SBHS grad Kevin Johnson to present algae research at Washington,
D.C. event
CSU Monterey Bay biology major Kevin Johnson, a 2004 graduate of
San Benito High School, has been selected to present his research
at the inaugural Emerging Researchers National Conference in
Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, to be held next month in
Washington, D.C.
The conference is designed to help students enhance their
science communication skills, better understand how to prepare for
science careers in a global workforce, and to find out about
summer, graduate school and employment opportunities.
SBHS grad Kevin Johnson to present algae research at Washington, D.C. event
CSU Monterey Bay biology major Kevin Johnson, a 2004 graduate of San Benito High School, has been selected to present his research at the inaugural Emerging Researchers National Conference in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, to be held next month in Washington, D.C.
The conference is designed to help students enhance their science communication skills, better understand how to prepare for science careers in a global workforce, and to find out about summer, graduate school and employment opportunities.
It is co-sponsored by the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the National Science Foundation.
Johnson will present a poster summarizing research he started last summer, when he worked with graduate student Erin Stanfield. The project began as an internship with the Santa Cruz Water Department.
His research involves observing what types of cyanobacteria – a blue-green algae – are present in Loch Lomond and Pinto Lake, and whether or not they have the potential to produce microcystin, a liver toxin that has been linked to sea otter deaths in Monterey Bay.
The World Health Organization has set limits on the amount of microcystin in sources of recreational and drinking water.
“We are looking at Pinto Lake in Watsonville as it’s a recreational body of water that has produced large blooms of cyanobacteria. And we’re looking at Loch Lomond because it’s the source of drinking water for Santa Cruz,” Johnson said, in a press release. “We’re using both environmental and molecular lab techniques in order to identify potential toxicity at each lake.
The junior from San Benito County was also selected to attend the CSU Program for Education and Research in Biotechnology conference in January.
“This research will inform water management agencies in Watsonville and Santa Cruz regarding water quality,” Johnson said.
His faculty mentor is Dr. Aparna Sreenivasan.
