Science Heroes Home Page > Sun Jin Lee

Sun Jin Lee

OMSI: Where were you born? Where did you grow up?

SJL: I was born in Seoul Korea, but I spent the most important childhood moments in the tiny university town of Blacksburg, VA. Blacksburg was one of the best places to grow up-I was immersed in diversity and nature, both of which played an important role in shaping me into who I am today.

OMSI: What three words best describe you?

SJL: The three words that I would use to describe myself would be sunny, curious, and open. Some people say that I am perfectly named because of my sunny disposition. For much of the time, I am happy, cheerful, bubbly, and always have a smile on my face, as my motto is smile your way through life, even at enemies, as they will become your friends. I think smiles are very important in life because they have the power to not only make others happy, but to make the smiler happy as well.

I have always thought that curiosity killed the cat because it became so curious about something that it died! I know that when I see or read about something new, my curiosity kicks in and eats at me until it is satisfied. I also still annoy my parents by asking "why" questions all the time, and by taking things apart. I love seeing how things look and work on the inside!

I see myself as an open person; someone who is open minded, someone who expresses her feelings, someone who people are comfortable talking to, someone who is honest. Being open allows me to be a good leader and team worker because other group members can approach me about problems they may be dealing with. Many team members come to me with problems or complaints, and I always do my best to resolve them, talking things out with the different members, staying open and unbiased, and mediating the problem until a solution is reached. Having this quality has helped me develop as a person, as I am able to better understand and empathize with other.

OMSI: As a child, did you have any hobbies, interests, or experiences that helped prepare you for success in science?

SJL: Well, when I was little, I was the go-to person for broken mechanical pencils. I think my engineering blood (my dad's an engineer) and my love for stationary stuff's strange blending led to my weird fascination with fixing mechanical pencils. I loved taking each piece apart to see how the parts worked together (or how they weren't working together) then putting the pieces together to have them working again. I guess this passion for knowing how things work and fit together was an important part in realizing that I wanted to pursue a future in science.

OMSI: Please tell us about a mentor or teacher who helped to inspire your interest in science.

SJL: The scientists that I came to know on the JASON expedition were tremendous influences on me. They all possessed such passion for the things that they studied that it just blew me away. Dr. Ballard told me about the next fleet of sunken ships that he planned to find, Dr. Shain showed me micrographs of his iceworms, pointing out their mysterious sensory organs on their heads, and Dr. Molnia described to me the beauty of glacier crystals as he studied them under the polarized glass. After I heard them all talk, I couldn't help but become fascinated by science.

OMSI: What's the worst trouble you ever got into in school? Have you ever blown anything up?

SJL: Let see... the worst trouble that I got into at school... well, the one time that really stands out is the time in second grade when my teacher threatened to call my parents for saying the answers out loud. She would ask a math question, and the class would tell her the answer, but apparently, she wanted everybody to say it together or something... I'm still not sure. But anyway, I kept getting the answers faster than everyone else, and she didn't like that, so she told me to be quiet or she would call my parents. It doesn't seem like such a big deal now, but it was one of those moments that stay with you for your entire life.

As for the blowing things up, I don't think I blew anything up without permission... we did make water out of hydrogen and oxygen, and as you may already know, it's a big fat exothermic reaction, and makes a big boom! Let see... there were other incidents... I didn't blow anything up per say, but I can be a bit clumsy when I get too excited and I spilled some hydrochloric acid on my friend's bare arm once. Thank goodness that she was near the sink so she could wash it off quickly...

OMSI: What is your favorite class this year?

SJL: My favorite class(es) this year are math, biology, and chemistry. I don't know why, but I find always find these classes stimulating while some of the other classes just sometimes seem frustrating.

OMSI: What is your dream? What do you most hope to accomplish in your career?

SJL: My dream is to make a difference with my life. I don't want my entire life to be school, then a job, then retire and die. Whether that means finding cures to terminal diseases or maybe even taking part in the Doctors without Borders, I'm not sure yet. But I do know that I want to reach out to others and make a difference in others' lives.

OMSI: How do you feel about the current state of science education in the U.S.?

