Dara is currently a postdoc research scholar in the Applied Ecology lab in the School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences. Dara’s postdoc project involves the application of a computer vision model to support the management of fisheries using underwater video.
Our Next Lap Around the Sun
by Dara Farrell, Postdoc, USGS Washington Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit
Wandering into the dappled green,
Gazing at burnished skies,
Picturing the days to come
Springing forth as though from
Some unknown fountain.
Savoring colors and possibilities,
Unfurled and rosy,
Blinding in their radiance.
These views are worth remembering.
What I see, even through
The hole in my heart, is satisfying
And sweet; my just desserts.
Churned waters, disturbed sands,
And fiery awnings are all embraced.
They sing to me of voyages
To be taken with spirits unbroken,
Hinting at unexpected,
Untrusted sweetnesses,
And promises that will ring true,
On this, our next lap around the sun.
Dara obtained her Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Washington in Seattle in the summer of 2019 where the focus of her research was underwater acoustics – specifically anthropogenic and background noise characterization. Dara began her university career with a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of the West Indies in Trinidad & Tobago, and went on to complete her master’s degree in Environmental Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign on a Fulbright-LASPAU scholarship. She strives toward a multi-disciplinary approach to measuring, understanding, and solving environmental problems, and uses machine learning, GIS and passive acoustics in her work. She finds great satisfaction in being involved in multi-disciplinary projects that allow her to hone her engineering- and acoustics-related skills. Source: University of Washington