Genes in Space winner, Julian, published in BioCoder quarterly newsletter
Genes in space
Julian Rubinfien discusses the Genes in Space contest and his winning experiment that will be sent to the International Space Station.
by Julian Rubinfien
March 23rd, 2017
For a high school student interested in biology, there are more educational opportunities available outside the classroom than one could possibly experience in four years of American secondary education. There are summer internships at universities, essay contests, scientific scholarships for college, and—for those with access to professional laboratories and mentorship—science fairs. Biology competitions are generally more alike than they are different; most involve a lengthy application and judging process that culminates in the presentation of cash prizes to winners. I was surprised, then, when I read that Genes in Space, a two-year-old competition, promised its winner the opportunity to launch his or her biology experiments to the International Space Station (ISS), a collaboration between 15 nations that orbits the Earth at 17,000 miles per hour. The Genes in Space competition is a partnership between miniPCR, Math for America, the Center for Advancement of Science in Space, New England Biolabs, and The Boeing Company.
