Alumni Postcards
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- Renee L (Melton) Engle - B.S., Genetics, 2001
- Jeanne (Stephens) Alongi - B.S., Zoology, 1991
- Aimee Jennifert (Tucker) Williams - B.S., Genetics, 1994
- Alice Alldredge - Ph.D., Ecology, 1975
- David A. Bainbridge - M.S., Biochemistry, 1973
- Sheila Renee Bharat - B.S., Biological Sciences, 1996
- Dan Blumstein - Ph.D., Animal Behavior, 1994
- Franco Alan Canet - B.S., Cell Biology, 2002
- Franco Alan Canet - B.S., Cell Biology, 2002
- Elizabeth Caplener - B.A., Biological Sciences, 1992
- Christopher Y. Chung - B.S., Biological Sciences, 1986
- Carrie Lisbeth Cole - B.S., Biological Sciences, 1995
- Sarah Elizabeth Cole - B.S., Biological Sciences, 2001
- Carlos Eduardo Crocker - Ph.D., Physiology, 1997
- Sharon Erickson - B.S., Genetics, 1977
- Marc Facciotti - B.S., Biochemistry, 1997
- F. Jon Geske - B.S., Genetics, 1988
- Timothy Gilbertson - Ph.D., Zoology, 1991
- Robert James Gillies - Ph.D., Zoology, 1979
- Mark Grathwohl - B.S., Biological Sciences, 1975
- Stephen Matthew Gross - B.S., Microbiology, 1999
- Anders Sven Hansson - B.S., Biological Sciences, 2003
- John Carl Heintzberger - B.S., Plant Biology, 2002
- Frank H Heppner - Ph.D., Zoology, 1967
- Carla F. Hix (now Cozzen) - B.S., Zoology, 1991
- Dion Louise Jackson - B.S., Genetics, 1979
- Michael Lee Jones - M.A., Zoology, 1982
- Richard D Kidd - B.S., Genetics, 1987
- John Paul LaCava - B.S., Biological Sciences, 2000
- Lance Larka - B.S., Genetics, 1995
- Ann Julie Levin - B.S., Zoology, 1984
- Rob Lewis - B.S., Biological Sciences, 1994
- Robert B Lewis - B.S., Majors:, 1994
- Mike Mahan - B.S., Biochemistry, 1978
- Susan Elizabeth McNamara - B.S., Zoology, 1976
- Sarah Mertz (now King) - B.S., Biological Sciences, 1998
- Cong Thanh Nguyen - B.S., Biological Sciences, 2002
- Nam V Nguyen - B.S., Cell Biology, 1999
- Gavin Ow - B.S., Biological Sciences, 2000
- James L Pan - B.S., Biochemistry, 1989
- Aron Pataky - B.S., Physiology, 1991
- Michael Blair Peterson - B.S., Biochemistry, 1976
- Ngoc Phan - B.S., Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior, 1998
- Jo Anne Powell-Coffman - B.S., Physiology, 1986
- Lisa Puryear - B.S., Evolution and Ecology, 1997
- Sharon R. Roberts - Ph.D., Microbiology, 1989
- Patrick John Royer - B.S., Biological Sciences, 1988
- Virginia Schiefelbein - B.S., Biological Sciences, 1998
- Robert Howard Schmidt - Ph.D., Evolution and Ecology, 1986
- Cynthia Patricia Secord-Tomkinson - A.B., Biological Sciences, 1981
- Cynthia Patricia Secord-Tomkinson - A.B., Biological Sciences, 1981
- GholamReza Sheikholeslam - B.S., Biological Sciences, 1990
- Clifford Siegfried - B.S., Zoology, 1969
- Jennette D. Sison - B.S., Biological Sciences, 1994
- Young-Sun Sohn - Ph.D., Microbiology, 2000
- Leland J Soto III, M.D. - B.S., Physiology, 1993
- Tung-Tien Sun - Ph.D., Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 1974
- Michael Crane Swift - B.S., Biological Sciences, 1966
- Aparna Telang - B.S., Zoology, 1988
- Diana Grace Tolentino - B.S., Biological Sciences, 1987
- Anna M Trujillo - B.S., Majors:,
- Heather Vermazen - B.S., Biochemistry, 1989
- Erica Wagner - B.S., Biological Sciences, 1995
- Donald E. Watenpaugh - Ph.D., Physiology, 1995
- David C. White - B.S., Biological Sciences, 1996
- Li Zhang - B.S., Biochemistry, 1997
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Name
Major
Graduation Year
Renee L (Melton) Engle - B.S., Genetics, 2001
rengle@students.wisc.edu
Share what you've been doing since graduation.
I am a second-year graduate student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, in the Laboratory of Genetics Ph.D. program. I work in Maureen Barr's lab where I study polycystic kidney disease using C. elegans as the model organism.
What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis? Share what you've been doing since graduation. Share what you've been doing since graduation. What do you recall about your time at UC Davis?
I strongly remember Dr. Scott Hawley's genetics classes and all the fun I had with problem sets and exams!
Jeanne (Stephens) Alongi
- B.S., Zoology, 1991
MPH
jalongi@dhs.co.la.ca.us
Right after graduation I went to work as an academic advisor in DBS. I gave it all up for an exciting stint as a waitress in New Orleans for year. I returned to California and spent a couple of years working at UCSD's School of Medicine as a research assistant in an immunology/allergy lab. Married a Davis alum in 1995 and moved to Washington DC to get my public health degree in epidemiology and biostatistics. I am now a fellow in CDC's Public Health Prevention Service and am assigned to the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services.
The communal learning/living environment of Integrated Studies; Janet Papale - writing instructor extraordinaire; taking care of the aquaria in Storer; the summer I had six jobs; field work in Bodega; finally finding a major that fit and loving every minute I spent in Zoology and the great staff and faculty.
Aimee Jennifert (Tucker) Williams
- B.S., Genetics, 1994
Aimee.J.Tucker@uth.tmc.edu
I received my M.S. in Genetic Counseling from Northwestern University in 1997. I have been employed at The University of Texas Houston Medical School as a member of their faculty in the Department of Pediatrics and in their Genetic Counseling Program since 1997. Current research interests: multi-culturalism and genetic counseling; tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC), an autosomal dominant neurocutaenous disorder. I serve on the professional advisory board for the TS Alliance, an advocacy organization for persons with TSC.
Personally, I got married November 2001. My husband and I bought our first home in Pearland, Texas in 2000, which we share with our big fuzzy dog, Fargo.
I loved my time at Davis!
