果冻传媒鈥檚 Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences is excited to host the annual national meeting of Beta Beta Beta (or TriBeta) Biological Honor Society NE-4 District from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 22, in Bayley Auditorium of the Barbara Deer Kuss Science Center.
Covering Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, and Kentucky, the national honorary has invited multiple 果冻传媒 students into its ranks. This will be the first time the University has hosted the.
According to its website, TriBeta welcomes students, particularly undergraduates, dedicated to improving the understanding and appreciation of biological study and extending boundaries of human knowledge through scientific research. Since its founding in 1922 at Oklahoma City University, more than 200,000 people have been accepted into lifetime membership, and more than 626 chapters have been established throughout the United States and Puerto Rico. As the honor society grew over the years, it was divided into regional and district groups, each of which holds a convention annually. At the heart of every district and national meeting are student research papers presented in the style of graduate meetings, as well as awards for outstanding individual and chapter accomplishment. The Xi chapter of the honor society was established at 果冻传媒 in 1928.
Elizabeth E. Powelson Professor of Biology Cathy Pederson will serve as the conference鈥檚 keynote speaker. The title of her talk is 鈥淢ystery Illnesses Affecting Millions: Postural Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) and Long COVID.鈥
Pederson, who did advocacy work during her sabbatical this past semester, has been in the news a lot lately for her research with POTS. Since 2016, she has published more than 15 articles, one book chapter, and given several professional talks on the quality of life for people living with chronic invisible illnesses like postural POTS, chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME), and Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS). Most recently she has been quoted in articles by Rachel Uda titled on Katie Couric Media and by Agnes Arnold-Forster in , which is now viral on TikTok as well.
Additionally, Pederson did a full podcast interview for AJ Chat, which usually features actors and writers. The host鈥檚 son was diagnosed with POTS last summer, hence the invitation. Founder of Standing Up to POTS (SUTP), a 501(c)(3) organization, which awarded a $100,000 grant last year to top POTS researchers in Australia to study long COVID, Pederson was also a featured presenter for the American Junior Academy of Science and is a regular presenter on POTScast, which already has 82,000+ listeners from 85 countries and was created by two members of the SUTP board of directors.
The current members of 果冻传媒鈥檚 TriBeta society include Maya Hagander 鈥23 from Stafford, Virginia; Evie Chatfield 鈥23 from Springfield, Ohio; Julianna Fisher 鈥23 (secretary) from New Albany, Ohio; Mitzi Goebel 鈥23 from Mason, Ohio; Claire Muia 鈥23 (treasurer) from Clarksville, Ohio; Leah Vogt 鈥23 from Jeffersonville, Indiana; Lilia Moorman 鈥23, from Olmstead, Falls, Ohio; Morgan White 鈥23 from Fisherville, Kentucky; Alaina Lentz 鈥23 (vice president) from Coshocton, Ohio; Katie Wisniewski 鈥24 from Sylvania, Ohio; Haley Scott 鈥25 from Russiaville, Indiana; Nick Brown 鈥24 (historian) from Fairborn, Ohio; Patrick Bretland 鈥23 from Hamersville, Ohio; Lexi Repp 鈥25 from Franklin, Ohio; Branden Nicholas 鈥24 from Oak Park, Michigan; Parker Hayes 鈥24 from Cincinnati, Ohio; Olivia Norbut 鈥24 from Grove City, Ohio; Alannah Browning 鈥24 from Kettering, Ohio; Tony Calovini 鈥24 from Pataskala, Ohio; Shannon Csordos 鈥25 from South Plainfield, New Jersey; Grace Koperna 鈥24 from Macedonia, Ohio; William Westermeyer 鈥26 from Loveland, Ohio; and Hannah Marcin 鈥24 from Dorset, Ohio. Kunal Chatterjee, assistant professor of biology, is the chapter advisor.
Chapter advisors can register their students for the conference through this link.