Week (ish) One @ USFSP

Our intro week at USFSP has come to a close. From the very first day, I knew that most of the questions that I came with were going to be answered extremely quickly and effectively by experts in the field. After meeting the wonderful Heather Judkins and Monica Cook, my nerves were soothed. I had finally met people who studied just like I am currently, and made it to their own adventures and career paths. Learning about Dr. Judkins and her studies on squid and her various expeditions at sea made me excited. I had never felt like I was close to figuring out what I want to do as a marine scientist, and the first week is so rewarding and humbling. It feels like I am finally getting closer. I began to meet people through our activities which included a kayaking trip through the Coast Guard inlet and out to the shallower waters around the channel, and finally through the canal. It was so interesting to see all of these separate but connected ecosystems together. We got the chance to be about 20 feet away from three dolphins who were hugging close to the shell wall. I had never been that close! Kayaking also gave us the chance to identify the bird species that call the area home, and even gave us the opportunity to do some cleaning up of the canal, by picking up trash along the way.

On the second day, we got the chance to look at some of USFSP's expensive equipment, specifically the SEM (scanning electron microscope) and the TEM (transmitting electron microscope). It was so cool to see how samples from the ocean can be taken, dehydrated, and placed in resin in order to be viewed under these high powered microscopes. Different diatoms and viruses can be viewed in real time, and even be made into large high-resolution posters that represent them. Later on, we got the chance to talk to an expert in the geology field. I could tell that Dr. Goddard was passionate about what he did by the way he coaxed our answers from us. He managed to spark an interest talking about sand and rocks. It was so cool to see a core sample and how a layer less than 1 cm can represent 10,000 years of time. The oldest layer will be on the bottom, the youngest on top. Using these cores, he taught us that the future can be predicted using the windows to the past.

On our last full day of the week, we had a stimulating round of lectures in order to prepare us for the rest of the trip. We made our way over to the wax model in order to better visualize the concept of sea floor spreading. It was cool to see a model that many scientists use in their everyday work. After this seminar, we talked to a researcher who uses satellites to map the color of the ocean waters, which represent chlorophyl concentrations.

The first week was humbling. It is an honor to be on a trip that benefits me so much. Meeting people who share the same interests and views about the world is so rewarding too. Monica is a gem and everyone in the Purple Merpeople loves her. We will miss Momma Judkins as we venture off, but I know we'll see her the last week. I can't wait to continue on and make memories with these folks!