In Brief

Scripps Florida Awarded NSF Grant for Summer Research Program

Scripps Florida has received a Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) grant from the National Science Foundation, expanding the campus’s summer outreach programs. The three-year grant will fund 10 undergraduate researchers in a new Jupiter campus program titled “SURFing the Interface between Chemistry and Biology.”

“This is a program that NSF has run for a long time,” said The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) Associate Professor Katrin Karbstein, principal investigator for the REU grant. “Students interested in these kinds of opportunities look on the NSF website, and we will be listed there. I think it's a tremendous opportunity for undergraduates—locally as well as statewide and nationally—to be doing research at a first-rate institution.”

The 10-week program will run concurrently with Scripps Florida’s Summer Undergraduate Research Fellows (SURF) and Kenan undergraduate summer programs. Participants in all three programs will experience mentored scientific training in the laboratory, professional development in a classroom setting and specialized training in scientific presentation. The Scripps Florida REU grant provides stipends and housing for participating undergraduates.

Matthias Pauthner Wins HIV/AIDS Research Fellowship

Matthias Pauthner, a graduate student in TSRI Professor Dennis Burton’s lab, has been awarded a fellowship from the California HIV/AIDS Research Program (CHRP). Designed to foster the next generation of HIV/AIDS researchers, CHRP fellowships help young investigators to compete successfully for additional funding, support institutional collaborations and foster critical, targeted research.

Pauthner’s research project, Molecular Characterization of the N332 Supersite of Vulnerability on HIV-1 Envelope, is aimed at isolating and characterizing epitope-specific broadly HIV neutralizing antibodies to inform the rational design of HIV vaccine candidates.

Dejan Caglič, Yannan Zhao, Sheena Saayman Selected for SoF Travel Awards

The Society of Fellows (SoF) has announced the spring cycle California Postdoctoral Travel Award winners. The winning postdoctoral fellows, who will each receive up to $1,000 to cover travel expenses to present their work at a national or international scientific conference, are:

Dejan Caglič of the Dickerson lab, presenting at the International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) in Vancouver, Canada
Yannan Zhao of the Ghadiri lab, presenting at the Keystone Symposia: Exploiting and Understanding Chemical Biotransformations in the Human Microbiome in Big Sky, Montana
Sheena Saayman of the Morris lab, presenting at the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy Annual Meeting in Washington, DC

The SoF will award up to six travel grants in 2014 in two evaluation cycles. The next application deadline is October 1. Postdocs who have never attended a scientific meeting to present their current work are encouraged to apply; additionally, previously unsuccessful applicants are urged to re-apply. Visit the Travel Awards website for details.

CA Campus Academic Careers Roundtable to Discuss Tenure Process

TSRI Associate Professor Bruce Torbett will facilitate a discussion on the process of obtaining tenure at the next Academic Careers Roundtable, scheduled for Friday, April 18, noon to 1 PM, in the California Graduate Office conference room, 3377 building, suite 300.

Presented by the Career and Postdoctoral Services Office, the roundtable series—bimonthly professional development sessions for postdoctoral fellows and graduate students—features an informal conversational setting with guest faculty members. Lunch is provided. Session registration is required.

For information on other resources and activities offered by the Career and Postdoctoral Services Office, visit the office website.

SF-SRF Hosts First On-Campus Happy Hour

Faculty members are invited to the first Scripps Florida Society of Research Fellows (SF-SRF) on-campus Happy Hour mixer on Friday, March 28, 6 PM, in the Founders Lounge, building B. “This location will provide a good opportunity for friendly, informal interaction between faculty and the postdoctoral community,” said Hari Bhaskaran, a research associate in the Karbstein lab and SF-SRF executive board member.

Appetizers and beverages (alcoholic and non-alcoholic) will be provided. Additional information on other SoF activities is available on the group’s website.

Time Management Class Available on California Campus

Time management skills to improve productivity will be taught at an upcoming Human Resources training workshop. Open to all California campus faculty and staff, the 2½-hour workshop will be offered on Friday, April 11 and repeated on Thursday, April 17, from 9 to 11:30 AM each day, in the HR Training Room, 3377 building, suite 205.

Conducted by TSRI Training Specialist Catharine Gruver, the class will cover practical steps to manage time, provide a workflow and improve time management skills. Participants will examine their current time management practices and learn how to change those practices to improve productivity.

Class registration can be made online or by calling Angelike Wallace at x4-7028. For additional class details, contact Gruver at x4-9811 or cgruver@scripps.edu.

Turning Green with Sustainability?

Join the California campus Green Team at its next meeting, Tuesday, April 8, from 12:30 to 1:30 PM, in the Human Resources Training Room, 3377 building, suite 205.

The Green Team offers faculty, students, and staff an opportunity to learn more about TSRI’s campus sustainability efforts and accomplishments; green purchasing decisions for work and home; and local environmental education, outreach and volunteer programs.

For more information, please visit TSRI’s Green Initiative webpage, or email us at sustain@scripps.edu.

Reminder: Single Onsite Clinic Scheduled for March 31 on CA Campus

The next onsite immunization clinic on the California campus will be held one day only—Monday, March 31—from 9:30 to 11:30 AM, in Building 3366, room 150. Appointments are not needed.

Conducted by Sharp Rees-Stealy staff, the clinic will provide hepatitis B vaccination free of charge to all TSRI employees. Environmental Health & Safety Occupational Medicine must pre-authorize all other procedures based on the employee's working conditions. These procedures include tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (Tdap) vaccines and other titers, immunizations and procedures.

TB testing is provided for employees who, in the scope of their TSRI positions, provide human health care, such as registered nurses, or who work with human subjects or nonhuman primates. For further details, contact Rachel Longville, rachellv@scripps.edu or x4-8457.

At The Auditorium: Mainly Mozart, Spring Jazz, Classical Piano

Mainly Mozart presents a Spotlight Chamber Music concert on Saturday, March 29, 7:30 PM. Musicians Steven Copes, Jeremy Kurts, Yural Lee, Anna Polonsky and Ronald Thomas will perform Shubert’s Piano Quintet in A (“The Trout”) and Sontata in A minor for Arpeggione and Piano, and Mozart’s Adagio in B minor. A wine and cheese reception will be held at 6:30 PM. Visit the Mainly Mozart website for ticket and additional concert details.

The Athenaeum Music & Arts Library continues its Spring Jazz concert series with the Brad Mehldau Trio on Tuesday, April 1, 7:30 PM. Considered one of the most adventurous pianists on the jazz scene, Mehldau will be joined by Larry Grenadier on bass and Jeff Ballard on drums. Ticket and additional information is available at the Athenaeum website.

The La Jolla Music Society’s Discovery Series presents a solo recital by Russian-born pianist Pavel Kolesnikov on Sunday, April 6, 3 PM. Winner of the Honens Prize, which recognizes outstanding young pianists, Kolesnikov will perform works by Rameau, Debussy and Chopin. Ticket and concert information can be found on the society’s website.

Send comments to: mikaono[at]scripps.edu

SEARCH NEWS & VIEWS

In Mapping Feat, Scientists Pinpoint Neurons Where Select Memories Grow

Team Awarded $2.3 Million to Study Dengue Fever and Related Viruses

TSRI Scientists Share Social Media Tips