteorites might've delivered these essential building blocks to early Earth to kick-start life as we know it,” Ramirez-Colón says. His mission at Georgia Tech is to develop methods to detect, extract, and characterize those building blocks. 

Ramirez-Colón wants to acknowledge “the remarkable contributions of my advisor and mentor, Christopher Carr, who has played a pivotal role in propelling my journey as an advancing Puerto Rican scientist. Carr not only granted me the freedom to pursue the questions that have always ignited my passion for science, but also equipped me with the essential tools and resources needed to conduct meaningful research.”

Sidney Scott-Sharoni

Sidney Scott-Sharoni is entering her fourth year of Ph.D. studies. An engineering psychology major, Scott-Sharoni focuses on “understanding how humans interact and conceptualize artificial intelligence devices,” she explains. 

“Specifically, I investigate creative methods to convey information to calibrate users’ trust, and understand their psychological well-being, most often in automated vehicles,” Scott-Sharoni says. “I love my area of research because it combines the study of people with the study of innovative technology. I feel like I am researching the people of the future!”

 Scott-Sharoni’s advisor, Professor Bruce Walker, “has significantly helped my personal and professional development as a researcher. I am very grateful for his continued mentorship throughout my graduate education.”

 

Tara Holdampf is the new College of Sciences satellite counselor, and will provide consultation services and support for students from an office at the Molecular Science and Engineering Building (MoSE). 

“I'm excited to join the incredibly welcoming and talented group at the College of Sciences at Georgia Tech as a satellite counselor,” Holdampf says, “to continue the process of breaking down barriers between students and mental health services.”

Satellite counselor locations improve accessibility for students by providing counseling in places where students spend most of their time. Placing a counselor in an academic department helps to destigmatize mental health and may serve those who might hesitate to go to the Georgia Tech Counseling Center. A primary goal is to reach students who might not have otherwise sought out services. 

Holdampf will provide a wide variety of services such as individual counseling, group counseling, psycho-educational workshops, and walk-in hours for brief consultations (available to students, or faculty/staff who need to consult about a student). 

Holdampf issues a reminder that “as stress levels increase, and the fall semester continues, please know that GT CARE and GTCC are here to offer confidential support and services to students in need of mental healthcare.”

Currently enrolled interested students can reach out to GT CARE at (404) 894-3498 to schedule an initial assessment, and to be connected to health and wellness services. Current clients can continue to reach their GTCC counselor via email.

Holdampf will be offering consultation hours during which students, faculty, and staff can meet to learn more about mental health resources on campus, and/or to discuss a specific non-emergency student concern. These consults typically last 15 minutes. Those interested can email Holdampf at tara.holdampf@studentlife.gatech.edu to request a meeting. Holdampf will respond with a date/time and link/location for the consultation.

Find Tara's consultation hours and more resources here.

 

Students in need of mental health support after hours can call the GTCC main number at 404-894-2575, and follow the prompts to speak with an after-hours counselor.  Please visit the GTCC website for upcoming workshops, Let’s Talk sessions, and online offerings.

 

Holdampf, who has practiced in a higher education setting for seven years, has an M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and is a Licensed Professional Counselor in Georgia. Holdampf is also a Certified Clinical Trauma Professional and serves on the council of the Georgia College Counseling Association.

For his latest research on motor skills, visual learning, and their effects on human physiology, School of Biological Sciences associate professor Lewis Wheaton and his team went all the way back to the Paleolithic Era to study a very retro skill: stone toolmaking.

“One of the cool things about this particular study,” Wheaton says, “is this opportunity to look at a completely novel motor task, something most people have no idea how to do, and that’s making a stone tool.”

The new research, published today in Communications Biology, attempts to fill in the gaps when it comes to the science of how we learn complex motor skills — and what may be required to relearn them. 

Wheaton says there are studies researching the behavioral changes that are involved with learning complex skills. But research is still thin on how people adapt their visuomotor skills (how vision and movements combine) to carry out a complex task. Wheaton’s current study sought to quantify and evaluate the changes and relationship in action perception processes – how we understand actions, then select, organize, and interpret what needs to be done for a particular task. 

“The overall motivation was to determine if we could see any kind of emerging relationship between the perceptual system and the motor system, as somebody is really trying to learn to do this skill,” Wheaton says. Those are important processes to understand, he adds, not just for how people attain complex motor skills learning, but what would be needed for motor relearning, as in a rehabilitation setting.

Wheaton conducted the research with graduate students Kristel Yu Tiamco Bayani and Nikhilesh Natraj, plus three researchers from Emory University’s Department of Anthropology.

Tracking the eyes to learn about learning 

The test subjects in the study watched videos of paleolithic stone toolmaking for more than 90 hours of training. The subjects’ visual gaze patterns and motor performance were checked at three different training time points: the first time they watched the video, at 50 hours of training, and at approximately 90 hours. Everybody was able to make a stone tool (with varying degrees of success) at 90 hours, but some picked up the skills at 50 hours.

