Category: Life Sciences
Take A Chance
Inna Nechipurenko: "I switched model organisms and shifted the focus of my research to cilia – microscopic signaling “beacons” of our cells. Specifically, I wanted to understand how they form and function in specialized sensory neurons."
An Unexpected Path: Discovering my Passion for Science Outreach and Administration
Heather McKellar: I have been lucky to follow in the footsteps of strong mentors and lean a supportive network of peers. They have all taught me to step outside of my comfort zone and take advantage of the opportunities to...
Finding a Direction in Science
Staci Amburgey: "I might have liked animals from a young age, but I tried a lot of different ways to study animals before I got to where I am now."
Paying it Forward Matters
Dr. Avital Rodal: "There are many reasons to pour your heart into helping and supporting others, including the knowledge that you are doing the right thing, and the appreciation and gratitude that it brings back to you. I discovered that...
Finally Found My Lowest-Hanging Fruit
Liz Specht: "I didn’t want to discover something fundamentally brand new if it meant that my work wouldn’t create tangible change in the world for another fifty years. The greatest thrill, for me, is to make something that works, and...
Discovering Zoology Through My Passion for Birdwatching II: Is There a Final Word in Research?
Abdul Jamil Urfi: "I still have some years left before I retire. But the clock has started ticking and I can hear it loud and clear."
From Volleyball to Neuroscience
Nicolas Tritsch: "I might have not sought a postdoc if it weren’t for my thesis advisor, Dwight Bergles, who (kindly) pushed me out of the lab after 6 years."
Finding My Own Way in Science
Milka Kostic: "I was making discoveries. I was publishing my research results. I was enjoying research. But somewhere along the way, I lost my passion for doing science, and I found myself facing a real conundrum."
Discovering Zoology Through My Passion for Birdwatching: Part 1
Abdul Jamil Urfi: "...popularly known as the birdman of India, had once said in an interview ‘Birdwatching is like measles. You have got to catch the disease’. I had caught that disease long ago and when I began to tire...
Getting Started in Academia
Cristina Savin: "In retrospect, I had very little idea what I was doing. After the first few rejections, I started doubting that I belonged in academia at all."
Undeterred: My Journey Continues
Lauren Neal: "Representation in science is of the utmost importance to me at this point in my life. I hope to contribute to changing the idea of what a scientist is supposed to look like or where they are supposed...
Learning to Know Myself
Carol Shoshkes Reiss: "A few years ago, when three sequential grant applications went down in flames, and funds were exhausted, I made the decision to close my lab. I do not regret the decision."
My Stolen Identity: I Was Told That Science Was Not Meant For Me
Pei Qin (Sabrina) Ng - My persistence in science enraged my biology teacher. Every lesson, she publicly shamed me in front of the class, proclaiming how bad I am at science, especially biology. She warned my classmates that they were...
Studying and Experiencing Mental Illness
I feel very grateful to have found this path. But it hasn’t been easy. Academia is incredibly stressful, and I am an anxiety-prone perfectionist who tends to over-work. - Mariam Aly
My life in butterflies: How a childhood hobby shaped my career
Citizen scientists — as biologist Caren Cooper writes in her book, Citizen Science — can be anyone, often not trained as a scientist, who collaborates with trained researchers in “collective scientific endeavors.” It can be a way for people to develop hobbies, learn new...
The Journey Continues: Finding My Questions in Science
If it had not been for my friends and the little voice inside telling me to focus on why I had started research in the first place and to keep going, I would have almost certainly given up. - Yasmine...
My Passion for Microbes
Dr. Chika Ejikeugwu is a Lecturer at Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki in Nigeria where he teaches microbiology to undergraduate students. He is also an ‘associate’ Development Knowledge Facilitator (DKF) for the National Youth Service Corp (NYSC) headquarters, Abuja, Nigeria. He...
Marisa Carrasco: Official and Unofficial Stories
Dr. Carrasco is a Professor of Psychology and Neural Science at NYU. She grew up in Mexico City and earned her Licentiate in psychology, specializing in experimental psychology, from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). She writes: "Juggling research,...
Robert Froemke: The Official and Unofficial Stories
Dr. Froemke is an Associate Professor in the Department of Neuroscience and Physiology at the NYU School of Medicine. His lab researches how biological systems adapt and learn to improve behavior. The story below was originally published on Growing up...
Science – A Poem
Jim is the CEO of NeuroLex which is focused on making voice computing accessible to everyone. Below is a poem he wrote for Stories in Science.
Finding Myself Between Cacti in Mexico
"Being a research professor is not a 9-5 job. The work is never finished and there is always the next question. That is the fun of doing science."
Should I Stay or Should I Go?
Around half of all Ph.D. students across fields don’t complete their program. I never thought I would be one of them.
Cave Critters are Cool! – Faces of Fieldwork
I find that subterranean systems are useful models in addressing foundational questions in ecology and evolutionary biology, and that the organisms that inhabit such systems are wonderfully unique. Being able to study these animals and provide a platform for their...
I am a Neuroscientist in Training: Explore My Developing Neural Story
"My parents never finished college, so I know how privileged I am to study at a renowned institution like Harvard. Although I never saw becoming a scientist as a possibility, I now understand I have always had the curiosity, creativity,...
An Immunologist’s Perspective
Dr. Viki Male started her scientific career as a PhD student at the University of Cambridge, where she worked on the development of NK cells in the human uterus before moving to Imperial College London to find out how NK...
A Day in the Life of One Scientist
Caroline received her B.S. from Brown University in 2006. She began studying the molecular and cellular basis of behavior in the context of the developing frog brain while pursuing her M.S. at the University of Michigan. She earned her Ph.D....
#PhDart – How Does Evolution Give Rise to New Behaviors?
Caroline received her B.S. from Brown University in 2006. She began studying the molecular and cellular basis of behavior in the context of the developing frog brain while pursuing her M.S. at the University of Michigan. She earned her Ph.D....
#PhDart — Flower Development Matters
Being a plant lover since I was little, I have always been fascinated by the enormous diversity of floral architectures. Now in the Kramer lab at Harvard University, I began to explore this diversity by asking how Aquilegia species build their flowers....