MindScope Issue 7

MindSc pe SIMMONS SCIENCE MAGAZINE

Issue No. 7

Fall 2018

Letter from the Editor-in-Chief Kristen Doucette

Editor

Managing Editor Sierra McCaffrey Secretary Brooke Lucier Treasurer Alex Kemna SGA Representative Christina Sun Communications Manager Gabriela Taslitsky Androssenko MindScope Senate President Sophie Streimer Head Copy Editor Mackenzie Farkus Graphic Designer Olivia Hart Faculty Advisor Dr. Rich Gurney MindScope Senate Members Etta Covert Grace Wilson Kolby Shaw Taryn Lipiner Contributing Writers Ariana Infanti Charlotte Rivard Kimanna Nguyen Kristin Meader Lexie Jarosz Liz Vossen Maddie Karod Meaghan Hurley Olivia Wolff Sarah Corbett Talisi Meyer Contributing Copy Editors Ashmita KC Mehbooba Tamanna Sophie Lawsure Cover Design Olivia Hart Printing Copy/Mail Center Simmons University 300 Fenway Boston, MA 02115

Courtesy of Diana Levine

Dear Readers, At the start of the Fall 2018 semester, Simmons College transitioned into Simmons University. Most of the science disciplines at Simmons have now been dispersed between three colleges, the College of Natural, Behavioral and Health Sciences, the College of Organizational, Computational and Information Sciences, and the College of Social Sciences, Policy and Practice. MindScope brings students studying areas of STEM and health sciences from these three new colleges together to form an interdisciplinary community within Simmons University.

In our 7th issue of MindScope magazine, you’ll find articles relating to our theme of technology. Technology is constantly changing and improving in ways we didn’t imagine were possible.

It has changed the way we communicate, how we learn new information, and how we complete tasks. Although this topic is very broad, Simmons students once again found a way to bring the theme back to what they are most passionate about, which is caring about others by innovational breakthroughs in science. The technology articles in this issue aren’t focused on life-like robots or how artificial intelligence might one day take over the world — instead, students are writing about new innovations in medical technology, such as contact lenses that could help diabetics monitor their glucose levels, or how scientists are now able to engineer drug producing bacteria as a new method of delivering pharmaceuticals to patients.

MindScope has recently created a website to keep our readers and writers connected and informed in between issues of the magazine. On MindScope.org, you can read about research being done by Simmons students on and off campus, events held

by MindScope and other science organizations in and around Simmons, and also get to know our executive board members.

Thank you again to our amazing executive board and our talented writers, editors, and designer for your dedication to the organization and for contributing to the Fall issue of MindScope!

Sincerely, Kristen Doucette

Table of Contents Technology

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Another Revolution in Boston: CAR T Cells New MRI Technology in the NICU Hungry for 3D Printing?

Meet Dean desJardins Advancements in Sustainable Fishing WHOOP There It Is Embracing Your Inner Outsider Engineering Drug Producing Bacteria 5 Future Medical Innovations

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Natural Sciences

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Gut Instincts 16 Nobel Women 18 Warning: Contains Cilantro 20

Health Sciences

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Laughter Rx 21 “To Err Is Human� 22

SIMScenes 24 7 Things I Learned from National Conferences 24 Simmons Overseas 26

Another Revolution in Boston: CAR T Cells

agnate.co.uk

by Kimanna Nguyen I knew that Boston was one of the country’s top medical hubs, but I was unaware of the revolutionary CAR T cell studies being performed here. CAR T cells reference the artificial Chimeric Antigen Receptor added to T cells, which are otherwise known as white blood cells. I first heard of this therapy when I was at my nursing clinical when one of my patients was getting ready for their CAR T cell transfusion. I remember being in the room and seeing this tiny bag with about a few milliliters of liquid hanging from the IV stand. The scientist who helped create these cells told us that this small bag of clear liquid will end up costing the patient around $350,000. We watched as the liquid was infused and backwashed twice to make sure that every ounce of it was transfused into the patient’s body. CAR T cell therapy is still in clinical trials, and Boston is one of the few cities in the country that this therapy is being tested in.

T cells are a huge part of the adaptive immune system; they provide long-term cellular memory of specific antigens. These antigens are substances that are foreign to the body and cause an immune response. Essentially, CAR T cell therapy is taking a patient’s own T cells and reprogramming them to recognize and attack the patient’s cancer cells. To begin this therapy, T cells are removed from a patient’s blood, and an artificial receptor that binds to a specific protein in the patient’s cancer cells is added.

However, these T cells must have a specific receptor to match a specific antigen in order to work (June et al., 2018). This special receptor is called the Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR). With CAR T cell therapy, the patient’s own immune system is essentially producing the anti-cancer chemicals, instead of a treatment like chemotherapy that uses pharmaceutical agents to get rid of the cancer.

Patients may receive chemotherapy a few days before the CAR T cell infusion to help lower the number of other immune cells.

This process ensures that the CAR T cells have a better chance of

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fighting the cancer (June et al., 2018). This chemotherapy, however, is not very strong. CAR T cells work best when there are some cancer cells to attack. Once the CAR T cells start binding with cancer cells, they start to multiply and can destroy even more cancer cells.

Unfortunately, like chemotherapy and other cancer treatments, CAR T cell therapy has some side effects. The most common side effects noted so far in clinical trials are chills, high temperatures, and dangerously low blood pressure in the days after it is administered (“Car T cell Therapies”, n.d). Doctors are still learning how to manage these side effects that are collectively termed “cytokine release syndrome. ” Other serious side effects can include neurotoxicity, or changes in the brain that cause confusion, seizures or severe headaches. Some patients may even develop serious infections, a low blood cell count, and a weakened immune system.

CAR T cell therapy is still undergoing clinical trial. CAR T cell therapy has been approved for use in cases of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in both children and young adults, in advanced or recurrent large B cell lymphoma and in one type of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. This therapy has shown encouraging results for patients with these three types of cancer. For many patients in these clinical trials, their cancer status has improved after the treatment, although researchers are still studying whether the patients will stay in remission, as well as the long term side effects of CAR T cell therapy.

June, C. H., Connor, R., Kalewkar, O., Ghanessi, S., & Malone, M. (2018, March 23). 0 REVIEW CAR T cell immunotherapy for human cancer. Science Magazine. Retrieved September 20, 2018, from http://science.sciencemag.org/ content/359/6382/1361 Townsend, M. H., Shrestha, G., Robison, R. A., & O’Neill, K. L. (2018, July 21). The expansion of targetable biomarkers for CAR T cell therapy. Retrieved September 20, 2018, from https://jeccr.biomedcentral.com/ articles/10.1186/s13046-018-0817-0 CAR T-cell Therapies. (n.d.). Retrieved September 20, 2018, from https://www.cancer.org/treatment/treatmentsand-side-effects/treatment-types/immunotherapy/car-t-cell1.html

UNKNOWN MedGadget

New MRI Technology in the NICU

by Lexie Jarosz As the Simmons University community knows from the buzzing of sirens down Brookline Ave at 2 a.m., we are in a major medical hub. People from all over the world and close by are aware of the care that the Longwood Medical Area provides for all ages, from newborn to geriatric.

One of these world-renowned hospitals located here in Boston is Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH). Brigham houses the largest and most state-of-the-art healthcare facilities for critically ill babies and mothers post-birth, known as the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, or the NICU. This includes those that are premature, have developmental disorders, are born with inherited conditions, and have serious health concerns that a normal acute care floor is not trained to work with. This floor at BWH nurses around 3,000 babies and families each year. In the upcoming years, there will certainly be an increase in the amount of patients this NICU tends to, due to the first FDA-approved, NICU-dedicated MRI system in the U.S. (“NICU”, 2018).

An MRI is a medical device with which medical professionals can diagnose conditions using magnetic and radio waves to observe the organs and soft tissue in a patient. The MRI is a painless procedure in which the patient is placed in a tube like machine, as the device takes cross-sectional images of the desired body part (Lewis & Dirksen, 2011). For neonatal care, an MRI is most often used to detect any heart issues that a baby may have because it can monitor the structure and function of large organs.

On September 8th, 2018, the EMBRACE™, manufactured by Aspect Imaging MRI, was installed with a crane at the Brigham’s NICU. The machine will shorten the time in which it takes to transfer these neonatal patients to an MRI that is normally far away from the NICU right after they are born, in which time can be critical in their first few hours of life. This system will be located within the NICU, allowing for easy access and fast observation to treat patients quick and effectively. This MRI system has a 1 Tesla magnet and “enables continuous monitoring of the infant’s vital parameters during scan in an incubator-like environment” (“MRI for Neonatal Intensive Care”, n.d.). It’s also self-shielded, which eliminates the need for a special MRI shielded room.

This machine will lead the medical professionals to have a higher contrast and greater sensitivity, allowing a more detailed image, specifically for neurocritical conditions, such as cerebral palsy or epilepsy. The machine will be temperature - regulated for the neonate in an incubator. This will allow the patient to be monitored more close and be held steady for the image, therefore leading to a greater outcome for their treatment and overall health.

BWH Press Release - Brigham and Women’s Hospital. (2018, September 10). Retrieved from https://www.brighamandwomens.org/about-bwh/newsroom/press-releases-detail?id=3125 Lewis, S. L., & Dirksen, S. R. (2011). Medical surgical nursing: Assessment and management of clinical problems (8th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Elsevier Mosby.

Newborn Intensive Care Unit (NICU) - Brigham and Women’s Hospital. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.brighamandwomens.org/pediatric-newborn-medicine/newborn-intensive-care MRI for Neonatal Intensive Care in the NICU - Aspect Imaging. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.neonatalmri. com/

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Food Ink

Hungry for 3D Printing?

by Ariana Infanti There’s never a dull moment in the food industry. That is especially true right now as 3D printing technology, also called additive manufacturing, offers a new and unique method of food production that is well worth exploring. The first printers specifically designed to print foods were created a decade ago, and since then, scientists have been learning more about how these printers can benefit humans in a wide variety of applications.

