News Archive

BIOLOGY NEWS ARCHIVE

May 2013

Alumna Brittany Bjelde's (MS Marine Biology 2013) research on the effects of global warming on sea snails was the focus of a Marin Independent Journal article "Tiburon Marine Research Shows Peril Global Warming Brings to Sea Species." 

Graduate Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology majors Erin Flynn and Camille Smith are 2013-2014 ARCS Scholars.

Cell and Molecular Biology major Jennifer Gilbert won Best Undergraduate Poster Presentation award at the Bay Area Worm Meeting at UC Davis.

Marine Biology major Kathryn Danielson received the symbolic investiture of the University Hood on behalf of all graduate students at the Graduate Recognition Ceremony.

April 2013

Dr. Carmen Domingo and Lecturer Tatiane Russo-Tait's new course BIOL 176:  Science and Politics of Stem Cell Biology is SF State's first general education course on stem cell biology, the only undergraduate course dedicated to this field and the focus of a SF State News article "Students Learn the Science, Politics of Stem Cells in New GE Course."  To read the article, visit:  http://news.sfsu.edu/students-learn-science-politics-stem-cells-new-gen-course

Dr. Mike Vasey's work behind the Tom Lantos Tunnels at California's coastal Devil's Slide is the focus of a MercuryNews.com article "Tunnel Champion Mike Vasey to Speak at Pacifica's Earth Day Festival."  To read the article, visit:  http://www.mercurynews.com/top-stories/ci_22989837/tunnel-champion-mike-vasey-speak-at-pacificas-earth

Dr. John Hafernik was named #1 in a listing of the Most Influential Scientists of 2012 by www.bestcollegereviews.org/influential-scientists/

Undergraduate Physiology major Jennifer Chinchilla was awarded a Community Service Learning Student Award for her contributions to the San Francisco community.

Greenhouse Manager Martin Grantham was featured in a SF Gate article "Greenhouse Chief Cares for Classroom Plants."  To read the article, visit:  http://www.sfgate.com/living/article/Greenhouse-chief-cares-for-classroom-plants--4382912.php?t=eb9cf8328d#photo-4364900

Dr. Diana Chu receivd a 3-year National Science Foundation research grant for "RUI:  Defining Structural Features of C. elegans Histone H2A Variants Important for Transcriptional Regulation in Different Cell Types."  The work is a collaboration with Ray Esquerra (Biochemistry) and Geeta Narlikar (UCSF).  To learn more about Dr. Chu's research,visit:  http://news.sfsu.edu/nsf-grant-boosts-research-proteins-affect-fertility

March 2013

Dr. Kimberly Tanner and De Anza College Biology Instructor and alumni Jeff Schinske (M.S. Ecology and Systematic Biology 2007) were featured in an article "A Sense of Community" in the March issue of Nature.  To read the article, visit:  http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v495/n7439/full/nj7439-129a.html 

Physiology major Pingdewinde Sam was the undergraduate winner of the 27th Annual SF State Student Research Competition in the Biological and Agriculatural Sciences.  Ecology and Systematic Biology major Bobby Vogt was the graduate winner.  They will represent SF State at the CSU system-wide competition in Pomona, CA.

February 2013

 Drs. Andy Zink and Vance Vredenburg's research was the focus of a Phys. Org article "Biologists Explore Link between Amphibian Behavior and Deadly Disease."  To learn more, visit:  http://phys.org/news/2013-02-biologists-explore-link-amphibian-behavior.html 

Biology Lecturer Gloria Nusse co-authored "A 37-Year-Old Cold Case Identification Using Novel and Collaborataive Methods" published in the Journal of Forensic Identification.  To read the article, visit:  http://ws.westernu.edu/WesternU-News/docs/JFI-2013-0005.pdf 

Dr. Robert Ramirez was featured in an American Society for Cell Biology iBioMagizine video "How I Became a Scientist."  To learn more, visit:  http://www.ibiomagazine.org/issues/december-2012-issue/robert-ramirez.html 

January 2013

Undergraduate Zoology major Michelle Davis received a Howard Hughes Medical Institute's (HHMI) Exceptional Research Opportunities Program Fellowship to conduct research in the lab of an HHMI professor.

Dr. Gretchen LeBuhn's paper "Avian Body Size Changes and Climate Change:  Warming or Increasing Variability" was in the top 25 most downloaded Global Change Biology articles in 2012.  Her research was also featured in The New York Times article "Counting Vanishing Bees."  To read the article, visit:  http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/01/16/counting-the-vanishing-bee

Drs. Andy Zink and Vance Vredenburg received a Save the Redwoods League Research Grant for their proposal "Communal Nesting among Slender Salamanders (Batrachoseps gregarious) in Giant Sequoia Forests:  Implications for Vectoring Fungal Disease and Mutualistic Bacteria."

Ecology and Systematic Biology major Katherine McLean was awarded the COAST Graduate Student Award for Marine Science Research.

Graduate Marine Biology major Vanessa Guerra presented her poster "Population Genetic Diversity of the Cryptogenic Invasive Ciona intestinalis sp A on the Pacific Coast of America" at the Society of Integrative and Comparative Biology in San Francisco.

Professional Science Master's majors Benny Freistadt, Amanda Chargin and Kacey VanderVorst presented research posters at the CSU Biotechnology Symposium in Anaheim, California.

Dr. Gretchen LeBuhn's United Nations-sponsored study that identifies a method to monitor global bee populations was published in Conservation Biology and in the Eureka Science News.  To learn more, visit:  http://www.sciencecodex.com/biologists_design_method_to_monitor_global_bee_decline-104246

RTC Senior Research Scientist Dr. William Cochlan was interviewed for a Scientific American article "Could Climate Change Boost Toxic Algal Blooms in the Oceans?"  To learn more, visit:  http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=increase-in-harmful-algal-blooms-possible

December 2012

Undergraduate  Physiology major Pingdewinde Sam received a poster award for "CD1 and C57B16 Mice Show Strain and Gender Specific Differences in Behavioral Phenotypes" at the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students, and a travel award to present an abstract at the 2013 Emerging Researchers National Conference in STEM.

Graduate Conservation Biology major Darragh Clancy Received a COAST Travel Award to present her work on the genetics of an aggressive invasive ascidian Didemnum vexillum at the January 2013 Alaska Marine Science Symposium and a SFSU IRA award to further her research.

