 Mickey Monica Jodi helping survey corals in the Florida Keys 2005 | Coral Symbiosis and Genomics “With friends like these, who needs anemones?” Biology Department Olmsted Hall 313 Vassar College 845-437-5266 joschwarz at vassar dot edu | Check out: Cuban Coral Reefs on 60 Minutes Article in Genome Technology magazine Article in Vassar's Alumni Quarterly magazine NYT Science Undergrad Summer Programs AiptasiaBase Genomics Teaching Modules Publications |
Research Interests
Coral symbiosis is arguably one of the most powerful collaborations in the biological world. Corals are animals that host unicellular photosynthetic algal symbionts. The symbionts produce and transfer food to the coral and they stimulate the production of coral skeleton. The cumulative effect is profound: corals grow at rates sufficient to form both the actual rock and the ecological foundation to support the hundreds of species that comprise coral reef ecosystems. How is this symbiosis regulated? How do host and symbiont co-exist in a stable state? I take a genomics approach to probing the host-symbiont interactions. For more details, visit my Research Page or List of Publications
Teaching Interests
My teaching goals include working with students to become integrative thinkers of biology. This includes not only integration from molecular to evolutionary scales, but also integration between biological and computational knowledge. For more information about the courses I teach, please visit my Courses page.
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BIOL106 Introduction to Biological Investigation
Investigation of biological questions via extended laboratory or field projects. Emphasis is placed on observation skills, development and testing of hypotheses, experimental design, data collection, statistical analysis, and scientific writing and presentation. Taught with Biology Department faculty and staff.
BIOL244 Genomics
Evolution, structure, and function of prokaryotic and eukaryotic genomes, from the perspective of whole-genome sequencing projects. Current applications of genomics for diagnosis and treatment of human disease, ecological and environmental issues, and evolutionary biology. Labs focus on conducting two functional genomics experiments using micro arrays, cDNA libraries, and bioinformatics analysis to profile genes involved in disease processes and responses to environmental stress. Taught with Barbara Holloway, Biology Lab Technician.
BIOL/CMPU 353 Bioinformatics
| DNA is the blueprint of life. Although it’s composed of only four nucleotide “letters” (A, C. T, G), the order and arrangement of these letters in a genome gives rise to the diversity of life on earth. Thousands of genomes have been partially sequenced, representing billions of nucleotides. How can we search this vast expanse of sequence data to find patterns that provide answers to ecological, evolutionary, agricultural, and biomedical questions? Bioinformatics applies high-performance computing to discover patterns in large sequence datasets. In this class students from biology and computer science work together to formulate interesting biological questions and to design algorithms and computational experiments to answer them. Taught with Marc Smith, Computer Science Department. Course website |  |
BIOL 387 Symbiotic Interactions
From the evolution of eukaryotic cells to the creation of entire ecosystems, endosymbiosis is a driving force in biology. This course provides an integrative perspective on host-symbiont interactions in diverse endosymbioses.
ENST254 Global Decline in Coral Reef Ecosystems
| Coral reefs are often called the rainforests of the ocean. These unique ecosystems are currently suffering massive declines due to environmental stressors such as elevated seawater temperature, extreme weather and oceanographic events, and exposure to human activity. This course explores the underlying biology, geology, and oceanography of the coral reef ecosystem, both in the lab and in the field. Weekly exercises will introduce techniques in coral research along with methods to study the effects of environmental degradation. A research field trip during the Spring Break will be conducted at the Bermuda Institute for Ocean Sciences. Participants in this class must be comfortable living in tropical field conditions (wet, salty, crowded), and be confident swimmers. Cross-listed in Biology and Earth Science and Geography Departments. Taught with Brian McAdoo (Earth Science and Geography) Course Description |  |
Genomics Education Community
One of my biggest interests is in working to develop a community of faculty from small colleges who would like to incorporate genomic and bioinformatic approaches into their teaching and research. The community that I have been working with in these efforts has been awarded two curricular grants to support development of genomics education:
- Dr. Erica Crespi and I have worked with faculty from Williams, Carleton, Barnard, and Columbia to bring “Big Science” to small colleges. We have received funding through the Teagle Fresh Thinking Grant program to develop Genomic-based curricula and research projects for undergraduate school faculty and students. Project Website at Bringing Big Science to Small Colleges: A Genomics Collaboration
- Curriculum Development with funding from an NSF CCLI “Scaffolding Conceptually Driven Genomics Education” 2008-2010 ($149,976) With Susan Singer and Cathy Manduca (Carleton) and Marc Smith (Vassar).