Alice Alldredge
- Ph.D., Ecology, 1975
"I had wanted to be a marine biologist since I was 11 years old and by sheer luck and good fortune ended up as a student in the Graduate Group in Ecology at UC Davis back in the early 1970s. I say luck because my major professor, William Hamner of the zoology department, had the then-outlandish idea that biologists could jump into the ocean and view plankton with their own eyes. He invited me to spend my first year in graduate school scuba diving and floating around in the open water of the Gulf Stream with him and his other students studying zooplankton in situ for the first time. How could I refuse such an offer? With sharks, marlin and jellyfish swimming by, and the ocean floor nearly three miles below us, it was quite an adventure for a young woman raised in Colorado!
"The opportunity to experience a new way of investigating and thinking about the open ocean-from a 'shrimp's-eye' view-formed the cornerstone of my career and opened the door for all my future work.
"I got my Ph.D. in 1975 and then spent a wonderful year as a post-doc at the Australian Institute of Marine Science on the Great Barrier Reef. Australia introduced me to coral reef biology, a new area of research for me, and to the pleasures of habitats that stay put! While I fell in love with coral reefs and with my husband in Australia, I soon found myself pulled back to my first scientific love-the ecology of the open sea. I took a job as a professor of marine biology at UC Santa Barbara where I happily have been for the last 25 years. And at Santa Barbara the adventures have continued!
"As a young assistant professor, I conducted research in Baja California almost every summer. We camped on an uninhabited island and did much of our work right off the beach. One year the island was struck by a hurricane, and I can remember huddling behind a big boulder in 90-mile-an-hour winds thinking those of us on the island would have to spend several miserable days without shelter. Luckily we had become friends with some yachters who took all nine of us, students and children, aboard their small boat, where we rode out the storm.
"On another trip, I was in the Pacific, about 1,000 kilometers from shore, on the Moss Landing Marine Laboratory's research vessel Cayuse. The name for the 80-foot vessel aptly means 'bucking horse.' While in the middle of nowhere, we received a Mayday from a 600-foot freighter carrying 5,000 Honda automobiles. It had been on fire for 48 hours, and we were the closest ship for miles. When we got to the huge ship, it was spewing black smoke and listing over so far we thought it would sink right before our eyes. We took the crew on board the Cayuse, and helped fill and transport their fire-fighting tanks with my scuba compressor and inflatable boat. Finally the Coast Guard arrived, put out the fire in the middle of the night, and towed the ship back to San Francisco. And we just picked up where we had left off two days before and finished our research cruise.
"At Santa Barbara I have also had wonderful opportunities to study deep-sea plankton and large sinking particles known as 'marine snow' from a one-person submersible called Wasp, and from the submersibles Sea Link and Alvin. I have also branched out into investigations of carbon cycling in the ocean; although most of my students still investigate aspects of zooplankton ecology. As a professor, I have enjoyed a life rich with wonderful undergraduate and graduate students. Interestingly, I get older year by year but they always seem to be the same age! If it weren't for the gray hairs on my faculty colleagues' heads, I would think I live in a time warp.
"For nearly 20 years now, I have enjoyed teaching introductory biology to 500 biology majors. I developed a taste for large classes as a grad student at Davis where I was a teaching assistant for Zoology 2. And recently I became the founding chair of a new graduate program in marine science. I look back on the fantastic education I got at Davis with deep gratitude. I owe so much of my success to the many faculty, staff and students there who helped me get where I am today."
David A. Bainbridge
- M.S., Biochemistry, 1973
I'm now an assistant professor and coordinator of environmental studies at the United States International University in San Diego, Calif. I helped found the California Straw Building Association and the Sustainable Community Action Network. I'm also an adviser to the Desert Lands Restoration Task Force, which promotes the restoration of desert lands through collaborative practical application."
Sheila Renee Bharat
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 1996
sheilabharat@hotmail.com
Travel as much as possible when I'm not teaching high school in Southern California. Working on my Masters in Public Health at UCLA, will be done in June 2005.
Made great friends who are quality people. If I had it to do all over, I'd do it all the same.
Dan Blumstein
- Ph.D., Animal Behavior, 1994
M.S., Animal Behavior, 1990
Blumstein reports "My Ph.D. work in animal behavior at UC Davis under the tutelage of evolution and ecology professors Judy Stamps and Brad Shaffer, and professor of psychology Don Owings, focused on the antipredator, social and communication behavior of marmots-large alpine ground squirrels with a particularly fine aesthetic sense. Marmots are well suited for such studies: they follow the academic calendar, hibernating during the fall and winter quarters; they live in permanent burrow systems so that they're easy to find-once you know where they are; different species have different sorts of social organizations ranging from long-term monogamous relationships to more fleeting sexual and social encounters; and they have loud, piercing alarm calls to warn others about danger. These calls vary by species and understanding this variability occupied me for many years. While I was a student at Davis, I worked in Pakistan studying the golden marmot and was, at the same time, involved in the conservation and management planning of Khunjerab National Park, a spectacularly beautiful park located high in Pakistan's Karakoram mountains. My postdoctoral studies built on my previous work in behavior and applied conservation biology.
"The first four years of postdoctoral work focused on understanding the evolution of social behavior and communication in marmots. Immediately after receiving my degree in March 1994, I set off for a postdoctoral fellowship at Phillips University in Marburg, Germany, where I focused on alpine marmots in the Berchtesgaden Alps. In January 1995, I began a three-year National Institutes of Health postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Kansas where I continued my marmot studies. This time fieldwork took me to Colorado, Ohio, Washington, Vancouver Island, and to Russia's Chuvash Republic, where I studied yellow-bellied marmots, groundhogs, Olympic and hoary marmots, the critically threatened Vancouver Island marmot (see http://www.marmots.org), and the steppe marmot, respectively. Taken together, my studies demonstrated that more socially complex species have more complex alarm communication.
"The last three years of my postdoctoral work I was based at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia, where I was an Australian Research Council Postdoctoral Fellow (with Dr. Chris Evans-http://galliform.bhs.mq.edu.au-a former UC Davis postdoctoral fellow with Peter Marler), and was group leader of the Conservation Behavior section of a large international interdisciplinary research group-The Cooperative Centre for the Conservation and Management of Marsupials (http://www.newcastle.edu.au/marsupialcrc/).
"Understanding the evolution of antipredator behavior was a common theme in many of my marmot studies, and I went to Australia to study it's 'de-evolution.' While at Davis, psychology professor Dick Coss got me interested in the question of evolutionary persistence-why some behaviors persist when there are seemingly no current benefits. My work in Australia examined wallabies and kangaroos living both on the predator-rich mainland and on a variety of offshore islands that have been isolated from the mainland, and from mainland predators, for up to 10,000 years. Work is still ongoing, but the current messages seem to be that the presence of any predators is enough to explain the persistence of some very specialized antipredator behavior despite there being no mammalian predators for which it is effective against.
