About Our Week
We are excited to have you us this week for our course that combines engineering with practical electrical and programming skills, focused on building sensors for biological applications! In this course, you will be constructing an oxygen biosensor, starting with instrument design and ultimately conducting a scientific experiment with your instrument. We will be working in small groups for the week, and you will be led by a team of engineers and biologists who are developing sensors as part of a National Science Foundation-funded research project. Get ready for a week of engineering fun and hands-on learning!
Getting Started & Reminders
We will be in the lab during much of the week, so please remember to wear long pants and close-toed shoes each day!
We will be reimbursing you for parking each day - be sure to check in with Liz regarding reimbursement.
We will be accessing this online resource during the week and using USD computers in the week. Your work is not saved on the computer at the end of the day, so please remember to save your files/work on the provided thumb drive!
Day 1: We will be conducting a pre-and post-survey as part of this course. Please complete the following when indicated by your instructors: Pre-Course Survey
Week at a Glance
Day 1: Introduction to Scientific Research
Welcome, Introduction to the Team, Lab Safety, & Icebreaker!
Dive into the Scientific Method & Research
Team Formation and Meet UCI Research Scientists
Intro to Equipment & Topics
Day 2: Coding and Electronics Fundamentals
Key Concepts of Electricity
Introduction to Circuit Breadboarding
Soldering Overview and Practice
Circuit Soldering
Day 3: Combining Coding, Electronics, and Soldering
Introduction Arduino IDE: Code Simple Programs
All About Microcontrollers
Explore Basic Coding: Variables, Loops, Conditionals
Merge Code with Soldered Circuits for Functionality
Day 4: Building and Testing the Oxygen Sensor
Delve into Oxygen Sensor Components & Design
Use of Xiao nRF52 Microcontroller
Discussion of Respiration and Experiment Introduction
Design of Experiment with Teammate
Day 5: Oxygen Sensor Discovery and Presentation
Conduct Team Experiment
Challenge: Compare your Sensor to the Pros!
Present Your Research Findings
Discuss Real-world Applications of STEM
Your Instructors
Cassondra Williams (cassondw@uci.edu): Cassondra’s work focuses on understanding baseline physiology in diving animals and how physiological responses are altered from natural or anthropogenic disturbances. Her past work includes investigating cardiovascular responses to routine and anthropogenic disturbances in marine and freshwater turtles. She has also studied respiratory function in diving emperor penguins and muscle and cardiovascular physiology of diving northern elephant seals after natural disturbances.
Elliot Botvinick (ebotvini@uci.edu): Dr. Botvinick’s lab focuses on biophotonics in the fields of mechanobiology and medical device development. They have developed a sensing platform specifically designed for simultaneous continuous measurement of multiple analytes. The also develop embodiments for diabetes management and trauma, hemorrhagic shock, sepsis, and pulmonary injury.
Mark Keating (keatingm@hs.uci.edu)
John Weilding:
Emma Caudill (ecaudill@uci.edu): Emma Caudill is a second year Ph.D. candidate in the biomedical engineering program at UCI. She is conducting research on the multi-analyte sensor in the BEAMS lab.
Toni Wilkinson (twilkin1@uci.edu)
Machiaelle Martinez (machiadm@uci.edu)
Liz Ferguson (eferguson@oceanscienceanalytics.com): Liz Ferguson is the Chief Executive Officer for Ocean Science Analytics, an ocean science research and online technical training company. She specializes in marine mammal bioacoustic research and marine spatial ecology. She also serves as the coordinator for this summer course through her role at Expanding Your Horizons, San Diego.
Course Sponsors & Organizers
This course is supported as part of a National Science Foundation grant awarded to the University of California, Irvine. The contributors to the course include:
Expanding Your Horizons of San Diego is supporting the course implementation and connecting with 10th and 11th-grade students throughout San Diego County through our EYH Cafe program. We are so thrilled to be able to connect our participants with this unique opportunity!
