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 From
the Dean
May
was a very satisfying
month as we celebrated
individual and
collective accomplishments
during the past
academic year
with a series of
special
events. Three
undergraduate members
of our
LFSC community
were honored at
the University’s
and College’s
commencement ceremonies:
Justin Ma, the
son of Professor
Michael Ma who
earned degrees
in Computer Science
and Mathematics,
received the University
Medal; Vikram
Prasanna, graduating
in Physiology
and  Neurobiology,
was one of five
runners-up for
this award; and
Katayoun Deljoui,
the undergraduate speaker at the
College graduation
ceremony, gave
a fabulous talk
on her experience
as a recent immigrant
to College Park.
Dr. Claire Fraser,
our commencement
speaker, gave
a wonderful talk
centered on the
research programs
at The Institute
for Genomic Research
in microbial genomics.
More than 75 people
attended the College
reception honoring
outstanding graduates
following commencement.
My thanks to all
the faculty and
staff who participated
in these events,
particularly Dr.
Lisa Bradley,
who
organizes our
commencement. At
the end of the
month, faculty
relaxed at activities
such as the annual
Biology picnic.
Plans
are already
underway for
the next Bioscience
Day, which will
be held on November
4. Dr. Leon
Cooper,
the Nobelist
in physics from
Brown
University who
now directs
Brown’s
Center for Neural
Science, will
be the keynote
speaker.
The theme for
the CEO breakfast
will
be international
R&D
partnerships.
We will have
six symposia,
one on each
of
the following
topics: bioinformatics/computational
biology, sensory
neuroscience,
host-pathogen
interactions,
biomaterials/nanoscience,
genomics and
food
safety/national
defense. As
always, there
will be a poster
session,
with prizes
for the best
student
posters, and
a career fair.
Please
mark your
calendars and
think about
how you can
incorporate
this event
into
your classes.
The
straw ballot
on a name change
for
the College
will be available
on
the Web at www.life.umd.edu/namechange/ until July 1.
The poll gives
three
options: to
support changing
the name
of the College
to “College
of Life and Chemical
Sciences,” to
specify a different
name change or
to not support
changing the name
of the College.
I encourage everyone
to vote. We will
have a formal
vote in the fall.
Our
new specializations
in the Biological
Sciences major
have now been
approved by the
campus and
will become
available this
fall. They
are: Cell Biology
and Genetics,
Ecology and Evolution,
General Biology,
Microbiology,
and
Physiology and
Neurobiology.
 Bob Infantino
is working
on a communications
strategy for
the rollout to
advisors
and students.
We
will be welcoming
new faculty and
honoring retiring
faculty this summer.
Bruce Jarvis will
be retiring from
Chemistry and Biochemistry,
and Richard Imberski
from Biology. We
thank both for
their many years
of service to the
University. In
addition, we thank
Maggie de Cuevas,
who has resigned
from Cell Biology
and Molecular Genetics,
for her contributions.
August
30: First
Day of Classes for Fall
September 6: Labor
Day Holiday
September 13: Last
Day of Schedule Adjustment for
Fall
October 7: Faculty/Staff
Convocation
November 8: Last
Day to Drop with a W
December 10: Last
Day of Classes for Fall
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 Upcoming
Events
August
24: New
Faculty Orientation,
8:15 a.m. to 2
p.m., Stamp Student
Union
September
10-12: College of Life Sciences
Alumni Weekend. Activities surround the
Terps vs. Temple football game on September
11. LFSC contacts: Bobbi Donley (rdonley@umd.edu)
and Christine McCary (mccary@umd.edu).
October
14: Groundbreaking
for Bioscience Research
Building. More information
about the building:
www.life.umd.edu/biosciencebuilding/
November
4: Bioscience
Research and Technology
Review Day. LFSC
contact: Gene Ferrick
(gene@umd.edu)
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Thanks
to:
- FMC
Corporation, for a
$5,000 gift to the
Department of Entomology
General Fund to support
Dr. Barbara Thorne’s
research
-
Materfoods
USA, for a $5,000
gift to Joint Institute
for
Food Safety and
Applied Nutrition
(JIFSAN)
- Syngenta,
for a $3,000 gift to
the Department of
Entomology General
Fund to support
Dr. Galen Dively’s
research
- McLaughlin
Gormley King Company,
for a $2,800 gift
to
the Department of
Entomology General
Fund to support
Dr. Galen Dively’s
research
- Alice
O. McNulty, for $1,170
toward the Zoology
Fund in Support of
Dr. Eugenie
Clark’s
Research
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Faculty
and Staff Recognition and In the News
Dr.
