March 10, 2008

Amid fruit flies and bread mold,
some teachable moments

The benefits flow in both directions as members of the YSM community serve as mentors to New Haven-area students preparing to compete in this year’s annual citywide science fair.

Brian Couch a second-year doctoral student in biochemistry and biophysics, takes time out from his research on how cells move and change shape to volunteer as a science fair mentor. He’s interested in a career that combines research and teaching at the college level.

Brian Couch, a second-year doctoral student in biochemistry and biophysics, tackled two science fair projects as a boy, one in middle school and one in high school.

The first involved finding the least-painful way to remove a Band-Aid. “It wasn’t the most scientific experiment, and ultimately the solvent I found (gum remover) isn’t anything you’d ever want to put near a wound,” Couch laughs. The second project explored whether certain nutrients could be added to copper mining waste to support vegetative growth. Although the experiment went well, Couch failed to register his project properly, and it wasn’t judged.

Couch knows well the challenges that accompany science fair projects. But he also knows how stimulating and enriching they can be, which is why he decided to become a science fair mentor. This is his second year working with local high school students preparing to compete in New Haven’s citywide science fair.  

“It just seemed like an outreach program that could utilize my skills,” Couch says. “It’s a place where the community’s needs match the level I’m at.” 

Last year, Couch mentored a Hyde Leadership Academy junior named Warren. They met once a week for about 10 weeks. Warren wanted to study whether giving fruit flies steroids would make them more aggressive. He and Couch weren’t able to get any steroids, so they decided to explore how antioxidants affect the lifespan of fruit flies instead. “We probably killed off two sets of flies, and I don’t know if we saw anything conclusive,” Couch says. Still, Warren was very engaged and interested. “In terms of his ability to intellectually grasp it, he did very well. He knew exactly what he was doing,” Couch says.

This year, Couch is working with two senior girls from High School in the Community. They’re measuring the effect of household agents, such as Lysol and Purell, on bacterial growth. Couch supplied the bacteria and the growing plates. “Then we all did the experiment together, three replicates,” he says. “After that, the girls were able to do it on their own.” Couch also helped them interpret and present their data and pull it all together into a full lab report.

There are 61 mentors helping students with science fair projects this year. A total of 44 are from Yale, including 11 from the medical school. “The mentors from the medical school have really gone out of their way for the students,” says Joanna Price, New Haven’s coordinator for community programs in science. “I’ve been impressed by them.”

Other medical school mentors include Dr. Duc Nguyen, who is working with a senior from Hillhouse High School on stress, immunity and the life span of fruit flies; and Drs. Stephanie Halene, Alberto Rivetta, and Katherine Hahn, who are working with students at the John C. Daniels Elementary School on projects ranging from dust accumulation in the gymnasium to the genetics of neurospora (bread mold), and Dr. Arie Mobley, who is working with a student on the forensics of footwear.   

Mentor Coordinator Lise Orville says Yale’s involvement in the mentorship program is invaluable because “we have two worlds in New Haven. Members of the science community can do so much to help students begin to think like scientists. It’s a natural fit.”

Besides being a repeat mentor, Couch also will be a judge again this year. “I really enjoyed it. The energy at the science fair is infectious,” he says. Two of his favorite projects from last year focused on how talking on a cell phone affects reaction time and growing plants hydroponically.

“I plan to stay involved with this program for as many years as I can muster the time,” he says.

The science fair will take place May 13 and 14 in Woolsey Hall. Organizers are still looking for judges. If you are interested, contact Michelle Cirello at michelle.cirello@gnhcc.com. The time commitment is from 5 to 8 p.m. on May 13, and 9 a.m. until noon on May 14. Food is included.

—Jennifer Kaylin

Photo by Elizabeth Vellali

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