BTI Welcomes 2023 Undergraduate Student Researchers
On June 5, Boyce Thompson Institute welcomed 39 undergraduate students from colleges across the country to experience the life of a researcher for 10 weeks. Now in its 23rd year, BTI’s NSF funded Plant Genome Research Program (PGRP) and USDA funded Innovations in...
Alliance for Science and Boyce Thompson Institute launch SciFun Book: A biotechnology program for high school learners
NAIROBI, KENYA, February 22, 2023 – Alliance for Science (the Alliance) and Boyce Thompson Institute (BTI) are excited to launch the SciFun Book, a biotechnology program for high school learners, at the Safari Park Hotel in Nairobi on February 23, 09:00 AM EAT....
BTI Celebrates Another Year of Successful Summer Internship Programs
Boyce Thompson Institute celebrated its 22nd annual Plant Genome Research Program (PGRP) summer internship program with an award ceremony at the George and Helen Kohut Symposium, which was held at the Institute on August 4. BTI also concluded the fourth year of its...
BTI Welcomes Summer Student Interns
On May 31, Boyce Thompson Institute welcomed 41 of the country’s brightest undergraduate students from universities around the country to experience the life of a researcher for 10 weeks. Ten more research interns from local area high schools will join the Institute...
BTI Welcomes Summer Student Interns
On June 1, Boyce Thompson Institute welcomed 28 of the country’s brightest undergraduate students from universities around the country to experience the life of a researcher for 10 weeks. Seven more interns from local area high schools will join the Institute for six...
New Guide for Plant Scientists to Reenvision Outreach
Advances in plant science are becoming increasingly important to feed the world while minimizing harm to the environment, but there aren’t enough students interested in the field to keep up with the need. To combat this trend, a group of 30 scientists have published a...
Summer Intern Blog Week 7: How a Bee is like a Moose
As I’m writing this, tomorrow is the first day of my final year of college. Even as a senior, I can feel a little bit of nervous anticipation creeping in. There’s so much potential in a beginning. Anything can happen. So much left to learn and so little time to learn...
Summer Intern Blog Weeks 5 & 6: Digging Beneath the Surface
By the fourth week of BTI’s Professional Development Series, I was beginning to fall into a bit of a routine. Every Wednesday, I made myself a cup of tea, grabbed a blanket, and settled down to watch one of BTI’s scientists present their research. Over the weeks, I...
Summer Intern Blog Weeks 3 & 4: Demystifying Grad School
For a long time, I’ve avoided thinking about grad school. It’s not too hard to do at my small, undergrad-only college. During my first few years, it simply didn’t seem relevant. I was focused on athletics, classwork, and research. Graduate studies seemed like a...
Summer Intern Blog Weeks 1 & 2: Why I Want to be Like a Grafted Tomato
On March 3, I thought I knew what my summer would be like. I had just been accepted into BTI’s summer Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program. I imagined myself in a greenhouse surrounded by vegetation and scribbling in a lab notebook. I imagined...
BTI Celebrates Another Successful Summer Internship Program
Boyce Thompson Institute celebrated its 19th annual Plant Genome Research Program (PGRP) summer internship program with an award ceremony at the George and Helen Kohut Symposium, which was held at the Institute on August 8. The PGRP focuses on training and inspiring...
BTI Welcomes Summer Student Interns
On June 3, Boyce Thompson Institute welcomed 35 of the country’s brightest undergraduate students from universities around the country to experience the life of a researcher for 10 weeks. Eight more interns from area high schools will join the Institute for seven...
BTI’s Olivia Gomez Places 4th in APS Councilors’ Challenge
The Boyce Thompson Institute is pleased to announce that Olivia Gomez, a third-year undergraduate researcher in Michelle Heck’s lab, has placed fourth in the American Phytopathological Society’s Councilors’ Challenge. “Thank you to my mentor Michelle and to the...
A universal framework combining genome annotation and undergraduate education
As genome sequencing becomes cheaper and faster, resulting in an exponential increase in data, the need for efficiency in predicting gene function is growing, as is the need to train the next generation of scientists in bioinformatics. Researchers in the lab of Lukas...
BTI Now Accepting 2019 Plant Genome Research Program Summer Internship Applications!
The 2019 Plant Genome Research Program at the Boyce Thompson Institute (BTI) and Cornell University is currently seeking undergraduate and local high school summer internship applicants! The summer internship programs at BTI offer students unmatched opportunities to...
Transforming Breeding through Integrated Data Management and Analysis
Together with the BCBC, GOBii, Cassavabase, and Cornell University, BTI recently hosted a fall workshop titled “Transforming Breeding through Integrated Data Management and Analysis”. Attendees from around the globe gathered in Ithaca for a week-long...
2018 PGRP Symposium marks finale of intern researchers’ summer
The Boyce Thompson Institute’s (BTI’s) 2018 class of summer interns wrapped up their summer by presenting research talks and posters at the annual Plant Genome Research Program (PGRP) Student Symposium. Now in its 17th year, BTI’s annual PGRP symposium provides a...
