Experiential Learning
Delia Lasek's Internship at the American Museum of Natural History
What is your name?
Delia Lasek
What is your expected graduation date? Please include semester and year.
Spring 2027
Please choose the option that best reflects your experience.
Internship
What organization did you intern with? (Ex. New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection)
American Museum of Natural History
What was your internship title?
Molecular Systematics Intern (in the Arachnid department of the Invertebrate Zoology section)
What were some of the daily tasks that you performed?
- Extracted DNA from scorpion samples by physically extracting muscle fibers from the leg and then using sequential reactions of enzymes to isolate the DNA
- Performed PCR for 16S, 12S, 28S, and COI genes for each scorpion sample
- Performed gel electrophoresis for all PCR samples, included making the actual gels in lab
- Performed Sanger sequencing on every PCR sample using AMNH's onsite sequencer
What was your favorite aspect of your internship?
Exploring! Taking the train to and from the city everyday made me feel much more independent and capable. I met new people at the lab and explored new places with them in the city. Getting to work at AMNH itself and exploring both the public exhibits and staff-only floors was such a cool experience.
All photos courtesy of Delia Lasek.
All photos courtesy of Alaina Lackey.