Project:

Comparing plant DNA barcodes in areas with and without burial sites

Students:

Camille Gauthier, Aurelia Mentzer, Henry Tangney

School:

Saint Ann's School, Brooklyn

Mentors:

Nicholas Harbison

Abstract:

Cemeteries take up quite a bit of land in New York City, but we have not found a lot of research on how they affect plant life. We aim to look at the difference between plants growing in cemeteries versus parks. We plan to sample plant life from both cemeteries and parks, taking particular note of areas with headstones. Eventually, we hope to shed light on the effects of different environments on the biodiversity of our city.

Poster:

Team samples: