School of Humanities and Sciences
Showing 1-100 of 143 Results
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Ronan Arthur
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
BioRonan Arthur (PhD) is a postdoctoral scholar in the Stanford School of Medicine and in the Department of Biology. Ronan studies adaptive behavior and community trust during epidemics through mathematical modeling techniques and empirical work in Liberia. Current research includes: hospital hand hygiene in Liberia; hospital ventilation in rural Liberia; adaptive behavior during epidemics with age-structure; quantifying gene-culture co-evolution; trust of government and health system during COVID-19 in Liberia; and agent-based modeling of COVID-19 and Ebola Virus Disease.
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ibrahim Halil Aslan
Postdoctoral Scholar, Hopkins Marine Station
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsIntegrated risk mapping and targeted snail control to support schistosomiasis elimination in Brazil and Cote d’Ivoire under future climate change.
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Louis Berrios
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
BioLouis joined the Peay lab in 2021 after completing his Ph.D. at the University of South Carolina with Dr. Bert Ely. His research primarily focuses on the factors that govern the spatial distributions of bacteria and fungi as a function of microbe-microbe and plant-microbe interactions. From genomes to phenomes, Louis fuses both top-down and bottom-up experimental approaches to determine the genetic architecture that undergirds plant microbiome assemblages across landscapes.
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David Cade
Postdoctoral Scholar, Hopkins Marine Station
BioFor the most up to date information, check out www.davidecade.com
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Ching Chieh Chou
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsI am interested in the cellular strategies to regulate protein folding, transport and aggregation, and the pathogenic pathways leading to proteome remodeling in age-related neurodegenerative diseases. I use molecular imaging, cell reprogramming and multi-omics technologies to address these questions with importance to the aging and neuroscience field.
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Griffin Chure
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
BioThe short version is that I’m a antidisciplinary scientist. The medium-length version is that I’m a quantitatively minded person who uses theoretical physics and computational analysis to design biochemical experiments that address questions in environmental science and ecology. The slightly longer version is that I’m an NSF postdoctoral fellow at Stanford sitting in the lab of Jonas Cremer where I use principles of bacterial physiology to make predictive models of evolution. I firmly believe that the future of biology relies on an intuition for the physics that governs it, especially in evolutionary biology.
Being the progeny of two paleontologists, I grew up in rural Utah where I was raised in a concoction of contradictions. While my weekends were spent with my parents helping dig up dinosaur bones and grappling with geology of my surroundings, my weekdays were spent in the rural public education system where I was taught evolution was a lie, humans can’t impact the Earth, and that dinosaur bones were buried by either the devil or the government (or maybe both). Contending with these diametrically opposed views of science and experiencing its influence on public discourse has strongly influenced the way I want to understand the world; through the cold, unforgiving, and objective lens of math.
After studying biology and chemistry at the University of Utah, I earned a PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics under the tutelage of Rob Phillips at the California Institute of Technology. Through studying how bacterial cells control the action of their own genes, I learned how to approach biological problems from a physical and probabilistic perspective. I have carried this manner of scientific study with me where I bring it to bear on the complex phenomena that emerge at the intersection of bacterial physiology, ecology, and evolution.
Beyond quantitative science, I am an amateur web developer and help build and maintain a number of scientific resources, such as the Human Impacts Database. Beyond science, I love taking photographs, making programmatically generated art, vector based illustration (like those on my research page), and exploring the wild lands of California. I also watch my fair share of films and television about which I have hard-headed opinions, such as an affinity for Alejandro Jodorowsky and Julia Ducournau and a disdain for Star Wars and Marvel. -
Lauren Cote
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
BioI'm a developmental biologist with a background in planarian regeneration who is studying epithelial cells in Jessica Feldman's lab as a Damon Runyon Fellow supported by the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation. I'm interested in understanding better how different kinds of epithelial cells, like the cells that line your gut and the cells that make up your skin, are able to correctly connect to one another and form fully continuous organs.
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Biplabendu Das
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
BioBiologist and R programmer. Works on biological rhythms, animal behavior, and infectious diseases.
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Christopher M. Dundas
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsSoil can have an enormous impact on climate change mitigation, as atmospheric CO2 is captured and stored in large quantities by soil organic matter. Plants mediate carbon sequestration by transferring aboveground photosynthesis products to belowground roots. This carbon is stabilized into soil pools by root growth/biomass turnover, exudation of organic compounds, and metabolization by soil microbes. Crops bioengineered to increase soil carbon input could boost net CO2 capture and improve agricultural productivity (e.g., via elevated water and nutrient availability). However, genetic engineering targets that control carbon exchange from roots to soil remain poorly defined. Since carbon distribution within plants is controlled by sugar metabolization and transport, genes that alter these processes may also regulate carbon input to root-proximal soil (i.e., the rhizosphere). At Stanford, Christopher will study how these genes affect soil carbon input by Setaria viridis, a model energy grass that is a promising sustainable fuel source. Leveraging high throughput root imaging technology and genetic circuit design, he will construct root-associating bacterial strains and transgenic Setaria that allow researchers to measure/modulate sugar flux from root systems. These living sensors/actuators will be used to determine genetic design rules of soil carbon input at the root-rhizosphere interface. Results will inform engineering of biofertilizer bacteria and functional plant genes that can increase carbon release into soils by other food- and energy-relevant crops.