The printing process starts with a semi-liquified food material that can be extruded through the printer’s nozzle. There are three categories of printing materials: natively printable, non-printable traditional foods, and alternative ingredients (Sun et al. 2015, pg 1609). Smooth, malleable foods like hummus, chocolate, frosting, and cheese are in the natively printable category because they can easily be extruded through the printer’s syringe. Ice, meat, fruits and vegetables are categorized as non-printable because they require pureeing and the addition of hydrocolloids, like xanthan gum or gelatin, in order to function in the printer (Sun et al., 2015, pg 1609). The final category, alternative ingredients, includes materials like algae, fungi, seaweed, insects, or waste products from agricultural processes (Sun et al., 2015, pg 1609). Using these ingredients has allowed the production of foods like chocolates, sugary confections, pizza, pasta, and even vegetables and meats to be outsourced to a 3D printer (Lupton & Turner, 2018, pg 405).

3D-printed food offers many benefits to society. First, people could tailor their food to exactly fulfill their personal nutritional needs by manipulating the starting materials. The amounts of macro- and micro-nutrients could be customized based on an individual’s dietary needs, and dietary issues like allergies, conditions, and diseases could be easily addressed (Sun et al., 2015, pg 1613). The ability to control caloric content of printed

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food products could also provide a method of weight control (Hanley, 2016, pg 300). Several retirement homes in Germany took advantage of the customizing power of 3D printers in order to accommodate elderly residents with dysphagia, a condition that makes chewing and swallowing difficult and sometimes impossible. 3D printers used pureed vegetables that would normally pose a problem for these residents and turned them into easy-to-chew versions of the original food, all while maintaining flavor and nutritional value (Lupton & Turner, 2018, pg 403).

The use of alternative ingredients is a sustainable method of food production, because it can repurpose agricultural residues that would normally be wasted, as well as broaden human food sources for the growing global population’s diets to be sustained (Sun et al., 2015, pg 1614). In particular, increasing demands for meat products poses sustainability and animal cruelty issues, both of which can be alleviated by using food printers to produce meat, rather than raising livestock and killing animals (Sun et al., 2015, pg 1614).

The process of producing foods itself can also be improved by 3D printing technology. Manufacturers would be able to mass-produce artistically designed products and achieve a uniform product every time, regardless of the operator’s skill level (Sun et al., 2015, pg 1613). Once those foods finish printing, there is a lesser need for transportation, packaging, and storage because the food is created all in one step, which ends up saving time and money for the companies (Sun et al., 2015, pg 1613).

Although additive manufacturing in the food industry is not a mainstream technology, and most people have never interacted

BeeHex

with printed foods, it’s important to understand how the average person would react to the concept of food that comes from a printer, especially if this technology is going to expand into everyday usage. To investigate consumer attitudes towards these food products, Deborah Lupton and Bethaney Turner conducted a study of 30 Australian adults who were asked to review photos of 3D-printed foods. They were asked to rate their perceptions of the foods’ nutrition, naturalness, deliciousness, and to decide whether or not they would eat the food themselves and serve it to guests. The foods included sugar confections, carrots, an insect snack, a chicken and vegetable meal, pizza, pasta, and chocolate (Lupton & Turner, 2018, pg 405). The results of the study indicate that 3D- printed foods that resemble regularly prepared foods, such as the pizza and the pasta, will likely receive a positive response. Additionally, the pasta and the chocolate in this study were well-received because the participants were already used to these items being shaped by machinery.

The insect snack received the most negative response because the participants found the main ingredient disgusting, because insects are rarely utilized in Western cuisine and most people don’t consider them suitable for consumption.

The researchers also found that people perceived the printed food to be more artificial than regular food, even though the printers used real foods to create the final products (Lupton & Turner, 2018, pg 416). The researchers describe their conclusions as follows: “Foods that look or are assumed to taste or have a mouth feel too different from the norm, involve higher levels of processing than is generally expected, or are made from unfamiliar ingredients not generally considered edible face far greater challenges in winning status as edible and desirable” (Lupton & Turner, 2018, pg 417). Consumer attitudes are an obstacle that 3D- printed food technology will have to face, and

companies must be mindful of presentation style and marketing strategies in order for their products to succeed in the general market once the technology is ready for widespread use.

Another barrier that could prevent printed food from reaching its full potential is the cost of the technology. The printers themselves cost several thousand dollars and the capsules of printing material are more expensive than buying regular food from the supermarket (Sun et al., 2015, pg 1613). Until researchers find a way to make the technology significantly cheaper, only manufacturing plants and large companies will be able to afford the printers. Individual consumers will have to wait a while longer to experience a 3D printer in their own kitchens.

Although 3D-printed food technologies have come a long way, there is still much work to be done before it can become a dependable food producer for large-scale populations. If researchers can find ways to expand the variety of food that is suitable for printing, discover how to present the products in a more positive manner, and can drive down the costs of the technology, this emerging field could revolutionize the food industry.

It’s definitely possible that in the next few decades, “additive manufacturing could completely change the way we think about diet, health, and nutrition” (Hanley, 2016, pg 300). More time, energy, and money has to be invested to overcome these obsta-

Hanley, A. B. (2016). Additive manufacturing in food and nutrition. Nutrition Bulletin,41(3), 299-301. doi:10.1111/ nbu.12224 Lupton, D., & Turner, B. (2018). “I can’t get past the fact that it is printed”: Consumer attitudes to 3D printed food.

Food, Culture & Society,21(3), 402-418. doi:10.1080/15528014.2018.1451044 Sun, J., Zhou, W., Huang, D., Fuh, J. Y., & Hong, G. S. (2015). An Overview of 3D Printing Technologies for Food Fabrication. Food and Bioprocess Technology,8(8), 1605-1615. doi:10.1007/s11947-015-1528-6

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Meet Dean desJardins

by Charlotte Rivard Dr. Marie desJardins joined Simmons University this year as the founding Dean of the College of Organizational, Computational, and Informational Sciences, also known as COCIS. Her background is in computer science, both in industry and academia, focusing on artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques. Previously, she worked at SRI International, and then the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), where she was a professor and later an Associate Dean for Academic Affairs.

Dean desJardins was an early adopter of computers and recalled the tedious process of using punch cards to write the code, waiting for the output of her code to print, and repeating to correct for any errors. As an undergrad at Harvard University, she studied engineering, focusing mainly on computers. She then went on to get her masters in Computer Science from the University of California, Berkeley. It was there that she took a cognitive psychology course that inspired her to research artificial intelligence, ultimately leading her to SRI International, a scientific research institute.

Part of her work in artificial intelligence involved thinking about how computers could perform teamwork and collaboration. For example, how could a group of robots coordinate relief responses to a natural disaster? Or how could these robots work together to aid military efforts? The other side of her research involved looking at how people interact with machine learning systems.

Machine learning enables computers, including robots, to receive case by case information and generalize it, ultimately improving the quality of the system’s performance. Dean desJardins’ work focused on the phenomena of how to translate information from humans to computers, since human users have a lot of useful input that a computer may not know on its own. For example, when predicting parking availability in the Fenway area, a human might know of extenuating circumstances — if there was a Red Sox game or impending weather — but a computer may not.

She studied how to incorporate insider information like this into predictive systems to best meet the user’s goals.

Dean desJardins also performed valuable work as a leader in higher education. At UMBC, she helped implement professional development groups called teaching circles. Faculty from different departments and with varying levels of experience would be grouped together — not to evaluate, but rather to support and learn from one another throughout the year. At Simmons, she hopes to start a similar program, emphasizing how impactful it is to help someone develop professionally, whether it be a student or a fellow professor. She has always enjoyed giving advice and being in a mentoring position.

As the dean of a new college, Dr. desJardins also has the task of bringing together distinct majors within COCIS. She aims to do this by focusing on themes that would engage students and faculty across multiple disciplines. Preventing the spread of “fake news” and mis- and disinformation in today’s world is one area that she could see COCIS collaborating on in research and prac-

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Courtesy of Paige Burns

tice. As a school with a strong health science focus, Simmons is also positioned well to focus on healthcare analytics. Dr. desJardins hopes to strengthen dialogue and research in the Simmons community in aims of improving representation for minority groups in the healthcare field.

Outside of work, Dean desJardins enjoys doing crossword puzzles, and has placed competitively in national competitions.

On the wall in her office at Simmons hangs a framed crossword puzzle that links the names of students she has done research with at UMBC in the past — a gift from a former student. When asked what she’s most proud of in her career, Dean desJardins mentions the students she had the pleasure of working with.

However, she was careful to mention that if asked about her life, her answer would be her two daughters. We look forward to seeing Dean desJardins leadership develop unity within COCIS and strengthen our community here at Simmons!

Advancements in Sustainable Fishing

by Liz Vossen When deepwater diving became possible for humans, related illnesses became the biggest complication. When humans reach a depth of 20 meters underwater, there is a considerable risk of developing decompression sickness — known as “the bends.”

Fish, who regularly live as deep as 100 meters, share this same inability to come to the surface without issue (Hochhalter, 2011).

Barotrauma refers to the effects of gases on animals as it compresses and expands due to water pressure. Wildlife biologists have therefore shifted their attention to creating devices to combat these traumas and increase populations of pacific rockfish.

In Alaska’s Inside Passage alone, there are 32 species of rockfish that live in deep water pelagos (open ocean) or demersals (rocky areas). These rockfish are often the targets of fisherman who harvest their meat for food, and hunt deep sea fish for sport.

Ask any sport fishermen, and they will tell you how rockfish look above the water: bug-eyed, with their swim bladder protruding from their mouth, and extremely tight in the abdomen.

