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From 2012hs.igem.org

Contents 1 Captains 1.1 Aakash Indurkhya 1.2 Peter Fan 2 Members 2.1 Sam Joo 2.2 Laura Weng 2.3 Bo Kane 2.4 Natalie Ung 2.5 Charles Zhao 2.6 Morgan Howell 3 Action Shots

Captains

Aakash Indurkhya

Aakash Indurkhya was a co-founder of the NCSSM iGEM team. He was interested in starting the team after his work with the esteemed, Mr Peter Fan on the Duke iGEM team. Together, they completed a research project in synthetic biology called Engineering a Genetic Toggle Switch Controller Using Synthetic Zinc Finger Transcription Factors through the Research in Chemistry program at NCSSM. Aakash will continue his academic explorations at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). Aakash also enjoys watching movies, playing tennis, and entrepreneurship.

Peter Fan

Peter is a veteran of iGEM having been one of three high school students on the 2011 Duke iGEM team. He enjoys designing and then testing novel synthetic gene circuits, especially when they work. His interests outside of science include martial arts, street dance, and eating at Cosmics Cantina and other restaurants around Durham.

Members

Sam Joo

Samuel Joo is a junior at the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics. He is mainly interested in biology and medicine. To advance his interests, he joined the NCSSM iGem Team to explore new possibilities that would benefit those in need. The NCSSM plans to research more about the effects of silver nanoparticles. He plans to master Java and C++ computer languages. In his free time, he enjoys playing the ukulele and practicing origami.

Laura Weng

Laura Weng discovered her passion for synthetic biology after taking biomedical technology and interning at a hospital during the summer. Wanting to take a greater step towards her academic learning, she went to the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics. There she was able to extend her passion for biology by joining the NCSSM iGEM team. This summer, she is very excited to be attending the iGEM jamboree at Indianapolis. In her free time, she loves to play tennis, eat food, play the piano, and do all sorts of crazy things.

Bo Kane

Patrick "Bo" Kane is interested in a variety of academic pursuits including linguistics, chemistry, computer science, and computational biology. In addition to iGEM, he is performing quantitative trait loci analysis (QTL) on mouse cytomegalovirus (MCMV) data with the Jackson Genomics Lab in Bar Harbor, Maine through the Research in Computational Science program at NCSSM. Bo will be consulting with the EPA Toxicology division on a project involving multielectrode array analysis at their Research Triangle Park campus this fall. In addition, he will not be able to attend the jamboree as he will be studying Mandarin in China via the US State Department. Bo is also an Eagle Scout who enjoys boating, hiking, and anything in the outdoors.

Natalie Ung

Natalie Ung goes to the North Carolina School of Science and Math, and is from Morganton, North Carolina. She joined the NCSSM iGem team in early 2012, and will be attending the iGem Jamboree in June, along with three other classmates. Her main reason for joining the iGem family was to gain more experience in synthetic biology through working in the lab and research. In competing in iGem, Natalie hopes to learn from her peers and her mentor exciting things about synthetic biology.

Charles Zhao

Charles Zhao is a highly motivated high school student from Chapel Hill, North Carolina. He is currently attending the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, and has a great passion for science. He is particularly interested in biomedical research, and wishes to pursue a career as an M.D. in the future. In his spare time, Charles enjoys running, playing the clarinet, the piano, and engaging in other lackadaisical behavior in his spare time. He will be attending the 2012 iGEM Jamboree in Indianapolis. He very much enjoys the consumption of bagels, and other cereal-flower based produce. He is also world renowned for being extremely Chinese, and a generally cool guy.

Morgan Howell

Coming all the way from the small rural community of Cottonville, Morgan Howell has chosen to pursue many ambitious research projects delving into his passions in computational science and synthetic biology. Even while maintaining presidency of several clubs at NCSSM, and wrestling full time, Morgan played a vital part in AgNPs synthesis and making sure each and every team member received their proper amount of lab experience. Currently working in Gersbach laboratories at Duke University, Morgan is also a part of the Duke iGEM team, where he is optogenetically controlling promoters in yeast. In the future, Morgan wants to become some form of an entrepreneur, taking advantage of the many skills and experiences he has obtained. Keeping a balance in his interests, Morgan is also currently developing an instant messenger in C++ which utilizes TCP network protocols. Morgan also enjoys Mathematics, Physics, Public Speaking, Business and Economics, and holds an affable and humorous personality.

Action Shots

Note: Goggles were not used for the above procedures as no chemicals were involved. Team Captain Aakash Indurkhya was delivering a tutorial in sterile laboratory technique.