BioNews

BioNews is the Department of Biology's bi-annual newsletter featuring profiles and articles on Biology's people and programs.  View past and current issues below.

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Fall 2009 BioNews       Spring 2009 BioNews         

Fall 2008 BioNews       Spring 2008 BioNews        

Fall 2007 BioNews        Spring 2007 BioNews     Fall 2006 BioNews 

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 Bio Bulletin

March 11, 2014

To subscribe to the Bio Bulletin (sent Tuesdays) or send announcements (submission deadline:  Monday, 5:00 p.m.):  email silver@sfsu.edu

DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGY NEWS AND EVENTS 

Dr. Vance Vredenburg and alumna Tina Chen (MS Ecology & Systemataic Biology 2011) were interviewed for a High Country News article "Crisis Biology:  Can Bacteria Save Bats and Frogs from Deadly Diseases?"  Congratulations Dr. Vredenburg and Tina!

Undergraduate Physiology major Pingdewinde Sam was awarded a Miami Project Summer Student Fellowship funded by the National Institutes of Health.  Congratulations Pingdewinde!

Research Professor Gerdi Weidner's research shows that patients waiting for a heart transplant increase their chance of survival by staying active physically and psychologially.  To learn more, visit:  http://medicalxpress.com/news/2014-03-donor-heart-motion-prolongs-survival.html

Graduate Ecology & Conservation Biology major Jonathan Young (Vredenburg Lab) was interviewed for a San Francisco Chronicle article "Part of S.F. Mountain Lake Being Returned to Wetland."  To read the article, visit:  http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Part-of-S-F-Mountain-Lake-being-returned-to-5292072.php#photo-5980627  Congratulations Jonathan!

Romberg Tiburon Center's Rosenberg Institute Seminar Series presents "New Insights into the Anatomy, Evolution and Biology of Baleen Whales" by Dr. Annalisa Berta (San Diego State University), 3:30-5:00 p.m., March 12, Bay Conference Center.  To view upcoming seminar speakers and titles, visit:  www.rtc.sfsu.edu/seminar/index.htm  Everyone is welcomed.

Inaugural Rosenberg Institute Public Forum presents "MarineGEO:  Taking the Pulse of the Coastal Ocean" by J. Duffy (Tennenbaum Marine Observatories), April 2, RTC Bay Conference Center, 6:00 p.m. reception, 7:00 p.m. lecture.  RSVP to erin70@sfsu.edu or call:  415-338-3757 by March 26 required.  Everyone is welcomed.

Lecturers Heather Murdock will lead a biodiversity tour of Australia and New Zealand in June 2015 and Amber Johnson will lead a cultural tour of Spain in May 2015 through EF College Study Tours.  Students, faculty, staff, family and friends are all welcomed to join.  Enroll by March 31 and receive $100 off the regular enrollment fee.  For more information, email:  hgmurdock@yahoo.com (for Australia/New Zealand) or briesach@sfsu.edu (for Spain).

SF State's 2014 Sneak Preview Day (an Open House for prospective freshman and their parents) is scheduled for April 5.  This year, Department of Biology faculty and students will interact with prospective students at the Department of Biology information table in HH 245 (9:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.) and through open lab activities (11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.) We are asking for student volunteers to participate at the Information Table and/or in the open labs.  If you are working on a research project, please consider sharing your research with our prospective freshmen.  For more information and/or to participate, email Dr. Sally Pasion (pasion@sfsu.edu) by April 1.

Department of Biology presents "Personalized Medicine 7.0:  The Microbiome in Health & Disease," 8:00 a.m.-7:30 p.m., May 22.  For more information, email:  dnamed@sfsu.edu 

ALUMNI NEWS

Richard Kriebel (MA Ecology & Systematic Biology 2008) is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the University of Wisconsin's Department of Botany.

Juniper Scribner (MS Physiology & Behavioral Biology 2005) is an Associate Scientist researching cancer and autoimmune diseases at MacroGenics.