Historically, in southeast Alaska, if an unwanted rockfish was reeled in, it was thrown to the eagles. On the rare occasion that it was tossed back into the water, it would float to near the surface before eventually becoming food for predators. The most commonly released rockfish are thrown back for being too small to eat. This is problematic for rockfish due to their long lifespan; a longer lifespan typically means that the fish will not spawn until later in their life cycle. That combined with sporadic spawning behavior means that small, young rockfish can’t die wastefully without loss to the population. These fish are not meant to live near the surface of the water — rockfish sent back to surface level had a 22% survival rate, according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) (“Rockfish Conservation”, 2018). Based on the same study, that chance improves to 98% when a release device is used. The high rates of mortality are not due to predation alone, but due to the barotrauma that can leave irreversible damage. In rockfish, this takes the form of an inflated swim bladder, which expands and forces other organs to shift inside the body. The only solution to this is to submerge the fish at the proper depth and speed for recompression.

The ADF&G has officially endorsed a device in response to these concerns, aptly named a deep water release device, otherwise known as a DWRD. This can either be purchased or made at home and closely resembles a regular hook with a weight attached.

These devices are designed to be attached to either a rod or a downrigger, but the ADF&G recommends designating one specifically for the DWRD. It features either a clip or a hook without a barbel, designed to attach to a fish’s lips. The attached weight only needs to weigh between three and ten pounds to work successfully, depending on the individual specimen. This holds true even for large rockfish, who can live to be 80 to 110 years old, although those are less likely to be released (Andrews, 2002). This device comes after several years of fishermen puncturing (or “fizzing”) the inflated swim bladders, which ultimately

SEAQUILIZER

leads to unnecessary pain and increased risk of infection (“Rockfish Conservation”, 2018).

The next hurdle for increasing rockfish population is increasing the use of DWRDs. Rockfish are vulnerable especially because they are often caught accidentally while aiming for bigger bottom fish, like halibut. Still, the ADF&G won’t make it a requirement for the devices to be on sportfishing boats until 2020. Charters were required beginning in the 2018 fishing season, but they are not popular among captains. The problem with fishing regulations and technology is that they are relatively difficult to enforce, especially in Alaska where the enforcement staff is smaller. Local focus on this issue is big nevertheless, if only due to the shifts in population rockfish have experienced since ADF&G began sampling them. The department estimates that on average, 60,000 rockfish are reeled in every year, and more than 4,800 are released. If the Alaskan way of life is to be maintained, then Alaska’s fisheries must be managed to preserve these species.

ADF&G. Rockfish Conservation and Deepwater Release, Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Retrieved October 01, 2018, from http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=fishingsportfishinginfo.rockfishconservation NOAA. (2017). Rockfish Recovery Plan: Puget Sound / Georgia Basin, yelloweye rockfish (sebastes ruberrimus) and bocaccio (sebastes paucispinis)(pp. 1-4) (United States, Department of Commerce). National Marine Fisheries Service.

Neymen, J. (2016, July 28). Soldotna man’s invention helps ensure released rockfish survive. Retrieved October 1, 2018, from https://www.adn.com/outdoors-adventure/fishing/2016/07/28/soldotna-mans-invention-helps-ensure-released-rockfish-survive/ Hochhalter, S. J., & Reed, D. J. (2011). The Effectiveness of Deepwater Release at Improving the Survival of Discarded Yelloweye Rockfish. North American Journal of Fisheries Management,31(5), 852-860. doi:10.1080/02 755947.2011.629718 Andrews, A. H. (2002). Radiometric age validation of the yelloweye rockfish (Sebastes ruberrimus) from southeastern Alaska. Marine and Freshwater Research,32(10), 139-146. doi:10.1071/MF01126

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Multivu

WHOOP There It Is

by Sierra McCaffrey & Sarah Corbett The WHOOP Strap 2.0 is the upcoming, new take on a wearable fitness tracking device. Originally made for elite athletes, this device is worn by professionals such as tennis player Nicole Gibbs, luger Chris Mazdzer, and NBA basketball player Mike Mancias, however, it is now on the market for all consumers. This device is said to unlock and optimize human potential and redefine the bodily response to everyday strains. One of the WHOOP creators is Will Ahmed, a Harvard graduate. Ahmed was the captain of the Men’s Varsity Squash Team (“Our Mission,” 2018) and questioned why it was that he was a Division One athlete and yet knew so little about his body. Ahmed eventually explored this idea and realized that “optimizing performance was not a random sequence of events and decisions, but rather a systematic approach to understanding your body” (“Our Mission,” 2018).

Ahmed spent six years designing this device, working alongside scientists, colleagues, engineers, and doctors. Ahmed’s team created the WHOOP device in Boston.

This lightweight, waterproof wristband has a sleek design that is comfortable for 24-hour wear. The most impressive aspect of this technological breakthrough is the sensor system that is embedded in the elastic wrist strap. The WHOOP devices have sensors that collect data at a rate of 100 times per second, using around 100 megabytes of data per user, everyday that are sent to the cloud and can be reached on mobile devices or computers (Pullen 2017). The sensors focus on a couple of key elements in order to collect data. The data is then calculated and sorted into the three overall sections that determine the wellness of an individual: intensity performance (also known as “strain”), recovery performance (preparedness), and sleep performance.

The first sensor target is heart rate and heart variability. Heart rate is the measure of cardiac activity indicated by number of beats per

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minute (“Heart Rate”, 2018) while heart variation is the measure of variation over time between an individual’s heart beats controlled by the autonomic nervous system (Campos, 2017). The baseline heart rate is tracked while an individual sleeps so it can be compared to that of an active heart rate. Monitoring heart rate and heart variation is an essential tool to raise awareness of how behavior, as well as exercise, affects one’s body and stress levels (Campos, 2017). These two elements are also crucial in calculating daily body strain and the amount of recovery needed through rest and sleep (Smith, 2017).

There is also an accelerometer located in the strap that tracks movement in all forms, not merely limited to steps, that is then calculated in the strain score (Smith, 2017). An accelerometer is considered an electromechanical device that measures acceleration forces (Goodrich, 2013). The forces can be “static”— the continuous force of gravity — or “dynamic,” which is the sense of movement, vibrations, or activity (Goodrich, 2013). The level of physical strain can then be tracked on the accelerometer. That data can be considered in the overall strain calculation.

Furthermore, an individual’s sleep pattern and restlessness has a large impact on how well rested they will be in the day or days to come. The WHOOP sensor measures how long an individual sleeps and also tracks the time spent in each stage of sleep. This data ensures the individual will better understand the quality of rest and recovery. As a result, the WHOOP sleep coach communicates how much sleep the individual needs to reach their desired or peak performance level the next day (“Our Mission,” 2018).

The WHOOP has several activity icons to choose from, ranging from baseball, to meditation, to rock climbing. Because the device takes into account the individual’s fitness benchmark heart rates

Xconomy

such as score prior to going into an activity, active heart rate, and post-activity response, it is able to determine the “strain” (“WHOOP”, 2018). In order to ensure the healthiest and most beneficial outcome, strain and recovery should be balanced. For example, if someone is strained from an activity, their recovery time is expected to be longer than usual. The WHOOP is able to recognize when the strain of an activity decreases for an individual, thereby decreasing their needed recovery time (“WHOOP”, 2018). Strain and recovery time have a positive correlation: as the amount of strain declines and the necessary recovery time also declines.

The tasks that the WHOOP is able to perform not only increase a person’s awareness of their health, but also prevents injury. It’s important to gradually increase your heart rate and loosen up your muscles before diving into a rigorous activity or exercise routine. Similarly, it is beneficial to cool-down after a workout to bring the heart rate back to its baseline rhythm and allow the muscles and joints to relax. This gradual change in pace prevents tightening up or cramps (“Workout Injuries: Preventions and Treatments”, 2018). Users can view their heart rate prior to their workout, identify the strain on their body throughout the duration of the activity, and track their recovery time afterwards to prevent injury, build up their endurance, and improve their overall fitness.

Although the WHOOP does not have a screen directly on the device, you can access the information through an Apple device like an iPhone or Mac computer (Malacoff, 2018). Not only does the WHOOP reveal an individual’s activity continuously through the day (sleep, strain, and recovery) — but it also tracks and reports the average trends in your progress. The WHOOP provides statistics like average calories burned, average amount of sleep received, average resting, and active heart rate (Malacoff, 2018).

Providing this information can act as both positive reinforcement that you are reaching your goals, or as an incentive to power forward and work towards a more rigorous workout session.

Many athletic teams utilize this aspect of the WHOOP the most, because at any given point in time, a coach can access an athlete’s information and monitor their statistics. Within the last year, the Major League Baseball Association approved the WHOOP device for in- game use. This new rule can not only prevent injuries, but also improve the overall wellbeing of the players so they can reach their desired performance level.

The WHOOP device could pave the way for average athletes as well as professionals down the road. Hopefully the use of all this personal data will prevent injuries, improve performance, and aid in making individuals healthier.

Campos, M. (2017) Heart rate variability: A new way to track well-being. Retrieved from https://www.health. harvard.edu/blog/heart-rate-variability-new-way-track-well-2017112212789 Goodrich, R. (2013) Accelerometers: What They Are & How They Work. Retrieved from https://www.livescience. com/40102-accelerometers.html Merriam-Webster. Heart Rate. Retrieved from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/heart%20rate Ober Haeuser. WHOOP. Retrieved from http://oberhaeuser.info/work/whoop-performance-optimization-system Malacoff, J. (2018) I Tried the Fanciest Fitness Tracker On the Market. Retrieved from https://www.shape.com/ fitness/gear/whoop-fitness-tracker-review-workout-recovery-features Pullen, J.P. Why Professional Athletes Love This Fitness Band. Retrieved from http://time.com/4744459/whoopstrap-fitness-tracker-band/ Smith, C. (2017) Whoop Strap 2.0 Review. Retrieved from https://www.wareable.com/fitness-trackers/whoopstrap-2-review WebMD. Workout Injuries: Preventions and Treatments.Retrieved from https://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/guide/workout-injuries-prevention-and-treatment#1 WHOOP. Our Mission. Retrieved from https://www.whoop.com/our-mission/

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TED Blog

Embracing Your Inner Outsider

by Kristen Doucette & Sophie Streimer Every year, Simmons University holds a leadership conference bringing together the brightest and most influential women from around the world. The 39th annual conference was held at the Seaport World Trade Center in Boston. Notable keynote speakers for the 2018 Simmons Leadership Conference included former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson, former President of Telemundo Nely Galán, and of course, former First Lady Michelle Obama.

