Science Forward Fall 2018

Dr. Edyta Greer, Baruch College

Author: rinnisutanto (Page 1 of 2)

Blog Post 3- Reflection

December 22, 2018 / / 0 Comments

Taking this class this semester was a very interesting and informative experience that made me look at science in a more detailed and specific way. I am a Biological Sciences major, so I have expose to the sciences every day in my other classes, but this class taught me more about the science of science, in a way. I think one of the most important part of science that this class taught me about was the scientific process, and all of its intricate details. In basic science classes, I had teachers and professors outline it in 5 basic steps, and that was the end of the discussion. What this class did was teach me about the different ways the scientific method could be applied and used.

For example, completing the 3D printed healthcare innovation was very helpful for me in learning more about the scientific process. I feel like in the past, I have always been taught that the scientific method is applied to experimental projects in the lab. The scientific method would always be used to strictly outline an experiment with a clear hypothesis, measurable data, procedure and results. However, the process in designing a healthcare innovation also has underlying aspects of the scientific method that aren’t as overt as they are in experiments. There is research in finding out and justifying the need for the healthcare innovation, and there is a procedure and plan, as well as a final product. Though there isn’t any measurable data, there is a final design, and you can hypothesize about the way the healthcare innovation can help the public. Going through the process of creating a healthcare innovation with my group members helped me see that the scientific method can be applied in other scientific processes, not just experiments exclusively.

I also learned that a huge part of the scientific method is revision and repetition, and I saw this through having to do many versions of the self-regulating pill bottle. In order to get it right, there were many rounds of revisions which ultimately led to the best possible version of our healthcare innovation. I think that having to redo and work on our posters multiple times after getting feedback was one of the most important processes we went through in this class, because it just emphasized the idea that science is based on revisions and building on previous work. Just as Dr. Greer explained, the processes of doing experiments and forming new theories rely heavily on reproducibility, as well as going back and revising old hypotheses and testing them in new experiences. It is in this way that we were able to get the best possible version of our posters, thanks to Jake and Dr. Greer’s feedback, as well as the comments from our peers. Having to do a poster was one of the most memorable experiences for me, because it was the first time I had exposure to research posters and presenting research. Since I am a Biological Sciences major and a Pre-Med student, I hope to do research in the future, and this was a nice way for me to get preliminary experience with poster making. Overall, this class was very enjoyable, as it was structured well and we had amazing instructors who cared deeply about our being able to learn about science. I am very grateful to have had these experiences.

Synthesis of Aspirin Lab

November 11, 2018 / / 0 Comments

After having learned about the processes that go behind scientific research, we were able to implement our knowledge of the scientific process in the lab by conducting the synthesis of aspirin lab. Although this lab has been reproduced many times and it was not a new scientific discovery, it was very helpful in outlining the steps scientists take in eventually making scientific breakthroughs. The question we were attempting to answer in the lab was: how could aspirin be synthesized from salicylic acid through acetylation? We tested our hypothesis that acetylation of salicylic acid will lead to aspirin. In the end, we tested for the purity of our aspirin, and it turned out that the aspirin that Claire and I made was pure and did not contain salicylic acid. I believe that this was one of the most important steps in the whole experiment, because we had to test for whether or not the procedure/experiment went right. In the scientific process, this is significant because this test for purity would signify if there were any errors. These errors would later try to be corrected, and publishing the experiment would allow for others in the scientific community to build on and try to revise these possible errors. This is how the scientific community builds knowledge and experiments that support and further develop scientific knowledge.

Bibliography

October 28, 2018 / / 0 Comments

Claire Ng, Victor Carranno, and Rinni Sutanto

 

Topic: How water qualities of body of water differ from park to park in NYC

 

Claire

“NYC Beach Water Quality.” Maps.nyc.gov. https://maps.nyc.gov/beach/.

Updated by the New York City Government, this source shows data on all of New York City beaches and their weekly enterococci bacteria count. Enterococci bacteria count is the indicator of fecal contamination in recreational water. Such bacteria resides in both animals and humans, but a high count of such bacteria makes water contaminated thus unsafe for humans to be in. Separated into two columns, the data shows the enterococci bacteria count through a “30 Day Geometric Mean” and a whole day count. Since such data is collected by the NYC government and water contamination facilities, the findings are legitimate as well as frequently updated. This source will provide data to compare the water quality of NYC beaches and the specific count and background information of what enterococci bacteria is and how it is used to detect water contamination.

