Summer Daze

Summer is an active time in the SMC Biology Department! In addition to the constant "background" tasks of revising courses for the academic year, many Biology Department faculty have research programs that engage students during the summer. Working with me, for example, are Kelsie Miller and Donny Mcguirl.

Kelsie is looking at zooplankton populations in the southern part of Lake Champlain - from both zooplankton samples and from the diets of White Perch, which eat a lot of zooplankton. Kelsie is gathering information on the current status of the zooplankton community and the diet of a zooplantivorous fish species - information that may be especially valuable if/when the invasive Spiny Water Flea gets into Lake Champlain. The Spiny Water Flea is a large zooplankton from Europe and Asia that has become abundant in the Great Lakes and is spreading.... it now is also found in nearby Lake George (NY) and the canal system that connects southern Lake Champlain to the Hudson River. Therefore, it seems likely that it may soon become established in Lake Champlain as well.

Donny, who is also working with Prof. Dagan Loisel, is looking at population genetics of Pumpkinseed sunfish in several parts of Lake Champlain and two smaller nearby lakes. The goal of Donny's project is to see if there are any genetic differences among the populations that might be correlated with the frequency of outbreaks of cyanobacteria ("blue-green algae") blooms in some nearby lakes and bays. The results may provide some insight into evolutionary changes in fish populations associated with climate change.

In addition to our summer research activity, we are now working with incoming first-year students to help them select courses for the fall semester. Most of this will take place during upcoming summer advising days during which students visit campus to register for fall courses. We also contact those who cannot attend one of these sessions to discuss course selection requests which they submit to the Registrar's office.

Summer Activity

The St. Mike’s Biology Department is a busy place in the summers due to students involved in a variety of research projects. Tommy Manning and Hannah Lynch worked with Professor Dagan Loisel this past summer, and provided the following: Hey readers! This is Tommy and Hannah, two senior Biology majors working with Professor Loisel and studying genetics of the Vermont bobcat population. Our summer research projects are supported by the Hartnett Endowment. This summer, we have been using DNA extraction and PCR techniques to examine genetic diversity of the important mammal immune system MHC gene in the Vermont bobcat population. This gene, when isolated and sequenced, will show us how diverse the bobcat population is and how well suited it will be to fend off a potential pathogenic disease. At the same time, we have been screening the population for the presence of 3 diseases which have been shown in previous studies to cross over to domestic cats. By identifying the presence of these diseases, we can draw conclusions about the overall health of the bobcat population and make predictions about future bobcat health in light of human industrial expansion. As the first research opportunity that either of us has had at SMC, we’ve had a great time working with Prof. Loisel and getting experience in a lab setting.

Getting Fired Up!

On Friday, May 3 a section of the sandplain forest at neighboring Camp Johnson was subjected to a controlled burn to help with restoration of pitch pine by removing competing vegetation.  In the weeks ahead about 75 pitch pine seedlings will be planted in the burned area.  This is part of an ongoing collaboration between the Army National Guard, St. Michael’s College, the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, and the Nature Conservancy.

For the last several years, the fall lab sections of BI 151 (Introduction to Ecology and Evolution) have been studying vegetation and invertebrates of the sandplain forest at Camp Johnson, including some areas that were burned over 15 years ago.  Discussions with the National Guard brought about the plan to burn another section of the forest to enhance population of the fire-dependent pitch pine and also to provide a great research and learning opportunity for SMC students and faculty. 

Over the last year, pitch pine seeds were collected and planted in a nursery, and several areas of the forest were cut in preparation for the burn.  Last summer a team of four research students and two faculty did some pre-burn survey work, and that was followed up in the fall by the attention of nearly 140 students, with their lab instructors, in the BI 151 class.  The warm, dry conditions of this spring made the timing right – and the weather cooperated with clear skies and light wind on the day of the burn.  Additional work will take place this summer, and in the fall the student in BI 151 (mostly first-semester students) will get a taste of research as they study plants and invertebrates in the recovering burned areas and adjacent unburned sections of the forest.

IN OTHER NEWS……. The Spring 2013 edition of Biology Matters, our e-newsletter, is now available through our Biology Department web site, or you can link to it directly.  Check it out to find out what else has been or will be going on in our program, and also to see what some of our alumni have been up to.  

