High schoolers to show off their summer research

August 15, 2012 By

Stephanie Keyaka (left) working with Jincy Abraham (Notre Dame) in the Craig Montell Lab. Photo by Mary Spiro.

The Summer Academic Research Experience (SARE) pairs specially selected teens who come from academically disadvantaged homes with university mentors who guide them through a mini research project. The students gain valuable work skills, learn about scientific careers, get tutoring help, practice their writing, gather data for their projects and earn some cash for the future. The group will present their research findings during a poster session at the Johns Hopkins University medical campus on August 20 in the Bodian Room (1830 Building Rm 2-200) from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.

“This is way better than flipping burgers,” laughed Stephanie Keyaka, as she prepared an image of a Western Blot performed on  Drosophila (fly) eye genes.

Keyaka is one of three high school students who worked in a biological chemistry laboratory  this summer with financial support from Johns Hopkins University Institute for NanoBioTechnology and School of Medicine.

Christopher Miller (right) with his mentor Hoku West-Foyle. Photo by Mary Spiro.

Keyaka, a rising 10th grader from The SEED School of Maryland, will be joined at the poster session by Christopher Miller, also a rising 10th grader from The SEED School of Maryland and Shaolin Holloman, a rising 11th grader at Baltimore Polytechnic Institute who is part of the Boys Hope Girls Hope of Baltimore.

The SEED School of Maryland is a public boarding school that accepts qualified children from across the state entering the 6th grade.  Boys Hope Girls Hope is a privately funded nonprofit that offers students the chance to attend academically challenging public or private schools and the opportunity to live in the Boys Hope or Girls Hope home.

Miller studied the protein myosin in the cell biology laboratory of  associate professor Douglas Robinson. Holloman worked in the cell biology lab of professor Carolyn Machamer on a project that sought to understand why the SARS coronavirus localized in the Golgi apparatus of the cell. Keyaka studied rhodopsin in the eyes of flies the lab of professor Craig Montell.

Shaolin Holloman (left) with professor Carolyn Machamer. Photo by Mary Spiro.

Help celebrate the accomplishments of our summer high school students who participated in the Summer Academic Research Experience. This event is free and open to the entire Hopkins  community. Light refreshments will be served. Students, faculty and mentors will available to discus the projects.

 

 

 

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Money makes the (research) world go ‘round

August 2, 2011 By

Photo Illustration by Mary Spiro.

Grant money drives research, but obtaining funding can be a daunting task for those unfamiliar with the process. Wouldn’t it be nice to have someone to show you the ropes?

That’s why three postdoctoral fellows from Johns Hopkins Institute for NanoBioTechnology were asked to present a sort of crash course in how to get those almighty research dollars. The talk, given as one of INBT’s professional development seminars on July 27 to a group of graduate, undergraduate and a few high school summer research interns, covered basics, as well as some commonly overlooked issues encountered in the grant application process.

“When applying for grant funds you have to assume that everyone else also has a good idea. Your idea has to be better than great; it has to be outstanding,” Eric Balzer told attendees. Balzer is a postdoctoral fellow with professor Konstantinos Konstantopoulos in the department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering.

He also advised the group to avoid novice grant writing errors such as “submitting a proposal on lung cancer to an agency that only funds breast cancer research.” In other words, read the funding agency’s mission statement.

Yanique Rattigan stressed the importance of avoiding overly complex language in grant applications. “Grant reviewers often include patient representatives who are not scientists and engineers, so you have to make sure that there is a section describing the research in lay terms that they can understand,” offered Rattigan, who is conducting research in the pathology lab of professor Anirban Maitra at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

Granting agencies look to fund novel research ideas, explained Daniele Gilkes. “They want to know how your work will fill in the knowledge gaps that exist in the field. You can determine this through thorough analysis of the current literature pertinent to your area of research,” added Gilkes, who works with Denis Wirtz, the Smoot Professor of Engineering in the Department of Chemical and Bimolecular Engineering.”

The group stressed the need to edit and re-edit a grant application prior to submission, and emphasized the importance of choosing the right referee to compose letters that truly support the candidates potential for independent research.

The teams’ insight into the grant application process can be found in this SlideShare slide show, click here.

Story by Mary Spiro.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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