JOURNALS

My relationship with my grades is pretty good. I work hard for the high 90's. My favorite memory in the classroom has been the "pretend trench warfare" in 8th grade. When we were learning about US History, we stimulated what being in the trenches would look like. Everyone tipped over their desks like the "walls of the trench." Once people were hidden by the desk, they would pop out and throw crumpled-up papers at the other team. Overall, it was a really fun in-classroom experience. Outside of school, during the summer of seventh and eighth grade, I was a big part of Garden club. My favorite memory was when we finally harvested the vegetables we spent all season growing, and donated most to the food bank. With what leftovers we had, we made a seasoned salad together. It was enjoyable to see our work over the summer pay off.

My motivation in school comes from my teachers, grades, and friends. Something I love about school is the length of the lunch period. Compared to middle school we have so much more time to eat and talk with friends. Something that I hate about school is how early it starts. Most people have to wake up at 5 a.m. to make it to their bus on time. A lot of people in high school do sports, so they end up getting home around 6 p.m. From then, they're expected to have dinner, finish homework, and rest after the two hours of brutal exercise. A lot of high schoolers end up losing sleep and it's not good for them. 

Something that attracted me to EMC was the self-research and no class-time aspect. I like having the option to choose my projects and study what I'm truly interested in. 

This year, I would like to research a major eye disease, Glaucoma, and how to detect it early in its development. The main threat of Glaucoma is that one does not realize they have it until it is too late to treat it. These treatments include laser eye surgeries and eyedrops which are unreliable. Most cases of Glaucoma lead to permanent blindness. I'm interested in learning about this topic because there is not that much information about eye problems in general. It's an upsetting reality that around 43 million people are living blind, and 295 million people are living with some kind of visual impairment (including myself). I already know that the most common cause of Glaucoma, the most common form of optic nerve damage is lack of blood flow. It is similar to a stroke, where blood clots formed in the heart lead to poor blood flow, which could lead to a lack of nutrients in the brain. This in turn damages brain cells, preventing patients from controlling parts of their body. I also know that Glaucoma causes different types of symptoms and visual impairment.

5 Questions

• What are the different causes of Glaucoma?

• What is the current research being done to detect Glaucoma early on?

• What device tests for Glaucoma currently?

• What kind of surgeries are the current treatment for Glaucoma?

• Why isn't pain felt when the optic nerve cells are getting damaged?

I am looking to investigate...

I think I know that Glaucoma is preventable if caught in time. I am pretty sure that there is some kind of test that optometrists do during daily check-ups to understand if the optic nerves are damaged or not during annual eye check-ups. I think I know Lasik is not a solution or a form of treatment for Glaucoma, and other forms of laser surgery need to be used. I don't know what these treatments are. I think I know one form of Glaucoma has something to do with eye pressure and drainage with some kind of fluid. I think that Glaucoma will not have any symptoms relating to nearsightedness or farsightedness because Glaucoma isn't caused by a refractive issue. 

I know I know that Glaucoma is caused by optic nerve damage within the brain. (At a Glance: Glaucoma, 2022) I know that Glaucoma is almost undetectable, although there is a way to test for it. I know that Glaucoma can affect vision permanently before eventually leading to blindness. I know that Glaucoma has different symptoms, and can cause different forms of vision impairment. There are alternative and better surgeries to prevent Glaucoma from getting worse. Data suggests that research is being done to find non-surgical cures for Glaucoma. (Catanese & Subramanian, 2023) 

1. I don't know when doctors first discovered glaucoma

2. I don't know when doctors found the technology to recognize the damaged blood vessels that cause glaucoma.

3. I don't know when the treatment for glaucoma came out

4. I don't know what types of research were involved in finding out treatments for glaucoma.

5. I don't know how long it takes for the effects of glaucoma to kick in and cause damage.

6. I don't know which types of eye damage glaucoma causes.

7. I don't know why glaucoma can't be detected early on.

8. I don't understand how the annual tests for glaucoma work.

9. I don't know how expensive treatments for glaucoma are.

10. I don't know how different types of glaucoma are acquired.

From the list of my 10 "I don't knows," I have determined that I need to know how different types of glaucoma are acquired. This is important because there are numerous forms of Glaucoma, with each affecting a different aspect of the eye. Some can lead to fuzziness in random spots, while others lead to darkness among the outside edges of your vision. It's imperative for us to find out more about the differences between these types of Glaucoma to understand more about the preventative measures to avoid Glaucoma. Finding out more about the causes of glaucoma is influential to prevention.