Dr. William Cochlan presented his ECOHAB research on the toxic reponse of Heterosigma akashiwo in Puget Sound, Washington at the 15th International Conference on Harmful Algae in Changwon, Korea.  In October he presented his work on toxic dinoflagellates responsible for ciguartera fish poisoning at the North Pacific Marine Science Organization in Hiroshima, Japan.

November 2012

Marine Biology graduate student Chris Ikeda presented his research on the effects of light, temperature and nutrient stress on the physiological response of the fish-killing raphidophyte Heterosigma akashiwo at the 15th International Conference on Harmful Algae (Changwon, Korea).  His participation at the conference was funded by scholarships from the International Society for the Study of Harmful Algae and COAST.

Marine Biology graduate student Hayley Carter was selected as a 2013 California Sea Grant Fellow and will work on establishing an ocean acidification panel to inform policy makers on climate change issues impacting coastal and marine environments.

Undergraduate Microbiology major and RISE Scholar Tanisha Saini received a Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students award for her presentation "Characterization of a Taurine Regulatable Promoter in Alphaproteobacteria."

The research of graduate Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology major Rosa Schneider was featured in a Solano Land Trust's magazine article "Science on the Land:  Suisun Thistles get a Helping Hand at Rush Ranch."

Graduate Ecology and Systematic Biology major Evyan Borgnis presented her research on the effects of salinity and competition on native submerged pondweeds (Stuckenia sp.) in the San Francisco Estuary at the Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation meeting in Argentina. 

Ecology major Riley Smith won an undergradaute poster presentation award at the American Indian Science and Engineering Society's national conference in Anchorage, Alaska for "Phylogeography of a Direct Developoing Seastar, Leptasterias aequalis, in Relation to San Francisco Bay Outflow."

Marine Biology major Vanessa Guerra presented her work on Ciona invasion genetics in two hemispheres at the 2012 CERF Conference on the Changing Coastal and Estuarine Environment.  To learn more about Vanessa and her research, visit:  https://sites.google.com/site/rtccohenlab/lab/vanessa-guerra-canedo

Dr. Wim Kimmerer received the Delta Science Program's 2012 Brown-Nichols Science Award in recognition of his outstanding contributions to science in the San Francisco Estuary and watershed.

Physiology graduate major Sara Boles was awarded the College of Science and Engineering Advisory Board Scholarship.

Marine Biology graduate major Tessa Page was awarded the College of Science and Engineering James C. Kelley Scholarship.

October 2012

Dr. John Hafernik presented a TED talk "Flight of the Living Dead."  To listen to the presentation, visit:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWl_1vrSxMc

Dr. Vance Vredenburg was named a Fellow of the California Academy of Sciences in recognition of his research on the impact of an emerging infectious amphibian disease (chytridiomycosis), the phylogeography of amphibians and climate change impact on aquatic food webs.

Kathryn Danielson won best poster prize for "Investigating Advanced Undergraduate Science Students' Conceptions & Misconceptions of Ocean Acidification" and Rachel Dorfman received an Honorable Mention for her poster "Transcriptome Analysis of the Effects of Ocean Acidification and Increased Temperature in the Coccolithophore Emiliania huxley" at the Third International Symposium on the Ocean in a High CO2 World.

Dr. Blake Riggs launched the Biology Undergraduate Mentor Program (BUMP) which partners upper division biology majors with lower division biology majors to promote persistence and success in the major through peer mentoring.  Four pioneering BUMP Mentors were selected from a strong candidate pool:  Chelsie Anderson, Julian Bustamante, Maria Jose Pastor-Infantas and Diego Rivera Gelsinger.

September 2012

Dr. Sarah Cohen's work on an invasive sea squirt, Didemnum vexillum, was featured in an Alaskan public radio (KCAW) news story "Scientists Look for Ways to Kill Sitka Tunicate."  To learn more, visit:  http://www.kcaw.org/2012/09/24/scientists-look-for-ways-to-eradicate/

Dr. Anne Todgham received a National Science Foundation Research in Undergraduate Institutions award for "Synergistic Effects of Ocean Acidification and Warming on Larval Development in Antarctic Fishes."

Dr. Ravinder Sehgal's research on avian malaria was the focus of a PLoS ONE article "Climate Change to Fuel Northern Spread of Avian Malaria."  To read the article, visit:  http://phys.org/news/2012-09-climate-fuel-northern-avaian-malaria.html

Alumna Marilyn Thomas (B.S. Microbiology 2010) was named the Trustee Emeritus Ali C. Razi Scholar for 2012 -- an honor given to the top-scoring recipient of the William Randolph Hearst/CSU Trustee's Award for Outstanding Achievemet.  To learn more, visit:  http://news.sfsu.edu/graduate-student-receives-one-csus-top-honors

The research of Drs. John Hafernik, Andy Zink and Christopher Smith and graduate Ecology and Systematic Biology major Christopher Quock was the focu of a National Geographic Daily News article "Zombie Bees Electronically Enhanced to Help Solve Die-Off Mystery."  To read the article visit:  http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/09/120912-zombie-bees-tagge...

Ecology and Systematic Biology major Tracy Audisio, alumni Joel Ledford (M.S. Ecology and Systematic Biology 2002) and Dr. Charles Griswold (California Academy of Sciences) published "An Extraordinary New Family of Spiders from Caves in the Pacific Northwest."  

Cell and Molecular Biology undergraduate major Angel Ku was profiled in a National Journal article "Education Key to High Attainment among Immigrants" for his participation as a volunteer intern at UCSF researching the treatment and diagnostic tools for epilepsy.  To read the article, visit:  http://www.nationaljournal.com/thenextamerica/education/education-key-to-high-attainment-among-immigrants-20120810

August 2012

Alumna Nicole Munoz (M.S. Physiology and Behavioral Biology 2010) and SF State Professor Andy Zink's research was the focus of a New York Times article "Dueling Earwigs Gain an Edge in Asymmetry."  To read the article, visit:  http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/21/science/dueling-earwigs-find-advantage...

Dr. Karen Crow's research on the American Paddlefish has found that the species duplicated its entire genome about 42 million years ago, adding a twist to research into how fish fins eventually evolved into human limbs.  To learn more, visit:  http://esciencenews.com/articles/2012/08/07/paddlefishs.doubled.genome.may.question.theories.limb.evolution 

Dr. Gretchen LeBuhn and citizen scientists nationwide held a Great Bee Count on August 11 as part of Dr. LeBuhn's "Great Sunflower Project."  To learn more, visit:  http://grist.org/food/critical-buzz-thousands-of-volunteers-count-bees-t...

