The W’s SM-100 series to conclude in November
Mississippi University for Women’s Department of Sciences and Mathematics will conclude its SM-100 seminar series in November with a pair of speakers.
The seminars will take place on Wednesdays from noon to 1 p.m. in Room 117 of Parkinson Hall.
The first seminar, held Wednesday, Nov. 6, will feature Dr. Rajiv Heda, a gastroenterology fellow at the University of New Mexico. Heda graduated from The Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science in 2012. He completed his undergraduate degree in molecular biology at Rhodes College in Memphis in 2016. He obtained his MD degree from the University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center in Memphis in 2020, followed by residency at the University of Tulane Hospital, New Orleans. He is currently a fellow in gastroenterology at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque since July 2023. Heda has already published 17 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters.
He will give a presentation titled, “Exploring a career in Medicine : Perspective from a Gastroenterology Fellow.”
The final speaker for the semester will be Dr. Michael Madigan, professor emeritus of microbiology at Southern Illinois University (SIU) in Carbondale, Illinois. He will give his presentation Wednesday, Nov. 13.
Madigan joined the faculty of the Department of Microbiology at SIU in 1979 after completing his postdoctoral fellowship with Dr. Thomas Brock at Indiana University. He retired from SIU in 2011 after 42 years of service as professor of microbiology. During his tenure at SIU he mentored 22 masters, five doctoral and three postdoctoral fellows, including Dr. Ghanshyam Heda, instructor of the SM-100 course. He has published over 200 journal articles and book chapters and presented his research at numerous national and international scientific conferences. He is the recipient of many awards, notable among them is the U.S. Congressional Antarctica Service Medal. Madigan was elected as fellow of the American Association for Advancement of Science and is the primary author of a famous textbook entitled, “Brock Biology of Microorganisms,” that is currently in its 17th edition. His specialty includes isolation and characterization of microorganisms from extreme weather conditions such as from hot springs and ice-covered Antarctica.
His will present, “Sulfur-Cycling Bacteria in the Permanently Ice-Covered Lake Fryxell, McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica.”
About the Department of Sciences and Mathematics
The W’s Department of Sciences and Mathematics offers laboratory-based instruction in natural sciences and courses that develop quantifying skills, supporting majors within every program across campus. It is housed in Parkinson Hall and offers a variety of majors within the field of science and math. To learn more about the department, please visit www.muw.edu/scimath/.