My Journey in Science

Entering SUU I had a passion for the sciences already instilled in me from high school. What I didn’t know is the direction this would later take me. Entering undergraduate education I pursued a chemistry degree in the hopes of pursuing a dream in research. I felt inclined towards chemistry and the functioning of the world around us at a molecular level. Enjoying these classes my understanding grew to a realization. I wanted nothing to do with lifelong research. While thoroughly enjoying it, I had an intense desire to absorb knowledge about living cells. Specifically the cells of the human body. Never before had I tried to grasp the complexities and intricate details the human body exhibits. 

Chemistry brought this thirst for knowledge by introducing me to the chemistry of cells. Forget the macroscopic scale of muscles and bone moving a person around, I found myself entranced by the signaling centers and chemical gates in cell membranes. Thus entering SUU I found myself extremely naïve beyond what I had previously imagined. Exiting high school we are taught Pythagorean Theorem and that the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell. While I enjoyed anatomy and biology in my younger years, it was chemistry that brought me to a full understanding that the life sciences captured my interest. I then took physics, and definitely knew that the physical sciences weren’t for me.  

In fact it was through the pursuit of a biology major at SUU which allowed me to expand my learning beyond the classroom. I have long hoped to become a doctor, and knew that road would include many classes. Three in particular helped me overcome obstacles by teaching me how to better understand the learning process. Scientists and others around the world are always striving to move forward. Today’s text book may be ridiculed in twenty years for its extreme inaccuracy. However, my first class which challenged my learning was Organic chemistry. Simply put, it blew my mind that while I could be looking at a glass of clear liquid, it was indeed this strange hexagon shape known as a benzene, with accompanying side chains sticking off of it. 

Organic chemistry taught me to study hard, and to understand the processes involved in living things. I began to look at every ‘big’ thing, and break it apart, trying to understand structure and function. Drinking alcohol doesn’t cause you to become intoxicated just because, it’s the nature of ethanol and the reactions it goes through within the body.

Biochemistry presented my next insight to the world at large. The sheer amount of knowledge presented in this course was astounding. Every organic process I learned, then broke down to proteins and amino acids in a particular shape required for that specific function. Again I learned that even when I thought we were diving to the smallest possible level of study, we could go yet another level deeper. Biochemistry presented me with an opportunity to better understand how structure determined function. From enzyme kinetics to hemoglobin and oxygen binding, every piece of the puzzle was meaningful. No amino acid was placed without some kind of design intended for a purpose. Now I felt that I surely knew it all.

Then I decided to take embryology. Embryology came with a whole new look on the world. Previously, in all of my classes I felt that I listened, I learned, I studied, and then I repeated the information back via selective testing. Occasionally there were open questions which required conceptual thinking that required a little mental effort to piece together, but never was there a class like embryology. Everything we learned was only to give us background and understand each piece. We were never taught how to piece them together, and when the exam came, it was our job to design experiments to prove, or question what we had ‘learned to be true’. Embryology taught me to question the world around us, and to search for my own answers, rather than what was given to me. Likewise, this capstone class has given me that same opportunity.

I could rant for days, concerning the future of science in the medical profession. Truth is, I hope we end up with medical technology akin to star trek and star wars, but only time will tell. Technology is advancing at an extreme speed, and our understanding of the world advances with it. As our understanding of science changes, so too will our practice of medicine!