Upper School Assembly Features Summer Science Interns
It was an exciting and challenging summer for five upper school students who spent part of their break delving into a variety of science internships either at renowned research laboratories, an Ivy League university, an area animal hospital or Florida’s offshore coral reefs.
The following student interns presented their research findings to upper school students and faculty during a special division assembly held September 13 in Benjamin Hall:
(Click HERE to view presentations.)
(Click HERE to view presentations.)
Scott Burstein ‘18 participated in a six week research internship for mechanical engineering at the Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience (Jupiter, FL) machine shop, where he was trained by expert machinists to design and create custom parts using the CAD program SolidWorks. These parts were then used in cutting-edge neuroscience research at the Institute. Burstein focused specifically on designing and building a syringe pump for the perfusion of cell culture media.
Jakob Lazar ‘17 interned for six weeks at The Scripps Research Institute (Jupiter, FL) in Dr. Min Guo’s cancer biology lab under the tutelage of Dr. Haipeng Wang. The lab is focused on the role of aminoacyl t-RNA synthetases in cancer biology. Lazar participated in a research project aimed to find the structure of a protein complex useful in the study of Resveratrol, a molecule potentially beneficial to human health.
Marisa Marino ‘17 interned for two weeks over the past two summers at South Dixie Animal Hospital (West Palm Beach, FL), a medical facility for both exotic and domestic animals. Her veterinary activities included observing and assisting veterinarians and staff in a variety of hands-on medical procedures with several types of animals, including monkeys, snakes, foxes, cats and dogs.
Geoff Moody ‘17 researched and restored damaged coral reef structures during his three week internship with The Coral Restoration Foundation (Key Largo, FL). Moody earned his PADI open water diving certification and researched the causes and patterns of coral growth, disease and death across a myriad of reefs throughout the Keys. In the offshore coral nursery (the reef) and the labs of the CRF, he assisted in the conservation of this vital piece of the ecosystem through research, hanging new coral samples and “outplanting” corals on select endangered reefs.
Kole Rosin ‘17 participated in Columbia University’s (New York, NY) three week Explorations in Genetics and Molecular Biology Program - a campus immersion learning experience for high school students. In addition to college lectures and academics, Rosin performed laboratory experiments to explore the workings of DNA and the methods scientists use to alter DNA for various purposes.
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A premier PK3 - Grade 12 independent, coeducational day school with campuses in North Palm Beach and Palm Beach Gardens. Since 1960, The Benjamin School has provided a challenging college preparatory education to a diverse student body in a structured, nurturing community environment.