As my roommates are packing up the last items in their rooms, I am quickly writing this last blog. I have missed many days of blogging and know I should speak about what we did during the last week, but it was extremely eventful. In this last half hour before I leave my room, I would not be able to appropriately include everything. I have therefore been thinking about what to write/include in this final blog post. There is so much I want to say that I do not know how to word it. As I further write, I will try to convey that this was an amazing experience. I am a different, more knowledgeable person than when I came to Iowa two months ago. This REU experience was full of many firsts. The first time I did research, my first time developing a VR game, my first time writing a research paper, my first time using EEG, my first time living in Iowa, my first time using Unity, my first time bouldering, my first time, presenting and making a poster, and most importantly, my first time being surprised by an experience. All of these firsts were not only special because they played a part in my growth, but because I enjoyed every one of them. I was able to learn so much from the mentors, the interns, and the VRAC staff. These firsts all being good experiences shows how important it is to step out of your comfort zone. If people only did things they were comfortable with, there would not be any firsts, and no room for growth. Before coming, I thought it would be mostly research with people I would not often be interacting with in a boring location in the midwest. The only thing I was right about is that it was a slightly boring location. I guess people were telling the truth when they explained Iowa as very flat and full of cornfields. I was wrong about everything else. The people were amazing, and there was so much interaction. People perceive me as an extrovert but there was so much interaction everyday that I often needed time to myself, even though all of my interactions were special and enjoyable. It was sometimes even more tiring than school, which I did not expect from an REU.

There are so many more experiences I can specifically speak about but we have to leave in about 25 minutes and I have to clean up the apartment. I hope I conveyed that this REU was extremely worth the time. I cannot think of many things I would have done with my summer that I would have gotten more out of. Before I stop writing I want to shout out all of the interns for being amazing people to spend a summer with. I have discovered a new friend group/family. I also want to shout out two of the adults that I don’t think I can every forget. The first is Eliot. He was an amazing personality around the lab and I appreciated every interaction we had. Whether he was jokingly (I think) poking fun at me or challenging my train of thought, I enjoyed it. He got me to think in different ways and see how knowledgeable one person can be. The type of person he is is extremely inspiring. I lastly want to shout out my grad mentor Aron. He was the best grad mentor I could have asked for. He was always there for us, whether it was in person or via slack. He was extremely supportive, knowledgeable, and passionate. This made me passionate about the project and learning more from him. His presence made his project become our project and we were able to become fully immersed on his journey to his PHD. He is also just an amazing human being. Even though he may not always be the best with social interactions :), he is kind hearted and always means well. During one conversation I remember him mentioning that he works hard because all he wants in life is to be a good dad. That answer will forever stick with me and it actually very much made me think of my dad and how hard he works for our family. (Shoutout to my mom as well but this specific instance made me think of dad). But anyways, thank you Aron for an amazing experience. And thank you to everyone I interacted with this summer because you all played a role in making my summer unforgettable.