OVERVIEW: Students are using their “gray matter, “ developing brain power in this third week of the program. They are discovering that knowledge combined with analytical skills to effectively use information is among their greatest assets in our information age. Each cluster is enjoying experiential learning, and students are engaged in their projects. From every aspect, COSMOS-UCI reflects three pillars of education: intellectual, social, and physical.

Earlier in the program, students were provided with a handout, “10 Tips for Your Success in COSMOS.” One of these is “think about your future.” The more students understand about preparing for college and careers, and all the options available in science and technology, the better choices they will make when choosing a major and finding what they enjoy most in life..
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PHRASE OF THE WEEK: 'Absorb as much information as you can!

JULY 21/22 WEEKEND RECAP: Students had a fabulous time at Catalina Island. They enjoyed the sea and sun, kayaking and shopping for souvenirs in Avalon. We took the Catalina Flyer out of Newport/Balboa and swiftly traveled the 26 miles to this world-famous island. Visit our online photo album: http://cosmos.smugmug.com

Students remaining on campus enjoyed playing tennis at the ARC (Anteater Recreation Center), shopping at the UTC (University Town Center) across from campus, shopping at the UCI Bookstore, a haven for Zot! UCI items, and even watched a movie in The Shire. On Sunday, there was swimming at the ARC Olympic size swimming pool in the early afternoon, followed by a soccer game in Aldrich Park, and then a Sunday Nite Movie, outdoors, complete with popcorn and pizza.
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The Bioinformatics/Python Programming and the Atmospheric Sciences clusters joined forces for a day trip Thursday to the California Science Center, in Los Angeles. Students saw the “Deep Sea 3D” IMAX feature and enjoyed the exhibits. They were accompanied by Dr. Ryan McKeachie, Teacher Fellows, and Program Coordinator Griselda Rodriguez. Also on Thursday, the Chemistry at the Space-Time Limit cluster enjoyed an afternoon trip to Newport Optics, makers of sophisticated optical equipment and lasers. Dr. Eric Potma led the group.

The Mathematical Modeling/Crystal Growth students visited the Carl Zeiss Center of Excellence at Calit2 (California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology) for the second time. They learned about the scanning electron microscope. Where the university traditionally has focused on education and research, “Calit2 extends that focus to include development and deployment of prototype infrastructure for testing new solutions in a real-world context.”

The Neuroscience/Physiology students continue to expand their horizons with scientific tours, including the Institute for Brain Aging and Dementia, where students had the opportunity to hold a human brain and handle a spinal cord. Dr. Tom Saing, Research Associate, explained the goals and services of the Brain Depository, and described how brains are collected, preserved and studied, all with the aim to help people. He discussed the importance of studying patients with Alzheimer’s and the need for future researchers. He said that 40 million Americans will have Alzheimer’s Disease by 2050.

For more cluster information and activities, scroll down to “Cluster Highlights.”

SOCIAL ACTIVITIES:
So you think you can dance? Monday evening finished with a master dance class with the latest moves. One of the catchy songs is “Chicken noodle soup.” It goes like this, “First you let it rain, then you clear it up, (repeat). Chicken noodle soup, soda on the side (repeat), increasing tempo with each refrain. It’s a vigorous rain/chicken dance combo, and a good time for all. Out in the quad, another group practiced their salsa moves in preparation for the talent show auditions.

The soccer tournament Tuesday night was enthusiastically attended as was the basketball tournament Wednesday & Thursday nights. Students study hard and play hard. Healthy social interaction comprises an important part of dorm life.

Wednesday nights offer a change of pace from cafeteria fare, with “open dinner.” Students, accompanied by our residential staff, may walk to the UCI Marketplace and choose from a variety of eateries (at their expense). All-around favorite: In-N-Out Burger!

Special theatrical performance on Wednesday afternoon: Clownzilla, A Love Story, was presented by Professor Eli Simon, Chair, UCI Drama Department, and UCI drama students, many of whom recently completed their bachelor’s degree or master’s degree of fine arts in drama. The zany and surreal show was performed in Italy earlier this month.

Coming up:
Tonight is Casino Night, complete with decorations and an array of games (and prizes). The RAs are the wheeler-dealers. Saturday, more than 90 students and staff will visit the Griffith Observatory, and on Sunday, try-outs for the talent show August 1st. We are also preparing for the COSMOS Statewide Advisory Board meeting and visit August 2-3, and board members, under the chairmanship of Mrs. Gayle Wilson, will hear student presentations on our final Friday, which marks the end of the academic program.

