Hello, and welcome to Ask a Scientist, the podcast for kids and adults to ask scientists questions about anything they want to know. There are so many scientists out there doing a lot of cool scientific research. In the news, we are constantly hearing about scientists and their ideas and where those ideas are going to take us in the future. But just who are these scientists? In this podcast, we will learn a little more about who they are and what inspires them as scientists.
I’m your host, Victoria. Every other week, I’ll sit down and ask a different scientist questions written by you, the listeners, and by students from classrooms throughout the country.
Victoria:
Hello listeners. Welcome back to the next episode of Ask a Scientist. Our guest this week is Breanna Ivey. She is an electrical engineering student at Georgia Tech and an intern at NASA working on the Perseverance Mars rover. She is here today to answer questions from fourth graders at Bromwell Elementary and questions submitted online by the listeners.
Thank you so much for being here today.
Breanna:
Thank you. Thank you so much for having me. I’m excited to be here.
Victoria:
Oh, we are so excited to hear your answers. But before we get into the questions, is there anything else that you’d like to add about what you do and your work?
Breanna:
Sure. Around Georgia Tech’s campus, I’m a member of the National Society of Black Engineers. I’m also a mentor for first year minority students. And I’m a part of the black student recruitment team, which is a part of Georgia Tech admissions office.
I spent a lot of my free time in the lab, like I just mentioned working on my senior capstone project. So, at the end of your four years of college, you got to take everything that you’ve learned and put it into a device and actually create something. So that’s what I do when I’m not in class.
And if I ever find any other free time, I enjoy basketball and drawing, and binge-watching things on Netflix. So, yeah, that’s a little bit about me outside of school.
Victoria:
(How long did it take to build Perseverance?)
Awesome. Thank you.
Okay. Well, our first question we’re going to start off, the students have a bunch of questions, all about Perseverance. So the first question comes from Jude. How long did it take to build Perseverance?
Breanna:
So I believe the development of the idea “let’s send something to Mars, let’s bring back samples” started in 2013, and then they started actually building Perseverance in 2016, and then it launched in 2020. So it took about four years to actually build and then get it ready to launch. So.
Victoria:
(How long will Perseverance operate?)
Wow. Awesome.
And a good follow-up to that from the whole class, all of Mr. R’s fourth graders, how long will Perseverance operate?
Breanna:
So the mission is set for one more year, which is 687 Earth days, which is about two Earth years. So the mission is supposed to go on until about 2023, but it could go a lot longer than that, but that’s how long the actual mission is set to go on for.
Victoria:
Okay. Wow. So four years to build and two years to operate or more.
Breanna:
Yes, or more, yes.
Victoria:
(What can we learn from the microphone on the rover?)
That’s so cool.
All right. And then this is a question from Ethan, Dr. Ethan Tsai, who was actually a previous guest on the podcast. His episode was all about beer science.
Breanna:
Cool!
Victoria:
Yes. His question is what can we learn from the microphone on the rover?
Breanna:
So Perseverance has two microphone. One is for engineering analysis and public engagement. So it was, I think the goal was to have that do analysis during entry, descent, and landing in Mars. And then the second microphone is a part of, one of the science instruments on the rover. So one of the instruments has a laser that can zap rocks and the microphone can hear how the rock breaks apart. And that’s important for scientists to understand more about the geology of Mars and the rocks and how they formed and things like that. So those are the two main purposes for those microphones on Perseverance.
Victoria:
Oh, that is so cool. I’m a geologist. And so just thinking about hearing a rock break on Mars is really cool.
Breanna:
So hopefully they get a lot of really interesting things back from that mic.
Victoria:
Yeah. And is that sent back in like real time or is it like batched recordings that are sent back?
Breanna:
No, I’m not sure, but I don’t think it’s real time.
Victoria:
(When the rocket takes off to bring samples back to Earth, will it damage Perseverance? When will it head back to Earth? How long will it take to get here?)
Okay. Cool.
