My prime research experience was an investigation I conducted called “The effect of sweeteners in Drosophila melanogaster's locomotion.” It was developed as my tenth- grade investigation project, in the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Genetics laboratories. The research measured how much locomotion was affected in Drosophila melanogaster considering their alimentation. The experiment was divided in three groups: a control group, a group fed with natural sugar, Sucrose, and another fed with artificial sugar, Saccharine. The diets were prepared based on standard laboratory food by varying the sugar. Several generations were grown. The locomotion was measured through monitors with infrared lasers. They calculated the number of times the fly passed through the infrared laser. They were accustomed to a day and night cycle and were kept under observation for a period of 13 days. As a result, the group that ingested natural sugar had a greater effect on locomotion compared to the other two groups. In conclusion, I discovered that to get more energy and to carry out tasks with better performance it’s ideal to ingest natural sugars. With this project I participated in the Regional Scientific Fair of 2018 where I won 2nd place in my category. I also exposed my research in the International Student Science Fair (ISSF) 2018 in Aurora, Illinois. As part of my minimal research, I won the Hunger Workshop in ISSF 2018 with a nutritional design to help the south Asian communities short and long term. Although it is not much, this exposition has made me more focused on my goal of discovering and learning new things through the research process. I believe the satisfaction that comes with these discoveries is one of the most important things to keep the passion for knowledge alive. These experiences have made me develop leadership, creativity, critical thinking and patience, among many other qualities that would be key to ensure a productive and innovative work place.