End of Fall Semester

Fall semester is over, and the holiday break is here.  It’s been a very busy fall, with another large class of first-year biology majors taking our Introduction to Ecology and Evolution course (BI 151), which was modified somewhat as we build on our partnership with the neighboring Army National Guard base to provide valuable ecological information for the management of their forest area.

The fall edition of Biology Matters, our e-newsletter, was completed and is now linked to our Departmental web site.  In addition, the fall edition of the Saint Michael’s magazine ran a nice article featuring Professor Mac Lippert and his student research program (“Biology Biographies”) and also includes summer research by Professors Declan McCabe, Adam Weaver, Valerie Banschbach, and Peter Hope and their students (“Summer at St. Mikes”).

The next few weeks will be a welcome break for many of us – BUT on December 29 Professors Peter Hope and Scott Lewins will be taking a group of 12 students to Costa Rica for a Tropical Ecology field course lasting 12 days.  To keep up with their progress, check out their blog.

Best Wishes for a Happy New Year….

National recognition for Matt Hajdun

Congratulations to Matt Hajdun (Biology major, class of 2005), who received a Milken Family Foundation Award on October 15.  The Milken Awards acknowledge excellence in teaching, and are seen by some as the “academy awards” of the teaching profession.  Matt has been a teacher at Champlain Elementary School in Burlington for several years; he first taught at orphanage in Honduras and then in a bilingual inner city school in New Britain, Connecticut before coming to Burlington.  This link shows some local coverage of the big news.

Honoring alumna

On Friday, September 28, returning alumna Dr. Tracy Romano (Bio major from class of 1986) was inducted to the SMC Academic Hall of Fame at the annual Fall Convocation.  Dr. Romano is the Executive Vice President for Research and Zoological Operations at the Mystic Aquarium in Mystic, Connecticut.  Her research background and interest focuses on marine mammals, particularly beluga whales.  While on campus, Dr. Romano had lunch with officers of our chapter of Beta Beta Beta (national Biology Honor Society) and also had an after-lunch open forum during which she discussed how her commitment to studying marine mammals led her from St. Mike's to her current position, which includes studies of how the immune system of belugas responds when the whales are under stress.  It was great to hear about the work going on at the aquarium, and also with wild belugas in the arctic.

Gone Fishin'....

During the first week of August, I took a small news crew from Channel 5 (WPTZ) fishing in Malletts Bay.  With fishing as a back drop,  we discussed the potential impacts of the spiny water flea on the Lake's food web and fishing.  The spiny water flea is a predatory zooplankton that is not yet in Lake Champlain but may soon find it's way in from the Champlain canal or Lake George - both of which are connected to Lake Champlain.    Watch the news report...

Course planning for fall

If you are one of our incoming BIology majors - Congratulation!  We look forward to seeing you.  Here is some advice on planning for fall courses.  

Much of what follows is directed toward incoming Biology majors, but there is some important information for Biochemistry and Pre-Pharmacy majors as well.  (If you are planning to major in Biochemistry and have any questions, please contact Dr. Alayne Schroll, aschroll@smcvt.edu.  If you are planning to major in Pre-Pharmacy, please contact Dr. Ari Kirshenbaum, akirshenbaum@smcvt.edu,  if you have any questions.)

·        Please attend one of the summer registration days if you can; they are scheduled for July 13, 17, and 20.  We will have someone from the Biology Department available to assist incoming Biology majors with course selection and discuss our program if you wish.

·        All first semester Biology majors (and also those majoring in Biochemistry or Pre-Pharmacy) should take BI 151 (Intro. Ecology and Evolution) and CH 110 (Chemical Structure, Bonding, & Reactivity).  This is also true for anyone who plans to pursue a “Pre-Med” or similar “Pre-Health” course of study, regardless of their intended major.  These courses will put you on the right track for future course work in these fields.  The demand for these introductory courses in Biology and Chemistry is quite strong – so to help ensure that all students who need these courses get into them, we will make an effort to register you for these courses before the summer registration days.  This will make your summer registration day go more easily, as you will already have these two courses in your schedule.

