Summer Intern
I am interested in genetics and evolution, particularly molecular mechanisms of adaptation, and science communication! My current project focuses on the role of microRNAs in modulating phenotypic plasticity and rapid evolution in response to climate change in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana.
I am a rising sophomore at Georgetown University, majoring in the biology of global health and minoring in disability studies. I am fascinated by how living organisms adapt and respond to changing environmental conditions, whether that involves plants adapting to a changing climate by adjusting their flowering time or stomatal density, epigenetic influences on human mental health, or animals undergoing adaptations that allow them to survive and reproduce in unfavorable conditions. I want to study the genetic as well as epigenetic and post-transcriptional mechanisms that govern and permit this adaptation.
I am also interested in science communication, a curiosity that grows as I learn about and experience firsthand the importance of this skill. Science research is illuminating, groundbreaking, and relevant, but it only holds as much significance as it can be effectively communicated. Along with this, I am passionate about the intersection between science and policy, using new insights from scientific research to inform policy relating to anything from conservation and climate efforts to public health and the transmission of disease. I want to learn how to effectively use science communication to bridge the divide between research and policy, and to make science relevant and accessible to everyone.