Researchers of Emory

Sierra Stubbs  is a rising senior majoring in Human Health. She was awarded a Summer 2018 Conference Grant which she used to attend the Agriculture, Food, Human Values, and Society Conference . For the last year, I have had the opportunity to assist Dr. Reznickova with her research on the participation and/or exclusion of low income people in farmers’ markets around Atlanta. I took a class with Dr. Reznickova, and because I loved the class I frequently went to her office hours. The topic of research came up, and when I told her I was interested in learning how to conduct research, she told me about her study. I am so glad that she offered me the opportunity to assist her with this research, as this study is very unique and important. During our literature review, we found that many studies about farmers’ markets, the local food movement, and low income participation typically implied that low income people feel excluded from alternative food spaces, or do not want to attend farm

Julia Durmer  is a rising senior majoring in Human Health and Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. She was awarded a Summer 2018 Conference Grant which she used to attend the SLEEP Conference . Between June 2 nd  and June 6 th  I was in Baltimore, Maryland, attending and presenting research at the 2018 Associated Professional Sleep Societies’ (APSS) annual meeting, which is referred to as  SLEEP . SLEEP is an annual scientific and clinical conference for sleep medicine physicians and sleep and circadian researchers, featuring lectures and an exhibit hall. During my time in Baltimore, I had the pleasure of presenting my research two times, once in a poster exposition and a second time when I was invited to take part in a symposium on the topic of sleep duration’s impact on cardiovascular and metabolic health. I gave a talk on my study, entitled “The Association Between Sleep Duration and Excess Heart Age Among U.S. Adults.” What made this meeting extra special was that I got to a

Somin Kim  is a rising senior majoring in Biology. She was awarded a Spring 2018 Independent Grant which she used to conduct research on myopia under Dr. John Nickerson.  It was in seventh grade when I first wanted to become an ophthalmologist. My mother’s vision had been deteriorating to the point of legal blindness, and it was around this time that my mother’s optometrist confirmed that this deterioration would continue until she was completely blind. It was the classic, “Someone dear to me is suffering; I will become the solution so she and others like her don’t have to” that drives so many into the field of medicine. But it wasn’t until I joined my lab at the Emory Eye Center that I became truly enamored by the eye. My drive towards an MD/PhD was no longer a one-dimensional desire; it was now rooted by my complete fascination on the organ that lets us perceive reality.