Hi everyone! My name is Angela and I am a rising sophomore (‘23) from Shanghai, China interested in biomedical research and computational biology. This summer, I will be having my first remote research experience as a new member of the Jaswal Lab, and I look forward to documenting my learning process through the Network. In…
Exploring the Chesapeake from Home
Updated: Jul 3, 2020 Hello! My name is Jonah Horowitz, and I’m a rising junior and chemistry major at Amherst. I’m writing from my family’s house in Alexandria, VA, where I pass the time by reading and playing the guitar. On top of these hobbies, I also just began working at the Virginia Institute of Marine…
Uncharted waters
Hello! My name is Phyllis Oduor, and I am a rising sophomore at Amherst College. I moved to the US from Kenya in August 2019 to start my undergraduate studies. I was born and raised in Kenya from my hometown Nakuru, well-known for its pink flamingos that inhabit Lake Nakuru and its Menengai crater. This…
Doubling Down on DNA
Updated: Jul 3, 2020 Hi there! My name is Joanna, and this summer I will be having my first research experience as a new member of Amherst College’s Carter Lab. I’ll also be doing my online research in two different locations; the first half will be in my hometown of Torrington, Connecticut and then in Pittsfield,…
Trying to Save the Oceans … Remotely?
Updated: Jul 3, 2020 Hi everyone! My name is Kate and I’m a member of the class of 2023 from Pocasset, Cape Cod, MA. I love the ocean and my internship this summer provides the perfect opportunity for me to learn more about it. This summer I will be working with Joel Llopiz on the Twilight…
Psychology Study Reveals the Role of Race at Amherst College and Beyond
The following article comes from Dr.Elizabeth Aries, a Psychology Professor at Amherst College where she teaches a course called Intergroup Dialogue on Race. She has conducted research on the role of race and social class in an elite college and published two books (Race and Class Matters at an Elite College, 2008;Speaking of Race and…
SURF in the Time of Coronavirus
Despite the cancellation of numerous summer internship programs across the country due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Amherst College Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) will still take place remotely, leaving us to wonder how this new platform might change the program. In the words of Jess Martin (the Administrative Director of the Science Center) “The…
Black Lives Matter.
Visit https://500womenscientists.org/updates/2020/6/1/take-actionand https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/ for ways to be actively antiracist and support this movement. The Amherst STEM Network stands in solidarity with those protesting the systems and ideologies that enabled the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery among too many others. We stand in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. Black men…
Anti-Racist STEM Reading List
Racism in STEM Last Updated: August 31st, 2020 The Black Lives Movement has shown that racism exists not only in obvious forms but also takes subtle shapes in our society as racist attitudes are ingrained in too many systems. As highlighted by #shutdownstem, STEM is not immune to racism. As members of the…
COVID19 for BIO101: Understanding the Virus in Simpler Terms
People are dying at an alarming rate from the COVID-19 virus pandemic. Part of the reason is this virus affects the respiratory system heavily and the virus has an incredibly high transit rate. In other words it is very contagious. We don’t know too much about how the virus functions, however, we know a few…