Wheaton says there was a lot of information to pay attention to in the videos. “There’s a lot of physics in (making stone tools). You’re hitting a rock which is made up of all different kinds of material. There could be a fissure or fault lines, and if you hit it the wrong way it could crumble. When you’re doing it at first, you don’t know that.”

As the video training went on, the participants started to pick up cues about how to strike the rock, along with other aspects of toolmaking. “At first you’re watching from curiosity, then you’re watching with intent.”

That was the exciting part for Wheaton and his team: Being able to see the different phases of learning during the training — which they actually could see by monitoring gaze tracking, or where the subjects’ eyes landed on the video screen as they watched (see photo.)

“Part of the study was to understand the variability where they are visually focused as they get better at the task,” he says.

That’s how Wheaton’s team found there are certain parts of the skills learning that connect better to gaze, but others that connect better to the physical act of making a stone tool. “As you’re going through time, your motor abilities are changing, and at some point that allows you to watch somebody else perform the same task differently, suggesting you’re able to follow the action better, and pull more information from the video in a much clearer way.”

The study not only found a connection between gaze and motor skills learning, but that the connection evolved as the learning went on. The next step in this research, Wheaton says, should include brain imaging “heat maps” to determine where learning takes place with this process. 

That could also help Wheaton’s team apply these lessons for rehabilitation purposes.

“That’s the link between that and some of the other work we’ve done in a rehab context,” he says. “If you’re watching somebody perform a task, if you’re undergoing rehab, there are different ways you’re watching the task. You’re not always watching it the same way. Maybe it depends on how good you are, or how you’re impaired, but all those variables play a role into what you’re visually pulling out” of the rehab training.

 

DOI: doi.org/10.1038/s42003-021-02768-w

Atlanta is often called the “city in a forest” because of its lush canopy of trees, uncommon for a major city. In the heart of that forest sits Georgia Tech’s 400-acre campus. And within campus lies a variety of wildlife that has made Georgia Tech its home.

“I don’t think most people are aware of wildlife on campus,” said Emily Weigel, senior academic professional in the School of Biological Sciences. “They might see a feral cat here or there, but they don’t really think about all the other animals that live on campus. Georgia Tech is the animals’ home base, and they probably don’t know anything other than they were born in this area. They don’t know they’re in the middle of a city.”

Included in the biodiversity surveys of the area are squirrels, possums, raccoons, rats, and birds. Several months ago a couple of coyotes were spotted, but they were just passing through campus. At least two foxes live in the glade, a densely forested area behind the president’s residence on the north side of campus.

Ben Seleb, a Ph.D. student in quantitative biosciences, is developing an open source camera for studying the foxes and other wildlife. He and his colleagues at Tech4Wildife, a course and campus organization devoted to the conservation of wildlife, have been monitoring the foxes.

“We had some suspicions that foxes were in the glade,” Seleb said. “It’s a very secluded area with dense vegetation, so it’s a great spot for campus wildlife to hide during the day and then come out at night.”

To confirm their suspicions, they set up cameras inside the glade and left them for a couple of weeks. When they reviewed the images, they had captured two foxes on camera at the same time.

“We know there could be more, but we’ve only seen two foxes at one time. They’re difficult to tell apart, but we’re working on identifying individuals,” he said. “There are a number of other animals on campus, and the glade is where many of them live. We have seen raccoons, possums, and a couple of feral cats that travel in and out of the glade.”

The glade connects to Tech’s new EcoCommons, a lush 8-acre woodland area near the center of campus, providing a pathway for wildlife to travel into campus at night, while still giving them the cover of vegetation. Georgia Tech generally offers a handful of classes related to wildlife or ecology, but the amount of wildlife on campus is creating new research opportunities.

“I’m happy to see programs giving students opportunities that they may not have been aware of,” Seleb said.

Birds, Birds, Birds

The lush vegetation on campus provides birds with a source of nutrition as well as a good place to build nests. Horticulturalist Steve Place, who can usually be found working near The Kendeda Building for Innovative Sustainable Design, helps to create a native habitat to support the birds.

“We’re reintroducing native plants to recreate the habitat for the native birds,” Place said. “When you move away from the native landscape it encourages ‘generalist’ birds that are more tolerant of what they can eat. We want to encourage the reemergence of the rarer species of birds that are dependent on particular grasses and berries.”

The campus landscape team is removing ivy and other invasive non-native plants near The Kendeda Building. They’re building a sustainable and regenerative ecosystem that can support itself and the endemic species in the area. Place said that people who visit the area regularly will begin to notice the variety of birds.

“If you’re observant and patient enough you’ll see different behaviors, hear different songs, and observe mating rituals,” he said. “There is a lot going on with the birds. It’s just a matter of being quiet and paying attention.”

The Kendeda Building and the adjacent EcoCommons are part of a wildlife sanctuary certified by the Georgia Audubon Society, making Georgia Tech the first university campus building in Georgia to receive the designation.

