Latino+Essay+VL

=Resources=
 * Scholastic - Latinos in History
 * FactMonster.com
 * [|Wikipedia]

Latino Women in Science
 * //** [|Yajaira Sierra Sastre] **, NASA scientist. // Performs preliminary testing and research work in NASA in the area of food consumption and health of astronauts for future mission to Mars.

List of women

Yajaira Sierra Sastre
 * Puerto Rican
 * Born 1977 in Guayama, Puerto Rico
 * nanotechnology scientist and educator
 * wants to be an astronaut
 * in a six person crew, she is the only Hispanic chosen to be in four month long Mars analog mission
 * wants to be first Puerto Rican woman to travel to outer space
 * raised in Arroyo, Puerto Rico
 * always dreamed of being astronaut
 * earned Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry
 * worked as high school chemistry teacher and attended Cornell University where got Ph.D. in materials chemistry and nanotechnology
 * nanotechnology (nanotech)- get definition
 * Nasa found that during long missions astronauts don't eat enough
 * puts them at risk of nutritional deficiency, etc.
 * NASA Human Research Program pay for project called HI-SEAS (acronym for Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation)
 * project is to find best way to keep astronauts nourished
 * it is a simulation on Mauna Loa in Hawaii that mimics the living conditions at a future base on Mars- started March 2013, lasted 4 months
 * many applications for people to be on crew (over 700)
 * 6 people were chosen, including Yajaira because has astronaut-like qualities
 * Yajaira Sierra Sastre, Dr. Oleg Abramov, Simon Engler, Kate Greene, Sian Proctor, and Angelo Vermeulen
 * crew was in two week training sessions before hand
 * no outside communication allowed in the simulation
 * new food tested
 * simulation ended August 13
 * future food ingredients: spices, herbs, hot sauce and comfort foods like Nutella, peanut butter, margarine, and foods with lots of fiber- research more results
 * lives in Ithaca New York
 * hopes to be the first female Puerto Rican astronaut
 * freelance educator working with disadvantaged schools and communities in Puerto Rico- look up this
 * helps work on projects with the Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network and the Cornell Nanoscale Facility
 * co-authored several scientific work
 * nanotechnology is science, engineering, and technology conducted at the nanoscale, which is about 1 to 100 nanometers
 * nanoscience and nanotechnology are the study and application of extremely small things and can be used across all the other science fields, such as chemistry, biology, physics, materials science, and engineering
 * there are 25,400,000

4-month Mock Space Mission Ends 3-D printed Food Nanotechnology

Throughout history, Hispanics have been very influential in helping the human race to advance technologically and scientifically. One of these influential people is Yajaira Sierra Sastre. She has worked in the field of nanotechnology, which is changing the future. She has participated in a simulation which has helped NASA develop a better nutritious regimen to use when astronauts are sent into space. Without her help, astronauts would continue to become malnourished when being in space for long periods of time. Lastly, she has helped students in Puerto Rico to have better chances for their future.

Yajaira Sierra Sastre was born in 1977 in Guayama, Puerto Rico. She was raised in Arroyo, Puerto Rico and always dreamed of being an astronaut. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry (Yajaira Sierra Sastre).

She then worked as a high school chemistry teacher while attending Cornell University where she got a Ph.D. in Materials Chemistry and Nanotechnology (Yajaira Sierra Sastre). Nanotechnology is science, engineering, and technology conducted at the nanoscale, which is about 1-100 nanometers. Nanoscience can be used in all other fields of science, including chemistry, biology, physics, materials science, and engineering. A single nanometer is just one-billionth of a meter, and there are 25,400,000 nanometers in one inch. Such advanced microscopes were needed to see at this level that they weren’t invented until as recently as thirty years ago (What is Nanotechnology?). After graduating from Cornell University, Yajaira joined a new nanotechnology company where she created new processes for coating materials used by people all over the world, including those in military, environment, and medical fields (Proctor, Sian).

Yajaira is currently a nanotechnology scientist and an educator who works with disadvantaged schools and communities in Puerto Rico. She helps work on projects with the Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network and the Cornell Nanoscale Facility. She has also co-authored several scientific works (Proctor, Sian).

In 2013, NASA Human Research Program decided to conduct an experimental simulation to find a better nutritious regimen for astronauts in space for long periods of time. In the past, astronauts had been at risk of nutritional deficiency after being in outer space for so long. They decided to call this simulation Hi-SEAS (or the Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation). It was a simulation on Mauna Loa in Hawaii focused on testing new foods for astronauts (Mars Food Scientists).

Over 700 applications were submitted for people who wanted to be part of the six-person crew in the simulation. Yajaira was chosen to be one of the six, and was the only Hispanic there. Yajaira Sierra Sastre, Dr. Oleg Abramov, Simon Engler, Kate Greene, Sian Proctor, and Nagelo Vermeulen were the six chosen for their astronaut-like qualities (Yajaira Sierra Sastre). The simulation lasted about 4 months after a two week training session. No outside communication was allowed in the simulation, and new food was tested throughout it. The simulation ended August 13, 2013 and was quite successful. Thanks to these six, NASA has found new foods to add to astronaut diets. Some future food ingredients to be used by astronauts include more spices, herbs, and hot sauce. More comfort foods will also be added, like Nutella, peanut butter, margarine, and foods with a lot of fiber (Mars Food Scientists).

Yajaira currently lives in Ithaca, New York and hopes that her participation in the Hi-SEAS program gives her a better chance at becoming the first Puerto Rican woman astronaut (Yajaira Sierra Sastre). I hope it does because she is a brilliant woman with a great chance of changing the world with her knowledge. I admire her determination, and I know that she will reach her goal of going into outer space one day.

Yajaira has also done a lot of work in disadvantaged Puerto Rican communities, which is one of the most inspirational things she has done, in my opinion. She helps give students opportunities to develop professional skills and receive mentoring (Proctor, Sian). I feel like giving others the resources to grow and develop their skills so that they can help change the world with science and technology in the future is the most admirable thing a person can do. Yajaira doesn’t just try to change the science of today; she changes the science of tomorrow by giving the next generation the tools they need to impact the world.

I am so glad that I had this opportunity to write about Yajaira Sierra Sastre, because she really has impacted the world in every way. She is forging a path into foreign science, using innovative tools and methods. She is working towards her dream while helping others working in the same field. She is giving the next generation the tools to change the world. Yajaira is an inspiration to many, and I hope that others follow in her footsteps.

Works Cited

"Mars Food Scientists End 4-Month Mock Space Mission In Hawaii." //Space.com//. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 May 2014. [].
 * This is credible because it has official NASA news

Proctor, Sian. "Dr. Yajaira Sierra-Sastre Biography." //HISEAS//. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 May 2014. <@http://hi-seas.org/?p=85>.
 * This is a credible site because it is the official HI-SEAS website and it was written by her coworker, Sian Proctor

"What Is Nanotechnology?" //Nano//. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Apr. 2014. <@http://www.nano.gov/nanotech-101/what/definition>.
 * This website is credible because it is a government website about the research and development of nanotechnology

"Yajaira Sierra Sastre." //Wikipedia//. Wikimedia Foundation, 21 Apr. 2014. Web. 28 Apr. 2014. <@https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yajaira_Sierra_Sastre>.
 * This site is credible because it got its information from many credible government sources