The Academic Minute for 2021.07.26-2021.07.30

The Academic Minute from 07.26 – 07.30

Monday, July 26th
Jerry Malayer – Oklahoma State University
Why Do We Do Research on Highly Infectious Microbes?
Jerry Malayer is a Professor in the Department of Physiological Sciences in the College of Veterinary Medicine and an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Oklahoma State University. He also serves as the Associate Dean for Research & Graduate Education in the College of Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Malayer’s research involves diagnosis, mitigation and control of bacterial pathogens and host-pathogen interactions.

Tuesday, July 27th
Caitlin Clark – Colorado State University
Chocolate Flavor Through Fermentation
Caitlin is a Ph.D student and chocolate researcher at Colorado State University. Her research in the Food Science program focuses on cacao fermentation and post-harvest processing techniques.

After earning a B.A. in Linguistics and Classical Languages at the University of Colorado, Boulder (2005), Caitlin lived in Madrid, Spain, working at the Spanish Department of Defense and other government agencies. She was drawn to fermented foods during her time in Spain, where she was exposed to traditional, time-honored practices of food preservation.

Wednesday, July 28th
Megan Downing – Northern Kentucky University
Philanthropy and Benefits to Students
Dr. Megan Downing has been with Northern Kentucky University since 2001. She joined the program as an Assistant Professor in 2015 after serving five years as NTTR faculty and as the program coordinator and primary academic advisor from 2010-2015. Dr. Downing also serves as the faculty advisor for NKU Chapter of the National Society of Leadership and Success.

Dr. Downing completed her undergraduate and graduate studies at NKU with her B.S. in Business Education/Office System Technology (2002), Master of Science in Information Systems (2006), post-master’s certificate in Higher Education Administration & College Student Development (2009), and her doctoral studies in Educational Leadership (2012) with her dissertation on Student Perceptions of Faculty-Student Interaction in Online Learning.

Thursday, July 29th
Bas Rokers – NYU Abu Dhabi
Your Brain on Virtual Reality
Bas Rokers is Associate Professor of Psychology and the Director of the Neuroimaging Facility at New York University Abu Dhabi. His work has elucidated the neural mechanisms underlying visual perception, by revealing the links between sensory input, neural activity and perpetual experience. His research has informed technological innovation in the domain of virtual and augmented reality and has important applications in healthcare, improving the understanding and treatment of visual disorders.

Friday, July 30th
Rodney Yoder – Goucher College
Building a Miniature Electron Accelerator Powered by Heat
Rodney Yoder is Associate Professor of Physics at Goucher College, where he teaches classes ranging from introductory courses for nonscientists to advanced physics labs, and is also the coordinator of a new interdisciplinary major in Engineering Science.  He received his B.A. from Reed College, earned his Ph.D. in experimental accelerator physics from Yale University, and was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of California, Los Angeles.  As a science faculty member at liberal-arts colleges for more than 20 years, he is committed to developing effective teaching methods and hands-on science courses while pursuing research that is accessible to undergraduates.   He particularly values introducing his students to the excitement of experimental research and innovation.