When we go spelunking or watch Halloween movies, we think about bats. Some of our scientists in biology think about bats more than the average human. Dr. Tom Tomasi and two of his graduate students went to the North American Society for Bat Research (NASBR) conference Oct. 24-27 in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. About their research All three presenters focus on … [Read more...] about Saving bats one fungus at a time
Femila Manoj recently received $750 from Beta Beta Beta Research Foundation. She will use that grant for her research on endophytic bacteria. About her research Manoj is studying the diversity of rhizobia, a nitrogen-fixing bacteria. She is also looking at non-rhizobia endophytes within the root nodules of soybeans. It’s been hard to study rhizobia and non-rhizobia … [Read more...] about Biology student wins grant to study bacteria
The Society of Wetland Scientists (SWS) held their annual meeting in Denver, Colorado, this year. Dr. La Toya Kissoon-Charles, assistant professor of biology, and two of her students, Indigo Tran and Christine Cornish, presented at the meeting. The presenter is noted by the * symbol: Macrophyte and atrazine presence in agricultural, conservation, and golf course … [Read more...] about Annual conference, new experiences
Leah Brand and Julie Curless spent their part of their summer in the vineyards. As part of a National Science Foundation Plant Genome Research Program (NSF-PGRP) grant, they sampled grapevines at E.J. Gallo Winery in California’s Central Valley. Dr. Laszlo Kovacs, professor of biology, is a co-investigator on the project, entitled "Adapting Perennial Crops for Climate … [Read more...] about Research opportunity and industry experience in one project
A lot of people find snakes scary or gross. Ciera McCoy, a graduate biology student, uses them to learn more about diseases. McCoy presented part of her master’s thesis at the Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists in Rochester, New York, July 11-15. About her research McCoy looks at viruses that mosquitoes carry and can make humans sick and sometimes be … [Read more...] about Using cottonmouths to track down disease