I had the privilege of mentoring Julia Zapadka, recipient of the prestigious National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates (NSF REU), during the summer of 2024. Julia majors in Biochemistry and Biophysics, with a minor in Data Processing at The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC. Despite having limited prior exposure to marine science, Julia rose to the challenge of moving across the country to develop an ambitious independent research project at Moss Landing Marine Laboratories.
Julia's project, "Population-specific plasticity of purple sea urchins", developed in fulfillment of Cal State Monterey Bay's Regional Ocean Science REU, was exceptional. Over ten short weeks, Julia demonstrated not only sharp intellectual insights in an unfamiliar field of Life Science, but also a professional work ethic, meticulous attention to detail, and determination to overcome substantial obstacles. While also managing a full schedule of professional development, Julia managed to complete the full cycle of the scientific method from reviewing primary literature and identifying knowledge gaps, to developing a focused set of questions and testable hypotheses, to experimentation and data collection, analysis, and finally formal write up and dissemination of findings at a research symposium with her fellow REU students. Few people can relate to the difficulty of designing and executing high quality experiments exploring plasticity and/or local adaptation in the context of multiple interacting environmental drivers (temperature, carbonate chemistry, and oxygen availability), much less as an undergraduate! Nevertheless, Julia tackled this complex and technically challenging research with impressive grit and creativity. I think she even developed affection for her spiny subjects despite many finger pricks (see below).
I know Julia has a bright future as a scientist, and I am grateful for the opportunity to work with her.
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