During the completion of her degree in law and commerce at Monash University, Le was awarded the title of Young Australian of the Year for her social activism. Her activism led her to speak out about the marginalized youth unemployment rate, and she was later invited to speak at more and more events.

MindScope was fortunate enough to be granted a press pass to attend the conference. Throughout the event, we listened to remarkable speakers, networked with Simmons alumnae, and gained insight into how these women became leaders in their respective fields. One of these leaders was Tan Le, the CEO and co-founder of Emotiv, a company focused on brain monitoring technology.

Le was in contact with executives and those in power from her social activism. She was determined to start a project that was worthy of all of her parents’ sacrifices. In a previous interview, Le recounted, “I wanted to purposely find something that I could really devote my life to that would be a lifelong endeavor, that wouldn’t require me to reinvent myself, it would be a field that would have vast possibility and would allow me to reinvent the way things are done” (Handley, 2018). While brainstorming with friends one night, the group found fuel for their desire to help others with their fascination about the body’s powerful instrument: “the human brain: 3.4 pounds of pure potential.”

Growing Up

Courageous from the start, Le’s journey to where she is today was no small feat. She was forced to flee her home country of Vietnam on a boat with her mother, grandmother, and sister. After spending three months in a refugee camp, they landed in Melbourne, Australia.

She described herself as “living in parallel worlds”: one being a nerd, and the other scarred by the violence and isolation she faced before her family left Vietnam. Inspired by her mother, who had to uproot her family and start a new life, Le didn’t let her childhood adversities stop her from striving for and achieving success.

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The Next Steps

From Ideas to Innovation

Their curiosity led them to start a company called Emotiv. Founded in 2011, Emotiv is a bio-informatics and technology company, currently stationed in San Francisco, California. Emotiv’s breakthroughs and innovations spark from their wearable electroencephalography (EEG) products (“Advanced EEG Technology”, n.d.).

Users can utilize Emotiv’s technology for the following areas of interest: Wellness & Performance, Brain Controlled Technology,

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Brain Research & Education, and Consumer Insights (“Advanced EEG Technology”, n.d.). Essentially, users can track their cognitive function throughout the day, just like how someone with a smart watch can track their steps and heart rate.

EEG is a modern, often non-invasive method of monitoring the electrical activity in the brain (Niedermeyer, 2004). It is often used in the diagnosis of epilepsy and certain sleep disorders, as well as chronic degenerative conditions in the brain. The parts of the device used to detect electrical signals from the brain are called electrodes, which are placed in specific areas of the scalp.

These electrodes can measure the fluctuations in the ionic current produced by real-time neuron activity in the brain (Niedermeyer, 2004). The outcome of these EEG tests are “waveforms” that vary in frequency and amplitude depending on the neuron activity.

Typical EEG wave patterns from healthy patients have already been established by scientists (Sucholeiki, 2017).

Le’s team envisioned devices using their technology to be something that the everyday person could utilize. In order to do so, the team knew that they had to make their devices both affordable and practical.

With those motives in mind, the Emotiv team developed their most popular and most affordable product, a neuroheadset called the Emotiv Insight. This product was designed for users who are curious about understanding what’s happening inside their own brains. The user can wear the device, which connects to a mobile app on the user’s smart phone through bluetooth (“EMOTIV insight”, n.d.). It uses a 5-channel electrode system, which harnesses the capability of “whole brain sensing” (“EMOTIV insight”, n.d.), by having five different spots on the scalp through which neuron activity can be detected.

The Emotiv Insight provides actual insight into the brains of its users. Through the Emotiv mobile app, the brain wave patterns are translated into valuable information about the user, which includes both performance metrics and facial expressions (“Advanced EEG Technology”, n.d.). A few of the performance metrics observed by the Emotiv Insight include excitement, interest, and boredom. The detector can also track facial expressions, such as winking, blinking, smiling, frowning and surprise (“EMOTIV insight”, n.d.).

One of the most incredible features of this new technology comes with Emotiv’s brain computer interface. The interface will allow

humans and machines to communicate without physical stimulation, for example, by replacing keyboards (“Brain Controlled Technology”, n.d.). This new technology could be applied to many new innovations in the near future - such as using recognized command waveforms from neuron activity to help a person control a wheelchair without having to use physical strength.

Tan Le took something that she was passionate about, and along with her team, created a new piece of technology that will help lead the future of biotechnology relating to the brain, and beyond.

Disrupting the Ordinary

We left the Simmons Leadership Conference feeling energized and inspired to make a difference in our own communities from the lessons that both Tan Le and other women spoke about.

The theme of this year’s conference was “Disrupt the Ordinary” which Tan Le’s personal story and professional mission have both reflected.

If you’d like to learn more about Le and Emotiv, you can visit https://www.emotiv.com.

We would like to extend our sincerest gratitude to the Simmons Leadership Conference team for allowing us the opportunity to attend this event. To learn more about the Simmons Leadership Conference, visit http://www.simmons.edu/leadership/boston.

Niedermeyer, E., & H., L. D. (2004). Electroencephalography: Basic principles, clinical applications, and related fields. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Advanced EEG Technology - Backed by Science. (n.d.). Retrieved October 07, 2018, from https://www.emotiv.com/ the-science EMOTIV Insight 5 Channel Wireless EEG Headset. (n.d.). Retrieved October 07, 2018, from https://www.emotiv. com/insight/ Handley, L. (2018, August 08). This tech CEO fled Vietnam as a four-year-old. Here’s what she’s doing now.

Retrieved October 07, 2018, from https://www.cnbc.com/2018/07/31/tan-le--making-miracles-with-her-mind.html Sucholeiki, R. (2017, October 06). Normal EEG Waveforms: Overview, Frequency, Morphology. Retrieved October 08, 2018, from https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1139332-overview Brain Controlled Technology. (n.d.). Retrieved October 07, 2018, from https://www.emotiv.com/brain-controlled-technology/

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Yadell

Engineering Drug Producing Bacteria

by Kristin Meader When individuals think about bacteria, they most often remember the negative bacteria that causes sickness or infections. However, bacteria are beneficial to the human body and we would not be able to survive without them. Bacteria keep the immune system sharp, help the digestive system break down and absorb nutrients, protect people from bad bacteria, and help repair damaged tissue, along with many other benefits (Yttri, 2017). New scientific research shows many innovative ways that bacteria can help people survive, and recently, scientists have engineered a way to make bacteria even more helpful. The Warwick Integrative Synthetic Biology Centre at the University of Warwick and the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences at the University of Surrey have created a new way to program bacteria to efficiently produce drugs and deliver them to the body (Walton, 2018).

This breakthrough in synthetic biology, a field which combines engineering and biology, came in March 2018, when researchers discovered how to control the distribution of resources inside engineered cells (Walton, 2018). When trying to create drug producing bacteria, researchers kept running into the same problem. In order to create drug producing bacteria, they had to add a synthetic circuit to the cell. A synthetic circuit is added to a host cell to make it perform a certain function, which in this case would be producing drugs, and is powered by the ribosomes in that cell. The problem that they faced was that a cell only has a limited number of ribosomes and both the host cell and the synthetic circuit required them. Without enough ribosomes, both the fates of the circuit and the cell are in jeopardy (Walton, 2018).

Researchers at the University of Warwick and the University of Surrey used an engineering principle called a feedback control loop to solve this problem. This system allows for both the host cell and the synthetic circuit to communicate with the control loop when either needs more ribosomes. When the circuit needs more ribosomes to function properly, less will be given to the host cell, and vice versa, therefore distributing the ribosomes more effectively (Walton, 2018). The applications of this new research are numerous. The technology of drug producing bacteria allows for certain areas to be targeted and be repeatedly given the same drug. This could potentially be used to treat cancer.

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Researchers at Technion Israel Institute of Technology have had success in treating a cancerous tumor using a synthetic cell that produces anti-cancer drugs in mice (Hattori, 2018). Their work combines the idea of a feedback control group with the production of proteins, as well as looking at the problem of directing the synthetic cells to the cancerous tissues.

The cells act as small factories that produce anti-cancer proteins (Hattori, 2018). Multiple synthetic cells create a molecular machine inside of the host. These molecular machines resemble the membrane of natural cells and they operate using energy from the external environment, such as the abnormal tissue. Yet, the most important part of these synthetic cells is that they are engineered to sense abnormal biological tissue, such as cancerous tissue. Once the abnormal tissue is detected, the molecular machines are activated and begin to produce the anti-cancer proteins (Hattori, 2018). In other words, these synthetic cells are able to “find” the damaged tissue to ensure that they are in the correct place before they begin to release the drugs.

These recent scientific breakthroughs could tremendously alter the way that certain diseases are treated. According to José Jiménez, a lecturer in Synthetic Biology at the University of Surrey, “The ultimate goal of [these projects] is to understand the fundamental principles of biology itself. By learning about how cells operate and testing the constraints under which they evolve, we can come up with ways of engineering cells more efficiently for a wide range of applications in biotechnology” (Walton, 2018).

Learning how to engineer drug producing bacteria, and learning how to use those bacteria to treat cancerous tumors is beyond exciting. Yet, what’s even more exciting is that this is just the beginning. As Jiménez said, these projects are about the basics, and the more that is understood about the basics of cells, the more complex they can get.

Hattori, K. (2018, February 13). A synthetic cell that produces anti-cancer drugs within a tumor. Retrieved October 8, 2018, from https://phys.org/news/2018-02-synthetic-cell-anti-cancer-drugs-tumor.html Yttri, J. (2017, March 28). Bacteria: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. Retrieved October 8, 2018, from http:// www.center4research.org/bacteria-good-bad-ugly/ Walton, L. (2018, March 5). Drug-producing bacteria possible with synthetic biology breakthrough. Retrieved October 8, 2018, from https://phys.org/news/2018-03-drug-producing-bacteria-synthetic-biology-breakthrough.html

5 Future Medical Innovations

by Gabriela Taslitsky Androssenko 1.