All right. And then this is a good question speaking of the samples from Vienna. When the rocket takes off to bring samples back to Earth, will it damage Perseverance? When will it head back to Earth? And how long will it take to get here?
Breanna:
So I don’t believe that the sample coming back will damage Perseverance, because the way that the return mission is set up, there’s going to be a landed mission, which was going to go, and first Perseverance will collect those samples and it would deposit them in whatever area scientists the operators choose, and then Perseverance, you know, drive the way he does his own thing. And when that land mission comes, it will retrieve those samples from the deposit areas, put them on a rocket, shoot them back into space, and then it will give those samples to an orbiter, which will then send them back to Earth.
And so I think that the return mission starts in 2026, if I’m not mistaken, but it’s estimated that we’ll get samples back around 2031. So it’ll take, take a minute, but hopefully when we get them back, we’ll be able to learn a lot of really cool things for future missions.
Victoria:
(When did they invent the first rover? What other equipment is on Perseverance?)
Oh wow. Oh, that’s so cool.
All right. This next question comes from Alice. When did they invent the first rover and what other equipment is on Perseverance?
Breanna:
Okay. So the first rover to successfully deploy on Mars, I believe was Sojourner in 1996, the thing that was the first successful one.
And Perseverance has so many instruments and microphones and cameras, I think there’s like 20 cameras on Perseverance. Yeah, a lot.
And, I think about seven instruments, but some of my favorite instruments that I got to do a little bit of research on during my internship was there’s an instrument that is going to be demonstrating whether or not we can make oxygen from the atmosphere on Mars, which will be super important for future human missions.
There’s also a set of sensors that can tell us more about the weather. So things like temperature, winds, humidity, so we’ll be able to learn about those things as well.
There’s also, x-rays on Perseverance that can look at the rocks. And like I mentioned, there’s a laser that can zap the rocks and we can listen to how they break apart.
And so, yeah, there’s a lot of instruments on Perseverance that do a lot of really cool things.
Victoria:
Oh my goodness. Oh, that is so cool.
Breanna:
Yes. Yes. It’s even cooler to read about and just see how many things that could fit on this rover and then send to Mars, this is crazy.
Victoria:
Yeah. Oh man. Yeah. I’m like picturing the pictures that I’ve seen of Perseverance and it’s like, how is all of that in the, just in the one rover.
Breanna:
Right, right. Very great engineering team that came up with that genius idea and all of these instruments and payloads. So yeah, it’s really, really cool.
Victoria:
(How do the extreme temperatures affect Perseverance? How did the rover and helicopter get their names?)
Wow. Oh my gosh.
All right. And the next question comes from Ella. How do the extreme temperatures affect Perseverance? How did the rover and helicopter get their names?
Breanna:
The extent of what I know about the protection of extreme, the protection of the rover from extreme temperatures is all the electronics and the brain of the rover, the things that make the rover work are in what’s called a warm electronic box, which is basically the body of the rover and it’s temperature controlled. So it makes sure things doesn’t get too hot, things don’t get too cold. So that’s how they protect the electronics.
And Perseverance and the helicopter Ingenuity got their names from actually two students who won a contest to name them. So maybe one day you too can name one of the amazing instruments, rovers that we sent into space. So they won a contest and they got to name them.
Victoria:
Awesome!
Breanna:
Yes, really cool. And they chose really fitting names, Perseverance, which launched during the national pandemic. That’s very fitting.
Victoria:
(Will information from Perseverance be useful for putting a base on Mars? How?)
Yeah. It is. Awesome.
All right. And now we have another question from Ethan. Will information from Perseverance be useful for putting a base on Mars? How?
Breanna:
So Perseverance is addressing science goals that include, of course, searching for signs of past life on Mars, trying to characterize the Martian climate and geology, and collecting the samples to return to Earth. So all of the knowledge that we’ll gain from those three goals, along with other demonstrations that Perseverance is doing, like trying to see if we can create oxygen from Martian atmosphere will be useful for future Mars missions and us understanding if we can be on Mars for long periods of time. And especially the demonstration of trying to see if we can create oxygen is very important because not only can it be used for, you know, humans breathing, but also propellant for rockets.