July 2012

The Department of Biology and Center for Computing for Life Sciences launched a new website:  https://www.zombeewatch.org/ on July 24 as a follow-up to the discovery that the Zombie Fly, Apocephalus borealis, is parasitizing honey bees ini California and possibly other areas of North America.

Dr. Robert Ramirez became the Associate Dean of the College of Science and Engineering.

June 2012

Undergraduate Ecology major Riley Smith (Cohen Lab) was awarded a Fall 2012 Climate Change Scholarship for her work on invertebrate phylogenetics in central California's rocky intertidal zone.

A new species of mushroom named after SpongeBob Squarepants (Spongiforma squarepantsii) and described by Dr. Dennis Desjardin made the 2012 Top Ten New Species List by the International Institute for Species Exploration.  For three years  in a row, Dr. Desjardin's new discoveries have made the Top Ten New Species List (Phallus drewesii in 2010 and Mycena luxaeterna in 2011).  To learn more, visit:  http://species.asu.edu/index

May 2012

The remarkable academic and research career of Biology Instructional Services Facility Supervisor Darleen Franklin was featured online at:  http://www.calstate.edu/sas/eop/success-stories/franklin.shtml She co-authored "A Diversity of Antibiotic-Resistant Staphylococcus spp. in a Public Transportation System" published in Public Health Research Perspectives.

Marine Biology graduate student Brittany Bjelde received the Robert and Noreen Stollberg Scholarship from the SF State University Women's Association.

Ecology and Systematic Biology graduate student Katherine McLean was awarded the Gloria Spencer University Women's Association Scholarship. 

Dr. Barry Rothman was awarded the 2012 Distinguished Faculty Award for Excellence in Service.

Physiology major Armbien Sabillo won 1st place and Cell and Molecular Biology major Trista Rosing won 2nd place in the Biological Sciences category at the 26th Annual CSU Student Research Competition.

April 2012

Dr. Vance Vredenburg's work with a deadly frog fungus was the focus of an April 25 NSF news update "Blood Samples Show Deadly Frog Fungus at Work in the Wild."  To read the update, visit:  http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=123871&WT.mc_id=USNSF-51&WT.mc_ev=click

Ecology and Systematic Biology major Elizabeth Sheets will participate in an advanced course taught by a host of international luminaries in the field of evolution in August in Brazil.

Congratulations to the 2012 Graduate Student Distinguished Achievement Awardees:  Dianna Baldwin, Sarah Blaser, Christina Buck, Tina Christensen, Andrew Core, Adam Harvey, Mina Mostafavi, Rebecca Stubbs and Martha Velez.

Dr. Laura Burrus was awarded a NIH grant to investigate the roles played by an enzyme called Porcupine in vertebrate embryos.  To learn more about her research on the early stages of spinal cord development and her goal to solve a medical mystery, visit:  http://www.sfsu.edu/news/2012/spring/50.html

Julie Miller's (M.S. Ecolog and Systematic Biology 2010) master's thesis "Parental Care Trade-Offs and the Role of Filial Cannibalism in the Marine Earwig, Anisolabis maritima" was published in Animal Behavior.  To learn more, visit:  http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0003347212001212

March 2012

The work of Dr. John Hafernik and Ecology and Systematic Biology graduate student Christopher Quock on the Phorid fly threat to honeybees was the focus of a March 25 San Francisco Chronicle article "Chronicle Hives, SF State Set Trap for Phorid Fly."  To read the article, visit:  http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/03/22/HO291NLBRU.DTL

Graduate Cell and Molecular Biology major Trista Rosing and Physiology major Armbien Sabillo are winners in SF State's Student Research Competition (Biological Sciences).  They will represent SF State at the 26th Annual CSU Student Research Competition in Long Beach, California.

Drs. Bob Patterson and Tom Parker (along with nine Biology alumni and current graduate student, Scott Simono) contributed to the 2nd edition of the Jepson Manual of Vascular Plants of California.  To learn more about their contributions, visit:  http://www.sfsu.edu/~news/2012/spring/33.html

Lecturer Heather Murdock was chosen to lead an educational tour focused on biodiversity and conservation in Costa Rica, June 3-11, 2013.

February 2012

Graduate Microbiology major Jainee Lewis received SF State's Community Service Learning Award for her work as a pioneering leader and mentor in SEPAL's NIH-funded Spectrum Program designed to encourage girls and women of color to seek careers in biomedical science.

January 2012

Dr. Lily Chen and the Professional Science Master's program are the focus of a San Francisco Business Times article "S.F. State Program Links Science, Business."  To read the article visit:  http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/pring-edition/2012/01/20/sf-state-progra-links-science.html

Dr. Ravinder Sehgal received a National Geographic Committee for Research and Exploration grant for his project "Global Climate Change and the Spread of Avian Malaria in Alaska."

Drs. Jonathon Stillman and Nate Miller's article "Neural Thermal Performance in Porcelain Crabs, Genus Petrolisthes" was published in Physiological and Biochemical Zoology.

Alumna Anna Drexler's (M.S. Physiology and Behavioral Biology 2006) research on a malaria-proof mosquito for her Ph.D. (UC Davis) made Time Magazine's "Best Inventions of 2010" list.  She co-authored a paper on malaria parasites (Public Library of Science Pathogens, 2010) that drew international attention.  To learn more, visit:  http://cagardenweb.ucdavis.edu/?blogtag=Anna%20Drexler&blogasset=42184

Drs. John Hafernik and Chris Smith and students Andy Core, Serphina Denault, Jonathan Ivers, Christopher Quock and Travis Siapno co-authored "A New Threat to Honey Bees, the Parasitic Phorid Fly Apocephalus borealis."  Their research attracted interest from both public and science media and is the #1 most viewed article on the PLoS ONE website:  http://www.plosone.org/home.action

Dr. Lily Chen and students from the Professional Science Master's degree program are featured in a SF State News article "First NSF Biotech Fellows Secure Industry Jobs."  To read the article, visit:  http://www.sfsu.edu/news/2012/spring/1.html

December 2011

Lecturer and whale researcher Dr. Jonathan Stern was interviewed for a National Public Radio news segment "60 Years after Leaving, Porpoises Again Play in SF Bay."  To hear the segment, visit:  http://www.npr.org/2011/12/28/143857342/60-years-after-leaving-porpoises-again-play-in-sf-bay

Conservation Biology graduate students Sam McNally and Daniella Reagan submitted the winning logo design for the Graduate Student Council in Biology T-shirt.

