Your source for monthly updates on BMEGG events and news!

A Statement From BESA

BESA stands in support of racial justice

We are deeply saddened by the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade, and many other victims of the systemic racism and anti-Blackness that plagues our country. We recognize the daily inequities and injustices that disproportionately affect BIPOC within academia, STEM, and communities at large. BESA is committed to acknowledging our shortcomings in actively promoting diversity and inclusion and improving our programs. BESA encourages its members to challenge their own implicit biases and strive toward anti-racist thoughts and practices.

Here, we want to share some campus resources and statements that are worth a read:

• Resources for Racial Trauma

The office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion has created this website with resources to support our community as we continue to find ways to build and strengthen our diverse culture at UC Davis.

• Professors Crystal Rogers and Wilsaan Joiner Respond to Ongoing Injustices Against Black Americans
• A Message to the UC Davis International Community
• Graduate Diversity at UC Davis

Are other resources that you’d like to share? Please let us know. BESA is here to listen!

Look out for our more comprehensive solidarity statement in the coming weeks.

BESA election results are in!

2020-2021 BESA Executive Board:

President: Hanna Koster
Vice President: Victor Chiu
Treasurer: Caitlin Banks
Secretary: CJ Mileti
Publicity Chairs: Alex Vargas and Jun Zhu
Program Advising Chair: Abby Niesen
Social Chairs: Brent Weyers, Rachel Mizenko, and Katie Haddad
Sacramento Campus Chair: Janani Aiyer
Outreach Chairs: Lauren Gloekler, CJ Mileti, and Leora Goldbloom-Helzner
Industry Outreach Chair: Laney Casella
IM Chair: Greg Wheeler
Recruitment Chairs: Bobby Gresham, Emmet Francis, and Grace Jeng
Alumni Seminar Chair: Abby Niesen
BMEGG Symposium Chairs: Nikki Tjahjono, Greg Wheeler, and Bobby Gresham
Health and Wellness Chairs: Lauren Gloekler and Alex Simileysky
GSA Representatives: Caitlin Banks and Valerie Porter

Participation in BESA is key for developing programs that are useful to you and the department! All students are encouraged to participate; you do not have to be a board member to attend meetings and get involved. Join the BESA Slack Group here to be in the loop about opportunities for you to get involved!

July Events

Student Seminar Series

Are you interested in practicing your QE presentation to get feedback and QE tips from peers? Please email Amy Becker at aebecker@ucdavis.edu or Abby Niesen at abniesen@ucdavis.edu to set up a time.

SARS-CoV-2 Updates

Stay up-to-date with Yolo County COVID-19 measures

While the countywide shelter-in-place order has been lifted, there is a continued requirement for face coverings in public and social distancing. Check out the full guidelines here. Additionally, some businesses in Yolo county are slowly being allowed to re-open. Stay informed by visiting the Yolo County novel coronavirus website.

Announcements and Awards

Congratulations to Dr. Blaine Christiansen on becoming the chair for the Biomedical Engineering Graduate Group! Also thanks to Dr. David Hawkins for his leadership and service in the past 3 years! 

From Dr. David Hawkins, "Dr. Christiansen has served the Group as an advisor, an IOR, a member of all our major committees (i.e. Executive Committee, Admissions Committee and Curriculum Committee), and he regularly participates in BMEGG events. He has contributed significantly to the BMEGG over the past 10 years and I am sure he will provide great leadership moving forward."

From Dr. Blaine Christiansen, "I am honored to take over as the next chair of the BMEGG. I look forward to working with all of you to make the educational experience of our graduate students as positive and constructive as possible. I am confident we can find opportunities for growth and improvement."

Congratulations to Dr. Ramsey Badawi and Dr. Simon Cherry on receiving the 2020 Chancellor’s Innovation Award! 

The Chancellor’s Innovation Awards recognize faculty, project teams and community partners for their work, dedication and success in improving the lives of others and addressing the needs of our global society through innovative solutions. Dr. Badawi and Dr. Cherry are selected as the Innovators of the Year, for development of EXPLORER, the world’s first total-body positron emission tomography (PET) scanner! Read more about the award here. (Photo below: Innovators of the Year, Dr. Ramsey Badawi, left, and Dr. Simon Cherry, right)

Our students were recently awarded fellowships and scholarships!

