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Kenda Rigdon

Summer research experience in Plant Science

If you are interested, here is a recent announcement about a summer research opportunity in Plant Science:

Interdisciplinary Research experiences for Undergraduates in the Plant Sciences: from Genomes to Phenomes to Landscapes

South Dakota State University

May 26 to July 31, 2020

This NSF funded Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Site award at South Dakota State University invites ten undergraduate students to participate in a unique research program that will broaden your perspective in state-of-the-art technologies, will provide you with an interdisciplinary research experience, and will introduce you to research and challenges in the modern plant sciences.

For ten weeks during the summers of 2020-2022, you will work on innovative research projects with experienced faculty mentors from the Biology and Microbiology Department, the Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Science Department, and the Natural Resource Management Department, and will be integrated into a multidisciplinary research environment. During the 10-week program, you will become actively involved in a wide range of research topics ranging from crop breeding, functional plant genomics and phenomics, next generation sequencing and bioinformatics, plant biotic interactions (beneficial and pathogenic), soil science, and plant ecology. A genomics jamboree will engage you and your mentors in next generation sequencing, genome assembly, gene annotation, and bioinformatics, and will allow you to work actively in teams. In addition to pursuing your independent research projects, you will participate in a boot camp that will provide you with the essential background to develop and design the experiments for your internship project, and in workshops and discussions about the ethical conduct of research, successful graduate program applications, and entrepreneurial and industry career opportunities after graduation.

Students from schools with limited research opportunities (e.g. community colleges, smaller baccalaureate colleges) or from under-represented groups (African Americans, American Indians, Alaska Natives, Latinos) are particularly encouraged to apply.

Participant Support: Stipend of $600 per week ($6,000 for a total of ten weeks), up to $650 in reimbursement for travel expenses, $100 per week food allowance, and free housing on campus.

Applicant Requirements: U.S. citizenship or permanent residency; declared major in biology, environmental sciences, plant sciences, or other related fields; freshman year completed by May 31, 2020; interest in research in a multidisciplinary environment.

To Apply: Please contact Dr. Heike Bucking (Heike.Bucking@sdstate.edu) for interest and application. Required documentation for completion will include:

  1. Filled application form with five preferred research topics 
  2. Short cover letter (1 page maximum) that describes your interest in this opportunity and your future career goals 
  3. Official transcripts
  4. Two reference letters
  5. Submission of the application: https://www.sdstate.edu/reu-plants (the application page will become available soon).

Application Deadline: April 5, 2020

 

Heike Bücking, Ph.D.

Professor and Associate Dean for Research

College of Natural Sciences

Department of Biology and Microbiology

McFadden Biostress, SNP 251B

Email: heike.bucking@sdstate.edu

Phone: 605-688-5463

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Kenda Rigdon

Speaker, Dr. Farrow, Thurs 2/20 in SSC 138 during common hour

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  Feb. 20     Natural Sciences Seminar Series
Common Hour Thurs. | SSC 138 | Lecture and Arts | Dr. Anitra Farrow, lab coordinator for biology, will present her research entitled "Development of Chagas Disease Vaccines using Adenovirus 'Antigen Capsid-Incorporation' Strategy."

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Kenda Rigdon

Speaker this Thursday, 2/13 during common hour

If you're interested, this Thursday, 2/13 during common hour, in SSC 138, Dr. Ruth Carmichael, the Senior Marine Scientist at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab will be presenting. "Protecting our Marine Mammals: Manatees, Dolphins & Whales in the Northern Gulf of Mexico."

After the talk, she will be having lunch with interested students to discuss questions and  summer research opportunities!

"The Gulf of Mexico is habitat for at least 29 species of marine mammals, ranking in the top 25% of habitats for marine mammal biodiversity in the world. Despite this diversity, there are remarkably poor baseline data to understand resiliency of these species and their habitats to perturbations in the northern Gulf of Mexico (nGOM). Marine mammals can have a significant effect on trophic structure and function of ecosystems because they are relatively large, abundant and broad-based consumers (from vegetation to predatory fish and other mammals). Hence, data on population dynamics or status, migratory patterns, trophic relationships, patterns in major life history events, and linkages among marine mammal populations is important to inform system-wide assessment and response to pulse events like hurricane Katrina or the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill (DWHOS) as well as to future or longer-term events such as climate change. Marine mammals are also useful sentinels of ecological and human health risks because their body composition favors accumulation and retention of some contaminants, and they have similar life spans, physiology and trophic niches as humans. The lack of comprehensive data on marine mammals in the nGOM reflects a lower intensity of scientific study and reporting in the region.  The Dauphin Island Sea Lab’s Marine Mammal Research Program (including the DISL Manatee Sighting Network and Alabama Marine Mammal Stranding Network) helps to close data gaps regarding marine mammal distributions, resource use, and causes of death.  A combination of primary research and targeted outreach through this program has enhanced our understanding of basic marine mammal ecology and informed management and conservation efforts in the region.  This talk with summarize the scope of work, research outputs (distribution, movement, diet, relationships to disease), and applications of data collected by Dauphin Island Sea Lab’s Marine Mammal Research Program."

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