Need to know: How are different types of glaucoma acquired? 

The first step to answering my need-to-know is understanding how many types of glaucoma there are, and recognizing the differences between them. After that, I plan to dig deeper and find out the details which caused these types to differ.

There are four major types of glaucoma, Normal Tension Glaucoma, Open-Angle Glaucoma, Angle-closure Glaucoma, Secondary Glaucoma, and Pigmented Glaucoma. I have found that Open-angle glaucoma is the most common and often occurs due to the fluid in the eye not properly draining out. The eye has a mechanism that allows a balance between the fluid in the eye and leaving the eye, but when that mechanism stops functioning overflow of fluid takes place in the eye. Because of this, the inner eye pressure increases. Inner pressure is the pressure within the eye pushing outwards. Too much of it can lead to ocular hypertension. If the eye fluid doesn't drain correctly it clogs the passageways of the drainage canals, including the sensitive Optic Nerve, which can result in future vision problems. glaucoma.org 

Normal tension glaucoma occurs when the fluid in the eye doesn't drain quickly enough. Because of this, pressure builds up on the optic nerve. The optic nerve is what allows us to perceive vision in the brain. Over time, the nerve gets damaged, and this kind of glaucoma can result in blind spots in the peripheral vision. If the nerve continues to worsen, it can affect central vision too.  If continued to be left untreated, it could result in bilateral blindness. If the eye creates extra blood cells over the area where fluid drainage occurs, it can result in a medical emergency. 

Neovascular glaucoma could result in irreversible blindness in its later deadly stages. This is a lesser-known secondary form of glaucoma, usually caused by another disease or medical problem. Pigmentary glaucoma occurs when pigment particles from the iris fall off, and block the drainage in the eye. In the long term, this results in irreversible blindness. Symptoms of pigmentary glaucoma include major eye pain and irritation during intervals.

My previous SDA adressed the types of Glaucoma and the ways that they are acquired. When I researched this, I found that I was especially interested in normal tension glaucoma because it was more widespread. I'm also interested in finding out more about the way the optic nerve was affected  by it. I have encountered several explanations for the optic nerve strain leading to glaucoma, and I'm interested in learning more about how the optic nerve is affected specifically in pigmentary glaucoma. 

Need to know: How is the optic nerve connecting to the brain during normal tension?

• Which specific types of stress are put on the optic nerve during this type of glaucoma? I realize that stress is put on the optic nerve, but I want to understand how the normal tension stress differs from other types of glaucoma.

• How does the optic nerve send signals of what they viewed?

•  I have heard that during glaucoma, the optic nerve increases in size. This indicates that someone might have glaucoma. I wonder why that is a symptom or side-effect. Why does the optic nerve increase in size during normal tension glaucoma?

This will be my new need to know because I'm looking to research something more widespread, like normal tension glaucoma. This could make my research more impactful and necessary. I also want to narrow down my research from the causes of glaucoma to the affect of this type of glaucoma on the optic nerve and brain. This is because whenever I researched normal tension glaucoma, I always got results describing the optic nerve as a major cause. I want to further expand on that. My sources which helped me narrow down my research include websites like eyewiki.org Eye wiki.org contains a lot of other information, but I will mainly surf into the effect of the optic nerve. I think that it is more relavent. This specifically talks about how normal-tension glaucoma is caused by the stress of the optic nerve. I think that by narrowing down my research to something a bit more broad, I could get more information. I think that I will do my next SDA specifically focusing on these aspects to glaucoma. Another way I could research the effects of normal tension glaucoma is using https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. This website not only outlines the effects of the optic nerve, but it also dives into important aspects speaking about how common this glaucoma is. I think that it's important to consider the fact that the only way to test for glaucoma is through regular eye exams. If a family does not have access to proper insurance, or if they can't afford health care to get these regular exams, then how will they recognize whether or not they have glaucoma? By the time someone realizes their vision loss, it is usually too late for that vision to come back. This is due to the optic nerve, which I hope to explore further in depth.

