Extracurriculars
Hobbies
Some of my hobbies and interests include: reading, making wire jewelry, traveling, and painting. I have always been interested in reading, whether it be fantasy or nonfiction, whereas making jewelry is something I picked up when I was bored in 2020. I find it really fun being able to express creativity in something like jewelry, so I enjoy it a lot.
Swim + Dive
At my sending school, ABRHS, I was on the varsity girls swim and dive team for two years, one year as a swimmer, and one as a diver (one-meter springboard diving). Being on the team was an amazing and bonding experience, look below for pictures! I have been on swim teams since about sixth grade, but started learning how to swim when I was about 5. But aside from swimming in the pool or competing, I also love going to different water bodies such as lakes, ponds, and especially the beach. Whether it be swimming in a pond or just floating around in a lake, swimming is truly therapeautic for me and I always feel more relaxed after. Honestly, anything involving water is exciting to me, so I also really like kayaking, whether it be at a local pond or lake, or while on vacation! While I have not been kayaking for very long, it is something I try to incorporate whenever and wherever I can, hopefully I can get better at it, because I have almost fallen off my kayak before when in a salt marsh. I have also been paddleboarding on different ponds, and just love to float around in the middle of a pond on the board sometimes. I would also love to learn how to surf if I ever get the chance.
Volunteering + Clubs
I volunteer at several places in the community throughout the year. I participated in a club called Girls in Science/STEM for four years, where I started off doing experiments and learning more about different areas in STEM, but the last two years, I volunteered to mentor middle school girls in different areas of STEM, help them get started with science research, and broaden their horizons. We did experiments and labs, like dissecting a sheep's heart and lungs, examining different microorganisms such as C. Elegans under a microscope, comparing plant vs. animal cells, and more.
I also run a chemistry club, Chem4All , which prepares middle school students for a competition called You Be the Chemist. I participated in this competition when I was in middle school, and won first place at the national level, but unfortunately our community had no avenue to do this through the school or any other clubs, so I co-founded the club and teach students chemistry through that.
Additionally, I volunteer at a local temple on Sundays in order to help out with a club run there. Volunteering and participating in these clubs is really fulfilling to me, and a way to give back and provide opportunities for students to explore their interests.
Science Research
Last year, I completed a research project and presented it at several science fairs, such as: the ABRHS science fair, the Massachusetts Region IV science fair, and the Massachusetts Science and Engineering Fair (MSEF). My project was called: Exploring Epigenetics: Effects of Environmental Stressors on C. elegans and the Evaluation of DNA Methylation in Mus Musculus via a Hybrid Deep Learning/Machine Learning Model. The main objectives were to explore the relationship between epigenetic changes and disease susceptibility in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, and study the impact of environmental factors on C. elegans with epigenetic tendencies to develop specific diseases compared to a control group of wild C. elegans. I additionally utilized a deep learning/machine learning model to analyze DNA methylation and damage in the organism Mus Musculus. My project Won “Best Cellular Biology Project” at the Region IV science fair, and I advanced to and presented at MSEF.
This past summer, I did an internship at Izon Science. There, I worked on several different projects, and worked with their qEV Isolation platform, which consists of qEV columns and the Automatic Fraction Collector, and these columns use Size Exclusion chromatography in order to isolate Extracellular Vesicles(EVs) from plasma or other fluids. Additionally, I gained experience by doing Western Blot Protein Assays, PCR (polymerase chain reaction), Gel Electrophoresis, and BCA protein Assays. I also worked with the Exoid instrument, which uses Tunable Resistive Pulse Sensing (TRPS) in order to measure EV concentration and size.
