By Elizabeth Gore; Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior; ’17
Author’s Note:
“This is my literature review for UWP 104F. I chose the topic of transgender medical treatment outcomes because of the recent increase in transgender inequity in the media. In the last 10 years, with the emergence of World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), there has been an increase in studies and resources available to clinicians. This emergence, while promising, is new and few clinicians feel comfortable treating these patients. This paper focuses on the outcomes of treatment on the wellbeing of patients struggling with gender dysphoria (GD). I originally chose this topic because of my connection with several transgender individuals. I was also curious as to what could be done to alleviate GD because I had heard about the prevalence of mental disorders and suicide rates among these patients. I do not focus on the treatments themselves in my literature review but on the wellbeing of the patient after receiving treatment. I thought that this was the important emphasis because the overall goal of these treatments is to improve the wellbeing of the patient.” Continue reading Medical Treatment for Gender Dysphoria: A Review of Risks and Benefits→
By Lo Tuan, Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior and Managerial Economics, ’17
Author’s Note:
“I chose to write this paper because I have a family member who suffers from TTH and expanding my knowledge of the topic through researching and writing empowered me to play a more active role in assisting my family with addressing such medical condition.”
By Mor Alkaslasi, Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior, ’16
Author’s Note:
“I chose to write a review about this book because I kept finding myself telling my professors and peers about it. As a student in a scientific discipline to which genetics and DNA are crucial, I feel that this book is a notable chronicle of the scientific process and of one of the most groundbreaking discoveries of the past century. I hope that this review serves to encourage anyone with an interest in science to read this book, or at least to realize the book’s importance in the scientific community.” Continue reading The Double Helix: A Personal Account of the Discovery of the Structure of DNA→
“Metagenomics is the study of genetic material directly from environmental samples such as the soil or the human gut. With whole metagenomic sequencing, it is possible to obtain and analyze every piece of genetic material in the sample. As we being to learn more about the world, it becomes evident that there is more that is unknown. The crAssphage is an example of a “known unknown” because through metagenomics, the virus’s genome has been built and certain properties can be interpreted from the genome, but it has never been seen under a microscope and there is much still unknown about the virus. Metagenomics have opened the doors to analyzing multiple sequences and determining the ecology of the environment. Because metagenomics is becoming more prevalent, it is essential to understand the potential of this growing field. I hope that by learning about the potential of metagenomics, new ideas can sprout from using this technology in order to help others.”
“Parnya and I collaborated on this piece for a Science and Religion: The Case of Galileo seminar assignment. This assignment was inspired by the seminar’s focus on religious controversies surrounding scientific advancements, theories, and concepts. Another main reason why we wrote this piece is because of our backgrounds. Parnya, a computer engineer major, and myself, a biology major, both attended Catholic high schools. We enjoyed writing this piece because analyzing science and technology in the face of religious teachings and practice is something we will have to consider in our future careers. We chose to analyze abortion because it is one of the most popular and controversial science vs religion topics today. After reading this piece, we would like our readers to understand that while science can heal and cure, it can also offend and upset religious groups. As college students studying science, it is our job to develop our own opinions, while respecting those whose beliefs differ from our own.”
By: Esther Ebuehi, Human Development major, Nutrition Science minor ’16
Author’s Note:
“This narrative case report describes an athlete’s shoulder injury and explores the way injuries are treated in the world of collegiate athletics. While I was writing this piece, I recognized just how little time non-athletes spend thinking about the impact of sports injuries. Many NCAA athletes have life-long sports injuries, but we rarely talk about this issue as a campus community. There’s a national discourse revolving around injury prevention in football, and I believe this is a topic college students (athletes and non-athletes alike) should be thinking critically about.”
By Shivani Kamal, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, ’17
Author’s Note:
“I am pursing a career in pediatrics and wanted to familiarize myself with new research regarding health and development of children. I was amazed at the advancements of medical technology which allow us to understand diseases and create potential cures, previously never thought possible. My purpose for writing this review is to show scientific audiences the most current research on how bacteria in the respiratory microbiome has an impact on asthma. Recently, much research initiated by the Human Microbiome Projects (HMP) proved that the bacteria living on and inside humans contribute to the health and disease of the body. This review is meant to educate scientists on the most recent information on development of childhood asthma and prompt others to conduct future research on preventative treatments for the disease.”
By Shubhang Bhatt, Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior, ’15
Author’s Note:
“What is Myasthenia Gravis?” aims at informing the readers about the mechanism of action, symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment of Myasthenia Gravis. Fatigue and muscle weakness is something that today’s working population has learned to ignore, and this has prevented MG from early detection. Proper treatment is necessary for this potentially life-threatening condition. I decided to write about this topic after reading a case study for one of my internships. I hope the readers will look out for signs like the drooping of eyelids, muscle weakness, and difficulty in swallowing for the early detection of this rare autoimmune disease.”
“This piece aspires to encourage consumers to critically interpret the scientific facts presented in everyday advertisements. Our society assumes that rBST and many other synthetic chemicals are detrimental to health, this essay emphasizes the importance of challenging fallacious argument in order to fairly evaluate the use of rBST.”
“I wrote this literature review as an assignment for UWP104F (Writing in the Professions: Health). We were able to choose any health problem of our interest and review current research pertaining to that topic. I chose to write about dementia particularly because it affects my grandmother. To this day, my family and I do not know how she went from being a fairly healthy 40 year old woman to being a person with Alzheimer’s disease. During my research, I came across an abundance of literature pertaining to the relationship between dementia and the blood supply to the brain. The notion of hypertension being a potential indicator of later dementia captured most of my interest given that it is relatively common in the US compared to other countries. What we can learn about the link between blood supply and the brain may give us a better understanding of dementia as well as insight for prevention.”
The Aggie Transcript 