• Join us for National STEM Day Nov 9!

    23 September 2024

    GEMS trainees and faculty are teaming up with community partners to bring fun science-themed activities to children of all ages. Our partner Illinois Science Explorers works with the Don Moyer Girls and Boys Club at the Martens Center in Champaign, Illinois. We will provide hands-on activities related to GEMS science such as plants, pollinators, microbes, […]

  • Successful STEM Day

    18 November 2024

    GEMS participated in the 2024 STEM Day, hosted by the Champaign Park District at the Martens Center on November 9, 2024. This free event was in partnership with other local organizations including X-time and University of Illinois Science Explorers. Approximately 100 students of all ages attended the event, and there were many different science activities […]

  • Two GEMS researchers featured in University of Illinois News Bureau article

    24 October 2024

    The University of Illinois News Bureau recently published a story featuring Ed Hsieh, Adam Dolezal, and their research on how good nutrition helps honey bees better withstand pesticides and viruses. The article, written by Life Sciences Editor Diana Yates, highlights the benefits of high-quality habitats near agricultural areas to boost bee resilience.

  • New GEMS Preprint!

    22 October 2024

    Trainee David Vereau Gorbitz (Heath/Vanderpool labs, UIUC) has just released his first pre-print on BioRxiv. The paper, titled “Plasmid transmission dynamics and evolution of partner quality in a natural population of Rhizobium leguminosarum“, details his efforts to more deeply understand plasmid populations in a model symbiont. Read the paper below!

  • Cena y Ciencias featured in major UIUC magazine

    17 October 2024

    GEMS outreach program Cena y Ciencias, headed by trainee Ivan Sosa Marquez and faculty member Rachel Whitaker, among many other wonderful people, was recently featured in the UIUC College of Letters and Science magazine, the Quadrangle. This is a magazine published twice yearly which details the important work going on in the college. Read the […]

  • GEMS Represents at IGB World of Genomics

    15 October 2024

    Multiple GEMS trainees from the IGOH (Infection Genomics for One Health) theme at the UIUC IGB recently traveled to Chicago to present at World of Genomics, a large outreach event at the Museum of Science and Industry. GEMS Trainee Sierra Bedwell designed activities representing One Health in collaboration with the IGB Outreach team and recruited […]

  • GEMS trainee Dr. Ed Hsieh defends his dissertation!

    14 October 2024

    GEMS PhD candidate Ed Hsieh presented his doctoral dissertation today, entitled: “Context is key: How interactive stressors affect honey bee physiology across caste and life stage”. Ed was a PhD candidate in the Dolezal lab at UIUC. Congratulations, Dr. Hsieh, and we can’t wait to see what you do next!

  • New paper named Editor’s Choice

    30 September 2024

    GEMS Trainee Laura Suttenfield recently released a new paper in mSystems, where it was named Editor’s Choice! The paper is entitled Phage-mediated resolution of genetic conflict alters the evolutionary trajectory of Pseudomonas aeruginosa lysogens and describes her work in the lab of PI Rachel Whitaker.

  • GEMS Nuggets Fall 2024

    10 September 2024

  • GEMS educator professional development event 

    27 June 2024

    The GEMS education team hosted a science teaching professional development event on June 17-20, 2024. This event marked a week of learning for local and regional K-12 science teachers, science and education university faculty, and GEMS graduate and undergraduate students. Over 25 people gathered at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign campus to discuss topics in […]