The adventure continues with another wonderfully intriguing week of learning. I’ve experienced both the successes and challenges of learning new and complex material alongside other students.
We began this week reviewing a few of the topics learned at the end of the previous week including opening, editing, and cleaning a file using a computer program called Rosetta. Additionally, this week we learned how to sign in to our respective accounts on the joined computer cluster called Barbera. We will be running different proteins through what is referred to as a ‘relax structure.’ This will cause the proteins to change form and shape into a more energy-efficient state.
This week, I have continued to use the program Foldit to increase my knowledge and resourcefulness when working with protein structures. I was not able to move past a certain level of the game for multiple days but eventually worked out a solution. I have found that one of the most effective strategies is to be persistent and keep trying new ideas. Also, it is beneficial to take allotments of time away from the game, think about the problem, then return to it later in the day. This allows for ideation but also mental rests. This is a picture of the level I was previously stuck on:
Throughout the week, every student in the internship attended both group meetings and one-on-one meetings with Mr. Brandon Harris. I cannot express enough how thankful I am to have Mr. Harris teaching us and checking that we are all advancing and understanding what we learn. I must admit that this material is incredibly difficult for me to take in and comprehend at times. In spite of this, with Mr. Harris’s help, I am still feeling confident that I will be able to continue advancing and learning all that I can in this short time.
In addition to my daily meetings, I have been trying to remain active in my local area. I have been running and biking every morning before the sun is too high in the sky and I recently met up with a few of my friends to hike up to Bridal Veil Falls in Telluride, Colorado. I believe that the outdoors is one of the greatest beauties of the world and I intend to experience all that I can of it while I am here. Here is a picture of the falls from the bottom:
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