{"id":9109,"date":"2018-08-30T11:16:56","date_gmt":"2018-08-30T15:16:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/biology.mit.edu\/?p=9109"},"modified":"2020-10-29T23:04:42","modified_gmt":"2020-10-30T03:04:42","slug":"a-summer-of-science","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/biology.mit.edu\/a-summer-of-science\/","title":{"rendered":"A Summer of Science"},"content":{"rendered":"
Victor Rivera-Santana grew up on the western edge of Puerto Rico, in what he refers to as an \u201catmosphere of science.\u201d His mother is a professor of animal science at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayag\u00fcez, and in elementary school he would attend her lectures about the effects of environment and hormones on animal behavior. Three years ago, Rivera-Santana enrolled there as an undergraduate, and has been studying chemistry ever since \u2014 with the exception of this past summer, when he became a full-fledged member of the MIT Biology Department for 10 weeks during\u00a0MIT\u2019s Summer Research Program in Biology (MSRP\u00ad-Bio)<\/a><\/u>.<\/p>\n Rivera-Santana remembers being drawn to basic research because of its simple, pure, and noble nature, stemming from the creativity of the researcher. \u201cScience almost always has an application, so the fact that researchers in basic science are not looking for an application per se doesn\u2019t mean their work won\u2019t have one in the future,\u201d he says. \u201cThe researcher fulfills his or her own curiosity, and afterwards someone else can find a way to put that into practice in society.\u201d<\/p>\n A rising senior, Rivera-Santana chose chemistry because he enjoyed analyzing the minute building blocks of life, but wasn\u2019t sure which field he would ultimately pursue. With chemistry, he could engineer the major to encompass biology and physics as well, which would give him \u201ca taste of everything.\u201d<\/p>\n At first he didn\u2019t know what post-graduation life might hold. However, two weeks into the MSRP-Bio program he\u2019d made up his mind: a PhD. \u201cI like the people, I like the passion, and most importantly I like the research \u2014 everything is so interesting it\u2019s hard to pick,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n Rivera-Santana applied to MSRP-Bio early last January because he had it on good authority from three independent sources that this was the program for him. First a good friend and former MSRP-Bio student suggested it, then his professor, and finally his father.<\/p>\n He had two main expectations coming in. First, that everyone would be intimidating and aloof. \u201cBoy was I wrong,\u201d he says. \u201cThe MIT faculty are really accessible and engage you as a potential researcher. You can stop them as they\u2019re walking down the hall, or ask them questions during the scheduled Q&A sessions.\u201d<\/p>\n Second, he expected everyone would be hardworking, irrespective of their area of focus. \u201cI was very pleased to find that\u2019s the case,\u201d he says. \u201cI have not met one person at MIT who would not go the extra mile to do their job correctly.\u201d<\/p>\n