And so I think. All of those things combined will give us enough information and a starting point to start looking into how can we put a base on Mars, how can we put humans on Mars long-term. So hopefully all of the information will push us in that direction.
Victoria:
(What can kids do to help the Mars mission?)
Cool.
All right. And then this question comes from the whole class, all the fourth graders. What can kids do to help the Mars mission?
Breanna:
Well, I think you guys can stay interested in the Mars missions and follow NASA, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory on social media, and keep up with all the cool things Perseverance is doing. I know I follow them on Instagram and I’m following the tests that they’re starting to do with Ingenuity, the helicopter, watching the blade spin, and they’re getting ready to start, testing that. So make sure you keep up and stay engaged with the mission.
And I will also say if you want to help with future space exploration, to stay interested in STEM and pursue careers that can help you, that can help us make future missions possible. So.
Victoria:
Awesome. Wonderful. Yeah. I follow the Twitter account for Perseverance and it’s very fun, Very witty. Very funny
Breanna:
Very funny to see. Like the pictures we’re getting back from Mars, tests that they’re running. It’s so exciting to see.
Victoria:
(What happens if we find signs of past life on Mars? What does that tell us about life on our planet?)
Yeah. All right.
Now we’ve got a couple of questions just generally about Mars and not about rovers, but just Mars itself. So this first question in that category comes from Ethan. What happens if we find signs of past life on Mars? What does that tell us about life on our planet?
Breanna:
Oh man. So I think, well, the first thing it will mean is that we’re not the only living creatures in the universe, which then takes me to all the space movies that I had to sit and watch with my mom who loves space so much. And just to think that we’re not only living things here is crazy to think about.
But also it would mean that if life was once on Mars, then there’s a possibility that there could be a connection between life on Mars and life on Earth. So then we could, scientists could start to think about how Earth and Mars became so different. When did they become so different? How did things evolve on Earth the way that they did and things not on Mars? So I think it would push our scientists into thinking in those directions.
Victoria:
(Did you like the movie “The Martian?” Is it very realistic about Mars?)
Wow. Awesome. And speaking of space movies, like you mentioned, this next question is from all of the fourth graders. Did you like the movie “The Martian”? Is it very realistic about Mars?
Breanna:
Oh man. So unfortunately, I have not seen The Martian. I’m not a big, big movie watcher. But when I do, they’re more superhero movies, so I haven’t seen The Martian, but now I feel like I should watch it to see if there’s anything, you know, that could possibly be true about Mars if we’re getting all this information back. So I’ll have to put that on my movie watch list.
Victoria:
Yeah, it’s pretty good. The book is better than the movie, I think. and the book gets into like a little bit more of the science, like it talks about ways that he gets oxygen and, you know, reactions that he uses.
Breanna:
Okay. That’s good to know. Typically, the books are better than the movie.
Victoria:
(Could we ever live on Mars?)
Yeah.
All right. And then another Mars question here from Victoria, great name, not me Victoria, student Victoria. Could we ever live on Mars?
Breanna:
Oh, wow. You know, I think that is the point of this mission and future missions, is to learn enough about Mars, to see if it could ever be habitable for humans. So by collecting these samples and learning about the geology, the weather, will be able to tell if humans could possibly be on Mars for long periods of time. So I think this is the first step to actually answering that question accurately. So hopefully we’ll know at some time.
Victoria:
Oh, my goodness. That is cool. That is very awesome that this is, you know, a question that we’re answering instead of just thinking about.
Breanna:
Right. So I guess the next part to that question is, are people willing to go on and live on Mars? That’ll be interesting to see how that happens if it does happen in the future. So.
Victoria:
Yeah, that would be, Ooh, that’d be tough. It’d be cool to get Mars, but. Yeah.
Breanna:
Something to think about because you know, space is exciting, but also when you start thinking about actually leaving Earth and traveling to another planet and then living there and what would that look like, and what that means is kind of a different question. So.
