SBS gathered December 15, 2022 to remember the life and legacy of the late K. Gordon Lark, founder of the Department of Biology, now the School of Biological Sciences. The event, chaired by professor and former SBS chair/co-chair of SBS Neil Vickers, included prepared remarks by Baldomero “Toto” Olivera and Nobel laureate Mario Capecchi. Both […]
Read MoreI sat down in a fluorescent plastic chair in an ice cold, windowless room. I was a sophomore in college and it was my first lab experience at the University of Utah. Surrounding me, on big white tables, were the bodies of donors wrapped in plastic coverings. By Ashley Ikegami, BS’17 Nervously, the students gathered […]
Read MoreIt’s generally not a good idea (or even allowed) to take biochemistry as your first biology class. But that’s exactly what Clarissa Henry BS’95 did as a freshman at the U. “[I]t was so great,” she says, “that I changed my major from Chinese to biology.” The class Henry took was a section taught by […]
Read MoreHot off the press! Fall 2022 issue. Read the full issue of OUR DNA, the magazine of the School of Biological Sciences, including the Letter from Director Fred Adler. LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR Challenge of Our Time When I stepped into the role of Director of the School of Biological Sciences, I was fortunate to […]
Read MoreRemembering George R. Riser … and his tribute to Utah’s “First Dentist.” Salt Lake City, August 11, 2022 — Today, Distinguished Alumnus George R. Riser BS’47, who passed away in Pennsylvania in June, would have been ninety-nine-years old. The news of his death was especially poignant, not only because Riser’s Endowed Scholarships have been a […]
Read Moreby Zachary Allred, DO former teaching assistant/mentor, SBS Anatomy Lab above: Zach Allred (left) and Mark Nielsen I first met Mark Nielsen when I was in a high school biology class and we toured the cadaver lab at the UofU. As I watched Mark and his TAs teach us the anatomy, I was fascinated. I somewhat […]
Read MoreLockdowns are something that Stephanie VanBeuge BS’17 knows something about . . . even before the coronavirus pandemic dropped out of the sky like an anvil. It was in her third year of graduate school at the University of Oregon when VanBeuge was first diagnosed with brain cancer–on the first day of the school year. She returned […]
Read MoreMost people wouldn’t see a direct line between working on tractors in rural Washington State and working on a DNA repair enzyme that functions to prevent cancer in humans. But that’s the unlikely trajectory of Payton Utzman BS’22 who after graduating from the School of Biological Sciences headed off to join Nabla Bio at a […]
Read MoreBy Alex Horn I joined the Air Force as an 18-year-old cadet. I came to the U as part of a program that would allow me to later return to the Air Force Academy to teach. In my doctoral studies, I wanted to understand the relationships between our evolved propensity to form intense fraternal bonds […]
Read MoreTHE SCHOOL OF BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES MAGAZINE OUR DNA magazine is a dynamic 360-degree snapshot of both the depth and breadth of the people, the research and the outreach that make up one of the University of Utah’s most celebrated academic units, The School of Biological Sciences. READ THE ENTIRE MAGAZINE HERE Subscribe to this […]
Read MoreLoren D. Jensen, BS’60, MS’62, PhD ’65, a retired scientist who studied the Chesapeake Bay and founded an environmental consulting business, died of complications of Parkinson’s disease and heart trouble Jan. 20. He was awarded the Distinguished Alumnus award in 2012 by the Department of Biology now the School of Biological Sciences. He was 84 […]
Read MoreCOLLEGE RANKINGS U.S. News & World Report has released their 2022-2022National University Rankings. The University of Utah is now ranked No. 1 in Utah and No. 42nationally among public universities. The College of Science fared even better. National rankings for public universities put Biology at No. 13, Chemistry at No. 20, Mathematics at No. […]
Read MoreAs a boy in growing up in Bountiful, Patrick Newman, BA’03, took a bite of a plant he would never forget. It tasted just like black licorice, which he loved. “I remember being struck at that moment as an 8-year-old boy thinking, ‘Plants can taste like things — what else can plants do?’” says Newman […]
Read MoreTo whom it may concern, I don’t want to leave the Galápagos yet. March 18, 2022, Week 09 – Isla De Santa Cruz, Ecuador above photo: Mom and the pigeons in the Plaza in Quito March 18 We finished packing for Quito this morning. I took a final exam for science, so I’m almost done […]
Read MoreSome of the most significant scientific breakthroughs in history—including the research that led to mRNA vaccines—were pioneered by women. While history has shown that women are integral to scientific advancement, the science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) landscape is still highly inequitable. In honor of Women’s History Month, consider the story of SBS alumna, PhD’15, […]
Read MoreOne of the largest academic units on campus, SBS is fortunate to have an alumni family of increasing accomplishment in academia, health care, private industry and elsewhere. Each year a committee selects alumni for the annual Distinguished Alumni Awards, which includes the Distinguished Lab Alumni Award. An event to celebrate will occur April 27th in-person […]