• Congratulations to Brent Weyers on receiving the Ruth Lee Graduate Studies Summer GSR Fellowship Award for July - September 2020! This award supports graduate research in engineering, computer sciences, and disciplines with engineering-related applications and methods by providing a GSR Step I salary at 100% time. 
• Congratulations to Nikki Tjahjono on receiving a Pharmacology T32 Training Grant! This training program broadens the research perspectives and skills of trainees interested in pharmacological research. Nikki will be one of the trainees for the upcoming year.

Support BESA by ordering business cards or buying some BESA swag!

Business cards are available through Repro Graphics for interested students and post-docs. Standard cards are $28.55 for 500. Please contact our treasurer Caitlin for more info. Christal also has a variety of BESA items for purchase in her office, including some BESA pint glasses, the most recent BESA T-shirt, and a variety of older BESA T-shirts. You can find pictures of the shirts here!

Funding Opportunities

Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Awards (F30, F31, F31 Diversity, F32) 

NIH NRSA awards support the training of biomedical, behavioral, and clinical researchers through individual pre- and postdoctoral fellowships. The fellowship provides a stipend and partial tuition and fee support. There are three deadlines annually: Apr. 8, Aug. 8, and Dec. 8.

• Visit the National Institutes of Health website to learn more.

Fall GSA Travel Awards

The GSA's seasonal travel awards support travels having at least one day overlapping the period July 1 - Dec 31, 2020. Apply here by July 31, 2020.

Know of more funding opportunities and want them featured in the next newsletter? Email them to Alex or Jun before the first of each month. 

Publications

Wang, Yiran, Simon Cherry, Ramsey Badawi, and Guobao Wang. "Effect of dual-input function and dispersion on lung FDG-PET kinetic quantification using the EXPLORER total-body PET/CT scanner." Journal of Nuclear Medicine 61, no. supplement 1 (2020): 13.

Wang, Guobao, Mamta Parikh, Lorenzo Nardo, Yang Zuo, Yasser Abdelhafez, Jinyi Qi, Terry Jones et al. "Total-Body Dynamic PET of Metastatic Cancer: First Patient Results." Journal of Nuclear Medicine 61, no. supplement 1 (2020): 208.

Online resources

Seminar series, journal clubs, conferences, training... during the summer!

• Black Lives Matter and Neuroscience: Why This Moment Matters, 9 a.m. PDT, July 2. Free registration here.
• Weekly seminar series hosted by the Columbia Department of Biomedical Engineering. Happening every Friday at noon EDT during the summer.
• OSA Advanced Photonics Congress, July 13-16. No cost for attendees to participate.
• Second Journal Club of the UC Davis Optics Club, 9-11 a.m., July 28, via zoom. Email Brent Weyers to join the email list for more details and updates.
• American Society of Biomechanics (ASB) 2020 Virtual Conference, August 4-7. Registration is free for students.
• NIH Office of Intramural Training & Education Virtual Summer Enrichment Program, June 8- August 14. You can watch the recorded webinars on the OITE YouTube Channel. Free registration.
• UC Davis Comprehensive Course in Flow Cytometry, Full Workshop August 24-28, 2020. Registration closes on August 21.

Career development

Workshops, training, and job info for career preparation and exploration

• Connecting with Your Audience, 10 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. PDT, July 10. Free registration here.
• UC Davis Venture Catalyst Virtual SBIR/STTR Grant Workshop, 10 a.m. - noon PDT, July 15. Free registration here.
• Transitioning from Academic Science to the Biotech Industry, 11 a.m. - noon PDT, July 28. Free registration here.
• FUTURE Career Exploration Program Online - Applications Open for All 2020-21 Quarters. As part of the UCD Clinical and Translational Science Center, FUTURE is a career preparation and exploration program for PhD Students and post-docs doing research related to human health. FUTURE provides self-assessment, job search skills, a community of peers, and a ready-made network of 130+ PhD professionals in a broad range of careers. Fall 2020, Winter 2021, and Spring 2021, FUTURE will continue its full programming with remote options: our 10-week workshop, 1:1 coaching, networking with PhD professionals, and peer support. Learn more and apply at the FUTURE Program website.

BESA Calendar
 

Click the button below to add the BESA google calendar (view only) to your other google calendars to stay up to date! 

Have feedback, questions, or something you'd like added to the next newsletter? Email Jun Zhu and Alex Vargas.