BE Undergraduate Newsletter
Announcements
Seeking Members for 2023 iGEM Team
Calling at BME students: We are currently searching for members of the 2023 iGEM team. iGEM is a synthetic biology competition open to all students who will remain enrolled as for Fall 2023. This project can server as a Capstone for the BME degree and is a wonderful opportunity to participate in and design a research experiment from start to finish! If you are interested, please contact the co-captains of the 23 team: McKenna Smith (mcesmith@ucsc.edu) and Varun Kodur (vkodur@ucsc.edu) or fill out this google form https://forms.gle/
Spring Opportunities in the Tech4Good Lab
The Tech4Good Lab has several positions open next quarter for undergraduate students from all majors. We are looking for people who are extremely responsible, love learning, and have a strong drive to apply technology for social good. For next quarter, we have positions doing the following types of work:
- User research: interviewing and analyzing interviews to understand user needs and context,
- Usability evaluation: conducting evaluations of interfaces for usability,
- UI/UX design: designing and iterating on web interfaces in Figma,
- Web development: coding an app using an Angular/NgRx/Firebase stack,
- AI & economics: modeling economic systems using multiagent reinforcement learning,
- NLP and ML: topic modeling and ML to clusters text responses or predict annotations,
You would be contributing to a variety of projects in the lab related to designing systems to better support the future of education, work, and community engagement. Some of the platforms we are working on include:
- An app aimed at scaling apprenticeship learning, which supports people in learning through micro-roles while supporting non-profits as they learn,
- An app aimed at microlearning through small groups to create learning environments supporting curiosity, creativity, and relationships,
- An app containing short activities for team/group community building, and also creating "small group networks" that can facilitate interesting collective goals,
- An app aimed at supporting chat-based career mentorship between industry professionals and groups of students,
Joining requires a commitment of 10 hours/week for the quarter for independent study credits. If you are interested, fill out the Tech4Good Lab Interest Form and send an email to David Lee (dlee105@ucsc.edu).
P.S. Follow our Facebook or Instagram to hear about future student opportunities in Tech4Good!
Ready to Pursue Your Passion for World-Changing Research and Accelerate Your Career?
The CITRIS Workforce Innovation Program offers the opportunity to build in-demand skills through paid eight-week internships - earn up to $6000.
You'll receive training in leadership and project management, and you will be supported throughout the program by dedicated CITRIS staff and a community of peers in your cohort.
CITRIS and the Banatao Institute invite undergraduate students from all majors at UC Santa Cruz to apply for placements in one of five areas of emerging IT innovation important to the state of California:
- Aviation ✈️
- Climate resilience 🌎
- Digital health 🩺
- Robotics 🤖
- Semiconductors 💻
Internships will run from June–August 2022.
For more information join our virtual information session, Friday, March 4th
Register here: bit.ly/WIPinfo2022
Questions? Contact Carmen Robinson at crobins3@ucsc.edu
Spring Opportunities in NeurotechSC Club
Hi everyone,
We are the official Neurotechnology club at UCSC! We focus on project building and education covering the topics of brain-computer interaction, neuroscience and AI, and every year we submit a project to the NeurotechX competition. This year our project will be using SSVEPs as a means to alternatively communicate through the input of visual responses.
Our five teams consist of hardware, machine learning, data, software, and publication. To get involved join our discord: https://discord.gg/hHHedUJEB3 or send us an email at neurotechsc@gmail.com
Some more about our club, we received 1st place in the U.S. in the NeuroTechX Student Competition for silent-speech interface that takes in user EMG signals from the jawline area and predicts if a user is thinking ‘yes’ or ‘no’ with 90% accuracy. If the subject interests you, we welcome you to connect with us at our weekly meetings, we usually meet Tuesdays at 7pm so watch out on discord for updates on our next meeting!
P.S. Don’t forget to check us out on linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/neurotechsc
Reminder CITRIS Internship Applications due 3/18
Ready to pursue your passion for world-changing research and accelerate your career?
The CITRIS Workforce Innovation Program offers the opportunity to build in-demand skills through paid eight-week internships - earn up to $6000.
