Exploring Research: A Journey of Curiosity and Discovery

Welcome to the world of research—a journey where curiosity meets discovery and learning goes beyond textbooks. Research is an opportunity to explore science from start to finish: from developing an idea to conducting literature review, forming hypotheses, carrying out fieldwork and lab experiments, and analyzing data. It's a chance to develop valuable skills in procedures and instrument use, essential for your future endeavors. ​
This is why you should do research:

• You will experience research in all aspects from beginning to end: an idea, literature research, hypothesis development, fieldwork, lab work, sample and data analyses. You will also synthesize this information and communicate it.
• You will be trained in specific procedures and the use of instruments, which are important skills to have.  
• It may seem far away but you will need letters of recommendation for internships, grad school, future employers even unpaid internships. I will be able to provide more meaningful letters when I can report on self-motivation, team work, diligence and resourcefulness. 

But consider this:

• Research takes time, effort and self-motivation.
• Your research project might turn out differently that you had expected. For example you might disprove your hypothesis or have to redo an experiment 3 times.
• You might find some aspects tedious (hours of literature research, repetitive lab work, fieldwork during freezing rain).
• Generating knowledge is very different from learning about what is already known. It might feel like leaving solid ground.
• We take small steps and often only add a small piece to a mosaic rather than finishing the entire piece. 

Still interested? ​

• Contact me early (typically a semester early), my lab group fills up quickly.