An award has been made to the House Ear Institute under the direction of Dr. Paul Webster for the acquisition of a high pressure freezing system that will allow researchers to freeze tissues and cells without the usual deformation of structures that occurs when samples are dried and frozen by more conventional methods. Such careful preservation is needed to study fine details of anatomy of the auditory system, bacterial biofilms, structure in protozoa, and ear development in fish and other vertebrates. The House Ear Institute has partnered with a research organization, the Oak Crest Institute of Sciences, which provides research experiences for high school, and community college students. These programs provide intensive hands-on research experiences for large number of women and minorities otherwise underrepresented in science.
