Student/Postdoc Information Booklet

Updated June 2016

Table of Contents
1. What is BEACON? ......................................................................................................2
Research at BEACON .................................................................................................................. 2
Education and Outreach at BEACON ........................................................................................... 3
Diversity at BEACON .................................................................................................................... 4
Knowledge Transfer to Industry .................................................................................................... 4

2. What can BEACON do for you? ................................................................................5

Community.................................................................................................................................... 5
Funding ......................................................................................................................................... 5
Student/Postdoc Association ........................................................................................................ 5
Research Opportunities ................................................................................................................ 5
Education and Outreach Opportunities......................................................................................... 5
Professional Development ............................................................................................................ 5
Mentoring and Support ................................................................................................................. 6
Opportunities with Industry ........................................................................................................... 6

3. What is expected from BEACON students and postdocs? ....................................7

How to become a member............................................................................................................ 7
Participation in BEACON events .................................................................................................. 7
Participant vs. Affiliate.............................................................................................................. 7
BEACON Multidisciplinary Graduate Courses .............................................................................. 7
Reporting requirements ................................................................................................................ 8
RCR training ................................................................................................................................. 8

4. BEACON Activities and how to get involved ...........................................................9

Friday seminars ............................................................................................................................ 9
BEACON blog ............................................................................................................................... 9
Annual Congress .......................................................................................................................... 9
Education and Outreach ............................................................................................................... 9

5. Funding opportunities for BEACON Students and Postdocs ..............................10

BEACON Recruiting Graduate Fellowships at MSU................................................................... 10
Project-based funding for students and postdocs....................................................................... 10
BEACON Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellowships ..................................................................... 10
Student/Postdoc Travel Funds ................................................................................................... 10

6. BEACON Student/Postdoc Association .................................................................12

7. Important Contacts...................................................................................................13

1. What is BEACON?
The BEACON Center for the Study of Evolution in Action is an NSF Science and
Technology Center, founded in 2010 with the mission of illuminating and harnessing the
power of evolution in action to advance science and technology and benefit society.
BEACON is headquartered at Michigan State University and has partners at North
Carolina A&T State University, University of Idaho, University of Texas at Austin, and
University of Washington. As an STC, BEACON has goals in the areas of research,
education, diversity, and knowledge transfer to industry.

Research at BEACON
BEACON research is interdisciplinary, uniting biology, computer science, and
engineering. BEACON research falls under three thrust groups, which are based on
natural levels of organization: genomes, behavior among individuals, and communitylevel dynamics. These thrust groups are united by three cross-cutting themes: biological
evolution, digital evolution, and evolutionary applications.
Thrust Group 1: Evolution of Genomes, Genetic Architectures, and Evolvability.
The overall goal of this group is to understand the evolution of genome architecture and
the processes that govern the production of genetic and phenotypic variation. Many of
these projects seek to observe and understand adaptation in action at a molecular level.
Recent projects areas include (1) genome evolvability; (2) adaptation in action; (3)
evolution of resistance to therapeutic treatments; and (4) illuminating evolutionary
processes with synthetic biology. BEACONites are using a combination of techniques,
including experimental evolution in biological and digital organisms, mathematical
modeling and simulation, and integrating data from field and lab biology.
Thrust Group 2: Evolution of Behavior and Intelligence. This group investigates the
evolutionary emergence, maintenance, and nature of intelligence and other behavioral
phenomena. The organisms studied tend to be self-directed and capable of adaptive
responses to ecological and social stimuli. Behaviors of interest include navigation,
cognition, communication, coordination, social dominance, and mate choice. Digital
evolution has proven to be a powerful tool in which data gathered from biological
organisms can be applied to recreate the evolution of complex behavior in digital
organisms. By observing the evolution of self-replicating digital organisms, we can
understand the conditions that led to the evolution of complex behaviors in biological
organisms. Data from these studies of digital evolution are integrated with studies of
living systems from single-celled organisms all the way up to mammals. Some recent
areas of focus are (1) the evolution of complex behaviors, (2) the evolution of
intelligence, and (3) the evolution of mechanisms mediating complex behaviors.
Thrust Group 3: Evolution of Communities and Collective Dynamics. Research in
this group focuses on systems of interacting individuals and the emergence and
organization of higher-level assemblages including communities, social groups and
multicellular organisms. Broadly speaking, this research includes (1) evolutionary
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processes that generate biological diversity; (2) coevolutionary dynamics of interacting

species; and (3) evolution of communication, cooperation, and group problem solving.
Thrust Group 4: Evolutionary Applications. Technological applications of evolution
have become more prominent in BEACON, as has knowledge transfer, leading us to
create a new Thrust Group as an umbrella for work that uses evolution as a powerful
tool. Evolution is a generative process that has created diverse and complex biological
systems, but fully harnessing that creative power has remained elusive. BEACON
researchers are making advances in areas including (1) evolutionary algorithms; (2)
evolution-based software engineering and robotics; and (3) using evolution for
biotechnology and synthetic biology.

Education and Outreach at BEACON

BEACON has both internal and external education goals.
Internal education: BEACON continues to offer a series of courses specifically
designed to train graduate students across disciplines. Courses include Computational
Science for Evolutionary Biologists taught by Dr Arend Hintze; Evolutionary Biology for
non-Life Scientists taught by Dr. Louise Mead; and Multidisciplinary Approaches to the
Study of Evolution taught by Drs. Chris Adami and Wolfgang Banzhaf. These courses
are offered at MSU, with students at partner universities participating via
videoconference and online technology. The Center for Engineering Education
Research at MSU evaluates the course sequence given the BEACON training
objectives. These courses also engage senior graduate students as co-instructors,
providing unique opportunities for communicating science as well as developing
instructional materials under the guidance of our faculty.
BEACON is also invested in training undergraduates in an effort to meet both our
mission to (recruit and) train graduate students, as well as our mission to increase
understanding of evolution and the nature of science. A number of educational projects
are focused on undergraduate education, and especially on involving undergraduates in
research through summer REUs but also through opportunities available during the
academic year.
External educational outreach: BEACON currently funds a number of educational
activities and programs, all of which help to meet our EHRD goals and optimal
outcomes. Student-centered activities during the past year included numerous outreach
events, REU experiences at both KBS and FHL, and new projects to engage with
undergraduate biology education. We piloted two new programs in summer 2015, one
aimed at providing research experiences for preservice teachers (URIT) and a second
program that provided research experiences for inservice teachers (BEACON
TEACHER REVOLUTION). BEACON participates in and organizes several community
outreach efforts, including the US Science and Engineering Festival held in Washington
DC and the Evolution Symposium held at the annual professional development
conference of the National Association of Biology Teachers. We also have a number of
educational activities that target the general public, including new museum exhibits at
MSU.

Diversity at BEACON
Diversity is a core value at BEACON, as we strive to increase participation by
underrepresented groups (including women, ethnic minorities, and people with
disabilities) at all levels (pre-college, undergraduate, graduate, postdoctoral, and
faculty). One of BEACONs partner institutions, North Carolina A&T State University, is
a historically black college/university (HBCU), and we are creating partnerships with
other HBCUs across the country to form a pipeline for students at those institutions
interested in pursuing graduate research at BEACONs Ph.D.-granting partner
institutions. Diversity is a consideration in BEACONs internal project funding decisions.
By increasing the diversity of experience in the people who make up BEACON, we can
increase the diversity and strength of our thought and scholarship.

Knowledge Transfer to Industry

BEACON aims to engage in knowledge exchange with industry partners. This exchange
can take many forms, including: company-provided challenge problems and data for
BEACON researchers to analyze, student internships at companies, and the adoption of
BEACON tools by industry partners.

2. What can BEACON do for you?

Community
First and foremost, BEACON is a community of interdisciplinary scholars. Through
regular weekly seminars, research collaborations, the annual Congress, and the
website, members at all five BEACON institutions come together regularly to exchange
ideas. We have a large space on the MSU campus, located in 1441 BPS Building, with
a conference room, seminar room, desk and office space for a number of students,
postdocs, and faculty, as well as a large lounge. The seminar room and conference
room are equipped with videoconferencing technology, allowing us to meet with our
partners at other institutions on a regular basis. We strongly encourage communication
across disciplines and institutions, and new research collaborations regularly emerge
from these interactions.

Funding
BEACON provides funding for students and postdocs in several different ways,
including graduate and postdoctoral fellowships, project-based funding, and travel
awards. See Section 5 (Funding Opportunities for Students and Postdocs) for more
details.

Student/Postdoc Association
The BEACON Student/Postdoc Association provides support (social, moral, and
financial) for all BEACON undergraduates, graduate students, and postdocs, and has
representation on BEACON committees. See Section 6 (BEACON Student/Postdoc
Association) for more details.

Research Opportunities
By participating in BEACON, you can receive interdisciplinary training through classes,
and find research opportunities with a wide range of faculty at five different institutions.
See our People page on the website (http://www.beacon-center.org) for a listing of
faculty associated with BEACON.

