Indiana State University PhD Student Ashley Burkett had a large and captive audience last Friday night, all very interested in Ashley’s journeys into the deep deep ocean inside the submersible known as Alvin.  Ashley’s research in the waters off Costa Rica and in other areas of the world’s deepest oceans was fascinating.  She is currently in Australia working at The Australian National University with our friends and colleagues from the Research School of Earth Sciences, noting that she is extremely impressed with the university and particularly in their state-of-the-art equipment.

It wasn’t all hard work, though, with a number of audience members sharing a meal with Ashley after the presentation.

Following that, Ashley was treated to a quick trip around the paddock on a local property so she could see her first (live) wombat!  We hope to see Ashley come back to the area for a longer visit next time.