|
University of California, Berkeley | College of Natural Resources
A Newsletter for Faculty, Students, Staff and Friends of the Department |
|
|
Issue No. 34
|
April 9, 2015
|
|
|
Research. Academics. Discoveries.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Calling Researchers for the Micro Student Symposium
|
| | Recent Microbiology Student Symposium |
The Microbiology Student Group invites you to the 16th Annual UC Berkeley Microbiology Student Symposium at UC Berkeley on Saturday, April 25th, 2015.
The symposium is a daylong event in which graduate students, undergraduates and postdocs present original research to peers and professors of the Northern California microbiology community. The symposium provides a venue to share research and build connections within the community, and is a unique opportunity for professional development.
Registration is free and includes a light breakfast, lunch and refreshments during the mixer. The best talk and poster will receive $100 and $50 awards, respectively, and the best undergraduate talk or poster will receive a $50 award. Sponsors are offering a limited number of $200 travel grants for speakers coming from afar.
|
Cal Day 2015 - Magic Show, Microbiology and More
|
| Michael Steinwand and Allison Schwartz
at the popular Plant Student Group Table, at Cal Day 2014. |
The Department of Plant and Microbial Biology will be participating in Cal Day at UC Berkeley on Saturday, April 18, 2015.
Students, faculty and staff will be presenting:
- The Ice Nucleation Magic Show featuring Steve Lindow
- Micro and Plant Student groups showcasing amazing research and fun facts about plants and microbes
- Cal's Microgarden, with plenty of opportunities to get a close look through microscopes of some fascinating algae and fungi
Cal Day will be from 9am to 4pm throughout the Berkeley Campus. It's great for first-time visitors to campus, children, families, potential students and their families and current Cal students, faculty and staff.
Visit PMB and the College of Natural Resources exhibits at the Genetics and Plant Biology lawn, located next to Pat Brown's grill on the UC Berkeley campus, north side.
|
|
National Science Foundation Recipients and Honorable Mentions
The results of the 2015 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program competition have been announced. NSF received more than 16,000 applications for the 2015 competition, and made 2,000 fellowship award offers. Congratulations to PMB fellowship awardees and honorable mentions for this tremendous honor.
Fellowship Recipients
Bailey Bonet
Alex Hernsdorf
Bret Peterson
Daniel Westcott
Honorable Mentions
Cindy Amstutz
Tyler Helmann
Matthew Knight
Mitchell Thompson
For further information about the results of the competition please visit: NSF News.
|
Conference for Grad Students, Postdocs Interested in Teaching
The American Society for Microbiology Conference of Undergraduate Educators gathers more than 350 microbiology and biology educators for an interactive four-day conference. Educators come from colleges, universities and international institutions to learn and share the latest information in the biological sciences and education research.
The program includes plenary, concurrent, poster and exhibit sessions. Participants engage in formal and informal small group discussions between colleagues all focused on the same goal: to improve teaching and learning in the biological sciences.
It is the perfect opportunity for prospective educators to meet others who have been there before. Sessions, presentations, and conference events provide attendees the opportunity to learn more about best practices in teaching and connect with other educators. With almost half of conference attendees attending for the first time, ASMCUE is always willing to support new educators.
The conference will take place on May 28-31, 2015 at the Renaissance Austin Hotel located in Austin, Texas
Registration and more info
|
|
Join the Synthetic Biology Supergroup
Got a crazy idea? Have more creativity than funding? Just want to tinker with science and hang out with like-minded people?
The Synbio Supergroup hosts casual meetings with the general purpose of giving and receiving feedback on research in progress. Members of the group come from an array of backgrounds. Meetings include pizza, beer and non-alcoholic beverages.
|
Plant Metabolic Engineering Conferences
Gordon Research Conferences is hosting a meeting on plant metabolic engineering with the title "Harnessing Plant Metabolism for the Bio-Based Economy."
