- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
She's been making her mark in all three since enrolling in 2016 in the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology's Ph.D. program, with a designated emphasis in the biology of vector-borne diseases.
Winokur, who studies with major advisor Christopher Barker, associate professor, Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology, School of Veterinary Medicine, is a newly selected fellow of Professors for the Future (PFTF).
This is a program sponsored by UC Davis Graduate Studies “to recognize and develop the leadership skills of outstanding graduate students and postdoctoral scholars who have demonstrated their commitment to professionalism, integrity, and academic service.”
As a fellow, she will receive a stipend of $3000. Traditionally, approximately 12 fellows annually are selected to participate in the yearlong program, launched in 1992.
The PFTF program is designed to prepare UC Davis doctoral students and postdoctoral scholars “for an increasingly competitive marketplace and a rapidly changing university environment,” according to PFTF co-directors Ellen Hartigan-O'Connor, acting associate dean of UC Davis Graduate Studies, and Teresa Dillinger, academic administrator.
During the year, the fellows will receive formal training-in-teaching methods and course design; participate in a seminar course on ethics and professionalism, and meet regularly for roundtable panel discussions to promote their professional development, intellectual growth and leadership skills, the directors said.
The fellows will work on projects of their own design to enhance their graduate or postdoctoral experience and professional development of their colleagues. They summarize their projects in end-of-the-year reports. (See 2019-2020 fellows.)
Winokur titled her successful proposal, “Addressing Financial Barriers to Participation in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics).”
“Graduate students perform many roles as researchers, mentors, educators, communicators, service leaders, and humans,” wrote Winokur, who is president of the UC Davis Entomology Graduate Student Association. “Financial insecurity affects students' abilities to perform these roles well, and provides a leg up to students with financial support beyond a graduate student stipend. We know that diversity is important in academia; cultivating talent from folks across the social spectrum leads to innovative and appropriate solutions.”
“Addressing financial barriers to participation in STEM graduate programs will lead to more diverse and inclusive programs,” she wrote. “Further, financial insecurity affects those who enters graduate school in the first place; research experience is often required to be considered for acceptance into graduate school, which unfortunately is often offered in the form of unpaid research internships. This can filter out low-income students early, making academia even more elite than it already is.”
Winokur will collaborate with existing resources on campus to set up a series of workshops to address the issues, focusing on three points: (1) creative ways to fund your research (2) how to support your research mentees—why unpaid labor filters low income and other disadvantaged students, and (3) making your teaching cheaper—how to make education more accessible for low-income and other disadvantaged students.
“I've been interested in applying to the Professors for the Future program for a couple years,” she said. “This year, I feel that I am at a good point in my graduate career to develop my skills through the PFTF coursework and to contribute to the graduate student community through a PFTF project.”
Since 2016, the UC Davis doctoral student has developed her teaching, mentoring, course development, and leadership skills through various courses and programs, “which has led to a basic understanding of my teaching philosophy and pedagogy.” She aims to develop her skills to “further align with my core values of diversity, equity, and inclusion in the classroom and laboratory.”
Olivia grew up in Laguna Niguel, Calif. where she focused on science at the Dana Hills High School Health and Medical Occupations Academy. She holds a bachelor's degree, 2015, from Cornell University, where she majored in interdisciplinary studies, focusing on the environmental effects on human health. While at Cornell, she worked as an intern for the National Institutes of Health, working on climate change initiatives for the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the Fogarty International Center.
Winokur holds a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship. She is a two-time recipient of the Bill Hazeltine Memorial Research Award, given annually to an outstanding UC Davis graduate student studying vector-borne diseases.
Winokur, who researches Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, is the co-author of research published in several journals, including PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases. Her first first-author paper, “Impact of Temperature on the Extrinsic Incubation Period of Zika Virus in Aedes aegypti” was just published in March.
Since 2017, she has served as a volunteer with the California Department of Public Health's Vector-Borne Disease Section, assisting with hantavirus and plague surveillance by rodent trapping and testing.
Winokur mentors undergraduate students in the UC Davis Research Scholars Program in Insect Biology (RSPIB), founded and directed by faculty members Jay Rosenheim, Joanna Chiu and Louie Yang, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology.
