외국인 학교를 다니는 학생으로써 영어로 쓰는 것이 더 퀄리티가 좋을 것 같아 영어로 작성하니 양해 부탁 드립니다.

In general, the offline part of the bio academy taught me a lot of different things about biology as a field of study, as a career, and as the future of the world's technological advancements. 

The first thing we did when we entered the auditorium in the morning was to listen to the lectures of four professors who talked to us about various topics regarding the biotechnology in general and its growing uses of artificial intelligence and similar technologies. Professor 석차옥 gave us a lecture about the idea of utilizing AIs to predict protein structures and the possibility of AI usage in the future designing of proteins that humans may need to use for medical or industrial purposes. She told us that the current technologies are still limited, but that further developments could bring the future into a possibility of using AIs for drug design. I particularly thought that a part of her response to my question about how to increase the accuracy of AI systems like Alphafold in situations where there aren't as much data present for the AI to base its predictions upon was vary interesting. As she was answering my question, she mentioned that the future of science should be directed so that we ask ourselves the questions of 1) what is the problem at hand? 2) what do we need to solve the problem at hand? 3) what data do we need to create the solution for the problem? and then utilize our ability to generate new data through experiments and trials to create our own basis for future discoveries. I liked how this was a pretty fresh view at problem solving for me, and how it changed my view on problem solving in general. Two other Professors, Professor Vankershaver and Professor Wesely De Neve, lectured us on the topic of deep neural networks and their uses in biology. They mentioned the pros and cons of using these networks, such as how useful and efficient these networks can be, but also about how sometimes the networks can be too smart and utilize the wrong data to come to correct conclusions, and how they still need to be regulated by humans to check for correct data analysis. Though I had previously heard of this topic of Deep Neural Networks before, I had never gotten such a thorough and full runthrough on the current situations and developments of the networks. I believe that this field has great potential for growth and corrections, as the professors mentioned that the downsides of the deep neural networks that they talked about in the lecture are currently being worked on by professionals to increase the accuracy and quality of the outputs and analysis. The last professor, Professor Rao, lectured us on the importance of mathematical models in the field of biotechnology. He explained to us that a mathematical model is a set of equations relating the variables in the systems after making the ideal assumptions, and that systems are combinations of various elements which in its entirety performs a specific function. I believe that his lecture was very fit to the viewpoint of high school students, and that I got a much better understanding on why mathematical models are used in biotechnology to help design controlled experiments. 

After the lectures ended, students of our group were able to visit the production plants of the company Celltrion. We got to walk around the plant in a tour-like style and got a basic run through on the production process of commercialized drugs produced by Celltrion. They stated that their production cycle consists of 1) growing of the bacterial cultures, 2) filtration and purification of the proteins produced, and 3) production touches such as being mixed with the buffer solutions and being packaged to be sent out as finalized products. This was one of the first times I have ever got to tour through a production plant of a biotech company as large as Celltrion, so the experience was highly educational and engaging. I was amazed at the sheer productivity of the plants and the size of the systems the products are run through before being finalized. I also got a teddy bear from the quiz section we participated in right after the tour of the plant. 

The last part of the offline academy, or our trip to Ghent University was also a very eye-opening experience. We as students got a simple lecture from a professor at Ghent university about GMOs, their uses, and their social perceptions. The TAs of the professor also helped students participate in two separate experiments that allowed us to see the differences between GMO plants and Non GMO plants. The first experiment utilized the method of Agarose Gel Electrophoresis, which is the method of using the negative charge of the DNA of the plant material and electric currents to separate materials of different masses. The second experiment utilized the use of antibody tests that could test for a specific antibody the GMO plant had that allowed it to be more pesticide resistant. The experiments helped me feel for myself what a lab environment can be like, and how these processes work. This experience helped me organize some of the thoughts I had about my career path and generally showed me the expectations I should have for a small portion of the work that lab-related biotech majors participate in. 

Overall, I believe that this academy as a whole gave me a great view at the field of biotechnology as a whole by introducing me to the major developments and concepts of the field, the actual production plants for the products that are created by people working in this field, and the environment the researchers of this field are likely to work in. This camp has highly impacted the way I view Biotechnology as whole and provided me with various information that I had not seen or heard before. I believe that his was a truly unique experience that I would not hesitate to sign up for again if given the opportunity.