_edited.jpg)
Christina's Graduation with Leadership Distinction in Research e-portfolio
Accessible Research Helps Mitigate Misconceptions
Psychedelics: LSD, MDMA, Psilocybin. What were portrayed by media as counterculture hippie drugs in the 1960s and ’70s are being researched once again at top tier institutions in the United States, such as John Hopkins, for their medical uses. As a sophomore at the University of South Carolina (UofSC) in PSYC 455: Introduction to Neuroscience, I wrote an essay broadly describing LSD’s effects and medical uses while also considering the addictiveness of the drug (see WTC – Artifact 1). Before writing this paper, I held many of the misconceptions that the media portrayed nearly 50 years in the past to be true. After writing this paper I realized just how important quality, accessible, and transparent research is, as many people tend to base opinions on biased and unreliable sources that further urban myths. I also realized that this misinformation plagues more than just the realm of psychedelics and that knowledge acquired through proper research methods must be disseminated in an accessible manner to help mitigate misconceptions.
​
Later in PSYC 455: Introduction to Neuroscience, I wrote a paper on how modern neuroscience has changed the diagnosis of autism spectrum disorders (WTC – Artifact 2). I discovered that until recently, parents tried to “cure” their kids with cups of diluted bleach. This paper illustrates just one example of how the circulation of misinformation and lack of research-based knowledge can negatively affect society’s most vulnerable populations. This misinformation extends beyond neuroscience into many medical and public health fields. In HPEB 553: Community Health Problems, I wrote a reaction paper to a news article about the measles outbreak in the northwest (WTC – Artifact 3). Over a year ago, America saw an increase in measles cases in large part due to misinformation spread through the internet (see figure 1). Now, during the COVID-19 pandemic, America faces several challenges because of misreporting and lack of education. In my future profession, I will remember when I am interacting with people that not everyone will be informed by reliable sources, and do my best to be sensitive to beliefs while sharing research-backed information. I will also do so in a way that makes the information I know accessible to all, which will require me to communicate differently with different populations.
Figure 1 - Reported measles cases in the US between 2010 and 2019
Psychedelics Back in the Lab
Fundamental research is an essential key to debunking misconceptions but is not attainable nor disseminated broadly or quickly enough to compete with mass media fallacies. Thus, I must do all I can to be as informed as possible and help others do the same. To aid in my ability to speak knowledgeably on the current event, I chose to take a free, online FutureLearn course on COVID-19, not for academic credit, provided by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (BTC – Artifact 1). This course is based on current research and informed by leading global health professionals. The course modules emphasized much of what I had learned in my courses such as the importance of epidemiological research and statistical modeling to understand the disease, the importance of community-level health initiatives to turn the research into effective public health interventions, the potential difference a vaccine could make, and the importance of having randomized control trials to assert efficacy of the treatments, which ideally are used prophylactically but currently are largely reactive. Beyond the population level measures discussed, the course also highlighted the detailed biochemical research taking place that is crucial to understanding the novel coronavirus. This free course accessible all over the world is a great way to disseminate research-based information and begin to demystify the information presented on the news media. This has led me to pursue more free classes through top tier universities as a way to increase my knowledge in areas of interest that will help me in my future.
​
Although indeed, some research is only fully understood by a few experts across that globe, it is ever more important to pursue this research with the larger paramount questions about why we care in mind. It is the coordination of this basic science with global agencies such as the World Health Organization that has a “blueprint” for the Coronavirus and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, which was formed after the delayed response to the 2015 Ebola outbreak. In my academic career, when learning about cricket eyes in BIOL 635: Neurophysiology, we utilized electroretinograms that look at how specific parts of crickets’ eyes responded to different colored LED lights. Although our model was a cricket, we asked fundamental questions about why we would care to study color sensation more broadly (WTC – Artifact 4). Fundamental research, such as that performed and studied in BIOL 635: Neurophysiology, is foundational to our understanding of higher cognitive processes of decision making, memory, and emotion. Therefore, even if one study on specific protein structures is not accessible to everyone, it will help inform research that will be useful in informing vaccine production, understanding the effects of alcohol abuse on the liver and brain, or any relevant public health or medical issue.
In PSYC 498: EEG Correlates of Depression and Anxiety, an independent research class, I worked with my professor of PSYC 455: Introduction to Neuroscience and PSYC 507: Cognitive Neuroscience and another undergraduate student to create a basic object substitution masking electroencephalogram (EEG) study. This study sought to combine the EEG correlates of conscious perception, anxiety, and depression together. However, had those topics individually not been well researched, the current study protocol would not have been written (BTC – Artifact 2). Although the goal of this project is not to discover the answer to depression treatment or what it means to be conscious, it will contribute to our basic understanding of these concepts and may help eliminate the stigma around mental health disorders.
​
During the COVID-19 pandemic, having reliable, research-backed information available to the public is more important than ever. Not only is it essential to disseminate scientific information about safety precautions and stopping the spread of disease, but also, we must stress why we should do this. We must do so in a way that reaches different groups in an informed and culturally competent manner. It is also important to consume the information presented on news media responsibly by checking sources. I have come to realize that distributing accurate and reliable information is only as effective as people’s ability to check sources, distinguish reliable information, and reconcile their beliefs about disease. Thus, as a future science educator who has graduated with leadership distinction in research, it is imperative to teach youth the importance of checking sources, developing the skills to understand when things are reliable and accurate, and, more broadly, why public health is important.