Student Research with Adrianna Simpson

Adrianna Simpson ’22 is a biology major with minors in biochemistry and honors. She hails from Harker Heights, Texas. In a recent interview, she said “I came to Hardin-Simmons University because I wanted to do research.” Since her first year at HSU, Adrianna has assisted her professors with various research, gaining first-hand experience of what scientific research entails. Earlier this year, she was invited to participate in a conference hosted by the Texas Academy of Science.  

Now in her final year at HSU, Adrianna is conducting her own research. This research is based on canines, including grey wolves, red wolves, and coyotes. “Recently, there have been a lot of hybridizations between red wolves and coyotes. I just discovered that red wolves are not really wolves, but hybrids of wolves and coyotes,” Adrianna explained. She is set to use urine scent-tracking to unravel the mystery behind the attraction of red wolves to coyotes.  

When asked why she decided to pursue this research, Adrianna said “Dr. Wolfram has been a mentor to me throughout my three years at Hardin-Simmons University.” Dr. Wendi Wolfram is an Associate Professor of Biology and began this research while she, herself, was in graduate school. “I have always wanted to conduct my own project, so I agreed to continue this research once she gave it to me,” Adrianna explained.

Adrianna hopes to conclude the research by the end of the semester. 

Adrianna’s plans after graduating include going to veterinary school and continuing to research with Dr. Wolfram. Her advice to other students who intend to focus on research is to “not be scared to fail because research takes trial and error. You just need to put your mind to it, and eventually, you will find what you are passionate about.”