Part II of this two-day series continues with descriptions of two more projects conducted with funding from the Harrison Undergraduate Research Awards. From the development of democracy in Asia to facets of molecular biology, these topics illustrate the wide range of projects funded by the University's unique grant program.
The development of democratic
government in Asia
Third-year College student Xiao Wang
Xiao Wang's introduction to Hong Kong was serendipitous: He needed a project for his international trade class, and because his group members had accumulated previous knowledge about the People's Republic of China, he decided to study the trade relationship between it and Hong Kong.Little could Wang have expected how this decision would change the course of his academic career.
"I learned that Hong Kong has a free economy, but that politically it's not free," Wang said. "In the U.S., we think those things go hand in hand. That's when I started to learn more about Hong Kong."
Although Hong Kong is a Special Administrative Region of China, some would consider it a world apart from mainland China.Hong Kong was a territory of the United Kingdom until 1997, so one of its official languages is English. Additionally, most Hong Kong residents speak the Cantonese dialect of Chinese rather than the more common Mandarin.
As Wang's interest in Hong Kong grew, his research soon became much more than a class project. Wang approached a politics professor who agreed to supervise his independent research about Hong Kong.
"Hong Kong is in a democratization process, transitioning from a colonially-led British territory to a small democracy in China," Wang said. "I studied whether China -- who is definitely not democratic -- would allow Hong Kong to democratize."
Funded by the Harrison Grant, Wang spent a month of the summer in Hong Kong, where he encountered challenges that reached beyond the grind of research. First, there was the mix-up that left him briefly homeless in Hong Kong. Also, Wang speaks Mandarin.
"It was pretty difficult to adjust to the language difference," Wang said. "But the people were great, the food was great -- definitely better than what we get at Newcomb. It was also really cool just calling up politicians and asking them questions."
The political parties of Hong Kong are split in their attitudes toward democratization, Wang noted. Pan-democrats support universal suffrage and democratization as soon as possible, while the pro-government party prefers a more gradual transition, according to Wang.
Wang interviewed several powerful political leaders and said his own opinion of democracy changed as he heard the arguments of both sides.
"[My research] found a mixed result: There have been a lot of changes, but Hong Kong continues to lag," Wang said, predicting that great changes will occur in Hong Kong over the next five to 10 years.
After his summer spent enjoying sunrises on island beaches, sampling dim-sum in crowded cafes and lunching with Hong Kong's most powerful politicians, Wang has developed a new appreciation for research at the University.
"The Harrison Grant has opened my eyes," Wang said. "I've learned how awesome it is to be able to see the world, conduct research and have fun while doing it. The goal is to have my research published, but I'd love to continue to research throughout the rest of my time at U.Va."
Role of the BMAL2 Protein in the
Vertebrate Molecular Clock
Fourth-year College student Ayumi
Nakamura
Although many college students wonder about the possibility of altering their sleep cycles, few delve into the biological processes of sleep to the extent that Ayumi Nakamura did with her Harrison Grant project.
Her research focused on Circadian rhythms, the biological processes that govern events such as the sleep-wake cycle. Synchronized to the 24-hour day by factors such as light and temperature, this cycle functions as a basic clock within the body.
Nakamura's interest is in a particular protein in the molecular clock called BMAL2.
"There's no information in the literature about [this protein's] actual function and how it differs from this different protein, BMAL1," Nakamura said. "My research is trying to determine the possible function of BMAL2 by trying to mutate different parts along the DNA and seeing what effect these mutations have."
Nakamura said she became interested in this topic when she first interviewed different people to decide which lab would be most interesting to her. She spoke to biology Prof. Carla Green, now her advisor for her Harrison project, and found the topic of Circadian rhythms fascinating.
"She explained the material so well, and a lot of it was related to gene expression, which I knew I liked," Nakamura said.
The lab was also how Nakamura first found out about the Harrison grant
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