Studying nanotechnology may not sound like the typical “how I spent my summer” story, but for Robert Accolla, he enthusiastically recalls his summer studying the electrostatic properties of peptoid nanosheets at the Molecular Foundry with Ron Zuckermann in the Biological Nanostructures Facility.
A junior from Virginia Tech, majoring in biological systems engineering, Accolla researched peptoid nanosheets as part of an overall field that is exploring how this synthetic nanomaterial can be used more broadly in drug discovery, diagnostics, and drug delivery.
Accolla researched peptoid nanosheets as a participant in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) HS-STEM Summer Internship Program. This program provides undergraduate students majoring in homeland security related science, technology, engineering and mathematics (HS-STEM) disciplines the opportunity to conduct research in a DHS area at federal research facilities across the U.S.
