Brandeis Magazine

Winter 2024/2025

Angle of View

Laser Show

Fiona Stewart working in a dark lab.
Photo Credit: Dan Holmes

Fiona Stewart ’25, a Gordon Science Research Fellow, has spent many happy hours in a dimly lit bio lab, hunched over a high-powered laser. Her goal? To better understand how the genetic machinery inside E. coli bacteria responds to environmental stimuli, research that forms the basis of her senior thesis.

Throughout her time at Brandeis, Stewart has been part of the university’s Quantitative Biology Research Community, a program that lets undergraduates dive into real-world scientific research as soon as they arrive on campus.

“When you focus in on one small area of science,” she says, “you get exposed to a whole treasure trove of information, and you never know what you’re going to find that excites you.”

Stewart also stays focused on the big picture: She’s applying for national fellowships that will enable her to study bioinformatics and pursue sequencing research next year — a prelude to medical school.

Fiona Stewart working in the lab.
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WATCH: Meet Fiona Stewart ’25 as she shares her groundbreaking research journey in the field of molecular biology and biochemistry.