Convocation

Divisional Academic Ceremony
Sat, June 12, 2021, 11:00 AM
Premiere link

The Divisional Academic Ceremony for BSD PhD graduates, with a welcome from Dean Kenneth Polonsky; Dr. Jennifer Doudna as our featured speaker; remarks by Dr. Richard Fehon, 2021 Faculty Marshal; and presentation of the graduates by Dean Vicky Prince.

Wed., June 9: The University of Chicago 534^th Convocation, see https://convocation.uchicago.edu/ for information on viewing the ceremony.

1990

Paul Sereno: discovered previously unknown dinosaur species

Beginning in the 1990s, paleontologist Paul Sereno’s discoveries of previously unknown dinosaur species on several continents have contributed to the understanding of the dinosaur family tree and to the larger question of how evolution works over millions of years.

Paul Sereno, Professor in Organismal Biology and Anatomy

1916

Ernest Everett Just: discovered significant aspect of cell cleavage

Ernest Everett Just, PhD 1916, worked with University of Chicago zoologist Frank Lillie at what is now the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. During dissertation research for his PhD in zoology, he made an important discovery about cell cleavage, showing that the sperm entry point determines the first cleavage plane in the egg of the marine annelid Nereis limbata.

1930s

Joseph B. Kirsner: transformed the field of gastroenterology

Gastroenterologist Joseph B. Kirsner joined UChicago in 1935, then pioneered modern understanding and treatment of inflammatory bowel disease He was one of the first to show the link between ulcerative colitis and increased risk of colon cancer, introduced guidelines for how doctors should care for patients, and helped found the American Gastroenterological Association, the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, and the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.

2019

Maanasa Raghavan: sequenced genome from ancient skeletons

Maanasa Raghavan, Neubauer Family Assistant Professor in the Department of Human Genetics, has found a way to extract and sequence genomes directly from skeletal remains of ancient individuals. This discovery can significantly increase our understanding of how individuals and populations evolved over time. The goal is to eventually be able to look at changes in the genome and correlate them with environmental and lifestyle changes in the past.

1890s

Henry Chandler Cowles: led formational work in the study of ecology

Botanist Henry Chandler Cowles’s study of ecological succession in the Indiana Dunes along the southern shore of Lake Michigan in the late 1890s opened a new field of inquiry in the natural sciences: ecology. The investigation of a changing natural landscape carries increasing importance amid growing concerns about our environment.

Convocation

Divisional Academic Ceremony Sat, June 12, 2021, 11:00 AM Premiere link

Divisional Academic Ceremony
Sat, June 12, 2021, 11:00 AM
Premiere link