Active in STEM projects, Winokur co-founded GOALS (Girls' Outdoor Adventure in Leadership and Science) in 2017, a program that develops and runs free two-week summer science programs for high school girls and gender expansive youth from backgrounds underrepresented in STEM fields. The girls learn science, outdoor skills and leadership hands-on while backpacking in Sequoia National Park.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
That's one of the questions slated to be asked at the UC Davis-based COVID webinar, set from 1:30 to 4 p.m., Thursday, April 23, via Zoom and YouTube.
Folks are submitting their questions now, and you can, too.
The virtual seminar, featuring physicians and scientists, is expected to provide a wealth of information, says organizer-moderator Walter Leal, UC Davis distinguished professor, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, College of Biological Sciences, and former chair of the Department of Entomology (now the Department of Entomology and Nematology), College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
Leal, an eminent scientist known for his research, teaching and public service, is a chemical ecologist whose expertise includes mosquito-borne viruses. He coordinated a Zika-virus public awareness seminar on the UC Davis campus in May 2016.
So, can infected mosquitoes transmit COVID-19?
"There is no evidence that mosquitoes transmit SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes the disease named COVID-19," said Leal. "If the virus can be transmitted so effectively from human to human, why would they need an intermediate host? That way, the virus would have to replicate in the mosquito body to be transmitted a few days later. The virus evolution led to a 'faster track.' It is conceivable that when it gets warm, and mosquitoes bite COVID-19 patients, the virus could be found in the mosquito body, but this is not to say that mosquitoes are vectors. They are not."
“It is heartbreaking to hear the number of people dying every day,” Leal said. “We have well-qualified people to address questions from the populace, so I thought I would put my organizing skills and experience with modern teaching technologies at the service of the public.” (His peers recently honored him with the 2020 Distinguished Achievement Award in Teaching, from the Pacific Branch, Entomological Society of America, and the 2020 Distinguished Teaching Award for Undergraduate Teaching, from the UC Davis Academic Senate.)
Chancellor Gary May will deliver the welcoming address. Main speakers are UC Davis physician-scientists Emanuel Maverakis, Stuart Cohen and Nathan Kuppermann; UC Davis veterinarian-scientist Nicole Baumgarth; physician Ron Chapman, Yolo County Health Officer; and pediatrician State Sen. Richard Pan, District 6 chair, Senate Committee on Health.
- Dr. Emanuel Maverakis is a professor in the Departments of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, and Dermatology, UC Davis School of Medicine. A fellow of the California Academy of Sciences, he is known for its work in the field of predictive modeling, as well as for the development of novel analysis tools for immunogenetics. He received a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director's New Innovator Award, and a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers from President Barack Obama.
- Dr. Stuart Cohen is professor and chief of Division of Infectious Diseases and director of Hospital Epidemiology and Infection Control, UC Davis School of Medicine. He specializes in clinical infectious diseases and infection control in the hospital environment.
- Dr. Ron Chapman, the Yolo County Health Officer, is also a health strategist consultant focused on helping health departments build quality improvement and performance management systems. He earlier served as director and State Health Officer, California Department of Public Health.
- Dr. Nathan Kupppermann, an emergency physician for UC Davis Health, is professor and chair, Department of Emergency Medicine, UC Davis School of Medicine. The recipient of the Academic Senate's 2020 Faculty Research Award, Kuppermann is member of the National Academy of Medicine and principal investigator of the Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network.
- Dr. Nicole Baumgarth is a professor in the Center for Comparative Medicine, and the Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology, UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. The Baumgarth laboratory investigates the basic immunological mechanisms that regulate and control immunity to pathogens.
- Dr. Richard Pan, a State Senator who represents the Sacramento region and chairs the Senate Health Committee, is in close contact with the California Department of Public Health and with monitoring the response to the coronavirus outbreak. "Public health is about keeping our neighborhoods safe and healthy," he said in a press release on his website. "The COVID-19 pandemic is a stark reminder of the cost of not having a robust public health system in place. Our leaders need to be listening to public health experts and sharing accurate health information to save lives. Everyone deserves to live a long and healthy life in a safe environment."