You'll receive training in leadership and project management, and you will be supported throughout the program by dedicated CITRIS staff and a community of peers in your cohort.
CITRIS and the Banatao Institute invite undergraduate students from all majors at UC Santa Cruz to apply for placements in one of five areas of emerging IT innovation important to the state of California:
-
Aviation
-
Climate resilience
-
Digital health
-
Robotics
-
Semiconductors
Internships will run from June–August 2022.
For more information join our virtual information session, Friday, March 4th
Register here: bit.ly/WIPinfo2022
Questions? Contact Carmen Robinson at crobins3@ucsc.edu
Explore BSOE Faculty Research in Computing / Design
Interested in exploring computing / design research? Join CMPM 15, a 1-credit course that will lead directly into faculty research projects in Summer/Fall 2022. Topics this Spring include sustainable sensor networks, data visualization, accessible technology, 3D modeling, autonomous vehicles, design research, and educational technologies. These readings have been proposed by six faculty from Computational Media, Computer Science, and Electrical and Computer Engineering, each of whom are interested in recruiting undergraduate students into their lab in future quarters.
For more information, take a look at the informational document and/or the instagram post.
New MA2PHD Initiative at Columbia Statistics | Info Session – March 4, 2022
Our next virtual M.A. in Statistics Information Session led by the Program Directors and staff is scheduled this Friday, March 4th at 3:00pm EST.
We are eager to introduce you to everything our program has to offer. In particular, we are very excited to share a new MA2PhD initiative of our program. See below for an overview of our program and more details on this new initiative with funding.
Please click on the RSVP link to register for the March 4th info session or one of our upcoming sessions.
*Note the times listed are in Eastern Time.
- March 4, 2022 | 3:00 - 4:00 PM EST - RSVP MA Stats Info Session Mar. 4
- April 1, 2022 | 3:00 - 4:00 PM EST - RSVP MA Stats Info Session Apr. 1
Our M.A. in Statistics website provides comprehensive information about our program. If you or any interested students have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at ma.stat@columbia.edu. Thank you and we look forward to connecting with you and answering any questions you might have about our program.
HFSV Latin-x STEM Scholarships!
I am reaching out to you regarding the HFSV (Hispanic Foundation of Silicon Valley) STEM Scholarship Program, with an application deadline of March 18.
It is a long-standing program for Latin-x STEM juniors and seniors, with a long list of awardees gaining a great deal of support through it over the years. All program details, including active application link and full information about the application process and its requirements, can be found here: HFSV Latin-X STEM Scholarships
2022 Deans' and Chancellor's Undergraduate Awards Opens February 14, 2022
The Deans and Chancellor of UC Santa Cruz wish to recognize excellence in research and creativity among undergraduate students as evidenced through projects and theses performed in the normal pattern of academic activity at UCSC.
The online application for the 2022 Deans' and Chancellor's Undergraduate Awards opens February 14, 2022.
Please read the application guidelines below and contact a faculty mentor to confirm they are willing to submit a letter of recommendation on your behalf.
All 2022 applications must be completed and submitted online by March 24, 2022. All graduating Dean's and Chancellor's winners will be recognized by having their names listed in the commencement program during UC Santa Cruz's graduation ceremonies.
DEANS' UNDERGRADUATE AWARDS
Fifty undergraduates, 10 from each of the academic divisions will receive a Dean's Award of $100 for outstanding achievement in their division. Please submit your award for the BE Division by March 24th, 2022. For more information on dates and deadlines and submission guidelines look here: https://dca.ue.ucsc.edu
California Policy Lab - 2022 Summer Institute
The California Policy Lab (CPL) is excited to announce that we are now accepting applications to our 2022 Summer Institute program.
CPL is hiring a cohort of talented UC undergraduates to work for 10 weeks this summer (June 13-August 19) on data-focused policy research projects. Applicants should have a background in data science, economics, statistics, or public policy, and should be well-equipped in coding and data analysis.