 

Dellatto, Marisa, and Suzy Weiss. “Just How Safe Are NYC’s Water Fountains?” New York Post. June 26, 2018. https://nypost.com/2018/06/25/just-how-safe-are-nycs-water-fountains/.

A study explained in this popular article from the New York Post tested the water quality of several water fountains from several New York City parks, including Van Cortlandt, Prospect, McCarren, Central, Washington Square, Bryant, Flushing Meadows-Corona and Clove Lakes. Scientists from the EMSL Analytical tested the water to see if there were any signs of unclean water, such as the indication of lead, dangerous bacteria, microorganisms and other chemicals. The researchers, as cited in the article, found no “reg flags” but did indicate turbid waters in all the parks except McCarren, which means murky water. This source provides further data to represent the water quality throughout NYC parks and the organizations that research the cleanliness of such water. This source also indicates some of the basic “red flags” to look out for when judging water quality. Both authors are frequent writers for the New York Post. While Weiss focuses more on on an array of topics, including lifestyle, Dellatto writes more on debunking certain health ideas as well as reporting on health findings.

 

“New York City 2017 Drinking Water Supply and Quality Report.” NYC Environmental Protection, http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/wsstate17.pdf

This is the 2017 New York City report on the drinking water supply and quality, released by the NYC Environmental Protection issued by mayor Bill de Blasio and Vincent Sapienza, the R.E. Commissioner. This report describes where the city’s water source comes from, how it is cleaned and other restrictions/processes to provide the city the cleanest water. This source will provide a great background and basic understanding how water is supplied and cleaned for the city and its parks and other recreational use. Since this is an official report by the city, this source provides sufficient and concrete data to support our project and the background knowledge that is required for readers to understand the topic.

 

Victor

 

Dorn, Sara. 2018. “These New York City beaches are teeming with fecal bacteria.” New York Post, June 30, 2018, https://nypost.com/2018/06/30/these-new-york-        city-beaches-are-teeming-with-fecal-bacteria/

 

This popular article from the New York Post presents the findings of the New York City Health Department’s studies on bacterial concentration in the water at three beaches in southeast Brooklyn.  The Health Department’s records showed that the Manhattan, Kiddie and Kingsborough beaches along the Rockaway Inlet had more than three times as many bacteria warnings as the city’s other seven public beaches.  High counts of the fecal bacteria Enterococci resulted in swim warnings on 101 days between the three beaches during the summers of 2016 and 2017. According to the article, the Health Department believes that the high bacterial concentrations are due to increased rainfall, which clean-water experts say cause sewage overflows into New York Harbor.  We will use this source to supplement the data we find on the water quality throughout New York City. This article will help us to better understand some of the data as we attempt to interpret it.

 

Department of Environmental Protection. 2013. “Harbor Water Quality.” NYC Open Data, September 13, 2018, https://data.cityofnewyork.us/Environment/Harbor-Water- Quality/5uug-f49n

This dataset published on NYC OpenData presents water quality data compiled by the New York City Department of Environmental Protection.  The dataset includes measurements of several variables related to overall water quality such as pH, transparency, turbidity and bacterial concentration.  The data has been collected at multiple locations along New York Harbor and its various tributaries over the course of many years. We will use some of the data from this source in order to assess and analyze overall water quality throughout New York City.  This data will provide us with several important variables that can help us better understand and determine how water quality varies in different parts of the city.

  1. “New York City Waterfront.” Riverkeeper, October 27, 2018, https://www.riverkeeper.org/water-quality/citizen-data/new-york-city-waterfront/

 

Riverkeeper is non-profit environmental organization that is a leading clean-water advocate.  The organization is dedicated to fighting water pollution and improving the water-quality of New York’s Hudson River.  Riverkeeper compiles the results of sample water tests taken by citizen scientists along New York City’s waterfront. These sample tests are coordinated by the New York City Water Trail Association (NYCWTA) and are taken weekly from May to October.  The sample tests measure the Enterococcus bacterial count of water at various locations along twelve waterways within New York City’s urban area. Additionally, Riverkeeper compiles rainfall data at these various locations, which is an important variable that is used to understand differences in water quality.  We will use this source to assess the correlation between rainfall and the bacterial concentration of water at locations throughout New York City. This will help us to better understand differences in water quality and what these differences may be attributed to.

