Erin Dolan, Virginia Tech (IMAGE) Virginia Tech Caption Erin Dolan, outreach director for the Fralin Life Science Institute at Virginia Tech, examines Arabidopsis thaliana, a model plant for many research projects. High school students participating in the Partnership for Research and Education in Plants create controlled environments to observe responses of genetically altered versions of the plant to help university scientists determine the role of specific genes. Credit Virginia Tech Photo Usage Restrictions with any coverage of the Fralin Institute outreach activities License Licensed content Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.