Michelle making a genomic library of Yellowtail clownfish (Amphiprion clarkii) samples in 24 seconds. For the geeks out there, this is a ddRADseq library.
Lab fishing trip!
Our plans to head out fishing for fluke (inspired by our fluke genetics project) were dead in the water when the party boat stayed in port for repairs. Instead, we went out fishing for bluefish. A good 4-6′ swell, but a great time on the water. Jennifer caught the first two, and Ryan caught the most (3). Turns out that the adrenaline of reeling one in is a good cure for seasickness. And they were delicious grilled that evening…
More photos here.
Afi and Mario join the lab
Afi and Mario are now hard at work in the lab, and both have been chomping at the bit to get going! It’s just Michelle and Malin that have been slow to set things up for them to work (fieldwork, travel, blah blah blah). In the short term, Afi is learning how to run electrophoresis gels and checking the quality of the hundreds of DNA extractions that we’re doing these days (clownfish!). Mario is analyzing the photo quadrat data that we collected in the Philippines and rapidly becoming an expert on identifying coral genera. We’re excited to have both of them join us!
Malin wins Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Award
See the Rutger’s press release for the obligatory handshake photograph with our Dean. The award will support our work in the Philippines.
Patrick is here!
Our first Ph.D. student, Patrick Flanagan, is now on campus and on the steep learning curve for R. Welcome, Patrick! We’ll be growing quickly over the next few months, with Jennifer Hoey (Ph.D. student) and Ryan Batt (postdoc) both arriving in August. Keep your eyes out for two new postdoc ads as well if you’re interested in that sort of thing…
Ph.D. student Jennifer Hoey awarded National Science Foundation fellowship
Exciting news! Jennifer, who will join the lab this fall, was one of only 14% of applicants awarded a prestigious National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship this year. The program “recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students in NSF-supported science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines.” Congratulations, Jennifer!
The lab is growing!
While the announcement was long overdue, Michelle Stuart joined in December, moving from Byron Crump’s lab in Oregon to work as our lab manager and population genomics extraordinaire. Besides wrangling new equipment and troubleshooting new protocols, she’s also getting ready for this year’s field season in Leyte, Philippines, our first since Typhoon Haiyan hit the region.
Just last week, Ryan Batt accepted an IMCS Postdoctoral Fellowship and will be joining us in August to work on understanding how changing temperatures affect the structure and dynamics of marine communities. He’s coming from U. Wisconsin – Madison and brings a wealth of data analysis tools, including super-cool early warning indicators of regime shifts.
Also last week, Patrick Flanagan (B.S., University of California Davis) accepted a Ph.D. position in the lab, through the Graduate Program in Oceanography. His interests include food web interactions, species distributions, and the effects of climate change, as well as science communication.
It’s exciting to have a growing community!