Victoria:
(How did you get into NASA? How long did you work on the mission?)
Yeah, definitely. Woo.
All right. Now we have a bunch of questions that are all about you and your career. So the first question in that category comes from Gavin. How did you get into NASA? How long did you work on the mission?
Breanna:
Okay. So, like I mentioned earlier, I’m a member of the National Society of Black Engineers, and every year we have this event where companies come and it’s kind of like speed dating and they rotate around the tables and they talk to us students and, you know, figure out the things we’re working on, what we’re interested in. And I turned in my resume to this event. And one of the recruiters from NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory called me and was interested in my background and the work that I’ve been putting in around tech and that was my introduction to NASA. And then after that, I had to do a lot more research to make sure I knew what I was getting myself into. So that’s how I got into NASA.
And then. So, I came in on the Perseverance project in the testing phase. So when they’re running all the tests and make sure that they build Perseverance correctly, all of the instruments are working, things like that. So I started my internship in May and it ended in August. So I worked on it for about four months.
Victoria:
Awesome.
Breanna:
Yes. As the part of the testing campaign for the mobility parts of the rover. So how well is it moving, autonomous navigation tests, things like that.
Victoria:
Wow. That’s cool.
And what was your role in that? Like, were you collecting data about the tests or like developing things to improve the mobility?
Breanna:
So one of the capabilities of the rover is that someone in the operations room can say, we want Perseverance to travel to this location. And so my job was to check all of the math concerning where that location was, how far the Perseverance has to travel, what angle does it have to turn, and things like that. So I was creating tests to make sure that all of those things were accurate. So that was my role. I was creating tests and getting data back and making sure things were precise and accurate and returning them to my team. So we could discuss.
Victoria:
(What are the math skills that someone needs to work at NASA?)
(How did you get good at math? Do you have any advice for us kids about math and science?)
(What can you say to kids who struggle with math?)
Awesome. And that leads in well to this next set of questions, all about math. So we’ve got a set of three questions that sort of all go together, so I’ll ask them all in one go, and then you can address them with your answer. So the first question comes from Paden. What are the math skills that someone needs to work at NASA? And then Alice wants to know, how did you get good at math? Do you have any advice for us kids about math and science? And then the whole class wants to know what can you say to kids who struggle with math?
Breanna:
Okay. First question. Math skills if someone needs to work in NASA. So I would say that there are a lot of skills, a lot of math skills, especially based on what you choose to study in college that you would need to take with you to NASA. But as you are in middle school in the fourth grade and you go through high school, I would say, you know, you start with algebra and if you can, I would say, try to touch the beginning of the calculus in high school, because that will help you, especially if you choose to go into a STEM field, it will help you in college. So try to touch calculus.
And also if your school has any coding, computer science, computer programming classes, I would say take those as well, because those are also very important. Not just in STEM, I feel like these days, a lot of things are moving towards computer science and coding. So those are important skills to have.
And also, if you want to work at NASA one day, like I mentioned, there’s going to be a lot of additional math skills that you’ll gain from your major of study that you will also take with you. But I would say for now, if you can, you know, do well in algebra, try to get to the calculus, and computer programming classes would be really helpful.
How did I get good at math? And do I have any advice for kids about math and science? So I’ve kind of always had a knack for numbers and problem solving. I was that nerd in school. I was on the Math 24 Team. I don’t know if you guys are familiar with the car game and you have to touch it real fast and make an equation, and then you win the car. I was on the math team. So numbers always kind of came easier to me, but even those things that I struggled, with those concepts that I didn’t understand as easily, I had to practice them. I had to work hard at them to make sure I understood the concept until I could actually apply them to what we were learning in class. So they came easy, but the thing that didn’t, I still had to work hard at to get better at them.
And in terms of advice, I would say that math, even when you guys are starting now, sometimes in my college class, I think about the things I learned in elementary school and how everything just has built on it. Math builds on itself from where you guys are now. So I would say if you’re learning something and you don’t understand it, ask, ask, ask a million questions because what you’re learning now and what you’re going to learn next year and the year after that, it’s just gonna keep building on itself. So if you have a strong foundation, it will be easier for you later to understand some of the more advanced concepts.
