My name is ZhiTao (Jonathan) Fang, I was born in China and grew in the suburbs of Mississauga ON. I am currently a third-year biological sciences student studying at the University of Guelph. I am interested in the field of medical sciences and my current career goal is to get into medical school and become a doctor. I am interested in a wide variety of topics within the disciplines of medical sciences. One of the topics that I am interested in is vitamin D deficiency in developed countries. In detail, vitamin D can be synthesized in our skin naturally through a biochemical process with 7-dehydrocholesterol as the starting molecule. This is a process that requires a sufficient amount of sunlight exposure. However, vitamin D deficiency has become more and more prevalent in the developed countries due to the lack of sunlight exposure. I believe multifactorial approaches such as public education are required to address this issue.

I was inspired to pursue health sciences as well as taking this class by Edward Jenner, who discovered that, milkmaids who were infected with cowpox developed immunity against smallpox. This observation led Edward Jenner to practice inoculation among the general population using the cowpox virus (a lot less lethal than smallpox), which provided immunity against smallpox and is the earliest known example of vaccination. I think science is about curiosity and being willing to investigate further to determine the mechanisms behind certain observations, and this ultimately inspired me to pursue health sciences.

Outside of school, one of my biggest hobbies is hooking, I am currently exploring the basic cooking principles used in French cuisine such as the Five Mother Sauces. I aim to create healthy, palatable recipes that will help people make smarter choices and improve their dietary habits. An interesting fact that many may not know about me, I tend to avoid cinnamon whenever I can, I strongly dislike the taste and aroma from cinnamons. Aside from cooking, I am currently involved in a non-profit organization that my friends and I co-founded last year. The goal of our organization is to promote mental health and wellbeing among the general public (though our primary target audience is university students) and we do so via. social media posts, newsletters, and potentially workshops. If you are interested in what we do, please feel free to check out our blog, website, and social media pages.