COLLEGE OF SCIENCE & ENGINEERING/SF STATE/CSU NEWS

Your help is needed!  SF State's Cesar E. Chavez Institute is conducting a campus-wide survey of undergraduates to better understand their views on campus programs & activities, class registration, mentoring, student diversity, and college affordability.  Your opinions matter.   Watch for a survey coming soon to your email inbox.  (Posted 3/4) 

Graduate Research and Creative Works Showcase, April 24.

ACADEMIC, RESEARCH, INTERNSHIP, AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES 

DANTA offers summer field courses in tropical biology and conservation in Costa Rica.  For more information, visit:  www.DANTA.info (Posted 2/25)

Broadreach offers summer and winter short-term study abroad trips to Costa Rica, Nicaragua, the Caribbean, British Columbia and Fiji.  For more information, visit:  www.broadreachcollege.com or email:  jill@gobroadreach.com (Posted 2/25)

University of Helsinki Institute of Biotechnology offers Ph.D. in Evolutionary Biology, Developmental Biology and Systems Biology.  For more information, visit:  http://www.biocenter.helsinki.fi/bi/evodevo/group_isaac.shtml  (Posted 2/18)

Ecology Action, an agricultural development nonprofit organization, offers summer internships in Grow Biointensive Sustainable Mini-Farming in Northern California.  Application deadline:  March 14.  For more information, visit:  http://growbiointensive.org/SummerInternship/index.html

NASA Ames Research Center offers undergraduate Space Life Sciences Training Program.  Must be a U.S. citizen with a 3.2 GPA or better.  Application deadline:  March 15.  For more information, visit:  http://spacebiosciences.arc.nasa.gov/slstp, http://spacebiosciences.arc.nasa.gov/media/SLSTPFS_10-30-13.pdf or email:  kristina.gibbs@nasa.gov

Science Under Sail offers summer student expedition to Bahamas.  Application deadline:  March 20.  For more information, email:  info@scienceundersail.com 

University of Maryland School of Public Health offers Summer Training and Research (STAR) Program for under-represented minority sophomore or junior with a 3.0 GPA or better and a goal to pursue a Ph.d. in biomedical or bio-behavioral sciences.  $4K stipend and lodging provided.  Application deadline:  March 21.  For more information, visit:  http://www.sph.umd.edu/KNES/Star/index.html 

Missouri Botanical Garden offers summer Research Experience for Undergraduates.  $500/week stipend, lodging, meals and research expense reimbursement provided.  Application deadline:  March 30.  For more information, email:  reu@mobot.org 

Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute offers summer Research Experience for Undergraduates.  $5K stipend, airfare, housing and food allowance provided.  Application deadline:  March 30.  For more information, visit:  http://www.stri.si.edu/reu/english/ or email:  strireu@si.edu 

UC Berkeley presents 8-week course "Biology and Geomorphology of Tropical Islands," Moorea.  Cost:  $4,800 includes lodging, food and class fees.  Application deadline:  March 31.  For more informatin, visit:  http://ib.berkeley.edu/moorea/ or email:  bmishler@berkeley.edu or stillmaj@sfsu.edu 

Marine Environmental Research Institute (Maine) offers Coastal Monitoring Internships.  Full-time 8-month position.  BS/BA or MS degree in marine ecology or related field required.  Stipend and shared housing provided.  Application deadline:  April 1.  For more information, email (type "Coastal Monitoring Internship" in subject line):  abarrows@meriresearch.org 

International Field Program in the Biological Sciences offers BIOL 399 "The Biology of Icelandic Fishes" at Holar University College, Iceland.  Program cost:  $2,500 (includes tuition, airfare, meals and lodging); scholarship support is available.  Application deadline:  April 1.  For more information, email:  eewilliams@salisbury.edu or bnstiegler@salisbury.edu, call:  410-548-2062 or visit:  www.salisbury.edu/intled/StudyAbroad/default.asp

UCSF School of Pharmacy is accepting applications for Interprofessional Health Post-Baccalaureate Certificate Program.  Application deadline:  April 6.  For more information, contact Danielle Larsen, email:  larsend@pharmacy.ucsf.edu, call 415-476-8026 or visit:  http://pharmacy.ucsf.edu/pharmd/prospectivestudents/program/postbacc/