"My marsupial work was designed also to help increase the success with which animals are reintroduced to the wild from captivity for conservation purposes. I believe that a fundamental understating of behavior can enlighten conservation and planned experiments will determine whether this is so for wallabies.
"I've recently been appointed an assistant professor in organismic biology, ecology and evolution at UCLA where I join several UC Davis alumni with similar interests in animal behavior (see http://www.animalbehavior.ucla.edu). My wife and colleague, Janice Daniel, and I are attempting to live a Davis-like existence by biking and walking to work-something most Angelinos find peculiar. It's great to be back at a UC and to be in closer contact with UC Davis folks."
Franco Alan Canet
- B.S., Cell Biology, 2002
francocanet@yahoo.com
After I graduated UC Davis, I entered a single subject teaching credential program at CSU Sacramento. I will graduate in December 2003 and will teach middle school or high school science in the Sacramento area. I'm also working on my Masters degree in Educational Technology.
My friends and great support staff from the the Biological Undergraduate Scholars Program (BUSP).
Franco Alan Canet
- B.S., Cell Biology, 2002
francocanet@yahoo.com
After I graduated UC Davis, I entered a single subject teaching credential program at CSU Sacramento. I will graduate in December 2003 and will teach middle school or high school science in the Sacramento area. I'm also working on my Masters degree in Educational Technology.
My friends and great support staff from the the Biological Undergraduate Scholars Program (BUSP).
Elizabeth Caplener
- B.A., Biological Sciences, 1992
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I graduated from L&S with a B.A. in Biological Sciences in 1992.(Thought at one time I was going to teach biology at the high school level.)
From 1993-1996 I went to University of the Pacific, Stockton, CA receiving a Pharm.D.
1996-1997 I completed a General Practice Pharmacy Residency at David Grant Medical Center. In March 1997, I commissioned as a Captain in the USAF, stationed at David Grant Medical Center, Travis AFB, CA. I have been their Ambulatory Care
Clinical Pharmacist responsible for running the following pharmacist-run clinics: Coumadin Clinic, Asthma Education Clinic, Medication Adherence Consultations. In addition, I have been a student preceptor for the University of Pacific, School of Pharmacy, Clerkship (3rd year) students...and I have my chance to teach anyway! (Which I very much enjoy.)
From 21 Jun 99 to 30 Sep 99, I will have been in Port-Au-Prince, Haiti. I have been tasked for a 90-day deployment to support the 60th Air Transportable Hospital (Deployed from Travis AFB, CA) as well as support weekly humanitarian assistance missions to the haitian nationals. Our contingency has helped over 15,500 haitian nationals as well as supporting the healthcare of US Armed Forces, UN personnel, and U.S. Embassy personnel here in Haiti.
Christopher Y. Chung
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 1986
bsmd1994@yahoo.com
Graduated from UC San Francisco Medical School. Completed a general surgery residency in Los Angeles, followed by a fellowship in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at UC San Diego. Currently, in private practice in Los Angeles, married to my best friend, Nancy, who also happens to be an awesome ER doc.
Mostly, spending wonderful times with my good friends, who all gave me a lifetime of great memories.
Carrie Lisbeth Cole
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 1995
carrielcole@yahoo.com
I graduated from Eastern Virginia Medical School and am doing a residency in OB/Gyn at the UCDavis Medical Center.
Friends, huge personal growth, a great education.
Sarah Elizabeth Cole
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 2001
secole@ucdavis.edu
I am working in Dr. John Crowe's lab on campus as a PGR and will be applying to graduate school soon.
My most favorite quarter at UC Davis wasn't actually on camus. It was Spring Quarter 2000 at the Bodega Marine Lab. It was a very worthwhile experience.
Carlos Eduardo Crocker
- Ph.D., Physiology, 1997
carlosatrox@yahoo.com
Sharon Erickson
- B.S., Genetics, 1977
M.S., Genetics, 1978
Erickson is a senior scientific manager with Genentech Inc. "I spent an enjoyable six years at UC Davis in the 1970s," says Sharon, "making many lifelong friends as well as earning a B.S. in genetics. During my years in Davis, I gained valuable lab experience as both an undergraduate and graduate student in the lab of Dr. G.A.E. Gall, the lab in which I also earned my M.S. in genetics. From Davis I moved with a college friend to San Diego, where I began my first scientific job as a laboratory technician at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in La Jolla, studying secretion and phosphorylation in vitro responses to fibroblast growth factor (FGF).
"Having grown up in San Francisco, I decided, after six years in Davis and two years in La Jolla, to move back to the San Francisco Bay Area. My next position was at UC San Francisco, where I continued studying the in vitro effects of FGF with Dr. Denis Gospodarowicz. I stayed six years at UCSF, where I advanced from a research assistant to an associate research specialist III. During this time, the biotechnology industry was born, and I decided in 1986 that it was time for me to move into this relatively new industry.
"In 1986, I started working at Genentech Inc. in the lab of Dr. Axel Ullrich, where I was able to apply my cell biology skills to the study of the tyrosine kinase receptor for epithelial growth factor (EGFR). Since those early days, I have held many different positions at Genentech, moving from research associate to senior research associate to associate scientist and then to full scientist, while remaining in research and in the field of tyrosine kinases.
"Recently, I have made another career change, moving over to the scientific management track at Genentech. I direct an in vivo biology program as well as conduct oncology research, and I find I really enjoy the challenge of management in the biotechnology arena. While I am not in the lab as much as I used to be, the ability to direct an important research effort has been very rewarding. Due to my interest in management, I am halfway through my Master's in Business Administration (MBA) at Colorado State University, Fort Collins, which I am earning as a distance student.
"My education at UC Davis certainly prepared me well for the scientific career I have pursued since leaving. On the personal side, a college friend from my freshman dorm at Davis introduced me to my future husband about 20 years ago. We have been married for 17 years and have a 12-year-old son and a 10?year?old daughter, and two cats. So, my years at Davis have certainly influenced all aspects of my life.
Marc Facciotti
- B.S., Biochemistry, 1997
PhD in Biophysics U.C. Berkeley 2002
Post-doc: Institute for Systems Biology (Seattle, WA)-current
Excellent commitment to undergraduate education. In particular Mathematics professor Hom and MCB prof. Rick Grosberg.
F. Jon Geske
- B.S., Genetics, 1988
Ph.D
jon_geske@hotmail.com
I received a PhD from the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center in 2000 and am now working at ELISA Tech, a biotech company in Aurora, CO.
