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Immersed in Science
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n the UC Davis Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, three faculty members—Heather Bischel, Veronica Morales and Deb Niemeier—have found a way to turn their love of sports into advocacy for science and conservation. To help “raise awareness about water research and efforts still needed to protect our natural resources,” as Professor Heather Bischel put it, the scientists have gotten their feet wet. The professors recently drew media attention as half of the Women for Water Research team at the 41st annual Trans Tahoe Relay, crossing 10 miles of water in Lake Tahoe. Each member of the team swam two 30-minute legs and several 10-minute legs, and in the process raised hundreds of dollars for the Tahoe Environmental Research Center. Throughout the day, they chatted about the pleasant weather, the water and their keen observations as environmental scientists. “We also gathered some ideas for future swims, like dragging a temperature monitor, dropping a clock off the side of the boat to keep the swimmer informed, bringing along our fishing net to pick up trash and, who knows, maybe get some water quality samples, too,” said Bischel, who focuses her research on water quality and resource reuse. — Benjamin Ginsburg
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