I GOT A MENTOR!

During the weeks of December 12 to January 1, some of the key accomplishments that were achieved in the Independent Study and Mentorship class was conducting the fifth and sixth informational interviews, researching my original work proposal, ordering invitations for the research showcase, and coming up with a blueprint of how the board will look for the research showcase. The fifth informational interview was conducted with Dr. William Brinkman at Baylor Heart Hospital at Plano. This interview was a big success for me since Dr. Brinkman agreed to being my mentor for the rest of the ISM program. Another accomplishment that was achieved this week was an interview with Dr. Lynn Huffman from UT Southwestern Medical Center. Through this interview, I gained some ideas of how to create my original work and also knowledge of how the aorta works. Also, I ordered my invitations which are expected to arrive by January 12. They are in a color scheme of black, red and creme, which associate well with the color scheme off my board. The rough blueprint that I have of my board will have a background of black, and the titles of all sections will be in red letter cutouts. One challenge that I faced in the last few weeks was searching for a material that can well suit an artificial aorta, but so far I have had no luck. I hope in the future class period, I can find a material that can supplement my idea of making an artificial aorta. In the future, I would like to learn more about valves and procedures pertaining to them so that it can influence my original work.