Biophysical Society Bulletin | October 2020

Publications

Know the Editor Susan Schroeder University of Oklahoma Editor, Nucleic Acids Biophysical Journal

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Susan Schroeder

What are you currently working on that excites you? I’m learning to do direct RNA sequencing with Oxford nanopore technology. This technique reads small changes in pH as a single RNA molecule is pulled through a pore in a membrane. It’s a totally different way to sequence RNA than Illumina sequencing and provides more information about RNA modifications. I’m really excited to apply it to studying the RNA folding problem. What have you read lately that you found really interesting or stimulating? I’ve enjoyed mentoring a diverse lab group and I try to keep aware of the current cultural issues. So this summer, I’ve been reading some of the literature related to issues of racism. The best book that I read on this topic this summer was Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man. I found it at my favorite little bookshop in Oklahoma City, which does a great job of high- lighting Oklahoma authors. After growing up in New England and knowing nothing about Oklahoma culture when I moved here for my job at Oklahoma University, I’ve enjoyed reading books by native authors. Ralph Ellison is an African American Oklahoma native, and Invisible Man won the National Book Award in 1953. Although the book was written almost 60 years ago, it really provided some interesting insights into current racial issues.

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October 2020

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