Earlene Armstrong,
Entomology, is
quoted in a May
18 Greenville
News article about
cicadas. "I
was out in my backyard
this weekend and
saw thousands in
one tree," she
says.
Dr.
Amy Brown and
Ms.
Sandra
Sardanelli,
Entomology,
received a
1-year,
$20,000 grant
from Penn
State for “Maryland
Information
Network
for Pesticides
and Alternative
Strategies.”
Ms.
Bobbi Donley of
the Dean’s
Office was one
of two winners
of the
University's Outstanding
Professional Support
Staff Award. Awardees
must have at least
five years of
service at the
University
and must be highly
motivated individuals
who are effective
communicators,
excellent problem
solvers and
involved in services
and activities
on campus and in
their
communities.
Dr.
Michael Embrey,
AGNR and Entomology,
received
a 2-year, $29,000
grant from Penn
State for “Queen
Replacement: An
IPM Approach.”
Dr.
William Jeffery,
Biology, gave
two lectures in
the Department
of Biology at
Washington University
in St.
Louis at the end
of May. In June,
he will give a
lecture and chair
the "Evolution
and Eye Development" session
at a Gordon Conference
on Visual System
Development in Bristol,
Rhode Island. He
will also deliver
a lecture and co-chair
a symposium on adaptive
evolution at the "Genomes
and Evolution" meeting
at Pennsylvania
State University.
Dr.
David Lineback,
Director of
the Joint Institute
for Food Safety & Applied
Nutrition,
remarks
on the costs
in maintaining
quality control
in food processing
in
a May 3 Business
Week feature about
Litehouse
Foods, maker
of salad
dressings.
Dr.
Victor Muñoz,
Chemistry and Biochemistry,
received a 1-year,
$250,000 grant from
NIH for “New
Kinetic Approaches
to Investigate Protein
Folding.”
 The
news stories that
quote Dr.
Michael Raupp are
as numerous
as the cicadas
that
have emerged
from their 17-year
slumber. Here
is
a sampling:
Washington
Post:
April
29, May
7,
May
11; Baltimore
Sun:
May
12;
WTOP Radio:
May
7, May
10; Los
Angeles
Times:
May
11.
In
addition,
Dr.
Raupp
discussed
cicadas
in the tree
canopy
on the April
26 Kojo
Nnamdi
Show
on NPR,
appeared
three
times
on ABC’s “Good
Morning
America” with
Diane
Sawyer
(May
12, May
18 and May
21),
was
interviewed
on
CNN
May
12,
was
on “The
Early
Show” on
CBS May
14 and May
26),
appeared
with
the “Cicadamaniacs” students
on
National
Geographic
Ultimate
Explorer
on
May
21,
was
a
guest
of
the
Global
German
Radio
Network
on
May
11
and
appeared
with
graduate
students
on
Fox
5
News
(WTTG-TV)
May
10.
Dr.
Michael Smith and Dr.
Arthur Popper,
Biology, received
a 1-year, $15,000
grant from the
National Organization
for
Hearing Research
Foundation for “A
New Model of
Noise-Induced
Hair Cell Loss
and
Regeneration.”
Two
Labs Publish
High-Profile
Papers
Researchers
from the labs
of Dr. Robert
Denno and Dr. Margaret
Palmer published
papers in Nature and Science,
respectively,
in the last week
of May.
 Graduate
student Deborah
Finke and Dr.
Robert Denno,
Entomology, published
a paper
in Nature titled "Predator
diversity
dampens
trophic cascades" (Nature 429
(27 May
2004):
407-410).
The paper
uses experimental
evidence
on the invertebrate
communities
associated
with salt
marsh
cordgrasses
to address
a central
question
about the
importance
of food
web complexity.