Sessions include:
- Plant Metabolism and Cell Walls - Diversity and Exploitation
- Metabolic Regulation and Signal Transduction
- Specialized Metabolism
- Metabolism - Spatial and Dynamic
- Engineering Cell Walls
- Breakthrough Technologies: Gene Expression and Editing
- Breakthrough Technologies: Chromosome Manipulation and Mutation
- Translational Case Studies: Bottlenecks from Basic to Applied
- Translational Case Studies: From Lab to Commercial Products in the Field
The date is July 19-24, 2015 and the location is Waterville Valley Resort , Waterville Valley, NH.
|
|
Genetics, Development, and Evolution Symposium
 UC Berkeley biology colleagues are invited to attend the seventh annual Genetics, Development and Evolution Symposium on Monday, May 18 from 9 am to 5 pm. Graduate students and post-docs will present their research, either as a talk or during the poster session.
Our goal is to showcase interdisciplinary research and to foster interactions among different research groups and departments. In case you need further motivation, refreshments will be provided at all of the breaks, and pizza will be served during the lunchtime poster session.
As in the past, there will be prizes for the best talk and poster. Selected speakers will have the opportunity to participate in a workshop on how to give an effective talk.
For registration information, visit mcb.berkeley.edu/groups/gdmess. Abstract submissions are due by Friday, April 27.
|
Regine Kahmann Seminar Webcast Now Available
Regine Kahmann recently gave a standing-room-only seminar entitled "How Biotropic Fungal Pathogens Colonize Plants", as part of the Taylor-White Endowed lecture series.
Kahmann is a research group leader with the Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology; her research focus is on Molecular Phytopathology.
In case you missed the March 11, 2015 seminar, or would like to view it again, here is a link to the webcast version that was recorded live: youtube.com/watch?v=wRhCrZ0uRqg
For more information on the Taylor-White Endowed Lecture series, please visit: pmb.berkeley.edu/seminars and scroll down to Taylor-White Lecture.
|
|
Strengthen Your Network at the Virus Symposium
 The Annual Bay Area Symposium on Viruses aims to strengthen the network of scientists in the San Francisco Bay Area working on virology, host-pathogen interactions and control of human and animal viral infections. The symposium also serves as the annual meeting for BayViro, the Bay Area Virus Network.
WHEN: Friday, May 29, 2015, 9 am - 6 pm
WHERE: Li Ka Shing Center Auditorium, University of California, Berkeley
Confirmed speakers are:
- Hadas Dvory-Sobol - Gilead Sciences
- Britt Glaunsinger - UC Berkeley
- Jeffery Glenn - Stanford
- Warner Greene - Gladstone Institutes
- Andreas Jekle - Alios BioPharma
- Patricia Pesavento - UC Davis
- Graham Simmons - Blood Systems Research Institute
The symposium is sponsored by the Henry Wheeler Center for Emerging & Neglected Diseases and the Center for AIDS Research. If you are interested in joining BayViro as a sponsor, please contact CEND@berkeley.edu.
For more information and to register please visit: bayviro.org
|
|
|
|
Important Dates | Upcoming Events
Spring 2015
4/6/15 - PMB Seminar: Sean Cutler, UC Riverside
4/8/15 - PMB Seminar: Tanja Woyke, Joint Genome Institute
4/15/15 - PMB Seminar: Norman Terry, UC Berkeley
4/15/15 - Outstanding Graduate Student Instructor Recognition Event, 1 PM in 338 Koshland
4/18/15 - Cal Day
4/22/15 - PMB Seminar: David Mills, UC Davis
4/29/2015 - PMB Seminar: Barbara Valent, Kansas State University
5/6/15 - PMB Seminar: Dominique Loque, Joint BioEnergy Institute
5/15/15 - PMB Spring Party - Alumni House
5/16/15 - College of Natural Resources Commencement
9/5/15 - PMB Retreat - Clark Kerr Campus, UC Berkeley
|
|
111 Koshland Hall I Berkeley, California 94720 I 510.642.9999
pmb.berkeley.edu I pmbinfo@berkeley.edu
The PMB newsletter is produced by the Department of Plant & Microbial Biology, UC Berkeley.
Professor N. Louise Glass, Department Chair
Professor Kris Niyogi, Associate Chair
Dana Jantz, Chief Operating Officer
Karyn Houston, Communications / Webmaster / Newsletter Editor
Rocio Sanchez, Graduate Program
Jennifer Halpert and Ricky Vides, Undergraduate Majors Advisors
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
