Growing up in central NJ, I always enjoyed my summer trips to the Jersey shore and I knew even as a young child that I wanted to work with marine organisms. Still, there was one main experience, which led me to become an oceanographer. In the third grade, I read a story about Eugenie Clark and her research on Pardachirus marmoratus, a fish that released a chemical to repel sharks. I had always been very interested in sharks and this story exposed me to a field in which I could actually work with these creatures. As I grew older, I realized that while I still loved sharks, my reflexes weren't all that quick. Since I enjoy having all ten fingers, I determined that focusing on sharks was not the way to go. Later, while studying biology at the George Washington University, I came to discover that there were lots of fascinating marine creatures other than sharks to focus my research on.
Today my research centers on some of the smallest organisms in the ocean, bacteria. Throughout my graduate career, my main research focus has been to utilize molecular techniques, such as ribosomal RNA analysis, to investigate the influence of environmental parameters on the distribution and activity of microbial communities. I am currently investigating species-specific bacterial activity associated with natural variations in salinity, organic and inorganic nutrients, biotoxin concentrations, and phytoplankton dynamics in low/high latitude coastal systems and oceanic gyres. In the future, I would like to continue to explore how microbial community structure relates to community function and the driving factors behind the diversity found within the environment.
While oceanography has always been my passion, I also enjoy a number of activities outside the lab. I enjoy movies, reading, and spending time with friends and family. Likewise, one of my favorite things to do is travel. Someday, I hope to someday visit all seven continents and if I can get there by boat, it would make it even better.
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