Lilli -- Ur, And the Scientific Questions Is......

I just realized I forgot to re-post my entry from last week so Dr. Woodall with my sincere apologies here is my proposal and scientific question as well as my methods and materials. 
For those who are unaware UR in the title refers to "Undergraduate Researcher", which I and many of my fellow students are.

My IRP (Independent Research Project) deals with micro plastics, it was originally just looking at the amount and presence of plastics in the ocean environment however after analyzing some samples I have decided to narrow my search to the IRL (Indian River Lagoon) and more specifically at least one location has been locked down and that is the Canal Street Canal in New Smyrna. Micro Plastics are microscopic particles of plastic that can be found in the marine environment and occur from many sources. Some sources of micro plastics are garbage that gets washed into the ocean from weather events such as hurricanes, as well as those pieces that are simply discarded by people. They break down due to wave and current activity as well as UV radiation and become integrated into the water column where they are eaten by fish and other marine animals and are introduced into the food chain. It is important to note that there are many types of plastics found in the marine environment and my project will focus primarily on micro plastic fibers. For more information please visit Dr. Maya McGuires website here Florida Microplastic Awareness Project.
My original plan was to work with Mallory at the MDC (Marine Discovery Center) to analyze samples that their volunteers had collected, however after some issues with the integrity of the data collections and filtration methods Dr. Woodall and I have decided it would be best for me to filter and analyze my own samples.  Therefore, my current proposal is to collect and analyze samples collected by Dr. Woodall and my fellow classmate and friend Sam Edel for the presence and concentration of micro plastics in the Canal Street Canal. My scientific question which has been revised at the request of Dr. Woodall and is currently "Does micro plastics occur in the Canal Street Canal and if so in what concentration"? The samples are collected using nalgene bottles and stored for analysis at a later time. They are then filtered using a 500 mL beaker, 47mm glass filters 0.45mm pore size and a Fisher Scientific Maximadry Vacuum pump. After the sample is filtered it is analyzed by myself and I take note of the amount of plastic fibers found per mL of water filtered. 

Image of micro plastic after filtering found by Dr. McGuires team.