My Path to Biophysics

Coleoptera (beetles) over some of my math calculations. This picture was taken during my Master’s degree in Venezuela. Photo courtesy of Yanitza Trosel.

Nuclear Magnetic Resonance 500 at Memorial University of Newfoundland. Photo courtesy of Yanitza Trosel.

Like many current women in science and engineering, I did not have a female scientific role model when growing up. So, this is the story of how I followed the unconventional path of physics and even more specifically biophysics. 

Everything started with an old book my parents owned about Life and Science, Matter and Energy. As a curious teenager, I randomly opened a page of the book. The first picture I saw was an abyssal fish and a caption that said, “four thousand meters below sea level some animals catch their prey using luminescence”. I must say that the fish picture completely scared me, but it was my first realization that I wanted to understand the ‘why’s’ of our universe. I wanted to be like an Indiana Jones of the Laws of Nature. 

So many questions came to my head, like what is luminescence? How did they develop that ability? Why can’t I glow in the dark? Without knowing I was entering the interdisciplinary world of Biophysics. 

My first formal encounter with scientific research was in an area known as Superconductivity. Superconductors are materials that under critical temperatures can conduct electricity without any resistance, which means the electrons move without obstacles. A super cool feature about superconductors is that they can levitate in the presence of a magnet!

As soon as I finished my bachelor’s degree, I started a master’s in physics. During my master's at the Venezuelan Institute of Scientific Research, I discovered what is now my area of work: Biophysics. Biophysics is the interdisciplinary area that used physics techniques to study biological systems. 

Currently in my PhD research in biophysics, I mimic our cellular environment to study the effects on some protein machines of our bodies. I use the physics technique Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), which has the same principle as Magnetic Resonance Imaging or MRI.

Nowadays, I want to continue using my scientific formation to contribute to the human physical conditions. I now know that some organisms like the abyssal fish can emit light through a chemical reaction in their bodies. Only a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum is visible for humans, this is known as visible light. And that the light we enjoy every day has a fascinating duality. It can behave like a wave in the ocean or particles.

Yanitza Trosel, MSc
WISE GSS Treasurer
PhD Candidate, Yethiraj & V. Booth Laboratories
Department of Physics and Physical Oceanography
Memorial University of Newfoundland