Undergraduate Physiology major Alexandra Koba wrote "Expanding AAA's Undergraduate Student Population" published on the American Association of Anatomists' website:  http://www.aaatoday.org/

Dr. Tom Parker co-authored "Evaluating Tidal Marsh Sustainability in the Face of Sea Level Rise:  a Hybrid Modeling Approach Applied to San Francisco Bay" published in the online journal PLos One.

November 2011

Dr. Diana Chu's research on sperm development and mobility was published in Genetics and featured in a SF State News article "Live-Action Films of Worm Sperm Help Researchers Track Critical Fertility Enzymes."

2011 RTC Bay Scholarship Awardees included:  Marine Biology majors Kathryn Nuessly and Brittany Bjelde, Physiology and Behavioral Biology major Sara Boles and Ecology and Systematic Biology major Beth Sheets.

Ecology and Systematic Biology graduate student Beth Sheets receive a COAST student travel award to present work on invasive tunicate phylogeography at the Western Society of Naturalists meeting in Vancouver, WA. 

October 2011

Marine Biology graduate student Benson Chow received a COAST student travel award to present work on tunicate regeneration at the Society of Integrative and Comparative Biologists meeting in Charleston, SC.

Professional Science Master's graduate student and NSF Master's Fellow Casey Haynes receive a scholarship to attend the California Healthcare Institute Annual Meeting "Shifting Sands:  Forces Reshaping the Biomedical Business Model."

Dr. Kimberly Tanner is the 2011-2012 winner of the Society for College Science Teachers' Outstanding Undergraduate Science Teacher Award in recognition of her teaching excellence, scholarship and service to science education.  To learn more, visit:  http://www.sfsu.edu/~news/2011/fall/19.html

Adjunct faculty and Dean of the California Academy of Sciences' Science and Research Collections, Dr. Terry Gosliner presented a Romberg Tiburon Center seminar "Discovering Biodiversity at the Apex of the Coral Triangle."

Cell and Molecular Biology major Betesaida (Betty) Abraham received a prestigious 2011 William Randolph Hearst/CSU Trustee's Award for Outstanding Achievement.

September 2011

Dr. Gretchen LeBuhn was interviewed for a National Radio Project "Bees:  the Threatened Link in Food Security."  To listen to the interview, visit:  http://www.radioproject.org/2011/09/bees-the-threatened-link-in-food-sec...

Research Professor Gerdi Weidner published "Sustainability in Medicine:  A Case for the Prevention of Chronic Non-Communicable Diseases" in the Environmentalist.

Dr. Zheng-Hui He, Colin Leasure, Hong-Yun Tong, Xue-Wen Hou and alumna Amy Shelton (MS Cell & Molecular Biology 2008) were among the co-authors of "root uv-b sensitive Mutants are Suppressed by Specific Mutations in Aspartate Aminotransferase2 and by Exogenous Vitamin B6" published in Molecular Plant.  To learn more, visit:  http://mplant.oxfordjournals.org/content/4/4/759.abstract

Alumni Matt Meshriy (MS Physiology 2009) and Leslie Parra (MS Physiology 2009) and Professor Emerita Jan Randall published "Kin Associations of a Solitary Rodent, Dipodomys ingens, at Fluctuaring Population Densities" in Animal Behaviour 82, 643-650.

Drs. Sarah Cohen and Kimberly Tanner were elected fellows of the California Academy of Sciences, and will be inducted in October.

Dr. Sarah Cohen and other researchers at the Romberg Tiburon Center discovered an invasive marine filter feeder Didemnum vexillum (sea squirt) off the Alaska coast.  To read the NSF highlight, visit:  bit.ly/pKjU1R

Dr. Ed Connor received an Office of Research and Sponsored Program's (ORSP) grant for "The Mechanisms of Tumor Induction in Plants by Insects."  Drs. Gretchen LeBuhn and Eric Routman received an ORSP grant for "The Genetics of Speciation in Linanthus dichotomus.

Dr. Vance Vredenburg published the results of the first major survey of the amphibian-killing Chytrid fungus in Asia in "Is Chytridiomycosis an Emerging Infectious Disease in Asia? in PloS One.

August 2011

Dr. Leticia Marquez-Magana was the subject of a Pacifica Patch article "Dispatches:  The Science of Life."  To read the full article, visit:  http://pacifica.patch.com/articles/dispatches-the-science-of-life

Physiology graduate student Sara Boles was awarded a SF State Alumni Association Graduate Student Scholarship.

Undergraduate physiology major Alexandra Koba was selected by the American Association of Anatomists as one of two students in the country to identify and develop recruitment strategies and programs geared toward undergraduate faculty and students. 

Graduate students Linnea Bartlett (Conservation Biology), Angel Conde (Ecology and Systematic Biology), Rosa Schneider (Conservation Biology), and Meghann Shorrock (Cell and Molecular Biology) are recipients of the 2011 Maxwell Scholarships.

July 2011

Dr. Gretchen LeBuhn's bee conservation efforts were highlighted in a San Francisco Chronicle article "Great Bee Count Aids Scientists."  To read the article, visit:  http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/07/17/BAH51KBD4K.DTL

Gavin Archbald's (M.S. Ecology and Systematic Biology 2011) research is the basis for a major fundraising and outreach effort by the Bay Area Early Detection Network to support eradication of invasive Algerian sea lavender (Limonium ramosissimum) from San Francisco marshes.  To learn more, visit:  http://baynature.org/articles/jul-sep-2011/ear-to-the-ground/watch-out-for-invading-sea-lavender

June 2011

Lecturer Rebecca Johnson's research into the evolution of color patterning in marine sea slugs is featured in a KQED Multimedia Series that explores Northern California's science, environment and nature.  To learn more, visit:  http://www.kqed.org/quest/blog/2011/06/22/color-evolution-in-nudibranchs

Alumna Julie Miller (M.S. Ecology and Systematic Biology 2010) and undergraduate Zoology major Lena Rudolph published their research in Behavioral Ecological Sociobiology which is the focus of a SF State News article "Biologists Study How Insect Moms Fight Cannibalistic Neighbors."  To learn more, visit:  www.sfsu.edu/news/2011/summer/14.html

Dr. Dennis Desjardin described and named a new fungal species Spongiforma squarepantsii.  To learn more, read the SF Gate article "SpongeBob, the Mushroom, Discovered in Borneo" at http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/06/20/BABF1JUSND.DTL

Ecology and Systematic Biology graduate student Andrew Core received the Geraldine K. Lindsay Award and won first place in the Ecology, Organismal Biology and Environmental Sciences division at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Pacific Division, for his presentation "A New Honey Bee Threat -- the Phorid Fly, Apocephalus borealis."

