- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
The award, sponsored by Syngenta Crop Protection, recognizes entomologists who are making significant contributions to agriculture.
Campbell is a research entomologist with the Center for Grain and Animal Health Research Service of the USDA's Agricultural Research Service, Manhattan, Kansas.
He received two degrees from Rutgers University, the State University of New Jersey: his bachelor's degree in biology in 1988 and master's degree in entomology in 1994. He went on to enroll in the UC Davis graduate program, obtaining his doctorate in 1999. His major professor was Harry Kaya, now emeritus professor of entomology and nematology.
Campbell joined USDA-ARS in 1999 and since then has conducted research focused on the spatial distribution and movement patterns of stored-product insects in food facility landscapes, improving the implementation and interpretation of insect monitoring programs, and determining the impact of different management tactics on pest populations within commercial food facilities.
Campbell honored his major professor during the Harry Kaya Tribute Seminar at the 2011 ESA meeting in Reno.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Hamby received her doctorate in entomology at UC Davis in March 2014, studying with major professor Frank Zalom. She has just accepted a position with the Department of Entomology at the University of Maryland, College Park. Starting in November, she will be an assistant professor of sustainable agroecosystems and will be involved in integrated pest management research, extension, and teaching.
Hamby's expertise includes sustainable integrated pest management strategies for various insect pests. Her dissertation research, titled "Biology and Pesticide Eesistance Management of Drosophila suzukii in Coastal California Berries," covered monitoring, yeast associations, chronobiology, chronotoxicity of insecticides, and the implications of this work to managing a recent invader, the spotted wing drosophila.
The Comstock award is the highest honor given to a graduate student. Hamby will be one of six honored at the national meeting. The others are:
- Eric Bohnenblust, Eastern Branch
- Rebecca Dew, International Branch
- Michael McCarville, North Central Branch
- Amber Dawn Tripodi, Southeastern Branch
- Nathan Lord, Southwestern Branch
Zalom praised Hamby's "established record of excellence in research, mentorship, and leadership." Kelly also received a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship to study molecular mechanisms of target site resistance to insecticides in this system. In 2011, she was awarded the Lillian and Alex Feir Graduate Student Travel Award in Insect Physiology, Biochemistry, or Molecular Biology from the ESA Pacific Branch.
Hamby received all three of her academic degrees from UC Davis, compiling a near perfect grade point average. While studying for her bachelor's degree in environmental toxicology, specializing in ecotoxicology, she completed the integrated studies honors program and graduated with highest honors, making the dean's honors list.
Hamby has published as a lead author in well-regarded peer-reviewed journals including Applied and Environmental Microbiology, Experimental and Applied Acarology, Journal of Economic Entomology, and PLoS ONE. She co-authored recently published articles in G3: Genes, Genomes, Genetics (the open-access journal of the Genetics Society of America), Environmental Entomology, and Acta Horticulturae, and articles submitted to the Journal of Applied Entomology and PLOS Biology.
A member of ESA since 2009, with membership in both the Plant-Insect Ecosystems section and the Physiology, Biochemistry and Toxicolgy sections, Hamby has attended and presented at four ESA annual meetings, and two PBESA meetings. She was invited to present papers in symposia at both the 2012 and 2013 National ESA meetings, and in a symposium at the 2012 PBESA meeting. Hamby has also presented papers at two international conferences including an invited symposium paper at the XXIX International Congress of Entomology in Daegu, Republic of Korea.
Zalom, an integrated pest management specialist and distinguished professor at UC Davis, is president of the 7000-member ESA and will preside over the Portland, Ore., meeting, ESA's 62nd annual meeting.
This is the second consecutive year that a UC Davis graduate student has received the Comstock award. Last year Matan Shelomi, a doctoral candidate who studies with Lynn Kimsey, director of the Bohart Museum of Entomology and professor of entomology at UC Davis, received the award. The list of UC Davis recipients:
2014: Kelly Hamby
2013: Matan Shelomi
2008: Christopher Barker
1983: Elaine Backus
PBESA is comprised of 11 western states (Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming), parts of Canada and Mexico, and seven U.S. territories.