 

Rinni

  1. Mukundan, Rajith, Soni M. Pradhanang, Elliot M. Schneiderman, Donald C. Pierson, Aavudai Anandhi, Mark S. Zion, Adão H. Matonse, David G. Lounsbury, and Tammo S. Steenhuis. 2013. “Suspended Sediment Source Areas and Future Climate Impact on Soil Erosion and Sediment Yield in a New York City Water Supply Watershed, USA.” Geomorphology 183 (February): 110–19. doi:10.1016/j.geomorph.2012.06.021.

 

This source is a study published in Geomorphology, a scientific journal that specializes in geology and its effects on life. This is a reputable source that is peer-reviewed and controlled. The authors have proficient knowledge in the sciences and have scientific backgrounds. This source will help our research project in that it discusses the effect of soil erosion on New York City watersheds. The study features quantified data that shows the soil-sediment levels in 891 km2 Cannonville watershed in New York City. The study found that there has been a rapid increase in sediment in the water over the years due to climate change. They have also projected that the sediment levels will keep increasing in future years as climate change intensifies.

  1. Dignan, Clare. 2018. “Water Quality Improving in Long Island Sound, Report Says.” West Hartford News. October 02, 2018. http://www.westhartfordnews.com/news/water-quality-improving-in-long-island-sound-report-says/article_332c9dc1-5c65-50de-b872-9b401d2d9e04.html.

 

This source is a news article published by a local news source. This news article is on the water quality of the beaches on Long Island. Although this is not a source that is heavily based in science, the source discusses in detail the quantitative and qualitative findings of scientists who tested the water. The article references the Long Island Sound Report Card 2018, which was a 10 year study conducted by environmentalists. The source discusses the Oxygen levels, Nitrogen levels, water clarity, dissolved organic carbon, and phytoplankton populations in the waters of Long Island, as well as the trends in the data. This study and report would be a good source for our project, so this article was helpful in that it led us to the study.

 

  1. Spivack, Caroline. 2018. “New York Harbor Is The Cleanest It Has Been In A Century: Study.” Tribeca-FiDi, NY Patch. September 04, 2018. https://patch.com/new-york/downtown-nyc/new-york-harbor-cleanest-it-has-been-century-study.

 

This source was published by Patch.com, a local New York City news source. Although this source is not the most credible, it references a study conducted by the New York City Department of Environmental Protection. This study is permalinked in the article, and it details the findings of dissolved oxygen levels, Nitrogen levels, and bacteria populations in the New York City harbor. The study found that the water is the cleanest it has been in the last one hundred years. This source will be very valuable to our research project because it has a lot of quantified data that we can use to make conclusions about the water quality in different parts of New York City.

HI Proposal — Drug Dispenser

October 16, 2018 / / 0 Comments

Group Members: Claire Ng, Rinni Sutanto and Victor Carrano

Twist and Lock Drug Dispenser

A significant healthcare problem in the United States today is the nation’s opioid epidemic.  According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, there were more than 49,000 overdose deaths involving opioids in 2017.  Much of the problem has been fueled by a massive, nationwide demand for prescription drugs, with millions of prescriptions being written each year.  Patients who obtain these prescribed medications often become addicted and fail to adhere to the appropriate dosages set by their doctors or pharmacists.  The epidemic has impacted people of all ages, including our youth, as child opioid overdoses have reportedly doubled over the past 14 years. This uptick in child overdoses can be attributed to children easily gaining access to prescription drugs belonging to their parents. The availability of prescription drugs combined with a lack of safeguards has created a recipe for abuse and accidental disasters. The ongoing epidemic presents the need for a method of providing medication to patients in a manageable and secure way that mitigates the risk of intentional or accidental overdose.

Studies in scientific literature as well as government sponsored public health websites have reported the increase of drug overdose, both intentional and accidental. For example, studies have shown that young adults ages eighteen to twenty-five are at greater risk of abusing drugs, A study published in Addictive Behaviors, psychology journal, has indicated that young adults are a predominant group at risk of drug abuse due to factors like college (Chinnek et.al 2018). Another study published in the journal Medicine & Health Rhode Island analyzes the different ways in which accidental overdoses occur, and which demographics are affected. According to the study, children are at the highest risk group of accidental overdoses, with children having the highest amount of hospitalizations due to accidental ingestion of drugs (Green et. al. 2011). This information is significant because it determines the demographics our healthcare innovation targets, as well as the importance of why this innovation is needed.