Marine Evolutionary Ecology Group (Australia) offers Ph.D. in evolutionary ecology of sessile marine invertebrates.  $25K AUD/year stipend included.  Application deadline: April 15.   For more information, email:  dustin.marshall@monash.edu or visit:  http://meeg.org/2014/01/06/phd-position-open-the-evolutionary-ecology-of-sessile-marine-invertebrates

FUNDING:  FELLOWSHIPS, SCHOLARSHIPS, AWARDS

CSUPERB Student Travel Grant offered for travel to biotechnology-related professional meetings/workshops or to collect biotechnology-related data at shared instrumentation facilities or specialized research sites.  Proposal deadline:  March 17.  For more information, visit:  http://www.calstate.edu/csuperb/grants/student-travel-program/

Chicana/Latina Foundation offers scholarships for undergraduate and graduate students. Application deadline:  March 17.  For more information, visit:  http://chicanalatina.org 

American Association of State Colleges and Universities offeres Chinese Government Scholarships ($10K) for undergraduates who want to study at a Chinese university duirng the 2014-2015 academic year.  Application deadline:  March 24.  For more information, visit:  http://www.aascu.org/programs/internationaleducation/chinascholarship/ or email:  jacksona@aascu.org or sufeili@yahoo.com 

Zoological Society of London's EDGE of Existence program fellowship application deadline:  March 31.  For more information, email:  olivia.couchman@zsl.org 

Marin Chapter of the California Native Plant Society offers scholarships for undergraduate and graduate students research plant systematics ecology, physiology, community restoration or other related botanical studies.  Application deadline:  April 1.  For more information, visit:  www.marin.edu/cnps/

Marine Technology Society (MTS) offers scholarships for students interested in marine engineering, marine technology and the oceans.  Must be a full time college student and MTS member (visit:  https://mtsociety.org/membership/new/add.aspx)  Application deadline:  April 15.  For more information, email:  suzanne.voelker@mtsociety.org, tel:  202-717-8705 ext. 102. 

EVENTS:  SCIENTIFIC, COMMUNITY AND SF STATE STUDENT CLUBS 

SF State's American Medical Student Association presents "MCAT Strategy Session," 6:00 p.m., March 13, HH 501.  For more information about leadership and volunteer opportunities, email:  sfsu.amsa@gmail.com 

SF State's Graduate Student Research Colloquium presents "The Amphibian Skin Microbiome in Health and Disease" by Ecology, Evolution & Conservation Biology major Silas Ellison (Vredenburg Lab) and "The Effects of Avian Haemosporidia on Song in Nuttall's White-Crowned Sparrow (Zonotrihia leucophrys nuttali)" by Ecology, Evolution & Conservation Biology major Dena Emmerson (Seghal Lab), 1:00-2:00 p.m., March 21, HH 209.  Open to graduate students only; RSVP to ejlauron@gmail.com required.

Jepson Herbarium presents "Seaweeds of Northern California" by Kathy Miller, May 15-18, Point Arena Field Station.  Fee:  $525 (includes lodging and meals).  Application deadline:  April 4.  For more information, visit:  http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/workshops/2014/regform_2014.html or call 510-643-7008.

UCSF School of Pharmacy presents Pharmacy Information Day, May 31.  Registration deadline:  May 26.  For more information, visit:  http://pharmacy.ucsf.edu/pharmd/prospectivestudents/programs/informationday/

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

SF State's Student Involvement & Career Center offers "Quick Questions," 10:00-11:00 a.m. (Monday-Tuesday) and 2:00-3:00 p.m. (Wednesday-Thursday), Student Service Bldg, Room 206.  Career counselor available for help with cover letters and resumes.  For more information, visit:  www.sfsu.edu/~sicc/

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

UCSF lab seeks volunteer with strong background in molecular biology techniques (PCR, DNA, cloning).  3 days/week, 8 hours/day, 6 month commitment required.  For more information, email CV/resume to nadav.ahituv@ucsf.edu or visit:  http://bts.ucsf.edu/ahituv (Posted 2/25)