Melina Wettstein, an undergraduate at the University of Washington, is pursuing a double major in marine biology and math. After she graduates, Melina plans to pursue a career as a researcher—something she has already made strides toward by publishing her research in the College of the Environment’s undergraduate journal, FieldNotes. She is also an exuberant artist, expressing her creativity through a love of painting and drawing.

Recently, we caught up with Melina over Zoom to learn more about her life as a student, her research, her art, and the impact the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is having on these aspects of her life.

How has the pandemic impacted your life as a student and artist?

It’s been hard not to have any sort of school and life separation. For me, going out to classes gives separation between what I’m doing at home versus my schoolwork. I can go to the library and I can come home and relax, and there’s that nice distinction. Unfortunately, that’s not possible with online classes, where I’m essentially locked in my room all day. It’s forced me to take steps back from school. I think it’s easy to get overwhelmed and be 100% school all the time because your computer’s always right there, and you always have stuff to do. I definitely had to take a step back and make sure I was putting time into painting. During spring quarter, I had a goal of one painting a week so that I could also focus on creative things instead of just school.

You also recently started an internship online, what has that been like?

I’m doing the Research Experience for Undergraduates program at Oregon State University. Normally, I would be at Hatfield Marine Center right now, but instead I’m working online. My project is looking at video camera tags from great white sharks and analyzing their behavior. It’s a very open project, so I don’t actually have a research question yet. We are going to start the data analysis and see what kind of cool stuff comes up. We’re still in the first couple weeks of the internship.

You mentioned your creative side and how you enjoy painting. Could you tell us a little more about your art and what inspires your work?

I’ve always been so school focused, and art is something that kind of takes me out of that and lets me relax. I’m a very emotional person, so it’s a way for me to express my emotions in a way that isn’t really expressed through school.

I find the best way to express myself is through colors and textures—it’s always something that I’ve been drawn to. If I’m in a certain mood or it’s 3 am and I can’t sleep, it’s easier for me to put on some music, get a canvas or a piece of paper, and cover it in colors of how I’m feeling. It really helps me work through some of the emotions and the stress of school, and I just create something that makes me happy from how I’m feeling.

Why did you choose to come to UW?

At UW, it’s very easy to transfer credit from high school whereas some of the other schools I applied to wouldn’t accept that credit. So, by coming to UW, I had a head start. Also, I came for the marine biology program, which had just been created. When I was trying to figure out what college to go to, I had heard that marine biology might become a major at the UW; the fact that there now was a marine biology program in-state, where tuition is a lot better than if I went to California (where I was considering going) was a factor in my decision, Overall, staying in Seattle close to home and having a really good marine biology program were the biggest draws for me.

You’re double majoring in marine biology and math. What is it about the two majors that excites you and do you see them working in concert?

I think marine biology is a little bit more obvious: fish are really cool; invertebrates are really cool; I’ve just always loved the ocean—you know, all the cliché answers. Math is something that I’ve always been naturally good at, but it’s also something that has always been a constant in my life even amidst a lot of changes. I think math is really beautiful—especially things like equations and triple integrals, which were really hard for me to get, but then once I did, there was this feeling of satisfaction, finally learning something after struggling through until the point where it becomes clear, and then, it just all makes sense. It’s such a gratifying feeling. It feels so good to finally get the right answer. I think that another part of it is simply that marine biology is not the easiest field to get into–it’s really competitive. I’m putting an emphasis on that— something that not only differentiates me from other people, perhaps, but also being able to do more complex data analysis. I think it could be a really cool opportunity to get a lot more into research by being able to do more complex equations.

You recently published the featured article in the Spring 2020 issue of the College of the Environment’s undergraduate research journal, FieldNotes. How did you become involved with the publication?

After I got back from Friday Harbor Labs, I met with Joe Kobayashi (Marine Biology adviser), and he told me I should consider submitting my research to the Spring edition of FieldNotes. I had already put in all the work up at Friday Harbor, I might as well try and get it published. When my paper was chosen as the feature article, I was super excited. I went through the review process and that was hard because I already had put so much work into editing my paper, and it basically got torn apart by the reviewers. I worked through that, made the corrections, and then got it published. It was super exciting to send it to my grandparents!

Research at a glance: Oyster bed bugs

On oyster farms throughout the Pacific Northwest, there is a tiny pest wreaking havoc on the $35 million a year industry. The culprits are several species of small burrowing shrimp whose presence damages oyster beds and growing habitat. Oyster farmers previously applied the pesticide Carbaryl to cull the shrimp populations, but its use has been banned since 2002. Ever since, there has been a push to find an alternative means to control the population without harsh chemicals. One of the proposed ideas is a high brine treatment that will kill the shrimp but leave the oysters unharmed. Currently, the effectiveness of such a method is unknown as well as what the secondary impacts might be on the surrounding environment. Melina’s research experimented with different brine solution concentrations on shrimp to determine their tolerance, specifically in their gills, and if similar treatments might have real-world applications.

 

Learn more about Melina’s research by reading her featured article in FieldNotes.

What advice do you have for students looking to participate in FieldNotes?

In general, I think the biggest piece of advice is putting in the time and effort to find research opportunities. That’s how you could potentially publish something in FieldNotes or just add experience to your resume. Going to Friday Harbor Labs is another amazing opportunity. I think it’s one of the big things that separates the UW from so many other colleges because you get the opportunity to go up to Friday Harbor and live and work at a research station. You’re going to obviously put a ton of effort into your research paper, but you’re also going to get edits back because no one’s paper is ready to publish right away. That was probably the hardest part, getting the edits back on something you worked so hard on. Take it with an open mind, knowing that the result is going to be worth it, especially once it gets published and is up on the website for everyone to read. It’s an amazing feeling!