and by corollary, the discoveries and policies that come out of the research. We also use Spit for Science as a means to raise awareness about substance use and emotional health issues on college campuses and to get students talking about these issues. Additionally, it provides a venue to talk about the importance of genetics in health related outcomes, and to increase public understanding about complex genetic outcomes – outcomes that are genetically influenced, but don’t follow the simple single gene inheritance patterns that we were all taught in basic biology. If genetic information will ultimately be useful for prevention, intervention, and practice, there needs to be greater understanding by the public about how complex genetics works. We view the project as a venue to raise public understanding of the issues that drive the research.
