Meet the scientists!
My CV
School:
I grew up in the US and went to lots of different schools. I started school really, really young (1.5!). My mother claims that I asked to go – I think I was probably just more-than-a-handful at home and thus preschool seemed like a brilliant idea. (If you’re reading this Mom, I’m just joking!) I started kindy in 1980. (My teacher’s name was Mrs. Frisco. I remember that, when I can’t remember what I ate yesterday, because she had this massive afro, and it reminded me of disco: Frisco-Disco)
University:
For my BA, I studied International Relations and German at William Jewell College. I spent my third year of uni living in Europe, studying at Humboldt University in East Berlin and at Albert-Ludwig University in Freiburg-in-Breisgau. Truly, one of the most awesome years of my life. I can’t recommend being an exchange student, or doing an overseas gap year, highly enough. Seriously. Why are you still reading this? Go apply for an exchange program already! :) After I barely graduated (long story), I took off and traveled the world (if you get really, really, really bored sometime, you can google my name and find the advice I wrote about which airports and ditches are best to sleep in). When I was 26, I went to CSUMB to become a high school teacher. (Loved that!) Then, in 2005, after two amazing years volunteering for the Monterey Bay Aquarium, I snuck into the biology program at CalPoly, SLO. Now, I’m living in Australia (woohoo!) studying at the University of Queensland.
Work History:
All over the world. I was quite old (30!) before I started studying science – and I left high school at 16, so I had a lot of time to wander around the world. A few of the more memorable (and infamous) jobs I held: well, if you’ve seen “Thank You For Smoking”, I worked for the “Merchants of Death”. One highlight job was traveling with a group of teenagers through Russia and Sweden for six weeks. I was a street mime, an actress, and I worked on a dairy. (I couldn’t drink milk for months).
Employer:
The University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia
Current Job:
PhD research student
Gloeta Massie
In the histology lab
Favourite Thing: Traveling around the world on ships working as a marine naturalist. It combines everything I love – the ocean, traveling, having a good laugh, and talking science!
Me and my work
I study the toxins that are found in cephalopod venoms; basically, I get to play with squid, octopus, and cuttlefish. :)
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My Typical Day
Ha ha ha. There’s no such thing! Somedays I am up all night squidding, other days DNA extraction, other days emails!
Well – if you REALLY want to know. Some days I get to milk octopus (Woohoo! May I just say how awesome this is? The opportunity to say things like, “I milk octopus for work!” really does make the umpteen years of school worth it!) After that, I extract RNA and proteins and fun stuff like that. 
Some days (who am I kidding – I mean nights – I never get to do stuff like this in the daytime – when I can see the sharks! No – I have to go out at night, when I’m sure there are lots of ferocious sharks just waiting to eat me. Ok, not really. I love sharks, truly. But, it would be nice, just once in a while, to go squidding in daylight when it’s not so cold!). 
Some days (ok – most days) – I end up at the library at some point to grab a book and read up on a new technique or an old research idea. (I have to admit – I do actually LIKE libraries. I love sitting in a room surrounded by the shared knowledge of millions of people over thousands and thousands of years. What can I say – I’m a nerd.) 
My Interview
My profile link:
http://marinej11.imascientist.org.uk/profile/gloetamassie/
Short link: http://ias.im/u.9613
Print this profileSearch
- What is the most fascinating creature you’ve seen underwater?
- whats so intresting about working in the fields? :)
- What is the most dangerous place you have ever been?
- Do you see much pollution when you are diving?
- Have you ever had to help animals stuck in the rubbish people dump in the water?
- Hello, i was just wondering if any of you could tell me with the earths crust moving all of the time, where will the
- what do you think you will be doing when you are like really old? :)
- Do any of you guys own an anologue camera? Lomography? This is for a scientific question as we need to know it for
- how do old fashoioned cameras work?
- I have snorkled on the Great Barrier Reef and was fascinated by the amount of sea life. I was wondering how many
- View all my answered questions
Comments
- What Do You Use The Milk From Octopuses For ? (1 comments)
- What was the one thing you was scared of when you first started your job ? (1 comments)
- what is the ugliest animal in the sea (1 comments)
- Have you ever run out of food while at sea? And what did you eat if yes? (1 comments)
- whta is the most poisonous marine animal (1 comments)
- if a jelly fish is 95% water then why is it called a fish and not a jelly blob? (1 comments)
- If you won and started a webcast then what would be on it? and could you involve milking an octopus? (1 comments)
- What is the most interesting thing that has happened to you in your job. (1 comments)
- Hi guys, Thanks for the answers you gave me on marine scientists. I know it's not my zone, but I'm quite interested (1 comments)
- What is your favourte tentacled animal? (1 comments)
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