2.

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Technology giant Google and pharmaceutical company Novartis have been working on digital contact lenses that will help with diabetes management. These digital contact lenses will appear to be and function as normal contact lenses, however, they will also be able to measure blood glucose levels from tears. These advanced lenses will contain an ultra-slim microchip that will track the blood glucose levels of the user, as well as a tiny antenna that will send the microchip data to the user’s smartphone. Unfortunately, the progress on this idea has stalled due to the fact that researchers have found tears to be a less reliable source for measuring glucose levels, compared to current medical gold standard, blood. Even though this technology may not be feasible right now, it has opened a gateway for companies like Apple and Google to invest in “smart contact lenses,” which will hopefully become a reality in the future (“Smart Contact Lens”, 2018).

An issue many doctors and healthcare professionals face is adherence and compliance of patients’ taking their medications. Patients may not remember to take their medications, which can result in an illness to go untreated for longer than necessary, and more money to be spent in the hospital. Several start-ups have targeted this issue with different solutions. Adhere Tech has developed a pill bottle that glows blue when a medication dose should be taken, and red when a dose is missed. This new device resulted in the company being named the winner of the Healthcare Innovation World Cup. The technology behind the “smart” pill bottle is the collection of sensors in the bottle that can detect when the cap is twisted off and how much medication is removed.

When a patient is supposed to take a pill, a blue reminder light pulses, but if the patient was unable to take the medication, a ring goes off, and then sends either the patient or the caregiver a phone call or text message reminder. This “smart” bottle may help with people remembering to take their medications, but this does not mean that patients will comply. Some patients decide not to take their medications due to the harsh side effects or the fact that it reminds them that they are sick. If patients are not consuming their prescribed medications, the “smart” bottle allows physicians to be aware of the non-compliance, at the very least (Silverman, 2017).

In cancer surgery, there is a dangerous and common problem of leaving behind bits of tumor in a patient, which can later regrow and spread. Surgeons are able to send samples off for testing while the patient is still on the operating table, but this takes time, putting patients at even more risk. The Imperial College London, has developed an intelligent surgical knife, called the iKnife, that is able to detect the difference between a benign and a cancerous tumor. When the hot blade burns through the tissue of the tumor, there is smoke that is vaporized. A vacuum then sucks the smoke into a mass spectrometer, which can measure the

Hit Consultant

masses of the compounds in the biological sample, therefore helping doctors to determine whether or not the tumor is cancerous. Currently, the iKnife is in clinical trials, and hopefully will soon be used by surgeons around the world (Gallagher, 2017).

4.

In the near future, a safer method of childbearing could become a reality with the artificial womb. This device would allow external pregnancy to occur if a baby is born prematurely. Contrary to popular belief, the goal of the artificial womb is not to replace a natural pregnancy, but to give premature babies, born at 23 to 25 weeks, a chance to fully develop their fragile lungs. The device consists of a “Biobag” which is filled with synthetic amniotic fluid and mimics the uterine environment. The Biobag is attached to an “umbilical cord,” hooked up to a machine functioning as a placenta, which provides nutrition and oxygen to the baby. The artificial womb has been tested using fetal lambs and has so far proven to be a success (Stein, 2017).

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A new horizon for medical education and surgical training is a learning experience based in virtual reality. Virtual reality can bring thousands of medical students and surgeons into an operating room with a 360-degree view. People from around the globe will now be able to observe some of the best surgeons in the world, and work on perfecting their own craft.

Rare surgeries could be documented and re-experienced by medical students or physicians faced with the same rare or difficult surgery (“Technological Future of Surgery”, 2017).

(2018, January 25). What Happened to the Plans for a Smart Contact Lens for Diabetes?. Retrieved from https:// labiotech.eu/features/contact-lens-glucose-diabetes/ (2017, January 17). The Technological Future of Surgery. Retrieved from https://medicalfuturist.com/the-technological-future-of-surgery Silverman, L. (2017, August 22). “Smart” Pill Bottles Aren’t Always Enough to Help the Medicine Go Down.

Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2017/08/22/538153337/smart-pill-bottles-arentenough-to-help-the-medicine-go-down Gallagher, J. (2017, July 13). Cancer Surgery: Tumour “sniffing” surgical knife designed. Retrieved from https:// www.bbc.com/news/health-23348661 Stein, R. (2017, April 27). Scientists Create Artificial Womb That Could Help Prematurely Born Babies.

Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2017/04/25/525044286/scientists-create-artificial-womb-that-could-help-prematurely-born-babies

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Gut Instincts

by Meaghan Hurley America is undergoing an obesity epidemic. Current research is showing that we should start listening to our gut instincts. With more than two-thirds of Americans overweight, we must question why this percentage has been continually rising. Thirty years ago, it was uncommon for an individual to be classified as overweight, but nowadays, one in twenty people are considered obese. Since 1970, child obesity alone has tripled (Troiano et al., 2008). This data has left scientists wondering what has been significantly altered in the lives of Americans to cause such a widespread disease. The evolution of the human microbiome could be a part of the reason that obesity is so prevalent. Diet is critical in shaping the bacteria in our gut, and since our guts are so sensitive, the processed and refined food we frequently indulge in can interact negatively with our insides. The human microbiome is comprised of trillions of different bacteria species, with each bacterium working to develop the human immune system, to regulate inflammation, and to influence calorie extraction (Graf et al., 2015). Humans are what their bacteria eat—the rapid evolution of these microbiota and our disagreeing diets are partially responsible for the obesity epidemic in the twenty-first century.

Throughout the lining of our digestive systems, microbiota swarm our tract, attempting to metabolize the nutrients we source for them. In this mutualistic relationship, the bacteria utilize our food intake in order to harvest energy and store fat. Digesting different foods calls for different microbiota to react, leading to the conclusion that different diets create different gut flora (Feltman, 2013).

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In a recent study that sought out to learn about obesity and metabolism, evidence suggests that the impact of one’s diet can have a profound effect on the microbiome. In the experiment, the gut microbes from an obese mouse were transferred inside of a lean mouse; this resulted in the lean mouse gaining body fat and becoming resistant to insulin, a hormone that aids in regulating the amount of glucose in an individual’s blood (Ridaura et al., 2013). The mice experiment illustrated the correlation between the composition of the gut microbiota and the response of the dietary factors.

To show the impact of diet more clearly, two contrasting diets were imposed on the mice, with one consisting of a low-fat regimen, with a lot of fruits and vegetables, and the other consisting of saturated fats, mainly processed mouse-chow. This second diet was used to represent the diet of many Americans. The outcome of the second set of experiments revealed that “transmissible and modifiable interactions between diet and microbiota influence host biology” (Ridaura et al., 2013). This experiment not only conveyed that adiposity is transmissible, but also that the developmental process of the bacteria can be influenced by diet (Ridaura et al., 2013 pg. 341).

Modern food production typically involves intense processing — hulling, extrusion, heating, and the use of preservatives — all affecting the food-associated microbes. Heating the food and adding preservatives decreases the abundance of healthy bacteria, as well as spoil the naturally found bacteria in foods.

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Certain industries, such as fast-food chains, insert preservatives in order to guarantee safe foods and prolong shelf-life. However, these measures are not specific for only pathogenic or spoilage bacteria, therefore, they also decrease the beneficial bacteria that exists. The more processed foods have become, the less time our gut microbiota spend breaking down food, and the more energy they concentrate on how they can evolve their immunity to these chemicals (Tennyson & Friedman, 2008).

The frequent consumption of highly processed and preserved foods reduces the intake of beneficial microbes (Graf et al., 2015).

Several experiments have been conducted in order to research the effects of certain foods on the microbiome. Tim Spector, a professor of genetic epidemiology, had his son undergo a continuous binge of McDonald’s for ten days. The results illustrated that one-third of his microbiome was stripped of bacteria diversity, accounting for 40 percent of the entire species. The loss of microbial diversity has been researched as a possible reason for diabetes and obesity (Mercola, 2015).

Human enzymes drive the microbiota metabolism by supplementing specific substrates. In a proper diet, bacterial metabolism produces vitamins and short-chain fatty acids, which are vital for human health. The two major bacteria for energy homeostasis in the microbiome are firmicutes and bacteroidetes. Obese and lean individuals will have distinct microbiotas, with measurable differences in their ability to extract energy from their diet and to deposit that energy into fat (Turnbaugh & Gordon, 2009). A higher count of firmicutes and a lower count of bacteroidetes are linked to obesity. As we have evolved, new strains of bacteria have been formed, challenging the abilities of our digestion system. Some of these indigestible components make adiposity rampant and the manipulation of these genes may predispose obesity.

Modern day humans have long-evolved from our ancestors.

Our microbiomes have developed to the diets we have grown

accustomed to. The guts have moved away from hunter-gatherer diets and have adapted to more processed foods. Research has revealed that probiotics can help save our gut health. Probiotics restore the composition of the microbiome and provide beneficial factors to the microbiota. Not only can they suppress the growth of pathogens, but reintroduce the lost microbiome diversity (Hemarajata & Versalovic, 2013). This ensures optimal nutrient absorption and reduces fat storage. If we begin to be conscious of our food intake and the amount of processed foods that we eat, this generation can decrease obesity rates. By taking cautionary approaches to food and adding probiotics to our diets, we can suppress the rapid evolution of our microbiome.

Ridaura, V. K., Faith, J. J., Rey, F. E., Cheng, J., Duncan, A. E., Kau, A. L., . . . Gordon, J. I. (2013, September 06).

Gut Microbiota from Twins Discordant for Obesity Modulate Metabolism in Mice. Retrieved May 11, 2017, from http://science.sciencemag.org/content/341/6150/1241214 Turnbaugh, P. J., & Gordon, J. I. (2009, August 27). The core gut microbiome, energy balance and obesity.

