{"id":2209,"date":"2019-01-08T11:37:24","date_gmt":"2019-01-08T16:37:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.goucher.edu\/magazine\/?p=2209"},"modified":"2025-07-25T16:05:36","modified_gmt":"2025-07-25T20:05:36","slug":"the-science-of-water","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.goucher.edu\/magazine\/the-science-of-water\/","title":{"rendered":"The Science of Water"},"content":{"rendered":"

D<\/span>ana Jensen \u201920<\/strong><\/span> wonders how she must look trekking across campus in knee-high rubber boots with a metal fish trap hooked under one arm and leftover rat food in the other. She may get some strange looks as she disappears into Goucher\u2019s woods, but she doesn\u2019t let that stop her from being a scientist. She has fish to catch, plastic to find, and a hypothesis to test.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Kicklighter and Jensen<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As a double major in dance and biology, Jensen is fascinated with ecological systems and the interconnectedness of the world. She is curious if larger organisms, specifically the Eastern mosquito fish, are ingesting microplastics. Microplastics are just as they sound\u2014tiny particles of plastic that have eroded off of larger pieces of plastic. Specifically, Jensen is looking for plastic microfibers, which are a type of microplastic that wash off of synthetic clothing.<\/p>\n

To gauge the scope of plastic infiltration in the natural world, one of the problems Jensen faced was finding water that did not contain any plastic. She tested the ponds at the front and back of campus and even distilled water, and was still finding plastic under her microscope.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs we find obstacles,\u201d Jensen said, \u201cwe have to find new ways to overcome them and keep doing the research, even though there are a lot of unforeseen things. But I guess that\u2019s what research is\u2014problem-solving and finding solutions as you go along.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jensen\u2019s investigation of microplastics is an offshoot of Cynthia Kicklighter\u2019s research. Kicklighter is an associate biology professor and, last year, she hypothesized that municipal water would contain more plastic than well water. The research incorporated much of the campus, with students bringing water samples from home, and faculty and staff doing the same\u2014some even reaching out to their neighbors.<\/p>\n

Rachel Kieffer \u201918<\/span><\/strong> helped with the first leg of the research as her senior capstone project, which is part of the new Goucher Commons curriculum. Kieffer now works for Nevada Conservation Corps, building and maintaining hiking trails in California and Nevada. \u201cIt\u2019s a lot of shoveling,\u201d she said, but she\u2019s glad to be outside, not behind a desk, and continuing the skills she learned at Goucher as an environmental studies major with a concentration in environmental science and a minor in biology.<\/p>\n

As a senior at Goucher, Kieffer presented her research at the annual Goucher Symposium and was surprised by the level of people\u2019s interest, even though her results comparing well and municipal water were inconclusive. (She needed more well-water samples for an accurate analysis.)<\/p>\n

\u201cThe idea of drinking plastic threatens people,\u201d Kieffer said. \u201cNot being able to see the microplastics with the naked eye but knowing you\u2019re ingesting them is terrifying. There\u2019s so much unknown about this subject and how it relates to human health.\u201d<\/p>\n

The microplastics are like mini sponges for chemicals, so when organisms ingest plastic, it\u2019s possible they\u2019re ingesting those chemicals, which are magnified as they go up the food chain, Kicklighter explained. However, because there is so little research on the effects of microplastics in animals and people, scientists have few definitive answers.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Plastic microfiber under a microscope<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Despite the lack of knowledge, people are enthusiastic to learn more and find solutions, Kieffer said. \u201cTalking with different faculty and parents on the topic, I realized how many ideas there are and how many people might be able to figure out this problem,\u201d Kieffer said. \u201cIt\u2019s not a black-and-white problem, and there\u2019s not a simple solution.\u201d<\/p>\n

Baltimore\u2019s water treatment plant is more than 100 years old, and it wasn\u2019t designed to filter out microplastics, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals, Kicklighter said. It\u2019s not easy to keep plastic from entering our water systems, nor is it easy to get out, she said.<\/p>\n

Kicklighter\u2019s initial research question is also only one part of an interconnected problem.<\/p>\n

As part of an independent study, Jensen has been charging ahead\u2014with Kicklighter by her side in blue rubber boots\u2014to ask if the organisms in the water are ingesting microplastics, and if so, how are they impacted?<\/p>\n

Jensen said she is constantly problem-solving and taking the research in new directions as they venture into this uncharted world of misplaced plastic. For instance, her first step to determine if the fish were ingesting the microplastics was to see if they were excreting the plastic. Jensen and Kicklighter pulled fish from the ponds and placed them in what they thought was plastic-free water so they could count the plastic particles after the fish had excreted.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were having some difficulty with that because as it turns out, the plastic-free water source we were using actually has plastic, so we\u2019ve been testing all kinds of water sources and it seems everything is contaminated, which is very sad, and it makes it very difficult to quantify our research,\u201d Jensen said.<\/p>\n

