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Team:Penn/Outreach
From 2014.igem.org
Our team focused on using our iGEM experience and knowledge of synthetic biology to raise awareness about the promise, challenges, and ethical concerns in the field today. From DNA extraction at a science carnival to instructing Penn students, we made conscious efforts to expand public knowledge about the exciting opportunities and developments available in the field. We feel that our efforts were well-received in our community.
M&T Presentation
Every summer, Penn’s Jerome Fisher Program in Management and Technology brings together the brightest high school juniors and seniors from around the country. As part of our outreach, we taught this select group of students the basics of synthetic biology and “biohacking.” The field was new to all of these bright students and we feel that our presentation left them more informed and excited about the field.
GEMS
In order to combine community and educational outreach, we decided to help a program close to home. The GEMS program; girls in engineering, mathematics, and science; is a summer program to introduce middle school girls to STEM disciplines. From explaining gel electrophoresis to teaching students how to pipet, reaching out to the GEMS program was an incredibly rewarding experience
BE 100 Lecture
Our team thought it would be fruitful to instruct Penn bioengineers about field of synthetic biology, a field they have little exposure to in their introductory classes. We delivered a one and half hour lecture on the motivations behind synthetic biology in a freshman Intro to Bioengineering class. As the presentation catered to students that already had a foundational understanding of the science behind cloning and bacterial structure, the class was able to gain a deep level of understanding and appreciation for current achievements in the field. A few members of the class proposed future iGEM project ideas, and offered interesting perspectives on our project for this year’s competition.
SEA Science Carnival
In order to get in touch with our local West Philadelphia community, our team volunteered to present our project at the Science Education Academy’s carnival. The goal of the program is to supplement the elementary school curriculum with hands-on exposure and experience with the scientific method and inquiry. As a part of the carnival, team members led a DNA extraction workshop during which students grades K-6 had the opportunity to extract DNA from banana and cheek cells. Upon performing the experiment and learning about the science behind DNA extraction, the participants were allowed to take their DNA home. Additionally, iGEM members presented a poster on the team’s project to the participants and their families. The students were intrigued by the direct applications of the project and synthetic biology in general to their daily lives. The experience was successful in introducing the synthetic biology to a group of students interested in pursuing science, who would have not had exposure to the field at their school.
