First thing First

Hi. My name is Ian Winek, and I am a rising junior chemistry major, working with the Shaw research group at Appalachian State University over the summer. My focus will be on organic synthesis over this internship, and I will be working to try to investigate a new technique in synthesis. The beginning of this internship will be the same as almost all chemistry lab positions, safety training(because I haven’t learned yet that broken glass is sharp, apparently). So I will save you from a thorough description of acid disposal(yay), and rather talk about myself a little more.

I grew up in Boone, North Carolina. When I say that I live a stone’s throw from Appalachian State’s campus(henceforth App state), I am being quite literal. I couldn’t throw stones as a child because of walking students on campus. I grew up running around the mountains and rivers of the area, and became interested in chemistry because I wanted to understand the differences in what different things were made of. It amazed me that we were composed of mostly the same stuff as trees(carbon), and I wanted to understand why. Since I couldn’t go to App state, due to my mother working in the infirmary(if I sneezed, there would be an ambulance if I had stayed), and my dad being a professor, I escaped to Wake Forest. I dabbled in many sports, but found my love in martial arts, which I still pursue in college as the head student instructor at the Taekwondo club at Wake Forest.

My goal for the summer is simple: get a feel for collegiate level research, and explore the front end of organic chemistry. As part of my degree, I will have to complete a certain amount of time doing research for Wake Forest. I hope this will help me prepare for that. Additionally, I actually like organic chemistry. It is a strong contender for a specialization later on in my career, and I think the idea of trying to solve the problems faced by modern chemists as an undergraduate is amazing, which is why I am excited that this lab focuses on methods of synthesis(which, by the way, is designing new organic molecules). Anyway, that’s a little about me, and about what I am up to. I’ll likely go into more detail on my project and on the subject next week, but for now, here is a taste.