Flying Through TRIP by Ishani Bansal

Hey guys! A lot has happened since my last update! For starters, I completed and presented the kickoff experiment. I was testing how fenugreek and a high sugar diet affects female fertility. I learned that fenugreek increases female fertility by A LOT, about 5 embryos per fly to be more precise, and a high sugar diet decreases it. However, I learned so much more than that. I realized that I have to be really gentle when separating flies otherwise I accidentally decapitate them. I should also create a better system for counting flies. Also, I found that it’s important to learn what an embryo looks like, so you don’t mistake it for some yeast. As far as presentations went, I had the “fortunate” opportunity of going first in my group. Luckily, everyone was really supportive and asked me amazing questions about my project. 

The next week, we split up into two groups and planned out our independent projects. I originally came up with the idea of studying iron and turmeric powder’s effects on development and female fertility. However, I’m currently in the process of editing my question, because I realized that I wasn’t too interested in studying that. I’m considering studying the effects of turmeric powder on fly mobility, since I feel it’s more novel and related to me. I’ll most likely use the negative geotaxis assay. On that day, I also got an opportunity to talk to some of my TRIP friends about their personal lives. I had a blast listening to conversations on school, future plans for college, and grievances about homework. I realized that I have so much in common with my TRIPmates, besides the fact that we are all interested in science. 

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 I’m considering studying the effects of turmeric powder on fly mobility

TRIP has been such an amazing experience so far, and I can’t wait to see where I go with my independent experiment. I’ll let you all know how my experiment works out, but for now I have to do some more math. Until next time, everyone!