Getting involved in research as an undergraduate student is a great way to learn in a hands-on environment, network with experts in your field, and point you toward the best career path. With the help of my advisor and other mentors, I was able to secure scholarships for two undergraduate research assistant positions during my first summer at UNH. The first was the Research 188体育app_188体育在线-平台官网 Apprenticeship Program (REAP) made possible by the Hamel Center for Undergraduate Research. This stipend is available for students working under a faculty mentor the summer before their sophomore year. The second was the Anderson Scholarship made possible by the School of Marine Science and Ocean Engineering. This award is reserved for students conducting or helping conduct research that could benefit the biomedical industry. Research is particularly important in the field of marine biology, so I was ecstatic to be able to be a part of such amazing work this summer.
My REAP project involved working directly with Dr. Bonnie Brown and her graduate student, Taja Sims-Harper, on an ongoing project examining microplastic content in fish, water, oyster, and green crab samples from Great Bay Estuary. I got to practice the basic lab procedures I already knew, like making dilutions and recording my work, but I also learned many new things, such as how to use Nile Red dye to prepare a sample and use the confocal microscope. My focus was the fish samples collected by NH Fish & Game as part of their monthly seine survey, which we dissected within a few days of collection. From dissecting, to digesting samples in potassium hydroxide (KOH) and sodium chloride (NaCl) bleach to break down tissues, to using the confocal microscope and analyzing laser-directed infrared (LDIR) data, I was involved in every step of the process. Using the confocal, we looked for particles of plastic that glowed bright green from the Nile Red dye. Those samples were then sent to UMass Amherst for LDIR analysis to identify the particles in the sample, including any plastics. When I wasn’t working on the fish, I was processing water samples, which went through the same process as the fish. One of my favorite memories was the day trip I took to UMass Amherst to see the LDIR machine in action.
It was extremely rewarding knowing the importance of the work we were doing; microplastics are a growing pollutant of concern, and they’re not going anywhere. It is critical that we learn all we can about how microplastics and the chemicals they contain may be absorbed or ingested by fish and other organisms, especially those we depend on for food.
The Anderson Scholarship provided a stipend and travel budget for me to do work in Dr. Elizabeth Fairchild’s lab at the Coastal Marine Lab in New Castle, NH with her graduate student Mary Kate Munley. Mary Kate? is examining alternative baits for channeled whelk fisheries that are ecologically and economically feasible for fishermen to use in place of horseshoe crab, which is the traditional bait used in these fisheries. Horseshoe crab blood is also valued by the biomedical industry to test vaccines and other medicines for toxins. Horseshoe crab populations are strained by these bleeding practices, which is why an alternative bait is desirable for the fishing industry. I learned how to set up and run bait trials in the lab, as well as how to analyze the video data from those trials. We also spent three days in Martha’s Vineyard with a former grad student of Dr. Fairchild interacting with fishermen and running field trials with the alternative baits. This work not only tied into my marine biology degree, but also the sustainability dual major. Making fisheries more sustainable is an important step in ensuring we will be able to continue to use the ocean as a resource in the future.
Working two projects was the best experience of my first year of college, however, it required me to practice excellent time management skills. In a normal week I would work on my REAP project in Dr. Brown’s lab for 7-8 hours for two or three days and split my time between the two labs on the remaining days. Whelk bait trial video analysis and data entry usually took place outside the lab, which added another element I needed to plan for. Though the research kept me busy, I was still able to coach tennis, get involved in the New Hampshire Network Plastics Working Group, and learn to surf in my free time. Beyond time management, networking skills were also important to my success this summer. Both projects gave me an opportunity to diversify my resume, meet new people in my field, and learn about the research process.
I was thrilled to be involved in high-impact research so early in my college career, and my experience has been nothing short of incredible thanks to my mentors and co-workers. There are so many undergraduate research opportunities to take advantage of at UNH. I loved meeting the graduate students and hearing about their experiences. Many of them have given me valuable advice I can use going forward in my college career. I am incredibly thankful for the mentors and friends I gained as part of this work. I plan to continue working on both projects during the fall semester and be involved in more research in my remaining years at UNH.
