As my second year comes to an end, with only the summer term left, I can’t help but reflect on the challenges I’ve faced and the accomplishmentes I’ve achieved.

Where do I begin? First, the IMENSA (IMmune, Empathic, and Neural responses to Suffering Animals) team successfully completed data collection over a span of 10 months, from February 2022 to November 2022. The experiment consisted of two day sessions, each involving fMRI scanning, behavioral tasks, self-report questionnaires, and two blood draws. We recruited 99 participants and collected 4 blood samples from 75 participants. This extensive and unique dataset encompasses various modalities, including fMRI data, autonomic data, behavioral responses, and immunnoassay data. I must express my gratitude to Melanie Kos, our post-bac RA, and David Ward, our undergraduate RA, for their exceptional work in data collection. Completing this ambitious and multi-modal dataset within 10 months is a significant achievement, made possible by our incredible teamwork. I eagerly anticipate the forthcoming results from further analysis.

Last day of IMENSA data collection. David Ward and Melanie Kos

Thanks to this project, I had to learn how to run immunoassay for the first time in my life…

In addition, I had the opportunity to present a poster at the Society for Neuroscience conference held in San Diego in November 2022. Interestingly, during my preparation for this, I unexpectedly embarked on my second project: investigating the human Parabrachial Nucleus-Amygdala pathway, called as the PABRANA project. I was fortunate to continue the remarkable work initiated by Phil Kragel, a former postdoc in our lab and now an assistant professor at Emory University. This project has been incredibly exciting and has allowed me to delve deeply into animal pathway studies. Moreover, I was grateful to receive an outstanding research award from the Association of Korean Neuroscientists at SfN.

2023 Society for Neuroscience poster

Upon my return from SfN, I began my first experience as a teaching assistant during the winter term (January to early March 2023). In March, I tackled the specialist written exam, which involved reading and analyzing 70 articles provided by three specialist committes. This milestone marked a significant accomplishment in my second year of Ph.D. studies.

During the spring term (mid-March to early June 2023), I undertook the demanding task of TAing for most challenging course in PBS: System Neurosciences. Yeah, it was undoubtedly a tough journey… but I’m relieved that it has come to an end.

Sheep’s brain dissection during TAing

Also, second year phd students should give 15 min specialist presentation about what they have done and their ongoing research. I did my best and it went well. Touched another milestone.

Specialist presentation

With TAing, coursework, and specialist work now behind me in this spring term, I take great pride in successfully accomplishing these tasks. Additionally, I am eagerly awaiting the results of a journal review for the FAST-web paper, and I am almost ready to submit another paper on bodily maps. Finally, I had the opportunity to give an interview with the United States Ambassador to Korea, discussing the unique experience of pursuing a Ph.D. as an international student with the support of the Fulbright scholarship.

Surviving through numerous milestones and hardships this year has been truly exhilarating. :)