River Corrado ’23 spent his 2022 summer internship at the Hawai‘i Institute of Marine Biology, assisting with a variety of projects through the Marine Mammal Research Program.
His work was centered around assisting PhD student, Kirby Parnell, with her Hawaiian monk seal research. They analyzed the acoustics of the soundscape at several islands where Hawaiian monk seals are known to live. The purpose was to determine how anthropogenic noise affects the acoustic behavior of these seals.
While performing acoustic analysis, he came across a spectrum characteristic of earthquakes. This detection inspired his own research project looking at aural earthquake detection on the Hawaiian Islands. He hopes to present at the Acoustical Society of America conference in December.
“While my main project has been quite fulfilling, the variety of projects I was able to assist with made the summer unforgettable,” said River. “I assisted with spinner dolphin surveys along the Waianae Coast and the Big Island and helped with the 3D scan of a rare pygmy sperm whale.”
The experience has helped guide River toward a prospective career and introduced him to individuals that will be crucial in pursuing it.
51 and its generous alumni and parent donors offer grants to support students’ living costs and supplemental expenses to pursue unpaid and underpaid summer experiences. Learn more about 51 summer funding.