Meet Maine EPSCoR’s Fall Internship Cohort
Caty DuDevoir:
Writing Intern
Caty (she/her) is a junior at the University of Maine (UMaine), studying Anthropology and Journalism. She joined Maine EPSCoR in spring of 2022 as a writing intern. After noticing a disconnect in public understanding of science, she wanted to help bridge the gap in information access. Caty appreciates learning more about the research happening at the University of Maine that will make meaningful impacts.
Similar to other interns in the office, growing up along the coast nurtured Caty’s love for exploration and scientific curiosity. Her mother, a biologist, often took her to tidal pools to learn about the incredible ecosystems. Although she did not pursue a purely scientific career, Caty seeks opportunities to understand more about research involving adaptation and mitigation in response to climate change. With an interest in archaeology, she is also fascinated by paleobotany and paleoclimatology.
While Caty finds joy in scientific communication, she also loves writing about food and social justice issues. As a member of the Honors College, Caty is creating her own research project for her senior year thesis. She plans to examine the experience of food as a way to form communal and spiritual connections.
Outside of working as an intern with Maine EPSCoR, Caty is the news editor of the student-run newspaper Maine Campus Media, student coordinator for the College Climate Coalition, and active member of the Anthropology Club. In her free time, she enjoys making pottery, swimming, traveling, and playing the viola. She plans to attend graduate school for either archaeology or journalism.
Ilaria Bardini:
Writing Intern
Ilaria (she/her) is a junior at the University of Maine, majoring in Marine Biology and minoring in Journalism. While growing up in Salem, MA, she would go squid fishing and digging for mussels with her dad at local piers and beaches. As she got older, she began to notice the devastating changes happening in the natural spaces she loved so much and wanted to not only learn more, but be able to take action which is why she decided to pursue a career in marine science.
Ilaria is beginning work on her Honors Thesis and Senior Capstone project where she will be creating a documentary investigating the development of a synthetic substitute for Limulus Amebocyte Lysate (LAL) testing and the possible ramifications on Atlantic Horseshoe Crab (Limulus polyphemus) conservation efforts and population. This will intertwine her passion for multimedia journalism, science and arthropods.
As someone deeply interested in the ways in which scientific research and journalism can be knit together, she was naturally drawn to the idea of working for Maine EPSCoR. Ilaria really enjoys the process of discovering new information and being able to write about it for the public.
In her free time, Ilaria participates in groups on campus such as Green Team and the Maine Peace Action Committee, scuba dives, goes on runs, works on developing photography skills, and obsessively hikes in Acadia National Park.
After graduation, she is planning to pursue her masters and PhD in Marine Biology and hopes to be able to travel the summer after her undergrad graduation.
Iris May-Fleming:
Writing Intern
Iris is a second-year undergraduate student at the University of Maine pursuing a double major in Communications and Math. These are both areas of interest that she is planning to continue in grad school after finishing her undergraduate degrees.
As someone who is really interested in communications, she likes working for Maine EPSCoR and the UMaine Advanced Research Computing, Security, and Information Management (ARCSIM) unit because it allows her to get a sneak peak into the different kinds of research and people involved on campus. The resources offered by EPSCoR and ARCSIM are exceedingly important to the campus community and Iris is happy to be part of that.
In addition to being an intern for Maine EPSCoR and ARCSIM, Iris is part of several student clubs such as The Feminist Collective and the Horticulture Club as well as taking part in the rock climbing facility offered at MaineBound. She also enjoys exploring the local area, the trails around campus, and hiking Mount Katahdin and around Acadia National Park.
Iris is currently working on a project creating a cloth modeling add-on for Blender, a popular 3D modeling program. Modeling cloth using a simulation engine is an approach for creating very realistic cloth textures. Since Blender is not the greatest at cloth modeling, Iris is developing an add-on that would be less expensive and more functional and intuitive than other options. She has been working on this for a year now and hopes to be able to spend more time on it!
Nhan Chau:
Media Intern
Nhan is a fourth-year New Media major at the University of Maine. Working for Maine EPSCoR helps Nhan sharpen her skills in many different fields, including writing, video editing, photography, and illustrating. She also appreciates the opportunity to travel to places she has never been before to capture moments where some of the most brilliant people she knows are studying their crafts.
As she grew up, Nhan enjoyed watching various animated movies with her younger brother, and she promised him that she would make her own animation one day. With her promise in mind, Nhan continues drawing. For her Honors thesis, Nhan is creating a 2D animation that will retell a legend from her home country of Vietnam.
Nhan supported the recently held 27th NSF National EPSCoR conference by designing the conference logo and multiple graphics for use at the event, both in presentations and on event signage. Her work was acclaimed by many of the conference goers, and her contributions to the success of the event are deeply appreciated by UMaine and Maine EPSCoR leadership.
In her free time, Nhan enjoys drawing, listening to music, thinking about adopting a pet, and playing card games. Along with being a media intern, she is the Public Relations Chair for the UMaine Asian Student Association (ASA), a club for anyone interested in learning more about cultures across various Asian countries. Additionally, she is also an Honors student and a member of the UMaine International Student Association (ISA).
After she graduates, Nhan hopes to advance further studies in the fields of animation or illustration.