So in terms of advice, I would say, ask a million questions, and it’s okay that you do that.
And to kids who struggle with math, was that the third question?
Victoria:
Yep.
Breanna:
Yes, I would first say, be patient with yourself because it is okay if things don’t come as easily to you as they do to others, there’s nothing wrong with that. So be kind to yourself as you’re trying to understand new concepts, because math isn’t always easy.
And I would say, when you’re trying to understand math concepts, try to apply it to things that you see in real life. So sometimes when you’re looking at numbers with no context, it can be hard to understand why this matters, how it makes sense. But when you start to look around, math is everywhere: when you’re paying for your food and you have to get the totals and make sure you have enough money, so they actually give you the food; when you’re playing video games, but you only have enough points to buy a certain upgrade. You know, you see math everywhere, that you are really. So if you can find a way to try to apply the concepts that you learned in any class or something that you see in everyday life that you enjoy, it can be easier to try to understand what’s happening, how it’s happening and how it applies to you. So I would say that’s a tip that also helped me when I was trying to understand those concepts that I struggled with.
Victoria:
Oh, that is awesome. Great advice. I liked that. I Never even thought about the video games and, math is everywhere.
Breanna:
Yes. Thank you. I have a little brother and he used to struggle with math sometimes, and I will have to take him away from the actual paper and the class view of it. And I would have to say, okay, you play video games a lot. Let’s think about how we can apply this to a video game or something that you enjoy. And that way he was able to see it in a different light. So that really helped us in my household, try to understand those concepts.
Victoria:
(Was it hard in high school or college, as a woman of color? Do you have advice for other POC? What do you think young learners should do?)
That’s awesome. I like that.
All right. And this next question comes from Jude. Was it hard in high school or college as a woman of color? Do you have advice for other people of color? And what do you think young learners should do?
Breanna:
Okay. First question, was it hard in high school and college women of color? Not in high school because I went to a majority black high school, so that was not hard at all. But college was a bit of an adjustment period in the beginning, having to adjust to sometimes most times being the only black woman in the classroom or in the lab. So that was a bit of an adjustment period, but I kind of got used to it. And I was also able to find a community here on campus when I needed to see people that looked like me and be encouraged in that way through the African-American student union or the National Society of Black Engineers. So I was able to find a community where I felt comfortable as well. So that helped with the transition from high school to college.
In terms of advice, I would say two things that I’ve actually had to learn throughout my journey in college is, I always say that you belong in every space that you are in. You are not in any space on accident. If you’re there, it’s because you belong there, and your ideas, your thoughts, your opinions are valuable. And don’t be afraid to share them. And never let anyone tell you what you can’t do. Always show people what you can do, and never dim your light for anybody. So always remember that.
And also. something that I’ve picked up along the way is when you’re setting your goals and you’re working hard to achieve them, don’t approach them which you have a lot to prove, approach them which you have a lot to accomplish. So that way you can define what success looks like for you, and you don’t have to depend on anybody else to give you validation for success.
I would say those two things for advice, and I think all learners should ask questions. And I emphasize that because as a straight A student from elementary school to high school and then getting to college where I am no longer a straight A student. And that is okay. Sometimes you have to adjust to not knowing things and being okay with asking questions. Asking questions does not mean you’re incapable, it doesn’t mean that you’ll never understand, it just means that you need additional information to help you understand those concepts and learning. Asking questions is the best way to learn. So ask a million questions is what I would say.
Victoria:
Oh, that is wonderful. I like that. Ask a million questions.
Breanna:
Yes. Yeah. And I sometimes, you know, in college, we don’t want to ask professor a question, but I had to get out of that habit because they’re there to help me, teachers, professors, everyone is there to help me. And I’m helping them be a better teacher by asking them questions. That’s how I had to start thinking about it.