My Need-To-Know is "How is the optic nerve specifically affected by Normal Tension Glaucoma?" I believe this falls into the Knowledge category because some of the questions under this category are similar, like "How is…?" The research I complete can help me understand more about the optic nerve. The evidence and facts that I previously have researched relating to Normal Tension Glaucoma can help me narrow down my topic.

My sub-questions are:

• (Evaluation: I would discuss the connection between normal-tension glaucoma and the optic nerve.)                                                                         Which specific types of stress are put on the optic nerve during this type of glaucoma? I realize that stress is put on the optic nerve, but I want to understand how the normal tension stress differs from other types of glaucoma.

• (Knowledge: This is a question for me to understand personally) How does the optic nerve send signals of what they viewed?

• (Knowledge: This is a "Can you recall" question.) I have heard that during glaucoma, the optic nerve increases in size. This indicates that someone might have glaucoma. I wonder why that is a symptom or side-effect. Why does the optic nerve increase in size during normal tension glaucoma?

My need to know has changed drastically from "How are different types of glaucoma acquired?" to "How is the optic nerve specifically affected by Normal Tension Glaucoma?" This is because I've narrowed my topic to something more specific. My sub-questions have changed as well, because they also narrowed towards research relating to the optic nerve. Compared to before, when my sub-questions regarded how glaucoma was acquired, my sub-questions are more specific.

The best sub-question to drive my need-to-know would be "Which specific types of stress are put on the optic nerve during this type of glaucoma?" because it specifically discusses aspects of my Need-To-Know, which is "How is the optic nerve specifically affected by Normal Tension Glaucome?"

I plan on using these websites to dive further in my research: 

“Optic Nerve Disorders.” MedlinePlus, 27 December 2016, https://medlineplus.gov/opticnervedisorders.html. Accessed 26 October 2023.

“What Is Your Optic Nerve?” Cleveland Clinic, 7 January 2022, https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/22261-optic-nerve. Accessed 26 October 2023.

Seibold, Leonard K. “Normal Tension Glaucoma.” EyeWiki, 18 July 2023, http://eyewiki.aao.org/Normal_Tension_Glaucoma. Accessed 26 October 2023.

S: My need-to-know questions are significant because they could lead to more knowledge in the field. Understanding glaucoma's effect on the optic nerve can help people recognize how and why glaucoma is caused. The optic nerve can send signals between the brain and the eyes, and understanding it can help. 

P: Glaucoma affects a large percent of the population who struggle with the excess of fluid in the eyes. When the fluid is not properly trained, the optic nerves get damaged. This happens commonly with over 80 million people being affected world wide according to (https://glaucoma.org/glaucoma-worldwide-a-growing-concern/).

E: This information is valuable because glaucoma is caused  by the damages of the optic nerve. If it is more universally understood, more measures could be taken to prevent glaucoma. I'm also using trusted common media article sources which make my research more reliable. 

C: Glaucoma can be connected with the brain, because the damages of the optic nerve affect how the occipital region of the brain percieves vision. I find that the subject of glaucoma can also be connected to social issues about healthcare and the cost of healthcare. To prevent glaucoma, annual checkups are a necessity. If someone is not actively being checked for glaucoma, damage could occur before it is caught. For those who don't have access to insurance and can't afford to get annual checkups, the risk of undetected glaucoma is much greater.

S: How might it be different if the optic nerve was healthy in an eye? During my previous research when I discovered why glaucoma is caused, I didn't get the chance to delve into the optic nerve. Although the nerve came up a lot in my research, I focused on the anatomical aspects of the eye and the lack of fluid drainage. With more focus on the increasing size and pressure on the optic nerve, I am narrowing down my research. If the optic nerve was healthy, would vision be normal? 

