Brandywine student combines passion for biology and crocheting to win award

MEDIA, Pa. — When Indiana Kelly transferred to Penn State Brandywine last fall, she was drawn to the campus’ small, welcoming atmosphere and the opportunity to pursue a biology degree close to home. What she didn’t expect, though, was to combine her passion for marine biology with her love of crocheting to better visualize her award-winning research.

Kelly began her college journey at a community college before transferring to Brandywine. When she started her college career, she was unsure of what path she wanted to take. With guidance from her father, she chose to pursue biology to have broad career options. While her long-term goal is to pursue marine biology, she likes that Brandywine’s biology program provides her with a solid foundation of the whole field.

“I’ve always been interested in the process of life and evolution,” she said. “The general biology option gives me a full view of the field, while still letting me explore my interests.”

During her campus tour, Kelly mentioned her interest in biology and was given Distinguished Professor of Earth Sciences Laura Guertin’s contact information. When registering for courses for her first semester, she enrolled in one of Guertin’s courses and shared her passion for marine biology. Guertin encouraged her to consider doing an independent study course with her, where they could conduct marine biology research.

At the end of the semester, Kelly gifted all her professors crocheted items and gave Guertin a scarf. When Guertin saw it, she told Kelly she should combine her passion for crocheting with marine biology for her independent study project.

“I didn’t even know that was something I could do until she showed me her quilting projects. I was so excited to combine my passions of marine biology and crocheting for a research project,” Kelly said. “Over winter break, I thought of ideas and got into the research immediately in the spring semester.”

Kelly conducted her research on noise pollution in the ocean and its effects on marine mammals. To visualize her research, she crocheted spectrograms — visual sound files — of human-made noises and mammal noises in the ocean to compare them.

“Through the research, I found how harmful noise pollution is. It’s especially harmful on the East Coast right now for the North Atlantic right whale because it interferes with their ability to communicate and navigate the ocean,” she said. “I made a grid of them and created a tapestry.”

In the spring, she presented her findings at the student engagement expo and the Exhibition of Undergraduate Research Enterprise and Creative Accomplishment (EURECA). While she didn’t win a prize at EURECA, Guertin informed her that she had won national recognition by the Council on Undergraduate Research — an honor awarded only to a handful of students each year.

“I was shocked,” she said. “Professor Guertin had actually submitted it on my behalf, so I didn’t see it coming.”

Looking ahead, Kelly wants to focus on marine biology and see how she can make data more digestible for those who aren’t in the science field.

“I definitely want to focus on marine biology, especially with the data visualization aspect. I’ve been trying to cook up more ideas on how to make marine biology more interactive and how to present it to people who aren’t familiar with scientific terminology,” she said. “I liked looking at how people are doing that with sound in the ocean, like how whales and dolphins communicate.”

When asked what advice she would give to students who are looking to combine their passions in school, Kelly said to put your all into what you do.

“Put your all into whatever you’re doing. Take pride in all the work you do. That’s something everyone can sense and feel, and it helps build confidence,” she said. “If you’re doing something and you’re very passionate about it, people can sense that and want to learn from you.”