One of Amanda Brown's favorite gifts as a youngster was a chemistry set.

But her parents may have had second thoughts when young Amanda tried one day to make soap and instead manufactured a soap bomb of sorts that left the kitchen table with a thick white coating that had to be scraped away.

Even though those early experiments sometimes went awry, time has proven that the gift was a fortuitous choice. Brown, a senior environmental health science and chemistry major at EKU, is one of 17 college students nationwide selected for the prestigious National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Program at Harvard University.

Brown, a 1999 graduate of Christian County High School and the daughter of Kathaleen and David Brown of Herndon, Ky., will spend 12 weeks at Harvard researching carbon cycling to measure the impact that hardwood forests have on greenhouse gases and global warming.

"I'm ecstatic," Brown said. "Research experiences are really critical, especially because I plan to pursue a doctorate. And Harvard is the epitome of research, so everyone, at least once in their careers, wants to go to Harvard."

Brown, a transfer from Hopkinsville Community College who boasts a 3.5 GPA, has been assisting EKU chemistry professor Dr. Lori Wilson on a NASA-funded research experiment in protein crystallization. NASA awarded Wilson a $377,000 to develop protein solutions that could be carried in a "microgravity test tube" aboard an upcoming space shuttle flight.

"I've learned a lot working with Dr. Wilson," Brown said, "and the environmental health science professors have always been there to guide me and push me, too."

Brown was selected on the basis of academic record, past research experiences and an essay about how the summer position would affect her career goals.

Each student in an REU program is granted a stipend and works closely with faculty and post-doctoral and graduate students and attends seminars, lunch meetings and social functions organized to facilitate interaction between undergraduates.