High school students followed a pre-planned program that included learning/hands-on sessions about the drug development process, laboratory safety, conducting laboratory experiments, building models of organic compounds, drafting their first resume and the importance of planning for their continued education.
During their hands-on laboratory sessions students were required to generate, document and analyze their data, as well as prepare and present their findings, working in two teams. The students used Ultraviolet (UV) light to visualize organic compounds and then build models of these compounds to gain an understanding as to why some compounds are UV active and some are not. This was followed by using UV light to determine the caffeine (UV active compound) content of various teas using a UV-Vis spectrophotometer. Additional experiments were also conducted by these students.
