Over the span of this summer, each of us has learned so many
new things, not only about this project but also each other. This blog is
supposed to be about the microfossil project and our experiences with it, but
what about the people doing the work? I know we gave you a brief bio on each of
us but let’s be honest, you don’t really care about what school we went to or
what degree we have. So I have decided instead to give you an insight into the
people I have met and grown to love.




There are many words to describe Sam. Goofy, spontaneous,
fun, dedicated, the list goes on. He makes us all laugh with his goofy sound
effects and priceless facial expressions. He is always up for any adventure,
challenge, task. If you want something done, he’s your man. Even though Sam is
the youngest among us, he is confident and will take charge if needed. He is
very driven and works hard on everything he does. There is no such thing as 99%
in his book. Sam is most interested in becoming a curator some day and hopes to
continue studying forams. His dream is to build up an Antarctic foram
collection at whatever museum he ends up at, which will hopefully be the
American Museum of Natural History. Sam has so many goals in life and I know he
will reach them all and so much more.

We cannot forget Lindsay. Lindsay is supposed to answer
questions and helps with technical issues, but in actuality she does a lot more
than that. She is the Curatorial Assistant in the Vertebrate Paleontology Department. She helps manage the collections, dabbles with loans, and is
curating all the collections left behind at the museum by past researchers.
When she was younger she wanted to be a chef but quickly changed her mind when she had the opportunity to shadow a chef and realized it was not for her. She studied computer science in undergrad and accidentally fell in love with biology and
mammals. I asked her what her dream job would be. “This one,” she replied
simply.
Last, but absolutely not least, is our supervisor Bushra.
Without Bushra we would not have learned anything this summer, and we really owe
her a lot for inviting us to participate on this project. Just a little bit
about her, she attended the University of Karachi in Pakistan where she
received her degree in geology. Originally she wanted to be a world class
traveler but after taking a mapping course she decided to pursue geology. Her
first job out of college was at Royal Dutch Shell where she was a geophysical
assistant mapping isochrone and isopach maps for the Salt Range of Pakistan. The most
unique thing about that position was that she was only the second female geologist
in all of Pakistan. She worked there for 3 years before moving to the United
States where she took a job at Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory mapping bathimetry for the Oceanographic Department. After 4 years at the Earth Observatory, Bushra took a
job at the American Museum of Natural History as the Collection Manager for the Invertebrate Paleontology Department and has been working here for 15 years.
She is currently working on her Masters in geology and will be defending her
thesis on establishing a digital database for Invertebrate Paleontology at AMNH
in the coming weeks. We all wish her luck on her defense and thank her
profusely for allowing us to work with her this summer.

Thanks for all the great memories everyone! I will miss you all when I return home and will think of you often! Don't forget to keep in touch and we will have to plan a reunion in the future!
~Courtney




Thanks for all the great memories everyone! I will miss you all when I return home and will think of you often! Don't forget to keep in touch and we will have to plan a reunion in the future!
~Courtney