Conservation Biology major Rosa Schneider was awarded a 2-year Graduate Research Fellowship from the National Estuarine Reserve System to investigate why a plant found only in the Suisun Marsh -- the Suisun thistle (Cirsium hydrophilium) -- is becoming rare.

Dr. Vance Vredenburg called for citizen scientists to post photographs of amphibians to a new website:  www.iNaturalist.org  For more information, visit:  http://bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/news/2011/05/25/cal-creates-a-facebook-for-frogs.html

May 2011

Brian Bill (Cochlan Lab), Alexander Fields (J. Chen Lab), Tricia Goulding (Cohen Lab), Nicole Haste (Domingo Lab), Linda Szabo (Burrus Lab), Carol Umanzor (Tanner Lab) and Michelle Wray (Bayliss Lab) received a 2011 Graduate Distinguished Achievement Award.

Winners of the Department of Biology Scholarships include:  Sophie Archambeault (Ecology), Brittany Bjelde (Marine Biology), Emily Blanchard (Physiology), Amalia Borson (Botany), Issam Jadrane (Cell & Molecular Biology), Reyka Jayasinghe (Cell & Molecular Biology), Brigette Jong (Cell & Molecular Biology), Rosa Schneider (Conservation Biology), Carissa Shipman (Marine Biology), Stella Shao (Conservation Biology), and Marisa Soski (Physiology).

Marine Biology graduate students Christina Buck, Lina Ceballos and Carrie Craig and Ecology and Systematic Biology graduate student Beth Sheets received CSU Council on Ocean Affairs, Science and Technology summer grants.

Dr. Dennis Desjardin's luminescent fungus, Mycena luxaeterna, collected in Sao Paulo, Brazil is listed as one of the top 10 new species described in 2010 by the International Institute for Species Exploration.  To learn more, visit:  http://species.asu.edu

Dr. Gretchen LeBuhn's Great Sunflower Project now has over 75,000 citizen scientist participants.  To learn more, visit:  http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=quantum-leap

Theresa Bui (Ecology), Nghiep Ly (Cell Biology), Evelyn Martinez-Salazar (Physiology), Jessica Schuster (Physiology), Jessica Tamburrini (Microbiology) and Brenna Tirumalashetty (Cell Biology) were elected to Phi Beta Kappa - the Nation's oldest and most widely known academic honor society.

Conservation Biology graduate student Andrew Core won first place at the 23-campus CSU 25th Annual Student Research Competition for his study "New Honey Bee Threat -- the Phorid Fly A. borealis."  Physiology undergraduate student Armbien Sabillo won second place for his study "Patterning Somites during Formation in the Frog Embryo."

Cell and Molecular Biology graduate student Carol Umanzor and undergraduate student Camilla Teng were nominated by the Department of Biology for the 2011 College of Science and Engineering Hood Recipients.

Undergraduate physiology majors Laura Johnson and Alexandra Koba presented their research (supervised by Lecturer Dennis Schulz and GTA Remy Binder) entitled "Art and Science of Anatomy:  Hemi Section of the Head and Neck" at the AAA Annual Meeting in Experimental Biology in Washington, D.C.

Dr. Andrew Zink was invited to join the Editorial Board of Behavioral Ecology, a leading journal in the field.

Dr. Vance Vredenburg and graduate student Tina Cheng's work with a fungus that is threatening amphibians was the focus of an ABC Channel 7 news segment "SFSU Researchers Study Amphibian Fungal Disease."  To view the video, visit:  http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/video?id=8108428

Cell and Molecular major Silvia Gonzalez is the 2011 Biology Undergraduate Honoree.  A talented and dedicated scholar, Silvia was selected in 2010 as one of 12 pioneering female students to serve as science partners and mentors for the Spectrum Program:  Building Pathways to Biomedical Research Careers for Girls and Women of Color at Hoover Middle School and SEPAL's SPIKE Program at El Dorado Elementary School.

April 2011

Dr. Jonathan Stern's effort to save the minke whales was the focus of a Pacific Sun article "Going Green:  That Touch of Minke."  To read the article, visit:  http://www.pacificsun.com/story.php?story_id=4641

Dr. Vance Vredenburg uses a bacterial bath to save yellow-legged frogs from the deadly fungal menace chytridomycosis in a National Parks Conservation Association article "A Leap of Faith."  To read the article, visit: http://www.npca.org/magazine/2011/spring/a-leap-of-faith-html

SEPAL graduate student Kathryn Danielson was in the first cohort of the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship awardees researching biology education.  Kathryn was selected for the award based on her outstanding abilities and accomplishments and her future potential to contribute to the vitality of US science.

Tricia Goulding was awarded the Balamuth-Horen award for her presentation on geographically widespread sandy beach fauna at the Northern California Society of Parasitologists.  Criseyda Martinez won the Walter Carr award.

March 2011

Forensic sculptor and Lecturer Gloria Nusse's clay model from a skull found in the Marin Headlands helped identify a missing man.  To learn more, read the Marine Independent Journal article "Remains in Marin Headlands ID'd as Larkspur Man Last Seen in 2001" at:  http://www.marinij.com/marinnews/ci_17639841

Biology Instructional Services Facility Supervisor Darleen Franklin analyzed the content of a random BART seat for a New York Times article "On BART Trains, the Seats are Taken (by Bacteria)" - and her results may make you want to stand during your next ride on BART!  To read the full article, visit:  http://nyti.ms/eMYTHE

February 2011

Dr. Vance Vredenburg's approach to saving wild populations of frogs was featured in a February 25 Science article "Tackling the Mystery of the Disappearing Frogs."  To read the full article, visit:  http://www.sciencemag.org/content/331/6020/1007.full

SF State President Robert Corrigan described Biology's Stem Cell Training Program as key to putting America back on an innovative track that will lead to jobs and a strong economy in a February 26 Examiner article "Where Obama's STEM Plan Works."  To read the full article, visit:  http://www.sfexaminer.com/opinion/op-eds.2011/02/where-obama-s-stem-plan-works#ixzzaFAiJaG55

Dr. Jonathon Stillman contributed his findings on the genetics of porcelain crabs to an international research team that sequenced the genome of an important pond-dwelling water flea, Daphnia pulex.  To learn more, visit:  http://www.sfsu.edu/news/2011/spring/16.html

Dr. Tom Parker's article "Back from the Brink:  A Second Chance at Discovery and Conservation of the Franciscan Manzanita" was published in the California Native Plant Society journal, Fremontia.

