Joan Slonczewski publishes research with undergraduates on bacterial pH stress, funded by the National Science Foundation. She also studies cold-adapted microbes from Antarctica. She authors science fiction novels, including The Highest Frontier and A Door into Ocean, both of which earned the John W. Campbell Memorial Award. She teaches courses on microbiology, virology and biology in science fiction.
Visit her professional website.
Education
1982 — Doctor of Philosophy from Yale University
1977 — Bachelor of Arts from Bryn Mawr College
Courses Recently Taught
BIOL 116
Information in Living Systems
BIOL 116
How is information generated, transmitted, stored and maintained in biological systems? The endeavor to understand the flow of biological information represents a fundamental undertaking of the life sciences. This course examines the mechanisms of heredity, the replication and expression of genetic information and the function of genes in the process of evolution, with an emphasis on the tools of genetics and molecular biology to address research questions in these areas. This course is required for the major and as such, Biology majors should take this class prior to the junior year. Prerequisite: BIOL 115, permission of instructor, or equivalent. Offered every year. Required for the major.
BIOL 211
Health Service and Biomedical Analysis
BIOL 211
Students volunteer weekly at Knox Community Hospital, College Township Fire Department, or another designated health provider. We study health research topics including articles from biomedical journals. The academic portion of the class will meet as a three-hour seminar. Students read and critique articles on topics such as: diabetes in the community; pain-killers and drug addiction; AIDS and STIs; influenza transmission; and socioeconomic status and health disparities. Outside of class, students will have four hours/week reading, and a minimum of four hours/week service. Student assignments will include keeping a journal on their service and class presentations related to the reading and their service. This counts toward the upper-level organismal biology/physiology requirement for the major. Prerequisite: one year of biology or chemistry and permission of instructor.
BIOL 238
Microbiology
BIOL 238
Microbes inhabit the most extreme environments on earth, ranging from superheated sulfur vents on the ocean floor to alkaline soda lakes. In medicine, newly discovered bacteria and viruses cause a surprising range of diseases, including heart disease; they may even hold the key to human aging. Yet other species live symbiotically with us, keeping us healthy, and even regulate our brain. Still other microbes, such as nitrogen fixers, are essential to the entire biosphere. This course covers microbial cell structure and metabolism, genetics, nutrition and microbial communities in ecosystems, and the role of microbes in human health and disease. This can count toward the upper-level lecture in organismal biology/physiology or cellular/molecular requirements for the major. Prerequisite: BIOL 116.
BIOL 239
Experimental Microbiology
BIOL 239
In this course, students will learn the classic techniques of studying bacteria, protists and viruses in medical science and in ecology, and will practice microbial culture and examine life cycles, cell structure and metabolism and genetics. High-throughput methods of analysis are performed, such as use of the microplate UV-VIS spectrophotometer and whole-genome sequencing. For the final project, each student surveys the microbial community of a particular habitat, using DNA analysis and biochemical methods to identify microbial isolates. Prerequisite: BIOL 109Y-110Y or a chemistry lab course and completion or concurrent enrollment in BIOL 238. This counts toward the upper-level laboratory requirement.
BIOL 375
Virology
BIOL 375
In this course, students examine the form and function of viruses through current research papers and through documentaries on viral disease. Specific viruses are examined in depth, exemplifying their roles in human and animal health, biotechnology and global ecology. Topics may include human papillomavirus, a DNA virus causing cancer; hepatitis C virus, a growing cause of liver failure; Ebola virus, an RNA virus with extraordinary virulence; influenza virus, an RNA virus of humans and animals with pandemic potential; and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the cause of AIDS. We investigate the use of HIV-derived viral vectors for gene therapy.This counts toward the upper-level cellular/molecular biology requirement for the major. Prerequisite: BIOL 238, 243, 263, 266 or 358. Prerequisite or corequisite: CHEM 231. Generally offered every other year.
BIOL 385
Research in Biology
BIOL 385
This combined discussion and laboratory course aims to develop abilities for asking sound research questions, designing reasonable scientific approaches to answer such questions, and performing experiments to test both the design and the question. We consider how to assess difficulties and limitations in experimental strategies due to design, equipment, organism selected and so on. The course provides a detailed understanding of selected modern research equipment. Students select their own research problems in consultation with one or more biology faculty members. This course is designed both for those who plan to undertake honors research in their senior year and for those who are not doing honors but want practical research experience. A student can begin the course in either semester. If a year of credit is earned, it may be applied toward one laboratory requirement for the major in biology. This course is repeatable for credit. Prerequisite: BIOL 109Y–110Y and 116 and permission of instructor.