Amanda Bullert is a Ph.D. student in the Interdisciplinary Neuroscience Graduate Program at the University of Iowa. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in biology at Winona State University in Minnesota and then later worked as a graduate research student employee at the Mayo Clinic’s Neurobiology of Alcoholism and Drug Addiction Laboratory in Rochester, Minn. Her current research focuses on the influence of Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs), a persistent pollutant, on the adolescent brain using a rat model. She is interested in exploring environmental neurotoxicology and how environmental pollutants, toxins, or substances found in our daily surroundings could influence our central nervous systems. Coming from a rural farming background, she was always curious about the neurotoxic effects of agricultural or industrial products. Outside of research, Amanda enjoys gardening, painting, and thrift shopping. In the future, she hopes to work alongside companies to generate more earth and human-friendly products to minimize our exposure to potentially neurotoxic compounds.