A Reflection on My Work as an Intern

My Research in Science internship has been a great personal achievement this year. I have been privileged to learn from graduate students and a mentor who thoroughly enjoy their work at the RPI Lighting Research Center. Not only have I seen the way a lab works but I have also seen first hand that passion and diligence from each scientist helps a lab operate at its full potential. Brittany, the graduate student I worked with, diligently worked on experiments that occurred at very late hours of the night but never complained because the results were exciting, constructive, and worth it! Every week, I sat down with Brittany to look over the results of an experiment, which I may have helped set up the week before. Over time the results of how computer, iPad, television, and Smartphone light affects sleep added up to really interesting and informative conclusions. I learned that computers, especially those without dimming switches, affected melatonin levels the most, while HD TVs and Smartphones surprisingly did not affect melatonin levels as greatly as I believed to begin with. I think a main accomplishment for me was bringing all that I learned together to see, overall, how melatonin levels are influenced by a spectrum of different lights. Looking at my poster, I felt really good about how much I had learned in an area I knew little of before my internship. I’m excited that the information learned in the lab is helping people live healthier lifestyles. I’m really glad to have been integrated into such a current project! I think the most challenging part of this internship was not being able to see the experiments in person. This was chiefly an issue because the experiments were done at late hours of the night due to the increase of melatonin levels, then, needed for measurement. I think the most important thing for a future intern to keep in mind is that a lab is made up of many scientists, who work together for a common goal. So, don’t be discouraged if you cannot be part of every aspect of the lab because in the end even taking a small part in the experiments makes a big difference!