Dr.
Margaret Palmer,
Entomology and
Biology, and
colleagues, including
postdoc Dr.
Emily
Bernhardt and
faculty
research associate
Dr.
Jennifer Morse of
the Palmer lab,
published a paper
in Science titled “Ecology
for a crowded
planet” (Science 304
(28 May 2004):
1251-1252). The
paper was prepared
by the
Ecological
Visions committee
of the Ecological
Society of America,
chaired by Dr.
Palmer, as a complement
to
its new report
and action plan, “Ecological
Science and Sustainability
for a Crowded
Planet.”  The
report includes
the following
recommendations:
integrate advances
in ecological
knowledge into
policy and management,
foster an ecologically
knowledgeable
public
today and
in
future
generations,
build
the intellectual
and technical
infrastructure
for ecology,
promote
sharing
and
access
to ecological
data,
forge international
linkages and
globalize
access to
ecological
knowledge. "We
really worked
to come up
with
specific
actions that
we hope will
ultimately
result
in strong
regional
and global
partnerships
to create
a
more
sustainable
future," says
Dr. Palmer. "Creating
a public
that
understands
humanity's
dependence
on natural
systems
is critical.
Without
that,
even the
best
science
in
the world
will
not take
us far enough."
Student
Recognition
and In the News
Graduate
Student News
Robert
Ahern,
an Entomology
graduate student
working with Dr.
Michael Raupp,
is quoted in
a May
10 WTOP Radio story about
the effect
of cicadas
on trees.
He
also appeared
as
a cicada expert
on
CNBC’s “Capital
Report” May
14 and in
the Canadian
Press May
24.
 Jenna
Jadin,
a BEES graduate
student working
with Dr.
Kerry Shaw,
along
with other “Cicadamaniacs,” has
written a
cookbook of
cicada recipes
called
Cicada-Licious:
Cooking and Enjoying
Periodical
Cicadas.
National Public
Radio online published
several excerpts
(including Soft-Shelled
Cicadas)
in an April 30 article.
In a May 19 story,
the Baltimore
Sun also
published some
of Jadin’s
cicada recipes
and reviewed
them; for
example, El
Chirper Tacos
got the highest
score (2 wings),
compared
to one-quarter
wing for Emergence
Cookies.
The May 17 Delaware
County
Daily Times and the May
16 Boston
Globe also
refer to
the cookbook
and quote
Jadin on the
topic of cicada
recipes.
(A May 16
local6.com
article applauds
the cookbook
for having
a disclaimer
that urges
people to
consult their
doctor before
sampling
cicadas. The
article reports
that one Bloomington,
Indiana, man
had an
allergic reaction
when he ate
more than
two
dozen cicadas.)
When
interviewed
by WTOP Radio
April
27,
Jadin
said cicadas
taste
more like
shrimp than
chicken.
She is also
one of several
cicada eaters
quoted by
National
Geographic.com
in a
May 3 article,
and a May
19 Fauquier
Times-Democrat article talks
about
a woman who
served chocolate-covered
cicadas,
based on one
of Jadin’s
recipes,
at a children’s
birthday
party. A May
13 Gazette
Newspapers article and
a May 19
story on BBC News,
in addition
to mentioning
Jadin’s
cicada recipes,
quote her
as a source
of
other cicada
information,
such as
theories
about
the bugs’ 17-year-cycle
and what
the bugs
do after
they
emerge.
Jason
South, a Ph.D. student
in the BEES program
studying with Dr.
Gerald Wilkinson,
received
the E. O. Wilson
Conservation Award
and will receive
funding for his
proposal, “Behavioral
responses of treeshrews
to selective logging
on Borneo,” from
the Animal Behavior
Society. (Click here for more information.)
Softball
Tournament Winners
The
Life Sciences Scholars
were the co-champions
(with the Scholars
from Science, Discovery
and the Universe)
of the annual College
Park Scholars charity
softball tournament
last month. (The
championship
game was called
because of rain.)
Twelve teams
(one from each Scholars
program) participated,
and each played
on behalf of a children's
charity or organization.
The charities supported
by the first, second,
and third place
teams
were awarded donations
on behalf of the
entire Scholars Program.