Education and Outreach Opportunities

Interested in K-12 science education or outreach to the public? BEACON has many
different kinds of education and outreach projects, and there are many opportunities for
students and postdocs to get involved. Contact Education Director Louise Mead
(lsmead@msu.edu) for more information.

Professional Development
BEACON provides many professional development opportunities, such as grant-writing
workshops, science communication workshops, and training in mentoring
undergraduate research. At MSU, we are partnering with the Center for Academic and
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Future Faculty Excellence (CAFFE, http://grad.msu.edu/caffe) to provide some of these

opportunities and encourage participation in CAFFEs large menu of other professional
development opportunities.

Mentoring and Support

BEACON is dedicated to providing an inclusive environment for all members. Diversity
Director Judi Brown Clarke (jbc@msu.edu) is always available for support and advice.
For graduate students, postdocs, and faculty interested in involving undergraduates in
research, we offer training in mentorship so that everyone can get the most out of the
research experience.

Opportunities with Industry

Many BEACON faculty members maintain strong contacts with people in industry. We
are developing an online resource where students interested in internships and other
opportunities can post their CVs, and where potential employers can find qualified
students to work with them. Contact Knowledge Transfer Manager Betty Cheng for
more information (chengb@cse.msu.edu).

3. What is expected from BEACON students and postdocs?

How to become a member
Any student or postdoc whose primary advisor is a BEACON faculty member can join
BEACON. Contact Managing Director Danielle Whittaker (djwhitta@msu.edu) to be
added to the database and mailing lists.

Participation in BEACON events

While we dont expect you to participate in every activity available, we do encourage
students and postdocs to be regularly involved in BEACON events. Ideally, students
should do some or all of the following:
Regular attendance of Friday BEACON seminars, and presenting at least once a
year once the student has commenced her/his own research
Completion of BEACON multidisciplinary courses
Participation in BEACON-sponsored or BEACON-relevant research
Embracing a multi-disciplinary and multi-institutional perspective
Presenting research at BEACON Congresses and in poster sessions at special
events
Contributing to the BEACON blog

Participant vs. Affiliate

According to NSFs definitions, a Center participant is someone who participates in
Center activities at least 160 hours per year. This includes taking BEACON courses,
being involved in BEACON research (whether it is directly funded by BEACON or not),
attending or presenting at the Friday seminars and the Congress, or any other BEACON
activities. If you are affiliated with BEACON but not at the 160-hour level, then NSF
considers you an affiliate. Please be sure that your designation in your online profile is
correct (more below, under Reporting Requirements).

BEACON Multidisciplinary Graduate Courses

BEACON graduate students are expected to take the multidisciplinary graduate courses
offered at all five BEACON institutions. Graduate-level courses are offered at MSU, with
distance participation by students at UI, UT, and UW; a parallel sequence is offered for
upper-level undergraduates and graduate students at NC A&T. In the fall semester,
biology students learn computer science skills, while computer science and engineering
students learn the basics of evolutionary biology. In the spring semester, students from
both of these courses come together to apply their new skills to interdisciplinary,
collaborative research projects. Check the Graduate Education page on the BEACON
website (https://beacon-center.org/education-outreach/graduate-education/) for the
most up-to-date information about these courses.

Reporting requirements
As a member of BEACON, you should maintain an up-to-date profile on the BEACON
intranet (http://secure.beacon-center.org). We ask that you regularly report your
BEACON outputs and activities on the intranet, including but not limited to: publications,
degrees completed, awards received, and education/outreach activities. When
publishing work that was supported by BEACON, please be sure to acknowledge it by
putting BEACON as one of your affiliations and, if allowed by the journal/conference,
listing NSF support in the acknowledgments section with the following wording:
This material is based in part upon work supported by the National
Science Foundation under Cooperative Agreement No. DBI-0939454. Any
opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this
material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views
of the National Science Foundation.

RCR training
All BEACON students and postdocs, whether or not they are directly receiving funding,
are required by NSF to complete Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) training. In
addition to training required and provided by your home department and institution,
BEACON also regularly offers RCR training opportunities.

