Technology for Biodiversity

Sara Beery (Electrical and Computer Engineering, ’16) is an NSF Graduate Research Fellow at Caltech and part of a team developing technology that could help track and save endangered species. 

“Currently I am working on algorithms that utilize artificial intelligence to extract important information from cameras that biologists put out into the wild,” Beery explains in The Caltech Effect. “The big question that I’m trying to answer with my research here at Cal Tech is how can we create a global model of biodiversity and how it’s changing over time. I would like to create a real-time model of where you can actually find species and where they’re being wiped out and if we actually have that information we can start making important decisions about how to save those species.” 

Profiled while she was an SU student, Beery shared her journey as a nontraditional student, which included years spent as a professional ballerina. 

She also expressed appreciation for the opportunities she had to engage in research as an undergraduate. “Being able to begin research so early in my academic career gave me the experience and confidence necessary to pursue a graduate degree,” she said at the time. “I am excited to take the next step, and I will depend on the values and expertise I developed at SU throughout my future career.”