I also want to say to never be afraid to explore your interests. Because for a long time in middle school, because I didn’t see anyone that looked like me as an engineer, I thought it was something that I couldn’t pursue. I thought it was something that I couldn’t, it wasn’t an attainable goal for me. But I want all young learners to know, to never be afraid to explore your interests. Even if you don’t see people that look like you doing it, even if your friends aren’t doing it, it’s okay for you to be the first, if it’s something that you’re interested in. So never be afraid to explore your interest because you never know where they’re taking you. So.
Victoria:
Oh, that’s wonderful advice.
Breanna:
Yes.
Victoria:
(Did you like working with NASA? Were there other POC there? Were there other women?)
I like that. And then this next question is from Wade. Did you like working with NASA? Were there other people of color there? Were there other women?
Breanna:
Oh, I absolutely loved working the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. I learned so much, I met so many incredible people. My mentor was one of them, Richard Rieber. I always say his name because he was so fantastic to me and helping me just adjust and learn and complete my project. So I absolutely love working with NASA.
There were other people of color there and there were other women. And my team was, I think almost 50% women. I attended speaker series hosted by women, they have employee resource groups, which are just communities of people who identify as a woman, African American, native American. So there’s a space for everybody. And I really believe that NASA does value diversity and they don’t just say it, but they actually implement things and put that into action. So I love working for NASA.
And yes, innovation, creativity, science. It doesn’t have a look. It doesn’t have a color. It doesn’t have. There are no guidelines. If it’s something that you want to do, always go forward.
Victoria:
(What was or is the hardest and best parts about your work at NASA?)
Oh, that’s awesome. That’s really good to hear.
We’ve got a couple of other questions here coming up about your experience. Ella wants to know what was or is the hardest and best parts about your work at NASA?
Breanna:
Oh, the hardest part would probably have to be the learning curve. So like I mentioned, I came in during testing, so I had to learn, first of all, I had to learn JPL in general, all the vocabulary, what they did, then I had to learn about Perseverance in general, what his goals were, just a brief overview of how it was built. And then I was able to zone in on my specific part of the project, which was mobility. And then I had to learn how to use the tools and the software. So it was a lot to learn in order to be able to do my project. So the first month of my internship was just me reading documents and asking questions. So that was probably the hardest part. And I had to learn like a new set of math to complete my project. So all the learning was a lot of fun, but that was the hardest part.
And the best part about working at NASA, again, I have to say was the people. So many wonderful people that I met just, and they were so willing to share with me their experience and they helped me become a better engineer just in those four months, a better engineer and a better person. So I’m forever grateful for my experience at NASA.
Victoria:
(When you were in 4th grade did you like to do experiments? Did you have school science fairs when you were young, like we do? When did you know you loved science? What are your favorite parts of science?)
Oh, that’s wonderful.
All right, this next question, or this is another set of a couple of questions that all come from Sari. When you were in fourth grade, did you like to do experiments? Did you have school science fairs when you were young, like we do? When did you know you loved science? And what are your favorite parts of science?
Breanna:
So, yes, we had science fair. I think our started third grade and we had to do it every year until 10th grade of high school. So in the beginning I didn’t enjoy it as much because someone picked the topic for us. But when I was able to start picking my own topics, I enjoyed it a little bit more. Something I always wanted to do that I never got to do was deal one of the volcanoes that you see in the movie, I always wanted to do that never got to. So you have a chance to do that, I think that’d be pretty cool. But yes, there’s science fair every year.
And when I was younger, I was really into taking things apart. So that was kind of my clue on, I wanted to be an engineer. I remember one Christmas I got in trouble for taking apart a perfectly good laptop. I did want it to see what was in it, how it works. I would take apart TV if I could find them. Anything that I could get my hands on that had something on the inside of it that made it work, I was trying to take it apart. And that was around fourth or fifth grade, I would say. Yeah, fourth of fifth grade. So that was when I discovered my interest in STEM that along with watching the movie that I made, which is my favorite superhero, and I found out he was an engineer and I was like, yes, me too. So that was all around fourth, fifth grade that I realized that I wanted to be in STEM.
