Biophysical Society Bulletin | May 2019

BiophysicsWeek

Texas A&M University Student Chapter The Texas A&M BPS Society Chapter hosted the First Biochem- istry and Biophysics Research and Technologies Symposium that included 6 student talks, 18 poster presenters, and a keynote address from Alex Zabula of ExxonMobil to close the event. The event drew participants from all over the campus including the Biochemistry and Biophysics, Chemistry, Biology, Biomedical Engineering, and Chemical Engineering Depart- ments. The Chapter had a great time connecting with others and building scientific connections throughout the campus! Florida State University Student Chapter During Biophysics Week 2019, Florida State University (FSU)

BPS Student Chapter held a biophysics themed pizza luncheon and mini-talk for students that are currently engaged and interested in biophysics research across campus. The luncheon — featuring pizza from a local Tallahassee pizzeria —was held on Friday, March 29, in the Institute for Molecular Biology’s lecture room within the Kasha Laboratory Building. Students in attendance were from various departments across FSU, including: Chemistry/Biochemistry, Biology, Physics, and Molecular Biophysics. In addition to conversing about various biophysics-re- lated topics over pizza, the luncheon also featured a presentation from a first- year graduate student in the Molecular Biophysics Department who had recently joined her home lab. That lab engages in single-particle cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM), and the presentation gave an overview of the project, in- cluding a brief introduction to the field of cryo-EM, project background, completed rotation work, and exciting new experiments planned for the future. York University Student Chapter The Biophysics Club at York University in Canada celebrated Biophysics Week with several fun events. The students and faculty of York University were welcome to attend live physics demonstrations and hold discussions on their biophysical applications at a table in a public site on campus. Experiments spanned a wide range: from demonstrations comparing the skin penetration of green versus red light to introduce NIR spectroscopy and devices such as pulse oximeters; to gravity-defying gyroscopes and solenoids, motivating some of the inner-work- ings of MRI; to the measurement of material density via the buoyant force in a Cartesian diver experiment. Students were also

encouraged to engage in the Biomimetics Brainiacs 2019 Contest, wherein one biomi- metics themed short-answer

question would be posted daily throughout the week. Participants ran the chance of winning Biophysics Club merchandise. By attracting students and faculty of all disciplines to our table and contest, the Biophysics Club strives to not only introduce all to the wonderful field of biophysics, but also spark curiosity in reading further about the field.

Award Ceremony for the Biomimetics Brainiacs 2019 contest. Picture contains students who demonstrated exemplary participation throughout Biophysics Week 2019. From left to right: Ramisa Rawnak (Participant), Baseer Yousufzai (3rd place), Bartolomeo Candel- ma (1st place), Noam Yekutiel Sibony (Biophysics Club advisor), Nader Allam (President of the Biophysics Club), Prakriti Das (Participant), Leena Muti (2nd place).

May 2019

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