Conference to Focus on Teaching Biology and Microbiology

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The 14th American Society for Microbiology Conference for Undergraduate Educators (ASMCUE) will be held in the University at Buffalo's Natural Sciences Complex on UB's North (Amherst) Campus on May 18-20.

The conference for college-level instructors of biology and microbiology will focus on improving microbiology teaching and learning through plenary, poster and exhibit sessions.

Plenary talks will include: "HIV at 25 years" by HIV/AIDS researcher Robert W. Doms, M.D., Ph.D., chair of the Department of Microbiology at the University of Pennsylvania; "Ecoepidemiology: Integrating Ecology with Infectious Disease Epidemiology" by Durland Fish, Ph.D., professor of epidemiology at Yale University; and "Microbial Genomics: Bizarre Bacteria, Extreme Environments and How They Interact" by Naomi Ward, Ph.D., assistant investigator at The Institute for Genomic Research.

Interactive workshops will focus on developing tools for teaching microbiology. Topics will include "Microbial Ecology: Opportunities for inquiry-based Learning;" "Exploring Active Teaching: How Not to be a Talking Head;" and "Podcasting in Education: Lectures for the On-Demand Student."

Presenters also will cover teaching microbiology to pre-college students, microbiology in the nursing curriculum, the teaching of evolution and the use of microbial food-safety issues to interest undergraduates in the field.

The ASMCUE conference is the annual education meeting of the American Society for Microbiology, which will hold its research meeting in Toronto May 21-25.

For information on transportation from Buffalo to the ASM general meeting for ASMCUE attendees and for additional conference information, go to http://www.asmcue.org or contact Gerald Koudelka, Ph.D., chair of the UB Department of Biological Sciences, at 645-2363 ext. 101.