DaRin Butz Foundation Research Interns
The DaRin Butz Foundation Research Internship Program at the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University gives undergraduates in the life sciences a unique opportunity to experience research from start to finish while gaining training and connections among scientific colleagues. Spending ten weeks at the Arboretum during the summer, DaRin Butz Interns conduct and present research and participate in activities with the other interns.
2018 Interns
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Bridget Bickner
University of Nebraska, Lincoln – 2018
DaRin Butz Intern in the Hopkins Lab
Bridget Bickner studies biology at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where her research focuses on the evolutionary implications of sexual conflict and mating strategies in spiders. In the future, she plans to focus on microevolutionary processes. As a DaRin Butz intern and under an American Society of Plant Biologists fellowship, Bridget is working in the Hopkins Lab to locate cis-regulatory promoter mutations related to Phlox drummondii flower color variation. |
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Anna Blaustein
Bowdoin College – 2019
DaRin Butz Intern in the Des Marais Lab
Anna Blaustein is an undergraduate student at Bowdoin College where she studies Biology and Earth and Oceanographic Science. Anna is working in the Des Marais Lab investigating how CO2 levels affect resource allocation in cereal grain-like grasses. |
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Emily Brown
Boston University – 2019
DaRin Butz Intern in the Zieminska Lab
Emily Brown is an undergraduate student at Boston University studying Biology with a minor in Anthropology. She is working on the project “Tree Anatomy and Function” in the Zieminska Lab. |
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Matthew Fertakos
The College of New Jersey – 2019
DaRin Butz Intern in the Spriggs Lab
Matt Fertakos is an undergraduate studying biology at The College of New Jersey. His major interests include ecology, evolution, and conservation. Matt is working in the Spriggs Lab studying evolution and plant conservation of the severely threatened chestnut and ash trees. |
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Anny Garcés Palacio
Universidad de Antioquia, Colombia – 2019
DaRin Butz Intern in the Friedman Lab
Anny Garcés Palacio is from Colombia, currently getting her undergraduate degree in Biology at Antioquia University. She is interested in Evo-Devo plants, evolutionary biology, organismic and embryology. Anny is working in the Friedman Lab exploring the process of double fertilization in Conifers. |
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Zhe He
Wheaton College – 2018
DaRin Butz Intern in the Holbrook Lab
Zhe He is a recent graduate from Wheaton College with a chemistry major and biology minor. Zhe is working in the Holbrook Lab to help characterize vascular xylem vulnerability to cavitation. In the Walhout lab at Wheaton, she studied the diffusion of rhodamine b in polyelectrolyte solutions. |
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Marissa Lee
Boston University – 2019
DaRin Butz Intern in the Templer and Hutyra Labs
Marissa Lee is an undergraduate at Boston University. She is working on a project in the Templer and Hutyra Labs. |
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Derek Schneider
Amherst College – 2020
DaRin Butz Intern in the Hopkins Lab
Derek Schneider is a biology major at Amherst College. This summer he will be studying speciation in plants in the Hopkins Lab. |
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Andrew Walter-McNeill
Bowdoin College – 2019
DaRin Butz Intern in the Des Marais Lab
Andrew Walter-McNeill is a undergraduate at Bowdoin College studying biology and computer science. He is helping investigate how certain crops respond to changes in their growth environment (especially those related to climate change) in the Des Marais Lab. He spent his spring semester studying the boundary between eucalypt forest and rainforest in northern Queensland. |
2017 Interns
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Ashley Bang
Brown University – 2019
DaRin Butz Intern in the Templer and Hutyra Labs
Ashley Bang is an undergraduate at Brown University studying Geology-Biology. She worked on the ‘Air Pollutions in Urban Ecosystems’ project in the Templer and Hutyra Labs. Originally from Hong Kong, Ashley is interested in studying the shift in ecosystem interactions and functions that have been caused by anthropogenic activities. |
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Juliet Bramante
Harvard University – 2018
DaRin Butz Intern in the Hopkins Lab
Juliet Bramante is a Harvard undergraduate working in the Hopkins Lab. Juliet helped to identify cis regulatory changes responsible for color variation in Phlox drummondii. |
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Vivien Chen
Boston University – 2019
DaRin Butz Intern in the Holbrook, Templer and Hutyra Labs
Vivien Chen is an undergraduate at Boston University studying Earth and Environmental Sciences with a minor in Biology. Vivien worked in the Holbrook Lab to determine whether a correlation exists with phloem size and ploidy in three species of white magnolias. In the Templer and Hutyra Labs, she studied the effects climate change has on nonstructural carbohydrates in hardwood trees. |
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Jessica Leslie
UMass, Amherst – 2017
DaRin Butz Intern in the Hopkins Lab
Jessica Leslie is a recent graduate from UMass Amherst, where she was a Biology major with a certificate in Civic Engagement and Public Service. She is interested in plant-insect interactions, plant adaptations, and plant speciation. Jessica worked in the Hopkins Lab. |
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Sruti Pandey
Boston University – 2020
DaRin Butz Intern in the Holbrook Lab
Sruti Pandey is an undergraduate student at Boston University studying biology. She worked with Dr. Losada in the Holbrook Lab and is quantitatively studying the vascular system of transgenic Nicotiana plants using confocal microscopy. |
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Asa Peters
Connecticut College – 2019
DaRin Butz Intern in the Wolkovich Lab
Asa Peters from Newton, Massachusetts is a sophomore at Connecticut College studying botany and music technology. He is interested in botany, ecology, and also ethnobotany. Asa worked in the Wolkovich Lab. |
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Emily Rosa
Sonoma State University – 2018
DaRin Butz Intern in the Zieminska Lab
Emily Rosa is from Northern California currently getting her undergraduate degree at Sonoma State University in Environmental Studies and Planning with minors in Biology and Geography. Emily worked in the Zieminska Lab. |
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Jack Smith
Harvard University – 2019
DaRin Butz Intern in the Friedman Lab
Jack Smith is a Harvard undergraduate studying Environmental Science and Public Policy. Jack worked in the Friedman Lab exploring plant morphology and development. |