Knowledge Gained in Laboratory Research

Lori Bazaj, Verrazzano Class of 2021, completed major in Biology Health Science & minor in Psychology

My final journey as a Verrazzano student was my capstone project. In spring of 2020, I looked into assisting one of my Biology professors in one of their research projects. After signing up for the class as an independent study, I had to complete many steps to be able to work with animals in the laboratory. Because I would be working with live animals, I had to become more knowledgeable on how to handle them, and I completed certifications in order to be ready. Unfortunately, the experience of working in a laboratory was cut short due to the start of the pandemic, but that small amount of time taught me a lot.

I learned about the work ethic that goes into a research project. Every step has to be approved when dealing with live organisms, and the funds that are put into the research need to be approved for the work to run smoothly. My main focus when working in the laboratory was to record mice’s’ movements. My peers and I then analyzed these digital recordings. It was important to keep a record of the mice’s weight in order to ensure that no outside factors were interfering with our results. Because I was unable to complete the whole semester working in the lab, the following semester my professor and I worked on a literature review based on the topic of the research project.