Tips for Co-existing With Campus Wildlife

Emily Weigel, senior academic professional in the School of Biological Sciences, provided the following tips.

  • In general if you see wildlife on campus keep your distance and just observe. Take in the sights and sounds.
  • If possible, record the encounter and post it to iNaturalist, noting when and where the animal was spotted, for Tech’s students and team of scientists studying wildlife.
  • Many animals will purposefully avoid you, but if an animal seems to be unafraid or approaches you, do not interact. Keep yourself and any children or pets away.  
  • Do not feed wildlife. This can cause some animals to stray too far into high traffic areas (in search of food) and potentially get hit by cars. In some cases feeding the animals robs the adults of the ability to teach their young to forage effectively.
  • If you find what appears to be “abandoned” young, do not handle them; just monitor them until their parent returns. Most of the time the parent has not really abandoned them, but if you handle the young they may then do so.
  • Wildlife rehabbers are legally able to perform any recovery and recouping necessary. Should you find a dead bird on campus, you can help get the information logged for Georgia Audubon’s windows strike data collection by emailing Emily.Weigel@biosci.gatech.edu. If you act quickly, the bird can be recovered for educational purposes through Audubon.

By Frida Carrera

 

As one of the nation’s leading research institutions, Georgia Tech has always emphasized the pursuit of progress and service in its research endeavors. With such a strong focus on research, it is only right that many students at Tech have seized their opportunities to make an impact on the real world and solve complex problems. Taking initiative, asking the right questions, and being passionate about making a positive impact are innate characteristics that make a researcher, and Georgia Tech has in no way come short of giving rise to many exemplary researchers. The following undergraduate student researchers are serving as catalysts for innovation and development in their respective fields and are representative of Georgia Tech’s mission in developing leadership and improving the human condition. 

Prahathishree (Premi) Mohanavelu is a 5th-year Computer Science major with a Pre-Health concentration. She conducts research with Dr. Cassie Mitchell in Biomedical Engineering on informatics-based literature mapping to personalize therapy for Chronic Myeloid Leukemia. 

“I was really looking for a way to apply the concepts I was learning in my computer science classes to the field of healthcare, and I felt this position was the perfect fit for that.” 

One of her main reasons for conducting this research was her interest in medical innovation. Premi believes the future of medicine will rely on preventative care and says her research position has also helped her with oral presentation and communication skills. Premi also serves as president of the Undergraduate Research Ambassadors and utilizes her research role and experience to teach prospective research students the ins and outs of obtaining research knowledge.

Yiyang (Diana) Wang is a 4th-year Computer Science major conducting research with Dr. Jennifer Kim on contact tracing visualization tool design and implementation. Her research is applicable to easily contracted illnesses including COVID-19. Yiyang believes her research will help people understand the importance of contact tracing and how data collection, for contact tracing purposes, could be beneficial. Yiyang’s goal is to become a software engineer and wants to focus on improving technology for the benefit of the user. Yiyang thanks the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) for obtaining her position as it was a major resource for her in finding and landing her current research position. 

Milan Riddick is currently a 5th-year Biomedical Engineering major with a minor in Health, Medicine, and Society conducting research with Dr. Jennifer Singh in the area of History, Technology, and Society on the mistrust of the COVID-19 vaccine among black citizens of Georgia. Milan has been the primary lead in her own research and has combined her passions for medical sociology and research to do what she loves. From proposing, securing funding, recruiting, and interviewing, Milan had a vision from the start and hopes to understand and improve the trust disparity between black Georgia citizens and the COVID-19 vaccine. Milan hopes her current research will aid with the trust between people and medicine as well as securing her path to graduate school.

William York is a 4th-year Biomedical Engineering major with a concentration in Pre-Health. He is currently conducting research with Dr. Edward Botchwey on using biomaterials to immunomodulate muscular defects for tissue regeneration. He believes his research is important because it will aid in the initiative in potentially replacing stem cells with exosomes in stem cell research while retaining the same regenerative effects and creating fewer risks. William wasn’t sure about research when he first arrived at Tech, but after learning the opportunities and resources UROP had for undergraduate students, he quickly became involved. William is now currently in the Research Option program and is also an Undergraduate Research Ambassador providing guidance to students also interested in research. 

Hannah Shin is a 3rd-year Biology major with a concentration in Physiology and is conducting research with Dr. Colin Harrison on measuring the organization of biological knowledge around experimental design utilizing a card sorting task. Hannah’s research uses its results to identify the weak areas in biology programs and make the necessary revisions to instruct students more effectively. Hannah believes her research will also aid her in future endeavors. 

 “My career goal is medical school and I believe my research will advance both my academic and career goals because it exposes me to real-world applications of data analysis and allows me to dive into the differences in knowledge organization among people of different backgrounds.” 

 Hannah is also a participant in the Research Option program and is the executive vice president of the Undergraduate Research Ambassadors. She uses her research and personal experience to help students gain confidence in pursuing research they are passionate about. 

 

Read more about Undergraduate Research opportunities by going to http://urop.gatech.edu

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