SES Research Symposium | Marine Biological Laboratory

The Marine Biological Laboratory's Semester in Environmental Science will hold the 28th annual Student Independent Research Symposium in Clapp Auditorium on Friday, December 12, 2025. Students who participated in the semester-long study abroad course will present the culmination of their independent research projects in 15-minute talks over the course of the morning.

Livestreamed here: https://mbl.hosted.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=0ed0c943-ffc7-4ca1-ab83-b39801442c24

Schedule

9:00-9:15 Linda Hyman and Mirta Teichberg
Welcome and Introduction

9:15-9:30 Evelyn Mei Cowle- Rhodes College
Ascidians on natural and artificial substrates in Cape Cod, MA:
Evaluating relative abundance, distribution, and preferential settlement
Mentor: Mirta Teichberg

9:30-9:45 Rafael Beaudoin- University of Chicago
Green crab metabolism and behavior under heatwave-like conditions
Mentors: Mirta Teichberg and Jim McClelland

9:45-10:00 Juliana Fleischer- Wheaton College
Effects of manganese and zinc on Astrangia coral health
Mentors: Loretta Roberson and Mayra Sanchez Garcia

10:00-10:15 Laoise Nolan- Minerva University
Microplastic impacts on cnidarian tissue regeneration in Astrangia poculata and Nematostella vectensis
Mentors: Loretta Roberson, Karen Echeverri and Rut Pedrosa Pamies

10:15-10:45 Coffee Break

10:45-11:00 Uranzaya Ariunbold- Rhodes College
Effect of plasticized polyvinyl chloride microplastics (pPVC-MPs) exposed to different weathering simulations on rotifer fertility, health, behavior, and gene expression
Mentor: Kristin Gribble

11:00-11:15 Isadora Rowan- Bard College
Microplastic Abundance in Salt Marsh Sediments and their Effects on Chlorophyll Production
Mentors: Ivan Valiela, Rut Pedrosa Pamies, Kelsey Chenoweth

11:15-11:30 Helena Mandeville- University of Chicago
Integrating planar optodes and microscopy to reveal morphological controls on rhizosphere gas exchange in isoetids and sedges
Mentor: Ketil Koop-Jakobson

11:30-11:45 Barlow Herbst- Colby College
Effects of nitrogen fertilization on the genes of nitrogen-fixing bacteria in Spartina-associated rhizosphere
Mentors: Zoe Cardon, Biagio DiSalvo

11:45-12:00 Mirta Teichberg
SES retrospective