·        Therefore, because you have indicated Biology, Biochemistry, or Pre-Pharmacy as your intended major, we will do our best to place you into BI 151 and CH 110.  However - if you have changed your mind or believe that we have made a mistake and you do not intend to major in Biology, Biochemistry, or Pre-Pharmacy, please contact Katherine Orthman (korthman@smcvt.edu) in the registrar’s office.  We can drop you from those courses, and you will have more flexibility in your course selection for the first semester, and also allow more space in these courses for students who need to take them.

·        Anyone who has not indicated Biology or Biochemistry as their intended major will not be placed into these courses.  Therefore, if you know someone planning to attend St. Mike’s and pursue one of these programs but who has not let us know of their intent, please mention to them that you got this message, and that they should contact the registrar’s office (Katherine Orthman, korthman@smcvt.edu) and declare one of these majors – it is the best way to maximize the likelihood that they will get into these courses and get off to a good start in these majors. (note – anyone receiving this email is already on our list of intended Biology, Biochemistry, or Pre-Pharmacy majors)

·        A note regarding Math requirements: Biology majors are required to take two semesters of math, with at least one of those being calculus. Biology majors are not required to take Calculus in the first year, but some students choose to so that the Calculus that they had senior year in HS is still fresh.  However – Biochemistry majors should take Calculus in their first semester.

o   If you took AP Calculus and got a 4 or 5 on the AP exam, you will get credit for Calculus 1 (MA 150) and are eligible to take Calculus 2 (MA 160). If you took a non-AP Calculus I course in high school (or do not yet know your AP score) and did well in the course, you may also be eligible to take Calculus 2 in the fall and should contact Dr. George Ashline (gashline@smcvt.edu) of the Math department if you would like to register for Calculus II in the fall

o   The Math Department offers sections of Elements of Calculus (MA 130), Calculus 1 (MA 150) and Calculus 2 (MA 160) that can be scheduled along with BI 151 and certain sections of CH 110 for the coming fall semester. 

o   If you are planning to take introductory Calculus (either MA 130 or MA 150) at Saint Michael’s as an incoming Biology and Biochemistry majors, then you should take the on-line Calculus placement test (see link) that was mentioned to you in an earlier notice. This will help you determine your preparation for introductory Calculus. If you successfully completed a Calculus I course in high school, then you need not take the Readiness test. Calculus 2 is not required for the Biology major - however, some graduate programs, including some medical schools, like to see it.  Calculus 2 is required for the Biochemistry major. 

o   Please note – If you plan to take Calculus 2 (MA 160) this coming fall, then we will then try to schedule you for BI 151 and the appropriate sections of CH 110 that will allow you to take Calculus 2.  (You would be eligible for Calculus 2 if you anticipate receiving credit for Calculus 1, or you successfully completed a Calculus I course in high school and feel comfortable with those concepts). 

o   Information about choosing the right math course is available on pp. 16-17 of your New Student Guide.

o   If you have any questions regarding the options for Calculus this coming fall or the calculus placement test, please contact Dr. George Ashline (gashline@smcvt.edu) of the Math Department. 

I look forward to seeing you either later this month or in the fall.

Doug Facey (dfacey@smcvt.edu), Chair

Biology Department

Congratulations to Rich Centore

Congratulations to Rich Centore (SMC '03), who recently had a research paper published in Molecular Cell, a higly respected journal in the field.  The article, Spartan/C1ord124, a Reader of PCNA Ubiquitylation and a Regulator of  UV-Induced DNA Damage Response, was published in the June 8 issue. Rich is currently a postdoctoral research fellow at the Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Ceter at Harvard Medical School; Rich was also featured in an alumnus profile in our Spring 2010 edition of Biology Matters, our e-newsletter.

What's New ??

Find out - the Spring 2012 Biology Matters e-newsletter has updates, along with profiles of some students and alumni, and some information about summer activities.  Follow the link, to find out what's new....

