Going to open houses can have an affect similar to that of an approaching avalanche. But don’t panic! Despite the wealth of streams available and all of the information to be absorbed, it’s completely possible to fall in love with a few research topics.
To help first semester freshmen here at UT with their FRI stream decisions, we’ve asked our Fall 2014 student researchers to write about their time with the DIY Diagnostics stream. Most of our researchers are sophomores, but we have several upperclassmen too, as well as mentors who have already finished their FRI coursework.
Our researchers have worked to extract bacterial RNA from saliva samples, find sulfur-producing microbes in fracking water, and search out chemical signatures in olive oil using TLC plates. By working to place diagnostic power in the hands of the consumer, we hope to help create more personal and safe health care and industrial diagnostic systems.
If you like what you read, make sure to stop by the DIY open houses.