In addition to the main speakers, presenters will provide information on such topics as face masks and modeling systems. You-Lo Hsieh, distinguished professor, UC Davis Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, and an expert on textiles and clothing, will explain the differences between regular masks, surgical masks, and N95 masks, plus what the public can do when masks are unavailable. She researches polymer chemistry, fiber engineering and bio-based materials.
James R. Carey, UC Davis distinguished professor of entomology and an authority on population biology and modeling, will share his expertise on modeling systems. He served as the principal investigator of a 10-year, $10 million federal grant on “Aging in the Wild,” encompassing 14 scientists at 11 universities. Carey co-authored, with Deborah Roach of the University of Virginia, the newly published book, Biodemography: An Introduction to Concepts and Methods (Princeton University Press), described as “an authoritative overview of the concepts and applications of biological demography.” (See news story.)
Got a question? Register here and ask here: https://bit.ly/2z4ULdw
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Benjamin Franklin reportedly said: "Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise."
What about the sleeping patterns of bumble bees?
Bumble bees are definitely early risers--if the weather cooperates. They usually forage earlier than honey bees and also in cooler temperatures.
We spotted this bumble bee, Bombus melanopygus, commonly known as a "black-tailed bumble bee," sleeping on a Spanish lavender blossom April 12 in a Vacaville, Calif. park.
Native to western North America and found from California to British Columbia and as far east as Idaho, it forages on manzanitas, wild lilacs, wild buckwheats, lupines, penstemons, clovers, and sages, among others.
Keep your eye out for this bumble bee, which is the first species we see in this area. It will be the focus of the Robbin Thorp Memorial Bumble Bee Contest, which starts Jan. 1, 2021. The Bohart Museum of Entomology, directed by Lynn Kimsey, UC Davis professor of entomology, will sponsor the contest to see who can find the first one of the year.
Professor Thorp (1933-2019), a member of the UC Davis entomology faculty for 30 years, from 1964-1994, achieved emeritus status in 1994 but continued to engage in research, teaching and public service until a few weeks before his death. In 2014, during his retirement, he co-authored two books, Bumble Bees of North America: An Identification Guide and California Bees and Blooms: A Guide for Gardeners and Naturalists. He was among the instructors (2002-2019) of The Bee Course. This is an intensive nine-day workshop affiliated with the American Museum of Natural History and held annually at the Southwestern Research Station, Portal, Ariz. It's geared for conservation biologists, pollination ecologists, and other biologists who want to gain greater knowledge of the systematics and biology of bees.
For the past several years, several of us bumble bee enthusiasts, encouraged by Professor Thorp, have tried to find the first bumble bee of the year in the two-county area of Yolo and Solano. He always expressed delight when we reported back to him. This year Allan Jones of Davis photographed one on Jan. 6 on a white manzanita in the UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden (Yolo County) to win the contest. The bumble bee been found as early as Jan. 1 in Benicia (Solano County).
Still, no matter the month, it's a joy to see. This one's for you, Robbin.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
They are:
- Lynn Kimsey, director of the Bohart Museum of Entomology and professor of entomology, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, recipient of the PBESA's highest honor, the C. W. Woodworth Award
- Robert Kimsey, forensic entomologist and associate adjunct professor, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, recipient of the Distinction in Student Mentoring Award
- Walter Leal, chemical ecologist and distinguished professor, UC Davis Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology and former chair of the UC Davis Department of Entomology (now Department of Entomology and Nematology), recipient of the Distinguished Achievement Award in Teaching
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 104th annual meeting will be a virtual meeting held Monday, April 20, announced PBESA president Elizabeth "Betsy" Beers of Washington State University. It was initially set April 19-22 in Spokane. PBESA encompasses 11 western states (Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming), U.S. territories, and parts of Canada and Mexico.
Capsule information on the recipients:
Lynn Kimsey, C. W. Woodworth Award
Lynn Kimsey was singled out for her 31 years of outstanding accomplishments in research, teaching, education, outreach and public service. "She is an immense credit to the field of entomology; in fact, we rarely see anyone of her caliber come forth, and do as much as she does," wrote nominator Steve Nadler, professor and chair, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology.