I liked the formatting of this SDA more than my last one. It was cool to play around with the editing features and software on WeVideo, though sometimes the website lagged my computer. I thought I was more informative in this SDA, but it lacked a storytelling aspect and was a bit too short. There was a lack of entertainment, and I thought my SDA was too short and wasn't detailed enough. It was also pretty short, and I didn't love how I cited my sources in my bibliography instead of adding the sources to the end of the video. I do think I conveyed a so what, because I mentioned how families with glaucoma were suffering. This made my SDA more significant. I dedicated around 3-4 hours to this assignment mostly because it took a while for me to figure out how to use WeVideo, I feel like the time could have been more producctive if I understood the software beforehand. I think I'm hitting Curiousity, Communication, and some aspects of Creativity. I would like to work on getting better at Critical thinking and Collaboration, however. The most important thing I learned was that the optic nerve contains a "head." This helps me understand how glaucoma affects the optic nerve specifically. I think this SDA was more informative than my first one, and I preferred this format. I'm proud of the production of my Videocast especially, because of how the music in the background made my voice seem more clear and the music also made the Videocast seem more interesting. I still need to work on researching, and finding out why certain facts are more significant to the audience. I think I can use the information that I gained from this month further by expanding my points and researching further in depth. I did like the HOTQ's and I used them a lot even during my previous journal entries where I crafted my subquestions. I have read very few scholarly articles for my Science Research Seminar class, but I want to look into them further. I know how to search for scholarly articles, and I understand how our library databases can come in handy for that.

Podcast: Diagnosis

Significance: This podcast is significant to my topic of research because it describes medical diagnoses. I was able to learn about how various developmental and deadly diseases get diagnosed. As someone who's researching Glaucoma, I was able to understand how people get tested for diseases and discover that they have them.

Perspective: The podcast affects people who are curious, and willing to learn. Many stories told in the podcast come from normal people, with human experiences. Anybody can relate to this wide range of stories, consisting of tales regarding pancreatic cancer and autism. While most stories gravitated towards medical topics, there were also "diagnoses" for non-medical concepts.

Evidence: In each story, we walk into an abnormal conflict regarding diagnosis. The podcast contained medical terminology and some cited specific statistics. At one instance, they describe how pancreatic cancer is one of the most rare and harmful cancers. They use this piece of evidence to back their claim about the importance of diagnosis, and they talk about how the harm of this cancer could be much worse if the cancer wasn't diagnosed by the pathologist.

Connections: This topic could connect to other fields than medicine, like research. One of the major stories in the podcasts was describing a pathologist's research journey, which resulted in a breakthrough regarding diagnosis. She describes greatly how tough the trial and error process was. Although their research resulted in a breakthrough, they recognized that it was only a small step in the process of improvement. The discovery of the molecule which causes pancreatic cancer accounts for a small amount of heredital diseases. I think this story in particular could be benificial for those learning more about the process of research.

Supposition: I like that the stories and personal experiences draw the reader in, however I personally would have preferred an informative take on the prompt. If the narrators chose to describe the scientific details, I think the readers would be more interested in the diagnosis portion instead of the minor details of the story. 

Me and Shruthi have decided to focus on three themes: The Vision of the Future, The Deterioration of the Eyes, and Illusions.

Vision of the Future: It's a commonly known fact that eyecare is expensive. The cost of lenses, daily contacts, and even LASIK surgery is immense, and we want to discover how that can be changed in the future. We hope to describe future ways of improving eyecare, whether that be from a technological or medical aspect. We would research future issues which could have been caused by eye-related issues, and it would work well with this theme.

Deterioration of Eyes: There are many differences between refractive issues and glaucoma when referencing the eye. With this theme, we would find those differences and similarities, and observe how these different diseases can affect the eye in the long-term. We would also focus on the role of Vision aids and old age, and how they contribute to the health.

Illusions: With this topic we wanted to explore the various misconceptions of eye-related issues. With ideas of "eye-excercises" we would research into the false beliefs which have spread into society regarding these issues. Also, we would consider the aspect of hallucination, and how it connects to the eyes. With illnesses like Schizophrenia and people taking hallucinogens, we were going to further discover the connections between the eyes and the brain.

