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Summer 2007 Biological Sciences Newsletter Web Features

Biology Graduates Receive Research and Scholastic Awards at Commencement 2007

The College of Biological Sciences (CBS) held its second annual commencement ceremony on June 15, 2007. The CBS awarded some 330 Bachelor of Science, and 15 Bachelor of Arts degrees. As the CBS transitions to awarding its own undergraduate degrees, an additional 330 B.S. degrees for the college were awarded by the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. The College of Letters and Sciences awarded 430 B.S., 20 B.A., and five Bachelor of Arts and Science degrees for the new CBS. In total, 1,115 students graduated with degrees in the life sciences.

Ashley Heers, a graduate in both evolution, ecology and biodiversity, and in geology, was this year’s University Medal recipient. Ashley graduated with a 4.00 grade point average, in which she earned 43 A+ grades. Outside the classroom, she served as a research assistant, completed an honors thesis, and worked as a coach for the Science Olympiad. She will pursue a Ph.D. in Avian Biology at the University of Montana–Missoula this fall.

Gregory Ho, a graduate in biochemistry & molecular biology, received the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Research. Gregory worked as a research assistant for three years in the Tantillo lab, where he used computational quantum chemistry to study complicated organic molecules. His first paper was published in the Journal of Organic Chemistry in 2005, and he has nearly completed a second project in the lab which he plans to publish.

Erin Lynn Richman, a graduate in biological sciences with an emphasis in neurobiology, physiology, and behavior, was recognized as the first recipient of the College of Biological Sciences Medal. Erin maintained a 4.0 grade point average in her major and was placed on the Dean’s Honor List every quarter. Erin will pursue a Master’s degree in Epidemiology at Harvard University’s School of Public Health this fall, and she plans to focus her career on the relationship between nutrition and cancer.

Matthew Siri, a graduate in microbiology, won the V. Glenn Winslow Award. Matthew excelled academically and has made numerous contributions as a peer advisor, a resident advisor, and president of the American Society of Microbiology club. Matthew volunteered for three years at the UC Davis Medical Center’s Child Life center and he was awarded the Vice Chancellor’s Merit Award in 2006.

Two students received the College of Biological Sciences Undergraduate Student of the Year award: Jennifer Yuhas, a graduate in neurobiology, physiology, and behavior, and Eisha Zaid, a graduate in genetics.

Recent Graduate Profile: Eisha Zaid

Eisha Zaid is going to change the world. At 16 her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer and since then Zaid’s muqadaar, a Punjabi word for destiny, has been clear. “I desire knowledge and understanding, so that I could also heal patients, like my mother,” she explained during her speech at the 2006 UC Davis Fall Convocation.

Her efforts have already garnered her several prestigious academic and research scholarships including a $5,000 Phi Kappa Phi national graduate scholarship for academic excellence; a $7,500 Goldwater Scholarship for her involvement in tumor development research; and a scholarship from the Donald A. Strauss Foundation, awarding her $10,000 with which she started the Diabetes Management Program at the Shifa Community Clinic in Sacramento.

When not helping patients or volunteering as a health educator at the clinic, Zaid steps back for an outside look as the clinic’s photographer. “I always try to take a holistic view on global issues rather than looking at them as isolated events.”

This spring marked Eisha’s third quarter as a teaching assistant for one of her favorite courses, Science and Society 15, AIDS and Society. “I love the class because it allows you to see things from different perspectives, from what is seemingly just a biological phenomenon to the impact of AIDS on the people it infects and their culture. I also think teaching really helps you learn a lot about yourself.”

In addition to helping in the classroom, Zaid works as a premedical peer advisor for UC Davis students. “It gives me the opportunity to meet such a diversity of people – it has really taught me to be sensitive to where people are coming from.”

Looking ahead, Zaid hope to combine her love for teaching, research, and medicine, “but my focus will always be on my patients,” she says. She will attend the University of California, San Francisco this coming fall as a student of medicine.

