Time really flies by! by Sophia Jesteen

Hi again everyone!

We’re currently halfway through the TRIP program and I honestly cannot imagine a better summer without TRIP. I admit, the first few days of lecture were a bit of a struggle since there was so much to learn about the lab, but I wouldn’t change anything about my experience at TRIP. There are so many amazing people to learn from and to work with, it’s an incredible experience I recommend to everyone!

Since my last blog, we’ve already begun our independent projects. For my project, I’m studying the long term effects of Metformin on development and cognitive function. If I were reading that sentence two weeks ago, I would not have understood a word past “effects”, so I completely understand that it sounds very foreign. Metformin is a drug used for people with Type 2 diabetes and there are a few mixed studies regarding whether Metformin has an affect on memory. I plan on studying the movement of flies over time to see if increasing doses of Metformin can have an effect on cognitive function and development. So far I’ve set up my food vials with flies to study this week. I’m really excited to see how far they’ve come since I’ve last seen them. Fingers crossed they haven’t died!