The PIPS Internship Program concluded the summer 2016 session with impressive briefings from the ten interns. The interns spent the summer crafting and developing their Independent Research Projects (IRPs). Each intern developed their own IRP thesis, and with the guidance of the intern program coordinator and a mentor from the Institute’s academic center, they worked to produce a scholarly paper. Along with their IRP, the interns had the opportunity to interact with Senior Fellows and Board of Regents at the Institute and take part in many events sponsored by PIPS and other organizations. For more information about the internship program or to learn how to apply for the Spring semester click here.
Here are the summer 2016 interns and their IRPs:
Katelyn Shahbazian - “Bioinformatics and the Future of Health Care”
Katelyn Shahbazian is rising junior attending the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. She is studying science and technology in international affairs with a concentration in global health and biotechnology. After graduation, she intends to either pursue a fellowship or travel abroad before attending graduate school in her home state of California.
Brailey Simplican - "Unregulated Subtherapeutic Antibiotic Use in Feed Animals and the Prevention of Antibiotic Resistance Act”
Brailey Simplican is an incoming third-year law student at the University of Oregon. He grew up in Ohio and studied biology and environmental studies at Warren Wilson College before spending 5 years working for the National Park Service, US Forest Service, and various federal land management agencies. He hopes to work as a science-policy advisor at the state level to foster better communication between science and law.
Justine Ferry - "Crafting a Chemical Weapons Strategy”
Justine Ferry is a rising senior studying government at Harvard University. She served as an intern in the Center for Adaptation and Innovation. For her independent research project, she suggested amendments to US weapons of mass destruction strategy to address the threat of chemical weapons.
Kayla Pierle - "The Need for Cybersecurity Reform in America's Healthcare Sector”
Kayla Pierle is a rising senior at Wake Forest University majoring in history and politics and international affairs with a minor in psychology. While at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies she has contributed to research pertaining to the Cyber Readiness Index, analyzing various countries in the G20 in order to determine their cyber readiness. Additionally, she has worked on her individual research project which assesses the American Healthcare sector’s cybersecurity by looking at healthcare provider’s abilities to respond to emerging cyber threats.
Alissa Wang - "Lessons Learned on Coordinating Cyber Policy Through International Agreements”
Alissa Wang is a rising sophomore at Yale University who is prospectively double majoring in global affairs and computer science. She has been working with the Cyber Readiness Index team at Potomac to help countries assess the robustness of their cyber security policies. Her independent research project is a critical analysis of the Budapest and African Union conventions on cyber security, and the lessons they reveal on how to improve international cooperation to establish behavioral norms in cyberspace as well as strengthen global cyber security.
Suzanne McKelvey - "Enhanced Human Operations and Human-Machine Teaming”
Suzie McKelvey is a rising senior at the College of William & Mary studying international relations with a minor in economics. She is an intern for the Center for Adaptation and Innovation at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies. For her independent research project, she is studying human-machine teaming, human enhancements, and applications for the Third Offset Strategy.
Sarah Genovese - "Unmanned Aircraft Systems and US Strategy”
Sarah Genovese is from Stafford, Virginia, and is currently a rising junior at the University of Virginia. At UVA, she double majors in foreign affairs and English, and has been a research assistant for Professor Sechser, a politics professor at the university, since the summer of 2015. This summer, she interned for the Center for Adaptation and Innovation, at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies. The Independent Research Project she created while at the Potomac Institute focuses on US strategy regarding unmanned aircraft systems.
Josh Freeman - "Igniting the 21st Century Gold Rush"
Josh Freeman is a rising junior at Princeton University. He is concentrating in mechanical engineering and is a member of the varsity track and field team. His research at the Potomac Institute has been focused on whether or not the US should invest in a space elevator.
Ilana Newman - "Investigating the United States' Regulation of Genetic Engineering"
Ilana Newman is a rising junior at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut. There, she studies history and environmental Studies. This summer, she is researching and evaluating the United States' regulatory system for genetically engineered animals, specifically through the lens of new genetically engineered mosquitoes proposed to mitigate infectious diseases.
Clarissa Clemm - “Neuroscience in Education”
Clarissa Clemm is a rising junior at Brown University concentrating in cognitive science. This summer, she worked in the Center for Neurotechnology Studies on an Independent Research Project on educational neuroscience. Her other interests include journalism, law, and film.