Participants receive a $3000 stipend and develop skills in research project planning and methods under the guidance of UC faculty. Questions can be directed to me (chris_runde@berkeley.edu).
Summer 2022 Research Opportunity in Optimization
Under the auspices of the Applied Artificial Intelligence Initiative (AAII) and the Astronomy Department at UC Santa Cruz we are searching for one continuing undergraduate for a funded summer 2022 research opportunity. The selected students will develop optimization codes using Python, Jax, tensorflow/pytorch, and Hamiltonian Monte Carlo techniques on a project related to sources known as Fast Radio Bursts. The application is open to advanced undergraduate majors in Physics, Astrophysics, and/or CSE.
Pre-requisites
- Substantial experience with Python and GitHub
- Advanced knowledge in statistics
Recommended but not required
- Cloud computing experience
- 1st year college-level physics
Duration: 10 weeks from June 13 -- August 20, 2022
Please apply here: http://www.careercenter.ucsc.edu/ers/erspub/main.cfm
and search out ER#19505.
Contact xavier@ucolick.org for additional details
The Spring 2022 ACE Application is Now open!
Dear Students,
We would like to share with you an incredible academic support program at UC Santa Cruz called the Academic Excellence (ACE) Program!
ACE is a community of students dedicated to academic excellence who work together in active learning sessions and peer mentoring sessions to help each other master the concepts taught in class. Not only do ACE students pass their classes at higher rates, but they also tend to earn more A and B grades than non-ACE students. You may Visit our website to learn more about the ACE Program.
This spring, ACE will be supporting a variety of science and math courses, listed on our ACE Session Schedule page. Also - don’t forget to check out our ACE student testimonials video to see what our students say about ACE!
To apply: visit our Online Application
Applications are due on Friday, March 18th
Space is limited, so we recommend applying sooner rather than later!
Why Join ACE?
Genomics Research Opportunities
The Genomics Institute has two exciting opportunities for students interested in computational genomics research.
The first is a paid mentorship with Xena (our cancer browser) that is specifically for underrepresented students. Participating in the Xena project will enable students to gain experience in open source development with an emphasis on genomic and biomedical applications.
The second is an independent study opportunity for course credit with our Computational Genomics Lab, doing research with biomedical data and machine learning (flyer attached)
Students can apply for both opportunities using our Undergraduate Research Assistant Application Form.
Sharing Info About SCIC 100/200 Courses
Special Offering of TIM 58 in Spring '22
Consider enrolling in TIM 58: Systems Analysis and Design in Spring quarter! This class will be taught by a special guest lecturer, industry leader Inderjeet Singh. If you have any questions for him, you can email him directly at: isingh18@ucsc.edu
Prerequisite for TIM 58 is: TIM 50
Inderjeet is an experienced technology executive who has 27+ years experience in a variety of roles in software firms, from a junior programmer to senior executive in engineering and sales, at startups, mid size and the largest software firms in the world. Currently, Inderjeet is Co-founder, President and CTO at pulsESG™, (www.pulsesg.com) which is a SAAS platform for enterprises and investors to manage and improve their Environment, Social and Governance footprint. pulsESG™ recently raised 9.5M in seed funding and is scaling rapidly. Inderjeet was Executive Vice President at Oracle, where he was responsible for the development of the Oracle Cloud Platform, a direct competitor to AWS, GCP and Microsoft Azure. Inderjeet spent a decade at TIBCO software where he looked after platform development and emerging technologies. He was also part of the founding team at Velosel, a startup that pioneered the Master Data Management enterprise software space. Throughout this journey, Inderjeet has brought to bear a leadership style that focuses on leading by example, underpinned by technical innovation, couched in the ability to communicate an effective story and connecting to an audience in order to sell an idea. It is this experience that Inderjeet plans to bring to the classroom to teach the next generation of technologists to innovate and communicate effectively. Inderjeet holds an MBA from NYU Stern School of Business (Stern and Trustee Scholar), MS Computer Science from Marist College and a BS from National Defense Academy in India.