SJL: The science programs that I have been exposed to in high school have been amazing. Everything is very hands on, we do lots of labs, and our teachers are always there to encourage us in our scientific pursuits and help us to enter competitions and fairs. I love how the knowledge that is taught is applied in lab work that thoroughly reinforces the scientific process and think that the science programs are doing an excellent job in preparing us for a future in the sciences.

OMSI: What do you like to do in your free time?

SJL: Free time? What free time? ...though I do enjoy sneaking some reading time before I doze off at night...

OMSI: What do you consider your very best skill?

SJL: In my opinion, my best skill is being able to diffuse tense situations and put people at ease so they are able to work together better. Sometimes when we are doing labs in class, people start getting too tense and bossy, and I take it upon myself to make sure the group is back into a more relaxed mode so that we get everything done smoothly. No one likes being bossed around and being tense just makes everything worst, so I just try to make it easy on everybody and diffuse the pressure a bit.

OMSI: Please tell us about your science fair project. How did you come up with the idea for your project? How did you go about researching and building your project? What was it like to participate in the science fair, and what do you remember most from the fair?

SJL: My project was testing the effects of different colors of light on planarian regeneration. I first came up with the idea while chatting with someone from school, and they talked about this research that NASA was doing on plants with red light to help them heal faster. Well, I thought, how could light help heal things? So I decided to check this out, and discovered this amazing phenomena called photobiomodulation (whew, that's a mouthful!). Basically, they found that red light helped stimulate energy production! I did much of my research on line, as this was a fairly recent discovery and started putting together ideas for my project. As I was doing my research, I started wondering if there were any other colors that stimulated energy production, and decided to investigate that with my project.

It was fun to participate in the science fair, but it did feel a bit nerve-wracking to have the judges walk by and stare at the boards, not knowing who they were going to ask what. The two things I remember most about the fair were the 20+ block walk to go get my lunch then not having time to eat it, and falling asleep at my board, convinced that my project was a piece of junk, then having the judges calling out my number to stay behind for further judging. That was a real shocker.

OMSI: If you were to build your science fair project again, would you do anything differently?

SJL: There is a long list of things I need to change in order for my project to be a bit more successful. When you read my paper, the error section makes up about a third of my conclusion. For starters, I think I need to test a new specimen as planaria are nocturnal and are uncomfortable in light (a fact that greatly skewed my results); I also need a more penetrating light source, the 60 watt light bulbs weren't reaching the tissue as well as I wanted them to. But you live and learn, and even though my experiment didn't have very definite conclusions, it did point out areas that I could definitely improve and fix.

OMSI: Please tell us about your educational plans and goals.

SJL: After graduation, I plan to attend a four-year college or university with a well-respected research facility that allows for undergraduate research opportunities, especially on gene regulation and RNA interference. I have been longing to do research on RNA interference (RNAi) but was deterred by the lack of facilities and mentors in my area studying this particular topic. I plan on a double major in biology and music to balance out my two passions in science and music. I find that music helps me to relax and focus, leading me to discover creative solutions to problems I encounter in my scientific and mathematic studies. (Left and right brains do work well together!) The biology major, along with a premedical advisory program, will help me prepare for medical school, where I hope to participate in the dual M.D.- Ph.D. degree program and to continue research. While I am expecting to study gene regulation and RNA interference in graduate school, I am keeping all possibilities open as the best choices are sometimes the unexpected ones.

Aside from my studies, I would like to do some volunteer work. A story on homeless seniors in my native country of Korea touched me deeply. It portrayed the seniors digging amidst piles of trash, collecting bits of cardboard boxes to sell for a penny a dozen, and curling up underneath bits of scrap metal for shelter at night, struggling to survive. After seeing this story, I decided to make helping people such as these find proper housing and medical care a part of my plans for the future. A medical degree will allow me to provide health care services for the unfortunate and alleviate their pain and suffering. In turn, volunteering will help me focus my future; after having connected with these people, I will know that I will be doing research not for sponsors or employers, but for humanity.

OMSI: Have you had any on the job training or science related work experience?

SJL: I have some science related work experience, but not nearly as much as I would like to. I've volunteered in the OMSI Life Science lab and the triage desk at the Memorial Urgency Care Center, but I have really been longing to get in a research lab with a mentor and do some heavy duty research. I'm really hoping to get in a lab by this summer so I can start preparing for next years fair, and also have something exciting to do during the long summer months out of school.