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MM THE YEAR 2013 26
SCIENTISTS ■■
and Uzamere on cancer biology, Scruse on organic chem
istry, and King on stem cells. And yes, they all plan to be
in residency in five years, Sweetwine at Yale and Nelson
at Columbia. But when you begin to breach the surface
behind the lab coats and extensive awards on unspellable
research topics, these "scientists" are actually human be
ings, albeit super dedicated and compassionate.
The aptitude and dedication to their respective
fields speaks for itself, but what is truly amazing is the
wealth of knowledge and interests that these young men
have outside of the science field. How would you feel if
your surgeon's dream was to be a film director like Uza
mere or play in the orchestra pit on Broadway like Scruse?
Given their resumes, I would only feel safe espe
cially given that Uzamere, senior bio major from Stone
Mountain, Ga., was one of two students in the country to
be selected for the National Institute of General Medical
Sciences (NIGMS) or that Scruse, junior chemistry/Spanish
double major, math minor (deep breath) from Springfield,
Ohio, was a Hopps scholar and participated in one of the
most premier minority research programs, MARC U-STAR,
in the country. These are only two of the six nominees for
this year's Scientists category for Man of the Year.
And the others? Well, White, a senior chemistry-
math double major from Tallahassee, Fla., is nothing short
of brilliant. With a quirky demeanor and love for jazz, White
aspires to be a physician/scientist in cancer biology and
neuroscience.
Also interested in neuroscience, Ernest Nelson is
biology major, neuroscience minor from Albany, Ga., who
plans to pursue an M.D./Ph.D. and M.D. in neurosurgery. In
addition to doing research on sickle-cell anemia at More
house School of Medicine, Nelson is a music enthusiast,
saxophone player and avid tennis player.
But a biology major interested in fashion?
Sweetwine, a junior from Washington, D.C., even further
disproves the myth of scientists being narrow-minded.
Interestingly enough, Sweetwine, who is passionate about
fashion and has been involved in putting on fashion shows
for the school, is also truly passionate about the field in
which he studies. When most said that their dream job was
to be a musician, or a film director, or to travel, Sweetwine
genuinely enjoys working with medicine, specifically der
matology.
And who could have known that "Sheps," a
biology major from Eatonton, Ga., and president of the
Morehouse Health Careers Society, which does stem cell
research on tissue engineering, is also passionate about
different religions and cultures. His excitement and inter
est in treating patients who suffer from muscle loss seems
to rival his desire to travel the world and understand, as
Howard Thurman put it, the "ties that bind."
Despite the different interests and dreams that
make these individuals unique, two qualities that bring
together these aspiring scientists/surgeons/professors/
doctors are the selflessness and compassion that they
possess. They've found a calling and stuck with it. They
embody the mind of a scientist and life is their experiment.
When it comes to STEM majors at Morehouse, they
are either a) nerds b) geeks c) lame or d) more than meets
the eye. If your answer was anything other than "d" then
you clearly don't know this year's Scientists: Qaadir "Sheps"
King-McAlpin, Ernest Nelson, Anthony Scruse, Erwin Sweet
wine, Theodor Uzamere, and Zollie White III.
Sitting in a room full of biology and chemistry
majors, you'd think you would get the same answers to the
same questions. Yes, they all do extensive research: White
PICTURED: (LEFT TO RIGHT) ERWIN SWEETWINE. ANTHONY SCRUSE. QAADIR KING-MCALPIN
THEODORE UZAMERE. ERNEST NELSON
PHOTOGRAPHYBY: AHMAD BARBER