Ciara Lynton poses with her summer project

Ciara Lynton at JPL

Ciara Lynton is no stranger to the limelight. The 19-year-old electrical engineering major has been featured in a number of magazines for her academic and leadership accomplishments. So it was no surprise that she soared, arms first, into her internship at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. With a team of three other interns, Lynton is working with a highly innovative and cutting-edge contraption: the BioSleeve.

"The BioSleeve is a gesture-based interface that will be used to translate muscle movement and activity into robot control," Lynton said. "We want to use the BioSleeve to be able to control robots and prosthetic limbs." Her team is hopeful that the apparatus will be used by astronauts in the near future. As of now, Lynton is making significant strides in assisting the development of the innovative mechanism, working on system integration and hardware design. 

Lynton will soon start her junior year at Morgan State University in Baltimore. Although a number of factors lead her into the electrical engineering field, Lynton says her love of electronics and computers was the driving force. "And I get to make a difference," she said.

Lynton's inquisitive nature was unveiled at the tender age of six when she disassembled her first computer -- unbeknownst to her mother. "Growing up, I would always play 'Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego' and 'Reader Rabbit,' so I really wanted to know the makeup of the computer and how it operated," said Lynton, who was born and raised in Baltimore. She reassembled the computer after her careful assessment, and it still worked. "My mom was not the happiest, but that's when she knew," said Lynton of her tech-savvy capabilities.

Lynton is a recipient of NASA's Minority University Research and Education Program fellowship, which provides academic stipends and internships to underrepresented students completing undergraduate degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields in an effort to diversify the STEM workforce. "The most challenging obstacle I had to face was getting the scholarship because there was a lot of competition," said Lynton. Her effort came to avail when she received an email from her mentor, Christopher Assad, asking if she would like to participate in a once-in-a-lifetime internship opportunity with JPL's Mobility and Robotic Systems group. "I really like NASA and robotics, so I was like, 'Yea!'" she said.

This isn't Lynton's first time venturing into unknown terrains. Last summer, she participated in a cyber-security internship offered through her school's research lab. And she has her sights set on exploring even more places her major might take her. "I try to do a different [internship] each year -- get as much exposure as I can before I have to lock down a specific interest for graduate school," she said.

For now, the summer intern is thoroughly enjoying her experience at JPL, "Working with the BioSleeve is really rewarding, plus everybody here is really friendly and the environment is very laid back."

TAGS: Women in STEM, Electrical Engineering, BioSleeve, Robotics, Morgan State University, Women in STEM, Black History Month

  • Alexis Drake
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