Alumna Profile: Bonnie Bassler

Bonnie L. Bassler, a 1984 graduate in biochemistry, studies sophisticated methods of communication among bacteria. She visited UC Davis in March 2007 to give a lecture titled “Tiny Conspiracies: Cell-to-Cell Communication in Bacteria,” as part of the molecular and cellular biology joint seminar series, and she answered a few questions posed by the College.

1. What are you up to now?
   I’m a professor in the Department of Molecular Biology at Princeton University, and I’ve been at it now for 13 years. I run a 15-person research lab investigating cell-to-cell communication in bacteria. I teach undergraduate and graduate courses, I write, edit a journal, present seminars, do policy work and community science outreach. I’m married to a NYC-based actor (Todd Reichart) and I often go to the theatre either with him or to see him perform. I also teach aerobics daily and have been doing that for 22 years.
2. How did your biology education at UC Davis help prepare you for your current career?
   Serendipitously, I met Dr. Rick Troy of the UC Davis Medical School during my junior year. I asked him if I could volunteer in his lab, and he agreed to take me on. I fell in love with bench work/research and have never looked back.
3. What is your fondest memory of UC Davis?
   My roommates Julie, Lisa, Tracey, and Janis (I had the same ones all four years) and the shared experiences we had living on our own for the first time.
4. Did a particular professor influence your decision to pursue your current career? If so, who?
   Yes. Two fantastic courses in biochemistry and molecular biology, one taught by Dr. Merna Villarejo and the other by Dr. Michael Dahmus opened my eyes to the mysteries, challenges, and methods of modern biology. I was absolutely fascinated. Those two classes inspired me to take a stab at doing research, which led me to Dr. Troy who, as I mentioned, gave me my love for research.
5. How often do you come back to the campus to visit?
   Sadly, I’ve only been back twice. On both occasions I came to give invited seminars. Each time was a thrill and a tremendous honor.
6. What words of advice would you give to current and/or future students of biology at UC Davis?
   Broadly explore the courses UC Davis offers -- indulge your curiosity -- Find courses you love and topics that excite you. Don’t be afraid to knock on the door of a faculty member!

NSF Awards Five Graduate Research Fellowships to Life Sciences Students

The National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded five graduate research fellowship grants to UC Davis graduate students in the life sciences in March 2007. The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship provides three years of support for graduate study leading to research-based masters or doctoral degrees and is intended for students who are at the early stages of their graduate study. Specifically, awardees receive a $30,000 stipend and a cost-of-education allowance of $10,500 annually for three years.

• Kristin M Aquilino in Population Biology
• Nancy Chen in Population Biology
• Barbara M Going in Ecology
• Karen N Thatcher in Genetics
• Ameer Thompson in Molecular, Cellular and Integrative Physiology (pictured, right)

Another note, Ashley Heers, recent graduate in Evolution and Ecology and the University Medalist at UC Davis this year, received a 2007 NSF Fellowship as an undergraduate!

Picnic Day 2007

Picnic Day is the largest student-run event in the United States and is the annual Open House for the University of California, Davis. On the rainy day of Saturday, April 14, the 93rd Annual Picnic Day arrived with the theme “Making Our Mark.”

The College of Biological Sciences met with alumni and prospective students at the “Dean’s Pavilion” in front of the $58 million Science Laboratory Building (SLB). DSAC, the Dean’s Student Advisory Council, conducted tours of the SLB’s state-of-the-art classroom laboratories. The Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior (NPB) club entertained families with interactive demonstrations of how enzymes work and cerebrospinal fluid. The UC Davis chapter of the American Society of Microbiology (ASM) held a popular exhibit with displays about virology, isolates, and other hands-on activities for families.

“One girl, about 6 years old, came up to my virology exhibit and asked what DNA was,” shared Jacquelyn Braggin, an ASM officer, “..and she liked the fact that the phage titer plates looked like Swiss cheese.”

| Last updated: January 9, 2008

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