Read MoreTo whom It may concern, It’s becoming evident to me that despite the length of days near the equator, time in the tropics seems to pass very quickly. March 14, 2022, Week 09 – Isla De Santa Cruz, Ecuador As the end of our expedition gets closer and closer, we’re doing more homework every […]
Read MoreTo whom It may concern, It’s a small world after all. March 7, 2022, Week 08 – Isla De Santa Cruz, Ecuador Amongst huge frigate birds and giant tortoises, smaller organisms are often forgotten or considered less interesting than some wildlife. Every day, walking around town, to the beach, the station, or on our patio outside, […]
Read More“One of the biggest things that helped me was connecting with my loved ones.” When the pandemic first emerged in early 2020 Audrey Brown, HBS’21, found that online classes were novel at first, “but I quickly found myself losing motivation and becoming depressed/anxious due to the day-to-day Zoom monotony and the never-ending doomsday news on […]
Read More“I love the process of writing,” April Christofferson, BS’73, says in a 2007 U profile, “but I write because I’m trying to make a difference.” The difference this Illinois native is talking about includes many of the most complex and conflicted issues of her adopted home in the American West, including wildlife and public lands […]
Read MoreTo whom It may concern, Philornis downsi may as well be from Mars. February 28, 2022, Week 07 – Isla De Santa Cruz, Ecuador During the past few weeks, we’ve been looking for new mockingbird nests in which we can study Philornis. Now that we’ve found and mapped nests from different sites, we’re beginning to […]
Read More“My best trait is the ability to hang out with people who are far more capable than I am,” says Charles Sorenson, MD, FACS, in a 2020 interview. “I am not intimidated by working with people who are smarter than I am.” The former president and CEO of Intermountain Healthcare, the Salt Lake City-based nonprofit […]
Read MoreFor Sarmishta Diraviam Kannan, HBS’17, the journey to her “dream school” – the University’s School of Medicine – spanned about 25 years and some 8,780 miles. Sarmishta was born in Tamil Nadu, India, which is located on the southern tip of the Indian sub-continent. In addition to the long history of the Tamil people, Tamil […]
Read MoreTo whom It may concern, This week, I thought I’d change things up a little and submit a letter that is really photo-journalism. If it’s true that a picture paints a thousand words, you will have several thousand to read today! February 21, 2022, Week 06 – Isla De Santa Cruz, Ecuador The banner photo […]
Read MoreTo whom It may concern, Readers should note that biologists, grad students, and intrigued 13-year-olds may stop frequently to observe things. February 14, 2022, Week 05 – Isla De Santa Cruz, Ecuador This week our day off was spent in the “highlands,” although at 2,800 feet above sea level, the highlands aren’t especially towering. This […]
Read More“I anticipate the vaccine strategy for COVID-19, supported by the tremendous advances in vaccine technology and development made in the past 3 years, transitioning to something akin to what is done for influenza A/B, with annual development of a vaccine tailored to the strain(s) of COVID-19 predicted to predominate in a particular ‘COVID season.’” Banner […]
Read MoreTo whom It may concern, “Nothing could be less inviting than the first appearance [of the Galápagos Islands].” ~Charles Darwin February 7, 2022, Week 03 – Isla De Santa Cruz, Ecuador As surprising as this quote is, I have to agree to some extent with Darwin’s first assessment of the Galápagos Islands. Upon landing off […]
Read MoreThe Winningest Coach in San Francisco 49ers History George Seifert, BS’63, began his professional coaching career in 1977 as a defensive assistant to head coach Bill Walsh. After nine years and three Super Bowl championships with Walsh, Seifert was appointed Head Coach of the San Francisco 49ers in 1989 They were big shoes to fill […]
Read MoreBecoming the Beloved Community. The University of Utah celebrated its 2022 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Week (MLK Week) Jan. 15-21 with events that encouraged everyone to embrace King’s message of love and justice and seek a better way forward. As the nation grapples with ongoing division, this year’s MLK Week explored the theme “Becoming […]
Read MoreIt was an auspicious time to graduate with a diploma in microbiology at the University of Utah in 1970. K. Gordon Lark was a new arrival as chair of the new biology department and was busy expanding the department with a multitude of cell and microbiologists. This included neurobiologist and distinguished professor Baldomero Olivera who […]
Read MoreTo whom it may concern, I think the only person who is happy at 5:00 in the morning, is a field biologist, in the rain. January 24, 2022, Week 01 – Isla De Santa Cruz, Ecuador This week was the first couple of days that we spent in the field. The first day we […]
Read MoreTo whom it may concern, Packing is an adventure. January 17, 2022, Week 00 – Salt Lake City, UT Getting ready to depart on a field expedition is always an adventure in and of itself. Amongst packing, COVID testing, homework, buying supplies, planning travel, and coordinating a study, we are all tired, and very ready […]
Read MoreSBS Professor Emerita Naomi Franklin passed away on December 24, 2021 in Salt Lake City. She was 92. Colleague Larry Okun, also emeritus, described Franklin as “[a] complex character, stubborn and sometimes irascible on the one hand and extraordinarily caring and generous on the other.” He recalled how she frequently entertained at her home Biology […]
Read More