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Education and Adventure of a Micro Grad

Education and Adventure of a Micro Grad

Libby Brennan on a ship doing active research.

As a recent graduate of OSU and new graduate student in the Microbiology program under Dr. Stephen Giovannoni, Libby Brennan was thrilled to finally dive into the exciting world of independent research to work towards her Masters Thesis. She was presented with the extraordinary opportunity to not only do field work for this, but to travel into the middle of the Atlantic Ocean to collect her samples. Spending 3 weeks in Bermuda at the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences (or BIOS), Libby made new connections with researchers from around the world, learned about the beauty (and humidity) of Bermuda, and got yet another amazing opportunity, a spot on the Atlantic Explorer: a 170 foot research vessel. She spent 5 days learning the ropes of research on the open ocean, collecting sea water from depths up to hundreds of meters, and figuring out how to run experiments while battling the never stopping rocking on the ocean waves. Libby is processing these samples to better understand the cycling of Vitamin B1 by ocean microbes, using techniques such as radio-labeled uptake and mass spectrometry for analysis. While on the island, Libby worked closely with the Microbial Ecology Lab at BIOS, learning new techniques for experimentation such as Tangential flow filtration and new staining techniques for counting cells. Although she wishes she could have spent more time in Bermuda, Libby will never forget the memories she gained or the things that she learned while on this amazing journey.