Thanks to a National Science Foundation grant program, a Bates neuroscience major took part in a kind of intensive research this summer that could prove decisive in the next chapters of her life.

The NSF's Research Experiences for Undergraduates program helps immerse promising students in research to a depth more typical of the postgraduate world. Bates' Sara Trace is one of 14 students from across the nation who, with NSF support, took part in the Summer Research Program in Lifespan Developmental Psychology at Western Kentucky University, in Bowling Green.

A senior this fall and a native of Franklin, Tenn., Trace completed an eight-week investigation into retinal development of tiny zebrafish in WKU's Neuroscience Laboratory. "It's just been a fantastic experience," says Trace, who heard of the NSF grants from a friend and discovered the WKU program on the Web. "I feel so lucky that I was able to take part in the program this summer."

She says, "I didn't want to be stuck in a lab where I was just pipetting, doing monotonous lab work. I really wanted to try to get an understanding of what doing research is like and the whole research process." Like its REU counterparts around the country, the WKU program is a microcosm of that process, with participants bringing their projects to a meaningful conclusion and then presenting their findings. The award even includes travel money for participant presentations at professional conferences.

Trace's mentor was Joe Bilotta, the neuroscience lab's director and a professor of psychology. Trace was recommended to him by a colleague in WKU's psychology department — his wife, Professor Elizabeth Lemerise. A 1974 Bates graduate, Lemerise knew from her own experience that a Bates education was sound qualification for an REU placement.

"I told my husband, 'You should pick that Bates girl. You won't be sorry,' " Lemerise laughs.

Like Bilotta, Lemerise is an REU mentor. In its second year, the REU program at WKU explores lifespan developmental psychology through a range of topics, such as Bilotta's work with the visual system of zebrafish, a colleague's investigation of age-related changes in driving ability and Lemerise's own studies of children's social behavior.

The REU program provides food, lodging and a stipend — at WKU, $2,400 — that helps support students while they put in long days of concentrated research. It's experience that gives the right students a leg up on grad school and professional opportunities. Trace, says Bilotta, will "be able to go into any neuroscience lab and learn new techniques and skills much quicker because of her experience in my lab."

"This is not just some exercise; this is high-quality research that's she's being involved in, and she's going to see it from start to finish."

The NSF mandates that participants be given a broader professional context for their work. A series of seminars aids their understanding of issues surrounding academic research.

"We've taken classes on writing, classes on presenting research, classes on SPSS," a data-analysis software, Trace says. "We've had seminars on things from animal ethics to relationships while you're pursuing a graduate degree. We're going to have a class on getting into graduate school."

"We really try to give them a full experience," Lemerise says, "and in fact we tell them, 'If you really liked what you did this summer, you'll probably like graduate school, because it's a lot like that.' "

Trace's interest in developmental neuroscience took her to WKU, with recommendations from Bates psychology professors John Kelsey and Cheryl McCormick, her adviser. The research project that she developed with Bilotta correlated the development of retinal function with physiology in immature zebrafish. She used a device called an electroretinogram to measure the neural responses of the fish to different wavelengths of light.

"The ultimate goal of this research is to provide information about the human visual system," she says. "The zebrafish provides a great model for the human eye."

Trace had done little work with visual development before. Now she's a convert. "Once we started diving into this, it was like this huge incredible puzzle that all kind of fits together," she says.

In fact, says Bilotta, Trace's sheer enthusiasm for learning stands out. "She really wants to know," he says. "I think that's her biggest strength — I see the light going on, I see the excitement in her eyes when we're trying to understand things. That's the key to being a good scientist."

"She's really doing a good job, and I think that's her Bates background — of course, that's my Bates prejudice," laughs Lemerise. The typical close student-faculty relationships that Bates encourages equip a student for getting the most out of a mentor, she says.

"Often I find students from some universities aren't used to talking to professors. When I was a student at Bates it was pretty common, and I'm sure that's still true, that you see the professor as an intellectual partner and resource person."

For his part, Bilotta has been delighted with his wife's recommendation. He says, "Any other Bates students want to come, give them my address, will you?"