Biology Guest Seminar Series - Guest Speaker: Dr. Josh Neufeld

Speaker:  Dr. Josh Neufeld

(Associate Professor, Biology Department)

Title of Seminar:  Freshwater ammonia oxidation: a curious case of scientific serendipity

Time:  3:30 – 4:30 pm

Location:  B2-350

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Abstract:    Once thought to be well understood, nitrogen-cycle microbiology has been one of the most exciting areas of research discovery in microbial ecology since the advent of molecular methods for investigating microbial communities. This talk will highlight recent investigations of the freshwater nitrogen cycle in engineered environments, testing hypotheses governing niche adaptation of both Bacteria and Archaea involved in aerobic ammonia oxidation. Importantly, this talk will tell a story of scientific serendipity and how basic and applied research directions arose from two unsuspecting undergraduate student projects: one in 2009 and the other in 1995.