Students recognized

Each year, many of our Biology majors are inducted to various honor societies in recognition of their outstanding accomplishments in academics and research. This spring, we are pleased to recognize the following inductees:

Phi Beta Kappa: Kristen Cowens, Allen Hubbard, Bridget Levine, Karri Makinen

Beta Beta Beta (Tri-Beta): Stephanie Bacon, Max Brenner, Anne Burnham, Kayla Carnell, Kristen Cowens, Anna Fetterolf, Courtney Gannon, Laura Ostrout, Kelsey Velie, and Sara Williams. The following graduating seniors had been inducted in the past - Amy Blackey, Gabrielle Buczek, Christopher Dustin, Emma Fox, Jacob Girard, Michael Herring, Spenser Johnson, Bridget Levine, Tom Perekslis, Janel Roberge, Ian Sullivan, Jake Withee.

Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Society: Alli Bleil, Kristen Cowens, Jake Girard, Bridget Levine, Stephanie Locke, Tom Perekslis, Janel Roberge, Ian Sullivan

CONGRATULATIONS !!

Hartnett Endowment Ignites Ecosystem Recovery Research

The John C. Hartnett Endowment was established in 2000 by Paul A. Lachance, Ph.D. (’55) and Therese Lachance to honor Professor Emeritus John C. Hartnett (’43) for his dedication to excellence in teaching and his outstanding influence on biology and other students at St. Michael’s College for forty-four years. The endowment provides funds to support student-faculty research opportunities, and when the endowment was first established there were very few funding sources to support student research - especially full-time research for the summer. Therefore, the Hartnett Endowment became a very important means of supporting summer research students for quite a few years.

Thanks to the support of our generous alumni, the Hartnett Endowment has grown considerably. In addition, in more recent years our faculty and students have had success in attracting other funding sources to support summer research, thereby increasing the overall amount of summer research activity in the Biology Department, but without drawing heavily on the increasing funds in the Endowment. This year, however, the Hartnett Endowment will provide a huge boost in kicking off a new research initiative in the Biology Department.

For several years, our Biology Department has had a cooperative research relationship with Camp Johnson, the Army National Guard facility adjacent to our campus. The Camp Johnson property supports the largest remaining stand of sandplain forest in Vermont, a forest community that thrives in sandy, low-nutrient soils and that requires regular fires to be sustained. As part of the long-term management plan, some sections of the Camp Johnson sandplain forest were burned in the mid to late 1990s. Each fall for the last six years, our students taking BI 151 (Introduction to Ecology and Evolution) have studied plants and invertebrates in both the burned and unburned sections of the forest to see how they differ.

In a new research initiative made possible by support from the Hartnett Endowment, a new section of the forest will be burned in spring of 2013. This not only will provide an outstanding research opportunity, but it also will benefit the management and maintenance of this rare forest community. To provide background information needed for future studies of forest recovery, Devin Latremore (’14), Nicholas Salvas (’15), Jennifer Labrenz (’13), and Aerielle Matsangos (’15) (in photo, left to right), and will be working with professors Valerie Banschbach and Peter Hope in the summer of 2012 to study the plant and invertebrate communities in areas to be burned in 2013 and in adjacent sections of the forest. In addition, our first-year students taking BI 151 in the fall of 2012 will also be providing critical foundation data in preparation for the burn.

This new research initiative, which includes collaboration among the St. Michael’s Biology Department, Camp Johnson, the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, and The Nature Conservancy, will provide a living laboratory of sandplain forest recovery right next door – something that students and faculty will be studying for years, and perhaps decades, to come.

Thank You...

...to the many accepted students and their families who came to visit us this past Monday (Feb 27). We had a great crowd, filling a large function room, and with lots of good questions on a wide range of topics - internship opportunities, pre-health advising, study abroad, career preparation, the basic biology curriculum, general academic advising....things that you should be asking before making a decision on where to attend college in the fall. For more information about our program, please visit the Biology Department Website.

I also appreciate the fact that several of you took advantage of some time at the end of the day to visit our department, look around, and ask some more questions before you left campus. Thanks for your interest in St. Mike's - and best wishes wherever you decide to go in the fall. I hope that we will see some of you here.

For those who were not there - have no fear! There are additional Accepted Student Academic Days on March 7 and March 26, and also Accepted Student Open Houses plannd for April 14 and 21. If you'd like more information, please contact the Admissions Office.

