Class Memories

When I got off the airplane after visiting the University of Rochester for the first time, my mother could tell by the huge smile on my face that I had found my dream school. She also knew that if I chose UR, it would be a tremendous financial burden for our family. We were so happy that I was awarded a UR scholarship and a Regents scholarship which, in addition to my student loans, made the school more affordable. As part of my financial aid package, I was required to work a certain number of hours a week on campus. I was assigned to be the Saturday lunch lady serving burning hot pizzas at MDC (Frederick Douglas dining hall) which smelled heavily of Genesee beer from the parties that were held there the previous evenings.

I was thrilled when Mara Zuckerman, who was a year ahead of me, told me there was a job opening in the lab where she was doing research. I promptly changed jobs and started taking care of 36 research mice in the Behavioral Toxicology Laboratory of Professor Bernard Weiss, the father of behavioral toxicology. I learned a tremendous amount about research and computers from the graduate students and staff at the lab. More than that, I became part of a research community which was completely separate from my classes on campus. I got to hang out with foreign students and townies who showed me what life was like outside the River Campus.

In my junior year, my friends and I found out about a biomedical research grant we could apply for from the NIH. It would give us a stipend of $750 for the summer which would pay for our room and board. It also gave the laboratory we worked at some money too. I approached Dr. Weiss with the possibility of doing a project in his lab. He generously helped me write a fantastic research proposal to study the behavioral effects of methyl mercury on mice. Methyl mercury poisoning was also known as Minimatta disease. It was caused by the release of methyl mercury in the industrial waste-water from a Japanese chemical factory. This highly toxic chemical accumulated in shellfish and fish in the waters around Minimatta, which, when eaten by the local populace, resulted in mercury poisoning. While cat, dog, pig, and human deaths occurred for more than 30 years, the government and company did little to prevent the pollution. I studied how adding methyl mercury to the diet of lab mice changed their behavior.

My close friends were also awarded NIH grants for summer internships. We all lived together in a huge old house across the river near the famous Smitty's Restaurant. We all had an amazing summer that solidified our friendships and made us feel closer to the greater Rochester community. The research opportunities that we received from the University provided us with skills that helped us with our coursework and our post graduate experiences.

In addition to the terrific educational facilities, I found the Univ. of Rochester campus to be physically beautiful with its stately buildings, the elegant beauty of the Rush Rhees Library and reading rooms that were right out of an English novel. I watched as the new student union was erectedwonderful addition to the campus, replacing the small but charming old student union with its small post office and bank. I loved the student union building so much I was even married there!

One of my favorite haunts was the indoor track (I even had a blue and yellow running outfitMeliora!) wonderful to run at during some cold Rochester weather. I remember an indoor tennis class being taught there toolots of fun. Other memories: the wandering campus dog, a husky owned by a Psych professor, greeting students as they walked; and the underground tunnelsterrific to get to a class when it was stormy out.

Great place, great memories!