Bug Talk

In this podcast Kayleigh and Zsofia talked with Dan Turner, graduate student in the Wetzel lab. He is currently the graduate student representative on the Entomology Department's Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Committee so we touched on topics related to this issue. We talked about why he is passionate about DEI, the DEI book club for graduate students, educational inequities in the Lansing region, his experience with socioeconomically disadvantaged students as a teaching assistant this spring, etc. We also talked about what graduate students have been doing in our department to bring light to areas for improvement, such as reimbursement for moving expenses, access to laptops, etc. Dan mentioned the following books: The Privileged Poor, Why are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?, Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America. Please consider purchasing these books from one of these POC-owned bookstores. To contact Dan with questions or to join the book club email him at [email protected]. 

In this episode of Bug Talk, Andrea chats with Oscar Castaneda, a GIS specialist at Michigan State University.  In his spare time, Oscar is an activist for the civil rights of immigrants and is Vice President of the Action of Greater Lansing organization.  Oscar was born in Guatemala and was educated in the United States on a Fulbright Scholarship.  He has been living and working in the States for over 25 years and is still struggling to obtain his green card.  Instead of letting obstacles deter him, Oscar faced the problem head on by playing a prominent role in establishing Lansing, MI as a Sanctuary City.  Oscar continues to help other immigrants understand the legality of the United States immigration system.

In this episode, Ariana and Zsofia talked to Dr. Marisol Quintanilla, nematologist at MSU Entomology. Marisol talked to us about how she got an M.S. and Ph.D. in nematology in Dr. George Bird's lab, and her life as an entomologist in Guam. She also talked to us about her three children and husband and how she manages to balance work and life.

In this podcast we talked to Drs. Felicia Wu and David Hennessy from the Departments of Food Science & Human Nutrition and Agricultural, Food, & Resource Economics about their recent USDA grant investigating the relationship between the prevalence of aflatoxin and Bt corn. We also chatted with them about transgenic crops more generally, their future and public perception. 

This episode's guest is Marianna Szucs, assistant professor in the entomology department. She and Zsofia chatted about her path from geology to entomology, why she chose evolutionary biology as her research theme and what life is like as a foreigner. Marianna also talked about her hobbies.

In this podcast Kayleigh and Zsofia talked to Dr. Mary Gardiner, entomology professor at The Ohio State University. She received her Ph.D. in the Landis lab and since became well-known for her work on vacant lots. Mary is the incoming president of the Northcentral Branch ESA, starting in 2021, and we chatted with her about her path to leadership and her future plans in this role. 

In this episode of Bug Talk, Jen chats with MSU alumnus, Dr. Rob Morrison. Rob is currently a Research Entomologist for the USDA-ARS Center for Animal Health and Grain Research  in Manhattan, KS. We chat about his work in stored product pest management and chemical ecology, grad school in Germany, photography, and tips for achieving a good work-life balance in graduate school. This one was really fun to record, and you won't want to miss it!

This week cohosts Ariana and Jen talked with MSU undergrad Osten Eschedor. They discussed what led her to major in entomology, why she chose MSU, if eating insects is ethical, her favorite and least favorite field days, and how she ended up having a pet raccoon. 

Today's podcast guest is Dr. Julianna Wilson who is the applied tree fruit academic specialist in our department. She is also chair of the department's Diversity, Equity and Inclusion committee and member of the CANR diversity committee. We talked to her about the role of these committees and the actions that they are taking to promote diversity. Co-hosts Kayleigh Hauri, Jen Zavalnitskaya and Natalie Constancio discussed with her how students can make changes in this area in the department.

In this podcast Dr. Sara Hermann, assistant professor at Penn State University, chats with Andrea Glassmire, Ali Zahorec and Kayleigh Hauri. Sara is an alumna of our department - Landis lab - earning her Ph.D. in 2019. In this episode she describes what it's like juggling a dual career position and starting a new lab, all while being a mom of two beautiful kids. Check out her lab's website: https://whatsconsumingyou.wordpress.com/
Send any questions regarding this episode to Andrea: [email protected]