Lab technicians and post-bacs
Nuzha Baksh (2023-present)
I graduated from UCSB in 2022 with a B.S. in Zoology and a Minor in Linguistics. There, I studied the effects of chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis) on amphibian populations and worked as lab technician to care for a colony of Pacific tree frogs for the Briggs lab. In my current role, I assist in experiments involving toxin sequestering fruit flies and poison dart frogs and also manage their husbandry. Outside of the lab, you can usually find me power walking around campus, watching films, reading Murakami novels, baking, or attempting to learn a new language.
Contact: nuzhabaksh [at] berkeley [dot] edu
Nikki Lemus (2021-present)
I am a 2020 graduate in IB and my toxic trait is breeding toxic flies (I’m involved in the Experimental Evolution Project). My other toxic trait is getting too interested in too many things, so my research interests are broad, but generally bird and museum oriented. Two topics that intrigue me are 1) the use of museum specimens and fieldwork to compare current, recent and historical avian populations in the contexts of urban ecology and/or the impacts of urbanization, and 2) various bird-related instances of extreme coevolution, like birds and feather mites, hummingbirds and flowers, and brood-parasites. I’m also interested in advocating diversity in academia because anyone can be a biologist! Currently, this includes volunteering for public events with the museum and showing strangers snakes and bugs to share an admiration for science and nature. In the future, I hope to more actively mentor future biologists in and out of academia. The next step to building a career in museum biology is graduate school, so I hope to join a new lab in Fall 2024.
Contact: nikki800 [at] berkeley [dot] edu
Jacob Saal (2021-present)
I am a 2023 graduate in Molecular and Cell Biology. My passion lies in genetics. My goal in science is to learn and discover the various mechanisms by which the genome can evolve, respond to threats, and self-regulate for the survival of multicellular life. I am currently part of the Experimental Evolution of Toxic Flies project where I’ve been interested to see how pathways for toxin resistance can be deconstructed or repurposed for parasitism resistance. Outside the lab I spend much of my time on creative work. I enjoy visual art, reading and writing fiction, and speculative biology.
Contact: jsaal [at] berkeley [dot] edu