I have always considered myself to be an organismal biologist, and for many years I had little interest in cells or molecules but all of that changed in the summer of 1992.  That was the summer that I was fortunate enough to work with Rob DeSalle in the molecular systematics lab at the American Museum of Natural History. That summer Rob showed me that DNA molecules contain an incredibly detailed record of the history life on Earth. We can use molecules to understand evolutionary relationships, how species migrate through their habitats and how allele frequencies change within populations over time. Once I recognized what a rich source of data DNA sequences provide I was hooked and I decided to concentrate my graduate studies in this field.  After being accepted to Yale I returned to the Museum to continue my graduate studies with Rob as my advisor. My thesis work was a detailed phylogenetic study of the spectacular radiation of Drosophila in the Hawaiian Islands. While I was in graduate school I found that I particularly enjoyed teaching and after I finished my Ph.D. I was offered a position in the Department of Education at the Museum. My job was to design and teach programs in the Genomic Learning Laboratory, a state of the art molecular biology lab located in the Museum’s Genomic Revolution exhibit.  Here I taught the same techniques that I learned from Rob to a diverse audience ranging from New York City High School students, to attorneys, bankers and members of the general public.  This experience taught me two things. The first was that almost everyone is interested in learning more about genomic science and how it will affect their lives in the new century. The second was that the source of information most people rely upon is science fiction. When I was able to separate the facts from the fiction for the students and help them realize that reality is more wonderful than anything that Hollywood can concoct I felt that I had done my job.   I am looking forward very much to working with the members of this summer’s institute to help to find new ways to bring a greater understanding of genomic science to students across the country.

Rob DeSalle, curator in the Museum's Division of Invertebrate Zoology and co-director of its molecular laboratories, has a definite knack for collaboration. Something about him seems to make brilliant people want to work with him. Perhaps it is his casual, open manner; or his boundless curiosity; or his evident enthusiasm and respect for the ideas of others. Perhaps it is his willingness to offer the use of his lab, which contains tremendously expensive machinery that can sequence the DNA of hundreds of organisms in a single day. Or perhaps it is simply the quality of his own research that invites collaboration. At any rate, if you've got an exciting hypothesis about biodiversity and need some DNA sequenced to test it, Rob is your man.

Rob's website:
http://www.amnh.org/learn/pd/genetics/profiles/rdesalle.html

Eugene McNicholas, currently teaching Biology I and Biology I Honors at Kittatinny Regional High School in rural Sussex County New Jersey. He became involved with the Woodrow Wilson Institute as a participant in the summer of 1998. Since then he has helped to evaluate grant applications as well as conduct a TORCH institute. He has a genuine interest in helping teachers to become the best that they can be, this in turn allows him to positively impact the education of many students. He has been involved in the design and execution of many teacher workshops, most recently the Rutgers University New Science Teachers Institute. One of the highlights of his working in the area of teacher training was in working with a group of educators and administrators from the former Soviet Union, to show how local resources can be used as an enhancement to the educational process.

Gene's educational contributions have been recognized in many ways including: Grants from the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation and NJBISEC, the Governors award as teacher of the year, Who's Who Among American Teachers and most recently by being elected as President of The New Jersey Science Teachers association.

Gene has been married for five years and has a daughter who is four years old. He enjoys many activities including, fine dining, hiking, and listening to music, especially Bruce Springsteen.

John Sacco has been teaching science and computer science for over 25 years. In his spare time, he---- teaches graduate classes in computer use and technology integration for teachers through Winthrop University. He is currently undergoing National Boards certification. John participated in the WWLPT Biology CORE program in 1995 and  was the Educational Technology Director for the Environmental Science Program at Princeton and Rutgers for 4 years.

Michael Yudell just returned to his home in New York City after nearly a year as a Health Policy Analyst in the Program in Environmental Health Policy and Ethics at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) in Research Triangle Park, NC. There he worked with NIEHS Deputy Director Samuel Wilson and NIEHS Bioethicist Richard Sharp on genome policy and ethics. After consuming excessive amounts of Carolina barbecue he is glad to be at home in New York where it is easy to get a good slice of pizza and a potato knish. When Yudell isn’t consuming unhealthy food from New York’s street vendors, he is busy working on the manuscript for his next book, Welcome To The Genome: A Users Guide to Your Genetic Past, Present, and Future, which he is co-authoring with fellow Institute faculty and old friend Rob DeSalle. Yudell and DeSalle’s first book The Genomic Revolution: Unveiling The Unity Of Life, an examination of the scientific and social implications of genomics, and will be published this spring by the Joseph Henry Press. Yudell holds a Master in Public Health (MPH) from the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University, an M.Phil. in American History from the Graduate Center, CUNY, and a BA in History from Tufts University. He also holds the position of Graduate Research Fellow in the Molecular Laboratories at the American Museum of Natural History. He hopes to complete his Ph.D. in the Program in the History and Ethics of Public Health and Medicine Program at Columbia University some time before the next ice age.