Welcome to the newly developed Specht Lab webpage! I’m trying to transition content from our former UC Berkeley site to Cornell, and its taking me longer than I’d like…. but its getting done. Mostly I want to go live ASAP in order to
(1) Congratulate Specht Lab-Berkeley lab member Dr. Riva Bruenn on obtaining her PhD, two lectureship positions (At UC Berkeley and at Berkeley City College), and a full time position at iXL — all in the course of 1 month!!! Riva is a shining example of what one can accomplish with a PhD in Plant Biology. Not only did she complete some amazing research on floral symmetry, but she also focused energy and effort on developing her mentoring and classroom teaching skills and her pedagogy palate, making her an ideal candidate for lectureship positions and for a biotech educational development job. Check out Riva’s running accomplishments on the Specht Lab facebook site, and look for additional blogs around this topic on this site as well. And CONGRATULATIONS, DR. RIVA BRUENN!!!!
(2) Welcome Specht Lab-Cornell graduate student Adriana Hernandez, the newest member of the Specht Lab. Adriana started the Plant Biology PhD program at Cornell with a bang, having moved from Santa Barbara, California over the summer to take residence in the beautiful but rapidly chilling environment of Ithaca NY. Adriana hit the ground running as TA for Karl Niklas’ course in Plant Evolution, taking core graduate classes, and continuing to develop her ideas for research on Calochortus. I’m particularly impressed with Adrie’s adaptability to this new environment, and look forward to working together as we get the lab established on the east coast.
Admittedly, there is no view of the golden gate from the windows of the new Specht Lab, but we are starting to see some lovely golden leaves emerging from the green canopy. Thanks for checking out the new website, and keep following us as we get settled and start producing exciting and novel finds on the evolution of plant form and function.