The Department of Biological Sciences is celebrating 50 years!
The 50th Anniversary Symposium on November 11th will feature talks from alumni as well as former and current members of the department and will take place at Cowin Auditorium, 147 Horace Mann Hall, Teacher’s College. The Symposium will begin promptly at 9:00 am and end at 5:10 pm, followed by a reception and celebratory dinner.
9 am - 5:10 pm Symposium, Cowin Auditorium, 147 Horace Mann Hall, Teacher’s College
8:30 Breakfast & coffee
Session 1: 9:00-10:40am
9:00 Welcome Dr. Carol Prives
9:10 Dr. Elliot Meyerowitz - Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology - “Mechanical Signals Control a Plant Stem Cell Niche”
9:40 Dr. Oliver Hobert - Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University - “How sex shapes the brain”
10:00 Dr. Miriam Goodman - Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology; Department of Mechanical Engineering; Stanford University - “The Flexibility of Sensory Neurons Under (Mechanical) Stress”
10:20 Ms. Lisa Kahl - Dietrich lab, Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University - “Light-controlled metabolic cycling in non-phototrophic bacterial communities”
10:40 coffee break
Session 2: 11:00-12:30
11:00 Dr. Tom Kornberg - Cardiovascular Research Institute, University of California, San Francisco - “Signaling at a distance: communicating by touch”
11:30 Dr. Raju Tomer - Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University - “Rapid high-resolution mapping of brain structure and function”
11:50 Dr. Alex Chesler - Stadtman Investigator, NCCIH/NIH - “The Role of PIEZO2 in Human Mechanosensation”
12:10 Ms. Catherine Brahic - Feature editor, New Scientist - “Science in the media: how stories are made”
12:30 lunch
Session 3: 2:00-3:30
2:00 Dr. Joe Thornton - Department of Human Genetics, Department of Ecology & Evolution, University of Chicago - “Reconstructing the ancient mechanisms of protein evolution”
2:30 Dr. Molly Przeworski - Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University - “Of mice, men and birds: recombination hotspots and their evolution”
2:50 Dr. Gareth Bond - Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, University of Oxford - “Does the broader human population have innate differences in p53-mediated tumor suppression?”
3:10 Mr. Philip Choi - Tong lab, Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University - “Cyclic-di-AMP: A Novel Bacterial Second Messenger with a Role in Metabolic Regulation”
3:30 coffee break
Keynote:
4:00 Introduction by Dr. Martin Chalfie - Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University
4:10 Keynote lecture by Dr. Richard Axel - Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, The Kavli Institute for Brain Science, Columbia University - “Genetics and the Origin of Species of Neuroscientists”
5:30 - 6:30 pm Reception, Faculty Room, Low Library
6:30 - 9:30 pm Dinner, Low Library Rotunda
6:30 Dinner begins - Low Library Rotunda
6:45 Welcome Remarks Dr. Liang Tong - Low Library Rotunda
6:55 Introduction by David Madigan - Executive Vice President for Arts and Sciences and Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Columbia University
7:00 Keynote lecture by Dr. George Yancopoulos - President, Chief Scientific Officer & Scientific Founder, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals - “From Fairchild in 1976 to Regeneron in 2016….40 years of Memories”
8:30 Personal recollections of the Department