IN Woodland Hills Spring 2019 | Page 30

Woodland Hills 7th-9th Grades Present ‘Into the Woods, Jr.’ PHOTOS BY JUSTIN RODRIGUES O n January 10th, 11th, and 12th, seventh through ninth graders from Woodland Hills Junior Senior High and Woodland Hills Academy performed Into the Woods Jr. The cast and stage crew of 50, along with their senior high costume, vocal, production, and scenic interns, started working in September to prepare for the tales of Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk and Rapunzel! HUMAN ANATOMY & PHYSIOLOGY STUDENTS INTERACT WITH GUEST SPEAKER SUBMITTED BY CORRINE GRISCHOW, TEACHER O n January 29th Mr. Nick Pavlovsky, a PhD Candidate in Neural Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh, came in to speak to our students in Human Anatomy & Physiology and provided them with a very unique educational opportunity. Specifically he outlined career opportunities and strategies to succeed in college as well as highlighting his research which directly correlates to the muscle and nervous system units that the students are covering in their classes. The three classes of students separately had the chance to actually participate in his demonstration. During the experimentation, each group of two students was hooked up to surface electrodes that record muscle activity. One student’s electrodes recorded their muscle movement and converted that signal into an electrical stimulation that caused the second student’s ulnar nerve to fire and contract their wrist and fingers. This simulated a nerve reflex arc which takes place in our bodies when we make movements. The students were very excited to volunteer to participate and to learn about the advancements that this research is providing to patients to help to strengthen muscles, reduce pain or even allow paraplegics to feel or move again! 26 WOODLAND HILLS