SPOKANE, Wash. — Whitworth University’s science department just acquired a new piece of technology that professors say could be instrumental in curing the common cold.
It’s the first piece of technology of its type at an undergraduate university in Spokane.
It’s called a crystallography machine, which is an X-Ray device that can look at crystals on an atomic level.
“It searches, scans, collects data at the atomic level, and then that will go back to the scientists for them to analyze,” said Kraig Wheeler a professor of chemistry at Whitworth University.
"It has the ability to view tissues more detailed than a microscope can. Being able to look that closely at them can help scientists analyze viruses,” Wheeler said.
He said this can lead to them learning what’s really behind the common cold. He said it’s a significant step in learning how to cure it.
“In order to understand a particular property, you really have to know the fundamental underlying structure behind it,” Wheeler said.
Students at the university say they are excited to extend their educational research opportunities, as these devices typically only appear in graduate schools.
“Undergraduates don't have these opportunities in other places, so just to have that opportunity before I graduate is really awesome,” said senior chemistry student, Morgan Vanderwall.
Whitworth received the device through grants totaling nearly $450,000 and partnerships with Gonzaga, Eastern Washington University and Washington State University.
Students and faculty at each of these universities will be able to use technology housed at Whitworth’s Robinson Science Center.
“I think it’s really exciting to have this instrument here, because it’s going to increase the collaboration between schools that are in the area,” Vanderwall said.