Yamato Wins Award at Marine Mammal Biennial

Joint Program student Maya Yamato has won the John G. Shedd Award for the Overall Best Student Presentation at the 19th Biennial Conference on the Biology of Marine Mammals. Her talk, "The auditory anatomy of the minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata): Insights into potential sound reception pathways in a baleen whale," was co-authored by Darlene Ketten, Julie Arruda, Scott Cramer, and Kathleen Moore. Maya and her collaborators, "combined classical dissection with biomedical imaging techniques such as X-ray computerized tomography and magnetic resonance imaging to describe the anatomy of the minke whale head with a focus on the ear region."

Congratulations Maya!

Photo credit: Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology

PS.  Both Maya and I know that is not a minke whale.

Stocker Newest Member of JCBO

Roman Stocker, Associate Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at MIT, has been appointed to JCBO.  Prof. Stocker's appointment began November 1, and will last for three years.

Prof. Stocker's research "focuses on the physical ecology of microorganisms and on microscale transport phenomena."

Please join me in welcoming Roman to the Joint Program.

2012 Admissions Schedule

2012 Admissions Schedule

I can't believe another year has come and gone.  A new admissions season always reminds me how fast time flies.  

This year Assistant Scientist Aran Mooney will join Matt Johnson and me as the Biology Department representatives on the Admissions Advisory Committee.  Aran, Matt and I will have many applications to read.  If we look sleepy around the end of January, you will know why!

Here is the schedule of important admissions dates:

• January 5: Application deadline
• January 12: Files available for Admissions Committee review
• January 26: First cut by Disciplinary Committees (to approximately 15 applicants)
• January 30: Biology Department admissions meeting (cull list to approximately 10)
• February 9: Admissions Advisory Committee "Pizza" meeting
• February 14: JCBO admissions meeting
• February 16: Joint Program Committee meeting (final decisions)
• February 16: Begin notifying applicants
• March 12-13: Open House (12th at MIT, 13th at WHOI)

Please mark your calendars now and, if at all possible, save March 13th, even if you don't think a new student will be joining your lab this year.  Open House is much more engaging for prospective students when there are lots of us around.