An alumnus of UC Davis, Lynn received her undergraduate degree in 1975 and doctorate in 1979. She joined the UC Davis faculty in 1989. Since 1990, she has administered the world-renowned Bohart Museum of Entomology, which houses eight million insect specimens and is the seventh largest university insect museum in North America.
Richard M. Bohart, for whom the insect museum is named, served as her major professor and she was his last student. Kimsey's areas of expertise include insect biodiversity, systematics and biogeography of parasitic wasps, urban entomology, civil forensic entomology, and arthropod-related industrial hygiene. She has served in numerous leadership roles at the international, national and local level, including two terms as president of the International Hymenopterists, board member of the Natural Science Collections Alliance, and interim chair and vice chair (twice) of the UC Davis Department of Entomology (now the Department of Entomology and Nematology).
Professor Kimsey is a recognized global authority on the systematics, biogeography and biology of the wasp families, Tiphiidae and Chrysididae: the author of 127 peer-reviewed publications; and has described more than 270 news species. She is the author of The Chrysidid Wasps of the World(Oxford, co-authored by Richard Bohart), California Cuckoo Wasps in the Family Chrysididae, and Systematics of Bees of the Genus Eufriesea, among others.
She earlier received two other PBESA awards: the Systematics, Evolution and Biodiversity Award in 2014, and shared the Team Award in 2013 with colleagues Eric Mussen, Robbin Thorp, Neal Williams and Brian Johnson, who were recognized for their collaborative work specializing in honey bees, wild bees and pollination issues through research, education and outreach. (Their service to UC Davis at the time spanned 116 years.) Kimsey won the highly competitive UC Davis Academic Senate Distinguished Scholarly Public Service Award in 2016.
The Woodworth award memorializes eminent entomologist Charles William Woodworth (1865-1940), who founded the UC Berkeley Department of Entomology. He excelled in research, teaching and public service. (See previous Woodworth Award recipients.)
Forensic entomologist Robert Kimsey, a member of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology faculty for three decades, has served as an associate adjunct professor and lecturer since 1990. He holds two degrees from UC Davis: a bachelor of science degree in 1977 and a doctorate in 1984. He is described as a "trusted advisor, mentor, teacher, friend and confidant--has served above and beyond what is expected."
"His dedication to graduate and undergraduate students as a mentor, advisor and teacher, all intertwined, is beyond exemplary; it is colossal," wrote nominator Steve Nadler, professor and chair of the department. Since 1990, Kimsey has taught and interacted with some 7000 students, including entomology, biology and animal biology majors.
Kimsey, known as “Dr. Bob,” shares with his students his many and varied research interests: public health entomology; arthropods of medical importance; zoonotic disease; biology and ecology of tick-borne pathogens; tick-feeding behavior and biochemistry. He has served as the master advisor for the Animal Biology (ABI) major since 2010 and an ABI lecturer since 2001. He has taught ABI 50A for 20 years, giving lectures and instructing labs to a total of 900 students per year. He has taught ABI 187 for 12 years, presenting material to a total of 450 students.
A U.S. Army veteran, Kimsey served as an instructor of medical entomology, epidemiology and preventive medicine in the Academy of Health Sciences from 1971-1974. He is a past president of the North American Forensic Association (2014-2016). He is the director of the Forensic Sciences and instructor for the San Luis Obispo Fire Death Investigation Strike Team (since 2011) and an instructor and member of the Glen Craig Institute Advisory Committee (since 2012). He is married to Lynn Kimsey, director of the Bohart Museum of Entomology (see above).
The recipient of seven outstanding teaching or mentoring awards, Robert Kimsey was named the 2019 UC Davis Outstanding Faculty Advisor of the Year; 2019 Eleanor and Harry Walker Faculty Advising Award from the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences; and a regional faculty advisor award from NACADA, the Global Community for Academic Advising.
