The Untamed Adventures of Kelldawg
FOREWARNING! I am not and will not ever be a writer. Out of all of the difficult tasks that I have completed this summer, this was definitely the most grueling. With that being said, I will still do my best to try and explain the amazing summer that I have had, and give a few tips on surviving in the life of a mobius intern.
After finding out that I was chosen to be an intern, everything went into hyper-speed. I found a great place to live, signed my lease and moved everything to Knoxville. It was so new to me, and there are so many cool things to do and amazing places to eat. It was my first time living completely by myself, but the mobius team encouraged me to get out of the house and try new things. Knoxville used to be a pit stop on the way to Gatlinburg, but now it is where another part of my family lives.
Tip #1: Once you found out where you will be living, schedule your WIFI and Electricity to be turned on in advance! NO Netflix, NO fun!
The first day came around and I was ridiculously nervous. I passed the driveway several times, but once I found it, it was gorgeous. There was a beautiful garden, and a cool farmhouse, but the best part was the people inside. After the wonderful view and people, the nerves started to kick in. I brought my entire backpack filled with notebooks, pens, pencils, highlighters, dry erase markers, my laptop, my lunch, a jacket, etc. Well, apparently lots of things have changed in the history of being an intern. Now… we. get. SWAG. We got notebooks, pens, desks with a view, stickers, shirts, and even business cards!
Now… we. get. SWAG.
Throughout that week, we learned so much, not only about Polymer Chemistry and Microbiology, but also Business. Later into the summer, we took a team trip to Atlanta, GA, and it gave me so much more perspective on the business world. I was super nervous because I had only ever been interested in business in high school, but Tony and Jeff made it a lot less scary. Watching how confident they were while pitching their ideas were inspiring. It definitely helped me to become a more well rounded student and see the world from a different perspective.
Tip #2: Do not bring your whole life to work! Just a laptop, and a positive attitude. #mobiusinternsgetswag
Most days, Danielle, Shelley and I had lots of start-up adventures such as watering the garden, saving hummingbirds and forgetting that we were working because of how much fun we had.
This actually happens quite often at the mobius Headquarters. Every day of working here, I did and learned something new. We aren’t always in the lab, or behind a computer, sometimes we have to dig holes in the yard for soil testing, or drive to Sevierville to play in compost. I never knew anything about start-up’s before I got to mobius, but there is always something different to be done. I did so many random things while working here, and loved every single one (except for writing this).
The main project that we worked on was biodegradation testing. During this process, we create small, real world systems that, through experimentation, shows the biodegradation of plastic in soil and compost conditions. We test the CO₂ that is in the system to understand the biodegradation of the specific material in the jar. Learning about this process encouraged me to look more into marine biodegradation, and influenced my decision of furthering my education in marine/environmental sciences! Out of all of the cool activities that we did, my favorites were creating a 3-D printed compressed gas canister, and creating a blender housing. It was fun to make them, but it was even more satisfying to know that they are going to be used throughout mobius history.
Tip #3: Have an open mind about new challenges, and pick the craziest idea on how to fix it. (It usually works!)
The mobius team has taught me so many amazing things this summer, and have truly made me feel like part of their family. I went into the internship feeling quite unsure of myself, and I will be leaving with a whole new perspective of the world and myself. The team has not only inspired me to follow my dreams, but also given me the opportunity and tools to start working towards them.
Tip #4: Don’t be afraid to tell them about your goals. They may make you a little sentimental (like me), but you will definitely learn something about yourself that you didn’t know before and realize that you have a great support system.
**Drops the mic**
