Physiology: Modern Cell Biology Using Microscopic, Biochemical and Computational Approaches

Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole MA

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Abstract

Project Summary The MBL Physiology Course, founded in 1892 and one of the oldest continually running biology courses in the world, is an intensive seven-week laboratory course for graduate students and post-doctoral researchers. The course is dedicated to educating and expanding the diversity of the next generation of biologists through hands-on interdisciplinary research and mentoring. To achieve this, the Physiology Course brings together faculty and students from across the biological and physical sciences, including cell and evolutionary biologists, physicists, engineers, and computer scientists, to create a unique training environment that mixes cell biology with the newest tools and quantitative approaches needed to tackle fundamental biological problems. Students attend lectures by leading scientists in the morning, but the emphasis is on afternoons and evenings in the laboratory, where students ?learn by doing,? with an emphasis on collaboration, the joy of discovery, and the exploration of tools of modern quantitative cell biology. There is no other environment in which such interdisciplinary students and faculty are brought together for 6 days/week and 15 hrs/day to focus on generating new knowledge. The Physiology course also provides mentoring and career guidance to young scientists, creating professional networks that persist long after the course is over. Our new recruitment strategies and faculty training initiatives will ensure that the most promising students from a wide range of ethnic and educational backgrounds are drawn into the course, supported irrespective of their level of financial need or the contributions from their home institution, and mentored appropriately to reach their scientific and career goals. Our goal is to launch the next generation of cell biologists, scientists from diverse backgrounds and perspectives who have the vision and courage to take on the most important challenges and big questions in the field.