My name is Sauly Betesh and although I am a pre-med student, I have not yet decided on a major. As a pre-med student, I hope to do much more than simply become a doctor. For me, becoming a doctor is a means to an end. A medical degree will enable me to help many people in ways that few professionals can. It is my hope that I never lose sight of that throughout my career. Additionally, I hope to be able to contribute to the medical profession beyond helping patients. As someone who is interested in philosophy, the field of medical ethics is one that I hope to be a part of throughout my career. I want to remain faithful to the idea of always doing the right thing and helping people, and I think that being involved in ethics will help me do so. My goal, then, is essentially to never get caught up- that the desire and drive that brought me to this point today stays with me throughout my career.

In this class, I expect to explore different fronts of scientific knowledge so I can better define my interests. I also plan on gaining a general knowledge about how New Yorkers relate to the informal sciences and how much they use the resources around them to satisfy their curiosities. I would also like to know how I would be able to make a difference in awakening scientific interests in other people. I see this as a way to better relate medical information to future patients. By knowing their level of knowledge, explaining procedures and diagnoses will be easier.

Although I was unable to attend the Macaulay-wide BioBlitz, I conducted my own individual miniature BioBlitz. I surveyed different plant and animal species in a local Brooklyn backyard. I was able to count over twenty different types of insects within a small 10’x10′ area. Most notably, there were different types of ants on the different plants (identifiable from their size and color). I think conducting a BioBlitz on a larger scale than a small backyard is very important for a few reasons. With hundreds of explorers surveying a large park or field, it is possible for one to identify a new species of any type of small plants or insects. One can find out if this new species is succeeding in its environment or if it is not. If no one pays attention to this new species it can disappear and no one would have ever known of its existence. It is possible that a new species can be useful in that it would be beneficial to our health. This research is also useful for determining which species are in abundance and which are declining. An effort can be made to stop the extinction. Knowing that certain species have increased in population can teach us about the species. We can further study which climate changes correlate to its population increase or decrease and see how the overall climate change affected the biodiversity of the ecosystem.

This activity greatly benefits us as urban dwellers. It allows us to see parks in a different light and to learn how to appreciate the outdoors. While a park is a place for playing in the grass and walking in the shade, many seem to forget the wonders of nature around them. Especially in a urban setting, people often don’t pay attention to what goes on with plants and insects that they walk by every day. Such a vast multitude of species are ignored and brushed off as just another tree or bug. Doing this project will surely make us realize that every elm and oak are ones of hundreds of other species in just a small area.

I am sure my experience was not the same as everyone else’s since I worked alone. I wish I had been able to work with the group as whole to know that I would be contributing to something larger. I also had trouble defining certain species and for me, there was no way to distinguish a new species since I didn’t have any expert guides to ask. On the other hand, working alone had its benefits as well. Since I did not have to keep up with a group, I was not rushed when looking at things I had an interest in. I had a similar experience last year (when conducting a tree survey to compare Brooklyn’s trees with Manhattan’s trees) and found the experience to be similar. It was not fast paced and it required focus for much of the time spent. But exploring nature deeply is a process that takes time and patience.