Drs. Alex Parker, Wim Kimmerer and Frances Wilkerson received a $900K Delta Science Program Project grant for "The Role of Microcystis Blooms in the Delta Foodweb:  A Functional Approach."

Dr. Chris Smith's research on the Argentine ant genome was published in the journal Procedings of the National Academy of Sciences, and has appeared on numerous websites including AAA Science,http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2011/01/an-army-of-ant-genomes.html?ref=ra 

January 2011

Dr. Frank Bayliss and the Student Enrichment Opportunities Office which supports low income and minority science students were featured in a CBS' January 30 Sunday Morning segment "Brain Drain."  To view the program, visit:  http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/sunday/main3445.shtml

Dr. Gretchen LeBuhn co-authored "Attracting Native Pollinators:  Protecting North America's Bees and Butterflies" to be published in February by Storey Publishing.  For more information and/or to purchase the book, visit:  http://www.greatsunflower.org/product/45090

Lecturer Gloria Nusse's forensic work is the focus of a San Jose Mercury News article "All Forensic Artist Needs is a Skull to Build Back Faces of Lost Souls."  To read the article,  http://www.mercurynews.com/peninsula/ca_17030680?nclick_check=1

Dr. Vance Vredenburg's race to save frogs from the deadly chytrid disease is the focus of a Popular Science article "Frogs in Peril:  A Race to Save a Threatened Frog with Risky Experimental Techniques."  To read the full article, visit:  http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2010-12/frogs-peril

Biology alumna Meghan Culpepper (B.S. Zoology 2004) won the President's Prize for her poster "Phylogeny of the Ground Beetles Belonging to Scaphinotus, subgenus Brennus (Coleoptera: Carabidae)" in the Phylogenetics and Taxonomy Division at the December meeting of the Entomological Society of America.

Marine Biology graduate student Tricia Goulding won the Best Presentation Prize at the Young Systematists' Forum, London, England for her presentation "Thorny-Headed Worms Infecting Mole Crabs:  Cosmopolitan Parasite or Cryptic Species Complex?"

December 2010

Biology alumna (MA Ecology and Systematic Biology 2004) and Director of the Austin Polytechnical Academy Erica Swinney was interviewed for a December 1 PBS Newshour program "Chicago High School Prepares Students for Real-World Manufacturing Jobs. To listen to the interview, visit:  http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/education/july-dec10/pledge_12-01.html

The work of lecturer Gloria Nusse is featured in a New York Times article "Putting a Living Face on the Nameless Dead."  To read the article, visit:  http://www.baycitizen.org/crime/story/putting-living-face-nameless-dead/

Conservation Biology graduate student Jeff Lewis' preliminary results of a study on the effects of potential climate-driven increases in temperature on invertebrate communities living on eelgrass is the subject of an article "The Heat Underneath" in the December Estuary News.  To read the article, visit:  http://online.sfsu.edu/~katboyer/Boyer_Lab/Home.html

November 2010

Lecturer and Minke whale expert Jonathan Stern and Biology alumnus and Oceanic Society naturalist Isidore Szczepaniak are featured in a November 8 SF Chronicle article "Porpoises Return to SF Bay -- Scientists Study Why."  To read the article, visit:  http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/11/08/MNHD1G0AMF.DTL

Dr. John Hafernik's insect photos are an app!  To date, more than 15,000 have been downloaded.  To learn more about the Golden Gate Park Field Guide, visit:  http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/golden-gate-park-field-guide/id401315705?mt=8

October 2010

Drs. Kathy Boyer, Wim Kimmerer, Sarah Cohen and graduate student Stephanie Kiriakopolos (Boyer Lab) are featured in the latest issue of Bay Nature Magazine for their work on subtidal habitats and the San Francisco Bay Subtidal Habitat Goals Project.  To read the article "Subtleties of the Subtidal:  Life Underwater in San Francisco Bay," visit:  http://baynature.org/articles/oct-dec-2010/subtleties-of-the-subtidal

Professor Greg Spicer's (and student Sarah Kendricks) photo of mites that parsitize the quills of birds was featured on the cover of the Journal of Medical Entomology.   To read their article "New Species of Parasitic Quill Mites of the Genus Picobia (Acari: Syringophilidae: Picobiinae) from North American Birds, visit:  http://0-www.bioone.org.opac.sfsu.edu/toc/ment/47/5

Dr. Ravinder Sehgal's work on birds and malaria is featured in a SF State News article "Biologists Develop New Tool to Map Malaria."  To read the article, visit:  http://www.sfsu.edu/news/2010/fall/24.html

Professor Zheng-Hui He discusses the power of the purple pigment Anthocyanin in a YouTube video "Improving Health with the Power of Purple."  To watch the video, visit:  http://youtube.com/watch?v+YKSjT6Omn30o

Dr. Vance Vredenburg's work inoculating frogs agains a fungal disease that has driven 200 amphibian species to extinction was featured in an October 5 New York Times story "Toiling to Save a Threatened Frog."  To read the article, visit:  http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/05/science/05frog.html?ref+science

September 2010

Biology's newest graduate program -- the Professional Science Master's -- combines science and business and welcomes its first cohort of students.  To learn more, visit:  http://www.sfsu.edu/~news/2010/fall/13.html

Dr. Ed Connor received CSU's Distinguished Faculty Excellence in Professional Achievement Award.  Dr. Connor's contributions to science were also recognized with his election as a Fellow of both the California Academy of Sciences and the Royal Entomological Society.

August 2010

Professor Tom Parker discusses the Franciscan Manzanita (Arctostaphylas franciscana) with KQED Reporter Cy Musiker for an August 9 story "A San Francisco Survivor's Remarkable Story."  Once thought to be extinct in the wild, this plant may soon be listed under the Federal Endangered Species Act.   To listen to the interview, visit:  http://www.kqed.org/a/kqednews/R201008091730

Student winners!  Chelsea Chen was a finalist for the best poster award at the American Physiological Society.  Graduate students Chelsea, Lina Ceballos, Hayley Carter, Haydee Medina, post-doc Dr. Nate Miller and volunteer Pascale Rossignol-Lefebrvre were selected to received travel awards.  Chris Alleyne-Chin, Remy Binder, Lima Ceballos, Andrew Core, Rachel Nitta and Rebecca Stubbs were awarded $4K Maxwell Scholarships.

