Profile

• Time Zone

  Central

  
  
• Organization

  University of Missouri - Columbia

  
  
• Role

  Scientist Mentor: I will mentor teams of students online

  
  
• Research Interests (300 words)

  I am interested in phytoremediation - the process of using plants to remove pollutants from soil, water, or air. As pollution increases, it can be difficult to grow crops or have access to safe water and air when we need it the most. Some plants have adapted strategies to deal with these pollutants, and if we can learn more about how to apply these strategies, we can begin to return the Earth to a healthy state.

  
  
• Profile Question 1

  What is your favorite plant? Why?

  
  
• Answer the question you selected for profile question 1 here (300 words):

  My favorite plant is Cakile maritima, also known as the European Sea Rocket, because it can remove dangerous metals from the ground while still remaining healthy (plus, it has very cute tiny purple flowers). It is related to Brassica crops like broccoli, cabbage, and canola, as well as Arabidopsis thaliana, the most widely studied plant species. I have spent four years researching this plant so it is very near and dear to me.

  
  
• Profile Question 2

  Do you have advice for students about preparing for a science career?

  
  
• Answer the question you selected for profile question 2 here (300 words):

  My advice is to not be intimidated. Everyone starts out feeling like they don't know enough about science, but as long as you're excited and ready to learn, you'll go far.

  
  
• Profile Question 3

  What lessons have you learned in your career about how science works?

  
  
• Answer the question you selected for profile question 3 here (300 words):

  Doing science is like using a tool kit, and the more you learn, the more tools you have to use. Learning new things allows you to solve problems in ways you might not have even thought about beforehand.

  
  
• In addition to English, I am comfortable communicating with students in the following languages:

  None of the Above

  
  
• Capacity: How many teams at a time are you comfortable working with?

  2

  
  

Recent Posts

loscashmanwosspring2024 project 4 Kathryn Vanden Hoek Mar 7 at 05:02pm

Hi everyone! Thanks for updates on the plant growth. I'm not sure how much you guys have thought about a hypothesis, but something to think about and discuss is the fact that plants need sugar to grow, so why does sprite seem to hurt the plant?…

more

Hi everyone! Thanks for updates on the plant growth. I'm not sure how much you guys have thought about a hypothesis, but something to think about and discuss is the fact that plants need sugar to grow, so why does sprite seem to hurt the plant? (consider photosynthesis!)

loscashmanwosspring2024 project 4 Kathryn Vanden Hoek Feb 22 at 10:59am

Hi Genevieve, Emma, and Nick!

I am one of the scientist mentors and I'm very excited about this project. I am currently a senior biochemistry student at the University of Missouri - Columbia. I've been working in a plant research lab…

more

Hi Genevieve, Emma, and Nick!

I am one of the scientist mentors and I'm very excited about this project. I am currently a senior biochemistry student at the University of Missouri - Columbia. I've been working in a plant research lab for about four years now and I germinate and grow seeds all the time. Right now I am studying how heavy metals like cadmium, as well as high salt concentrations, affect the germination and growth of different plants. If you guys have any questions please let me know, I'm happy to help!

-Kathryn

hcrhsshawhanposfall2023 project 4 Kathryn Vanden Hoek Nov 6, 2023

I just read your research report and you guys did a wonderful job. I'm sure you can see from your experiment that searching for one answer in research usually leads to another question, like wondering if thickness made an impact in your…

more

I just read your research report and you guys did a wonderful job. I'm sure you can see from your experiment that searching for one answer in research usually leads to another question, like wondering if thickness made an impact in your experiment. I think that's the exciting part about doing research. If you take some time to think about what you already know, what you just learned, and what you still don't know, you can answer new questions and potentially discover something cool! Plants are very diverse, there are so many different species around the world that are able to do some very fascinating things that we don't understand yet, and the list of possible research questions is huge! Great job on this experiment.