The Department of Computational and Systems Biology (CSB) hosted its annual retreat at the Kamin Science Center on May 7. This event brought together 100 attendees from all levels of the department to celebrate biological innovation and discovery.
Students, faculty, staff and postdoctoral researchers came together to share insights into computational and systems biology. Space biomedicine was a key theme of this year’s retreat with the recent launch of the Trivedi Institute for Space and Global Biomedicine, one of the first institutes with the goal of applying insights from spaceflight to improve human health on Earth. Attendees participated in a series of seminars, poster presentations and networking events throughout the day.
Professor Kate Rubins, founding director of the Trivedi Institute, delivered the keynote presentation. Rubins has a unique perspective on space biomedicine as a former NASA astronaut who spent 300 days on the International Space Station. Her keynote address was titled “The Human Body Was Not Designed for This: A Systems Biology Approach to Spaceflight and Human Health.”
This is the second year that the retreat was held at the Kamin Science Center. Between sessions, attendees could explore interactive and educational science exhibits. Students and postdoctoral researchers had their poster presentations displayed in the Mars exhibit, which gave them the chance to showcase their work in a museum-inspired environment.
“Seeing faculty, trainees, staff, and students all in one space sharing science, ideas and conversations makes all of the planning worth it,” said Amanda Shaheen, assistant to the chair and educational programs coordinator. “It was great to see such strong engagement throughout the entire day, and I’m already looking forward to planning next year’s retreat.”
Retreat attendees left the event with a clearer understanding of their colleagues’ research and new directions for future realms of exploration.
“One of the biggest takeaways for me was seeing how collaborative and interconnected the work is across different areas and teams,” said Erik Markovich, financial administrator. “It gave me a much better perspective on the department as a whole and how everyone contributes to the bigger picture.”