Scientific research by "beeing" creative: Sarah Wagstaff at TEDxSpokane

Summary

Sarah Wagstaff, a senior at St. George's School, shares her journey of discovering creativity through science. She reflects on childhood experiments and a summer internship where she used a scanning electron microscope (SEM) to study bee wings. Despite challenges, Sarah found creativity in unexpected places, like beekeeping and SEM research. Her project explores bee species worldwide, focusing on flight, wing structure, and environmental concerns like colony collapse disorder. Sarah emphasizes that creativity stems from passion and encourages others to find their unique ways of being creative by pursuing what they love.

Takeaways

• 🔬 Sarah Wagstaff shares her passion for science and creativity, stemming from childhood experiments with parachutes for dolls.
• 🎢 As a child, Sarah and her sister built a homemade elevator, showing early signs of creative problem-solving and engineering interest.
• 🧠 Creativity, according to Sarah, is about embracing what you're passionate about and exploring new ideas without overthinking.
• ⚙️ Sarah struggled to find a creative project until she discovered the potential of using a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) to study bees.
• 🐝 She conducted research on different bee species from around the world, using SEM to analyze and differentiate their wing structures.
• 📏 Sarah introduced the concept of the ‘cubital index’ — a ratio used to measure bee wing veins, revealing distinct differences among species.
• 💡 Through her research, she discovered that bees have unique characteristics, like hair on their wings and eyes, and the ability to fly even with damaged wings.
• 🌎 Sarah's motivation for her research is to contribute knowledge that might help combat colony collapse disorder (CCD), which threatens bee populations worldwide.
• 💪 She emphasizes perseverance, passion, and confidence as essential elements in overcoming obstacles and embracing creativity.
• 🎨 Sarah encourages everyone to find creativity in their own unique ways, advising them to ‘draw their own box’ rather than trying to fit into pre-existing norms.

Q & A

Who is the speaker, and what are her interests?

The speaker is Sarah Wagstaff, a senior at St. George's School. Her interests include cross-country running, track, water skiing, beekeeping, and science.

What was Sarah's first memorable experience with creativity?

Sarah's first memorable experience with creativity was when she and her sister built parachutes for dolls and a homemade elevator using a pulley system to solve the problem of running up and down the house during their play.

What key lesson did Sarah learn from her early childhood experiment?

Sarah learned that sometimes safety precautions can be more of a deterrent than an actual safety item and that creativity can emerge from activities one loves.

How does Sarah relate creativity to science?

Sarah believes that creativity can be found in anything, including science. She realized this while working in a research metallurgical lab, where she used a scanning electron microscope (SEM) to explore various materials, including bee wings.

What was the focus of Sarah's senior science project?

The focus of Sarah's senior science project was studying the differences between bee species from different countries using the SEM to analyze the bees' wings and determine the 'cubital index,' a ratio of wing vein lengths.

What surprising discoveries did Sarah make about bees through her research?

Sarah discovered that bees have hair on their wings and eyes, that their wings tear as they age without affecting their flight, and that one wing is often smaller than the other, which she found fascinating.

How does Sarah's research connect to the larger issue of bee conservation?

Sarah's research on bees is motivated by the issue of colony collapse disorder (CCD), which causes bees to disappear without a trace. She hopes her research will contribute to finding solutions that can help protect bees and prevent further decline.

What advice does Sarah offer for fostering creativity?

Sarah advises always carrying a piece of paper and a pencil for when inspiration strikes, not giving up in the face of roadblocks, and pursuing passions with confidence and heart, as creativity thrives when one is deeply engaged and passionate.

How does Sarah interpret the concept of thinking and creativity?

Sarah references Ray Bradbury’s quote, 'thinking is the enemy of creativity,' explaining that overthinking stifles creativity. True creativity comes when one is immersed in an activity without trying too hard to be creative.

What challenge does Sarah leave with the audience at the end of her speech?

Sarah challenges the audience to 'draw their own box' and find their own unique form of creativity by following their passions, rather than conforming to conventional ideas of what creativity should be.