This past Wednesday in the lab, we integrated the two main topics of our IDC seminar by combining a health care innovation from years ago with our knowledge of the scientific method. A major criterion for a scientific experiment is its ability to be reproduced under the same conditions, by other people, possibly in later generations and that is exactly what we did in the lab. We synthesized the drug Aspirin from past knowledge and proven data. The scientists in the 1890s observed, researched, questioned, posed hypotheses and eventually experimented to create this drug. By correctly following the scientific method, they created a product that has affected many people worldwide and that was able to be reproduced by the students of Baruch College as a result of their efforts. We really did “stand on the shoulders of giants” like Sir Isaac Newton once said. Three times a week I am in the lab doing different biology and chemistry experiments, yet this was a different experience, as we had a specific end goal of pure Aspirin, rather than just observing and calculating. I rarely have the chance to test my experiment at the end to see if my procedure was correct, but this lab allowed me to retrace my steps and think about where I might have went wrong. I greatly enjoyed our time in the lab, especially as we are in the midst of our own scientific experiments and health care innovations.