Anna Michael ('07) now in veterinary practice in Minnesota

I just received this piece of exciting news about Anna Michael, who graduated from the SMC Biology program in 2007, went to veterinary school at the University of Minnesota, earned Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine and Masters of Public Health degrees, and has now taken over a veterinary clinic in the "Land of 10,000 Lakes".

Congratulations and best wishes to Anna !!

Happy Holidays

With the fall semester behind us, I'd like to wish everyone the best for the upcoming holidays and new year. Our fall was quite busy, with well-attended admissions events in October and November, both of which included a Biology Department Open House.

Read about some of our other recent news and activities in the Fall 2011 edition of Biology Matters, our e-newsletter, which is now available.

Another chance...

This Saturday, November 12, is another Fall Academic Preview Day. Please come to campus and check us out - we've got a lot to offer. The Biology Department will hold an "Open House" after the Department presentations in the late afternoon to provide an informal opportunity to visit our facilities, see what we're all about, and speak with some students and faculty. We hope to see you there...

You can also learn more about us through our Biology Department web page. There you can link to a short YouTube video featuring recent alumni talking about their SMC experience within our program. You can also look at where some of our alumni are, and the careers that they've entered. And you can link to our e-newsletter, Biology Matters which we publish each spring and fall.

Who goes there?

Guest Blogger: Professor Declan McCabe

How can biologists efficiently collect enough observations to draw conclusions about mammal abundance or diversity in a habitat? This is exactly the problem my students and I tackled in the Saint Michael's College Community Ecology course in the last two weeks. Attempting to observe shy mammals can be disappointing, particularly when moving through a habitat as a group of 20. Instead, our approach was to record mammal footprints at track stations.

Our track stations included a layer of powdered black chalk to blacken the feet of the mammals and a sheet of sticky contact paper to collect each chalky print. All of this was sheltered from rain in a plastic tunnel-shaped structure with an opening at one end. Students determined which habitats to study and we left several track stations in each habitat. We convinced the mammals that walking through chalk and onto contact paper was a good idea by baiting the stations with peanut butter or dog biscuits.

We recorded a total of 355 visits to our 31 track stations over a two week period. We have indeed confirmed that the campus is a grey squirrel and chipmunk haven! Prints were also left by skunks, raccoons, muskrats, and mice. One of the stations with rather smudged prints also contained several black hairs. Microscopic scale patterns on the hairs confirmed our suspicions that the nocturnal visitor was a skunk. Perhaps most interesting, the traps set by the Winooski River were visited by mink; perhaps many mink, or perhaps just one extremely well fed mink with a deep fondness for peanut butter and dog biscuits.

Come and Visit!

Fall is a great time to come and visit - and we've got lots to show you.

It is beginning to feel a bit more fall-ish these days - shorter days and cooler nights.... a few leaves starting to turn colors. And another sign of the season - visitors, and lots of them. High school students with their parents, touring the campus, stopping in to visit, talking and emailing us with questions about our programs. And we love it - students doing their homework and looking closely into potential colleges..... looking for the right match, the place that "feels right".

If you are interested in learning more about us - please visit our Bio Department web page. There you can link to a short YouTube video featuring recent alumni talking about their SMC experience within our program. You can also look at where some of our alumni are, and the careers that they've entered. And you can link to our e-newsletter, "Biology Matters" which we publish each spring and fall.

Consider visiting during one of upcoming Academic Preview Days (October 8 and November 12)- contact our Admissions Office for more information. And on both of those dates, we plan to have a Bio Department "Open House" at the end of the afternoon's planned events. So stop by, meet some of our students.... and make yourself feel at home.

BIOLOGY is number 1!

That's right - we are the number one declared major among incoming first-year students at Saint Michael's. Our program has been growing each year, and for the fall of 2011 we welcome 80 new Biology majors! As in the past, we continue to offer a broad selection of courses, dedicated faculty, personal attention, and strong success by our graduates. For more information, please visit our Biology Department webpage.

If you are among the new arrivals at St. Mike's - please stop by our table on Saturday morning, August 27 (9:30 to 10:30) during the Majors Fair in the gym.

