When Worlds Collide

KIARA JEREZ | @ARAXKIA

Ageology major and a pre med major cross paths to take upon an experience they never thought they would encounter before. Working at The San Bernardino County Museum, opened the eyes for two students Tyler Tillmon and Albino Esparza.

For the first few weeks, it was difficult to know what was expected from the museum and what to do with the comparative collections. A comparative collection makes it useful to locate artifacts in the museum. Right off the bat, the students learn museum practices. One important factor the students avoided is having sulfide mixed in with the Paleo collections would cause pyrite rock onto the specimen.

“By us organizing more in a better fashion would help to preserve the museum collection in the long run,” Esparza explains.

The key factor to organizing the collections were to have other researchers take a look at the specimen in a more well ordered fashion. It will also maintain an efficient environment to better preserve and consolidate the collections and fit more collections in the near future. The usage of the google spreadsheet came in handy when inputting important data about the collections.

Throughout their journey as interns at the museum, they learned about important key factors for real life situations. One of the most factors the students learned from the museum is the importance of networking.

Esparza had the opportunity to volunteer at a geology convention The North America Paleontological Convention (NAPC) at The University of California, Riverside. Esparza met with paleontologists

PHOTOS COURTESY OF LINDA LAMP Tyler Tillmon and Albino Esparza showing off the collections at the The San Bernadino County Mueseum and he was introduced to conventions. Esparza was invited to attend the Geological Society of America (GSA) convention in September through STEM research program. Held in Phoenix, Arizona, the GSA is hosting an annual Geology convention. The convention features 28 courses and workshops and will allow people from different parts of the world come together and network and learn more about Geology in the real world. Esparza shares his experience being an intern at the museum as the “highlight of his summer”.

Out of his comfort zone being a medical student and introduced to Geology for the first time during this internship, Tillmon explains how it is important to be acknowledged on many different subjects outside of the medical field.

“It was cool to be introduced to a different world of something I would probably would have never been introduced to, unless I took this summer opportunity. When I first got into it, I told myself to have a good attitude about it, and then I had a good attitude about it and I thoroughly enjoyed it” as Tillmon describes his thankfulness.

With the help of their museum curator, Crystal Cortez, the students cultivated life skills to use in the real world. Things like how to write a curriculum vitae, organization and communication skills. Cortez helped the students become comfortable and engaged in the learning material. She guided the students towards achieving their goals and teaching the information they needed to pursue their journey as interns.

“I did learn a lot of things about minerals, fossils and comparative, but I did learn a lot of different skills mainly. The biggest thing was organizing and critical thinking because Crystal was asking for help a lot of the time. We would bounce ideas off of each other and learned good communication skills. Like it was just really cool like how she wasn’t demanding and she kind of let us be independent,” expresses Tillmon.

When two worlds collide, a brand new experience opened many doors and new opportunities for Tillmon and Esparza. With their passion, this was an unforgettable learning experience for both. “There is a lot of fossils there, that is a part of the experience there and to show the public that the museum has a lot to offer than just the exhibits at the museum,” shares Esparza.