Volume 4 Number 4
October 13, 2000

    Have a great long weekend.

Oct 18 Ethnobotanical Studies in Central and South America – 7:00 Heritage Nature Center, St. Cloud.

Oct 20 Biology Club Camp-Out

Oct 26 Cancer Predisposition in Humans – Dr. Colin Campbell, Dept. Pharmacology, UM

Oct 26-29 Creativity and Sustainable Environments Conference – CSB/SJU

Nov 3 GRE Registration deadline (contact CSB/SJU Career Resource center

Nov 7 NCUR conference application due – contact Dr. M. Webster

Nov 15 Careers in Health & Medicine; 7:00 p.m., TRC

Mar 23 GRE Registration deadline (contact CSB/SJU Career Resource center

April 22 MCAT Exam (registration materials should be available in January 2001)

Aug 18 MCAT Exam (registration materials should be available in January 2001)

Biology Club CAMP OUT! – from Kristi Kubista (x6341)
    The Day you’ve heard about is here. The first annual Biology club camp out has been Scheduled for October 20^th. There will be food, games and plenty of fun to go around at Watab Island. The fund starts at 5 pm with a cook out and football game. Then there will be bonfires, hikes in the woods and smores throughout the evening. Everyone is invited, and people can come and go as they please. Breakfast will be provided.

    To reserve equipment and buy food, we need a count of those planning to attend this event. A cold/ rain out site will be located at the cabin owned by the Sisters at St. Ben’s. I look forward to hearing from you, and hope this becomes the activity of the year for the Biology club! To get more information email club co-presidents Kristi (kskubista) or Greg (gmdukinfield).

Homecoming Brat Sale a Big Success
   Many thanks to everyone who participated and purchased brats/burgers at the Biology Club’s annual Homecoming Brat Sale. Dr.’s Brown, Rodell, and Saupe grilled the tasty greasy tidbits that werey were served by a large cadre of biology club members. Everyone had a great time and the club made a very tasty profit!

Undergraduate Study Semester at NIH
During the fall semester of 2001, Colgate University will be taking about 20 students to Bethesda, Maryland, on our National Institutes of Health Off Campus Study Semester. Professor Germaine Gogel of the Chemistry Department at Colgate will be leading the group. While in Bethesda, students will be placed in an NIH research lab, where they will do a one- semester project with an NIH mentor. Students will be expected to work about 30 hours each week on their research. The research experience, along with a final paper, will count as the equivalent of two undergraduate science courses. In addition, the Colgate faculty member will either teach or arrange to have taught two additional courses designed to meet the requirements of a liberal arts curriculum. For the fall of 2001, all students will take Biology/Chemistry 492: Topics in the Primary Literature of the Molecular Biosciences. This discussion course requires students to use important journal papers from their research projects as the focus for class reading and critical analysis. Students may choose either Chem 353 Proteins and Nucleic Acids, or Biology 451 Topics in Advanced Cell Physiology for their second course. More information and a downloadable application form is available on our NIH Study Group Web site at: http://classes.colgate.edu/NIHStudyGroup/NIH.html. Our deadline for applications is November 17, 2000.

Summer Research at Roswell Park Cancer Institute
It’s not too early to think about your summer plans. For more information about this program email: mary.wisnicki@roswellpark.org or call 1–800–767–9365 or visit: http://rpci.med/buffalo.edu.

Internship Listing
Check out the Oct 2 internship listing from the Office of Internships. There are some good biological related internships listed.

Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge
Turpentine Creek is a non-profit society for "big cats". In the past 8 years they have rescued over 100 lions, tiges, leopards, and cougars. The refuge is accepting applications for those interested in full-time staff positions at the refuge. For more information contact them at: Volunteer Program; Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge; 239 Turpentine Creek Lane; Eureka Springs, AR 72632.

National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships
For more information visit http://orau.org/nsf/nsffel.htm

Seminars/Lectures/Symposia:

Ethnobotanical Studies in Central and South America.
This seminar will be presented by Dr. Jorge Arriagada, St. Cloud State University, at the monthly meeting of the Central Minnesota Audubon Society on Wednesday, October 18, 2000. The group meets at 7:00 p.m. in the Heritage Nature Center, across from Cub Foods (West). For more information or to obtain a ride, contact Dr. S. Saupe (x2782).

Cancer Predisposition in Humans
This seminar will be presented by Dr. Colin Campbell, Dept of Pharmacology, University of Minnesota on October 26, 2000, at 4:00 p.m. For more information contact Dr. C. Rodell.

Interested in Veterinary Medicine?
All students interested in Veterinary Medicine should contact Dr. Ron Henry (x3173), ASAP, if they haven't already done so.

Creativity and Sustainable Environments Conference
This conference will be held on campus October 26^th – 29^th . Among the featured speakers/activities are:

• Wes Jackson (http://www.landinstitute.com). President of The Land Institute. Salina, Kansas

• Brad Matuska (Mississippi Topsoil) & Jim McNelly (Natur-Tech). Presentation on innovations in composting in Central Minnesota.

• Fuel Cell Demonstration. An Alternative Energy Source presented by Bob Goff (SJU '62) and others.

• Energy efficient car. Demonstration of a gas/electric hybrid automobile, the Toyota Prius.

• SJU/Abbey Arboretum and CSB/Monastery Common Ground Garden. Tours and displays.

• Tribute to Fr. Paul Schwietz. S. Phyllis Plantenberg and Fr. John Klassen present a tribute to the late Fr. Paul, land manager for St. John's Abbey and University.