I greatly enjoyed the courses in Genetics, which were taught by a very impressive faculty. I also enjoyed my many friends met at Davis, and went on to marry one of them.
Timothy Gilbertson
- Ph.D., Zoology, 1991
M.A., Zoology, 1988
Gilbertson is an assistant professor of biology at Utah State University. He was one of 29 faculty members from seven of the university's academic colleges to receive a New Faculty Research Grant. The research interests in Gilbertson's laboratory range from the basic mechanisms of mammalian taste transduction to the mechanisms that post-ingestive chemosensory cells use to recognize nutrients. Gilbertson's lab is also studying how the detection of nutrients by both pre- and post-ingestive chemosensory cells contributes to ingestive behavior and how, in turn, the nutritional status of an organism modulates its ability to sense these nutrients.
Robert James Gillies
- Ph.D., Zoology, 1979
gillies@email.arizona.edu
Academic Route: Post-doc in Molecular Biophysics at Yale; Assistant Prof in biochemistry at Colorado State; Associate and Full Professor of Biochemistry at Univ. Arizona (Tucson).
Recent Honor: elected fellow of International Society for Magnetic REsonance in Medicine (Dec., 2002)
Bicycling everywhere, The Paragon, Picnic Days
Mark Grathwohl
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 1975
I'm a physician with the Department of Pathology Laboratory, New York United Hospital Medical Center, Port Chester, N.Y. Ireceived my medical degree from New York University and was trained in pathology at the Medical College of Virginia, Richmond, and UC Davis. I've also trained in forensic pathology/legal medicine at the Medical College of Virginia and Virginia State Medical Examiner's Office. My research interests and expertise include general and clinical pathology, surgical pathology, hematopathology, and forensic pathology.
Stephen Matthew Gross
- B.S., Microbiology, 1999
I worked as a technician at Stanford University for 2 years prior to beginning a graduate program in plant genetics at UC Berkeley in 2001.
I always enjoyed the warm and quiet summers, my friends at UCD, and my time working as an undergraduate researcher.
Anders Sven Hansson
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 2003
music
I've been over in chicago doing optometry school and learning about canada from the 25 canadiens in my class here.
Lots of hours at the library, in the chem building and at the coffehouse. Good times on stage in cabaret and HMS Pinafore and in the marching band. Cheers
John Carl Heintzberger
- B.S., Plant Biology, 2002
jcheintz@hotmail.com
Began career as an assistant lettuce breeder. UCDavis did an awesome job preparing me for this specific career.
Frank H Heppner
- Ph.D., Zoology, 1967
birdman@uri.edu
On 1 July 2002, I was dragged kicking and screaming into the Chairman's office of the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Rhode Island, and told that no matter how hard I protested, I was going to have to serve a 3 year term as Chair. I have been on the job for three weeks, and am now four months behind in paperwork.
Davis? That was 38 years ago. I'm lucky if I can remember my middle initial. F. No. Wait. I'm sure that's not it. LOOKS like an F. H! Yes. Next time I'll see if I can get it in under 3 minutes.
Carla F. Hix (now Cozzen)
- B.S., Zoology, 1991
Moved to Charlotte, North Carolina, and obtained my master's degree in physiology studying isolated perfused rat hearts. Have taught Anatomy & Physiology courses to nursing students at local colleges and Carolinas Medical Center.
Dachsund races, whole earth festival, good people, Woodstock's pizza, oh and of course - obtaining a A#1 education!
Dion Louise Jackson
- B.S., Genetics, 1979
MBA,MPl(Urban Planning),MRED(Real Estate Development)
Michael Lee Jones
- M.A., Zoology, 1982
mjones3@ch2m.com
Thanx to a professor whose class I was only auditing, I made a connection and ended up assisting a doctoral candidate in his research on social behavior and ecology of vampire bats in Costa Rica for about eight months. I ended up learning Spanish while there and still frequent the country for work and vacation every couple years. I bounced around the country for several years, working temporary field and research jobs in Dixon; Washington, DC (twice); Costa Rica, Seattle, and the Bering Sea. After recognizing that my college tuition debts were not going away by themselves, despite all of the fun I was having, I returned to graduate school to better my chances of landing a more lucrative career position. I obtained another master's degree,this time in radiation ecology, from Colorado State Univ. in Ft. Collins in 1988. Immediately after graduation, and an extended trip to Ecuador, I commenced my career in environmental consulting. I worked for EBASCO, now Foster Wheeler Environmental, for nine years in Lakewood, CO and am now working for CH2M HILL in Pt. Arthur, TX. My area of specialization is in ecological risk assessments, ecotoxicology, and NEPA-type environmental assessments. I love my chosen career, despite its often hectic and stressful nature. I miss Davis very much and wish that I was able to visit more often. Regrettably, I haven't been back since a visit of old friends in 1987.
Teaching the biology labs at night was extremely rewarding for me. Each quarter I met new, fascinating people in the labs and learned a few things from them. I was especially impressed with the quality of teaching in the various departments, and still am. My professors were interesting, fair, challenged us constantly, and were amiable people. I loved the bicycle culture at UCD and have not seen anything like it to this day.
Richard D Kidd
- B.S., Genetics, 1987
Ph.D., Molecular & Cell Biology, 1996, Pennsylvania State University
r.kidd@ucdavis-alumni.com
I lived in Davis for fours years after graduating with a BS in Genetics from UCD. I worked for small biotech companies and the UC Davis Medical School.
In 1991, I moved to State College, PA, to start my PhD in X-ray crystallography in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at The Pennsylvania State University. I received my doctorate in Molecular and Cell Biology in 1996.
After a one-year postdoc in the Department of Veterinary Science at PSU, I moved to Auckland, New Zealand for my second postdoc. I stayed for four years at the University of Auckland, mostly studying the protein structures of human embryonic hemoglobins and human lactoferrin. During my time in NZ, I also spent a month in Antarctica on a biology training course.
Next, I moved to Brisbane, Australia for 10 months as a Senior Research Officer at the University of Queensland where I set up a protein crystallization service.
In August 2002 I moved to London, UK to take up a position as a Senior Scientist at a bioinformatics/biotech company called Inpharmatica Ltd.
John Paul LaCava
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 2000
john.lacava@ed.ac.uk
PhD program in Molecular Genetics at University of Edinburgh, Scotland.
Living at 904 Douglass Ave., lots of fun parties, sunny days on the quad or at the rec pool, evening and morning exam cram sessions, working diligently in the Rodriguez lab in Briggs hall.
