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Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Doing Undergraduate Research


With any career field, a huge part goes into research! What exactly is research? Research is to explore a topic (anything your mind can possibly imagine), produce data, and come to new conclusions. It's investigating, questioning, and thinking for new, innovative ideas. Wayne State University is one of the main research institutions in Michigan. Research isn't always strictly science, but it can involve anything you want to study and learn more about. 

Many of the mentors at GO-GIRL research while completing their undergraduate research studies. I have found research to be an immense help both in and outside of the classroom. It can help your individual and collaborative work skills, how to present in front of large crowds, and of course, it helps you gain a better understanding of whatever it is that you are studying. 

I am currently researching at the Wayne State School of Medicine doing a project on how to understand the mobilization and metabolism of fat tissue in cells. This can help prevent and know more about diseases that are commonly prevalent such as diabetes, heart disease, and obesity.

One of the hardest parts about research I first found, was having to do work with animal samples. However, after getting trained and knowing how to handle animals properly it wasn't so bad. It's interesting to see just how alike our bodies are to little mice. Of course there are different physiological aspects, but in general they share the same eukaryotic cell qualities that we have! 

Research opens your mind to finding new information about things you would have never thought about before. It really allows you to realize how there's so much work from the dedication of various individuals who study and do experiments day in and day out to make the world continue to advance and hopefully make it a better place!