Announcing the UCSC 2022 Deep Read-Yaa Gyasi’s Transcendent Kingdom
This year we read Yaa Gyasi’s Transcendent Kingdom. Students are invited to read along with the broader campus community and think deeply about faith, science, addiction, and race in our contemporary moment. Read, think deeply with us, and meet the author May 15 at the Quarry Amphitheater.
Students can get a FREE copy of the book while supplies last: https://thi.ucsc.edu/deepread
2022 ASEE Student Showcase at the ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition!
The 2022 ASEE Student Showcase will be co-located with the ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition at the Minneapolis, MN Convention Center on Wednesday, June 29, 1:00 – 4:00 PM.
While the deadline to apply is effectively rolling until May 15th, we encourage students to express their interest via the integrated webform (https://www.surveymonkey.com/
Jobs
Readers and Tutors needed for ECE 167 Sensing and Sensor Technologies
Seeking readers and tutors for the Spring 2022 offering of ECE 167 Sensing and Sensor Technologies. Anticipated load is 4-6 hours per week.
Requirements: you have taken the course before and done well
Pellman Laboratory Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is Seeking a Research Technician
Overview
The Pellman Laboratory (https://pellmanlab.dana-farber.org) at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston is seeking a highly motivated Research Technician to assist in a laboratory studying cell division and cancer biology. The laboratory uses a combination of genetics, biochemistry, and live-cell imaging to study cell division and the maintenance of genome stability. Projects are aimed at understanding mutational processes that drive rapid evolution of genomes. The processes we study explain the majority of genome rearrangement in cancer and are also relevant to genetic disease and organismal evolution.
Under general supervision, the Research Technician will perform a variety of laboratory and investigative procedures including routine experimental techniques such as electrophoresis, centrifugation, Western blot, real-time quantitative PCR, molecular cloning, and tissue culture. Many projects employ quatitative imaging and image analysis. Technicians will need to collect, verify, record, and compile data and information in support of research.
Our technicians are encouraged to take intellectual ownership of their projects. Our technicians present at lab meetings, contribute to manuscripts, and attend national conferences. Approximately 85% of time worked will be dedicated to research, with remaining time spent ordering supplies and performing other lab management responsibilities. Many former technicians from the laboratory have been accepted to top Ph.D., M.D./Ph.D. or M.D. programs. Recent examples include two students doing a Ph. D. at Stanford and students matriculated into the M.D./Ph.D. programs at UT Southwestern and the Cornell/MSKCC/ Rockefeller program. Several former technicians are now independent investigators. Technicians typically work with a postdoctoral fellow; however, a few technicians have had independent projects.
Located in Boston and the surrounding communities, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute brings together innovative researchers and world renowned scientists and clinicians, allies in the common mission of conquering cancer and understanding basic human biology. Combining extremely talented people with the best technologies in a genuinely positive environment, we conduct basic research that advances treatment; we educate tomorrow's physicians and researchers; we reach out to underserved members of our community; and we work with amazing partners, such as the Department of Cell Biology at Harvard Medical School.
Responsibilities
- Work with postdoctoral scientists to perform various investigative procedures and operate a variety of instruments and other scientific equipment.
- Collect, record, organize, and verify the accuracy of data; perform calculations and prepare charts, graphs and reports. May use software applications to assemble, manipulate and/or format data and test reports.
- Configure, operate and maintain laboratory apparatus and instruments; read and record instrument data; tabulate data; keep laboratory records.
- Order chemicals, reagents, and other laboratory supplies.
- Participate in laboratory meetings and planning sessions.
- Responsible for lab organization and orders.
- Keep accurate record of all work.
- Maintain strains and cell lines.
- Serve as laboratory safety and radiation safety representative.
- Read and interpret literature applicable to research areas as required.
- Inquisitive thinker who will impact the scope and direction of research projects.
Qualifications
- Bachelor or Master of Science degree in an appropriate field of science or technology.
- Prior laboratory experience.
- Molecular Biology skills are required. Experience with microscopy and tissue culture would be beneficial.
- Ability to draft routine reports and keep accurate records of work performed.
- Actively seeks opportunities to increase skills and expertise.