Alumna Simone Whitecloud travelled with ten polar science researchers to the Greenland Ice Sheet as part of a NSF Fellowship.  Read her blog at:  http://dartmouthigert.wordpress.com

July 2010

Dr. Vance Vredenburg's research on a deadly fungal disease which is the leading cause of a global amphibian population decline is discussed in "Skin fight:  Could Bacteria Carried by Amphibians Save Them from Extinction?"  To learn more, visit:  http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=sking=fight-bacteria-frogs

Alumni Dr. Esteban G. Burchard published the results of a study which examined how race and ancestry plays a role in the accuracy of a lung function test in "Genetic Ancestry in Lung-Function Predictions," New England Journal of Medicine.

June 2010

Dr. Kimberly Tanner received a NSF CAREER grant to fund an investigation into how university biology majors learn to think like biologists.  To learn more about Dr. Tanner and her work at SEPAL, visit:  http://www.sfsu.edu/~sfsumag/archive/spring_10/campus1.html

Greenhouse Manager,  Martin Grantham, received the California Horticultural Society's Annual Award for his contributions to Bay Area horticulture.

Dr. Dennis Desjardin's newest discovery, Phallus drewesii, is an International Institute for Species Exploration's Top 10 Species. To learn more, visit:  http://species.asu.edu/Top10 or http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/05/22/biodiversity.new.species/index.html

May 2010

Dr. Vance Vredenburg discussed his research on the chytrid fungus which is threatening frog populations on NPR's May 14 Science Friday "Modern Extinctions" program.

Drs. Lily Chen, Carmen Domingo and Michael Goldman received a $700K NSF award to fund Biology's newest graduate program -- the Professional Science Master's with two concentrations in Biotechnology and Stem Cell Science scheduled to begin in Fall 2010.

Dr. Ed Connor received a 2010 Distinguished Faculty Award for Excellence in Professional Achievement.

2010 Graduate Distinguished Achievement Awardees:  Marisa Leal and Michael Yee (Cell and Molecular Biology), Thomas Jenkinson, Julie Miller, Amelia Ryan, Kristen Vollrath and Genevieve Walden (Ecology and Systematic Biology) and Courtney Scott (Marine Biology).

Arthur Nelson Graduate Scholarship Awardees:  Tricia Goulding, David Lake, Rachel Nitta, Jessica Peak and Kristen Roberts.  Non-resident Graduate Scholarship Awardee:  Andrew Core.  John Hensill Scholarship Awardees:  Theresa Bui, Dian Qu and Armbien Sabillo.  Felipe-Andres Ramirez-Weber Scholarship Awardee:  Angel Ku.

Undergraduate Armbien Sabillo won 1st Place in the Biological and Agricultural Sciences category at the 24th Annual CSU Research Competition.

Dr. Karen Crow's article "Sympatric Speciation in a Genus of Marine Reef Fishes" was published in the Molecular Ecology.

Lecturer Dr. Isaac Yang, Chief Resident at the UCSF Department of Neurological Surgery, received the Exceptional Physicians Award from the UCSF Medical Center for his dedication to outstanding patient care.

Microbiology major and University Hood Marilyn Thomas was selected to be the 2010 College of Science and Engineering speaker at the University Commencement Ceremony.

April 2010

Lecturer Dr. Brinda Govindan received an American Society for Microbiology Faculty Enhancement Travel Award to attend the 2010 ASM Conference for Undergraduate Educators.

A laboratory set up by alumna and Biomedical Laboratory Science graduate Shou-Yean (Grace) Lin (M.S. '03) was featured in an April 8 issue of Science magazine article "New Tuberculosis Lab Hailed as Breakthrough in Health Diplomacy."

Dr. Jonathon Stillman's work with porcelain crabs and how they respond to climate change was featured in a Golden Gate Xpress article "SF State Professor Gets Crabby for Climate."  To read the full article, visit:  http://xpress.sfsu.edu/achives/life/014751.html

Lecturer Lynne Dowdy ranked No. 16 on the 2009-2010 Highest Rated Professors and Faculty list from the largest online destination for professor ratings:  www.RateMyProfessor.com which received 10 million student comments.

March 2010

Dr. Carmen Domingo's CIRM Bridges program which trains students for research careers in stem cell biology and regenerative medicine is featured on a YouTube video:  www.youtube.com/cirmtv

Undergraduate Marine Biology major Richard Coleman received an award for his poster presentation at the 39th Benthic Ecology Meeting.

Dr. William Cochlan's research on the possible toxic results of fertilizing regions of the world's oceans with iron to lock away excess carbon dioxide and curb climate change was published in the "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences," and featured in SF State News and SF Chronicle articles.  To learn more, visit:  www.sfsu.edu/~news/2010/spring/28.html

Dr. Tom Parker was the keynote speaker for the joint conference of the California Estuarine Research Society and the Western Chapter of the Society of Wetland Scientists.

Dr. Sarah Cohen's presentation on the management of marine invertebrates called tunicates was featured in a Seward City News (Alaska) article "Experts Plan to Fight Invasive Marine Species." 

Dr. Jose de la Torre was awarded a NSF grant for his project "Thermophilic Ammonia-Oxidizing Archaea:  Physiology, Genomics and Role in Nitrogen Cycling at High Temperature."

Ecology and Systematic Biology graduate student Tina Cheng and Physiology undergraduate Armbien Sabillo were selected to represent SF State in the Biological and Agricultural Sciences category at the CSU-wide Student Research Competition.

February 2010

Lecturer Dr. Isaac Yang received the Edwin Boldrey Award for Research in the Neurosciences at the 62nd Annual Meeting of the San Francisco Neurological Society.

Dr. Frank Bayliss received a NIH grant for his project "SF State University MBRS-RISE Program."

Biology students Paul Hankamp and Rebecca Stubbs each received a Mary DeDecker Botanical Grant from the Bristlecone Chapter of the California Native Plant Society.  These grants were given to Paul and Rececca in recognition of their research with plant species native to the White Mountains.

