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Sarah Lee
What type of education do you have? I'm finishing my bachelor's degree in May and will begin my Ph.D. in the fall. What are your areas of specialty? Marine community ecology, so far I have done work on coral reefs and in salt marshes What is your daily job like? Since I'm still a student, I have a lot of typical things to do (i.e. class, homework, lab, etc.) but I am also able to occasionally take a break to do research. This mostly means setting up experiments, collecting data, and analyzing the results. What is the most exciting thing about your job? The most exciting things about my job are working outside and having the opportunity to see things that most people miss (for example very small animals and plants living under salt marsh grasses). What is the most boring thing about your job? The most boring part of my work is entering data into the computer. I'm not the best typist in the world and it tends to take a while. Did you always know you wanted to be a marine biologist (or work around the ocean)? Did you start out wanting to do something else? Since I was in grade school I have wanted to be either an artist or a marine biologist. Luckily, I can study marine biology and do research and paint or sculpt in my spare time. Where did you grow up as a child? I grew up on a small farm in Northern Illinois. How did you become interested in the oceans? Did you have a hero growing up that got you interested in the ocean? Who were your role models, then and now? When I was much younger, I would visit family in Massachusetts and Maine, and they would take me to the beach. I was fascinated with the ocean for a long time, but the reason I decided to study biology was my eighth grade science teacher, Mrs. Moss. In her class, I began to understand how exciting science could be and began to wonder why things work the way they do. As I become older, my teachers continue to be my role models, most importantly the two marine biologists I have worked with, Drs. Pete Edmunds and Mark Bertness. What is the coolest thing you have seen underwater? Corals feeding on zooplankton at night. They are incredibly graceful little animals. Scariest? A barracuda Funniest? My dive buddy pretending to sail a sunken boat What is your role in the mission? I will be an aquanaut in this mission, helping Drs. Edmunds, Gates, and Hoegh-Guldberg with their research. I will spend most of my time diving, collecting data, and setting up experiments. What types of special training enable you to participate in this mission? I'm certified as a divemaster and I also am trained as a scientific diver and in different kinds of first aid for divers. What are you most looking forward to about this mission? I am really excited about the experiments that we will be doing and the opportunity to work with new people. I am also very curious about what it is like to live underwater. What do you like to do that's not work-related, like hobbies (coin collecting, sky diving, gourmet chef, boating, raising a family, tennis - that sort of thing)? I paint, sculpt, and hike whenever I can. When I visit my parents I also like to go horseback riding. What advice would you offer to a middle/high school student or undergraduate
who wants to be a marine biologist? Become involved in activities that
will keep you by the ocean, like volunteering at an aquarium or a marine
lab. I've found that it is incredibly valuable just to be around people
whose work involves the ocean; they can often give better advice than
high school teachers or school counselors. Also, take any opportunity
you have to do research, whether as a helper or as part of a class. These
kinds of experiences can help you to know what you want to do. Most of
all enjoy what you do and pay attention to what goes on around you. You'll
see so many exciting things happening in any given tide pool or sandy
beach if you just look closely enough.
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