Rice University students Lauren Theis, left, and Lila Kerr
Two Rice University undergraduates, Lauren Theis and Lila Kerr, minoring in global health technologies, were faced with a challenge last year.
“We were essentially told we needed to find a way to diagnose anemia without power, without it being very costly and with a portable device,” said Theis, a political science major and native of San Antonio, Texas.
They found that a simple salad spinner could be the basis for a centrifuge used to separate blood in resource-poor settings easily without access to electricity.
Both students took their centrifuge ‘on the road’ last summer while participating in Rice’s Beyond Traditional Borders program, a global health initiative that brings new ideas and technologies to underdeveloped countries. Click here for more details on this story.
I couldn’t find the conclusion of this story online – whether the centrifuge idea performed as anticipated or not. I hope it did. But truthfully, it’s equally important to me that young people like Lauren and Lila were encouraged and supported in thinking so creatively – and given the opportunity to actively implement their idea.
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