>> SO THIS IS EMILE.
HE, UH, IS ALMOST
EIGHT MONTHS OLD NOW,
AND HE WAS PRESENT FOR A LOT
OF THE TESTING THAT WE DID.
HE WAS ALSO PRESENT
FOR THE LAUNCH IN UTERO.
SO OVER THE COURSE OF THE--
OUR FIRST ISS PROJECT,
WE MADE AN ENTIRE NEW HUMAN.
ALONG-ALONG WITH ALL
THE OTHER TESTING THAT WE DID.
THIS, UM, FLIGHT SUIT
THAT HE'S WEARING WAS
FROM HIS AUNTIE PARASTOO
THAT WE GOT, UM,
WHEN WE WERE DOWN
AT CAPE CANAVERAL
FOR THE LAUNCH IN DECEMBER.
THAT'S MY FAVORITE FACE
HE MAKES RIGHT NOW.
SINCE HE DOESN'T HAVE
ANY TOP TEETH.
[ LAUGHING ]
SO WE WERE RUNNING
CONCURRENT EXPERIMENTS
ON EARTH AND ON STATION.
SO NANORACKS HAD GELS
AT THEIR FACILITY
AND THEY WERE GETTING
THE DATA FROM THE EXPERIMENTS
RUNNING ON STATION.
AND SO WE WERE LOOKING
AT HOW THE GELS FORMED,
THEIR STRUCTURE,
AND ALSO HOW THE DRUG-RELEASE
PROFILE WAS CHANGING,
GIVEN THOSE TWO
DIFFERENT ENVIRONMENTS.
>> NANORACKS BROUGHT
THE PLATES BACK TO US,
AND WE ALL, UH, MADE SURE
THAT WE WERE HERE,
AND WE, UM, OPENED
THE-THE PLATES ALL TOGETHER
AND WE HAD THE SAME TYPE
OF EXCITEMENT THAT WE HAD
AT, UH, KENNEDY SPACE CENTER.
>> IT WAS ALREADY EXCITING,
BECAUSE SPACE NEVER
LOSES ITS COOL,
AND SO WE HAD THESE PLATES,
WE'RE LIKE, "OH, MY GOD,
THESE ARE WHAT
THE ASTRONAUTS TOUCHED."
AND SO WE OPENED THEM--
AND THEY'VE BEEN
TO SPACE AND BACK,
AND NOW THEY'RE IN OUR LAB.
>> WE COULD JUST AT LEAST
LOOK AT THEM AND SEE, LIKE,
HOW THE INTEGRITY IS DIFFERENT
IF THE STRUCTURAL, UH,
CHANGES ARE SOMETHING
THAT YOU CAN OBSERVE
JUST BY LOOKING AT THE GEL.
>> AND, WHEN WE LOOKED
AT THE DATA THAT WE GOT FROM,
UM, THE EQUIPMENT ON STATION
AND EQUIPMENT FROM NANORACKS,
WE COULD SEE THAT THERE WERE
DIFFERENCES IN THE DRUG
RELEASE PROFILES FROM THOSE
GELS THAT WERE HAPPENING
AT THE SAME TIME.
>> WE ACTUALLY OBSERVED SOME,
UH, INTERESTING CHANGES
THAT WE HOPED THAT
WE WOULD BE ABLE TO PROVE,
UH, DOING ACTUAL
STRUCTURAL TESTS
AND THE MORE IN-DEPTH STUDIES.
BUT JUST BY OBSERVATION
SEEMED LIKE THERE
MIGHT BE SOME CHANGES.
>> WHILE THE THRILL
OF THE ROCKET LAUNCH
MAY BE OVER,
ELAINE AND PARASTOO STILL HAVE
ONE OF THE MOST EXCITING PARTS
OF THEIR JOURNEY AHEAD,
PUBLISHING THEIR RESULTS.
THIS INFORMATION COULD HELP
INFORM FUTURE RESEARCH
ON EARTH AND IN SPACE.
>> WHAT WE'RE WORKING ON NOW
IS COMPILING ON THAT DATA
AND TELLING
A GOOD STORY AROUND IT,
SO THAT IT'S SOMETHING
THAT WE CAN OF COURSE PUBLISH
AND GIVE BACK TO THE PUBLIC,
'CAUSE WE'VE GOT
SOME REALLY INTERESTING DATA
FROM THESE EXPERIMENTS
THAT WERE AGAIN SUPER SIMPLE,
BUT THE STORY MIGHT TELL US--
CAN REALLY INFORM
MATERIAL SCIENCE AS A WHOLE.
>> YOU DEFINITELY FEEL
A HUGE RESPONSIBILITY PERFORMING
THIS RESEARCH FOR OTHERS,
BECAUSE YOU KNOW HOW MANY YEARS
THEY'VE BEEN WORKING
ON THE GROUND,
AND WE OFTEN LIKE
TO KNOW THE RESULTS.
SO PERSONALLY, I STAYED IN TOUCH
WITH A LOT OF THE SCIENTISTS,
AND THAT GIVES US
A LOT OF GOOD FEEDBACK.
AND IT GIVES US
SOME CLOSURE, TOO,
TO KNOW HOW IMPORTANT
THE SCIENCE THAT WE WERE DOING
UP THERE REALLY WAS.
>> I THINK RACHEL
HAS SOMETHING FOR YOU GUYS.
>> YEAH.
[ GASPS ]
>> IS THIS FOR REAL?
>> OH, MY GOSH!
HI, SERENA.
>> OH, MY GOSH.
