Rachael Karns

I have been in love with sharks for as long as I can remember and always longed to work towards understanding and conserving them. Since I was a little girl, I always strove to be near the ocean. Living and studying inland made me desire to study it even more. The ocean is the last large mystery to me, as most of what we know about it only scratches the surface. I immediately became intrigued with sharks once I realized how misrepresented they were to the public, and I began to study the science behind sharks and cancer. My mother passed away from cancer at a young age, so it seemed like a good place to start. Once I realized that there was no conclusive scientific evidence behind shark cartilage alleviating or curing cancer, I decided to dig deeper and to understand these creatures. I immediately fell in love with them, knowing that most people have no clue of the implications that sharks have on the overall health of the ocean, and by proxy, the planet. In my higher education career, I discovered my love for microbiology, and decided to combine the two in order to more fully understand how sharks function and thrive in the ocean, in order to improve the conservation of shark species around the globe.

June 2016