Lance Larka
- B.S., Genetics, 1995
I'm a research scientist at Operon Technologies, Alameda, Calif. He specializes in high-density DNA micro-arrays, liquid handling robotics, and bioinformatics. Prior to working at Operon, I was instrumental in establishing a core sequencing facility to serve the Triticeae family of plants (wheat, oat, barley) with the U.S. Department of Agriculture in conjunction with the Genetic Resource Conservation Program at UC Davis. I also review entertainment software for the monthly publication "Computer Gaming World," am a contributing scientific writer for Alkami Biosystems, and am a consultant for high-throughput sequencing facilities around the globe. While a student at Davis, I played the sousaphone with the Cal Aggie Marching Band-uh! and am now a member of the executive board of its alumni chapter.You can still find me marching, yelling, and playing at Homecoming, Break the Record Night, Picnic Day, and at as many other events as possible during the year.
Ann Julie Levin
- B.S., Zoology, 1984
M.A. in Zoology at UC. Davis (not a B.S.)
fddlr@execpc.com
Just after graduation, I went to work at the Smithsonian Institute as an intern. From the Smithsonian, I worked for a few years in environmental education. I then returned to school for a teaching credential. I taught in California for a year, and then moved to Wisconsin. I have been in Wisconsin for ten years, and teaching Biology in Waukegan Illinois.
I loved seeing the good looking men on their bicycles! I also enjoyed how wacky people could be on campus. I remember the fellow who was wearing an old gas mask, who peeked in to our lecture room. I loved the bicycle friendly atmosphere, and the alternative life-styles.
Rob Lewis
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 1994
Teaching high school science and math and coaching cross-country and track.
Our parties at 903 Sycamore Lane. The coffee house. The Paragon. I guess a lot of liquid refreshments. Of course, the education at Davis has been invaluable to me as a teacher and coach.
Robert B Lewis
- B.S., Majors:, 1994
rlewisvtusd.k12.ca.us
I have been a high school science teacher and cross-country coach since 1998. My wife and I just had triplets.
Mike Mahan
- B.S., Biochemistry, 1978
M.S., Genetics, 1982, UC Davis
![[picture]](/alumni/postcards/mmahan.jpg)
I'm an associate professor of molecular, cellular, and development biology at UC Santa Barbara. In my research, I use Salmonella, which causes diseases ranging from food and blood poisoning to typhoid fever, to study how bacteria cause disease. Utilizing a special technique, my laboratory isolated bacterial genes that are "on" in a mouse and "off" out of a mouse. My laboratory subsequently identified the master switch that controls the on and off states: bacterial enzyme DNA adenine methylase, or DAM. Mice immunized with DAM mutants were completely protected against a subsequent Salmonella infection. Because DAM is present in many pathogens that cause serious health problems worldwide, including cholera, dysentery, meningitis, typhoid fever, and the plague, these studies could lead to the development of a new generation of vaccines and antibiotics that combat these infectious diseases.
My wife, Kelly, who graduated in psychology from Davis, and I are quite happy in Santa Barbara. We have two children: our son, Scott, is three years old and our daughter, Erin, is four months old. Scott loves the beach, and I ride my bike to work, just like in Davis.
Susan Elizabeth McNamara
- B.S., Zoology, 1976
MA, Zoology, UCD 1978
smsinger@cats.ucsc.edu
Since completing my MA in 1978, I've returned to school to earn first a Clinical Laboratory Scientist license, and then my teaching credential in Life Sciences. In addition, I've married and created a family of five, three sons! The second and third sons came together and all three have been a joy and a challenge. I currently share the running of the laboratory at the Student Health Center at UCSC, work at the lab at Dominican Hospital, and am on the faculty at a new program for Medical Laboratory Technicians at Hartnell Community College.
I enjoyed my time at UCD, both academically and socially. Probably what I remember most are the people. I've stayed in touch with some, but would very much like to hear from those I've not heard from.
Sarah Mertz (now King)
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 1998
After graduating from Davis I took a job as a research assistant in the Nutrtition Dept. at UC Berkeley. As luck would have it, before the first year was up, the lab was moving in to Surge III at UCD to become part of the USDA Western Human Nutrition Research Center. After an additional year of work I started a PhD program in Biological Sciences and Public Health at Harvard. I am now in the middle of my second year.
My favorite quarter at Davis was actually the spring I spent in Bodega Bay! What a fabulous program!! I also miss the beautiful campus and the relaxed atmosphere.
Cong Thanh Nguyen
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 2002
ctnguyen_79@yahoo.com
I have been working as a Phlebotomist at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center since graduation. I'm also waiting for acceptance to medical school.
Nam V Nguyen
- B.S., Cell Biology, 1999
I worked in the biotech industry in S. San Francisco for four years (missed the biotech boom by a year, options now worthless, darn) and got very, very bored. Now, I'm heading off to UCSF for my PharmD. Yeah!!!
The friends I met at UCD, I will always remember.
Gavin Ow
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 2000
doctorgavin@ucdavis-alumni.com
Immediately after graduation I taught English at a university in China for a year. I had an amazing time and made lots of friends there, including 3 other Aggies! While I was there, I travelled around to about 20 cities in China, as well as Hong Kong and Taiwan. When I came back I taught an MCAT course for Kaplan, and now I'm going to med school in Ireland! I'm in the city of Cork, the second largest city in Ireland located on the coast 3 hours south of Dublin, and I love it. I'll be here for the next 5 years!
I recall being involved (perhaps overinvolved) in as many activities that I could cram into my schedule, but that's what made Davis the absolute best time of my life. Go Ags!
James L Pan
- B.S., Biochemistry, 1989
jpan@pw.usda.gov
After graduation from Davis, I worked as an analytical chemist in West Sacramento at an environmental lab for three years, running various extractions/instrumental analysis (GC, GC/MS and HPLC) on environmental toxins. Later moved to USDA's Ag.Research Service in Albany, CA, analyzing aflatoxin in pistachio using HPLC. Three years later, I landed a job at Chiron Corp. in Emeryville, performing HPLC analysis on protein/DNA/RNA and various other biomolecules. After a little bit over a year at Chiron, I moved back to USDA in Albany again as a chemist. Currently I am conducting research on properties of extrued beans, including their sugar and fat contents, measuring the absolute MW of biopolymers using laser.
I enjoy fishing quite a bit, and living in the San Francisco Bay was a bless. I fish frequently in the San Francisco Bay and the local piers.
Aron Pataky
- B.S., Physiology, 1991
Minor in Philosophy
aron_pataky@mei.memec.com
After graduation, I joined the Peace Corps and worked as an Apiculture Extension Agent in a rural community in Paraguay, South America, for two years.