Retrieved May 11, 2017, from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1113/jphysiol.2009.174136/full Tennyson, C. A., & Friedman, G. (2008, October). Microecology, obesity, and probiotics : Current Opinion in Endocrinology, Diabetes and Obesity (C. M. Apovian & J. I. Mechanick, Eds.). Retrieved May 11, 2017, from http:// journals.lww.com/co-endocrinology/Abstract/2008/10000/Microecology,_obesity,_and_probiotics.6.aspx Mercola, J. What Eating Processed Foods for 10 Days Does to Gut Bacteria. (2015, May 27). Retrieved May 11, 2017, from http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2015/05/27/processed-foods-gut-microbes.aspx Feltman, R. (2013, December 14). The Gut’s Microbiome Changes Rapidly with Diet. Retrieved May 12, 2017, from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-guts-microbiome-changes-diet/ Graf, D., Cagno, R. D., Fük, F., Flint, H. J., Nyman, M., Saarela, M., & Watzl, B. (2015, February 4). Contribution of diet to the composition of the human gut microbiota. Retrieved May 12, 2017, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih. gov/pmc/articles/PMC4318938/ Overweight & Obesity Statistics. (2012, October 01). Retrieved May 18, 2017, from https://www.niddk.nih.gov/ health-information/health-statistics/overweight-obesity Hemarajata, P., & Versalovic, J. (2013, January 6). Effects of probiotics on gut microbiota: mechanisms of intestinal immunomodulation and neuromodulation. Retrieved May 16, 2017, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ pmc/articles/PMC3539293/

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Nobel Women

by Kristen Doucette & Talisi Meyer Alfred Nobel, a man from Sweden, spent his life pursuing his interests on both social and scientific issues. Before his death in 1896, Nobel dedicated his life’s earnings for the establishment of a prize awarded to deserving scholars in the following categories: Peace, Literature, Economics Science, Medicine, Physics, and Chemistry (“Nobel Prize”, n.d.). This past October, two women, Donna Strickland and Frances H. Arnold, were partially awarded the Nobel prize for both Physics and Chemistry respectively, adding to the short but growing list of women to have won a Nobel prize in their areas of study.

Top Hat

Donna Strickland

On October 2nd, 2018, for the first time in 55 years, a woman was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics. Dr. Donna Strickland, an Associate Professor and Associate Chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Waterloo, Canada, is only the third woman to win this award. She follows the footsteps of Marie Curie, 1903, and Maria Goeppert-Mayer, 1963 (Rincon, 2018). This is a monumental step for a field that has been male-dominated since its beginning.

In 1981, Dr. Strickland graduated from McMaster University with her Bachelor of Engineering Degree in Physics, followed by a Ph.D. in Optics from the University of Rochester. Since then, Dr. Strickland has worked on various research projects including with the National Research Council of Canada and Princeton’s Advanced Technology Center for Photonics and Opto-electronic Materials. In 1997, Dr. Strickland joined the Physics and Astronomy department of the University of Waterloo, where she currently resides. It is here that her group developed high intensity, ultrafast laser pulses which will forever alter the fields of laser physics and optics. Dr. Strickland is awarded along with her Ph.D supervisor, Gerard Mourou, for their work in the creation of Chirped Pulse Amplification, or CPA, as well as Arthur Ashkin for his creation of a laser technique known as optical tweezers.

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The field of laser physics, until recently, had required the use of limited peak power pulses of lasers. Too high of a laser intensity caused the destruction of the material amplifying the energy. Dr. Strickland and Dr. Mourou are awarded for their technique that is able to get around this phenomenon by stretching, amplifying and then compressing the laser pulses. This final compression of the laser increases the intensity of the pulse drastically without destroying the material by packing the light into a much smaller space. Already, their work has been used in laser therapy targeting cancer and corrective laser eye surgery (Strickland, n.d.).

While Strickland states that she has “always been treated as an equal,” her award follows the suspension of Professor Alessandro Strumia at Pisa University due to his statement to a group of women physicists that “physics was invented and built by men, it’s not by invitation” (Ghosh, 2018). As the world of science continues to progress, it is important to remember that this stigma still exists often within the scientific community, yet great things can come despite it, as shown by Dr. Strickland.

CalTech

Frances H. Arnold On October 3rd, the day after Dr. Donna Strickland made history for winning the 3rd Nobel prize in Physics, Frances H. Arnold received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry (Chemistry, 2018) for her work on the “directed evolution of enzymes.” Arnold is now the 5th woman in the award’s 117-year lifespan, and the first American woman. The other half of the Nobel prize was jointly awarded to George P. Smith and Sir Gregory P. Winter for their work on the “phage display of peptides and antibodies” (“Nobel Prize in Chemistry”, 2018).

Arnold graduated from Princeton University with her Bachelor of Science in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering in 1979, and six years later, received her Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley (“Frances H. Arnold”, n.d.).

For the past 30 years, Arnold has been a professor of Chemical Engineering, Bioengineering, and Biochemistry at the California Institute of Technology, where her research on the directed evolution of enzymes began.

Arnold pioneered the use of directed evolution, a new way to evolve the synthesis of important enzymes. Directed evolution copies the way natural selection develops proteins in nature. The Arnold Lab at CalTech is researching how “rapidly some proteins can evolve under strong selection pressures,” (“Methods in Protein Engineering”, n.d.) while also collecting a massive database full of past studies to help the ever- growing understanding of the relationship between the sequence and function of proteins.

Her work includes the use of Machine Learning, Crystallography, and different types of recombination to create new enzymes for the catalysis of reactions (“Methods in Protein Engineering”, n.d.). Machine Learning is integrated as a screening tool to make sure only the “highest-performing” theoretical protein variants are chosen to be synthesized by the lab. X-ray crystallography is utilized to characterize the structure of the proteins after their synthesis. Different types of recombination are currently being researched to see if the synthesis of proteins with new features can be effectively done in a tube.

More Women Winners

Donna Strickland and Frances H. Arnold were neither the first women to win Nobel prizes in Physics and Chemistry, nor will they be the last. After this year, there is a lasting feeling of hope that many more women will win this distinguished prize and become Nobel laureates in the future.

Rincon, P. (2018, October 02). First woman Physics Nobel winner in 55 years. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/ news/science-environment-45655151 Donna Strickland- “Two color, high intensity lasers”. (n.d.). Retrieved October 08, 2018, from https://www.osa.org/ en-us/history/biographies/donna-t-strickland/ Ghosh, P. (2018, October 01). Cern scientist: ‘Physics built by men - not by invitation’. Retrieved from https://www. bbc.com/news/world-europe-45703700 Nobel Prize. (n.d.). Retrieved October 08, 2019, from https://www.nobelprize.org/ The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2018. (2018, October 3). Retrieved October 08, 2018, from https://www.nobelprize. org/prizes/chemistry/2018/press-release/ Frances H. Arnold. (n.d.). Retrieved October 08, 2018, from https://www.che.caltech.edu/faculty/arnold_f/ Methods in Protein Engineering. (n.d.). Retrieved October 08, 2018, from http://fhalab.caltech.edu/?page_id=171

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Splendid Table

Warning: Contains Cilantro

by Alex Kemna Coriandrum sativum, more commonly referred to as cilantro, is an herb that sparks the largest debate of any other leafy green.

The coriandrum sativum plant is broken down into two parts, the leaves, which are what we refer to as cilantro, and the seeds, which are referred to as coriander. For some, these leaves are the perfect garnish for a fresh bowl of guacamole, but for others, it leaves them with a taste often described as soapy or dirt-like.

While other herbs tend to be less divisive, with cilantro people often either love it or hate it. You might be someone or know someone who identifies as a cilantro-phobe, a person who is nauseated by simply the smell of it. Many might wonder how such a popular garnish has come to be one of the most controversial seasonings of all time. Scientists wanted to know why this herb had caused such a stir, so they dove into a bit of research about the topic.

It has been found that about 4-14% of the population are deemed cilantro haters (“Reactions”, 2017). While there are many that would just prefer it not be in their meals, there are others within the 4-14% that cannot help but hate it. Those who can’t help but despise the taste are the ones who will tell you it leaves behind a distinct taste of soap or dirt in their mouths.

Chemists have been able to boil this phenomenon down to a difference in DNA. Cilantro haters are said to have a varied version of an SNP, or single-nucleotide polymorphism, in an area of Chromosome 11. Chromosome 11 is directly linked to sense of smell (“Reactions”, 2017). Chromosome 11 contains several genes

that code for smell, and one of these genes, OR6A2, has been identified as the possible reasoning behind this hatred of cilantro.

Studies done on the rodent version of the OR6A2 gene show it is known to bind to the aldehydes found in cilantro (“Reactions”, 2017). Mutations in this gene can completely change the experience of two people eating the same herb, because the mutation changes the way the gene identifies the specific aldehyde molecule groups (“Reactions”, 2017).

There are several different aldehydes you can find in the smell of cilantro. Decanal and dodecanal are two aldehyde-containing compounds that are responsible for the more inviting scent that cilantro gives off, which tends to be earthier and sweeter.

Compounds (E)-2- decanal and (E)-2- dodecanal, however, provide the soapy smell and taste that so many detest. The SNP mutation may be to blame for why some people pick up on the soapy taste, rather than the sweet taste of cilantro (“Reactions”, 2017). This mutation makes the soapy taste from (E)-2-decanal and (E)-2-dodecanal the commanding flavor.

While we can say that genetics definitely plays a role in this phenomenon, there is still more research to be done regarding the exact mechanisms that cause the great divide between cilantro fanatics and those who are members of the “anti-cilantro” Facebook group. However, it’s important to keep in mind that the next time you go to call your friend picky or stubborn, they might not actually be able to control their distaste for this common, leafy green.

