It's time to turn the p(h)age (...into a battery)

After I finished the Mod 2 report, all I wanted to do was rest. On the day it was due, I worked on the assignment during a 4 hour car ride back from a track meet at Princeton University. Let me tell you, trying to think and write about RNAseq at 6:30 am is extremely difficult, especially when your laptop jumps every time the van hits a small crack in the road.

Nevertheless, we made it. Mod 2 was finished!! And then all I wanted to do was sleep.

Me after the Mod 2 report:


But Mod 3 had just begun! Batteries, viruses, and nanomaterials galore! What could be more exciting? Honestly though, making a battery out of bacteriophage is awesome. Professor Belcher's excitement and enthusiasm for all things nano really kept me engaged and interested in the material, and obviously making a battery out of a virus is soooo cool. Though Jenna and I encountered some difficulties with our cathode material, we were still able to create some pretty great batteries (thanks Professor Jifa!).

However a research proposal that's worth 20% of your grade, not so awesome.

Me when I realized we still had a major assignment due a few weeks after the Mod 2 report:


Actually though, I really enjoyed the process of preparing a proposal. I enjoyed learning about something that I was interested in, and, of course, working with my brilliant partner was a huge bonus. We were really interested in mediated drug transport into the brain, and decided to focus on liposomes as transport vehicles for glioblastoma multiforme treatment.

Overall, I really enjoyed the creative aspect of the research proposal. This was the chance for us to talk about relatively novel research and potential methods/expected results! It was fun to think about the future implications of the work and how it may impact society in the future. It helped remind me what science is really about: creativity, exploration, and discovering new things.

If Jenna and I actually conducted our proposed research:


As a whole, I have learned a great deal about being a better student, scientist, and collaborator thanks to this class. Many aspects of the curriculum were very new for me, and I feel as though I benefited from the encouragement, constructive criticism, and guidance from all of the staff. So far, 20.109 has been the most valuable class at MIT as I gained hands-on skills and greatly improved my ability to communicate scientific findings to a specific audience. Thank you for all of the fun memories! I'm looking forward to 20.309!

- Marissa

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