#BmoreSciSlam: A Science Communication Challenge

#BmoreSciSlam: A Science Communication Challenge

I had a great deal of fun Friday night, 3/11/16, visiting the Baltimore UnderGround Science Space (BUGSS) for their first #BmoreSciSlam. BUGSS is a great citizen science makerspace/hackerspace where members have access to molecular biology lab equipment, 3D printers, and the technical expertise of lab and program manager Dr. Sarah Laun. Founded by Dr. Tom  Burkett, BUGSS offers classes, workshops, featured speakers, and many other exciting activities for people interested in biotechnology. If you are in the Baltimore Metro area, join their email list to keep up with the many events they sponsor. There’s an upcoming talk on the science of coffee I need to get on my calendar! They are also co-hosting a microbe-art event. Stay tuned for more details on that! Another sponsor of the event was Project Bridge – a group of graduate students at Johns Hopkins University who have Science Cafes, go to farmer’s markets, and sponsor other events to communicate science to the public. As a graduate research assistant at the University of Arizona in the ADVANCE program, we featured several “Data Blitzes”. which were 5 minute research talks. I’d seen several and thought it would be easy and fun. Well, fun it was, easy – not so

Bacterial Farts – Whoopie!

Bacterial Farts – Whoopie!

Of all the bacterial communities in and on humans, we know the most about the digestive system bacteria. These microbes are extremely important for proper digestion of plant fibers, synthesizing vitamins, short-chain fatty acids, protecting our gut lining, breaking down medicines, and many other properties we are still learning about. One of my favorite science podcasts, Brains’s On!, does a fun job talking about our gut bacterial friends from a different perspective – farts! Depending on your microbial community and what you feed it, sometimes as your microbes are doing their work breaking down the foods we eat they give off gaseous compounds.

Book Review: Welcome to the Microbiome

Book Review: Welcome to the Microbiome

Welcome to the Microbiome is at the top of my list of recommended books about the human microbiome. Written by scientists and museum curators, Dr. Susan Perkins and Dr. Rob DeSalle to accompany the American Museum of Natural History’s microbiome exhibit “The Secret World Inside You”, Welcome to the Microbiome, introduces readers to not only to the human microbiome, but also to the science behind the research. It is aimed at people interested in the process and findings of the newly emerging field of microbiome biology and its importance for human existence and health. This book introduces anyone interested in basic cell biology, genomics, and microbiology to these subjects while weaving stories about human-microbiome interactions.  

GIANTmicrobes Valentine’s Giveaway

GIANTmicrobes Valentine’s Giveaway

Happy Valentine’s Day to you and your microbes! Congrats to Margot P. our randomly drawn GIANTmicrobes winner. Margot, I’ll email you details. Thanks to everyone for your fun and inspiring comments. Below is my Valentine’s to all of you. An explanation of the glowing words are below the image.       One of the most amazing discoveries about bacteria in the last decade or so is quorum sensing. Dr. Bonnie Bassler discovered that many bacteria secrete special chemicals that help them determine how many other bacteria of the same species are around. When a certain number of bacteria (determined by the chemical concentration) are present – the “quorum” – then all of these bacteria turn on a different set of genes. In the case of some species of Vibrio, Pseudomonas, and Photobacterium the genes activated with quorum sensing are for bio-luminescence. THEY GLOW. Isn’t that awesome?  Dr. Bassler’s TED talk is below. As well as a great scientist, she’s a fabulous speaker. I faked the quorum sensing plate above, but if you’d like to see some of the real glowing Valentine’s – check out Dr. Mark Martin’s blog. He and his undergraduate students do  a lot of fun projects like this at the University of Puget

GIANTmicrobes – When Teachers Throw Things

GIANTmicrobes – When Teachers Throw Things

  Think these little critters are cute? Enter a comment below for a chance to win one!  (contest closed 2/14/2016) How do you understand something you can’t see? That’s the inspiration behind GIANTmicrobes ™, those adorable stuffed microbes 1 million times the size of the actual microbes. Yes, microbe “stuffies”. Better than that, they are plush microbe stuffies based on the shape and features of real microbes, from flagella on E. coli to buds on the Saccharomyces yeast. Additionally, they have cute big eyes and some accessories such as a cape for MRSA and a knife and fork for flesh-eating bacteria to make them even more fun. Be still your beating heart? There are heart cells and all other sorts of microscopic cells too. Why would anyone want a gigantic stuffed microscopic cell? Good question. GIANTmicrobes make teaching, outreach, and every day fun and educational. What are GIANTmicrobes? Microscopic organisms often have an image problem with macro-organisms like us. People either don’t know about them or think they are shapeless blobs. However, microorganisms come in a variety of shapes and interesting structures. Ranging from rods, spheres, chains, or spirals typical of bacteria to bizarre shapes of protists. Cilia, pilli, and flagella