What we imagine goes on in Columbia’s science buildings

It’s been scientifically proven that when Columbia’s science students aren’t in their labs, they’re maniacally searching Bwog for the latest scoop on what’s going on beyond their microscopes. We decided to give the science kids a shoutout in an attempt to combine academic pursuits with some light Bwog reading. Bwog dispatched Senior Staff Writer and Bunsen Burner Belle Briana to the CUMC newsroom to get us up to date on all of the scientific searches that surfaced this summer (also, s/o alliteration). 

The best way to describe all that happened this summer is to move in chronological order, so let’s begin with the onset of the season and rewind to June. Oh, June… a month named after Juno, the Roman goddess of marriage. Regardless of your marital status, New York Presbyterian’s Audobon Practice was the place to be if you were looking for some man candy during Men’s Health Month. The clinic caters to giving men general health care and treatment as well as sexual and reproductive health care. Cosmo always tells us that men are visual, so this stat is no surprise— according to Dr. David Bell, “young men are more likely to seek care at a clinic that’s clearly dedicated to them and includes ‘men’ in the name.” The clinic has already reached out to numerous men in the Washington Heights/Bronx neighborhoods.

June may have been an enjoyable first taste of sweet summer, but July is when things really got intense. This July marked the thirteen-year anniversary of the SPURS program— an initiative that aims to interest under-represented students in lab research. This year, the program was particularly special— it was coordinated by SPURS alumni who are currently pursuing graduate degrees in scientific fields. The program is also getting more competitive, as this summer brought in a record 94 applications for only fifteen spots.

As summer days drifted away into summer nights, August became September before we could even finish watching John Travolta gyrate. Speaking of grease, this summer was a great time for nutrition! CUMC announced that health care professionals would continue with the nutrition counseling program. The program, which is clinically based but offers a cooking component, is the only one of its kind in the US.

Since the last day of summer was only a week ago, it’s only fair that we include a September scientific synopsis. A recently-published article revealed the interdisciplinary and serendipitous nature of science when a doctor and a public safety officer both working at CUMC found out that they were stationed at the same base in Vietnam in the 1970s. David Forrest, who painted the piece for the CUMC Art Show, worked as an army psychiatrist, while Pio Rivera served in the 120th Aviation Company.

That’s all for our summer of science roundup! Stay tuned, science kids—we hypothesize that more BunsenBwogs will be appearing on our site soon.

Small girl doing science via Shutterstock