Page 10 - Eureka 2012

Summer dream Job

student news By Susan Hickman

hen Joey Carter applied to
Wthe Dean of Science’s Summer
Research Internship (DSRI), he
didn’t know how rewarding and
enlightening it would be to conduct
cutting-edge research into the effect
of climate change on biodiversity.
One of 103 first-year science
students with a GPA higher than 10.0
invited to apply to the program and
one of 15 chosen to spend the summer
gaining hands-on experience in a
research laboratory on campus, the
19-year-old biology and physics major
worked with biology professor Root
Gorelick’s climate change team.
“It’s lovely watching a first-year First-year student Joey Carter received a Dean’s Summer Research Internship and spent two
student see what biological research weeks in New York City this past summer, conducting research at the American Museum of
entails,” says Gorelick. “Joey has Natural History.
turned out to be an extraordinary,
hard-working, amazingly pleasant, why they want to join a lab and what “Day-to-day supervision [of Carter]
and remarkably curious and is exciting about the lab’s research.” is in the able hands of Danielle
interested student. We couldn’t have Once accepted to the program, the Fraser, my extraordinary doctoral
asked for better!” student must then ask a professor to candidate and Fulbright fellow in
“The DSRIs connect promising take them on in the lab. In taking on the biology department,” Gorelick
students to research at a very early the student, the professor then has to explains. “Joey is helping Dani
stage,” says chemistry department contribute $1,000 to the internship. collect and analyze data on teeth of
chair Robert Burk, who sits on the Professor Bertram hired Kathryn fossil hoofed mammals.”
committee that reviews and rates Dufour to work in her evolutionary The data will be used to study the
internship applications. “This biology laboratory this summer. evolution of the animals’ size.
program increases the number of Dufour studied how carbohydrates and “The objective of this research
students doing research,” he adds, proteins in the diet influence growth, is to ascertain what the landscape
“which is important, because research development and obesity, using insect looked like four to eight million years
awards are increasingly difficult models. ago,” explains Gorelick, “especially
to come by. Students are selected “She was so excited to be putting what fossil mammal teeth can tell us
primarily for their enthusiasm to use what she learned in her about the effects of climate change.”
for their chosen field, the clarity classes. She was bubbling over with Carter credits his “inherent sense
of their ideas and their level of enthusiasm,” Bertram says of Dufour. of wonder and curiosity in the
professionalism,” finishes Burk. Motivation and a desire to learn are natural world” for leading him into
Top achievers are invited at the the most important attributes for the Carleton’s combined Honours in
start of their second semester interns, Bertram says. “In the first year biology and physics program and
to apply for the $4,620, 12-week it’s mostly training. But by the end of into the DSRI program.
internship. This year, the Dean’s Office their third year, they are often doing “I can easily picture myself
was able to offer 15 internships, publication-quality work. All four becoming a researcher, committed
up from 10 the year before, due students who worked in my lab four to understanding more about nature
to additional funds from Alumni years ago have been accepted to their and the universe in which we live,”
donations. first-pick graduate research program says Carter, adding his thanks to
“The student has to do a bit of or medical school.” the Faculty of Science for providing
homework,” explains Sue Bertram, an This is Gorelick’s first time “naive, unlearned first-year students”
Associate Professor in Biology. “They employing a DSRI student. the opportunity to be part of
have to write in 100 words or less scientific research at Carleton.

10 fall 2012