4. BEACON Activities and how to get involved

Friday seminars
BEACON Friday seminars take place every Friday at 3:30 PM Eastern, 1441 BPS
Building (MSU), or in videoconference rooms at partner institutions. Typically 1-2 people
give a talk each Friday. These talks are not intended to be polished, finished projects.
Instead, we encourage talks on works in progress, with the intention of getting feedback
and interest across BEACON. All five partner institutions participate via
videoconference. If you are interested in presenting, please contact the Managing
Director, Danielle Whittaker (djwhitta@msu.edu). You can see the current schedule at
any time by going to the BEACON Events tab on the website and click the link below
the calendar for Read-only spreadsheet, or just go to
http://tinyurl.com/BEACONSeminars.

BEACON blog
Every week, we feature a blog post written by BEACON members, especially students
and postdocs. These posts describe their BEACON research at a level that can be
easily understood by the public, and are designed to communicate your research not
only within BEACON but also to the outside world. We encourage all BEACONites to
contribute! If you are interested in writing a post, please contact Managing Director
Danielle Whittaker (djwhitta@msu.edu).

Annual Congress
Every summer, BEACON holds the BEACON Congress at the MSU headquarters. This
annual meeting is a great opportunity to share your research, learn what other research
is going on, and brainstorm about new collaborations with other BEACON members at
all 5 institutions. Travel for this Congress is covered by BEACON. [Because the largest
number of BEACON members is at MSU, it would be prohibitively expensive to hold the
Congress at another partner institution.]

Education and Outreach

There are many opportunities to get involved in BEACON education and outreach
activities! Below is a partial list of some ongoing opportunities and people to contact if
you are interested. Were always looking for new ideas, too!
Mentoring a summer research undergraduate student (contact Judi Brown
Clarke, jbc@msu.edu)
Volunteer opportunities disseminating science at local community science nights
throughout the year (contact Louise Mead, lsmead@msu.edu)
Volunteer opportunities as a scientist speaker as part of the Darwin Day
Roadshow (contact Alexa Warwick, awarwick@msu.edu)
Volunteer opportunities assisting with the Evolution Conference Film Festival
(contact Travis Hagey, hageyt@msu.edu)
Write a Data Nugget using your research (http://datanuggets.org/)
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5. Funding opportunities for BEACON Students and

Postdocs
BEACON Recruiting Graduate Fellowships at MSU
BEACON offers top-up fellowships to new Michigan State University students who
receive University Fellowships (http://grad.msu.edu/universityfellowships/) or external
funding, such as from NSF. Students must be nominated for these fellowships by a
BEACON faculty member. If an applicant is awarded a BEACON Top-Up Recruiting
Fellowship, they will receive between $3,000 and $5,000 in additional fellowship funds
for each year they participate in BEACON activities, for up to a maximum of five years.
If the applicant receives an NSF or other similar fellowship already providing $30,000 or
more in annual support, BEACON will offer a one-time fellowship supplement of $5,000.
Students receiving these fellowships are required to take the two BEACON
multidisciplinary graduate courses (see Section 3: What is Expected from BEACON
Students?). The funds for these fellowships come from matching funds from MSU, not
from NSF, so we are unable to offer them at partner institutions. For more information
on MSU graduate funding opportunities, see http://grad.msu.edu/funding/.

Project-based funding for students and postdocs

Projects chosen for funding in the annual BEACON budget allocation process typically
include funds for graduate research assistantships, postdocs, and/or undergraduate
hourly pay. Students and postdocs who are affiliated with BEACON faculty on a funded
project may be supported by one of these projects, and will conduct research related to
the goals of that project. This funding is available at all five partner institutions.
Typically, these funding requests are submitted by BEACON faculty, but graduate
students and postdocs can be co-PIs on these requests. In some cases postdocs can
also be the lead PI on funding requests, as long as BEACON faculty are included as coPIs.
BEACON faculty can now advertise open, funded positions for students and postdocs
on the BEACON website (under Available Positions). To have a position listed here,
please send the information to Managing Director Danielle Whittaker.

BEACON Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellowships

BEACON offers one competitive 2-year fellowship per year to an outstanding
interdisciplinary postdoctoral scientist. The fellow will be based at MSU (funds are
provided by MSU matching funds) but will need two faculty sponsors, one of which may
be from a different BEACON institution. Application instructions are available on the
BEACON website (under Available Positions).

Student/Postdoc Travel Funds

Students and postdocs at all five institutions may apply for funding to travel to
conferences, workshops, etc., if the travel is related to BEACON research. Many
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BEACON-funded projects explicitly include such travel funds, but other travel funds are
available for those not supported on such projects. To apply for travel funds, download
the application form on the BEACON website and follow the instructions there (look
under the menu item For Current Members and choose Student/Postdoc Travel
Funds).