His students are highly successful. Under his guidance, they have established careers as professor of microbiology at Cal Poly; campus veterinarian at UC San Diego; Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) Sergeant in Molecular Biology for Contra Costa County Sheriff; CSI Sergeant in Trace Evidence, Ballistics and Tool Marks for Contra Costa County Sheriff; CSI for Sacramento City Police, CSI in the Santa Rosa CA Department of Justice (DOJ) Laboratory, DOJ laboratory manager for the Central Region, Rippon, CA; and laboratory manager in the Jan Bashenski DOJ DNA Laboratory. Many others are serving as laboratory technicians in local police and sheriff's units.
Since 1998, Kimsey has co-chaired the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology's Picnic Day activities. (This year's event is canceled due to coronavirus pandemic precautions.)
Walter Leal is a distinguished professor in the UC Davis Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology and former professor and chair of the UC Davis Department of Entomology. A member of the UC Davis faculty since 2000, he has taught insect physiology for 13 years and biochemistry for six years.
In his classrooms, Leal employs the strategic use of digital technology in truly innovative ways to generate animated eReviews, eClarifications, and eSolutions. He teaches, motivates, and inspires. His motto: “I don't teach because I have to; I teach because it is a joy to light the way and to spark the fire of knowledge."
Leal received the 2020 Distinguished Teaching Award for Undergraduate Teaching from the UC Davis Academic Senate. He is a fellow of four organizations: Entomological Society of America (ESA), National Academy of Inventors, American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the California Academy of Sciences. He also received the Gakkaisho (fellow equivalent) from the Japanese Society of Applied Entomology and Zoology.
Leal was the first non-Japanese scientist to earn tenure in the Japan Ministry of Agriculture. His other honors include Technology Prize, Society for Bioscience, Biotechnology and Agrochemistry, Japan; ESA's Nan Yao Su Award for Innovation and Creativity; Silver Medal, International Society of Chemical Ecology; Medal of Achievement, Entomological Society of Brazil; and Corresponding Member, Brazilian Academy of Sciences. Leal co-chaired the 2016 International Congress of Entomology and delivered ESA's 2019 Founders' Memorial Lecture in honor of Tom Eisner, father of chemical ecology.
Wrote nominator James R. Carey, distinguished professor, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology: "One of the most astonishing responses to a professional talk I have ever witnessed in my entire career—and that is saying something—is the 5-minute standing ovation given to Walter after the 50-minute presentation (“Tom Eisner—An Incorrigible Entomophile and Innovator Par Excellence”) he gave to the over 1,000 attendees at the Founder's Memorial Awards program on the morning of November 19th at the national ESA meetings in St Louis."
"Walter designs and delivers his lectures to engage, encourage and inspire students, prompting them to think, ask questions, and resolve problems," wrote Carey, who received the PBESA teaching award in 2014 and went on to win the national ESA teaching award. "His students appreciate his state-of-the-art technology, dedication, kindness, and enthusiasm, coupled with his finely honed sense of humor."
To register for the virtual meeting, click here.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Another casualty of the coronavirus pandemic: the annual California Honey Festival, which was scheduled May 2 in historic downtown Woodland.
This year would have been the fourth annual.
But, of course, and rightfully so, the cancellation is for our protection. It needed “not to happen.”
The California Honey Festivalevent, launched in 2017 and sponsored by the City of Woodland and the UC Davis Honey and Pollination Center, is an all-day, free festival that usually draws a crowd of some 30,000.
The event aims to cultivate an interest in beekeeping, and to educate the public in support of bees and their keepers, according to Amina Harris, director of the UC Davis Honey and Pollination Center. Through lectures and demonstrations, the festival-goers learn about bees and how to keep them healthy. Major issues facing the bees include pests, pesticides, diseases, malnutrition, and climate changes.
Yes, those major issues still face the bees. But now we humans face a major issue of our own: a deadly virus. We are sheltering-in and social distancing. Bees are social insects and are out foraging for nectar, pollen, propolis and water. Their colony is one huge superorganism, with a queen bee, workers and drones. They all depend on one another to make the hive run smoothly. No queen bee, no colony. No workers, no colony. No drones, no colony.
As of 4:30 p.m. today, Covid-19 has infected more than 1.9 million people, and sadly, more than 118,000 people worldwide have perished, according to Johns Hopkins University. Reportedly, the United States is “nearing the peak right now.”
Stay safe out there!
