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Lisa Morton (KCJS34, Cornell University) has been working in a laboratory of Ion Channel Pathophysiology at Doshisha University for her Community Involvement Project (CIP).

Here is her weekly report:

“I feel like I often leave lab on Tuesday evenings thinking I’ve had the best week so far. But this week, I think it really happened. On Monday, I was entrusted to complete my first-ever cloning from start to finish alone. I somewhat struggled with the sense of responsibility, especially coming out of lab meeting where Professor Misonou gave a presentation that reminded me of the greater vision of this work. I have felt this way before working in labs in America, but I think there is still something that feels risker about my work here, or I feel somewhat more inadequate than usual, because of the language barrier. Monday’s work did go well, however, which was a great relief and I was grateful to have been given the opportunity. Tuesday was absolutely wild! I was working with Nakata-san, and when she offhandedly mentioned going to a conference in Okinawa over the summer, I realized that she was referring to the same conference that my research advisor back in the states went to. And in the end, we realized she attended his presentation! She then mentioned wanting to go to the national neuroscience conference in the states next year, which I will probably attend, and we talked about how a year from now, we might be meeting in America. Later that evening, Nakata san and I stepped outside to watch the lunar eclipse. It was stunning and I was so grateful to be able to experience that with her. It really felt like such a full circle moment, because on my last night in Ithaca at the end of last Spring semester, I stayed up to watch the lunar eclipse with my friends. I realized that no matter where in the world I meet people, they become people in my one life. And what a beautiful way to experience that feeling, under the moon, the same moon that we are all under! I’m so grateful to have met the people I have met here in Japan, and for all the people I love back in America.”