After a smooth trip to Denver and then a road trip with my group brought me to Laramie, Wyoming. My name is Liam Theodorakos a second year Bioengineering student taking part in the Writing Wyoming summer program.

I chose this program to expand my horizons as well as learn more about people and how they interact with the natural world. Learning how to improve my writing was another goal of mine as well as challenging myself with such a unique experience. The dryness and elevations shocked me and how people and animals have adapted is of great fascination to myself.

The first major experience was a group project in which we went into town to observe the people and environment, learning how to make observations and conclusions about the type of people in the town. This was a great experience in how to learn about different cultures even if they are in the same country.

My first major challenge on the experience was a four hour hike looking at the snowy mountain range and the stromatolite fossils that occur at the range. Learning about how the formation occurred and how quickly stromatolites form on a geologic timescale shocked me as they grow inches in hundreds of years. Learning the process of how the cyanobacteria become these rocks was fascinating.

Also along the hike we encountered some marmots and learned that they eat a certain type of plant called cow parsnip that allows them to stop their blood from freezing during hibernation, one of a multitude of adaptations that allow them to live in such a harsh environment.

All together the start of this program has been everything I wished for and I hope I continue to learn more about the people and animals here.