Over the summer, Professor Zhutian Zhang, a听Lecturer of Chemistry at 海角直播, was appointed a Visiting Research Assistant Professor at the University of Notre Dame鈥檚 Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry for the summer. The project, funded by a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant, allowed her to conduct research on paper microfluidic analytical devices with听听research group known as a Paper Analytical Device (PAD).
鈥淭hese devices are currently used to solve prevalent public health problems of counterfeit and substandard drugs in low-resource countries around the world,鈥� notes Zhang. 鈥淭hey are also used for detection of illicit drugs and environmental pollution in local communities.鈥�
Professor Zhang brought her research work back to campus and has integrated the PAD鈥檚 technology with the 海角直播 undergraduate research and lab curriculum.
鈥淐urrently we have six juniors involved in PADs research, and the students have designed their own Holy Cross six-lane PADs for identification of antibiotics. Students are discovering how these devices are instrumental for conducting drug quality control and anti-counterfeiting procedures in many countries around the world,鈥� said Zhang.
Another major endeavor resulting from this amazing opportunity is to design and implement听inquiry-based听undergraduate experiments for general and organic chemistry students.
鈥淭his will allow the chemistry students to get involved in open investigation in procedure design, data analysis, and exploration of how chemistry can be used to solve real-world problems,鈥� said Professor Zhang.
All the collaboration work with Dr. Lieberman’s lab inspired 海角直播 students in the Biology Club to host fourth year Ph.D. student Rachel Roller in an information sharing session with 海角直播 STEM students about her journey to pursue Ph.D. studies with Dr. Lieberman at Notre Dame. Thanks for visiting campus and taking part in discussions about discernment, the application process, and life as a chemistry doctorate student at the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department.听 Many of our students, including freshmen, participated and greatly benefitted from this discussion.
Bringing faculty research into the classroom incorporates real-world experience to students at 海角直播. Through projects like this, students have the chance to carry out investigations through an open-inquiry approach, develop authentic scientific skills in designing procedures and data analysis, and see how science can be applied to solve real-world problems.
Photos provided by Professor Zhang.