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March 01, 2007

The One With the Experiments and BRAIN SCANS!

Yes, y'all, the brain scans are IN!  For all who did not believe that I have a brain...y'all have now been proven wrong!  To the left, y'all can see a cross section image of my brain as viewed from the top.  The 'L' on the left of the image indicates the left side of my brain, so pretty much looking at that image is like slicing the top of my head open and looking at it straight down if you were standing right behind me... slightly Hannibal-like but still TOTALLY COOOOOOL!!! I've become more involved with research this semester, and it all started with this fMRI scan as I mentioned in an earlier Blog entry.  I was actually worried about the time commitment that the research program was asking of me, but I was able to talk it out with the head professor of the research and we were able to work it out that I will only have to come in once a week for about 2-4 hours.  At first, I just did the minimal stuff around the lab.  I did practice runs of the experiments and searched for possible grammatical errors in sentences included in research that would then need to be edited.  Another undergrad research student usually showed me around the lab and would also do a demo of each experiment so that I would have at least a basic understanding of how each of them are performed.  I've been coming in for only about 3 weeks, I think, but last Tuesday they actually trusted me to RUN EXPERIMENTS ON MY OWN!!! 

Yes, I got to actually run the experiments by myself.  It was pretty routine-ly type of stuff.  I would sit the participant down in the lab and hand him/her some consent forms and give a brief overview of the experiment.  I'd have to press a couple of buttons here and there on the computer to get the test up and ready for running, and then, simply tell the participant to begin!  When he/she would finish with the experiment, I'd have to make copies of the data they have generated and get them all stored in appropriate file folders on the server.  Nothing too profound or anything, but it feels pretty cool and good to be a part of something pretty big...a research...whoooo!

I think it's really cool how research programs like this with the ALab in Psychology are just up for grabs for practically anyone, really.  I basically just did a quick search on the USC web and contacted professors myself, and now I'm here working next to a professor, a graduate student, and a couple of other undergrads just like me.  I don't know if y'all know, but USC has often been referred to as a research institute, and it really is.  Most of my professors are currently conducting research on their own on the side, and many students on campus are involved with them.  The opportunities are endless here at USC!  You just have to share your interest with others and just go for it!

Anyways...here are a couple of more pictures of my brain...

The one on the left is a cross section of the brain as viewed from the back and towards the actual back part of the brain.  My boyfriend was playing around with the MRIcron program and realized that when he kept moving the little arrow thing to view a certain cross section view that at that point, the image looks like his dog named Cocky!!!  The one of the right is just another cross sectional view that you typically see in textbooks...so I guess my brain looks pretty normal!

Anyways...hope y'all enjoyed that lil blurb of mine.  Experiments and brains and brains and a dog!  We're not exactly MIT, but the research possibilites and opportunities are still here...and I'd be just glad if y'all would come and hop on board with us here!  Catch y'all later on the flipside, future Gamecocks!

Posted by Kriska at 12:22 AM | | Comments (0)

February 03, 2007

The One With A Brain Scan...for ME!

Now, now guys.  Before y'all get worried.  The brain scan was for....RESEARCH PURPOSES! My brain is still intact.  All is in good order.  There's nothing to worry about.  Life is  still good!  Still healthy and hailing here at Cola Gamecock Country.  Nothing to fret about. 

Remember that research program I was talking about yesterday?  Well, Dr. Amit Almor, the head advisor of the program, was in dire need of a pilot for the experiment, and since I expressed interest about the research he thought I might be interested in joining the crew and be tested with the fMRI.  In all honesty, after I thought about formally getting all the paperwork in to join the research as an independent study student, I realized that I'd be putting in about 10 hours per week at the Language Lab.  That's 10 hours.  TEN HOURS OF MY FREE TIME GONE!  (Less Wii time, less "What I Like About You," less naps, and well y'all get the idea!)  Also, when exams and such begin...I might be too busy to handle such a load.  It kind of freaked me out, and I was just slightly overwhelmed...I'm afraid I might not be able to make the full commitment.  So, I decided to just go and see what exactly it was that they did and maybe from there decide whether I can be "passionate enough" to convince myself to put in the time required.  So, I went along with Dr. Amit and one of the grad students in the department, and I became their guinea pig for the day.

Let me tell you, those fMRI machines are really no fun.  An annoying buzzing/beeping sound just kept going and going, and even with earplugs and headphones you just could not tune it out.  Laying in that confined space for about an hour was also just BORING!  LOL!  On top of that, laying confined in a tight space reading sentences over and over again was slightly mind-numbing...BUT BUT BUT!  Don't get me wrong.  It wasn't all bad...besides the fact that it did just take long and well it got boring...the experiment was interesting.  Someone explained to me how the fMRI worked and how it used magnetic fields (which I just learned about this morning in my Physics class) and protons and such (which I'm learning more and more each day in my Chemistry class).  It was neat to see practical usage of things I'm learning in class, which I always think are just useless information.  And well, ultimately, the coolest part of the entire experience was...GETTING TO SEE PICTURES OF MY BRAIN...and 3-D pictures at that.  It was pretty cool looking...and no, contrary to what my friends said and my MOM...my brain is bigger than a peanut!  Dr. Amit promised to e-mail me when I can go by the office and pick up a CD of all the pictures...I'll probably post some up on the site as soon as I get them...I promise they look cool!

Anyways, I'm still not quite sure if I want to really go ahead and make the commitment.  I'm kind of worried that I might be stretching myself too thin if I do...I'll have to think about it over the weekend and just make a decision soon.

As for y'all...time's a ticking and I just realized (likewise for myself but more importantly for y'all) I haven't reminded y'all about getting your FAFSAs in.  There's still lots of time, but make sure to get it all filled up ASAP!  Well...that's my mommy-tidbit-reminder...For now, I'm going to bounce out guys.  Don't have much else to say, but can y'all believe it's the weekend again?!?  Hoorah!!

There's lots in store for the weekend for me.  There's an opera that I'm dragging the gang in to (I'm getting them culturized.)  Of course, it's also Super Bowl Sunday...with the COLTS!  Oh, and my boyfriend and I are starting a Saturday Cola tradition--every week, we're going to go around town and check out different places and such.  It's just we're starting to feel some cabin fever from staying in too much at MaxcyPad, so we're going to explore the city!

Anyways...like I said.  I'm going to bounce out now guys.  Have a fantastic weekend and catch y'all on the flipside, future Gamecocks!

Posted by Kriska at 12:33 AM | | Comments (0)