Reactions. (2017, December 17). Why do some people hate cilantro? [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=HF7Ni347Gvg

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Laughter Rx

by Gabriela Taslitsky Androssenko Why were the heliums jealous of sodium and chlorines’ relationship? Because they have a stronger bond. Sorry for the terrible joke, but if it made you chuckle, you may have just improved your health. As humans, we laugh whenever we hear something funny, when we are in an awkward situation, or sometimes even when we are in emotional or physical pain. But why do we laugh? What are the evolutionary benefits of letting out a giggle?

Pedro Marijuán and Jorge Navarro of the Instituto Aragonés de Ciencias de la Salud in Spain believe that the evolution of laughter is connected to the increase in human group sizes (“Evolutionary Origin of Laughter”, 2010). As the number of humans in a group increased, so did the social complexity. This insight has given birth to the social brain hypothesis.

The social brain hypothesis is the idea that the brain did not evolve to solve complex ecological problems, but to better acclimate to the social demands of interacting in a larger group (“Evolutionary Origin of Laughter”, 2010). The way the human brain evolved to a greater group size was by developing language as a way to establish and strengthen bonds in a shorter period of time. However, in a big group, the number of people able to actively take part in the conversation is limited, so laughter became a tool used to signal participation in larger group discussions. Laughter not only helps us build stronger bonds with one another, but it may also be used as an instrument for improving physical and mental health.

The first instance where laughter was used as a medical treatment was by Norman Cousins, an American political journalist.

Cousins was diagnosed with Ankylosing Spondylitis, a rare disease of the connective tissues, and was told that he only had a few months to live. Cousin’s checked into a hotel room, rented every humorous movie he could find and watched them, laughing until his stomach hurt. After six months of this laughing therapy, doctors were shocked that Cousins was still alive and his disease had been cured. Unfortunately, it cannot be proven that the laughter added 26 years onto Norman’s life, but it sparked an interest in the research of laughter.

At Loma Linda University, researchers have studied the effect of humor on short-term memory in older adults. The research team conducted a randomized, controlled trial consisting of 20 normal, healthy, older adults (Bains et al., 2014). They had split them up into two groups, the humor group and the control group. The humor group self- selected a funny video and watched it for 20 minutes, while the control group sat calmly for 20 minutes and was not allowed to read, sleep, or talk on a cell phone. The Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test was then used to assess short- term memory — learning ability, delayed recall, and visual recognition. Researchers found that the humor group had a 20% greater delayed recall and a 14% improvement in learning ability. These findings suggest that humor can have clinical benefits and rehabilitative implications, and can be implemented in programs that support whole-person wellness for older adults.

Other researchers like Arnie Cann, a professor of psychology at the University of North Carolina, have discovered the power of humor in counteracting stress. In the experiment, a population of people showing early signs of depression was split into two groups. One group watched humorous videos over the course of a three week period, while the control group watched nonhumorous videos for the same amount of time. In the end, the group

Columbia Spectator that watched the comedy videos showed decreased signs of depression compared to the control group. This study has shown that with a little laughter a person can go from sad to happy. This begs the question: why do some people laugh when they cry?

Laughter and crying are closely linked from a psychological and physiological standpoint. When people laugh, the brain releases endorphins, giving an effect of a “natural high” to counteract the adrenocorticotropic hormones released when emotional crying.

People who have trouble laughing at tough times in life often turn to drugs and alcohol to achieve the same feeling that endorphin-induced laughter produces.

Having a good laugh may help with mental health, but there are also many physical health benefits. When laughing, breathing quickens, which exercises the diaphragm, neck, stomach, face, and shoulders, while also leading to an increased intake of oxygen. This leads to a higher amount of oxygen in the blood, which helps with healing and circulation. In addition, laughter can lower heart rate, stimulate an appetite, and burn calories (“Stress relief from laughter?”, 2016). Professor William Fry at Stanford University reported that one hundred laughs will give the body an aerobic equal to that of exercising for ten minutes on a rowing machine. In addition, neurologist Henri Rubenstein found that one minute of solid laughter provides up to forty-five minutes of subsequent relaxation.

If you are stressed, sad, or just feel awkward in a big group setting, letting out a little chuckle could show to be tremendously beneficial, even if the last thing you want to do is laugh. If you need assistance in starting a laugh, remember as E.E. Cummings once stated: “the most wasted of all days is one without laughter.”

The Evolutionary Origin Of Laughter. (2010, October 29). Retrieved from https://www.technologyreview. com/s/421480/the-evolutionary-origin-of-laughter/ Bains, G. S., Berk, L. S., Daher, N., Lohman, E., Schwab, E., Petrofsky, J., & Deshpande, P. (2014, Spring). The effect of humor on short-term memory in older adults: A new component for whole-person wellness. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24682001 Stress relief from laughter? It’s no joke. (2016, April 21). Retrieved from https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/stress-relief/art-20044456

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Texas Chiropractic Association

To Err is Human

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Medical Errors and Patient Safety in 2018

by Brooke Lucier It has been almost twenty years since the U.S. Institute of Medicine (IOM) released the infamous report titled “To Err Is Human: Building a Safer Health System” in 1999. This report sent shock waves through the healthcare system, challenging the idea that the current system was an infallible entity that could do no harm.

The report published startling figures, stating that between 44,000 to 98,000 patients died each year due to medical errors (Kohn, 2000). Since 1999, the number of patients reported to have died from medical errors has exponentially increased. New reports state that the number of patient deaths caused by preventable harm in a hospital setting is closer to the range of 251,000 to 440,000 (James, 2013). Johns Hopkins released a study in 2016 which stated that medical error is the third leading cause of death in the United States, right behind cancer and heart disease (Daniel, 2016). Although the number of patient deaths from medical errors is staggering, the intent of the IOM report was to bring awareness about the need for a systemic overhaul of the health care system. The report was a call to battle, recruiting healthcare professionals for the war against medical errors.

In the past 30 years, the Aviation Safety Reporting System has reduced the risk of dying in a domestic flight by 3 fold (“Medical Errors”, 2007). They reported the errors that were happening, subsequently recognized what was causing the airplanes to crash, and then mitigating the problems to prevent the errors from happening again. Recognizing, mitigating, and preventing errors is the strategy that the IOM 1999 report suggested the healthcare system adopt (Kohn, 2000). If the aviation industry could change their system to reduce error, why couldn’t the healthcare industry do the same? The healthcare system has had trouble in the past with reporting medical errors due to the blame that is associated with owning up to an error. The IOM report stressed the importance of reporting medical errors to “hold providers

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accountable for performance” and “provide information that leads to improved safety” (Wolf & Hughes 2008). This creates an environment where medical errors are seen as a blame-worthy event with both an ensuing punishment and a subsequent label of “incompetent” attached to the health care professional who made the error (“Medical Errors”, 2007).

In recent years, advocates for decreasing medical errors have pushed to change this mindset of blame and punishment. It is understood that mistakes are bound to happen in a system that was created by humans, because humans are naturally fallible creatures. Emphasis is placed on the preventability of medical errors, as well as recognizing when they occur and mitigating them. An important model that is used in the prevention of medical errors is known as the Swiss Cheese Model. The Swiss Cheese Model is used ubiquitously in the healthcare field as an example for how medical errors can occur and how to prevent them. It highlights the systemic failings that can lead to error, rather than placing blame on an individual person (“Systems Approach”, 2018). Each piece of cheese symbolizes a layer of defense in the system. These defenses are at the level of the institution, organization, profession, team, individual, and technical (Dickerman & Barach, 2009). The holes in the pieces of cheese represent flaws in the system’s defense (Perneger, 2005). When the flaws align in multiple layers of the system’s defense mechanisms, that is when error occurs. By identifying the holes in the system, medical errors can be prevented from happening.

A harrowing story of medical error and patient safety is that of Sue Sheridan, whose son and husband both experienced lifealtering medical errors. The first medical error was made after she gave birth to her son Cal. Although a visual assessment determined Cal was jaundiced, the medical professionals neglected

to perform a bilirubin test on him, which is now a standard test performed by doctors to quantitatively determine the extent of jaundice right after birth (“Jaundice”, 2015). Multiple healthcare professionals reassured Sue that her baby was fine and allowed the family to be discharged. Soon after, Cal was admitted to the hospital for worsening jaundice, and doctors made another mistake detrimental to his health. They prescribed phototherapy for the jaundice rather than the standard exchange transfusion which led to more health complications. At 18 months of age, Cal was diagnosed with Kernicterus, a form of brain damage that has lead to Cerebral Palsy, neurosensory hearing loss, enamel dysplasia, crossed eyes, and other abnormalities (“Jaundice”, 2015).

The second medical error Sue’s family experienced was when her late husband’s brain cancer was misdiagnosed as benign. It turned out that the tumor was malignant, but by the time it was correctly diagnosed, her husband’s life span had significantly been cut short due to the delay in treatment (“Q&A with Sue Sheridan”, 2017).

These two life-altering medical errors that affected her family galvanized Sue to become an advocate for patient safety, pushing for health care professionals to fix the flaws in the system that lead to medical errors. Although Sue had personal experience with the effects of medical errors, she knew her family’s story was not unique. Dr. John Ball, chairman of the Committee on Diagnostic Error in Medicine states that, “everyone will experience one meaningful diagnostic error in their lifetime” (“National Academies of Sciences”, 2015). Although slightly alarming, this statement is meant to emphasize the importance of advocating for a reform within the healthcare system that will identify errors and make changes to prevent them from happening in the future.

In late 2018, To Err Is Human: A Patient Safety Documentary is set to release. This documentary will continue the conversation surrounding medical errors and patient safety. The director of the documentary is the son of the late patient safety pioneer, Dr. John M. Eisenberg. The director was inspired by his father’s work with the federal government to improve patient safety (“To Err Is Human”, 2018). Various healthcare professionals are highlighted

in the film, discussing solutions to patient safety issues and flaws within the healthcare system that currently exist (“To Err Is Human”, 2018). The documentary sets out to educate the viewer about the current state of affairs in the healthcare system surrounding patient safety, as well as providing hope and inspiration for patients to become advocates for themselves.