My partners and I have decided to compile our research regarding refractive errors in the eyes, glaucoma, and airplanes to create "The Vision of the Future" podcast. We want to connect the issues of eyes and airplanes by researching the future technologies/innovations in these distinctive fields. This could look like noticing the future issues caused by phenomenons such as inferior eyecare technology and Co2 emmisions from airplanes. 

S- It's important to consider the future of eyecare and airplane technology because many people are affected by the issues in these fields. Refractive errors, Glaucoma, and Carbon Dioxide all negatively impact the general population, harming both their health and way of living. Whether we discuss the lack of technology in Glaucoma(we can't detect when it begins), or the long-term issues of Glaucoma, we could help the outlook within these fields. We could also bring in airplanes into this when considering their issues regarding carbon emissions, and finding technology to reduce it and create a more sustainable and environmentally-friendly fuel source. By adressing the future outlook, and evaluating future technologies, we could understand how these issues will be percieved, and if they will/will not get better.

P- These predictions of the future affect many people, including those who are facing vision difficulties, and issues regarding the environment. For people with contact lenses, glasses, and other visual technologies, this podcast could help them.

E-  Some evidence would include the vast amount of people in the world who suffer from the impacts of excessive carbon dioxide emissions and eye diseases. So many people in the world get increased eye strain from airplanes, having the big screen as their only form of entertainment. We could use various statistics to explain their relevance.

C- Our topic can connect to me and my partner's personal topics because we're considering ideas from different fields, like airplanes and eye-related diseases. It's also important to consider that our work connects to everyone who is affected by the movement.

S- If the situation wsa different, we would have different circumstances. We need to improve the healthcare of thte future.

We haven't completely decided on a video platform, but we're leaning towards using SoundTrap

Need To Know: How is glaucoma impacted by the eye strain caused by constant exposure to screens during the long hours of the flight? How will the technology used to prevent glaucoma improve it in the future?

Connection: This connects to the theme because I'm considering the future of Glaucoma. Whether it involves the future of technology or the future of healthcare, I'm paying attention the "The Vision of the future"

Partner's Topic: My need-to-know also connects with my partners' topics because we're all considering the future of our respective fields. We can connect the issues arising from glaucoma and refractive errors to the constant eye strain on airplanes. (Connecting Shruthi's topic and my topic to Jerush's topic.)

I have  been assigned to find a significant article outlining my focus on our January midterm project. I want to center around the technologicl advancements made, and in the works, towards improving glaucoma care. Through this scholarly article, (https://go.gale.com) I was able to delve in many different surgical treatments in progress to assist patients with glaucoma. 

Significance: This article's important because it thoroughly reviews the innovations and breakthroughs in surgical techniques. This topic perfectly aligns with my goal of centering my portion of the midterm around glaucoma treatments. It's significant to glaucoma patients and healthcare workers who don't have access to the standardized treatments. Perhaps their healthcare doesn't cover it. This article delves into alternatives, and other techniques which are not widely in practice. 

Perspective: People of all types of glaucoma-related issues (open angle glaucoma, pigmented glaucoma, etc.) would be able to utilize and chose from an array of surgical treatments instead of relying on one developed in the past. These new innovations spark hope and insight. With these alternatives, options are created.

Evidence: According to my article, the surgeries being created could pose less of a danger to the patient. "MIGS [Minimally Invasive Glaucoma Surgery] is considered to have a shorter surgical time and fewer severe complications when compared to traditional glaucoma surgeries..." (Balas 2023) This shows that surgeries like these could improve our vision of the future.

Connections: Since Shruthi and Jerush are also discussing the improvement of their respective fields of study, I can connect my research to theirs. Additionally, with newly gained knowledge of surgeries and technologies, the tech field could be impacted with these ideas.

Supposition: If there weren't only two definate glaucoma treatment options, more innovations could revolutionize healthcare in this field. Surgeries would be minimally invasive, and less costly. They would result in less severe conflicts, leading to more patient-friendly practices. 

