Reflections

Reflecting on my exciting journey at ASDRP in Dr. Sangeneni’s group, this quote comes to mind:

“Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after another.”

As my time at the Aspiring Scholars Directed Research Program nears an end, the lessons I have learned during my “sprints” have carried with me— rebounding from failed experiments and learning to approach inconclusive results as redirection to list a few. Through the collaborative team camaraderie and support of my group members and Dr. Sangeneni, I was able to thrive in our research endeavors. Exploring the boundaries of energy technology with various silicon, I not only learned a lot about materials but how to be a better researcher collaborating with peers and reaching out to as many people and resources available to me to further my knowledge.

Through our countless yet fruitful efforts, my group members and I were able to broaden our scope in academia attending and presenting our research at conferences such as Southern California Conference for Undergraduate Research (SCCUR) and the American Chemical Society undergraduate poster session. Along with exploring various fields of research, we had the opportunity to meet so many professors and experts in the field of materials science exposing us to the vast innovative realm of materials. None of these inspiring experiences would have been possible without Dr. Sangeneni or the team members in the materials engineering group.

As I head off to college, I cherish my research experiences and friendships I built through my 2 years here at ASDRP. My “long race” is certainly not finished as I carry my drive and excitement for innovation and hope to pursue research in materials science and engineering to improve our world’s energy— all of which stemmed from my amazing experiences at ASDRP with the materials research team!

Feel free to contact me at the following:

anerisheth1@gmail.com

anerisheth@berkeley.edu

I was a part of ASDRP from the Fall of 2020 until the end Winter of 2022. During my time in Dr. Sangeneni's group, I learned so much about how anodes and cathodes work, different types of them, along with the benefits and weaknesses of the different batteries currently used in the industry. My work in the group consisted of collecting Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and UV–visible spectrophotometry data of the microsilicon and nanosilicon sample. I also learned the process to deposit ink, how to set up the cyclic voltammetry electrodes, and to run cyclic voltammetry on the samples. It was an extremely welcoming environment and those who are interested can learn as long as they are passionate about it.

I joined ASDRP the summer before my senior year, and even though it was a bit late compared to many others who joined, it was one of the best decisions I made. The experience you can get from ASDRP is truly unparalleled. As a high school student, it is hard enough to get hands-on research opportunities in a laboratory—and if you do manage to join a lab elsewhere, your abilities will be very limited. In contrast, the autonomy and freedom provided by ASDRP not only allows you to become proficient in many different laboratory procedures but allows you to pursue your own projects and scientific inquiry. Not only that, but the constant exposure you get to other research groups helps you get a sense of how many different fields there are that you can truly explore. With the many experienced advisors we have, you will also get access to numerous opportunities outside of work in a lab, including research conferences and opportunities to publish papers. On top of that, you’ll have many other students your age around you who are willing to help you learn and support you in becoming proficient in the lab. Ultimately, if you come to ASDRP intending to learn as much as you can and have the mindset of working hard on a specific project, there will be no better place to achieve this. I would never trade my time at ASDRP for anything else.

My name is Kalpita Balu and I am part of the metal nanoparticles project. In the metal nanoparticles group, we work on synthesizing nanoparticles, characterizing the nanoparticles, and testing them out on microorganisms such as C. Elegans.Our ultimate goal was to see if using nanoparticles would be an efficient way towards drug delivery for neurodegenerative diseases humans. Personally, I would say that working on this project was a great experience because not only do you have a chance to conduct research in the nanotechnology field but also you have a chance to explore the biological area as well. A challenging aspect which we faced was using different instruments to complete the procedures for the nanoparticles because the instruments utilized can take a while to troubleshoot so that it works properly. When it comes to working with the C. Elegans, I would say that it does require planning and coordinating with your group because they need to feed regularly, monitored since they are a living organism. Couple of advices which I would give to the rising researchers includes: make sure that you have all equipment which is needed to complete the procedure at the lab, ask around people for help when you get stuck, be sterile and measure things out properly, make sure to have a plan ready before you carry out experiments, and have fun, learn something new.