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Michelle María Early Capistrán
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
BioMichelle María Early Capistrán is a David H. Smith Conservation Fellow at the Crowder Lab. Her transdisciplinary research focuses on working collaboratively with coastal communities to improve conservation practice by integrating Local Ecological Knowledge and marine ecology. She was originally trained as a Cultural Anthropologist and holds an M.S. and PhD in Marine Science and Limnology (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, UNAM). For over a decade, she has collaborated with rural fishing communities in the Baja California peninsula to understand long-term changes in the abundance of endangered and culturally important green turtles (Chelonia mydas). She will work with Prof. Crowder, in collaboration with Jeff Seminoff of the NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center, to develop species distribution model for green turtles under climate change by integrating Local Ecological Knowledge and Citizen/Community Science.
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Alejandra Echeverri Ochoa
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsI am an interdisciplinary conservation scientist interested in studying the social and ecological dimensions of biodiversity conservation in Latin America. I study questions related to the cultural value of biodiversity, the human footprint on ecological communities, and the policy interventions that can be done to support biodiversity conservation across Latin American ecosystems
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Laurent Formery
Postdoctoral Scholar, Hopkins Marine Station
BioI graduated from Sorbonne University (France) in Molecular and Cellular Biology, and I started my PhD at the Villefranche-sur-Mer marine station, where my research focused on the develoment and evolution of the nervous system in sea urchins, and on the roles of intercellular signaling pathways in this process. As part of my PhD, I spent one year at the Shimoda Marine Research Center (Japan). I am now trying to understand how morphological diversity emerged from gene regulatory networks, using echinoderms and other cool animals like accorn worms. I am broadly fascinated by developmental biology, evolution, and zoological studies of weird animals in general.
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Wendy Herbst
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
BioNeuroscience Postdoc in Kang Shen Lab, Department of Biology
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Shaili Johri
Postdoctoral Scholar, Hopkins Marine Station
BioI am a geneticist who works in the field of marine science and conservation. My work is aimed at reducing knowledge gaps in conservation science through scientific research, community partnerships and knowledge exchange across disciplines. Genomics research by our group aims to inform conservation policy and assist in reducing illegal wildlife trade.
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Bryan H. Juarez
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
BioI am a quantitative evolutionary biologist interested in the mechanisms driving macroevolutionary patterns of trait evolution. Currently, I am investigating the impact of climate on anuran breeding phenology, and the underlying genetic diversity and gene expression patterns of aquaporin proteins which might have resulted in the diverse breeding strategies we see today in anurans.
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Courtney Klepac
Postdoctoral Scholar, Hopkins Marine Station
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsCourtney will be involved with mapping coral heat resistance across multiple Pacific reefs as part of a collaborative (NSF) Super Reefs project, where she will train and collaborate with local students and researchers on coral tolerance experiments. By investigating the influence of environment, physiological plasticity, and genetic adaptation on the stress tolerance scope of corals, her research aims are to understand how corals will respond to future climate change and identify putatively tolerant corals for management.
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Ruben Land
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
BioRuben’s research focuses on how neurons communicate and how dysfunction at the molecular level contributes to disruption of this communication in neurological disorders. Ruben is a PhD candidate in the Shen Lab. His current work includes investigation of synaptic vesicle regulation and synaptic specificity. Neurons largely communicate via chemical synapses. At the pre-synaptic neuron terminal, neurotransmitters are packaged in synaptic vesicles and released into the synapse to convey messages to post-synaptic neurons. The molecular mechanisms that regulate synaptic vesicle activity are crucial for the appropriate function of neural networks. Disruptions of these processes appear to be involved in a variety of neurological disorders. Ruben is investigating the molecular mechanisms involved in these processes to better understand how neurons communicate and how molecular dysfunction might disrupt this communication. In his free time, Ruben is involved in several efforts to promote student and community mental health and well-being at Stanford and beyond. He also likes to run, hike and play ultimate frisbee.
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Staci Lewis
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsStaci is interested in the impacts of land-use change on coral reef ecosystem services, and the transformation of governance regimes towards adaptive management of marine and coastal resources. Her work is based in the Republic of Palau, an island nation in Micronesia, where she is studying the emergence of watershed management and the sedimentation impacts on coral reefs in two watershed systems that have experienced modern increase in land development.