Upon returning to the US, I continued working with honey bees for a commericial queen breeder before moving to San Diego in 1996.
I currently work as a Software Quality Analyst.
I keep honey bees as a hobby, along with running, and biking.
Ultimate Frisbee
the great physiology department
Michael Blair Peterson
- B.S., Biochemistry, 1976
MD 1980
michael.peterson@kp.org
I saw the announcement that Mark McNamee recently left UC Davis to take a post at Virginia Polytechnic Insititute. I always wanted to write and tell you what an impact Dean McNamee made on my future career. I was newly-assigned Biochem major back in 1974 or 75, and was assigned to Dr. McNamee, a brand new assistant professor, to be my advisor. After reviewing my records and seeing that I was on a Pre-med track, he called me into his office one day and told me repeatedly that I would never get into medical school, and that I had better make another professional choice. In all of our meetings after that (there weren't that many), that was the gist of his advising. That made me so mad that I redoubled my efforts and planning and got accepted to the UCD School of Medicine, and graduated 1980 with an MD degree. I finished my residency in in General Surgery in 1985 at the UCD Medical Center in Sacramento, and did cardiac surgery for 2 years, then started working as a general, thoracic, and vascular surgeon at Kaiser Hopspital in Hayward. I reside in Fremont, California, am married with two children, and was until recently the assistant chief of the surgery department here.
So I guess I am doing applied biochemistry, but not exactly what Dr. McNamee had in mind.
Mike Peterson
Ngoc Phan
- B.S., Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior, 1998
![[picture]](/alumni/postcards/nphan.jpg)
I'm now in the Health Sciences and Technology M.D. program jointly offered by Harvard and MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). Previously I worked with the chair of UC Irvine's Department of Medicine, Dr. John C. Longhurst. In his lab I studied how nitric oxide (NO), a diffusable gas that acts as a signalling molecule, affects cardiovascular responses to bradykinin, a polypeptide the heart produces when it doesn't get enough oxygen. My research suggests that NO may have contrasting roles in the central nervous system and peripheral tissues. Perhaps in the future we'll develop new therapies for hypertension and other cardiovascular pathologies that involve the regulation and production of NO.
Jo Anne Powell-Coffman
- B.S., Physiology, 1986
japc@iastate.edu
After graduation, I attended graduate school at U.C. San Diego and earned a Ph.D. in Biology. After 4 years in Boulder, Colorado as a postdoctoral researcher, I joined the faculty at Iowa State University. In my research, I use the nematode C. elegans as a model system to study how cells integrate information and make the appropriate changes in gene expression during development or in response to environmental changes.
I married Clark Coffman (and hypenated my last name) in 1992, and our daughter was born in the year 2000.
I remember my dormmates, classmates, and friends very fondly. Also, I remember that I didn't need a car, since I could ride my bike anywhere.
The Cellular Physiology course taught by Barbara Horwitz (Physiology 100A & 100B) sparked my interest in 'how cells work'.
Lisa Puryear
- B.S., Evolution and Ecology, 1997
![[picture]](/alumni/postcards/lpurye.jpg)
I came to Davis with great dreams of becoming a veterinarian, but once here I discovered that Davis offered more than just solid pre-vet preparation. I took advantage of every department on campus, from textiles to viticulture to English literature. I feel it's just as important to find out what you don't like as well as what you do, so in vet school I'm taking every learning opportunity that crosses my path from dairy cow management to llama shearing, and having a great time doing it.
Sharon R. Roberts
- Ph.D., Microbiology, 1989
robersr@auburn.edu
After completing postdoctoral research at the University of Pennsylvania and at UAB in Birmingham, AL, I am an associate professor at Auburn University. The primary research project in my laboratory focuses on mycoplasmal conjunctivitis in house finches. This is a new host-parasite relationship first observed in 1994. My colleagues and I are interested in the evolution of this new host-parasite relationship. Here at Auburn we are able to study the infection as it occurs naturally in the wild population and we have the facilities to study the infection in captive birds. It has proven to be a facinating interdisciplinary project involving epidemiology, microbiology, ornithology, ecology and evolution. It certainly provides a broad training opportunity for both graduate and undergraduate students. Best of all for me, it is exactly the kind of work I have always wanted to do and the broad experience I gained while a Ph.D. student at UCDavis certainly positioned me to pursue it when the opportunity arose.
One of the great features of Davis is that it is a small college town, so I felt I lived in a community of scholars. I went out after work with my colleagues and had a great time. The conversations were wide-ranging and stimulating. Having done a postdoc in a large city where we all scattered after work, I found that I missed this community so much. Luckily for me, Auburn is very much like Davis in that regard and I socialize with my colleagues very happily again!
Patrick John Royer
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 1988
proyer@idecpharm.com
1990-92: Worked at Genentech, Inc. in South San Francisco, CA as a Technical Operator.
1992-95: Worked at Celtrix Pharmaceuticals in Santa Clara, CA as a Manufacturing Associate.
1995-current: Working at IDEC Pharmaceuticals in San Diego, CA as a Manufacturing Operations Supervisor.
The unbearable heat in Beckett Hall.
Freshmen wrecking their bikes in the circles on the first day of class.
Virginia Schiefelbein
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 1998
vlschief@yahoo.com
After spending some time goofing off, writing a book chapter, and (finally) working for the New Bridge Foundation, I left it all to come to Penn State. I won a fellowship and just started the Ph.D. program in Biobehavioral Health. So, I'll be here in the middle of nowhere for quite a while, but I love the program, and even Pennsylvania is growing on me!
I miss being able to bike without feeling like I was going to get run over! State College, PA has many wonderful qualities, but being bike-friendly is not one of them.
Robert Howard Schmidt
- Ph.D., Evolution and Ecology, 1986
MS, 1985, UCD
rschmidt@cc.usu.edu
For the past ten years I've been on the faculty at Utah State University in the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife.
I miss the incredibly vibrant and intellectually challenging environment atmosphere at UCD. The students are intellegent, the faculty are world-class, and the town is... Davis (once you've lived there you know what I mean). As I've visited campuses around the country, I've come to realize how special UCD is.
Cynthia Patricia Secord-Tomkinson
- A.B., Biological Sciences, 1981
M.S. Marriage and Family Counseling
cynthia_tomkinson@mtnview.k12.ca.us
I have taught high school and middle school math, computers, Earth and Physical Science. I have been at Grace Yokley Middle School for the past 8 years, and love my profession. Last summer I took a 6-week oceanography class for Science teachers at Cape Cod, and sailied for 10 days. This spring I will lead a sailing fieldtrip for 36 lucky students. I have a 15-yr old son and a 13 year old daughter. Love outdoor activitiessuch as skiing, hiking, cycling.