CLUSTER HIGHLIGHTS
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ATMOSPHERIC & ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES: Week 3 marked the beginning of student projects. Seven teams of students began initial preparations an data collection for their ideas. Project ideas include: effects of air/water pollution on plant growth, biodiesel fuel preparation from used fry oil, "solar cells" based on photo-sensitive fruit dyes, paper recycling, homemade water purification, and bleach analysis in clean and dirty waters. All ideas are extremely interesting and topical, both for environmental science but also for issues facing the world today. During the science lectures, the students learned about aerosols indoors and out and the evils of home air purification systems, most of which cause more indoor air pollution than they remove! In addition, the students discussed gas hydrates, large deposits of methane and propane gases which are actually trapped inside ice under the ocean floor. It has been estimated that over a trillion kilograms of methane alone are present in these ice deposits, which is an enormous amount of fuel! The last lecture this week was from UCI's resident nuclear expert Dr. George Miller, and he discussed the advantages and dangers of nuclear power. An amazing amount of energy can be obtained from a tiny amount of radioactive material, and it is almost imperative that we explore nuclear power as an alternative energy source. Lastly, the students and the professor enjoyed the production of "Clownzilla: A Love Story", which followed the wacky misadventures of a boy clown and girl clown as they learned to walk, talk, and survive the high school talent show. Next week will be highlighted by a lab session using UCI's research nuclear reactor and of course, student presentations of their research projects!

BIOINFORMATICS & PROGRAMMING IN PYTHON: Students have firmed up their projects. Example projects include: genetic fingerprinting, finding motifs, diagnosis of lung disease, diagnosis of leukemia types, programming the Smith-Waterman algorithm, and abstract modeling of evolution. The lectures concentrated on how genes are controlled and students experimented with various algorithms for discovering the control elements (analogous to dimmer switches for lights) in the labs. The class is divided into nine groups. Projects include: lung cancer, in which the students plan to take data from the Kent Ridge Biomedical Database and see if they can find a better sequence of programs to run to get better results; brain tumor, with students obtaining data from the Kent Ridge Biomedical Database, write a program to convert this data into a format Weka can read and then analyze the data on Weka; and influenza, comparing several different strains of the flu, how it has evolved, and then trying to predict what a new strain might look like. In Science Communication, students have been giving mini presentations about articles they have researched. Students went to the California Science Center and it was great. There were a lot of interesting exhibits, such as identifying an animal by its hearbeat, a 50 foot woman explaining homeostasis and an earthquake simulator.  Some students even got their own personal pack of blue 'goo' made for them. Everyone enjoyed the IMAX presentation about the deep sea, which was "incredibly cool" -- 3D sea creatures coming at us!
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MATERIALS SCIENCE/MATHEMATICAL MODELING OF CRYSTALS: During the third week of COSMOS, the students in the Mathematical and Materials Science cluster learned about crystal growth processes - both natural (geological processes) as well as highly refined industrial approaches. They were introduced to techniques used to grow silicon crystals as the basis of the entire microelectronics industry, and learned of some of the key related historical events in this industry. The lectures this week focused on the drivers for crystal growth processes, the variables that affect the shapes, geometries and properties of crystalline materials, and also learned about how defects introduced into materials during crystal growth can affect the properties - in both positive and negative ways. They explored the growth of thin films of crystalline materials, and the added complexity in designing materials that utilize thin film configurations. They saw images of a fascinating cave system that was discovered in Mexico, containing the largest known naturally grown single-crystal structures (some reaching 45 feet in length!). We again used electron microscopes to explore two aspects of the course material. We again grew snow crystals, this time inside the microscope and imaged at high magnification. This was done in conjunction with direct viewing of dissolving salt in water and watching the re-crystallization of salt crystals when the water is drawn off the system. The students learned about 'polycrystalline' materials and 'multi-phase' materials, and how solubility is related to crystal growth. We also used an electron microscopy technique known as Electron Back-Scatter Diffraction (EBSD) to 'map' crystalline texture in advanced metal alloys, and discussed how scientists use this information to develop lighter, stronger and tougher metals - potentially for use in next-generation airplanes. In another of the lab sessions, the students were tasked with discovering the identity of unknown crystalline materials using only x-ray diffraction data taken from these materials. The students did remarkably well in solving for the unknowns - in fact, solving problems typically used in university undergraduate and graduate materials courses!
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