Plant scientists call for renewed focus on empowerment of trainees
Changes in the workforce are challenging academia to prepare scientists to be adaptable and adept at communicating across boundaries. To meet these demands, the Plant Science Research Network (PSRN) is shifting the focus to enable trainees to take ownership of their...
A Future in Food Security: A Spotlight of Akriti Bhattarai
2018 PGRP intern Akriti Bhattarai reflects on her summer research experience, highlighting food security, San Diego, liquid nitrogen, and cows!
The World at her Fingertips: A Spotlight of Autumn Hurd
2018 PGRP Intern Autumn reflects on her summer experience, covering Bridgewater, Bogdanove Lab, bananas, and Buffalo Street.
Student Research in Full Bloom: BTI’s 2018 PGRP Interns
Boyce Thompson Institute’s (BTI’s) 2018 Plant Genome Research Program (PGRP) interns have arrived in Ithaca for their summer of biology and bioinformatics research! This June, more than thirty of the country’s brightest students arrived at BTI from all over the United States to experience the life of a researcher.
International team collaborates to decipher the Asian citrus psyllid genome
BTI’s Mueller and Heck Labs, in collaboration with 21 partner institutions, recently published a draft assembly and annotation of the D. citri genome.
Broader Impacts: Beet Armyworm in Bronx, NY
Joe Macchia, a science teacher at the Urban Science Academy in Bronx, NY, uses BTI teaching kits to engage his students in hands-on science.
2017 PGRP Symposium marks finale of intern researchers’ summer
Now in its 16th year, BTI’s annual PGRP symposium provides a means for student interns to to present their findings in a professional, engaging setting.
Science In Real Life: GMOs with the Van Eck Lab
Follow Science In Real Life (IRL) as they head to the Van Eck Lab and demystify GMOs by showing how they’re made in the lab.
An Interview With PGRP Intern Natalie Gonzalez
Natalie explains how having a mentor and interning at BTI has given her a new perspective on where to plant her professional roots.
Maize in Maricopa: An Interview with Intern Michael Miller
Michael Miller spent his first two weeks as a PGRP intern at the United States Department of Agriculture’s Arid Land Research Center.
Wading into discovery: BTI’s 2017 PGRP Interns
Motivated, curious, and eager to discover, BTI’s 2017 Plant Genome Research Program (PGRP) interns are ready to dive into a 2+ month transformative experience that will prepare them for their future career.
‘New Visions’ of food security from Cassandra Proctor
“Food security is a mixture of all the different aspects of agriculture. It’s not just growing the food,” said Proctor. “It’s not just planting something in the ground – there is a lot more to it.”
Frank Schroeder Selected for HHMI Faculty Scholars Program
The five-year grant is given to innovative, early career scientists to support high-risk research with the potential to make significant contributions to the field.
Rheonix pledges to support BTI Education and Outreach program
The company, founded by BTI board member Greg Galvin, supports high quality, local STEM education programs.
Summer Institute Keeps Teachers ahead of the Curve
BTI’s Curriculum Development Projects in Plant Biology summer institute exposes STEM educators to new research on agriculture, plant biotechnology and bioenergy.
Students Become Gene Detectives to Fight Citrus Greening
A group of students and experts work together through video conferencing to identify the genes in the genome of the newly sequenced Asian citrus psyllid, the insect that spreads the bacterium that causes citrus greening disease.
BTI Intern Picks Up Awards on His Way to Berkeley
Patel is about to graduate from Cornell–and the Martin lab–to return to his native California to continue his career in plant science.
New Teachers Get a Jump on Lesson Planning from BTI Workshop
Early career teachers get an introduction to BTI’s inquiry-based STEM activities at the Cornell Institute for Biology Teachers.
Why Teachers Spend Their Vacation Days at BTI
Ongoing relationships with teachers enable Education and Outreach to host valuable professional development workshops on plant and insect science for dedicated teachers.
Van Eck Gives Insight into Genetic Engineering to Cornell Students
Students in Cornell University’s course, The GMO Debate: Science and Society, visited a genetic engineering laboratory at Boyce Thompson Institute, courtesy of Assistant Professor Joyce Van Eck and postdoctoral researcher Alex Amaro, Stern Lab.
BTI Postdocs Teach Bio 101 at BTI
BTI collaborates with Tompkins Cortland Community College (TC3) to host Biology 101. The relationship is symbiotic, and BTI postdocs gain valuable teaching experience.
Bioinformatics Progress at BTI
BTI provides bioinformatics consulting in-house.
Teacher Programs Put Plant Research and Resources in Area Classrooms
Professional development for teachers in plant science at BTI is having real impact in classrooms across New York State.
Plant Biology Outreach at Monroe Community College Rochester, NY
Sixty undergraduates at Monroe Community College in Rochester, NY are learning some classic biology concepts in new ways, and they are using plants to do it.
Former BTI REU Intern Receives Fellowship from the American Society of Plant Biologists
Hannah De Jong an undergraduate in the Georg Jander lab, received a Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship from the American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB).
BTI Participates in Cornell’s Bring a Child to Work Day
On April 28, 2011, thirteen children ages 8 – 12 visited BTI along with their parents as part of Cornell’s Bring a Child to Work Day.