Jensen and Kicklighter think that part of the problem with their distilled water was that plastic particles were stuck to the glass containers and even floating in the air. Since washing plastic particles off containers using plastic-contaminated water is rather ineffective, they now rinse all surfaces with acetone.<\/p>\n

While working through that problem, Jensen and Kicklighter began dissecting the fish and dousing the gut contents with fluorescent Nile red dye, which sticks to the plastic and makes it easy to identify.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re going to try to use it in the gut contents and see what is illuminated, what fluoresces. I do expect to find plastics in the fish\u2014on top of living in the contaminated water, they\u2019re eating other organisms that have plastics in their guts,\u201d Jensen said. \u201cIf we do find plastic, the next step would be to see what the effect is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"
Jensen at a Goucher pond<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Jensen said Kicklighter values her opinion and input as a researcher, and they work collaboratively, with Kicklighter there as an unfailing resource. Her enthusiasm for her students is palpable. Kicklighter said she loves to watch students take something and run with it in their own direction as they connect their passions to the research.<\/p>\n

Kicklighter incorporates as much hands-on and out-of-the-classroom learning as possible\u2014whether it\u2019s identifying trees in Goucher\u2019s woods or picking up trash at Fort McHenry. As much as she takes her students into the natural world, Kicklighter brings equal amounts of her own passion back into the classroom. Her research on microplastics was born from a personal interest that she incorporated into her First-Year Seminar (FYS), Oceans, the Forgotten Frontier: Submarines, Sea Slugs, and Slime. Like Jensen and Kieffer, her FYS students examined water samples for microplastics.<\/p>\n

FYS is a part of Goucher Commons that allows for flexibility, Kicklighter said. In a 100, 200, or 300 level science class, there is specific material that she needs to teach so that students are prepared for the next leg of their education, but she doesn\u2019t feel that pressure in these FYS seminars. \u201cI choose things that I personally am interested in because I think if I\u2019m more engaged with it, that bleeds off onto the students,\u201d Kicklighter said. And with a pink octopus skirt and ocean-themed jewelry, no one could doubt Kicklighter\u2019s passion for studying marine life.<\/p>\n

Kicklighter and Jensen aren\u2019t the only ones examining water samples for contaminants.<\/p>\n

Dr. Anna Jozwick, assistant professor of biology, threw herself and her students into the deep end last spring in her first Center Pair Exploration (CPE) course, CPED 201\u2013Thirsty for change? A Hands-on, Immersive Class on Local Water Quality. The CPEs are part of the Goucher Commons and replaced general education requirements as a way to provide more impactful learning.<\/p>\n

Jozwick\u2019s students took water samples from Goucher\u2019s ponds and streams, but instead of microplastics, they tested for nitrates, phosphates, dissolved oxygen, fecal bacteria, and pH balance and then analyzed how weather and the seasons affect levels of contamination.<\/p>\n

The purpose of the CPEs is to answer one deep-dive question instead of taking a broad overview of the subject, Jozwick said. In this case, that question is, what is good, healthy water? And what does that look like for the Chesapeake Bay and for people?<\/p>\n

\u201cThe CPEs let students explore their own questions when they\u2019re down that rabbit hole, and they incorporate different discussions. Even though it\u2019s a science course, we\u2019re not only talking about science. We are talking about how to solve problems by merging science with other disciplines,\u201d Jozwick said. \u201cOne discipline alone isn\u2019t going to do anything, right? Scientists can tell you there\u2019s a problem, or the problem is getting better, but when it comes to enacting change, you need to have somebody in politics changing regulations or an engineer fixing the sewer system. One discipline can\u2019t do that alone.\u201d<\/p>\n

Judy Lewent \u201970<\/span><\/strong> can attest to that idea in the professional world, even if she never took part in Goucher\u2019s CPE courses. Lewent didn\u2019t major in science, but that hasn\u2019t kept her from loving the field. As the former executive vice president and chief financial officer of the biopharmaceutical company Merck & Co., Lewent said she worked closely with research scientists, and she has seen developments in science transform the pharmaceutical industry.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just became fascinated with everything that was going on in the sciences and just wanted to inspire young students and, quite frankly, young women to consider careers in the sciences,\u201d Lewent said, which is why she continues to be a major supporter of Goucher\u2019s programs like the Summer Science Research Program.<\/p>\n

\u201cScience is the key to address the major issues and challenges around the globe, whether it\u2019s climate change or unanswered questions in health care, or understanding the human genetic makeup,\u201d Lewent said.<\/p>\n

The promise of scientific advancement holds many solutions to the problems the world faces, Lewent said. \u201cThat\u2019s got to be a top priority, and in order to do that we need qualified and educated professionals.\u201d<\/p>\n

That starts with Goucher students.<\/p>\n

For Jozwick\u2019s CPE course, her students were not science majors, but that\u2019s kind of the whole point of the class\u2014to provide exposure to and create interest in a subject that can be intimidating.<\/p>\n

