This summer, 40 undergraduate students will set off on interesting and exciting journeys. But the voyages of these 40 students who have been accepted into the University-wide Summer Scholars program aren't typical summer getaways. Rather, they're research journeys, and as these students embark upon them, the Daily checks in with a few of them about their plans.
The Summer Scholars Program, now in its third year, offers research apprenticeships with faculty or "clinical mentors" to students. According to the University College of Citizenship and Public Service (UCCPS) Web site, "the Program gives students a chance to be on the front line of discovery and scholarship at Tufts today."
One of this year's Summer Scholars is David Strochlic. Most people view summer as a chance to relax and get away from stress, but for Strochlic, the summer will be full of stress - stress hormones, that is.
Strochlic will spend his time researching under Associate Professor of Biology Dr. L. Michael Romero, and his research will focus on discovering the function of corticosterone binding globulin (CBG), a protein that binds to the stress hormone corticosterone. Strochlic's research will continue through next year, and he plans for it to comprise the first part of his Senior Honor's Thesis.
"I've always had an interest in physiology," the Queens, New York native said. Strochlic is a biology major who spent last semester studying in Costa Rica with the Organization for Tropical Studies, which is affiliated with Duke University. That was his first taste of the field of biology, although he has been working in Romero's lab since the summer of 2003.
"The program helped solidify my interest in biological research and my desire to become a member of the scientific community," said Strochlic, who plays the alto saxophone in Tufts Big Band, is a member of the Tufts Mountain Club, and is also involved in the Tufts Wilderness Orientation (TWO). He will lead his second trip with TWO in August.
When most people hear the word research, they think of laboratories and experiments. But Tanya Paz will spend the summer researching something else entirely - buildings. As a Summer Scholar, Paz plans to research the role of obsolescence and impermanence in architecture throughout the 20th century.
An architectural studies major and studio art minor, Paz became interested in the subject through her work with Associate Art and Art History Professor Daniel Abramson, under whom she'll be conducting her research.
"Much of my recent work has involved the solution of urban problems with minimally invasive architectural interventions," said Paz, who, like Strochlic, hopes that her research over the summer will lead to a Senior Honor's Thesis.
A native of Santiago, Chile who grew up in Pasadena, Calif., Paz spent this semester abroad in Paris, studying architecture in a program offered through Columbia University's Graduate School of Architecture Planning and Preservation.
At Tufts, Paz is involved in the early language program, through which she teaches Spanish to local kindergarteners, and is also a member of the Tufts Democrats. But her academic passion takes up most of her time: Paz is a member of the Tufts Architectural Society, and works at a local design company, allowing her to dedicate much of her time to her love of architecture. After graduation, Paz hopes to study architecture in Chile for a year and then go on to graduate school for a Master's in architecture.
Since she first came to Tufts as a freshman, junior Chelsea Bardot has taken an interest in cleaning up the Mystic River. Her research as a Summer Scholar developed out of that interest: over the summer, Bardot will research Mystic River watershed identity under Professor Dale Bryan, Assistant Director of the Peace and Justice Studies Program.
A watershed, Bardot said, is a region draining into a body of water. "People all the way up in Woburn and all the way down in Chelsea and East Boston are all connected to the Mystic River," Bardot said. "When they pour out dirty water or chemicals, it will all go into the Mystic."
The purpose of Bardot's research is to discover if people have any collective identity as a watershed, and to look into how to promote such an identity in order to better protect the Mystic. As well as conducting research, Bardot has been involved in Water Watch and the Mystic Watershed Collaborative, and has taught classes to children about watersheds.
An environmental studies and political science double major, Bardot is also a UCCPS Scholar. She went abroad to Madagascar in the fall semester of her junior year, and is considering a career in environmental law after graduation.
Summer Scholar Apisadaporn Thambundit, known simply as "A" to her friends, will spend the summer researching a disease called babeosis at the New England Medical Center. Thambundit, a junior who hails from Tampa, Florida said she became interested in doing summer research after watching a friend do research last year.
"For personal reasons, I just want to gain more research experience," the biology and biotechnology major said. Over the summer, Thambundit plans to work on genetic studies to determine changes in age-related risk factors of babeosis.
"I'm hoping that it will lead me to write a thesis under the biotech or bio department," said Thambundit, who is vice president of the Thai Club and is involved with the Leonard Carmichael Society. She also volunteers at Massachusetts General Hospital, and is currently trying to decide if she wants to work in a lab setting doing biotechnology research, or with people in a medical setting as a doctor after graduation.
Another Summer Scholar, junior Matt Toia, is taking the idea that technology keeps getting smaller and smaller to an extreme. This summer, Toia and a team of graduate students will work on designing a digital camera that can fit on a single silicon chip.
"The idea is that you can use this chip to detect changes in a chemical reaction," the electrical engineering major said. Toia became involved with the project after taking a large-scale integration design class with Assistant Electrical and Computer Engineering Professor Sameer Sonkusale, who invited him to do some long-term research.
A native of Washington's Crossing, Penn., Toia said he hopes to integrate the research into a required senior project that all electrical engineers must complete. "I'm really hoping I get some things published," Toia said.
Toia is also the president of fraternity Zeta Beta Tau and the chief technical officer for www.tuftslife.com, as well as a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. He is considering going to graduate school after his senior year.
"Initially, I was always considering going right into being an electrical engineer," he said. "But now that I'm getting involved in research, it's starting to look like a definite option for me to stick around for a master's."
