I study how farmers use land in a part of Madagascar and how that can be good or bad for conserving biodiversity. I was born and raised in New York City, but I always have cared about the natural world. I feel so lucky to be able to go to different places around the world for my research and learn how different and yet the same people's lives are. So far, I have done research in Bolivia, Madagascar, Panama, Arizona and Vermont. 

I study molecular biology and biophysics. This is the study of how the proteins in our cells work, and how they interact with each other. The proteins in our cells are like little machines; lots of diseases are caused by these proteins not working properly, so if we figure out how they are supposed to work we can use that to treat disease. Right now I work on proteins called TRP channels--they help your body sense heat and cold, and taste things that are cold (like mint) or hot (like chili peppers). I decided to be a scientist because my biology teacher in high school really inspired me. I like how you can find out what is really going on in your body and in the world around you.

I am a synthetic organic chemist - I use chemical reactions to make new organic molecules from existing ones. I decided that I wanted to be a chemist when I was in high school, because chemistry seemed like magic to me. My research involves developing novel catalytic chemical reactions that other chemists will be able to use to make biologically active molecules, like drugs. Scientists are constantly discovering new things about chemistry - working in a research lab is interesting and exciting, and I love learning something new every day.

My name is Victoria Landry, and I am a graduate student in Chemistry at Columbia University. I make interesting new molecules, and analyze the three-dimensional arrangement of the atoms in these molecules. I work mostly with transition metals, and the element selenium also plays a large part in my research. I decided to become a scientist because it gives me the opportunity to be creative and innovative, and requires me to work with both my mind and my hands. It is an amazing feeling to know that you have created something that no one has before!

I am a geologist and am conducting research in Antarctica. Antarctica is twice the size of Autralia, and 98% of it is covered by very thick ice, on average 3 km thick. What I am trying to do is figure out what the rocks are like under the ice by looking at sediments coming from under the ice in Antarctica, and getting deposited on the ocean floor by icebergs. I always really liked math and science when I was in school, and did not take a geology class until I got to college, where I decided to become a geologist because I loved learning about the history of the earth and how it works. The great thing about geology is that it is a combination of math, physics, biology, chemistry and an understanding of how the Earth works all rolled into one!

I am a 5th year graduate student in the Biological Sciences department at Columbia Univeristy. I work in the lab of Carol Prives, studying cancer biology. As an undergraduate I majored in Biology and minored in Chemistry at Boston College. Currently, my project is to investigate the biochemical properties of the RING domain of the Mdm2 protein, a negative regulator of the p53 tumor suppressor protein.

I am a graduate student studying synthetic organic chemistry. My research is all about making compounds found in nature, and closely related structures. The goal of this work is to develop new medicines or useful materials, and to further develop the art of chemical reactions. I decided to become a scientist after taking a high school chemistry class with an amazing teacher. In this class, we were able to run reactions and bring what we were learning about to life. Research in graduate school is also very exciting, because we learn new things every day!

I am a synthetic organic chemist. My goal is to make natural products and biologically active compounds, which is may end up becoming medicine. I've always loved science, including astronomy, physics and biology but became really into chemistry after having an amazing high school chemistry class where we were able to see chemical reactions occur before our very eyes.

I am a wildlife conservation biologist.  I am currently studying how global climate change and decreasing snowpack at high elevations are affecting the range and distribution of bobcats in the Northern Rockies of Montana.  The warming earth is changing the habitat of all living things that live at high elevations and I am interested in understanding how this affects mammalian carnivores that depend on other animals for survival.  I grew up in Northern California and have always loved exploring the outdoors.  My favorite memories are camping, hiking, and being outside.  I love being a wildlife biologist, where I can spend my time outdoors asking questions and collecting data about how the natural world works. It is also fun to analyze this data and to communicate my findings to others, in the hope that my research will help people understand the crucial importance of biodiversity on Earth.  Thus far, I have done research in Northern California, Tahiti, Montana, and at Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.

I am a graduate student in Columbia's Department of Earth and Environmental Science. I conduct research on tropical cyclone (hurricane) landfall at the Columbia-affiliated NASA-Goddard Institute for Space Studies. Having a strong background in mathematics, I enjoy applying quantitative techniques in my research and am currently working on a statistical model of tropical cyclones in the western north Pacific basin, which uses past data to make predictions for the future. I have known that I wanted to have a career doing research since my first year as an undergrad, when I participated in a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program. I found that there was nothing more exciting for me than making discoveries in science. After that, it was only a matter of finding the field with the questions that most appealed to me.

I am a synthetic organic chemist. I carry out chemical reactions in the hopes of making new molecules, or synthesizing ones that are found in nature. These molecules are useful to our society because they often can be used as therapeutic agents, from defending the body against bacterial infection to aiding in the fight against cancer. Not only do I consider this research to be useful in terms of benefiting society, but it is also exciting to discover new chemistry and push the boundaries of scientific knowledge. I hope that participants in Girls' Science Day will find science to be just as interesting as I do.

I am a graduate student in chemistry working in the area of chemical biology. Chemical biologists use chemistry to develop new methods and techniques to help understand how things work inside the cell. We also try to use what we learn about biology to develop better ways of doing chemistry. I decided to study chemistry because I was interested in how new medicines are discovered; this requires a lot teamwork and cooperation between chemists, biologists, and many other people!