As we approach the beginning of August we are also approaching the last week of our fundraising efforts on experiment.com. Thanks to our latest backers we are now at 30% of our goal, and we hope that with some nudging we’ll be able to get there. Please spread the word!
Some cool things will be happening soon. Rachel and Ana will be participating in the STEMM (Sequence Technology Education Using Microbial Metagenomes) workshop organized by SDSU’s Professor Elizabeth Dinsdale. Elizabeth is a renown expert in ocean metagenomics, so we are looking forward not only learning more about sequencing and metagenomics, but also to good discussions with experts in the field.
And in a few weeks it is time for the ISME 2016 conference in Montreal! ISME is the International Society for Microbial Ecology, and its symposium is THE conference to go with our kind of research. Our poster is entitled “Diversity and growth of bacterial communities inhabiting plastic debris in Southern California coastal waters.”
The picture above was taken on an evening cruise on the Potomac River in Washington DC, which was part of the ASMCUE conference. This conference brings together biologists interested in teaching, and it is a great place to exchange information and learn new teaching practices. One big takeaway from the conference is the huge improvement in student learning and satisfaction when courses incorporate research. As our plastic project expands, we hope to take it to the classrooms so student are able to investigate their beaches and coastal communities.
