HESTEC Science Symposium 2009

The HESTEC science symposium was held earlier this week, and the REU program was pleased to host one of the three featured speakers, Dr. Susan Golden. Dr Golden discussed why pond scum might be able to, if not save the world, fly a few planes. Turns out that cyanobacteria are a good candidate for producing biofuels, and Dr. Golden, thanks to her work on one particular organism, has a good idea of what its genetics are like, making them promising for genetic modification.

Dr. Golden was followed by two other distinguished speakers, Drs. Eloy Rodriguez and Robert Curl, both of whom were taking about very small scales (organic chemicals) that might have very big impacts.

The Science Symposium also features a student research poster competition, and this year, the Department of Biology’s winner was an REU student, for the second year running!


Kristen Hopperstad (center) received a plaque and a laptop computer for her ongoing research with Dr. Brian Fredensborg (left). The day was, as the photo suggests, all a bit of a blur.

HESTEC 2009

Our next visiting mentor, and featured speaker at this year’s HESTEC science symposium, will be Dr. Susan Golden. Dr. Golden is a Distinguished Professor at the University of California San Diego.

Dr. Golden is best known for her work on daily (circadian) rhythms in cyanobacteria. She is also currently investigating the possibility of using these small organisms to generate biofuels.

Please come listen to Dr. Golden’s talk at 9:00 am on Monday, September 28 in the Engineering auditorium, ENG 1.300.

Doctor Golden on the web

• UC San Diego faculty page


• Interview on The Science Show


• Representative publications




• Mackey SR, Golden SS. 2007. Winding up the cyanobacterial circadian clock. Trends in Microbiology 15: 381-388. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tim.2007.08.005


• Bell-Pedersen D, Cassone VM, Earnest DJ, Golden SS, Hardin PE, Thomas TL, Zoran MJ. 2005. Circadian rhythms from multiple oscillators: lessons from diverse organisms. Nature Reviews Genetics 6:544-556. http://dxd.oi.org/10.1038/nrg1633


• Golden SS. 2004. Meshing the gears of the cyanobacterial circadian clock. PNAS 101: 13697-13698. http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0405623101


• Ouyang Y, Andersson CR, Kondo T, Golden SS, Johnson CH. 1998. Resonating circadian clocks enhance fitness in cyanobacteria. PNAS 95: 8660-8664.
  http://www.pnas.org/content/95/15/8660.abstract

Send off seminar

Yesterday we held an undergraduate research symposium featuring both the veteran REU students and the students in the HHMI program. The REU students had a chance to pull together their research from the last year, and give a short talk about what they had found.


Jess Valdez with her title slide.


Amery Yang, following her talk, waiting for lunch.


Ashley Longoria with her supervisor, Brian Fredensborg, looking every so slightly concerned about something.

Texas A&M Imaging and Biomarkers REU program

The institution: Texas A&M University

The program:

• 1 June 2009 &ndash 7 August 2009


• Ten week research project led by a faculty mentor


• $450/week stipend


• Allowances for housing, meals and travel


• Seminars, field trips, and career development workshops


• 1.0 credit hour of undergraduate course credit


• Access to university recreational facilities

Eligibility:

• Desire to participate in research as evidenced by application responses and faculty recommendation


• Completion of at least the sophomore year of the curriculum for an academic major in engineering, computer science, or the life sciences


• 3.00 GPA or above


• U.S. citizen or permanent resident


• Graduate no earlier than December 2009

Deadline: 1 May 2009

More information: http://etidweb.tamu.edu/hsieh/REU

What you don’t want to know about recommendation letters

I was reviewing applications for a program today (not the REU, something completely unrelated), and was reading through an application folder, fairly far down in the stack. I got to the recommendation letter. It was very positive, but...

I’d seen it before.

I went back, and sure enough, found that two applicants had asked the same person for recommendation letters, and the referee had used the same damn form letter for both.

As a reviewer, it’s totally maddening. It reflect poorly on the referee, but you really can’t do anything about it. Worse, the poor applicants typically are going to have no idea that they’ve been stuck with a form letter.

Then there are reviewers who write two line recommendations, letters that say, “This student was in my class. This student got this grade in my class. I recommend them.”

Recommendation letters are tricky things for students applying to programs. They are out of your control. You rarely have any way of knowing who writes good letters and who takes the lazy route and writes form letters.

But is it a pure roulette table, where “you pays your money and you takes your chances”? Not entirely. There are ways you can maximize your chance of getting a strong recommendation letter.

Put yourself in the letter writer’s position. If you’ve taken a class from a professor, how much you enjoyed that class or how well you did does not determine how good a letter that person can write for you if the professor doesn’t know you. Did you ever ask questions in class? Show up for office hours? Engage in conversation?

Don’t think about how much you know about them, think about how much they can know about you. After all, who could you write a better letter for? Your best friend who you’ve known for years or a casual acquaintance you’ve seen at a few social events?

In other words, make it a point to get to know a couple of professors. To the point that when you walk into their office, they will say, “Hi [Insert your name here],” instead of, “What section of the class are you in?”

Shout out from former visiting mentor

UTPA alumnus and former REU visiting mentor Matt Garcia is featured in the newest issue of Los Arcos. And nobody paid him to say the nice shout out he gave to the REU program (and programs like it).

What advice would you give current students who are interested in pursuing a research career?

Over the summer I had the opportunity to come back to UTPA and conduct a seminar and career workshop with some biology department students in an undergraduate research program – Research Experiences for Undergraduates. This is the first step for someone interested in a career in research science, to get involved and apply for programs like this. Nothing can replace the experience of actual hands-on bench research, and you’ll know very quickly whether this is the right career path. Research is the type of position that requires self-motivation and determination. It is a roller coaster ride with extreme highs and extreme lows and being able to deal with that is the ultimate litmus test of being a scientist.

Matt Garcia, we love you!

Proctor & Gamble Research your Future in Science

The institution: Procter & Gamble headquarters, Cincinnati, Ohio

The program: Research your Future in Science Seminar will be held the first week of August 2009.

Through hands-on involvement, tours, and presentations, participants will learn what it is like to work as an R&D researcher at P&G. P&G Researchers will showcase various work areas, providing exposure to analytical labs, product formulation, products research, etc. Participant are placed in the fast-lane with the opportunity to interview for a 2010 P&G Researcher Summer Internship prior to any other intern recruiting.

All travel and accommodations will be paid by P&G for those selected to attend.

We seeking students with;

• Proven/exhibited leadership on or off campus.


• Technical expertise in field of study.


• Ability to solve problems.


• Ability to engage and work in a diverse working environment

Eligibility:

• Currently enrolled as a first or second year Bachelor’s or first year Associates degree student in a science.


• Curiosity and desire to learn how Science is used in the workforce.


• Candidates must be a U.S. citizen or national, refugee, asylee or lawful permanent resident.

Deadline: June 2009 for this year’s seminar.

More information: Go to http://www.pg.com and apply to job requisition number RND00001492.