ABOVE: Applewhite demonstrates microscopy techniques to a student in the lab.
© REED COLLEGE
At his mother’s insistence, Derek Applewhite, who grew up in a suburb of Boulder, Colorado, participated in a summer program for high school students to do a six-week-long research internship at Colorado State University. He spent his summer doing veterinary research in a small team, trying to understand why certain hip replacements for dogs were failing. As maple wood is biomechanically similar to bone, Applewhite took several chunks of maple, drilled into the wood, and installed artificial dog hips. Then, he would twist and torque the implants, testing their torsional strength. In addition to the research itself, he loved the collaborative approach to problem-solving.
However, Applewhite stayed focused on athletics in high school, and he ultimately earned a scholarship from the University of Michigan to run track. Practicing up to six hours a day made it virtually ...
