One of the most valuable things I learned in this class was how cellular structure determines function such as components like the cytoskeleton and proteins such as actin. As a marine biology major, this helped me connect cell biology to how marine organisms move, feed, and survive in their environments. For example, understanding how actin filaments are involved in muscle contraction made it easier to see how fish swim efficiently or how invertebrates carry out movement and feeding. It also helped me understand how environmental stressors such as temperature changes or pollution can disrupt cellular processes and impact entire marine ecosystems. This connects directly to my other coursework where we study organismal biology and environmental interactions. Instead of seeing cell biology as isolated concepts I now understand how cellular mechanisms scale up to affect whole organisms in marine systems. Overall, this class helped me build a stronger foundation for analyzing biological processes in the ocean and think more critically about how microscopic changes can have large ecological impacts.