If you are currently in high school and thinking of majoring in biology, please come to visit and ask us about our program. Our Admissions Office has Academic Preview Days planned for October 8 and November 12. If you come to one of these preview days, please plan to visit our Biology Department Open House on the third floor of the Cheray Science Hall at the end of the afternoon scheduled events.

Valuable Information for New Students

Welcome to incoming Biology majors! We look forward to meeting you this fall in classes, but before that it might be helpful to give you a bit of advice regarding registration for fall courses.

• Please attend one of the summer registration days if you can; they are scheduled for July 8, 12, and 15. We will have someone from the Biology Department available to assist you with course selection and discuss our program if you wish.

• All first semester Biology majors (and also those majoring in Biochemistry) should take BI 151 (Intro. Ecology and Evolution) and CH 110 (Chemical Structure, Bonding, & Reactivity). This is also true for anyone who plans to pursue our Pre-Pharmacy major, or a “Pre-Med” or similar “Pre-Health” course of study, regardless of your intended major. These courses will put you on the right track for future course work in these fields. The demand for these introductory courses in Biology and Chemistry is often quite high – so to help ensure that all students who need these courses get into them, we will make an effort to register all students who have declared Biology or Biochemistry as their intended major for these courses before the summer registration days. This will make your summer registration day go more easily, as you will already have these two courses in your schedule.

• Therefore, if you have indicated Biology or Biochemistry as your intended major, we will do our best to place you into BI 151 and CH 110. However - If you initially indicated Biology or Biochemistry as your intended major and have changed your mind and therefore do not want BI 151 and CH 110 in your first semester, please contact Katherine Orthman (korthman@smcvt.edu) in the registrar’s office. We can drop you from those courses, and you will have more flexibility in your course selection for the first semester, and also allow more space in these courses for students who need to take them.

• Anyone who has not indicated Biology, Biochemistry, or Pre-Pharmacy as their intended major will not be placed into these courses. Therefore, if you intend to pursue one of these courses of study, or a Pre-Med/Pre Health program, I strongly suggest that you contact the registrar’s office (Katherine Orthman, korthman@smcvt.edu) and declare one of these majors – it is the best way to maximize the likelihood that you will get into these courses and get off to a good start in these majors.

A note regarding Math requirements: Biology majors are required to take two semesters of math, with at least one of those being calculus. However, Biology majors are not required to take Calculus in the first year, but some students choose to so that the Calculus that they had senior year in HS is still fresh. However – Biochemistry majors should take Calculus in their first semester.

o If you took AP Calculus and got a 4 or 5 on the AP exam, you will get credit for Calculus 1 (MA 150) and are eligible to take Calculus 2 (MA 160). If you took a non-AP Calculus I course in high school (or do not yet know your AP score) and did well in the course, you may also be eligible to take Calculus 2 in the fall and should contact Dr. George Ashline (gashline@smcvt.edu) of the Math department if you would like to register for Calculus II in the fall.

o The Math Department offers sections of Elements of Calculus (MA 130), Calculus 1 (MA 150) and Calculus 2 (MA 160) that can be scheduled along with BI 151 and certain sections of CH 110 for the coming fall semester.

o If you are planning to take introductory Calculus (either MA 130 or MA 150) at Saint Michael’s as an incoming Biology and Biochemistry majors, then you should take the on-line Calculus readiness test (see link) that was mentioned to you in an earlier notice. This will help you determine your preparation for introductory Calculus. If you successfully completed a Calculus I course in high school, then you need not take the Readiness test. Calculus 2 is not required for the Biology major - however, some graduate programs, including some medical schools, like to see it. Calculus 2 is required for the Biochemistry major.

o Please note – If you plan to take Calculus 2 (MA 160) this coming fall, then we will then try to schedule you for BI 151 and the appropriate sections of CH 110 that will allow you to take Calculus 2. (You would be eligible for Calculus 2 if you anticipate receiving credit for Calculus 1, or you successfully completed a Calculus I course in high school and feel comfortable with those concepts).

o Information about choosing the right math course is available on pp. 17-18 of your New Student Guide.

o If you have any questions regarding the options for Calculus this coming fall or the calculus readiness test, please contact Dr. George Ashline (gashline@smcvt.edu) of the Math Department.