Category: Academics

Recently, the journal Microbes and Injection published the article, “A potential tradeoff between feeding rate and aversive learning determines intoxication in a Caenorhabditis elegans host-pathogen system”.

In this manuscript, a research team composed of seven undergraduate students examined the interplay between attraction and avoidance in the worm C. elegans. Using infective bacteria engineered to make an attractive odor, the group examined how the level of attraction determines the ability of the bacteria to infect the worms. They observed that if the bacteria are too attractive, the worms quickly learn to avoid the bacteria, and infection is reduced. Conversely, if the bacteria are not attractive enough, the worms are not attracted to the bacteria, and infection is reduced.   However, if the attractiveness of the bacteria is between these two extremes, the bacteria are able to cause a high degree of infection in the worms, suggesting a ‘Goldilocks’ region of attractiveness. The work might shed light on the evolutionary constraints that bacteria and other infective agents face when trying to infect a potential host.

The research of Halmos faculty member Robert Smith, Ph.D. (senior and corresponding author) focuses on understanding and manipulating bacterial cooperation, antibiotic resistance and host-microbe interactions using multidisciplinary approaches. Halmos faculty member Christopher Blanar, Ph.D. is also an author on this paper.

Citation: Velagapudi Pallavi, Rachel Ghoubrial, Ratnavi Shah, Helana Ghali, Meghan Haas, Krunal S. Patel, Ashleigh Riddell, Christopher A. Blanar, and Robert P. Smith. (2020).”A potential tradeoff between feeding rate and aversive learning determines intoxication in a Caenorhabditis elegans host-pathogen system.” Microbes and Infection.

 

 

 

NSU Writing & Communication Center Faculty Coordinator, Janine Morris (CAHSS), and CAHSS Visiting Assistant Professor, Mario D’Agostino, presented at the 5th annual Power Publishing Day in the Alvin Sherman Library on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2020.

Power Publishing featured presentations by and meet and greets with editors and publishers from academic publishing houses such as Taylor & Franics, McGraw Hill, SAGE, and more. Online and in person, participants learned about creating academic videos, open access publishing, textbook publishing, writing and using case studies, where to publish, avoiding predatory publishing, publishing your research, writing a great research paper, and finding the right journal for your paper.

Morris and D’Agostino presented “Hard Work Preys Off: Recognizing & Avoiding Predatory Publishing,” which focused on how to spot the signs of predatory publishing and strategies for securing your scholarship. “Power Publishing Day is an important event for the Alvin Sherman Library and for the greater NSU community at large. I value being a part of this event as well as having the opportunity to educate faculty and students about predatory publishing,” said D’Agostino.

Power Publishing Day is part of the NSU Library “Gear Up” workshops series, which offers faculty and students professional development opportunities to engage with librarians and  gain knowledge in areas of research, publishing, grants, and copyright. Click on the link to view dates for the next “Gear Up Workshops.”

To learn more about the other Power Publishing Day sessions and presenters, visit: https://nsufl.libguides.com/ld.php?content_id=51746513

To view past Power Publishing Day recordings, visit:

https://nsufl.libguides.com/c.php?g=348819&p=2353209

 

 

 

 

The NSU Writing and Communication Center (WCC) participated in the “Sherman’s Golf in the Library” event January 10-12, a fundraiser hosted by the Alvin Sherman Library Circle of Friends. Golfers of all ages had the chance to “tee-off” for fun on the 18-hole miniature golf course where each hole was decorated by a library or campus organization based on a specific children’s book, such as Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax,  E.B. White’s Charlotte’s Web, or the Harry Potter novels by J.K. Rowling.

The WCC golf hole was based on Alphabet Under Construction, a children’s book by Denise Fleming, which features a mouse building all the letters of the alphabet out of different materials. The WCC hole featured several handmade letters, including a 7-foot tall capital “L” that guests could “construct” by adding paper bricks to it on which they wrote messages to the library. The hole also featured a mechanical mouse on a ladder pulling on a rope to raise and lower the letter “Y.”

WCC staff, led by WCC faculty coordinator and CAHSS Assistant Professor Dr. Eric Mason, designed and constructed the hole. Dr. Mason said “It was great to partner with the Alvin Sherman Library to provide the community with a fun experience based on children’s books. At the WCC we work daily with writers from all corners of NSU, and an event that recognizes the impact that the texts we write can have on the next generation is a perfect way to remind ourselves why we write.”