- Able to learn complex tasks with general instruction.
- Able to learn and perform a variety of new techniques.
Please send resume and cover letters to: harriet_scott@dfci.harvard.edu
NOTE: this position will require a two year committment
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is an equal opportunity employer and affirms the right of every qualified applicant to receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender identity or expression, national origin, sexual orientation, genetic information, disability, age, ancestry, military service, protected veteran status, or other groups as protected by law.
Pellman Laboratory Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is Seeking an Associate Computational Biologist
Located in Boston and the surrounding communities, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute brings together world renowned clinicians, innovative researchers and dedicated professionals, allies in the common mission of conquering cancer, HIV/AIDS and related diseases. Combining extremely talented people with the best technologies in a genuinely positive environment, we provide compassionate and comprehensive care to patients of all ages; we conduct research that advances treatment; we educate tomorrow's physician/researchers; we reach out to underserved members of our community; and we work with amazing partners, including other Harvard Medical School-affiliated hospitals.
We are looking for a highly motivated individual to join the laboratory of Dr. David Pellman at HHMI, the Broad Institute, and the single-cell genome center at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
The successful applicant will be responsible for analyzing single-cell whole-genome and whole-transcriptome sequencing data, and for interpreting, integrating, and relating transcriptional/genetic information to experimental data from live-cell imaging. The candidate should have a strong computational/analytical background and demonstrated knowledge of research methods and be able to adapt quickly and be part of a multi-disciplinary team. The position will focus on a new avenue of research using genomics as a tool for experimental biology, studying mechanisms that drive rapid genome evolution.
Working closely with computational and experimental colleagues to understand various methods for detecting/analyzing de novo mutations and gene expression changes at single cell level.
- Working alongside informatics colleagues to clean and analyze newly generated data and public datasets.
- Create pipelines using existing analysis tools to process data in an automated and efficient fashion.
- Application of these approaches to cancer genome analyses.
- Responsible for documentation and error reporting for existing tools.
- Ensure data quality control is constantly and consistently applied to incoming data sets.
- Create reports of data quality and communicate these to computational staff.
B.S. required in mathematics, statistics, physics, engineering, computer science, bioinformatics or other fields with quantitative knowledge. Neuroscience or psychology graduates with considerable computational experience will also be considered. Applicants with advanced degrees are also welcome to apply.
- Strong initiative and ability to take ownership of assigned tasks and projects
- Practical experience with Linux environments and proficient in a least one programming language (Java, C, Python) and one scripting language (e.g., MATLAB, R); interest in (or experience with) cloud computing a plus.
- Solid knowledge of basic statistics and statistical methods.
- Knowledge of genetic analysis and tools is preferred but not required.
- Familiarity with, or interest in studying cancer genetics and cell biology.
- Demonstrated attention to detail and analytical skills.
- Ability to work effectively in a multidisciplinary team environment.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
- Excellent written and oral presentation skills.
- Must be flexible and able to respond to shifting priorities in a dynamic setting.
Please send resume and cover letters to: harriet_scott@dfci.harvard.edu
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is an equal opportunity employer and affirms the right of every qualified applicant to receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender identity or expression, national origin, sexual orientation, genetic information, disability, age, ancestry, military service, protected veteran status, or other groups as protected by law.
EPC at UC Santa Cruz is Hiring!
The Student Employment Coordinator at the Educational Partnership Center at UC Santa Cruz responsible for hiring student employees for our various outreach programs. A couple of the positions we are hiring for are listed below:
Academic Intern ER #2808
Serve as tutors and advisors in the local middle and high schools in the Watsonville area. This is a paid Internship program offering about 16-18 hours of work a week at $16 per hour.
COSMOS Resident Advisor ER #4656
The California State Summer School for Mathematics and Science (COSMOS) Programs is offering summer positions for students on campus (UCSC). These summer positions pay $16-$17, including housing and meals. This position begins June 6 - August 6, 2022.
Please contact Victoria Vasquez-Alvares at vvasque6@ucsc.edu if interested, or call at 831-227-3894.
