19 March 2020 Get to Know Me! My Love of Science

From my childhood days...

Hi everyone! My name is Elaine and I am SO excited to be a PolarTREC educator this year!

I've always loved science as long as I can remember. I grew up in the Midwest which was a great place to explore the world. When I was 10 years old, I asked for a telescope and a microscope for my birthday. I remember begging my parents to stay up late and look at the stars, planets, and lunar eclipses. I would also spend hours collecting samples from the river to look at under my microscope. One time, I even pricked myself with a thumbtack so I could see what my blood looked like. (Please don't try that!)

...into college...

I carried that love of "the unseen" with me through college. I started out studying biochemistry at the University of Southern California. Then, this midwesterner fell in love with the ocean - it's another world and it's magical! I spent some time on Catalina Island off the coast of California where I studied the effect of our human coastal cities on plankton and other microscopic organisms. (All that microscope training came in handy!)

...through my masters program...

After undergrad, I pursued a masters in Marine and Environmental Biology. But more than doing the science, I loved talking about it. Halfway through my masters, I started taking courses in science communication and science visualization. My passion really exploded. I took the research I had conducted and turned it into an animation entitled "The Nitrogen Cycle" which took 1st Prize at the USC Science Film Festival. I also created 3D models of diatoms based on the work of artist Ernst Haeckel, and current electron microscope imaging.

...and into my career!

After completing my degrees, I found a path into education, working first in outdoor education on Catalina Island and in Big Bear Mountain, California. From there, I've been lucky to spend my past 3 years at the California Science Center. I absolutely love getting to communicate science to school groups, museum visitors, homeschool students, and curious Angelenos I meet out on the road. And I am so excited to see where this PolarTREC adventure takes me! Subscribe to my page for updates on my adventures, educational activities, and lots of science! (Click the button at the top left!)