• Richard Bresnahan. Speaks on the use of indigenous materials and leads a tour of the studio.

• Ernie Diedrich (SJU) and Art Mehrhoff (SCSU). "Assessing Sustainability in Community". Talk about community indicators and then presenting an alternative scheme for evaluating the state of progress in the St. Cloud Area.

• Fr. John Klassen & S. Phyllis Plantenberg. "Stewardship of the Land"

• Larry Schug. Poet who will give a reading and speak of his work with recycling.

• Derek Larson, Joe Desjardins, Chuck Wright, Bernie Evans. Environmental Ethics Panel

• Environmental Studies Faculty and Students. Concurrent session focusing on the Environmental Studies new learning communities.

• Presentations by S. Mara Faulkner's students. Students from S. Mara's English: Modern and Contemporary Literature course will present on their creative work focusing on the environment.

• Minnesota Center Chorale. Performance October 29, 2000, 3:00 p.m. BAC. Phil Welter, Director. The MCC will perform with composer Malcolm Dalglish.

• Malcolm Dalglish. "Hymnody of Earth" A Ceremony of Songs for Choir, Hammer Dulcimer and Percussion, Featuring the poetry of Wendell Berry.

• "Hymns in the broadest sense are songs sung by a congregation of people with words that enliven our common concerns about salvation, the soul, the spirit, the unknown, and survival itself. Wendell Berry's poems seem to take flight naturally in hymn song. Berry is a Kentucky author who has become widely renowned and respected for his essays and novels in which he addresses the importance of community, conservation and common sense. His poetry speaks with a solid and graceful spirituality. Through his words we gain an appreciation for the delicate balance among the many cycles of life."

Poster Competition at AAAS Meeting
There is a student poster competition at the AAAS annual meeting (which is Feb.15-20 in San Francisco). The abstract deadline is Nov.8, and the abstract is to be submitted online at http://www.aaas.org/meetings. Also, the ASBMB has a student poster competition at its meeting (March 31-April 4 in Orlando) and they will financially support some undergraduate students and faculty to attend. For more information, contact Dr. Michael Reagan, Biology Department.

 NCUR 2001 Meeting
The University of Kentucky will host the 15th National Conference on Undergraduate Research, March 15-17, 2001. The annual NCUR meeting attracts approximately 2,000 undergraduates and faculty for presentations of research by undergraduates in all disciplines. Participants are expected to come from more than 250 colleges and universities representing almost every state in the nation. NCUR brings together undergraduates involved in scholarly and artistic activities throughout the United States, representing a range of disciplines including creative arts, engineering mathematics, business, social science, humanities, physical, chemical and biological sciences, among others. In addition, NCUR represents a terrific opportunity to hear nationally prominent speakers and to discuss educational policy and funding for undergraduate scholarly work as part of the Undergraduate Research Network sessions woven into the NCUR meeting. For more information about NCUR 2001, visit the web site
(http://ncur2001.uky.edu).

Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine – by Dr. M. Reagan
On Monday, Oct. 9, it was announced that the winners of the Nobel prize for Physiology or Medicine were Dr. Paul Greengard (Rockefeller University), Dr. Eric Kandel (Columbia U), and Dr. Arvid Carlsson (University of Goteborg in Sweden). They received the prize for their work on the neurotransmitter dopamine. Some of their work led to the discovery of L-dopa as a treatment for Parkinson's disease and the discovery of the importance of dopaminergic neurons in neurological and psychiatric disorders. You can read all about their work, and all of the other Nobelists as well, at the excellent Nobel prize web site http://www.nobel.se

Bailey Herbarium Disc Golf Autumn Classic. by Sarah Young & Steve McGreevy
On Friday, October 6, the Bailey Herbarium hosted the 2^nd Annual Disc Golf Autumn Classic. Neither frigid temperatures nor gale force winds could stop the 15 athletes from competing in the tournament. First place went to John Stillwell who finished with an impressive score of 54. John Schaus was close behind with a respectable second place finish, and Steve McGreevy, herbarium staff member well-known for his hard work, rounded off the top three. Participants huddled around afterwards and enjoyed one another’s company over cookies and apple cider. Dr. S.G. Saupe, who presented the participants with their prizes, was host to a short awards ceremony. Besides gift certificates, donations from Midwest Coffee and Disc Golf were given away. Each contestant also went home with a beautiful plant donated by the CSB/SJU Biology Department Greenhouse. The tournament was an undeniable success and as a result, the herbarium staff (S. McGreevy, S. Young, and K. Viegas) plans to host another tournament in the spring. Besides the intense fun had by all, the herbarium is becoming a prominent feature of the St. John’s campus.

Southern Utah’s National Parks
Dr. Robert Eves, from Southern Utah University, recently gave a seminar to the department entitled, "Southern Utah’s National Parks". Dr. Eves focused his presentation on the "crown jewels of the national park system" - Zion, Bryce, and his personal favorite, Capitol Reef national parks. These parks are noted for their outstanding geological formations that have been sculpted by water. While show beautiful slides of these places, he described, among other topics, some of the problems facing managers of the parks including overuse, and how to permit the sustainable use of "extreme sports" such as rock climbing, rappelling, and canyoning. Thanks to Dr. Eves for a great presentation and thanks also to Dr. Larry Davis and Dr. Chuck Rodell for organizing this event.

More George Carlinisms