Dear Colleagues,

We all know that our work as scientists to create new knowledge is intrinsically important, and the COVID-19 pandemic emphasizes this point. Science is essential for providing solutions to the world’s greatest challenges. We know this – it’s the core conviction that drives many of us in the College of Science. But now, beyond research universities, beyond national research laboratories, the best world leaders are using science to light the path that will allow us to walk through and beyond this crisis.

I am so grateful to be working with teams of scientists in our College, university and elsewhere who are putting themselves on the line to make a better world through scientific discovery. Every day, I have the privilege of seeing humanity at its best during this crisis.

In our College, people are urgently collecting and analyzing data to help slow the spread of the virus, collaborating across disciplines to rapidly provide solutions to ease suffering and save lives, donating personal protection equipment (PPE) to hospitals, promoting public health information through their networks, and preparing future science leaders by virtually teaching and advising students at home. Even our collective sacrifice of staying home makes a real difference.

I know adapting to Gov. Kate Brown’s COVID-19 directives is stressful for all of us as we juggle multiple roles in imperfect environments and adapt to remote teaching, advising and providing administrative support while we also look out for family members needing our care. This is a challenging time, to say the least.

Know that all of your contributions are incredibly important. Together, we will continue advancing science at a time when the need simply could not be clearer. My hope is that our leaders and society will carry forward their reemerging trust in science and allow scientists to help lead the way through other urgent challenges of our day, including climate change. You all give me good reason to hope. For this, I sincerely thank you.

Roy Haggerty
Dean, College of Science

Research Highlights

A member of the 2019-2020 graduate cohort of the NSF Research Traineeship Program at OSU, mathematics graduate student Ruby (Ali) Chick will pursue an internship at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in Corvallis, working on improving forecasting models in the field of human epidemiology.

With the support of a $1 million Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Inclusive Excellence Grant, senior biology instructor Lori Kayes and her colleagues at OSU’s STEM Research Center are working toward breaking down barriers some students face when pursuing a STEM education.

Tapping into 35 years of satellite imagery, marine biology Ph.D. student Sara Hamilton and her colleagues have dramatically enlarged the database regarding how climate change is affecting kelps, near-shore seaweeds that provide food and shelter for fish and protect coastlines from wave damage.

Research Funding

Marine ecologist Sally Hacker received a two-year $230K grant from Oregon Sea Grant for her project “From genes to dunescapes: Genetic and ecological consequences of a new ‘super’ beach grass.”

Microbiologists Kimberly Halsey and Stephen Giovannoni received a $685K grant from the National Science Foundation for their project entitled “Interactions between phytoplankton and bacterioplankton mediated by volatile organic compounds.”

Chemist Claudia Maier received $15,254 from Oregon Health and Science University for her project, “Biological signatures of the cognitive effects of Centella asiatica.”

Chemist May Nyman received a three-year, $540K grant from the U.S. Department of Energy for her project, “Hydrolysis, self-assembly and supramolecular assembly of early transition metal-oxo clusters: MOF nodes and aqueous reaction pathways.”

Biochemist Ryan Mehl received $35,910 from National Institutes of Health for his project, “Development of an improved core technology for efficient genetic code expansion in biomedical research.”

Biochemist Viviana Perez received a 2-year, $400K grant from the National Institutes of Health for her project, “Nrf2 deficiency as a prime modulator of cellular senescence and Alzheimer’s disease.” Physicist Davide Lazzati received $68,885 from NASA for his project, “Dust from supernovae: Formation, resilience to sputtering and explosion, and diffusion in the interstellar medium.”

Research Proposal Support

You can find funding opportunities on ECOS. To access a suite of tools and resources available to faculty, visit the College of Science Proposal Support webpage.

National Honors

Claire Couch, a Ph.D. candidate in biology, is one of 12 graduate students across the U.S. to win the Ecological Society of America‘s Katherine S. McCarter Graduate Student policy Award. The award provides graduate students the opportunity to receive policy and communication training in Washington, D.C., hear from ecologists working in federal agencies and meet with members of Congress.

OSU disease modeling expert Ben Dalziel, an assistant professor of integrative biology, is featured in The New York Times for his work tracking the flu season and other fever spikes associated with Covid-19 with the help of smart thermometers. Kinsa Health makes internet-connected thermometers that are a game changer because it can record fevers as soon as consumers experience them thus acting as an early warning system for coronavirus spreading.

What is happening with the flu this season? Quartz reports on population biologist Ben Dalziel’s research with Kinsa smart thermometer data, which shows that social distancing due to COVID19 has slowed the spread of other infectious diseases, including the seasonal flu.

Worried about how to make a successful transition to remote teaching? Chemistry professor Marita Barth provided some great insights in an article in Chemical & Engineering News entitled “Tips for teaching in the time of coronavirus.“

OSU microbiologists Stephen Atkinson and Jerri Bartholomew along with collaborators have discovered a unique multicellular organism that lives in salmon tissue and doesn’t need oxygen to produce energy. The parasite related to jellyfish and coral steals nutrients from salmon to survive. Their stunning discovery was reported in several prestigious media outlets including CNN and the New York Times.

Since students can’t come to us right now, OSU has launched a new site that lets prospective students visit virtually. #BeaverNation is a hub of student resources that offers virtual tours, ONID account set-up, a live chat with Benny the Beaver and a lot more. Advisers, please share with any prospective student interested in our programs.

OSU will no longer require freshman applicants to submit standardized tests to be considered for admission, starting with fall term 2021. “This decision is in keeping with OSU’s mission to provide access to high-quality higher education for all qualified learners,” said Edward Feser, provost and executive vice president.

Kudos! In response to a shortage of hand and surface sanitizer, the Department of Chemistry produced these products in the lab and made them available for free to College of Science faculty and for purchase to other OSU units. 

Thank you to renowned climate scientist and science alumnus Warren Washington (’58 ’60 Physics) and his wife Mary for their gift establishing OSU’s largest endowed scholarship for students engaged in climate studies. Their $100,000 gift will support undergraduate students in the College of Science and the College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, with a preference for students from underrepresented populations. 

Upcoming events

August 11–14, 2020, Oregon State University
Registration for Stan Conference is now open for researchers, graduate students and professionals. The statistics and data science conference is planned to take to place on campus, August 11-14, 2020, and will include two days of tutorials followed by two days of talks and statistical modeling. Stan is an open-source software that has had a far-reaching impact on Bayesian computations for a broad range of applied statistics and data science problems. Learn more and register.

September 7–10, 2020, Lima, Peru
The 5th International Symposium on the Ocean in a High CO2 World will take place September 7-10 in Lima, Peru. Jane Lubchenco, distinguished professor of biology, will be a plenary speaker.

Recent Events

March 7, 2020
Discovering the Scientist Within (DSW) was a free half-day workshop designed to encourage young women to pursue STEM careers.