January 2010

Biology graduate student Jessica Van Den Berg research on the arthropods inhabiting the California Academy of Sciences' living roof is the subject of a January 29 SF State News article and California Academy of Sciences' video (http://www.vimeo.com/8182204).  To read the full article, visit:  http://www.sfsu.edu/~news/2010/spring/8.html

Drs. Leticia Marquez-Magana, Robert Ramirez and Fank Bayliss received NIH awards for projects ranging from the physiology of osmotic stress in Saccharmyces cerevisiae to support for minority science students and faculty researchers.

SF Researchers work towards chemical free pest control.  Dr. Chris Smith is one of 16 organizing authors who worked with 157 scientists (including M.S. student Harry Hunter and post-bac student Jay Kim) from around the world to sequence the genetic map of the Nasonia wasp.  Researchers believe the tiny, venomous parasitic wasp could lead to chemical-free pest control and provide insights into how the environment contributes to human disease.  To learn more, visit:  htttp://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/01/15/2793162.htm

President Obama honored Dr. Frank Bayliss for his mentoring achievements on January 6 at a White House reception.  In 1992, Dr. Bayliss founded the Student Enrichment Opportunities Office (http://www.sfsu.edu/~seo) which supports the efforts of minority science students.  To learn more, visit:  http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/01/06/BAVA1BE2E6.D...

December 2009

Dr. Laura Burrus received a 3-year NSF-funded RUI grant for the analysis of the role of Wntless in regulating Wnt gradient formation.

Annette Chan received the Eden Staff Award for her contributions to the care and maintenance of the Cell and Molecular Imaging Center.

Dr. Tom Parker was asked to compare the DNA of a possible rare Franciscan Manzanita growing in the Presidio.  If the tree is one of the rare Laurel Hill Franciscan Manzanitas it will need to be moved to a safe location before a $1 billion Doyle Drive parkway project can be completed. To learn more, visit:  http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section+news/local/san_francisco&id=7126612

Dr. Vance Vredenburg tries to find answers for the cause and spread of chytrid, an aquatic fungus which kills hundreds of species of amphibians.  Learn more by watching a National Science Foundation's online magazine "Science Nation" video "Disappearing Frogs:  Trying to Save the World's Amphibians."

November 2009

Are rodents protecting Manzanita trees from fire?  Dr. Tom Parker's research leads to unusual results.  To read the SF State News article, visit:  http://www.sfsu.edu/~news/2009/fall/24.html

SF State Professor Dennis Desjardin and co-researchers received a NSF grant to study fungal biodiversity in northern Thailand. 

October 2009

Conservation Biology master's student Jessica Van Den Berg's thesis research on arthropods inhabiting the living roof of the California Academy of Sciences is the subject of a Science in Action video which can be viewed through January 2010 at the Academy's east wing of the public floor.

Associate Professor Gretchen LeBuhn and Dr. Frank Cipriano, Director of the Conservation Genetics Laboratory, were elected Fellows of the California Academy of Sciences in recognition of their notable contributions to the natural sciences.

Dr. Dennis Desjardin, alumni Dr. Brian Perry, D. Jean Lodge, Cassius Stevani and Eiji Nagasawa describe seven new species of luminescent fungi in "Luminescent Mycena:  new and noteworthy species" in Mycologia.  To read more and see a slide show of the mushrooms, visit:  http://www.sfsu.edu/~news/2009/fall/13.html

Dr. Tom Parker will selected to be the 2010-2013 President of the California Botanical Society

Dr. Kimberly Tanner and alumni and DeAnza College biology instructor, Jeff Schinske, have been awarded a 2-year $250K grant "Community College Biology Faculty Enhancement through Scientific Teaching" to provide professional development in innovative biology teaching for SF Bay Area community college faculty.

September 2009

Dr. Diana Chu and students Jui-Ching Wu and Kristen LaPrade's article "Spermatogenesis-Specific Features of the Meiotic Program in Caenorhabditis elegans" was published in PLoS Genetics.  For more information, visit:  http://www.plosgenetics.org/doi/pgen.1000611

Congratulations go to the following American Association for the Advancement of Science Pacific Division student winners:  Gavin Archibald, Tenzin Bhutia, Thien Do, Roth Ea, Renata Eberl, Krystel Holford, Felicia King, Tony Martinez, Laura Mendoza, Victoria Minnich, Megan Morikawa, Amitkamur Patel, Louis Ramos, Raynelle Rino, Ashfaq Sial, and Genevieve Walden.

August 2009

Dr. Gretchen LeBuhn's work with bees and her wildly successful Great Sunflower Project was featured in a Sunset Magazine (August 2009) article entitled "Hive Minds."  For more information about the project, visit:  http://www.greatsunflower.org

Dr. Frank Bayliss was selected for the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring, and will receive the award in the fall by President Obama.

July 2009

Facial reconstruction artist Gloria Nusse created a head and shoulder sculpture which lead to the identification of a woman whose remains were found at Lake Berryessa in May.  To read more, vist: http://cbs5.com/crime/jane.doe.identified.2.1069202.html and http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/07/15/BASN18L2ID.DTL

Dr. Andy Zink and collaborator Peter Buston outline why animal societies stay together and remain peaceful in face of conflict over resources in the cover article of the May/June issue of Behavioral Ecology.  To read more, visit:  http://beheco.oxfordjournals.org or http://www.sfsu.edu/~news/2009/spring/59.html

After 14 years a Titan Arum, Amorphophallus titanum, (aka Giant Corpse Flower) in SF State's Biology teaching collection may soon be flowering. For more information, visit:  http://www.sfsu.edu/~news/2009/spring/58.html

June 2009

Dr. Dennis Desjardin discovered a new two-inch stinkhorn mushroom Phallus drewesii while on an expedition to Sao Tome, an island off the West African coast.   The mushroom was named for California Academy of Sciences' researcher Dr. Bob Drewes. Photo by Brian Perry.

Lecturer Brinda Govindan was selected for the 2009 Biology Scholars Program (funded by the NSF) and will conduct research in improving undergraduate microbiology education at the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Institute.  She also edited the first edition of the Annual Editions in Microbiology (available through McGraw-Hill) which will be published in August 2009.

May 2009

Heather Murdock, Gloria Nusse, Dr. Eric Routman and Dr. Ravinder Sehgal received Biology's Outstanding Teaching Award. Congratulations!

Ecology and Systematic Biology graduate student Genevieve Walden received a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship.  For more information:  http://www.sfsu.edu/news/2009/spring/51.html

 

Dr. Gretchen LeBuhn's work with the Great Sunflower Project was featured in a San Francisco Chronicle article "Volunteers Busy as Bees Counting Population."