That Georgia Biologist

Guess it's been a little while since I've blogged! Been busy, been good. I have (and continue to) read lots of scientific papers, and once a week, I am going out with a senior graduate student working on a small project, of sampling herbaceous diversity in a nearby forest. I'm really enjoying the experience!! This past weekend one of my good friends came to visit me, and while having fun catching up, we drove up to and explored Tallulah Gorge State Park. I had never been before; I really enjoyed the experience. Definitely a very pretty gorge and waterfalls, and we certainly got our exercise walking up and down all those stairs! I really enjoyed my visit and look forward to visiting again with more friends and family. Attached are some of the pictures that I took that I thought you might enjoy. Hopefully I can go again and photograph the gorge when the fall colors hit! ~Austin  Some of the first falls that we saw. They were very pretty, and just outside of...

Well, I'm finally here at UGA!! I know, I know, no photos of me on campus yet...I've just been too busy being an official professional adult with paying bills, attending orientation meetings, and learning how to navigate around. Moved into my apartment this past Monday. My parents and sister kindly helped me unpack and set up house, which to my delight included finding that an Aldi's was not far away - I love all their great food and low prices! Tuesday I attended my first orientation meeting. Everything went super well - thankfully, no surprises. The professors leading out basically said "Welcome, we're glad you're here, and get ready to work hard!" Honestly the practices that they said they want us students to adhere to are very similar to those of my previous grad school, so I think I will get along just fine. Plus, you know that I have fun working hard! I've also had the chance to sign up for classes and pick up my textbooks, on trees! I am so...

What's happening: One year ago I had the incredible opportunity to spend a week with my aunt, uncle, and cousins out in northern California playing tourist. I started writing this blog soon after the trip ended, and as I enjoyed myself so much, I have decided to write about my trip experiences in blog form.  One year ago today, my second full day in the Sunshine State, was a good day of rest and relaxation, compared to our other days! In the morning I went to church, then in the afternoon visited with some good friends whom I had not seen for many years. Afterward, my uncle offered to take me to visit Sutter's Fort State Historical Park - a fun destination that was not a far drive away at all! For those of you who don't know, Sutter's Fort was a major destination on the California Trail, and owned by the guy who owned the mill where gold was discovered. Gold was discovered up in Coloma, but it was verified to be gold in Sutter's Fort. At any rate, it's a sup...

What's happening: One year ago I had the incredible opportunity to spend a week with my aunt, uncle, and cousins out in northern California playing tourist. I started writing this blog soon after the trip ended, and as I enjoyed myself so much, I have decided to write about my trip experiences in blog form. Today I would like to share about the fun times my uncle, cousin, and I had visiting gold country. We visited two state parks: Marshall Gold Discovery, and Empire Mine. As you might imagine, the first is the actual site where gold was first discovered and the gold rush began. Empire Mine is the site of what was once one of the largest gold mining operations in California.