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6. BEACON Student/Postdoc Association

The first goal of the BEACON undergraduate, graduate, and postdoc association is to
promote communication, both within- and among BEACON institutions. Towards this
goal, we have chosen liaisons at all 5 partner universities, each of whom is planning to
build a strong network among students and postdocs at their home institution. These
groups will have regular social interactions such as "lunches and lab tours" to learn
about different BEACON-related activities at their institutions. The group of liaisons
communicates regularly in order to share successes and keep each of the sites
connected. We also plan to elect representatives to the various committees within
BEACON so that students and postdocs have a voice in the directions of BEACON.
These representatives will receive feedback from and communicate to the entire body of
BEACON students and postdocs about the activities of these committees. Additionally,
the organization aims to use some of its funds to support between-institution travel
outside that of funded projects in order to foster new collaborations and maintain a
cohesive body of students and postdocs.
This collaboration both within and among partner institutions is a major priority of the
student and postdoc association. Through events such as a student and postdoc
retreat, scheduled to take place before BEACON Congresses, students and postdocs
can learn about work being done at other institutions as well as form new collaborations.
To support potential collaborations, students and postdocs can submit requests for
small, fixed-amount awards that are provided by the association in order to help begin
new or maintain existing cross-discipline and cross-institution collaboration.
Another major component of the BEACON student and postdoc association is to
prepare BEACON alumni for wherever their careers take them. This training is
accomplished through the interaction of undergraduates and graduate students as well
as graduate students and postdocs, so that each of these groups can learn from those
in the next phase of their academic careers. This training is extended through planned
local outreach programs funded by the student and postdoc organization, in which high
school students are invited to meet with and observe researchers in BEACON. By
interacting with BEACON members, these students can gain a greater understanding of
science in action, and how students are educated. Additionally, the small awards
available can be used to fund personal development and/or outreach activities such as
invited speakers during the student and postdoc retreat preceding the BEACON
Congresses. By these means, we hope this organization will cater directly to the needs
of its constituents, since the activities are created and dictated by them.
For more information, contact your local Student/Postdoc Association Liaison (see
section 7: Important Contacts).

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7. Important Contacts

Title

BEACON Leadership
Name
Email

Director
Deputy Director
Managing Director
Education Director
Diversity Director
Administrative Assistant
Accounts Manager
Knowledge Transfer Mgr
NCAT co-lead

Erik Goodman
Charles Ofria
Danielle Whittaker
Louise Mead
Judi Brown Clarke
Connie James
Darcie Zubek
Betty Cheng
Gerry Dozier

goodman@egr.msu.edu
ofria@msu.edu
djwhitta@msu.edu
lsmead@msu.edu
jbc@msu.edu
jamesc@msu.edu
zubek@msu.edu
chengb@cse.msu.edu
gvdozier@ncat.edu

NCAT co-lead
UI lead
UT lead
UW lead
Thrust Group 1 lead
Thrust Group 1 lead
Thrust Group 2 lead
Thrust Group 2 lead
Thrust Group 3 lead
Thrust Group 3 lead
Thrust Group 4 lead
Thrust Group 4 lead

Joseph Graves
James Foster
Risto Miikkulainen
Benjamin Kerr
Bill Punch
Chris Waters
Kay Holekamp
Rob Pennock
Fred Dyer
Phil McKinley
Chris Adami
Kalyanmoy Deb

gravesjl@ncat.edu
foster@uidaho.edu
risto@cs.utexas.edu
kerrb@u.washington.edu
punch@cse.msu.edu
watersc3@msu.edu
holekamp@msu.edu
pennock5@msu.edu
fcdyer@msu.edu
mckinley@cse.msu.edu
adami@msu.edu
kdeb@egr.msu.edu

Title
MSU Co-Liaison
MSU Co-Liaison
MSU Co-Liaison
NC A&T Liaison
UI Liaison
UT Liaison
UW Liaison

BEACON Student/Postdoc Association

Name
Teresa Clark
Jory Schossau
Leigh Sheneman

Phone
517-355-6453
517-355-8389
517-884-2561
517-884-2560
517-353-5985
517-884-2548
517-884-2556
517-355-8344
336-334-7245
ext.467
336-285-2858
208-885-7905
512-471-9571
206-221-3996
517-353-3541
517-884-5360
517-432-3691
517-432-7701
517-353-9864
517-353-4396
517-884-5068
517-884-2567

Email

clarkte7@msu.edu
jory@msu.edu
leighs@msu.edu

Please contact Danielle Whittaker (djwhitta@msu.edu) for

more information.

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