Biology

Alexa Duchesneau will give the second talk in the annual Anthro & Friends Winter Speaker Series, titled “Simians and the Story of Us: What Biological Anthropology Brings to STEM.” In an increasingly divided world, Biological Anthropology and Primatology are a bridge between divided academic disciplines: the social sciences and the hard sciences. The combination of observational studies and hypothesis testing places these fields in the unique position of being truly interdisciplinary.

Join the Biology department’s bon voyage celebration for Susan DeSimone, Assoc. Lab Professor. Susan has been with department for over 25 years and we will gather to wish her well as she embarks on new adventures.

Museum of the Multiverse: Insects! by Middlebury College Entomology Students

When: Dec 6, 2025 from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM

Where: The Great Hall in McCardell Bicentennial Hall 

 276 Bicentennial Way Middlebury, VT 05753

 (Parking available in the lot on Bicentennial Way)

In a twist on the successful Pokémon-inspired Pop-Up Museums, get ready to learn about insects or insect-inspired creatures from across many universes like Star Wars, Animal Crossing, Hollow Knight, Alien, Dune, Avatar, and more!

TidyTuesday provides an opportunity to learn, practice, and explore coding and data analysis. Whatever your skill level, you are welcome here. This is a judgment free space to try things out, experiment, and play with data.

Have you ever heard the story of the Middlebury River? What about Lake Dunmore? In this informal session, students from BIOL 304: Aquatic Ecology will be sharing the work they’ve done this semester to tell the stories of various aquatic ecosystems in Vermont based on concepts we’ve learned in class over the semester.

Population Ecology and Diseases of Fishers in the Northeastern USA

Our work currently includes: (1) comparative microbial ecology focusing on the emergence of pathogens and antimicrobial resistance on farms – with plans to expand our focus; (2) emerging infectious disease discovery; and (3) wildlife disease ecology. 

Using genomics to reveal the mechanisms of resilience: Studies of global change adaptation and sea star wasting disease.

In this talk, I will discuss how we integrate genomic approaches with the ecology and evolution of interesting, ecologically foundational marine organisms to understand if and how they respond to stressors such as ocean warming, ocean acidification, and pathogens. We use field sampling, common garden studies, and experimental evolution to shed light on the mechanisms of resilience in a rapidly changing world. 

Biology Seminar, Saul Lecture - Dr. Vincent Lynch, University of Buffalo

Cancer, aging, Peto’s paradox

Evolutionary theory predicts that large animals, because they have more cells than smaller ones should have higher cancer prevalence than the small ones; similarly long-lived animals, which have a long time to acquire cancer causing mutations should have higher cancer prevalence than short lived ones but do not. In fact the cancer prevalence in mammals averages 50-10%. What mechanisms underlie this apparent disconnect between theory and observation?

Biology Seminar, Saul Lecture: Dr. Vincent Lynch, University of Buffalo

The quest for, and impossibility of, immortality.

A public lecture, sponsored by George B Saul II lecture fund and the Biology Department.

Why do we get sick, old, and die?

Theoretically there is no reason organisms cannot live forever. However, except for maybe one animal, every thing that has ever lived, and will live, will get old, sick, and die.  But if immortality is possible, why hasn’t it evolved?

Join the Biology SAC to hear professors speak about their educational and career experiences. Feel free to come with your questions!