The award memorializes John Henry Comstock (1849-1931), an American entomologist, researcher and educator known for his studies of scale insects and butterflies and moths, which provided the basis for systematic classification. Comstock was a member of the faculty of Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y., for most of his career, except for his service as a chief entomologist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (1879-81).
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
This is the highest honor that the 7000-member ESA presents to its outstanding teachers. Ullman earlier was named the recipient of the outstanding teaching award from the Pacific Branch of ESA.
The ESA governing board announced the news today (Sept. 10). Ullman will receive the award at the ESA's 62nd annual meeting, to take place Nov. 16-19 in Portland, Ore.
Ullman chaired the UC Davis Department of Entomology in 2004-2005, and served as an associate dean for undergraduate academic programs, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. from 2005 to 2014. There she led curriculum and program development, student recruitment and outreach, and she administrated all undergraduate academic activities.
Ullman is known for innovative, multidisciplinary teaching strategies that connect science and art programs that mentor the next generation of scientists and help undergraduates succeed. Key examples are the Art/Science Fusion Program (using experiential learning to enhance scientific literacy), the Career Discovery Group Program (training mentors to help students explore careers and select majors), and the national Thrips-Tospovirus Educational Network (training graduate students and postdoctoral scholars to mentor new scientists).
Ullman's research revolves around insects that transmit plant pathogens, in particular plant viruses. She is best known for advancing international knowledge of interactions between thrips and tospoviruses and aphids and citrus tristeza virus. Her contributions have played a fundamental role in developing novel strategies for management of insects and plant viruses. She leads a $3.75 million Coordinated Agricultural Project, and has authored more than 100 refereed publications (cited 3,660 times, h-index of 32).
The UC Davis professor was named an ESA fellow in 2011. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including the USDA Higher Education Western Regional Award for Excellence in College and University Teaching (1993), the UC Davis Chancellor's Achievement Award for Diversity and Community (2008), and the 2014 Distinguished Teaching Award from ESA's Pacific Branch.
Ullman received her bachelor's degree in horticulture from the University of Arizona in 1976 and her doctorate in entomology from UC Davis in 1985. She began her career in 1987 at the University of Hawaii-Manoa, relocating in 1995 to UC Davis' Department of Entomology and Nematology. Ullman also holds a joint appointment with the graduate programs of the Department of Entomology and Nematology, and the Department of Plant Pathology.
“Dr. Ullman is a world-renowned and highly respected teacher, but she is an outstanding mentor, researcher and administrator who combines innovation, energy, talent and dedication to help students learn, retain that knowledge, and succeed in class, college and life. They cannot praise her enough, and neither can we,” the team of nominators wrote.
Ullman excels at developing new courses, programs and teaching methods, using traditional and non-traditional means. She employs a unique multidisciplinary approach to teaching. A key example is her Art/Science Fusion Program (which has drawn national and international attention, including a TEDx talk, ESA and AAAS presentations, and scores of speaking invitations all over the world. One of her 2013 presentations was to Lleida University, Spain, where she guided them in setting up an art/science fusion program.
The Art/Science Fusion Program, developed initially in the Department of Entomology and Nematology, is an innovative teaching program that crosses college boundaries and uses experiental learning to enhance scientific literary for students from all disciplines. Her program promotes environmental literacy with three undergraduate courses, a robust community outreach program, and sponsorship of the Leonardo Art Science Evening Rendezvous (LASERs).
An example of her innovative teaching: her Entomology 001 students researched honey bees, learned and crafted mosaic ceramics, and then installed the project in the department's honey bee garden. Her ENT 001 and her freshman seminar on Plants in Art and Science led to 12 permanently installed public art projects and one exhibition at the Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts. These projects illustrating student learning at UC Davis, have attracted national attention, including a 16-page article in the November 2013 edition of Works and Conversations.
