Marina Blackman '27

Marina is a senior in the Biological Sciences major with a concentration in Marine Biology. After graduating from Cornell, she plans to attend graduate school to earn a PhD in Marine Mammal Biology. During the summer after her first year at Cornell, Marina took two courses at Shoals Marine Laboratory: Marine Mammal Biology and the Anatomy and Function of Marine Vertebrates. The following two summers, she participated in Molecular Biology research in the Cheong Lab in the Cornell College of Veterinary Medicine as part of the Laidlaw Leadership and Research Program. The goal of this research was to investigate how environmental DNA can be used to monitor marine invertebrate populations. Marina has also engaged in undergraduate research at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology K. Lisa Yang Center for Conservation Bioacoustics, where she spent one year learning how to assess toothed whale presence using long term acoustic data. Outside of academics, Marina is a member of the Biology Scholars Program, Knit with Care, the Guild of Visual Arts, and Phoenix Society. In her free time, she loves to draw, crochet, read, watch cartoons (Steven Universe is one of her favorites!), and go running.

Her advice to freshmen:

“Always remember to make time for yourself. Adjusting to life in college can feel overwhelming at times, as it can involve being away from home, trying to make new friends, and taking challenging courses. With this, it is so important to take care of yourself, especially during this transition. Remember that although it is important to do well in your courses, it is equally as important to be patient with yourself, take breaks between studying, and carve out some time for doing the things you enjoy outside of academics! This can look like going for a run, crafting, or reading! Whatever taking a break looks like for you, making the time for these activities can help you take a step back from any work or stressors for a bit, and then return to it later, taking things one step at a time.”

College: Arts and Sciences

Tutoring: None

Email: mlb484 [at] cornell.edu (mlb484[at]cornell[dot]edu)