Victoria:
Oh, that’s awesome. I love that. That kind of goes along with your ask a million questions, you know, like you can ask questions of laptops and TVs instead of a person.
Breanna:
Yes, yes. Seeing a circuit board was my, in my mind, the thing that clicked like, yes, I want to be whatever type of engineer understands all of this. So actually taking those things apart and being hands-on with my exploration of my interests was how I discovered what kind of engineer I wanted to be, because engineering is very broad, so many different kinds. So that was helpful to me and trying to figure out what part of engineering I wanted to be in.
Victoria:
(What do NASA people do for fun?)
Awesome.
All right. And we’ve got another question from the whole class, all of the fourth graders, and this is kind of a fun question. What do NASA people do for fun?
Breanna:
Oh, man. So a lot of them are really into hiking because there’s trails and mountains behind JPL. And so they, every time we’ve come back from the weekend and everyone talks about what they did over the weekend, a lot of them went hiking or they were planting things outside. Really just enjoying the California weather, which I can’t blame them because they had really nice weather over the summer. So they do a lot of outside things.
And also Halloween is really big at JPL. I didn’t get to experience this, but I heard the stories about it. They always build the most insane robotic jack-o-lanterns and projects. And they do like a whole thing on Halloween.
So they’re really into Halloween and they’re really into enjoying the outside and nature and hiking and things like that.
Victoria:
Ah, that’s so fun!
Breanna:
Yes, it’s really cool. Hearing the stories, I wish that I would have had like some time in October to be there so I could see all of the really cool things they do, but I thought it was really interesting.
Victoria:
Yeah. That would have been cool to see. Maybe this upcoming Halloween they’ll need you to hop on a project or something that you can.
Breanna:
Possibly. Possibly.
Victoria:
(What are you going to do next?)
And speaking of upcoming things, this last question for you comes from all the fourth graders. What are you going to do next?
Breanna:
That’s a great question. I plan to graduate in December, so I have one more semester of school. And then I would actually like to get my master’s in electrical engineering, hopefully in the spring. So academic wise, that’s what I’m planning to do.
And this summer, I actually have an opportunity to explore my interests in healthcare technology. So I’ll be interning with General Electric Healthcare and hopefully doing some circuit design on MRIs and their medical devices and things like that. So I’m super excited about it.
Victoria:
Wow. That’s so cool. And that just shows there’s so many applications for electrical engineering, right? Like you, you know, you work at NASA and now you do healthcare.
Breanna:
Yes. So many applications. And that’s also another reason why I chose electrical engineering because pretty much everyone needs you to build a circuit for them. Something that can model a real-life behavior. So anywhere I want it to go, whether it’s NASA or defense or medical technology, there’s a space for it. So
Victoria:
Wow. That’s super cool.
Breanna:
Thank you.
Victoria:
All right. And that’s all of our questions from the students, but I do have one more question for you. And that is, do you have any questions for the students?
Breanna:
Oh yes, actually I do. I would want to know if you guys, if there is a chance that a base could be built on Mars and humans could go. I want to know if you guys would go and live on Mars.
Victoria:
Ooh, that’s a good question.
Breanna:
Yes.
Victoria:
I will put a link to your LinkedIn in the description of the episode, so the students can reach you there.
Breanna:
Yes. Cool. Thank you.
Victoria:
Well, thank you so much for being here today. This was awesome talking to you and hearing about the rover and also just hearing about all the applications that electrical engineering has. I’d never thought about that before.
Breanna:
Yeah, this is really, really cool. I actually didn’t think about it either until I started getting into my studies and having to decide what it is I wanted to do with my life. And that’s when I realized that there are so many applications.
But also thank you so much again for having me, I keep saying it, but I am truly, truly grateful and I really appreciate it.
Victoria:
Oh, thank you. Well, I’m grateful for having you on the podcast and appreciate you taking the time to talk to me and answer all the students’ questions.
Breanna:
Absolutely. Absolutely.
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