Biology is a rapidly expanding, multifaceted discipline, full of possibilities for undergraduate research and for stimulating graduate study and employment after graduation.
Videos about swagÍâÁ÷ student research in biology
Biology Facilities at swagÍâÁ÷
Our Mission Statement
As students progress from introductory courses through core courses, advanced electives, and mentored research in the liberal arts setting, they learn how to critically assess a scientific problem, collect and analyze data, write and speak about biology for general and technical audiences, and gain the skills needed for a competitive and rapidly changing job market.
What Sets swagÍâÁ÷ Bio Apart
In their first year, students who take our unique core class, the California Environmental Semester, discover quickly that the unparalleled natural resources of Southern California offer numerous opportunities for students to conduct outdoor research. In the Biology Department at swagÍâÁ÷, many undergraduate students participate in high quality mentored research with faculty members who are active scholars who publish papers and make an impact on their fields. Student research occurs both through upper-division research credits and through the college’s award-winning summer research program, which provides a stipend, housing, and research funds to participating students.
In our nationally recognized marine program, students take part in oceanic research on local coastal reefs and kelp forests with Dr. Dan Pondella, explore the mysterious life in the depths of the ocean with Dr. Shana Goffredi and Dr. Gary Martin, and study the lives of venomous cone snails with Dr. Joseph Schultz. Our soon-to-be-established Genomics Center will unite new DNA sequencing technologies with museum specimens from our world-renowned biodiversity collections including the largest collection of Mexican bird in the world curated by Dr. John McCormack and a stunning collection of shells curated by Dr. Schultz.
International opportunities for field research abound, including studying the physiology of tropical epiphytes with Dr. Gretchen North and the natural history of rainforests with Dr. Beth Braker in Costa Rica. Closer to home, our strong program in cell and molecular biology, with Dr. Renee Baran (developmental neurobiology), Dr. Cheryl Okumura (microbiology and bacterial infections), Dr. Roberta Pollock (immunology and bacterial diseases), and Dr. Kerry Thompson (degenerative neurological diseases and stem cell therapy), in addition to Dr. Goffredi and Dr. Schulz, provides students with research opportunities using state-of-the-art techniques to ask fundamental questions that prepare them for careers in research and medicine.
The Biology Department is deeply committed to interdisciplinary connections between the many different fields of biology and with disciplines outside of biology, as reflected in our involvement in the Biochemistry major and the Computer Science, Neuroscience, and Public Health minors.
Related Minors
In 2015, Occidental's biology, cognitive science and psychology departments jointly created an interdisciplinary neuroscience minor. The minor is differentiated from a psychology or cognitive science major or minor by the inclusion of a strong neurobiology component for all students. The neuroscience minor requires 6 courses, including a statistics/methods class, and three upper-division classes outside of the student's major. In biology, neuroscience minors must complete Bio130 Introductory Cell & Molecular Biology, a 200-level biology class and at least one of the 300-level biology classes with significant content in neurobiology, neurophysiology or neurodevelopment (ex. Bio320 Developmental Biology, Bio333 Neurobiology, and Bio340 Sensory Biology and Neurophysiology).
Public health is a field geared toward serving others, improving people’s health and well-being, and addressing some of society’s most perplexing questions. Through swagÍâÁ÷’s public health minor, you’ll develop and apply knowledge from multiple disciplines for the promotion and protection of human health, giving due consideration to basic principles of human rights and a wide range of cultural perspectives. The minor, like the field itself, is interdisciplinary, and you will learn about the scientific aspects of disease as well as the political and policy issues involved in improving people’s health and well-being. The minor is jointly administered by the departments of biology, kinesiology and Urban & Environmental Policy (UEP).
Student Research in the Department
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Biology Facilities at swagÍâÁ÷
Laboratory facilities in the Biology Department on the Occidental campus include the following:
DNA Sequencer (Illumina MiSeq)
Ultracentrifuge (Beckman Coulter Optima XE - equipped with 50Ti, 70Ti and SW-28 rotors)
Refrigerated Benchtop Centrifuges (Beckman Allegra 25R and Allegra X-14R)
High Speed Centrifuge (Beckman J2-HS)
Scanning Electron Microscope – benchtop (FEI Phenom)
Scanning Electron Microscope – full size (Nikon EVO)
Confocal MicroscopeÌý (Leica TCS SP5)
Inverted microscope (Zeiss Axioscope)
Epifluorescence microscope (Nikon e80 - with DAPI, FITC, Cy3, and Cy5 filters; DIC)
Autoclave (full size and portable)
Imaging System (BioRad Chemidoc Touch) – for chemiluminescence and UV
Ice Maker (Hoshizaki F-450MAH)
CO2 Incubators (Shellab)
Environmental Chambers at 4C
Environmental Chambers at room temp
Biosafety Cabinets BSL-2 (Thermo Fisher 1300 Series A2)
Standing Incubator (Shellab large capacity 37C)
Shaking Incubator (Shellab SSI5)ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý
Plate reader (BioTek Synergy LX) - with absorbance, fluorescence and luminescence filters
Plate washer (BioTek)
Real-time PCR System (BioRad CFX96)
Spectrophotometer (Beckman DU 640B)ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý
Revco chest -80 ultralow freezersÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý
-20ºC freezers
4ºC refrigerators
Nanopure UV water purification system
refrigerated microfuge
chemical fume hoods
ultramicrotome (LKB Ultra)
microtome (Leica RM2125)
gold sputter coater (Cressington 108auto)
critical point dryer (Quorum Technologies K850)
Dissecting Scopes (Leica)
Compound Scopes (Nikon E100 and E200, with phase contrast)
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