The healthcare innovation is a pill/drug dispenser that controls dosage and the amount of drugs dispensed. It would be a bottle for pills, but the technology would be in the cap of the bottle. First, the cap will only be able to be twisted in one direction as to dispense one pill per turn.  The cap will lock itself according to dosage set by the pharmacist using telemedicine technology. For example, if the dosage is 2 pills per 24 hours, the clock on the cap will dispense only two pills, and will lock for the next 24 hours. There will also be a fingerprint component to the cap to allow only the patient to access it.

Due to the health and safety precautions this device holds, it can be implemented throughout all pharmaceuticals and healthcare centers when prescribing drugs to patients. It ensures safety in order to prevent overdosing and drug abuse. This would not be used for commercial purposes, but will be vital to healthcare professionals and pharmacists when prescribing and handing out designated drugs. In terms of function, this device is simple. It allows for quick and efficient use. With a simple twist and lock, this device will surely be attractive to healthcare professionals and pharmacists alike. Although this device is not intended for commercial use, the probability of taking the patent and incorporating it into other industries can be likely. Such ideas can use this lock and timed tool for diets and other health-restricted needs. Because this device focuses on health and safety issues, the likeliness of this product to be successful is high and profitable. It’s universal to all ages and needs as well as simple and reliable to use.

This pill dispenser is sure to become one of the most effective ways of preventing drug overdose and drug abuse. Because of its assurance to be controlled by the healthcare professional and or pharmacist, the time and dosage of such drugs shall be accurate and safe. With the fingerprint safety precaution, this device only further ensures that the prescribed drugs are being handled and taken by the prescribed patient. This device will innovate and improve the way prescription drugs are handled and distributed through pharmacies and other medical facilities.

Annotated Bibliography

October 10, 2018 / / 0 Comments
  1. 2017. “Accidental Overdose of Medicine.” Healthdirect | Healthdirect. Accessed October 9, 2018. https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/accidental-overdose-of-medicines.
    • HealthDirect is the national public health information service in Australia. It is a credible source that is funded by the Australian government, and has health information that is openly accessible to Australians and the rest of the world. It is a non-profit organization that seeks to improve public health and health awareness. This article does three important things: First, it defines what an accidental overdose is. Second, it describes the ways in which accidental overdoses on pills occur, and finally, it lists the symptoms of poisoning and overdose. This article is helpful to our health care innovation because it describes the ways in which overdose happens. Using this information, we can design a better innovation that addresses many of the ways in which accidental overdoses can occur. For example, the article mentions that people forget that they have already taken their dose, which means that our innovation can have a counter/lock system after each dose.
  2. Green, Traci C., and Edward F. Donnelly. 2011. “Preventable Death: Accidental Drug Overdose in Rhode Island.” Medicine & Health Rhode Island 94 (11): 341–43.
    • Green and Donnelly are two people with scientific backgrounds in health and medicine. Dr. Green, a Harvard graduate, is an epidemiologist who specializes in emergency care and drug abuse. The journal is a medical journal, and is a reputable source that has been publishing since 1917. This article is about accidental overdoses in Rhode Island, and how the number has increased significantly. Green and Donnelly analyze statistics, and provide the reader with a lot of quantitative data on which demographics are hospitalized for accidental overdose, including gender, age and race. This information will be helpful in developing our healthcare innovation in that we will know which demographics need this technology. For example, children suffer from accidental overdoses. These statistics also further stress the need for the innovation.
  3. Lieber, Mark. 2018. “Opioid Overdose among Children Nearly Doubles.” CNN. Accessed October 9, 2018. https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/05/health/opioid-overdose-children-doubles-study/index.html.
    • Mark Lieber is a journalist who has wrote for CNN extensively on articles concerning “Global Health.” CNN is a broadcasting channel with an online presence as well; overall, it is a very reputable source. This article discusses the ways in which children accidentally overdose on pills and medication, and how this has increasingly become a problem in our country. This source will be helpful because it will add more reasons to why this health care innovation is needed.

