Haley Roth
Research Technician, Presgraves Lab
You work in a laboratory. What are you currently researching?
The Presgraves lab uses flies as a model organism to explore selfish genetic elements. Currently, I do a lot of molecular work, ensuring the genotype of our flies as we identify how genes in our system of interest interact with one another and result in phenotypes such as altered sex ratios and fertility.
What was it that originally sparked your interest in biology?
When I was in high school I thought biology was a bit too easy until my teacher introduced me to basic biochemistry. I enjoy investigating how life as we know it works and discovering the moving pieces behind the facts we are familiar with. Biology is very reliant on chemistry, physics, and math, but has the unique product of life. My interest lies in how all of these pieces fit together and impact one another.
What advice would you give to prospective students looking to study in our department?
Work hard and stay curious; the world will always need more people who are relentless when they have an unanswered question. Try finding a PI you like and doing research as early as you can.
What’s the most important thing that you’ve learned working here and/or studying biology?
There is no limit to the amount of work that can be done in biology; there are always questions to be answered. I’ve learned to find the questions I am passionate about answering and think about them in different lights until I find an answer, rather than giving up.
How do you unwind when you’re not in the lab?
When I’m not in the lab I cook and bake a lot, I also have a large plant collection and two ferrets to take care of, so it’s never a dull day!