Throughout my time in SGC, through our weekly colloquium meetings covering a range of topics from climate change to the scientific method and thinking, I've been able to make observations in my day-to-day life that I wouldn't have before joining SGC. One example is whenever news sources talk about our current state of climate change. Recently, it has become a much more common topic because of how relevant it is to our daily lives so when it is spoken about, I can refer to the knowledge I've learned from our lectures. While watching the news with my father, the reporter spoke about how scientists have measured that our atmosphere has reached the 2 degrees Celsius warming benchpoint. Before this, I would've thought about how minor a 2-degree increase is and not thought much about it. Because I could draw upon what I learned in SGC, I knew how big of a deal this increase was. I know that reaching an increase of 3 degrees Celsius would lead to horrid things happening in terms of extreme weather events and the health of ecosystems and reaching this benchmark is a sign that we need to act more drastically right now. Due to our lectures about all the scary things that can and will happen once we reach a certain point in global warming, I know a simple 2-degree increase is something to be very concerned about. I have also been able to apply what I learned about scientific reasoning in my courses. This year, while I was taking BSCI223, introduction to Microbiology, we had to research a gene that we could potentially introduce into the cow rumen to benefit the cow, the farmers, or consumers. Through this process, it required me to be able to read and understand many scientific papers, a skill that SGC helped teach me. I had to be able to take the results from the research and deduct based on my needs, whether or not their gene of interest would be useful for my project. With this knowledge, I was able to build a project based on my gene of interest that my TA said was the best out of our section.
Not only did SGC help me think more critically in my personal and educational life, but it also helped me make friends. As I look back to my first few months of school, my main friends at the time were people I met at the scholars' events. I think one of the most important parts of transitioning to college is the social aspect and SGC helped me a lot. I think if I didn't feel steady in my social life, I wouldn't have been able to succeed as much as I did when it came to my learning. Another aspect that helped was that my roommate was also in the scholars program. Although we weren't in the same major, both of our majors had demanding workloads that required a lot of time studying. Being able to do our respective work together made all of it a lot more bearable and I didn't feel that fear of missing out as much as I would've if she wasn't there with me.
In terms of contribution to the SGC community, I believe that I have contributed but not to the extent of some others. Whenever we have in-class speakers from those who work in fields related to the goals of SGC, I give them my undivided attention and always try to ask questions when given the opportunity, especially if their job is somewhat related to what I aspire to do in the future or if its simply something I find very interesting. One specific example was when graduate students came in to talk about the research they were performing on campus. One student performed research in Antarctica about how the ice shelves are moving and lengthening over time. I found this to be interesting since it combined a cool travel experience with research and science. I even considered applying to be an undergraduate researcher in the lab that she worked in, but it didn't work out with my major requirements. Also, I try to go on field trips organized by SGC instead of doing online excursions because I enjoy going to different places and learning about the work they're doing. One experience I enjoyed was planting trees in Baltimore. I'd never done any kind of volunteer work like that before but I had a great time and felt as though I was making a visible difference in the community. This is the kind of volunteer work I will look into doing more often within my community. Even with these, there were other ways I could've contributed to the SGC community such as applying to be a peer mentor or volunteering answers more often in class.
SGC has also been able to change my view on news articles and their reliability. After learning about how even though an article is based on a research paper, the author may still choose to take some creative liberties when it comes to the content, I am a bit more cautious when it comes to believing the information I read online. It's very easy to just lie on the internet and most people will choose to believe what you're saying is cool. I've realized that with platforms such as TikTok, people can say some cool things, and people who watch it will take it blindly and believe it. I'm also similar in this sense but I feel as though recently, I've been questioning more of what I read on the internet and been more interested in looking into research about certain topics.
In terms of my future, SGC will have an impact on both my educational and personal goals. I'm interested in pursuing further education after getting my bachelor's degree. I think that in terms of what I want to research, I think SGC will have an impact on me and I will be more inclined to work in labs that have an interest in sustainability and use bioengineering in ways that will advance current sustainable practices. In terms of my personal goals, it has already had an impact on how I conduct certain parts of my life to be more Earth-friendly. I try to use less single-use products and be wary of my carbon footprint. I also think once I get out of school, I'll dedicate more of my time to volunteering efforts that will help my local community spread knowledge about climate change.