Planting Science - Members: View: Dianne Pater

Dianne Pater

Profile

Profile

Time Zone

Eastern
Organization

Amherst College
Role

Scientist Mentor: I will mentor teams of students online
Research Interests (300 words)

I am interested in plant responses to the environment. Since plants remain in one place for their entire lifespan, it is important to understand how plants are able to adapt to changing and unfavorable environmental conditions, including temperature,drought (low water availability) conditions, and soil salinity. My research looks at how different varieties of crop species respond to drought conditions to try to identify varieties that are more tolerant of drought.
Profile Question 1

What was the first science experiment you ever designed? How did it turn out?
Answer the question you selected for profile question 1 here (300 words):

When I was really young, maybe 6 or 7, I wondered if the dried beans my mom had in the kitchen would grow into plants, so I wandered around our yard planting them in various places. While my mom was not very happy when bean plants started sprouting all over the yard, it was the first time I really thought about food as a living thing and where it comes from. After that, I started pulling seed pods from trees and opening up the seeds so I could see the tiny plant waiting inside each seed.
Profile Question 2

When and why did you decide to go into a science career?
Answer the question you selected for profile question 2 here (300 words):

I was always interested in science and thought I would go into it as a career since I was a kid, even though I didn't really know at the time what that meant. It wasn't until I was in college that I understood that there are so many different paths a person can take to be a scientist. I realized that I wanted to study plants when I was taking an introductory biology class in college and the section about plants inspired me to ask questions about things the professor wasn't covering in class. That professor became my mentor, and gave me my first position in a lab, which was really the starting point of my whole career.
Profile Question 3

Do you have advice for students about preparing for a science career?
Answer the question you selected for profile question 3 here (300 words):

Follow the thing that gets you excited. Science is hard, it doesn't always work the way you planned, but that's part of what makes it amazing. You are often the first person doing a particular experiment, so while you have a hypothesis of how things will turn out, you are often proven wrong. It is important to recognize that a null hypothesis can provide just as much information as one shown to be correct. Also remember that science isn't done in isolation; all scientists work in teams. You will collaborate with people around the world. The first professor I worked with, who gave me my introduction to plants, is working on a project with NASA right now to determine how plants grow in space. Your only limit is your imagination.
In addition to English, I am comfortable communicating with students in the following languages:

(not set)
Capacity: How many teams at a time are you comfortable working with?

2

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