The 3-day unique mini golf experience provided NSU faculty, staff, students, and community members the opportunity to connect with different organizations and golf on the 1st and 2nd floors. The event’s host, the not-for-profit organization Circle of Friends for the NSU Alvin Sherman Library, is dedicated to serving the library in its efforts of maintaining its role as the premier research and information technology center, structured for cultural and lifelong learning for the NSU and Broward County community. All proceeds raised from the event were used to help fund early childhood literacy programs, furniture, technology and research materials. The WCC looks forward to participating in the event in upcoming years.

For more information on the Circle of Friends, visit: http://sherman.library.nova.edu/sites/friends/about-the-circle-of-friends/

The NSU-wide Undergraduate Student Journal, Mako has recently been revived with five student-authored and faculty-mentored papers published in a new winter 2020 issue. Halmos College faculty members Aarti Raja, Ph.D. and Santanu De, Ph.D. are serving as Editor-in-Chief and Associate Editor, respectively. Oceanographic Campus librarian Keri Baker is overseeing the technical aspects of the online publication.

Faculty and all faculty-led undergraduate student researchers of all fields are encouraged to connect with MAKO to promote this publication.

Ransford Edwards, Ph.D., faculty in the Department of History and Political Science in NSU’s College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences (CAHSS) was a guest speaker for Global Ties Miami Tuesday Talks. His talk was entitled, “Disaster Capitalism in Latin America: Spotlight on Venezuela.”

Edwards’ regional areas of focus are the Caribbean and Latin America. His work appears in Class, Race, and Corporate Power and he has been a reviewer for the journal Disasters. His teaching interests include quantitative research methods, political economy, and political film and fiction. He is the faculty advisor for NSU’s chapter of Pi Sigma Alpha, National Political Science Honor Society.

Last week, Halmos faculty member Vehbi Paksoy, Ph.D. presented a talk entitled, “Tensor Eigenvalue Problems and Modern Medical Imaging”. This talk, part of the Mathematics Colloquium Series hosted by the Halmos College Department of Mathematics discussed Tensors (or hypermatrices) are multidimensional generalization of matrices. Although historically they are studied from the perspective of combinatorics and (hyper)graph theory, recent progress in the subject shows how useful they are in more applied sciences such as physics and medicine.

In this presentation, he introduced a few tensor eigenvalue problems and their application to higher order diffusion tensor imaging such as diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DW-MRI) and higher angular resolution diffusion imaging (HARDI).

At the beginning of February, local ABC affiliate Local 10 News featured a story on bacteria on shopping cart handles. From Davie to Coral Gables and Liberty City to Westchester, Local 10 News investigative reporter Jeff Weinsier went to 10 different locations around South Florida.

Using a special kit, the results showed seven of the 10 samples had high levels of bacteria.

Three of those seven were off the charts, with bacteria counts that were in the billions. Halmos faculty member Robert Smith, Ph.D. was interviewed for the story.  “They picked up a bacteria called Pseudomonas. It can also cause infections.” said Smith. Smith emphasizes that the best way to prevent the spread of infection due to bacteria is to wash your hands.

Smith’s lab focuses on understanding cooperation  and antibiotic resistance in bacteria using a multidisciplinary approach involving quantitative biology and mathematical modeling.

Know students that are Interested in studying abroad this summer or upcoming fall? Student can submit their application by March 1, 2020 at www.nova.edu/sharksabroad.

For any questions regarding the application, contact us at sharksabroad@nova.edu or schedule an appointment with a Sharks Abroad Peer Advisor at https://calendly.com/sharksabroad/.

On Friday, February 7, Halmos College Biology major Rishabh Kasarla presented his talk entitled, “Walk Away with the Key to Unlock a Super Memory”. Kasarla, a memory athlete, demonstrated how to unlock the power of memory and enable one’s ability to study effectively.

The presentation took place at NSU’s Scientific Literature Society. The group was established in 2010 with Halmos College faculty member Venkatesh Shanbhag, Ph.D. as its faculty advisor.  At the weekly gathering, members discuss topics from research which appeared in recent peer-reviewed publications.  The information is presented by a member of the group which is then critically evaluated by the attendees.  The group aims at helping each other in learning about critical evaluation of published data and help each other in presentation skills. Additionally, members discuss strategies of effective interviewing.  This semester, the group meets on Fridays at noon in Parker 127D. Rishabh Kasarla is the current president (rk841@mynsu.nova.edu) of Scientific Literature Society.