Team:Jefferson VA SciCOS/Team

Tina Ju

Tina Ju is a junior at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology and the captain of the Jefferson iGEM team. She is primary interested in public health, synthetic biology, and computer science. These interests are fueled by her desire to use technology, particularly synthetic biology, to innovate medicine. She plays an active role in the Jefferson research community, serving as an editor of Teknos, the Jefferson research journal, and the committee co-chair of tjSTAR, the school research symposium, as well as working on iGEM. She also founded and currently serves as the director of the Northern Virginia Hepatitis Free Initiative, a public health project to promote hepatitis B and C awareness and education in the Asian and Pacific Islander community. She will be working at the National Cancer Institute this summer.

Manotri Chaubal

Manotri Chaubal is a junior at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJHSST). She is primarily interested in research done within the field of biotechnology and has tailored her courses at TJHSST to pursue this interest. This year Manotri's passion for research prompted her to explore the topic of stem cells and finding an alternative source of stem cells that proves to be as viable as bone marrow derived stem cells. Her work in this field earned her the 2nd place grand prize at Intel's International Science and Engineering Fair. In addition, Manotri is currently the founder and director of the Indian chapter of the Northern Virginia Hepatitis Free Initiative. This initiative aims to raise awareness and educate the Asian and Pacific Islander community of the prevalence of HBV disease. Simultaneously, this chapter raises funds to provide free screenings for HBV to people who are unable to afford it. Manotri also enjoys educating others about biotechnology and synthetic biology through the club, Girls in Engineering, Math, and Science (GEMS), which she is the treasurer of. This summer Manotri will be further pursuing her passion for research at Children's National Medical Center.

Lucas Kang

Lucas Kang is a junior at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, in Alexandria, Virginia. He has a passion for understanding the behavior of complex systems, and often utilizes his expertise in physics, mathematics, and computer programming to gain new-found perspectives on any topic that interests him. This summer, Lucas will be one of three high school researchers employed at the new Colorado State Accelerator Facility, and will also publish his work on a new application of cellular automata under the mentorship of Stephen Wolfram. Besides his enthusiasm in the sciences, Lucas enjoys soccer, playing violin, cooking gourmet food, and reading. For Lucas' research and accomplishments, visit his Google site.

Jenny Seo

Jenny Seo is a junior at TJHSST. She is ready to explore the fields of biotechnology and bioengineering, and she is additionally interested in pathology. She has taken extensive courses in biology and math, such as Pathophysiology and Matrix Algebra. This summer, she is going to work as an intern at Children's National Hospital. Jenny enjoys playing volleyball and she occasionally plays violin, piano, and takes time to draw out her thoughts.

Sahitya Allam

Sahitya Allam is a junior at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology. Her primary interest is the intersection between neuroscience and immunology, which she seeks to investigate as part of an internship dealing with the pathogen infection strategies and host immune mechanisms that affect aging in Drosophila at the cellular and molecular level. She actively participates in several clubs and organizations at TJHSST, including Biology Olympiad, Future Problem Solvers, Chemistry Team, and iGEM. In addition, she has been awarded numerous distinctions related to the biological sciences, such as two time USABO semifinalist, top 50 ranked student in the National Biology Competition, Conrad Spirit of Innovation Semifinalist, NOVA Brain Bee runner up, and top 10% honorable mention for the NSTA/Toshiba Exploravision competition. She also actively participates in her community as a volunteer at a hospital and non-profit autism care center, and as a tutor for regular/AP Biology, regular chemistry, and Spanish 2.

Eric Bo

Eric Bo is a junior at TJHSST. He has a general interest in science and technology, but especially synthetic biology and bioengineering, and his senior technology lab is Biotechnology. However, he is also interested in physics and computer engineering. Besides academics, Eric also spends a considerable amount of time on extracurricular activities, mainly on Environmental Impact Club and Chinese Honor Society.

William Woodruff

William Woodruff is a junior at TJHSST. He has taken classes in a wide variety of sciences, including DNA Science, Organic Chemistry, Physics, Marine Biology, and Astronomy and will be conducting research in the Chemical Analysis lab as a senior. Over the summer, he will be interning at NIH and he intends to continue his education in biology and chemistry in college. In addition to his scientific interests, he enjoys playing the piano, learning languages, and participates in a number of extracurricular activities such as the Environmental Impact Club, Model United Nations, Biology Olympiad, and Writing Center tutoring.

Richard Wang

Richard is a junior at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology. He is primarily interested in biotechnology, chemistry, and beauty of language. He explores these interests through advanced courses at Jefferson and through iGEM. He is also a varsity debater on the Jefferson policy debate team and will be the captain of the team next year. He will be doing something business/law-related this summer in New York City.

Peyton Randolph

Peyton is a junior at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology. He is fascinated by science, especially synthetic biology and chemistry. He intends to pursue a career in synthetic biology and hopes to meaningfully contribute to the field. He furthers his study of science by participating in iGEM, Environmental Impact Club, and Teknos, the Jefferson research journal. He will be researching at Georgetown University this summer and will be volunteering with the Northern Virginia Hepatitis Free Initiative. He discussed his passion for synthetic biology with the TJHSST Dreams team, who posted it in all the bathroom stalls at school. That's called dedication!

Daniel Carris

Daniel Carris is a junior at TJHSST. His area of interest is Chemistry, which he has studied for 3 years. In addition to chemistry, Daniel enjoys physics and mathematics. Outside of school, Daniel is a member of TJ's crew team, devoting 10+ hours a week to the team. He also enjoys music, playing the guitar, piano, viola, and violin.

Nihita Manem

Nihita Manem is a rising senior at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology. Her interest in neuroscience, medicine, and synthetic biology has promoted her to join the iGEM team. As an active leader in her community, she volunteers at the local stembassadors program, as an instructor for the NeuroInspire program, as well as a member of several clubs at school. She will be working at the Krasnow Institure this summer, researching the impact of allatostatin expression in specific hippocampal neurons related to hippocampal-dependent learning and memory abilities.

Arjun Iyer

Arjun Iyer is a rising senior at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology. He is mainly interested in Biotechnology and Chemistry, and has taken advanced classes in both subjects to pursue this passion. Additionally, he plans to use the knowledge that he has acquired in these classes to a research internship at the National Cancer Institute this summer. In his free time, he runs track and Cross Country for TJ, draws cartoons, and listens to music. Also, Chris Brown is his idol and he is very skeptical of the moon landing.