The Art/Science Fusion Program drew praise for its robust collaboration with the UC Davis Arboretum and its work with the GATEways (Gardens, Art and the Environment) Project, a campuswide project aimed at increased accessibility to UC Davis and its academic enterprise. One of her most visible and “wow!” projects is the 2,500 pound mosaic artwork, Nature's Gallery, showcasing the interaction of insects and plants. A product of her ENT 001 class and community outreach, it was displayed at the U.S. Botanical Garden in Washington D.C. and at the California State Fair and is now permanently installed in the UC Davis Arboretum.
Ullman's nominators singled her out for special praise:
1. Her teaching methods and influence are not just in the classroom. As the associate dean of the UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (student population 6000), Ullman leads the curriculum and program development, student recruitment and outreach; administrates all undergraduate academic policies ranging from orientation of incoming students; advises and assists students in academic difficulty; and developed campuswide policies with a wide range of academic committees, taskforces and councils at college and campus levels, including the Council of Associate Deans, Undergraduate Dean's Council, and Undergraduate Advising Council.
2. Career Discovery Group. Ullman co-founded the Career Discovery Group Program (180-380 freshmen/year since 2006). This program, essential in training mentors, and obtaining college and private funding for program support and expansion, helps students explore career possibilities, select majors and tailor their academic program to enhance their success. Recently, her leadership resulted in garnering college and private funding for expansion of the program to Educational Opportunity Program students (first in their family to attend college, under-represented minorities) and she contributes throughout the academic year to training and managing the mentors for this program. Undergraduates participating in the program have a faster time to degree, higher GPAs and are less likely to be in academic difficulty.
3. National Online Class. In 2013, Ullman co-directed development and teaching of a national online class on scientific mentoring (Thrips-Tospovirus Educational Network or TTEN) to students and postdoctoral scholars at seven institutions. This effort involved developing an Adobe Connect virtual classroom, a Google Plus site for sharing materials, videos and resources and preparation of curriculum. In addition to this formal teaching, she also trains undergraduates and graduate students to do research in her laboratory. As a researcher, she is best known for translating advances in understanding insect vector-plant virus relationships into novel strategies for preventing vector population growth and epidemics of insect transmitted pathogens. Her success let to a $3.75 million grant; she is the principal investigator.
4. New Techniques and Strategies. Ullman invests a great deal of energy in delivering content and exploring innovative strategies for teaching. In 2012, she revised her strategy for teaching ENT 001, using more online resources, collaborative learning techniques and in-class testing strategies that allowed her to “flip” the classroom and increase discussion, questions and interactive activities in a highly successful project. She continues to innovate and integrate art and science in her teaching, stressing visual literacy and creative confidence.
Unsolicited and anonymous comments from students included:
- “Professor Ullman is wonderful! She is extremely enthusiastic about what she is teaching.”
- “Great professor. She is passionate about what she does and very enthusiastic about insects.”
(Editor's Note: Richard Levine of ESA contributed to this report.)
Related link:
Watch the TEDx talk on YouTube by Diane Ullman, co-founder and co-director of the UC Davis Art/Science Fusion Program.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Hoffmann is a professor of integrative biology at the Strasbourg University Institute for Advanced Study. He is also emeritus research director of the French National Research Center, and he served as vice president and president of the French National Academy of Sciences from 2006-2010.
He is one of two Nobel Prize winners, along with Peter Agre (2003 Nobel Prize in Chemistry), to agree to speak at ICE 2016, which promises to be the largest gathering of insect scientists in history, with more than 6,000 attendees expected.
Hoffmann, who was awarded the Nobel Prize for “discoveries concerning the activation of innate immunity,” is an especially fitting speaker for an entomology conference. He and his colleagues used insects, namely the fruit fly Drosophila, to decipher the potent antimicrobial defenses. Over many years, these studies have led to a general understanding of recognition of infection by flies, the connections between recognition and signaling, and the subsequent control of expression of immune responsive genes, namely of those encoding antimicrobial peptides which oppose the invading microorganisms.