The
Life Sciences Scholars
played for Children's
National Medical
Center. Life Sciences
team
members were Laura
Bond, Brandon
Burley, Jamaal
Campbell, Stephanie
Deller, Bryan
Fleming, Rob
Frischer, Jon
Goldman, Brian
Lau, Sara
Kahn, Jennifer
Koh, Jennifer
Lader, CPS-LFSC alum
Michelle
Neukirchen,
Mark
Smith, Jon
Stensvaag (coach) and resident
assistant Eric
Vesely.
See www.scholars.umd.edu/current/softball.html for more information.
Fall
2004 Freshman Class
In
Fall 2004, 371 freshmen
will enter the College
of Life Sciences. Of
those students, 13
received a Banneker/Key
4-year full scholarship,
and 73 are partial
merit scholarship students.
Moreover, 9 of the
new freshmen participated
in the Junior Science
and Humanities Symposium
in February.
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Alumni
Recognition
and In the
News
Mr.
Richard
Arnold,
who earned
a master’s
degree
in 1992
from
the
MEES
program,
is one
of 11
men and
women
to join
the ranks
of NASA’s
Astronaut
corps.
A May
7 Baltimore
Sun
article
says
that
NASA
typically
assembles
a
new
astronaut
class
every
one
to
three
years
and
that
Arnold
and
his
classmates
were
chosen
from
2,882
applicants.
 Dr.
Robin Autenrieth,
who earned a B.S.
in Biological
Sciences in 1977
and is now
a professor in
the Department
of Civil
Engineering at
Texas A&M
University, received
the 2004
Aldo Leopold Leadership
Fellowship.
The award goes to
20 academic environmental
scientists each year
who are chosen to
receive training,
consultation, and
peer networking.
Dr. Autenrieth’s
research, which
uses physical and
chemical
processes, focuses
on microbial systems
that degrade target
compounds, including
petroleum products
and chemical warfare
agents.
Ms.
Aleria
Jensen,
who earned
an M.S. in the
CONS
program in
2001 and is
now a fishery
biologist with
the
National Oceanic
and Atmospheric
Administration
(NOAA) Office
of Protected
Resources,
is quoted in
a May 25 USA
Today article about
East
Coast
shipping.
Officials
are considering
imposing
speed
and routing
restrictions
to protect
the population
of
North Atlantic
right
whales, which
numbers only
approximately
300. NOAA
will
complete
an environmental
assessment
and propose
new regulations
by
early next
year.
Back
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President
of TIGR
Speaks at
Spring
Commencement
 Dr.
Claire Fraser,
President
of
The Institute
for Genomic
Research (TIGR),
was the keynote
speaker at
the College
commencement
May 21 in
Cole Student
Activities
Building.
In her inspiring
speech (click
here for transcript),
she gave graduates
the following
advice:
-
Be
flexible and
be prepared
to pursue
new opportunities.
You never
know where
they might
lead.
-
Persevere
if you think you’re
right. And follow
your insight and
instincts rather
than the prevailing
wisdom.
-
Never
underestimate the
complexity and beauty
and power of a life
form—no
matter how tiny it
is.
-
It
has become increasingly
important for scientists
to speak out and
to help educate decision
makers and the general
public.
 The
student
commencement
speaker
for
the
College
ceremony
was
Katayoun
Deljoui,
who
received
a
degree
in
Biological
Sciences
with
a
specialization
in
Physiology & Neurobiology.
She earned a Howard
Hughes Medical Institute
fellowship and served
as a lab assistant
under Dr.
Gerald
Wilkinson and Dr.
Sarah
Tishkoff. She
will begin a master's
program in Bioethics
at the University
of Pennsylvania in
the fall.
At
the
ceremony,
340
students
received
B.S.
degrees,
54
received
M.S.
degrees
and
36
received
Ph.D.
degrees.
To
see
more
photos,
go
to
http://www.life.umd.edu/news-events/2004Commencement.html.
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How
to Post Your News
If
you would like to share your accomplishments
or other news, please send a note (and
any accompanying photos)
to Meredith Brittain at
brittain@umd.edu. Issues are usually sent at the beginning
of each month.
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