The independent student news site of San Diego Mesa College.

The Mesa Press

The Mesa Press

The independent student news site of San Diego Mesa College.

Breaking News
  • February 27Mysterious burning smell permeates campus; cause under investigation
  • December 17Acting Chancellor Smith named new permanent SDCCD chancellor
  • December 17Women's Volleyball claims state title

The Mesa Press

The Mesa Press

Mesa hosts STEM Lecture Series

The+STEM+Lecture+Series+this+year+was+held+via+Zoom.
Mesa Office of Communications
The STEM Lecture Series this year was held via Zoom.

Mesa College is hosting a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) lecture series in the form of two separate events in the month of March. 

The first lecture in the series took place on Mar. 9 via Zoom and hosted a talk by Dr. Manjiri Dahdul, DPT. Dahdul, who is the Director and Co-Program Coordinator of the Neurological Residency Program at Precision Rehabilitation, held an interactive seminar on the rare genetic disorder Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA), the progressive loss of lower motor neurons in the spinal cord.

“This is a disorder that is very dear to my heart,” Dahdul said. Although the semantics proved to be dense with medical jargon, Dahdul assured “this is going to be a fun, light conversation.”

Anar Brahmbhatt, Professor of Biology at Mesa College and a STEM Lecture Series organizer, noted that this series boasts a number of benefits to students, faculty, and staff.

Story continues below advertisement

“It’s important for us to celebrate progress in STEM fields and educate ourselves about these current areas of work,” Brahmbhatt said. “As students, staff, and faculty we are often decision-makers; so we should be well informed when doing so.”

Although STEM subjects are uniquely relevant to the coursework and curriculum of students studying such subjects, Brahmbhatt noted that this series provides all students with an important experience.

“Students are exposed to research and concepts in the STEM field that extends and adds relevancy to their coursework,” she said. “Speakers are eager to share their knowledge in an open and welcoming environment where students can ask questions.”

The next lecture in the series will take place on Mar. 19 and will host a seminar on Alzheimer’s by Associate Professor at Ohio Wesleyan University, Suren Ambegaokar. According to Brahmbhatt, Ambegaokar “studies neurodegenerative disorders, infectious diseases of the nervous system, and the intersection of the two.” 

“He uses genetic models of human diseases in Drosophila (fruit flies) for use in identifying molecular mechanisms of pathology and to test pharmacological and genetic modifiers of disease,” Brahmbhatt said. 

Brahmbhatt also made a note that she shares a relation to both of the speakers.

“Dr. Dahdul is my sister, Dr. Ambegaokar is my cousin…both are very distinguished in their fields,” she said. “I am very proud and honored to have them both speak at Mesa College. Dr. Dahdul will be speaking at Mesa for the third time, Dr. Ambegaokar will speak for the first time at Mesa.”

Despite a mistake on the original flyer, Ambegaokar’s talk will be held on Mar. 19 at 12 P.M.

Leave a Comment
Donate to The Mesa Press
$270
$500
Contributed
Our Goal

Your donation will support the student journalists of San Diego Mesa College. Your contribution will allow us to purchase equipment and cover our annual website hosting costs.

About the Contributor
Walker Armstrong, News Editor
Walker is the News Editor for the Mesa Press. He is a second-year philosophy, journalism double major at San Diego Mesa College and hopes to one day be a journalist for a major news publication. He is interested in media, critical theory, and literary fiction.
Donate to The Mesa Press
$270
$500
Contributed
Our Goal

Comments (0)

Here at The Mesa Press, we want to foster a community for civil discussions. We welcome your insight and perspective. Comments posted must be appropriate for all ages. Any profanity or cursing is prohibited. That includes any attempts to curse with special characters (!@#) or spacing. Discuss and criticize ideas. We don’t allow comments that intend to intimidate, demean or harass other readers in any way.
All The Mesa Press Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *