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Before the summer vacation, we held an iGEM theme T-shirt activity in the International Department of Liaoning Province Shiyan High School. In order to enhance the interest of teachers and students on biology, we deliberately planned this non-profit project.

On July 28th, our Life Code Association organized classmates to prepare the required materials for this project, such as: T-shirt and pigment. Before the commencement of this event, we invited the sponsor of our team to explain the knowledge of synthetic biology and we had prepared questions to be discussed on site. Students painted their own T-shirt patterns in accordance with their understanding for the iGEM theme and their interest on synthetic biology. Every student displayed their works on the podium and explained their views on the synthetic biology. The students discussed the significance, the role, safety, ethics and other aspects of the synthetic biology. Finally, we invited teachers and student parents as judges to participate in the discussion.

The IGEM theme T-shirt activity enriched the knowledge of students on synthetic biology and strengthened the friendship between the students. We expressed our respect for IGEM and our love for science through the publicity of IGEM.

On July 23rd, we held a lecture on iGEM and synthetic biology in the International Department of Liaoning Province Shiyan High School. In the lecture, we introduced the historical course of iGEM, and let students have a preliminary understanding on what is synthetic biology, and enumerated the application of biology in our life. The students started a heated discussion about their own ideas on synthetic biology and its ethics and safety.

We and World Magazine have worked closely together in publishing a special issue of igem. We focused on safety, moral principles, advantages and disadvantages in the discussion. We have recorded our personal understanding of synthetic biology, igem process, including what we learnt about experiment security and procedures from Chinese Academy of Sciences in the competition. The World Magazine was set up by students from international department of Liaoning Province Shiyan High School, geared to the need of students in Liaoning Province Shiyan High School and all middle schools in Shenyang. We shared and talked over questions with the whole Shenyang students by special issue of igem.

Questionnaire about Nanwu wholesale market for vegetables and fruits

We set our sights on degrading farm chemicals. So we took a survey of persistent pesticides in the vegetables and fruits wholesale market.

This market was the collecting and distributing center for buying vegetables and fruits in Shenyang. A number of wholesalers gathered around the place. We distributed hundreds of questionnaires on 24th and 25th , July so as to collect data related to pesticide residue.

Conclusion based on data:

We picked up 100 owners of Shenyang wholesale market for vegetables and fruits as objects. In the survey, 62% of owners who believed “pesticide residue existed” on vegetables and fruits was far more than the number of whom answered with “not sure” or “ambiguous”.

Types of pesticide residues: respective selection ratio of “organophosphorus pesticides”; “esters pesticides”; “high-toxic pesticides” reached at 23%;37%;14%, which implied that owners didn’t make types clear. In the light of official figures, residual rate of organophosphorus pesticides on vegetables and fruits was kept between 80%－90%.

These owners had some confused ideas about dangers of pesticides. About 22% of interviewees thought harms would be caused when farm chemicals had been accumulated in your body for 5-10 years, and 18% of them believed the required years would be 10-15 years. While 24% of owners didn’t think harmful chemicals would be remained in the bodies and the rest was uncertain about physical impacts.

As for specific diseases, 50% of interviewees felt that residuals in the body would cause cardio vascular disorder, far ahead of cancer or infertility, rates of which were 21% and 12%. However, 27% of interviewees showed their unawareness of physical impacts. With regard to removing pesticide residues，40% of interviewees chose the option of “others”，and 25% of interviewees chose the option of “soaked in the clear water for 30 minutes”, while 20% of interviewees chose the option of “cleaning with clear water”and the rest chose “cleaning agent for fruit and vegetable”.

Moreover, 25% of interviewees argued that there was no farm chemicals in the foreign organic food and 20% of interviewees argued that there was no farm chemicals in the national organic food. But 15% of interviewees didn’t think they could buy vegetables and fruits withiout pesticide residues. People who was uncertain or had other thoughts accounted for 40%.

On the usage of products to degrade pesticide residues, 24% of interviewees said they would make use of them and 40% said that could be considered. Interviewees that need learn more mechanisms accounted for 20%.Yet 16% of them were not sure.

As regards price range: 41% of interviewees said price of product should be fixed among 10-20 yuan, and 17% said the range among 20-50 yuan, and 28% said the range among 50-100 yuan, while 14% said the range should be over 100 yuan. Hence, price of the product won’t be set too high in the future.

Microblog of igem was established in July, 2015, concentrating on synthetic biology, igem, degradation of farm chemicals.

We do a new way spread the knowledge of biology to the public, and we update the dynamic of our team work.