Posts by sungkyu1988

sungkyu1988

Nov 2, 2010

Undergraduate / "NIKE Baseball Camp at Jackals Stadium" - Baseball Camp [3]

During my time as a -summer- camp counselor ~~in the summer~~ at the NIKE Baseball Camp at Jackals Stadium, I learned about dealing with small children from the ages of six to fifteen ~~years old~~ . As a camp counselor(repetitive), my main job was to instruct ~~the game of~~ -how to play -baseball to the children, but sometimes I found that babysitter was a better title for my position. ~~During my time at the camp,~~ I provided water for the kids, picked up trash when they would leave it laying everywhere(wordy), break(keep the verb tenses constant) up fights, hold valuable possessions and even play a doctor's role in the brief absence of the camp director. In brief, I ~~had many little tasks to accomplish~~ -accomplished many little tasks-while at -the-camp that ~~maybe~~ prepared me for some future role. I have learned strategies to deal with children and to keep my composure in the oddest of situations in my time at camp.

sungkyu1988

Nov 2, 2010

Undergraduate / ""Who here will be the best band section?" - UC Prompt #2 A brighter future [2]

Humans are all the same. They eat, sleep, breathe and repeat this everyday of their lives. (awkward) However, people are set apart by that one characteristic ~~or quality~~ that just shines above all the other ~~characteristic~~ . The quality that sets me apart is my optimism.

"Who here will be the best section? Take initiative guys(awkward)!" the band director hollered at the executive board meeting. As everyone else in the room felt tense knowing that it would be a difficult task, I knew that I could make this happen. This challenge of achieving the award revolved around getting every member in the section to master their potentials. I was assigned (as the low brass) section leader ~~of the low brass section~~ consisting of three new freshmen and it occurred to me that it was going to be difficult to win the award having three new players. When my junior year began, I dedicated any free hours afterschool to improve my tuba performance skills. ~~and~~ I was making progress quickly, but I knew that one person alone could not win the award. I did not want the freshmen to be the reason that we did not win the award, so I had them join me in these practice sessions. The practice sessions began awkwardly as I would practice for hours, while the freshmen sat there and seemed lost. As the year progressed, the awkwardness fell off, and I told them about the award. They felt discouraged, but I encouraged them that they could be the best section in the band and that I would keep them accountable. Nearing the end of the year, I had seen the progress of these freshmen. They began knowing how to make sound, ~~to knowing~~ how to play music. The hours I had spent in the band room with these kids ~~was~~ (were) rewarded by an award given at the Awards Banquet. The award was titled "Section of the year". There was no question in my mind that we would take home the award which is nice, but it showed my optimism spread to my teammates and it resulted in a positive effect. (rephrase, make it less wordy)

sungkyu1988

Nov 2, 2010

Undergraduate / Utilizing critical thinking skills to resolve an issue [3]

Here is my response in 200-300 wrods

Please feel free to comment/critique. Thank you so much!

I have faced some of my toughest intellectual challenges while conducting my undergraduate research. When something goes awry in cell and molecular research, no clear-cut solution is available due to the intricate nature of the intracellular processes and interactions. This was the case when I had to optimize the conditions for my co-immunoprecipitation experiment, a procedure used to detect interaction of specific proteins in a cell, due to the repeatedly inconsistent and weak data.

My first logical step was to repeat the experiment with newly made reagents and fresh cells. When the results did not improve, the next plan was scrutinizing every step in the procedure to identify the problem. Because repeating the experiment to test each possible factor could take years, I had to utilize my reasoning skills to select the most promising few. First, I gathered information on the most common errors in co-immunoprecipitation by inquiring other researchers in the lab and investigating published papers and troubleshooting guides. I ran the experiment again paying special attention during the critical steps to see if human error was the cause of the inconsistency. Again, wrong guess. I then decided to evaluate the integrity of each DNA and protein sample but with more efficient and quick tests available. Sequencing each gene and different experiments to test the activity of each protein confirmed the intact functions of each biomaterial. I had hit a wall; it was time to think outside the box.

I began to question the protocols I was given for co-immunoprecipitation. The specific proteins I was studying had their unique characteristics; what if the protocols are not optimal for my proteins? Right away, I began brainstorming possible modifications to the protocols to better accommodate the proteins' biochemical traits and began designing experiments to test my ideas. After two failed trials, I had almost given up when the strong signals on my third set of data caught my eyes. Finally, I had found the key to the solution - a stronger detergent for a better yield in extracting my proteins from the cells.