Entering Research I
Freshman year, fall 2019:
In Entering Research 1, or the LIFE STEM weekly meeting I began to see research for what it really was. In high school, I always brushed over the information in order to get the project done and out of the way but this class gave me the rare opportunity to research interesting topics. These topics affect something very near and dear to Virginia’s heart: the Chesapeake Bay. Through research in this class, I learned more about the Bay than any article could provide. I learned how the Chesapeake Bay functioned and carefully balances hundreds of organisms within its murky waters.
This class also taught me to pay attention to detail in my work, if I did not take pride in my work before, I sure do now. Dr. Z taught me how to articulate my words to be clear and concise while moving information forward to expand on the: how, what, when, and where. The advantage that this class provided me was clear as the semester went on. While sometimes it did seem to be a repeat of my previous knowledge it simultaneously raised the bar that my work is held to. Performing at a college level was a learning curve but with the instruction of Dr. Z’s class, I was able to excel.
One of the most prominent projects in this class for me was the interview for student research opportunities. It gave me the background knowledge to be professional while conducting interviews to obtain knowledge on a certain research project. I ended up not being interested in the professor that I originally interviewed work, but through this experience, I was able to find something I was very interested in. I used my knowledge gained from this class to interview a professor that I will be helping in the PRISM program of summer 2020. I am very grateful to have this extraordinary opportunity to do one-on-one research with a professor.
Click here for my artifact. I have attached my discussion portion from my chlorophyll paper in the Chesapeake Bay research we completed at the summer bridge at Hull Springs farm.
Artifact details: Name; Davice Jones, Date; (11/26/2019), Title; Discussion on Chlorophyll.