As I conducted research this summer, many different ways of conducting research were introduced to me within both my own project and others. Personally, I learned various forms of art analysis, which helped me to complete evidence towards my thesis. When looking at other’s projects, I also understood more about data analytics and statistics of which I didn’t know before. Learning more on these forms, I hope will become more and more conducive to my research now and in the future. In order to learn more about these types of research, the workshops and breakout rooms during the regular meetings of the Brackenridge fellows helped immensely. Through meeting with others, I was able to learn about them and their projects. For some of my specific needs, I was able to speak to various faculty members for recommended reading, which was very helpful towards my overall understanding of my project. For example, after being giving reading on Hellenistic Culture and Society in Susan Stephens, Seeing Double, by Dr. Coughlan, I was able to contextualize the Hellenistic influence on Egyptians. 

By being able to partake in the Brackenridge fellowship, the peer support became very helpful and interesting. Hearing of the obstacles some of the fellows had through either the group chat or at any of the meetings put my own obstacles into perspective. This, I believe, created a support system within the fellowship. We also were able to learn about each other’s projects and glean not only where the differences took place but also the similarities which helped us to connect, even being in entirely different fields. The different perspectives, of which we all had, allows us to create projects which may connect to a broader field of people. In this fellowship, I felt how the academic field in most of its mediums changes and shifts but has the underlying commonality that aims to teach something new. 

For my next steps, I will work with the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in the Fall. There I will partake in learning how to use their new 3D scanners and then use several of their objects like Ptolemaic coins and figurines of Isis to hopefully further evidence my thesis in a Bachelor of Philosophy. Under this, I also hope to find more objects outside the Carnegie and the Metropolitan museums to further question the idea of masculine and feminine traits and their connection to gender role and identity.