THE STAR GAZER
Issue 1, 2015
The
STAR
Gazer
Kick Off!
by Olivia Whitcomb
The STAR class of 2015 kicked off
their 5 week summer program this
past Monday, June 22, 2015. Their
first task as a class was to get to
know each other through a couple of
icebreaker games which consisted of
singing, celebrity couples match-up,
and a request for back up dancers.
There was so much excitement in
the air Monday morning that one
student literally flew out of his chair!
After participating in the
hilarious icebreakers, the students
learned of the research projects they
will conduct throughout the program
and their long-term Community
Health Project which they will
conduct during the 2015- 2016
school year. After the introduction to
the various projects, the students
were more than ready to slip on their
lab coats and go on their history tour
of Ochsner, led by Ms. Kerry Lamare.
All sixteen students learned an array
of interesting facts about Ochsner
Hospital and its founders. According
to Christian Barrow, the tour stuck
out to him the most because of the
interesting history surrounding the
hospital, particularly the silver coin
tradition. All in all, the first few hours
of the STAR Program were a success
and the students could not wait for
what the afternoon holds in the iLab.
The first afternoon of STAR
2015 consisted of learning how to
use micropipettes. After mastering
the skill of pipetting, the students
had the opportunity to make a gel
and practice loading “samples” into
wells. This was all done to prepare
for their next lab which consists of
gel electrophoresis. At the end of the
day, all sixteen students agreed that
they had an exciting, fun-filled day
and could not wait to come back for
more
on
Tuesday.
Trip to Elmwood
Wh
STAR students are super excited to go to Elmwood
Fitness Center Friday, June 26, to learn about healthy
eating and to work out!
Knock Out Mice and Western
Blotting!
The STAR Students had the privilege to work with Dr.
Vashistha and his lab tech, Allyson Bradley, on the
experiment “Knock-Out Mice and Western Blotting.”
Before the experiment the STAR Students sat in a
lecture explaining western blotting, proteins, antigens,
the P66 gene, and the experiment’s procedure. On
Wednesday the students learned how to isolate a
specific protein using gel electrophoresis
THE STAR GAZER
| Issue 1, 2015
2
Allied Health
Professions and
Medical
Terminology
by Leo Gutierrez
Day two of STAR was a very exciting day for
students. In the morning, students voted on
which Community Health Project they
wanted to organize and participate in during
the upcoming school year. Ideas were
bounced around until the ideal Community
Health Project was chosen. Afterwards, Mr.
Carl Tholen spoke to STAR students about
allied health professionals. During his
lecture, students were able to see the endless
opportunities in the healthcare world outside
of becoming a doctor or a nurse. Some allied
health professions that STAR students
showed interest in were dialysis technology,
emergency
medical
technology,
occupational therapy, and physical therapy.
Before trekking down to lunch, students
were given their first medical terminology
lesson, in which they learned prefixes, roots,
and suffixes to a variety of words. For
example, students were given the prefix
hemi-, the root gastr-, and the suffix –
ectomy, all of which spells out
hemigastrectomy. After analyzing each
element, they were able to decipher that
hemi- means half, gastr- means stomach,
and -ectomy means surgical removal.
Students came to the conclusion that
hemigastrectomy means surgical removal of
half the stomach. STAR students were
excited about learning an array of
information on health in just one morning
and were even more thrilled that they have
an additional four weeks to further their
knowledge on health. Excelsior!
Radiology
by Tirzah Howard
On June 24, 2015 Star students were fortunate to have Dr. Dennis
Kay present some great information to us about Radiology and other
related specialties. Afterwards, Dr. Kay and Ms. Valerie Hensarling
gave us a tour of the Department of Radiology. There we learned
about the dynamics of radiology and about how the equipment is used
in various procedures. We got to take a look at the x-ray machine, CT
scanner, and MRI scanner. During the tour, some of the safety protocol
was explained to us. One thing that really stuck out to me that I
thought was really cool is the Radiation Dosimeter Badge that is used
to monitor your radiation exposure. We all enjoyed being inside the
hospital and being introduced to the latest advancements in
technology in today's medicine.
THE STAR GAZER
Issue 1, 2015
Medical Terminology
By: Sybil Duncan
Comics
By: Sybil Duncan
THE STAR GAZER
| Issue 1, 2015
STAR Students Say…
How did you feel the night before STAR began and on your first day?
“It felt like the night before the first day of school- anxious, excited, and sooo not ready to wake up early.”
-Jessica Tran
“I was nervous about meeting new people, but I found comfort in the fact that we were all like-minded
individuals. Also, I really wanted to see what was planned for us.”
-Tirzah Howard
Name one thing that sticks out to you that you have learned while in STAR.
“Ectomy sounds like ‘exit Tommy.”’
-Tyrus Norcise
“While on the history tour, I learned that Dr. Alton Ochsner’s son is a practicing physician at
Ochsner and can be seen roaming around the campus."
-Emily Gonzales
What was your favorite aspect of STAR by lunch on the first day?
“Getting to know each other through games was a great way to break the ice.”
-Isabelle Mays
“I like going up the stairs after sliding the card to get into the building. It makes it
seem like our classroom is top secret and safely hidden.”
-Razan Badr
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