Salem State's annual Darwin Festival is a weeklong event that celebrates the work of Charles Darwin, with sessions from leading researchers celebrating the field of biology and its impact on today's world.
The 2021 festival will be held exclusively online. Click on an event title to register.
Monday, February 8
11 am-12 pm
“The Evolution of Human Skin Color Gets More Interesting by the Day”
Presented by Dr. Nina G. Jablonski, professor of anthropology at The Pennsylvania State University.
Dr. Jablonski’s research focuses on how human skin and skin pigments have adapted to the environment.
Sponsored by the biology department
2-3 pm
“Environment x Everything Interactions: From Protein Evolution to the Stories of Us”
C. Brandon Ogbunu, Yale University Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Dr. Ogbunu will speak at the 42nd annual Darwin Festival. His scientific expertise and social commentary has been featured on NPR's Radio Lab.
Sponsored by academic affairs
Tuesday, February 9
11 am-12 pm
Presented by Dr. Lesley-Ann L. Dupigny-Giroux, State Climatologist for Vermont and professor of geography at the University of Vermont.
Dr. Dupigny-Giroux’s research work as an applied climatologist has included investigations into droughts in both semi-arid areas of Brazil and more humid climes in northeastern North America.
Sponsored by the Geography and Sustainability Department and the Charles Albert Read Trust
2-3 pm
“Environmental and Physiological Regulators of Symbiosis in Reef-Building Corals”
Presented by Dr. Hanny E. Rivera, postdoctoral associate lecturer at Boston University in the Davies Marine Population Genomics Lab and postdoctoral scholar at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in the Meyer-Keiser Lab.
Dr. Rivera is interested in how reef-building corals respond to environmental changes at the molecular level, in particular, the symbiotic relationship between the corals and their algal partners.
Sponsored by the Biology Department and the Charles Albert Read Trust
Wednesday, February 10
11 am-12 pm
“Human Serum Albumin (HSA) - Drug Complexes and ‘Biochemical Signatures’ for Specific Diseases”
Presented by Dr. Fidelis Manyanga, associate professor of chemistry at Salem State University.
Dr. Manyanga’s research focuses on human plasma proteome, a complex biological fluid that with more than 3000 individual proteins and peptides. Specifically, Human Serum Albumin (HSA), a major fatty acid (FA) binding protein in plasma also responsible for the transport and utilization of many xenobiotics.
Sponsored by the Chemistry and Physics Department and the Charles Albert Read Trust
2-3 pm
“Through a Web, Darkly: Sex, Death, and Adaptation in Widow spiders”
Presented by Dr. Maydianne C. B. Andrade, professor of biological sciences and vice dean of faculty affairs and equity at the University of Toronto, Scarborough.
Dr. Andrade’s lab investigates the role of the environment and social factors on the reproductive lives (tactics, life history, physiology, sexual selection) of black widow spiders.
Sponsored by the Biology Department
Thursday, February 11
11 am-12 pm
“The Origins of Wound Behavior – Pathways Leading to Healing or Reinjury”
Presented by Dr. Cecelia C. Yates, associate professor of health promotion & development at the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing.
Dr. Yates' work focuses on various aspects of wound healing in the skin and lungs.
Sponsored by the Biology Department and the Charles Albert Read Trust
2-3 pm
“Socio-Eco-Evo Dynamics in Cities: Exploring How Society Shapes the Biology of Cities”
Presented by Dr. Christopher J. Schell, assistant professor of urban ecology at the University of Washington, Tacoma.
Dr. Schell studies the interactions within and between humans and non-humans in urban environments.
Sponsored by the Biology Department and the Charles Albert Read Trust
Friday, February 12
11 am-12 pm
“Utilizing Systems Analysis to Understand the Chemical Language of the Rhizosphere”
Ms. Ayanna Jones, Biogeochemistry PhD student at Emory University, department of chemistry.
Ms. Jones is investigating the chemical means of communication between plants roots, their secretions and associated microbial communities, what is known as the rhizosphere.
Sponsored by the Biology Department and the College of Arts and Sciences
2-3 pm
“Salty Microglia: Gaining Mechanistic Insight into Sodium-Dependent Hypertension”
Mr. Jesse Moreira, human physiology PhD student, Boston University department of health sciences.
Mr. Moreira is researching the role played by the microglia (non-neuronal cells in the brain and spinal cord) in salt-sensitive hypertension.
Sponsored by the Biology Department and the College of Arts and Sciences