Nicole Dawney
Graduate Student, The Bergstralh Lab
You work in a laboratory. What are you currently researching?
Our lab looks at tissue morphogenesis and tissue development. I am using mouse intestinal organoids as a model system to look at how cell division influences tissue shape in this system.
What was it that originally sparked your interest in biology?
It sounds very cliché but it was actually one of my teachers in middle school. He was so enthusiastic about all areas of science that it was hard not to also be interested! I saw him many years later and told him he was the reason I was going to study biochemistry for my undergrad and was glad to find he still teaches biology!
What do you enjoy most about working here at the U of R?
The environment, everyone in our department is so friendly and approachable and everyone is willing to help if they can.
What’s the most important thing that you’ve learned working here and/or studying biology?
Things do not work most of the time, but that’s ok! If everything worked the first time and was easily explained, we would have nothing left to research…
How do you unwind when you’re not in the lab?
I made a couple of New Year’s resolutions, including reading more books and exercising more, so I have been trying to keep these going in my free time!