>> WHEN THEY TOLD ME
THEY WERE DOING THIS,
THEY SAID THEY'D MAYBE LIKE
TO TRY AND SET UP A--
AT LEAST A FACETIME CALL
OR SOMETHING AND, UH,
I WAS LIKE, "YEAH, ABSOLUTELY!
THIS IS GREAT."
>> THIS IS A FANTASTIC SURPRISE.
>> WHERE ARE YOU GUYS LOCATED?
>> SO, WE'RE IN OUR LABORATORY
IN RICHMOND, VIRGINIA.
SO OUR OTHER, UH, FULL-TIME
EMPLOYEES ARE ALSO WOMEN.
SO WE'RE AN ENTIRELY
WOMEN-RUN COMPANY.
>> FANTASTIC!
>> IT JUST TURNED OUT THAT WAY,
BUT IT'S BEEN WONDERFUL,
BECAUSE WE'RE ALL, UH,
WOMEN ENGINEERS.
[ OVERLAPPED CHATTER ]
>> THIS IS GREAT.
>> WE JUST WANTED TO SHOW YOU
THE PLATE THAT YOU'D
HANDLED IN SPACE.
>> REALLY?
>> WE STILL HAVE IT.
>> WE STILL HAVE
ALL YOUR SAMPLES.
>> HOW COOL.
OH, THAT'S SO COOL! MAN!
SEE, IT'S EVEN NEAT
WHEN WE GET TO SEE THE SCIENCE
BACK DOWN IN YOUR HANDS, TOO.
SO, SOMETIMES IT DOES GO
LITERALLY IN A BLACK BOX
WHEN WE'RE UP HERE,
AND WE HOPE EVERYTHING GETS DOWN
SAFELY BUT THANKS FOR LETTING ME,
UH, INVADE YOUR SPACE
A LITTLE BIT TODAY
AND, UH, GOOD LUCK
WITH EVERYTHING YOU GUYS DO
SCIENTIFICALLY, PERSONALLY,
PROFESSIONALLY IN THE FUTURE.
>> ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU
SO MUCH, SERENA.
>> COOL, ALL RIGHT.
>> IT'S GOOD TALKING WITH YOU!
>> VERY NICE TO MEET YOU.
>> AND HAPPY HALLOWEEN.
>> HAPPY HALLOWEEN!
>> YEAH, IT'S HARD, UH,
TO BEAT THIS.
>> OH, I DON'T THINK--
I'M TRYING TO THINK OF ANYTHING
THAT WOULD BE BETTER
THAN WATCHING
MY OWN LAUNCH OF RESEARCH
TO THE SPACE STATION.
>> I ACTUALLY HAVE, LIKE,
MY BACKGROUND OF MY CELL PHONE
IS ACTUALLY THE PICTURE OF US
SENDING THE PRODUCT
TO SPACE STATION.
DEFINITELY A LOT OF PEOPLE
ARE SURPRISED THAT YOUNG,
UH, FEMALES IN STEM
HAVE, YOU KNOW,
THIS TYPE OF EXPERIENCES
AND HAVE CONTRIBUTED THIS MUCH.
AND I STILL LOOK AT THE SKY,
AND I REALLY THINK EVERYTHING
IS SO FAR AWAY AND LIKE, UH,
LOOK AT THE STARS
AND EVERYTHING LOOKS LIKE--
THAT NOTHING IS ACHIEVABLE.
BUT THEN JUST BEING A PART
OF THIS, UH, WHOLE EXPERIENCE,
IT JUST IS A DREAM COME TRUE.
>> ELAINE AND PARASTOO
NOW JOIN THE THOUSANDS
OF SCIENTISTS WHO'VE
PERFORMED RESEARCH ABOARD
THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION,
MAKING THE MOST OF WHAT
MICROGRAVITY HAS TO TEACH US.
THIS DEDICATED GROUP IS
BRINGING WHAT THEY LEARN
BACK TO EARTH,
HELPING IMPROVE LIVES
AND ADVANCE EXPLORATION.
>> WHAT SPACE STATION GIVES US
IS A DIFFERENT SORT
OF LABORATORY.
AND WHAT'S REALLY
MEANINGFUL TO ME
IS TO BE ABLE TO COME BACK DOWN
AND TALK WITH MY PATIENTS
AND LET THEM KNOW ABOUT SOME
OF THE DISCOVERIES WE'VE MADE.
THIS MEANS A LOT TO ME
AS A CLINICIAN.
AND SO IT WAS REALLY NEAT
TO BE ABLE TO PERFORM
THAT SORT OF SCIENCE ON STATION.
>> THE ENERGY THAT EVERYONE HAS
WHO IS INVOLVED
IN SPACE RESEARCH
IS EXTREMELY CONTAGIOUS.
AND SO YOU JUST GET
HYPED UP ABOUT IT
BECAUSE EVERYONE ELSE
IS SO EXCITED ABOUT IT.
YES, THE TIMELINE'S ARE LONG,
BUT EVERYONE IS SO POSITIVE
AND CERTAIN THAT THEY'RE
DOING A GOOD THING
AND THAT THE MONEY IS WELL-SPENT
AND THAT IS WHAT DRIVES PEOPLE
TO KEEP DOING
THIS SORT OF RESEARCH.
>> MICROGRAVITY STILL HAS
MORE INSIGHTS TO REVEAL,
AND THIS LABORATORY
LIKE NO OTHER
WILL CONTINUE TO UNCOVER THEM
ONE EXPERIMENT AT A TIME.
[ MUSIC ]