Welcome New Faculty Member Andrew Mesecar
Andrew Mesecar, the Walther Professor in Cancer Structural Biology, has been named the first deputy director of the Purdue University Center for Cancer Research. Mesecar will be responsible for industrial relations and direct initiatives to secure major research funding from the pharmaceutical industry for drug discovery initiatives, as well as oversee grant administration and the shared resources for the center. He has been active in cancer-related drug discovery and has extensive experience in structure-based drug design. Mesecar previously served as assistant head of the Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy at the University of Illinois, Chicago, and joined Purdue's faculty in August. Funds from a $2.1 million grant from the Walther Cancer Foundation were used to recruit Mesecar to the Department of Biological Sciences.
Esteban Fernandez-Juricic co-authors recently published book: A Primer of Conservation Behavior
A new book has been published by Sinauer Associates intended for college students and professionals practicing conservation biology and wildlife management (ecologists, wildlife managers, zoo personnel, animal behaviorists, behavioral ecologists).
The book, "A Primer of Conservation Behavior", is co-authored by Daniel Blumstein, Professor at UCLA, and Esteban Fernandez-Juricic, Associate Professor of Biological Sciences at Purdue University.
The book explores the potential of a relatively new field, Conservation Behavior, which is the application of knowledge of animal behavior to solve some wildlife conservation problems.
The goal of the book is to nurture the development of biologists interested in using specific animal behavior conceptual and methodological tools to aid in solving biological conservation and wildlife management problems. The book represents a practical guide fostering integration and showing how to apply these methodologies to issues that would benefit from an animal behavior perspective.
BBC World Today interviews Prof. David Sanders on the Ebola virus
BBC World Today aired an interview on Monday Aug. 23rd with structural biologist David Sanders about the new developments in the treatment of Ebola virus being developed by others. The interview covers why Ebola is so dangerous, potential modes of fighting it, its potential use as a bioweapon, and Sanders own experience visiting a formerly secret bioweapons lab in Siberia to prevent the spread of Weapons of Mass Destruction expertise (as a participant in the United States Defense Threat Reduction Agency's Biological Weapons Proliferation Prevention Program).
MP3 file of interview
McCann selected as director of Discovery Park's Energy Center
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Purdue biological sciences professor Maureen McCann will become the next director of the Energy Center, the university's center in Discovery Park leading interdisciplinary research efforts in advancing alternative energy sources and approaches.
McCann's appointment is effective Sunday (Aug. 1), Alan H. Rebar, executive director of Discovery Park and Purdue's senior associate vice president for research, announced Wednesday (July 28).
She succeeds Jay P. Gore, the Vincent P. Reilly Professor of Combustion Engineering, who had led the Energy Center either as director or interim director since the its inception in 2005. Gore is one of 12 faculty members nationwide to be selected this spring for a prestigious Jefferson Science Fellowship with the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C. His fellowship begins Aug. 15.
"Dr. McCann has a strong record of bringing together talented researchers from the Purdue campus and other institutions to address our global energy challenge," Rebar said. "Purdue and our research community working on the energy solution will benefit from her leadership at the Energy Center in Discovery Park."
Jeffrey Lucas made Fellow of the Animal Behavior Society
Prof. Jeffrey Lucas has been recently elected Fellow by the current Executive Council and active Fellows of the Animal Behavior Society. His development of a technique called dynamic programming for understanding animal decision making, and for his lab's work on animal communication and particularly on the role that auditory processing plays in the development and ecology of animal communication help, demonstrated "key contributions to the field of animal behavior". Congratulations Prof. Lucas.
Clark Gedney, Associate Fellow of the Teaching Academy
Congratulations to Clark Gedney, Director, Bio Media Center for Instructional Computing, for being selected as a new Associate Fellow of the Teaching Academy. The Purdue University Teaching Academy seeks the best teaching faculty across campus to create a collective voice for teaching and learning on campus. Members were nominated and selected by their peers to join this assorted group of faculty. The primary focus of this group is to increase the effectiveness of the entire faculty at Purdue. Through the Biomedia Center for Instructional Design, Clark has been dedicated to enriching science education for students, teachers and anyone who is interested. This is done through a variety of activities including, but not limited to, developing educational freeware, hosting summer science camps, participating in events such as science fairs and springfest, and teaching 500 level college courses. Again, Congratulations to Clark on this outstanding achievement, Biological Sciences is honored to be represented by you.
Announcements from the Dept. Head
Dennis Minchella named Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education in the College of Science.
I would like to congratulate Dennis Minchella for being named Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education in the College of Science. I have been so lucky to have Dennis as a colleague and Associate Head. He has served the department so very well during his seven years in that position. I think we all need to extend a big 'Thank you' to Dennis for his guidance and leadership in the department.
Dennis replaces another of our colleagues, Chris Sahley who served three
deans in her tenure in that position, and we thank her for her tireless
service as an advocate for our undergraduate students and a driver for
change in the College of Science. Much has been accomplished due to Chris'
efforts and vision.
Richard
Purdue receives $1.5 million for undergraduate life science education
Life science students who will be responsible for solving the global challenges of tomorrow need an innovative educational experience to keep pace with advancing technology that can generate massive amounts of data. The ‘culture of discovery’ at a research university can help transform undergraduate education in the sciences. Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) has awarded $1.5 million to Purdue University to fund an undergraduate science education project entitled: Deviating from the Standard: Integrating Statistical Analysis and Experimental Design into Life Science Education. The collaborative project led by Dennis Minchella, professor and associate head of Biological Sciences, is a partnership among six faculty members from three colleges (Science, Agriculture, and Engineering) which plans to inject statistics and experimental analysis into the biology curriculum at all levels. READ MORE
Behavioral therapy effective in treating Tourette syndrome
Dr. Peter J. Hollenbeck, PhD, Professor and Associate Head, was recently interviewed for an article which ran in the LA Times on May 18, 2010. This interview was for an article titled “Behavioral therapy effective in treating Tourette syndrome.” This article was in regard to an article that ran in the Journal of the American Medical Association, “Behavior Therapy for Children With Tourette Disorder .” Dr. Hollenbeck is also the chairman of the Tourette Syndrome Association. Congratulations to Dr. Hollenbeck, you are part of the changing face of science! READ MORE
Department of Biological Sciences Strategic plan 2010-2014
The Department of Biological Sciences aims to become a destination for world-class scholars and a flagship for the life sciences on this campus and across our state. We envision increasing opportunities for our departmental mission to impact society: the grand challenges of human health, energy supply and conservation of our environment can be tackled with solutions rooted in biological research.
Our previous strategic plan focused on hiring priorities to position the Department for outstanding research. This hiring plan has been successful, changing the demographics of Biological Sciences with an infusion of young and energetic talent. We aim to capitalize on this success with a new strategic plan that is congruous with the goals of the University’s New Synergies plan, and the College’s Insight, Innovation, Impact plan. It is at the Department level that “the rubber hits the road” in creating synergistic research teams, superb learning environments, and successful engagement initiatives on campus. To this end, our strategic plan is constructed as a roadmap – we describe our goals, strategies and metrics, with suggested routes and the first steps that we have taken or will take to advance toward our goals.
All departmental constituencies – faculty, staff, undergraduate, graduate and post-docs – contributed to defining our goals and strategies. An analysis of metrics will be shared annually with our Alumni Advisory Committee, the College of Science and with the faculty. A newly constituted executive team will determine mid-course corrections as needed. (View: Department of Biological Sciences Strategic Plan 2010-2014)