Student examines x-rays and dance in Brazil

UQ student Lilian Barajas has returned from a two-month scholarship in Brazil where she studied nanotechnology and learned to dance the samba.

Miss Barajas, a 21-year-old science and politics student from Cleveland, was one of 15 students out of 252 applicants to be accepted for one of Latin America’s most prestigious summer internships at the Brazilian Synchrotron Light Laboratory.

She said the lab was the biggest research centre in Brazil with one of only two synchrotrons in the southern hemisphere.

A synchrotron is a machine that produces powerful x-ray beams or ultraviolet rays to show atomic and molecular-level detail of materials.

Students from Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Argentina and Australia were selected for the scholarships worth about $10,000 each.

During her two month stay in January and February, Miss Barajas researched the formation of nanoparticles using special x-rays.

Being born in Mexico and speaking Spanish allowed her to keep up with the program which was taught in Portuguese.

The students averaged 12 hour days in the lab except when they were using the synchrotron light.

“On those days we had to stay the night until we finished measuring our samples because getting time on the synchrotron was very hard,” Miss Barajas said.

All interns gave a 25 minute seminar about their findings to lab staff and a final more detailed report.
Miss Barajas said the social side of the trip was also productive.

“Brazilians know how to have a good time.

“We used to go dancing quite often and the non-Brazilians made absolute fools of themselves, particularly doing the forro (a local dance) and the samba.”

Miss Barajas plans to study for her Masters in London next year after graduating in July.

MEDIA: Miss Barajas (0421 321 839) or Miguel Holland at UQ Communications (3365 2619)