TRIP INITIATIVE
  • Home
    • About Us
    • Donate
    • FAQs - Summer TRIP
    • Contact
  • Blog
  • ALUMNI GALLERY
    • Ursinus 2015
    • Temple 2015
    • WTHS 2016
    • Temple 2016
    • WTHS 2017
    • Temple 2017
    • WTHS 2018
    • Temple 2018
    • WTHS 2019
    • Temple 2019
    • WTHS 2020
    • WTHS 2021
    • Temple 2021
    • WTHS 2022
    • Temple 2022
    • WTHS 2023
    • WTHS 2024
    • WTHS 2025
  • WTHS'25 Symposium
    • WTHS'25 Symposium Schedule >
      • Session A Schedule
      • Session B Schedule
  • Donate

Regular updates from students in TRIP

Chapter 3: Time for Takeoff by Lizzy Qian

6/25/2021

0 Comments

 
I thoroughly enjoyed experiencing new things that I would have otherwise never even dreamed of trying
Picture
It’s hard to believe that twelve weeks of TRIP have gone by so quickly. Even as I assemble my final symposium presentation, the culmination of my work in the program, it feels like I began my independent research project last week. The independent project was by far my favorite part of the program. For my project, I wanted to study the health benefits of supplemental vitamin D, one of the most common over the counter supplements that I myself use. In 2020, $52 billion dollars were spent globally on vitamin D supplements, despite the fact that there is conflicting evidence to support that it benefits health. Hence, I decided to research the effects of vitamin D by measuring health through the microbiome and adult mobility.
Interestingly, my data supports that vitamin D does have a positive effect on microbiome health, and because the microbiome is responsible for regulating many bodily systems, better microbiome health is an indicator of better overall health. However, when looking at adult mobility, another measure of overall health, there was no statistically significant difference between how active the flies treated with vitamin D were in comparison to the control flies. While vitamin D does not seem to improve activity and mobility, it does potentially improve gut health.
I loved designing my own project, but that’s not to say that it did not come with its frustrations. Designing a research project has taught me much about learning to problem solve. As scientists, we must strive to be analytical and creative thinkers, not just when it comes to looking at our data, but also when we must adapt to problems and mistakes in the lab. Sometimes things go wrong, and sometimes we make mistakes. Sometimes an entire vial of flies gets stuck in wet food and dies, or sterile microbiome conditions are contaminated by using the wrong pipette tips. The great thing about TRIP is that you learn to grow from these mistakes. Over the course of the program, you learn better your lab skills as well as work through initial failures. 
Picture
Picture
Overall, I am extremely thankful for my entire TRIP experience. I thoroughly enjoyed experiencing new things that I would have otherwise never even dreamed of trying, like crushing flies to make solutions or observing fly embryos under a microscope. Working with Dr. Purdy, Dr. Leystra, and all my fellow TRIP friends taught me invaluable things about scientific careers, perseverance, and most importantly, myself. ​
Picture
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    September 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    August 2017
    July 2017

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    Blog 1: Introductions!
    Blog 2: Planning An Independent Project
    Blog 3: Reflections

Thank you to our donors for making our mission possible through your generous support.
Picture

Company

About
Fox Chase Cancer Center

Support

Contact
​Menu
WEBSITE DESIGN INFORMATION:
The TRIP Initiative website was built by Alesandra (Sasha) Temerte (TRIP@TU'17 alum) ​ and Charity Robbins (TRIP@TU'22) and is not a product of Fox Chase Cancer Center
© COPYRIGHT 2023. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
WEBSITE DESIGN BY ALESANDRA SASHA TEMERTE & CHARITY ROBBINS
LOGO DESIGN BY ARNAV DHINGRA
Photo from NIH-NCATS
  • Home
    • About Us
    • Donate
    • FAQs - Summer TRIP
    • Contact
  • Blog
  • ALUMNI GALLERY
    • Ursinus 2015
    • Temple 2015
    • WTHS 2016
    • Temple 2016
    • WTHS 2017
    • Temple 2017
    • WTHS 2018
    • Temple 2018
    • WTHS 2019
    • Temple 2019
    • WTHS 2020
    • WTHS 2021
    • Temple 2021
    • WTHS 2022
    • Temple 2022
    • WTHS 2023
    • WTHS 2024
    • WTHS 2025
  • WTHS'25 Symposium
    • WTHS'25 Symposium Schedule >
      • Session A Schedule
      • Session B Schedule
  • Donate