It has been nearly twenty years since the IOM first published “To Err Is Human”.The original intent of the IOM report was to bring awareness to the fact that patient safety is the top priority when practicing quality care. Medical errors are not the direct fault of any particular individual, but rather, are the result of the flaws in the system that allow for these errors to keep taking place. The call to action initiated by the IOM report has inspired health care professionals across the country to fight against medical errors and to advocate for patient safety. Although there is still a long way to go, the hope that patient deaths from medical errors will someday be nonexistent is what inspires those in the healthcare field to keep fighting for patient safety.

Kohn L T, Corrigan J M, Donaldson MS (Institute of Medicine) To err is human: building a safer health system.

Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 2000 James, J. T., PhD. (2013). A New, Evidence-based Estimate of Patient Harms Associated with Hospital Care.

Journal of Patient Safety, 9(3), 122-128. doi:10.1097/pts.0b013e3182948a69 Daniel, M. (2016, May 3). Study Suggests Medical Errors Now Third Leading Cause of Death in the U.S. Retrieved from https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/news/media/releases/study_suggests_medical_errors_now_third_leading_cause_of_death_in_the_us Medical Errors: Focusing More on What and Why, Less on Who. (2007). Journal of Oncology Practice, 3(2), 66-70. doi:10.1200/jop.0723501 Wolf, Z. R., & Hughes, R. G. (2008). Error Reporting and Disclosure. Patient Safety and Quality: An Evidence-Based Handbook for Nurses. doi:10.1016/j.aorn.2009.09.014 Systems Approach. (2018, August). Retrieved from https://psnet.ahrq.gov/primers/primer/21 Dickerman, K. N., & Barach, P. (2005, December). Incorporating Patient-Safe Design Into The Guidelines. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Swiss-cheese-model-of-adverse-event-causation_fig1_233969551 Perneger, T. V. (2005). The Swiss cheese model of safety incidents: Are there holes in the metaphor? Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1298298/ Jaundice & Kernicterus. (2015, February 23). Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/jaundice/cals-story.html Q&A with Sue Sheridan: Person and Family Engagement. (2017, October 03). Retrieved from https://qioprogram. org/qionews/articles/qa-sue-sheridan-person-and-family-engagement National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2015. Improving diagnosis in health care. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

To Err Is Human: A Patient Safety Documentary. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.toerrishumanfilm.com/

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Courtesy of Maddie Karod

7 Things I Learned from National Conferences

by Maddie Karod In the past year, I have attended the 254th, 255th, and 256th American Chemical Society (ACS) Meetings, located in Washington, D.C.; New Orleans; and Boston, respectively.

Being able to travel to new places and learn more about my field of study as a chemistry major has been rewarding and illuminating. No matter the type of meeting or event you may attend, these universally applicable tips will hopefully be of help.

1.

Wear comfy shoes.

Even if you stop reading this list right now, please remember to wear comfy shoes at a conference. Your step-count can reach up to 10 miles a day between the massive convention center and commuting from your hotel, so if there is one thing I could suggest, it is to wear comfy shoes. Many people will wear a pair of comfy and professional flats or loafers, and later change into a pair of heels for their oral or poster presentation. After all, a pair of professional, comfy shoes is one of the best investments you can make in your career.

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2. There is always funding.

As an undergraduate interested in taking on a research project and traveling to present this research, be on the look-out for research grants offered by your school, or externally in your field.

Additionally, if you’re on a funded project, ask if any of those funds can be allocated for travel expenses. For my trip to New Orleans in March of this year, I was able to use remaining funds from a Simmons Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) grant I was awarded during the fall of 2017 to pay for my flights and hotels. Additionally, the conference you’re going to may have their own travel grants that are open to undergraduates.

InChemistry

These organizations often want to help young people get involved, so reach out and check the organization’s website for more information. Another great resource is your advisor or a faculty member in your department. Often, they will be aware of common grants available. Having the help of a faculty member when writing a grant proposal is key, particularly if a letter of recommendation is required.

Here at Simmons, there is the Simmons Travel Fund, which is awarded in the spring, summer and fall for travel. If you’re interested in conducting a research project that you hope to present at conferences, try SURPASs (Summer Undergraduate Research Program at Simmons), or the SURE grant. I conducted most of my research with a SURPASs grant in the summer of 2017, and it opened so many doors for my career and helped me realize what my professional goals were.

3. You’ll have homework!

Here’s the deal: a convention center can be really large, so large that a serious game plan is required to efficiently navigate all the stops you want to hit. It’s easy to fall into the trap of mindlessly walking around trying to find an interesting talk or booth and then by the time you do, the day is over.

Before I travel to a conference, I’ll assign myself homework to take an in-depth look at the program, which is usually organized by topic, location, and author, and find the talks I know that I want to attend. I’ll then make myself a list that I can easily bring up on my phone during the day, so I know exactly where to go next.

Once you do get to talk, make sure you have a notebook and pen to take notes with.

4.

Check out the exhibition, but don’t go overboard!

At ACS, there’s a huge exhibit that allows instrumentation companies, job recruiters, and more to set up tables and hand out information. You’ll find that it’s really easy to accumulate knick-knacks from all the different companies. Before taking anything, you should make sure it’s: a.) worth it and b.) comfortable to carry ALL the way home. More importantly, connect with anyone and everyone; I often find that I really get to understand the vibe of my professional community once I see everyone mingling in the exhibition hall.

5.

The grad school and job fairs are a great resource.

During the first meeting I went to, I stumbled upon a graduate school fair which turned out to be a wonderful and helpful experience. I learned about all the different schools that offer programs in my field and the variety of opportunities they offer. More importantly, I did some great networking with the recruiters, who are often professors within the department that I would eventually apply to. I was able to make connections that have lasted throughout my collegiate career and helped me feel comfortable going to visit those schools.

For those looking for employment afterwards, conferences will often hold very in-depth job fairs that have workshops with resume building or will be offering professional headshots. My advice would be to take advantage of these opportunities; you won’t regret it.

6.

Connect with your peers.

At such a large conference such as ACS, talks and programs are divided up by topic, which we call divisions. As a member of the Environmental Division, I started to realize that I was seeing familiar faces at the talks that I have attended over the years.

Once I started introducing myself to my peers during breaks or at social programs, they would often remember me the next time we saw each other. Networking with people who are familiar with your work and are on the same career path will be a valuable interaction. You have nothing to lose by introducing yourself to anyone who will give you their time.

7.

Enjoy being in a new place!

Let’s face it: you can’t be in a new city and not explore a little bit.

This was particularly true for the conference in New Orleans. My classmates and I made sure to eat beignets at Café Du Monde, walk down Bourbon Street, and eat a po’ boy sandwich. When I was in Washington, D.C., I traveled alone but connected with a friend at Howard University and we did some sightseeing of the D.C. monuments. Be safe and make sure you do all that is expected of you, but do find time to enjoy your travels. Happy networking!

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Courtesy of Olivia Wolff

Simmons Overseas Studying Public Health in China

by Olivia Wolff As a pre-med student, finding the time to study abroad can be a challenge. Add the financial burden on top of that, and the idea can seem impossible at times. However, after a lot of careful planning and the help of several scholarships, I was able to spend last spring studying in Kunming, China. I went with SIT Study Abroad, which offers immersive, field-based learning in areas of critical global interest. My program focused on health, environment, and traditional medicine in China.

From the very beginning, my study abroad program was unlike anything I had expected. During a week-long orientation in Beijing, I experienced China as a tourist would. I walked up the Great Wall and then tobogganed back down, I ate Peking duck at a five-star restaurant, and I explored the 798 Art Zone. Once the week was over, I flew down to the province of Yunnan to see a completely different side of China.

Yunnan is located in southwestern China, on the border of Vietnam, Laos, and Myanmar. Yunnan is blessed with beautiful mountains, moderate temperature, and a huge amount of biodiversity.

It is also the most ethnically diverse province, with about 34% of the population belonging to a minority group, as compared to 8.5% nationally. However, Yunnan is one of the poorest provinces in China. It struggles with water sanitation, air and soil pollution, HIV/AIDs, malaria, and a range of other health issues. I spent several months in Kunming, the capital of Yunnan, studying how these issues are being dealt with on both a national and local level. Then it was time to hit the road and see how the rest of the province was being affected.

Over the next several weeks, my group travelled throughout Yunnan, from major tourist destinations to tiny villages in the mountains. We met with individuals from each community to learn about their perspectives on the environmental, social, and health issues that Yunnan faces. In order to more fully under-

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stand these communities, we also studied a bit of their traditions, language, religion, and medical system. One particularly interesting week was spent in a minority village of only a few hundred people. I stayed with a family that spoke no Mandarin, and yet I had to give a presentation about their health practices at the end of the week. I went with them every day as they went about their daily tasks, from waking up at the crack of dawn to do farm work to gathering around a fire with friends at night. This gave me a glimpse into life in rural China, where almost half the country’s population lives.

After travelling from central Yunnan up to the Tibetan tip, it was time to begin my independent research project. For the final month of the program, I interned at a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) hospital in Kunming. During this time, I focused on the treatment of chronic pain using TCM and comparing its effects to that of western medicine. I learned how to perform therapies such as cupping, moxibustion, and Tui Na massage.

After months of studying the concepts behind TCM, having the chance to practice the treatments myself and see their effects firsthand was the perfect way to put my knowledge to the test and finish off the semester.

I am not going to lie, there are some inevitable challenges that come along with studying abroad. However, what I gained from the experience made up for the trouble a thousand times over. I went from knowing next to nothing about China to understanding its health, environmental, and social issues from a variety of different perspectives. Although I was constantly being put outside of my comfort zone, the friends that I made along the way turned these challenges into fun new adventures. I also got to have these amazing experiences with the added benefit of my resume looking better because of them. I highly recommend that anyone who is considering studying abroad should go for it. You certainly won’t regret it.