Jozwick said she hopes all of her students become \u201ccitizen scientists\u2014people who take steps to care about or even collect data on the environment, and understand why and how the natural world works the way it does.\u201d A CPE course asks students to wrestle with a big question, and in a science class they have to learn all of the background on how to be a scientist first, Jozwick said. When students took water samples from around campus, before the analytical learning could take place, they had to first learn how to take water samples and run different tests on them.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want them to see what it\u2019s like to be a scientist. This is a CPE, they should jump into a discipline that they\u2019re not used to. With any natural science class, there\u2019s going to be a lab. The lab that I wanted them to do is not just a textbook lab, where they measure something, but actually go out and see what we do day to day as scientists,\u201d Jozwick said. \u201cAnalyzing water samples for contaminants is something they could do as a citizen scientist.\u201d<\/p>\n

She wants her students, and everyone in the world, to realize that scientists are not intimidating. They don\u2019t wear white coats with pocket calculators. They\u2019re real people, she said.<\/p>\n

Sam Anderson \u201921<\/span><\/strong> is a political science major gone scientist. Even though Anderson\u2019s interests are in government and politics, that doesn\u2019t stop him from considering the impacts for environmental sustainability when approaching a problem. Like sunglasses stacked on top of one another, he sees the world through many tinted hues. When he joined Jozwick\u2019s CPE class, he was entering a room of people who didn\u2019t think like scientists or see the world as he does.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the most important things about the CPE courses is applying your own discipline to whatever the course material is,\u201d Anderson said. \u201cWe all came into this course with a different lens than a science major would have. For me, when I was thinking of the solutions to the problems we were exploring, I thought more along the lines of what can governments do, what can nonprofit agencies do, to address these problems, rather than what can the EPA or science do.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"
Jozwick in class<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Jozwick designed her class so that students would realize the importance of multiple perspectives. One assignment included \u201ctown halls,\u201d in which students interview both a scientist in the field and a non-scientist, and ask them what they think the solutions are to decrease pollution in the Chesapeake Bay. Then, they talk as a class about what they learned. \u201cOne discipline is not going to get you anywhere,\u201d Jozwick said. \u201cYou need to work with others, so we really try to integrate different disciplines to solve problems. That\u2019s one of the main, overarching goals of the class.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe town halls showed us if we were to apply these skills in the real world, we wouldn\u2019t want to just stick with people who think like us and have the same work background,\u201d Anderson said. \u201cWe need to collaborate with people from all different disciplines.\u201d<\/p>\n

Everything in Jozwick\u2019s class culminated in the last project, a mock Citizen Science Grant proposal to decrease one source of contamination in the Chesapeake Bay. Anderson and his group members wrote a grant that proposed growing a plant buffer around car washes to absorb the soapy runoff. Soap contains nutrients that result in algae growth and offsets the balance of the ecosystem in the bay, Anderson said.<\/p>\n

For their proposal, they used the research they gathered from their water samples to prove that contamination is an issue. Additionally, the town hall interviews proved useful in explaining why the car wash runoff is a problem, why someone needs to take action, and, most importantly, why their grant should be funded. They wanted to find a sustainable solution, not a Band-Aid, he added.<\/p>\n

Talking about environmental issues can be dismal and daunting, Jozwick said, which is why her class focuses on the solutions that can realistically be implemented. Students even followed requirements from a real grant, so that if they wanted to submit it, they could.<\/p>\n

Although Anderson and his classmates were learning to be scientists, Jozwick was learning, too, and adapted the course to meet her students\u2019 needs.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs much as we were willing to give to her, she was willing to give us back,\u201d Anderson said. \u201cI appreciated all of that from her and the opportunity to learn from her because she was a different-thinking mind, but I think she also appreciated the chance to work with us, non-science students, to see how we interact with the science material.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anderson\u2019s takeaway: He has another pair of sunglasses to perch on his nose. \u201cYou don\u2019t necessarily have to be involved in the scientific research of the environment to still be engaged in creating solutions to environmental problems,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

If you ask Jozwick how her students (science and non-science majors alike) will create a ripple effect, she\u2019s very precise in her answer: \u201cOh, I think they are the ripple effect.\u201d As their teacher, Jozwick considers it her responsibility to help them become informed citizens so that they ripple in a positive way for the natural world.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want them to understand that they\u2019re constantly interacting with the environment, and they\u2019re not just human beings acting alone,\u201d Jozwick said. \u201cThey\u2019re a part of a larger ecosystem, and their actions affect way more in the environment than what they think.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more of the story, and to find out what mucus has to do with it, read “Just A Little Fishy<\/a>.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Goucher students are examining something in the water. By testing water samples for microplastics, nitrates, phosphates, dissolved oxygen, bacteria, and pH balance, they discovered a different kind of monster.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":352,"featured_media":2472,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[87510,7935],"tags":[],"ppma_author":[87521],"class_list":["post-2209","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","category-goucher-today"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Science of Water | Goucher Magazine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.goucher.edu\/magazine\/the-science-of-water\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Science of Water\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Goucher students are examining something lurking in the water. 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