In our podcast SDA, I contributed to the glaucoma portion of the podcast by writing out my script and speaking. Additionally, I helped record and edit our banter, the introduction, and our conclusion. I also contributed by editing in the music, and cutting down the audio to something more manageable. I think our roles were balanced generally well, as we all contributed. The dynamic in our group was casual, as we all facetimed and texted to discuss our podcast. We all stayed after in the library to record.  There weren't challenges with collaboration, as we all had each others' numbers. Decisions were made in our group as we agreed and disagreed on certain things. We discussed to find the best solution which worked for everyone, before doing anything. I would say Shruthi generally guided us and acted as the leader. Responsibilities were divided as each individual created their portion of the script individually, and then compiled them together with the intro and banter sections. Apart from timing conflicts, which we were able to figure out, there were no difficulties/conflicts in our group. Perhaps we did the podcast a little late, as we found that our original audio recoring didn't fit the guidelines  of the rubric. If we had seen that sooner, it would have been easier to complete the podcast without rushing it. Time-wise, we had a good plan and were on the right track to execute it. It was only when we looked at the rubric after completing our initial recording, that we realized we needed to re-record. However, we were still able to finish on time. From collaborating in our podcast, I learned the importance of working quickly. I was able to complete much more when our group was focused, and we were meeting. I learned that I could improve my time management skills. Our team provided feedback by discussing our topics with each other, and we expressed our opinions. If  I collaborate in a different project for the future, I would suggest meeting more often, as I worked better with my group.

In my second SDA, I feel like I touched on the idea of focusing on glaucoma detection, yet I feel like it wasn't executed as well as I would have liked. Glaucoma detection is a prevalant issue, especially with open angle glaucoma. The main reason why open-angle-glaucoma is so fatal is because it can't be detected- it steals sight before opthamalogists have the opportunity to administer medicine or surgical treatment. Therefore, my Need-to-know for this SDA will be "How can current glaucoma-detecting technologies be improved?" I want to reexlore this topic as I feel like I haven't detailed it enough. Though I dont want to only limit myself to improvements in detection, I do want to focus on the technical aspect of the machines and how they can tell whether or not a person has glaucoma. As for the way to go about my SDA, I feel like it needs a more informational approach. I was considering doing either the Picture Book option or the Presentation option. I think that the Picture  Book would be fun to  draw diagrams and shape, but it would take a long time and I'm not sure my hand-drawn pictures would look great. Additionally I feel like the Presentation would be such a fun way to display my information and make it understandable. Making an informative activity would also be fun, but I'm worried as to what that would entail. Maybe a Kahoot or such, but I'm not sure if that would  be as fun because it seems boring.

I have decided through consideration to do the presentation format of the SDA. I think I need to focus more on the Creative and Critical thinking aspects of this presentation because I would work on allowing the audience to understand what it would be like to lose their vision. I want to make them understand the importance and significance of early detections and treatment. The Presentation would help me achieve these themes because I could easily work in Creative aspects into the activity. I plan to use that portion to my advantage, and I would be able to use a hands-on activity to emulate the effects of glaucoma. 

I decided on the presentation SDA because I wanted a wide audience to understand the significance of early detection. It's crucial and important to get treated early, and I want to demonstrate that to a wide audience. This would also allow me to actively engage with the audience and explain my subject to different people with different background knowledge levels. I want this to be engaging and fun, while also having an informative aspect where the audience can take away something from the presentation.

S: The question would be to determine the extent to which glaucoma detection can affect a person, and it's important because many people suffer from this.

P: This would affect everyone since I would emulate how glaucoma is really a surprise. It's a silent killer for a reason, so everyone can find use to the information I will present.

E: I will look for much evidence from various websites and journals, but part of the research will stem from people who have experienced these effects. I plan to reach out to people.

C: This will connect to many activities as the loss of vision can affect everyone while driving and such.

S: I want to emphasize how important check ups are. Contrary to popular belief, check ups can't be skipped.

Sources:  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10217711/#:~:text=Ophthalmologists%20use%20multiple%20manual%20methods,Pachymetry%20measures%20the%20corneal%20thickness.

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/4212-glaucoma