Meet our Egyptian Students

We are really excited to introduce 2 students from Suez Canal Univesity that will be invaluable to our research. They are Hanna Sarhan and Sherif Abdalla and to get to know them better here is a little insight to their interests and hobbies.

 

What are you studying?

Sherif: I am studying Marine Biology.  Specifically I am studying coral reefs, fish biology and fisheries. I am a post-graduate doing my masters in Artificial coral reefs. I am currently reading and preparing for this and in 2 months I will start to collect data in the Red Sea. I am thinking of using Dahab as my study location.

Hanna: I have just graduated from the Marine Biology Department. I like studying Marine behaviour and ecology and I am interest in applied sciences with behavioural ecology. I am interested in the fish behaviour and in particular in species that could be of use to human medicine. My masters project is investigating the hunting strategies within different species of goatfish and bird-mouth wrasses and I am currently working on experimental design and field observation.

Why did you choose Marine Biology?

Sherif: I chose Marine Biology because it is very exciting and it is a varied subject. At Suez Canal University few people study the sciences and this makes Marine Biology a challenge for me which is something I like. I chose Marine Biology also because I like diving and I love finding different species of fish and other un-known creatures. This year I have completed my Open Water Course and I hope to do a Dive Master because this will help me with the Masters.

Hanna: For me I was a good diver and swimmer as a child. At the beginning Marine Biology was the obvious choice for me but quickly I became interested in it. In our college the Marine Biology was not a popular department and hence this was a challenge. There was also the challenge of being female and I was the first female diver to graduate from the department.

What do you hope to get out of this expedition?

Sherif: I hope I can gain more experience diving (free-diving in particular) and snorkelling. Moreover I would like to learn new techniques such as using a quadrat, transect and GPS data-logging. These will be crucial in my Masters Project.

Hanna: For me this experience for 2 reasons. Scientifically for my career it will be beneficial as I will learn new methodologies and aspects of experimental design. In particular the GPS will introduce me to new practises. Another thing I hope to get out of this is to meet new people and network with other people involved in science.

What is your favourite fish and why?

Sherif: My favourite is sharks because their behaviour is still very much unknown and I would like to learn more about its behaviour. I like white and hammer sharks because they are the most dangerous and I would like to see these someday.

Hanna: My favourite fish would be the sea horse. They are monogamy meaning that one female and one male spend their whole lives together. They are also very useful for human medicine and can be used to extract cancer medication.

What job would you ideally like to do after studying?

Sherif: I would like to be a marine biologist after my masters. I would like to work in England or Japan because there is a lot of work being done there that interest me.

Hanna: My ideal job would be to become a marine scientist and behaviour ecology at the Great Barrier Reef in Australian or  anywhere near coral reefs. I would like to make a difference in the world and pass my knowledge onto other people.

What are your hobbies?

Sherif: I like to play computer games on my PS3 especially football games. I like football a lot and support AC Milan and sometimes Real Madrid. I also like reading books about science and currently I am reading about artificial reefs. I like diving and I hope to do more dives in the future.

Hanna: I like swimming and diving. I am a rescue diver and am training for my dive master. I also like biking and am part of a group that organises biking tours from Cairo. We invite people to join us and we are aiming to increase the popularity of biking amongst girls.

What is an interesting fact about yourself?

Sherif: I used to be an actor in films. I starred in 2 short films and 1 play. The films were ‘Waslet Desh’ and ‘Rakset el Moot’. The play was called ‘El helwa Dee’ and was  shown in Suez Canal University’.

Hanna: I can swim backwards when I am snorkelling and diving. I have also broken my ear drum when equalising on a dive.

Who is your favourite scientist?

Sherif: My favourite scientist is Dr. Hamed Goher. He is a very famous Egyptian scientist who was the first to study Marine Science in Egypt and has laid the foundation for research in the Red Sea. I am particularly interested in his work on sea cows and other large marine mammals.
Hanna: My favourite scientist is Benjamin Franklin and also Albert Einstein. Benjamin Franklin famously said ‘“Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.”  He also once said “My advice is to never do tomorrow what you can do today”. These quotes are very meaningful to me and I like to live my life by these principles.       

What is your favourite song?
Sherif: My favourite song is 'My Immortel' by Evensces. I like a lot of rap music and I also listen to a lot of English and Turkish music as well as Egyptian music. My favourite Egyptian singers are Mohamed Mournir and Amr Diab.    
Hanna: I don’t have a favourite song but I love the symphony and quiet music. I would also really like to learn to play the violin.
 

If you could be any animal what would it be?

Sherif: If I could be anything I would be a pit-bull dog. They are very strong and I like to think I have a similar personality.

Hanna: I would be a gazelle or a Chinese tiger. They are very unique and beautiful.