Hoffmann's interest in insects began at an early age and was inspired by his father, a high-school biology teacher in Luxembourg who worked on the systematics of various insect groups during his spare time.
“Most of my father's studies focused on Odonata, Ephemeroptera, Orthoptera, Dermaptera, and Hemiptera, and he was particularly interested in the development and behavior of mayflies,” Dr. Hoffmann said. “Under his guidance, and with his strong involvement, I published my first paper on the aquatic Heteroptera of Luxembourg.”
After high school in Luxembourg, Hoffmann attended the University of Strasbourg and worked on his Ph.D. with Professor Pierre Joly, a neuroendocrinologist, on the antimicrobial defenses of migratory locusts.
Hoffmann, who uses insects as model organisms to study the immune system, will talk about “Innate Immunity: from Insects to Humans” and illustrate how basic research on insects can lead to broader discoveries relevant to human health.
“We are absolutely delighted that Dr Jules Hoffmann has accepted our invitation to give a lecture in Orlando,” said Leal and Alvin Simmons, co-chairs of ICE 2016. “The appearance of Dr. Hoffmann and Dr. Peter Agre — two Nobel Prize winners — is unprecedented in the 104-year history of the International Congress of Entomology.”
The International Congress of Entomology is held once every four years in different countries around the world. The XXV International Congress of Entomology will be held in Orlando under the theme “Entomology without Borders.”
ICE 2016 is likely to be the largest gathering of entomologists in history, as it will be co-located with the annual meetings of the Entomological Society of America and the Entomological Society of Canada, along with events hosted by the Entomological Societies of China, Brazil, Australia, and others.
For more information about ICE 2016, please visit http://www.ice2016orlando.org.
(Richard Levine of ESA provided the information for this story)
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Triclosan researcher Bruce Hammock, distinguished professor of entomology at the University of California, Davis, is featured in the Sept. 4 edition of Newsweek in a piece titled "Is Cancer Lurking in Your Toothpaste? (And Your Soap? And Your Lipstick?)"
Writer Alexander Nazaryan led with: "Since cancer seems to be an ever-present enemy, we greet the appearance of its lethal emissaries in prosaic objects with a morbid lack of surprise: carcinogens lurks in coffee, hamburgers, rugs, dry-cleaned clothes, even peanut butter. And it may apparently reside in one of the most popular toothpastes on the market, a toothpaste you've probably thrown into your own shopping cart with nary a second thought."
Of Hammock, he wrote:
"But for others, the chemicals aren't dangerous if used with moderation. Dr. Bruce D. Hammock, for example, runs the Laboratory of Pesticide and Biotechnology at UC Davis and was one of the investigators involved in the study on triclosan and triclocarban. 'There are real risks to triclosan,' Hammock says. 'And there are real benefits.' He welcomes more research into its effects on the human body.
Hammock called triclosan “quite a good antimicrobial” that belongs in the hospital, not on the kitchen counter, Nazaryan wrote. He quoted Hammock: “There's no reason for it to be there" (in hand and dish soaps).
See the full story in Newsweek.
In addition to his duties in the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology (see his lab research website), Hammock holds a joint appointment with the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center and directs the campuswide Superfund Research Program, National Institutes of Health Biotechnology Training Program, and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) Combined Analytical Laboratory.
The UC Davis provost named him a distinguished professor in 2003. Hammock is a fellow of the Entomological Society of America, a member of the prestigious National Academy of Sciences, and the recipient of the 2001 UC Davis Faculty Research Lecture Award and the 2008 Distinguished Teaching Award for Graduate and Professional Teaching.
Related News:
See the Aug. 13, 2012 UC Davis news release expanding on triclosan: "Triclosan, an antibacterial chemical widely used in hand soaps and other personal-care products, hinders muscle contractions at a cellular level, slows swimming in fish and reduces muscular strength in mice, according to researchers at the University of California, Davis, and the university of Colorado. The findings appear online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America."