 

 

BioBlitz Research Question: Claire, Victor and Rinni

October 9, 2018 / / 0 Comments
  1. What is the final version of the question you are interested in asking?
    1. How does the water quality of bodies of water differ from park to park in NYC?
  2. List some keywords to use when searching for related scientific literature. Be specific!
    1. New York bodies of water
    2. Water quality
    3. Turbidity
    4. coliform/fecal
  3. Where will your data come from? Do you need to collect new data? Please describe.
    1. Old bioblitz data from nyc open data
      1. https://data.cityofnewyork.us/Health/DOHMH-Beach-Water-Quality-Data/2xir-kwzz
      2. https://data.cityofnewyork.us/Environment/Watershed-Water-Quality-Data/y43c-5n92
    2. We do not need to collect new data since the most recent data was from September of this year for the watershed water quality
  4. What will you be measuring or comparing? What are the dependent and independent variables?
    1. We will be comparing the water quality of bodies of water in NYC parks.
    2. Independent variable: water quality
    3. Dependent variable: location (park)
  5. Please make a list of your methods. If you are using existing BioBlitz data, you do not need to describe those data collection methods on this worksheet, but you do need to describe how you are extracting the relevant data from the entire BioBlitz data set.
    1. Since we are using old BioBlitz data, we will be combining different sets of data: one being the water quality of NYC beaches and then the data from the watershed water quality. Using these two, we will observe and record how water quality varies across different NYC parks and locations.
  6. Why is this question interesting to you? Why should others care about this topic?
    1. Water quality is an important factor in sustaining New York City’s natural wildlife and ecosystems.  Understanding differences in water quality between parks can help us to understand the health of different ecosystems across NYC.

Transplanted device for memory degeneration

October 3, 2018 / / 0 Comments

I did a research paper last year on Alzheimer’s and I learned that there was a relationship between G-CSF (glycoprotein that stimulates bone marrow to release stem cells into blood) and memory degeneration. When there is more G-CSF present, working memory is enhanced. This device would be put in the person’s brain, and tubes that are collecting/transporting stem cells released into the blood would connect between the spine and the brain. Or, it can just be a transplanted device that promotes the production of G-CSF.
This is important to me because I don’t know if my mom is genetically predisposed to Alzheimer’s or Dementia, but she has been having really bad memory loss the last few years even though she is in her 40’s. A family friend’s mother has Dementia, and it is honestly a scary to see how she lost her identity and her relationships.

Blog Post 1

September 28, 2018 / / 0 Comments

One of the most important insights that my classmates and I made through the Hot Topic project is that popular media reports synthesize scientific studies in a way that makes the information more accessible to the common public. Certain magazines, news outlets and blogs choose which information to include, and curate it in a way that makes it more understandable for their readers. Some popular media sources even misconstrue scientific findings in order to make more definitive claims and gain more readership.

If I were a scientific journalist New York Times, I would simplify information in a way that stays true to the original peer-reviewed scientific article. In order to still keep the essence of the scientific study, I would include short quotes of necessary information, as well as some convincing numerical data. In addition, I would try to create some very simplified graphs of whatever results were collected, especially if there is a visible trend, because I feel like simple graphs could be made sense of easier.

I believe that good scientific journalist should always maintain a healthy skepticism in their writing, like the author of my popular media article did. Journalists should mention that although the studies may support one argument, there is still room for more development. A popular media article would be really helpful if it even included some counterclaims, or evidence for the other side because it would explore the topic in more depth, and would help the reader develop other theories or questions.

Nurses and EpiPens

September 11, 2018 / / 0 Comments

Due to the conflict between Doctor devised emergency plans and school district guidelines, school nurses are facing difficulties in treating students with severe allergies. The American Academy of Asthma, Allergy and Immunology maintains a set of regulations in dealing with emergencies, but a problem arises when rules clash, leading to a risk of delay in treating anaphylactic shock. According to several studies, there have been many cases in which not using epinephrine led to delayed treatment of allergies (Boyce et al., 2010; Carlisle et a., 2010; Fleischer et al., 2012; Nowak-Wegrzyn, 2012b). It is in the students’ best interests to train nurses to use EpiPens, as they can reconcile the school’s guidelines and the provider’s emergency plans (Wahl et al. 2015, 97).

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