I recall being labled a "red hot" because I used to study all the time and earned good grades. I remember once earning a "B" with 95% because the curve was so high! I really enjoyed my work in the Dept. of Plant Pathology with Dr. Webster.
Cynthia Patricia Secord-Tomkinson
- A.B., Biological Sciences, 1981
M.S. Marriage and Family Counseling
cynthia_tomkinson@mtnview.k12.ca.us
I have taught high school and middle school math, computers, Earth and Physical Science. I have been at Grace Yokley Middle School for the past 8 years, and love my profession. Last summer I took a 6-week oceanography class for Science teachers at Cape Cod, and sailied for 10 days. This spring I will lead a sailing fieldtrip for 36 lucky students. I have a 15-yr old son and a 13 year old daughter. Love outdoor activitiessuch as skiing, hiking, cycling.
I recall being labled a "red hot" because I used to study all the time and earned good grades. I remember once earning a "B" with 95% because the curve was so high! I really enjoyed my work in the Dept. of Plant Pathology with Dr. Webster.
GholamReza Sheikholeslam
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 1990
Business1992/Sociology&Psychology1994
RSheikholeslam@yahoo.com
Had an ausome time at UCD!
Great place, great friends, great memories!!!
Clifford Siegfried
- B.S., Zoology, 1969
Ph.D., Ecology, 1974, UC Davis
I'm currently assistant commissioner for museums and director of the New York State Museum, Albany, N.Y., a program of the New York State Education Department. "As a research scientist, "says Siegfried, "I consider it an honor to lead the New York State Museum. The museum informs the public about New York and the world through more than 4.5 acres of permanent and temporary exhibits; its collections currently comprise more than six million specimens and artifacts. I'm now guiding a $15 million project to re-house and inventory the collections--this project includes the development of electronic database and digital image libraries to make information about the collections accessible at our Web site. We've nearly completed the master planning phase of a project to renovate our exhibit halls, which will incorporate new technology and interactives to bring New York stories alive for our visitors.
"I recently assisted with developing legislation that created the New York State Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI) in the museum. The institute is a cooperative program between the museum and other agencies and conservation organizations in New York. I established and now supervise the institute's office in the museum and serve as head of the interim scientific working group guiding operations of the Institute."
Jennette D. Sison
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 1994
jsison@umich.edu
Hi UCD!!!
I am currently in my final semester at the University of Michigan's School of Public Health. I will be getting my Master's of Public Health (MPH) in Epidemiology in May 2000, then I'll definitely head back west!!
What I loved most about UC Davis was the good times and good friends I've made in ALL my courses as well as outside of academia. Those "all-nighters" that helped and those that didn't, we all got through Organic Chemistry and anatomy lab from 7-10pm!! Of course the Whole Earth Fest was always a blast.
Take care all!!
Young-Sun Sohn
- Ph.D., Microbiology, 2000
yssohn@cj.net
Senior scientist at R&D Center of Pharmaceuticals of CJ Corp. in South Korea
Family picnic at duck pond
Leland J Soto III, M.D.
- B.S., Physiology, 1993
I graduated from Dartmouth Medical School in '98. Currently, I'm in a general surgery residency at the Univ. of Minnesota. I've finished three years of clinical surgery and I am now completing my second year as a research fellow investigating the use of attenuated S. typhimurium for the delivery of therapeutic proteins to unresectable cancers. I married a medical school classmate, Alicia, in 1997 and we have two beautiful children, Sam and Maeve.
The outdoors...rock climbing, mountainbiking, fishing with my roommates. I am also thankful for the inspiration provided to me by all of the dept. physiology professors. I'll always remember UC Davis as the place that began my lifelong quest for knowledge.
Tung-Tien Sun
- Ph.D., Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 1974
![[picture]](/alumni/postcards/sun.jpg)
Better known to his UC Davis friends as Henry Sun, he was a doctoral student from 1969 to 1974 in the Department of Biological Chemistry-part of the then relatively new UC Davis Medical School-under the tutelage of Dr. Robert Traut, who was working on the structure of ribosomal proteins. Sun's other Ph.D. thesis committee members included John Hershey, Roy Doi and Robert Feeney. In addition to working in the lab, Sun was a teaching assistant for George Bruening in the advanced biochemistry laboratory (Biochemistry 202A), and he fished in Putah Creek and the Sacramento River.
After finishing his Ph.D. in biochemistry, Sun did postdoctoral work at Massachusetts Institute of Technology from 1974 to 1978. He was assistant professor (1979-1981) and later associate professor (1981-1982) of dermatology, cell biology and anatomy, and ophthalmology at the Johns Hopkins Medical School before he moved in 1982 to New York University Medical School, where he is currently Rudolf L. Baer Professor of Dermatology; professor of pharmacology and urology; and director, Epithelial Biology Unit, Department of Dermatology.
Dr. Sun has made contributions in several areas of epithelial cell biology. His early work showed that keratins are epithelial markers and that specific keratin "pairs" are markers for different pathways and stages of epithelial differentiation. He was the first to show that corneal epithelial stem cells reside in a previously ignored area of the cornea called the limbus. The limbal stem cell concept is now well accepted and forms the basis of a new surgical procedure called "limbal transplantation," which has saved or restored the eyesight of many patients. In addition, he and his collaborator, Robert Lavker of the University of Pennsylvania, showed that hair follicle stem cells reside, unexpectedly, in a previously little-studied area of the upper hair follicle called "the bulge." Last year, Sun and Lavker expanded this concept in a paper, published in Cell, showing that these bulge stem cells are multipotent-they can give rise not only to hair fibers but also to epidermis. More recently, Dr. Sun has identified a family of novel integral membrane proteins, which he named "uroplakins," as the major differentiation products of mammalian bladder urothelia. Recent studies on uroplakins have yielded new insights into bladder cancer formation, urinary tract infection and vesicoureteral reflux, and have made it possible to convert the urinary bladder into a novel bioreactor for making human recombinant proteins. Sun's lab currently focuses on the mechanisms of hair growth regulation and the molecular differentiation of bladder epithelium.
For his scientific contributions, Sun has received numerous honors including the Angus Lectureship of the University of Toronto Medical School (1986), Herman Pinkus Lectureship of the American Academy of Dermatopathologists (1986), Liu Lectureship of Stanford Medical School (1987), William Montagna Lectureship of the Society of Investigative Dermatology (1989), Susan Swerling Lectureship of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School (1991), Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (1992), Alcon Award for Outstanding Contributions to Vision Research (1993), Wu Jieping Award of the Chinese Medical Association (1998), Tanioku Memorial Lectureship of the Japanese Society for Investigative Dermatology (1998), Dean's Lectureship, New York University School of Medicine (2001), IOSS Lectureship, International Ocular Surface Society (2001), and the inaugural William W. Scott Sr. Memorial Lectureship at the Johns Hopkins Medical School (2001).
