Today, our spotlighted woman in science is Leslie Climer, a postdoctoral student from the biology department. If you want to know more about her work with calcium and why we need it, check out our blog post below!
What inspired you to pursue a career in STEM?
I was never interested in school until I took advanced biology in high school. After that I was hooked. My dad was a high school science teacher. He was not my academic teacher, but his dynamic personality and enthusiasm for science impacted my enjoyment for science and my career path.
How would you describe your work to the public?
I have studied many different topics over the years: childhood leukemia, osteoporosis, and the intricacies of how things move within cells. Currently, I work with Dr. Simmons on the importance of calcium in maintaining hearing health throughout our lifetime.
What do you enjoy doing the most?
My favorite part about research is the microscopes, and Baylor has some good ones. I love seeing what our cells are up to. The cells essential for hearing are very interesting looking and not like other cells we use in the lab. They are organized in elaborate patterns which make beautiful images. Share an accomplishment that a younger you would have thought unachievable.
Being a scientist is absolutely achievable. When I was young, I didn’t realize that we follow the scientific method in our daily lives: making observations, forming hypotheses/opinions, testing the hypotheses/making mistakes/taking chances, reforming our opinions based on the results. Later on, our skills are honed toward our particular career path whether we are accountants or astronauts.
If you could give a piece of advice to the younger generation, what would it be?
Be steadfast and anything is possible.
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