Nyla Jones

As a part of my service learning I had the amazing opportunity to assist my lab instructor Yehnara Ettinoffe with her PhD research. There I downloaded and sorted molecule data into tables of ten downloads per table. This reminded me of the first lesson we did in the lab where we built molecules. When I built these molecules using physical kits, I learned that structure dictates the function of a molecule. The way that a structure is bonded dictates whether a molecule is water, a sugar, or an amino acid. When doing advanced research, scientists can’t spend all their time building molecules by hand. Instead, they study them as data and use computers to group molecules in data tables. Overall, this learning experience showed me how PhD researchers gather data to prepare for the next steps of their research. It is hard work and I am very grateful I got to participate in my lab instructor's research.

During Howard University's Day of Service I had the amazing opportunity to volunteer at Our Farm DC, Covenant House location. I learned that all the food grown there goes to the surrounding community helping people who face food insecurity. Volunteering at Our Farm let me apply biology concepts from class. I moved compost, planted lettuce seeds, and removed weeds in the garden. Moving compost showed me nutrient cycling in action. Bacteria and fungi decompose organic matter and return nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium to the soil. Those nutrients support photosynthesis, since plants need nitrogen to build chlorophyll and magnesium at its center to capture light energy. Planting lettuce seeds connected to germination: once a seedling sprouts, it begins converting sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide into glucose and oxygen. Spacing the seeds properly mattered because seedlings compete for the light they need to photosynthesize.Weeding illustrated this competition further. Weeds shade crops and take water and nutrients, reducing the lettuce’s ability to photosynthesize and grow. Removing them gave the lettuce better access to sunlight. Beyond the science, this work supports food access and gives residents healthy food options. I left with a deeper understanding of how biology applies to real community needs.