#plantbiology14 Day Three

Today was a day for personal connections and actually getting an opportunity to see some science talks. The day began with the second in  series of sessions on the challenges of feeding 9 Billion people, with a focus on not just feeding, but nourishing them successfully. David Jenkins, Alan De Brauw, and Ricardo Uauy all … Read more

The Mentoring Relationship—A Two-Way Street

The Minority Affairs Committee luncheon began with an informal lunchtime discussion between faculty and students. As suggested by attendees of a previous year’s luncheon, the setup involved assigning several faculty to each table and allowing students and post-docs to fill the remaining seats. The room was abuzz with discussion for the first portion of the … Read more

Plant Biology 2014 Major Symposium I: Abiotic Stress Response

The first day of the ASPB meeting, 2014 included the major symposium on abiotic stress control in plants, presenting insights on the broad range of abiotic stress that impacts plants from extreme atmospheric conditions and availability of micronutrients; with discussions on recent experimental approaches in laboratory and fields to overcome those hurdles. Dr. Michael F. … Read more

10 Tips for Grad Students to Make the Most of a Scientific Conference

Conferences are a great place to get feedback on your research from leaders in your field as well as other graduate students. They’re also great for networking and building a group of contacts that you can use for advice in the future.  David Shiffman (PhD candidate at the University of Miami), shares tips and tricks for students … Read more

World Champions Need Plant Biology

No grass? No Wimbledon, World Cup, worldwide golf or baseball According to SportsGrass.com, “sports and athletic field grasses must have dense, thick sod, be able to withstand impact and have the ability to repair quickly…Each seed mixture is used for the desired traits that are dominant to its variety and whether it grows well with … Read more

Using social media to increase the visibility of your poster

Succinct messages have power.  Share your poster via Twitter, interact over your results, & your research impact will grow #PlantBiology14 See what we did there?  In just 140 characters (equivalent of one whole tweet) you learned a key theme, professional goal, and a practical action item (the hashtag) for connecting at Plant Biology 2014 and … Read more

2014 Plant Science Grant and Fellowship Opportunities

A handy list of plant science grant and fellowship opportunities with deadlines in early 2014. Please leave a comment if you know of other opportunities we should promote. ASPB Travel Grant Program for Plant Biology 2014 ASPB is offering up to 80 $575 grants for students, postdocs, and faculty beginning their careers to attend the … Read more

Give your Students Roots: Help students begin their career journey

One of the most meaningful perks of my job as a faculty member in the Department of Plant and Microbial Biology at UC Berkeley is the opportunity to mentor students – both undergrads and grads. My job also gives me the privilege to share with students my passion for doing plant science research, and to … Read more

Cultivating Safety

What do locks, alarms, TSA screenings, guard dogs, and plants have in common?  Each can deter danger.  Yes, you read that right. Plants can make stuff safer.  In fact, NOVA’s technology aficionado David Pogue explored cutting-edge examples of some leafy lifesavers in his PBS program, Making Stuff: Safer (airdate 11/6/13). So beyond thorns and prickly … Read more