Dr. Sun recently became interested in developing better ways to teach graduate students and postdocs how to conduct research. He has developed a graduate course, "Scientific Methods: Survival Skills for Young Investigators in Biomedical Research," which will be required for all entering graduate students of NYU Medical School. This course will address scientific integrity and how to critically analyze the literature, pick a project, get techniques to work reproducibly and reliably, give a seminar, and write papers and grants. Sun has received enthusiastic responses to one of the lectures in this course, "Trust in authorities, risk assessment and experimental design," which he has given in many places, including Baylor University, University of Texas' M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Northwestern University, and Johns Hopkins University. At the invitation of Robert Rice, professor in the Department of Environmental Toxicology, Sun gave the lecture at UC Davis last year.
Michael Crane Swift
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 1966
M.A., zoology, 1968
swift@stolaf.edu
Ph.D. research at the University of British Columbia; post-doc at University of Saskatchewan; teaching at UBC, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, Duke Univ., Univ. of Maryland, Wright State University, Carleton College, St. Olaf College, ACM Wilderness Field Station; station manager of a University of Minnesota field research station. Currently in the biology department at St. Olaf College.
Research in aquatic ecology focusing on zooplankton community structure, predation, and photophysiology, and in aquatic toxicology. Currently studying freshwater mussels and continuing to study <I>Chaoborus larvae.</I>
Great professors -- Hildebrand, Stebbins, Lang, and Goldman come to mind -- and TAs. Great campus atmosphere -- oak trees, CA Band, cherries, dorm life, bikes, great friends.
Aparna Telang
- B.S., Zoology, 1988
![[picture]](/alumni/postcards/atelan.jpg)
I'm originally from Mumbai, India, but have resided in the U.S. for most of my life. In addition to my formal education at Davis, I also interned at the Sacramento Zoo and Rockefeller University, New York City, during two separate summers, as well as volunteering at the UC Davis Raptor Rehabilitation Center during several terms.
After graduating from UC Davis, I took some time off from school and travelled for three months through India, Nepal, and Spain. I then worked in the biotechnology industry for several years as a research associate, primarily in the areas of cell biology and protein chemistry. I realized Ph.D.s are having all the fun, so I entered graduate school and obtained an M.S. degree from California State University, Hayward in biological science in 1995. My research adviser and master's degree mentor, Dr. Susan B. Opp, got me hooked on insect biology, and I am now continuing my entomological studies at the University of Arizona, Interdisciplinary Program in Insect Science, where I am currently working toward my doctoral degree. My current research, within the area of insect-plant interactions, focuses on the nutritional ecology of caterpillars at the level of both feeding behavior and post-ingestive physiology.
Much of my free time is spent hiking around with my two dogs, gardening, and hanging out with friends.
Diana Grace Tolentino
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 1987
Anna M Trujillo
- B.S., Majors:,
Heather Vermazen
- B.S., Biochemistry, 1989
![[picture]](/alumni/postcards/hverma.jpg)
I've turned my hobby of designing and sewing clothes for my daughters into a business, "Mama's Stitches," that specializes in English smocking and French heirloom stitching. French heirloom stitching is a method of attaching lace to fabric to achieve certain shapes. English smocking, the process of embroidering on pleated material, often makes up the front breast piece of dresses for little girls. I see my work not only as a business venture, but also as an important American craft in danger of dying out. Previous to having my own business, I worked as a laboratory technician in the UC Davis School of Medicine, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, where I studied HIV.
Erica Wagner
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 1995
![[picture]](/alumni/postcards/ewagne.jpg)
At the time of graduation I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with my degree (I'm sure I'm not the only one!). I looked around and got an internship at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Ames Research Center through a friend of the family. Towards the end of my internship I called a couple of the on-site contracting companies to see if they were hiring. Within a week I had an interview with a Lockheed Martin manager and shortly thereafter got a job as an experiment support scientist in the Life Sciences Division of Flight Payload Integration. An experiment support scientist works collaboratively with research teams and NASA to translate science requirements into requirements for shuttle flights. I worked with research teams in the United States, France, and Japan--my experience with international teams was amazing. I not only learned a tremendous amount about their current research, but also gained wonderful experiences interacting with people from other countries. In April of 1998, our payload, known as Neurolab, was launched into orbit. Watching the shuttle soar into the sky overhead, carrying experiments I had helped coordinate was amazing.
I recently received a promotion within Lockheed Martin and now work with the NASA chief veterinary officer developing animal welfare policies for the International Space Station. I am looking forward to working further with our international counterparts as we move into the space station generation.
My degree at UC Davis was, of course, integral to my position here at Lockheed Martin. I call on my science background every day as I perform my job. And I must say that the challenges I faced at UC Davis (organic chemistry!) have helped me in challenging situations at work. I look back on my accomplishments at UC Davis and thank my lucky stars that I was fortunate enough to receive such a great education.
Donald E. Watenpaugh
- Ph.D., Physiology, 1995
dewonline@juno.com
Guest scientist in 1996 at the Danish Aerospace Medical Centre for Research, Copenhagen, Denmark, studying gender differences in responses to water immersion; basic and clinical sleep-related research at the University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, Texas, 1996-2000; recently started a new position studying environmental physiology of US Navy submariners and divers at the Naval Submarine Medical Research Laboratory, Groton, CT.
MANY, many good people who helped me a lot, including and especially my advisor, Ed Bernauer; also, Jim Jones, Paul Mole, Chuck Fuller, Dr. Goldberg, Larry Rabinowitz, Charlie Stebbins, Joe Cech, Sarah Gray, Dr. Macdonald, Barbara Horwitz, John Horowitz, many fellow students, and I'm sure others I'm not recalling just now; hard work and tough, interesting, rewarding classes; the drive from Sunnyvale (where I lived back then) to Davis and back; reviewing articles for "journal club" classes; studying for and passing my oral qualifying exam; finishing my research and writing my dissertation; meeting with committee members; my dissertation defense, and graduation!
David C. White
- B.S., Biological Sciences, 1996
Working in the Tech industry.
Li Zhang
- B.S., Biochemistry, 1997
lizhang23@hotmail.com
Getting a master degree in Computer Sciences
Pleasure and relaxed. Best time of my life and still is and all my memories about Aggie will stay with me for the rest of my life.