After a shortened spring 2020 semester, the students participating in Tiny Earth at FAU have discovered 368 new antibiotic producing bacterial isolates, bringing our total since Fall 2016 to 1,392 antibiotic producers.
Welcome to the Team!
In Spring 2020, Tiny Earth at FAU welcomed Tahoe Albergo, Gage Collamore, Ian Fernandez, Matthew Satar, Bodhi Stone and Andrea Velez to the team. Thank you for joining us in our search for antibiotic producing bacteria!
In Fall 2019, Tiny Earth at FAU welcomed Cara Busheme, Brittany Desyr, Peter Forester, Daniel Golcher-Aguilera, Tasmia Kader, Melanie Rosa Perez, Nicholas Nifakos, Cesar J. Rivas, Ariana Rivera-Smikle and Satima Visitdesotrakul to the team.
Boca Raton Christian High School STEM Day
In October 2019, Ms. Peggy Barnhill, a teacher at Boca Raton Christian High School, and Dr. Gisselle Gutierrez, the Boca Raton Christian High School STEM Coordinator, took a tour of the Tiny Earth laboratory at FAU.
In November 2019, Thomas Mersch, Satima Visitdesotrakul, Cara Busheme and Melanie Rosa Perez participated in Boca Raton Christian High School’s Annual STEM Day Event. The team gave presentations and educated future prospective scientists concerning the current antibiotic crisis. Students were allowed to feel agar petri plates, ask questions, use a microscope to look at different types of stained bacteria and awarded prizes for participating in a bacterial-themed board game with a successful Q&A. Tiny Earth team member and Boca Raton native Thomas Mersch stated, “Having grown up in Boca Raton, I was so excited to have the opportunity to share Tiny Earth's passion for science with my hometown community. We were so grateful to Boca Christian High School for allowing us to come to their STEM day to show students our mission towards finding new antibiotics. Education is our best weapon in solving the antibiotic crisis so being able to help students learn about it was a wonderfully remarkable experience”. The Tiny Earth team is honored to participate in community events such as the Boca Christian’s annual STEM Day event and optimistic of continuing our relationship with their institution in helping new prospective scientists discover the passion and need for new antibiotic discovery.
Explore FAU
On Saturday, October 19, 2019, Tiny Earth was showcased at Explore FAU. Brittany Desyr (committee chair), Valentina Goldberg, Amy Donne, Renata Rigueria, Brooke Hekker and Diane Baronas-Lowell, Ph.D. engaged prospective high school seniors and their families in Tiny Earth’s research-based curriculum using agar plates, a microscope to look at bacteria and a bacterial-themed board game. Pictured (back, left to right): Diane Baronas-Lowell, Brooke Hekker, Val Goldberg and Brittany Desyr; (front, left to right): Renata Rigueria and Amy Donne.
On Saturday, October 13, 2018, Tiny Earth was showcased at Explore FAU. Pictured (left to right): Valentina Goldberg, Maggie Elkin, Alexis Martin and Vilte Butkute (committee chair).
Success at Tiny Earth!
Congratulations to Elizabeth May for placing 1st in the category of Basic Sciences II for her poster titled, “Optimized Protocols for Extraction of Microbial Natural Products”, at the 10th Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium, April 2020!
Congratulations to Brittany Desyr for participating in the Art of Science Photo Contest!
