Christian Vinciquerra, UR; Introduction: Science is in my genes

Hi everyone, my name is Christian Vinciquerra, I was born and raised in Daytona Beach, FL. Growing up five minutes away from multiple water sources, it was hard to stay away. Whether it was socializing on the beach with friends or fishing in the Tomoka River with my dad, there was always some sort of bond between nature and I. Through high school I believed that becoming an architect or engineer was my passion. Winning the county fair for my house plans and designs for miscellaneous technical parts multiple times, I was truly blessed with a great talent. Summer of 2013,really opened my horizons to the science community. I was staying with my aunt and uncle for the summer in the Florida Keys. My uncle working for NOAA in Key West and my aunt working for the county as a marine biologist. Shadowing them for a whole summer snorkeling, kayaking, and fishing was what made me fall in love with the marine life. I concluded the summer deciding to change my intended major to marine science. After graduating high school, I went to Florida Gulf Coast University only attending my freshman year. I came to the decision to transfer to Daytona State College to complete my AA.
Leading into the Summer of 2016, I received my first science based job. I worked for Seacamp Association in Big Pine Key, FL as an aquatics instructor teaching sailing, windsurfing

Sailing out of Newfound Harbor

Left to Right: Nick Castillos' arm,
Dr. Jeff Carrier, Christian Vinciquerra
catching an 8 foot Bull Shark.

and assisting science classes on the local environment. During my contract there, I was on a boat basically everyday and the ocean was my backyard. I had experienced many different types of marine science and environmental studies experiments. Learning the Rules of the Road for handling boats and protecting the organisms within it to reef identification for coral and fish. The most interesting course that I assisted was the shark biology course. I assisted Dr. Jeff Carrier and Nick Castillo. Throughout the course we caught and examined mostly nurse sharks. We caught an 8 foot bull shark, blacktip, lemons, and bonnetheads. We were taught how to tag a shark and assisted Dr. Carrier with some of his research for Mote Marine Laboratories. Working here excited me for my future in the scientific community and opened up my eyes to how much I enjoy captaining a vessel. After I finish my AA at Daytona State I plan to attend a Maritime Academy to further my knowledge and experience working on a boats and ships as well as study and receive a bachelors in marine science. I am extremely excited to receive more hands on experience through Oceanography 1001 lab and conduct my first independent research project.