Annual Darwin Festival Kicks Off At Salem State Next Week

SALEM, MA - From Salem State University: Salem State University is holding its 39th annual Darwin Festival February 12 through 16. The free event is designed to bring current topics in science to the general public through a series of speeches. A full list of events is included below.

The event will feature talks from experts in the human health fields, including: Dr. Todd Zion, President and CEO of Akston Biosciences Corporation and developer of SmartInsulin; Wendy Garrett, Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Harvard T. Chan School of Public Health; Cherie Butts, PhD, associate director of immunology at Biogen in Cambridge; and Salem State professors John Hayes, geography and Thea Popolizio, biology.

Timed to recognize the birthday of Charles Darwin on February 12, 1809, organizers intend for the event to be interdisciplinary and attractive to a broad range of audiences, commemorating the lasting importance of Darwin’s work. The event will feature a range of discussion topics including bioengineering, ecology, and marine life in New England, as well as water availability.

The Salem State University Darwin Festival began in 1980 and was planned by Virginia Keville and Philip DePalma. The event is now organized by Salem State University’s department of biology, with sponsorships from Salem State University, and the Charles Albert Read Trust from the City of Salem.

“This event has been a great reason to bring together members of the science community, not just here on campus, but those working in the field, following in the footsteps of Charles Darwin,” said Ryan Fisher, PhD, chair of the department of biology at Salem State University. “It’s encouraging to our students, faculty and staff to see that the work they’re accomplishing can really make a difference.”

“It’s important to instill in our community that there are many different divisions of this field, and this is the perfect event to do just that,” said Susan Case, PhD, professor of biology at Salem State University. “While there have been many achievements since Charles Darwin’s time, there will always be room for more discoveries, and more developments to improve the world, and our lives.”

The schedule of events is below. Learn more about the festival at this link. All events are held in Veterans Hall, Ellison Campus Center, Salem State University. All events are free and open to the public and media.

MONDAY, 12 FEBRUARY, 2018 | Charles Albert Read Science Lectures

11:00 a.m.

“AN UP ESCALATOR: THE GULF STREAM AS A PREDICTOR OF ESTUARY CHANGE?” – Sandy Macfarlane, Coastal Resource Specialist, Duxbury. Sponsored by the Charles Albert Read Trust.

12:30 p.m.

“THE JOURNEY: A CASE STUDY WITH TODD ZION AND SMARTCELLS” – Todd Zion, President and CEO, Akston Biosciences Corporation.

1:45 p.m.

“SYNTHETIC BIOLOGY: REDESIGNING LIFE” – James Collins, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge. Sponsored by Charles Albert Read Trust.

TUESDAY, 13 FEBRUARY, 2018

9:25 a.m.

“MECHANISTIC MICROBIOME STUDIES IN HEALTH AND DISEASE” – Wendy Garrett, Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Harvard T. Chan School of Public Health, Boston. Sponsored by The Keville-DePalma Founders Lecture.

12:30 p.m.

“CHANGING CLIMATE – CHANGING FISHES: THE FUTURE OF THE FAUNA IN THE GULF OF MAINE” – Michael Armstrong, Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries, Gloucester. Sponsored by the Salem State chapter of the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi.

WEDNESDAY, 14 FEBRUARY, 2018

10:50 a.m.

“THE COLORFUL WORLD OF NEW ENGLAND MARINE LIFE” – Andrew Martinez, author and photographer. Sponsored by the Scuba Club.

12:15 p.m.

“CROSSING BIOLOGICAL KINGDOMS – USING SPINACH TO REGENERATE HEART TISSUE” – Glenn Gaudette, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester. Sponsored by the Charles Albert Read Trust.

THURSDAY, 15 FEBRUARY, 2018 | Charles Albert Read Science Lectures

10:50 a.m.

“GLOBAL CHANGE, CLIMATE CHANGE, AND WATER: THE PHYSICAL AND HUMAN DIMENSIONS OF THE HYDRO-SOCIAL CYCLE” – John Hayes, Department of Geography, Salem State University. Sponsored by the Geography Department and the Charles Albert Read Trust.

1:45 p.m.

“HOW CAN WE LEARN FROM NATURE? BIOINSPIRATION FROM BEETLE ELYTRA AND EGGSHELLS FOR INNOVATIVE DESIGNS” – Nan Jiang, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Cambridge. Sponsored by the Department of Chemistry/Physics and the Charles Albert Read Trust.

FRIDAY, 16 FEBRUARY, 2018 - Biology Alumni Day

9:25 a.m.

“ALGAL FORMS MOST BEAUTIFUL: UNCOVERING SEAWEED DIVERSITY IN THE BERMUDA ISLANDS” – Thea Popolizio, Biology Department, Salem State University. Sponsored by the Charles Albert Read Trust

12:30 p.m.

“MECHANISTIC UNDERSTANDING OF DISEASE TRANSMISSION” – Lydia Bourouiba, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge.

1:45 p.m.

“HORMONES AND OUR IMMUNE SYSTEM: HOW THEY INTERACT TO IMPACT DISEASE” – Cherie Butts, Biogen, Cambridge.

Image via Salem State University