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Xing Liang
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMechanism of MT polarity establishment during PVD neuron dendrite outgrowing in C. elegans.
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Yougeng Lu
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
BioYougeng Lu (he/him/his) is a Postdoctoral Scholar with the Natural Capital Project on developing urban nature exposure model. His research focuses on exploring the linkages between exposure to urban nature, such as green space and street trees, and individual's physical activity and mental health. Yougeng received his Ph.D. in Urban Planning and Development from the University of Southern California, where he developed a high spatiotemporal resolution PM2.5 prediction model with low-cost air sensors and studied how people's travel behavior affects their air pollution exposure. He holds an M.Sc. in Urban Planning from University of Washington, Seattle; and a B.Sc. in Geography from Wuhan University, China.
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Nathan McDonald
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsI am interested in the fundamental cell biology of neurons. In particular, I study how neuronal synapses are formed and function. Synapses are specialized intercellular junctions that facilitate rapid communication between neurons, and thus form the basis of neural circuits and nervous system function.
Within a synapse, synaptic vesicles containing neurotransmitters are released at a specific region termed the active zone. The active zone is composed of a variety of molecules that coordinate the tethering and priming of synaptic vesicles, the recruitment of ion channels to respond to action potentials, and the stabilization of the synapse through transmembrane connections to a postsynaptic cell.
A wide range of transmembrane proteins are capable of initiating synapse formation during development and provide specificity for targeting the proper postsynaptic cell, including Neurexins/Neuroligins, LRRTMs, DIPs/DPRs, and many Ig domain proteins. However, in all synapses, these molecules must signal to build a common active zone core. I am studying how the conserved active zone core assembles downstream of this complexity, a fundamental unresolved question in developmental neurobiology.
To study this problem, I use the simple and stereotyped nervous system of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. I use fluorescent imaging of endogenous proteins at single neuron and single synapse resolution, as well as genetic and biochemical methods. -
Andressa Monteiro Venturini
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
BioAndressa M. Venturini has a bachelor’s and licentiate’s degrees in biological science from the Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture (ESALQ/USP). Venturini received her doctorate degree in science in 2019 from the Center for Nuclear Energy in Agriculture of the University of São Paulo (CENA/USP) in Brazil, having previously received a master’s degree in science from the same institution in 2014. In 2021, her thesis received the USP Outstanding Thesis Award - 10th Edition in the area of Environmental Sustainability. She also spent a period abroad at the Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW) and, during her Ph.D., at the University of Oregon (UO). Venturini has previously worked at the Paulista University (UNIP) and as a postdoc at CENA/USP. She has experience in Soil Microbial Ecology, Molecular Biology, and Bioinformatics. Her research is focused on the microbial communities of tropical soils, their role in biogeochemical cycles, and how they are being impacted by land-use and climate change. During the 2021-22 academic year, Venturini was a Fung Global Fellow Postdoctoral Research Associate at Princeton University.
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Josheena Naggea
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsJosheena is an André Hoffmann Fellow at the Stanford Center for Ocean Solutions and the World Economic Forum Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Her current work is focused on centering blue justice and equity for ocean innovations in small-scale fisheries and aquaculture. Her community-engaged research has focused on climate change adaptation, marine protected area management, disaster impacts and recovery, and the valorization of natural and cultural heritage in ocean governance. She has a keen interest in understanding people-ocean connections and how they influence coastal livelihoods, local environmental stewardship, and food security.
She is also an IPBES (Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services) fellow on the Transformative Change Assessment, investigating the determinants of transformative change and pathways for achieving the 2050 Vision for Biodiversity.
Josheena holds a Ph.D. in Environment and Resources from the Emmett Interdisciplinary Program in Environment and Resources (E-IPER) at Stanford University. Her doctoral work aimed to support ocean governance in the Western Indian Ocean, with a focus on the Republic of Mauritius, her home country. She is presently a national steering committee member of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Small Grants Programme (SGP), implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Mauritius, where she continues to support community-led efforts for sustainability, biodiversity conservation, and poverty alleviation. -
Carolina Olguin Jacobson
Postdoctoral Scholar, Hopkins Marine Station
BioMy research focuses on socio-ecological systems within fishery cooperatives in Baja California, Mexico, exploring their resilience and adaptation strategies to climate change and COVID-19 impacts through oceanographic and ecological monitoring.
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Chenjie Pan
Postdoctoral Scholar, Biology
BioI obtained my PhD from Dr. Xiaodong Wang's lab, National Institute of Biological Sciences, Beijing/Tsinghua University. My major work during PhD is on the biochemical mechanism of myelin breakdown. I have expertise in in-tissue immunoprecipitation and pain behavior. Now I am working on axon guidance, degeneration, and plasticity in Dr. Marc Tessier-Lavigne's lab in Department of Biology.
