Entomology
Graduate
Organization

Graduate Spotlight

photo Aaron Myers

AARON J. MYERS

November 2013

Advisor

Dr. Bennett and Dr. Scharf

Expected Graduation

Winter 2014

EGO Officer Position

None

Originally From

Fort Wayne, Indiana

Future Career Plans

I am planning on staying to pursue my PhD here at Purdue in the same field I am currently in. Afterwards, I am not sure. I will go wherever I feel called to go and pursue it to the fullest.

Area of Research

Urban Entomology with a special focus in Molecular Biology

Summary of Research

I work with the German cockroach and I am looking at proteins that are found in the tergal glands of the male German cockroach. I am looking to identify different unknown proteins, to look at expression levels using qPCR of two specific proteins at the transcript level, and I am also looking at doing enzyme assays to try to determine possible function of the two proteins of interest.

How You Got Into Entomology

I was always interested in bugs and insects when I was a little kid. I had a friend when I was less than 5 years old who would go "bug hunting" as my mom puts it with me and even when I got up to high school and college I still look around for different insects because they amaze me and are extremely interesting to me.

Favorite Insect and Why

Queen Alexandra's Birdwing; The colors on this butterfly are amazing, it is enormous in size, it lives on isolated islands in the pacific, and words cannot describe how amazing this insect is. But I also have always liked butterflies.

Favorite Cookie

Anything chocolate. I am a choco maniac, which is kind of bad since I am on a diet at the moment.

Favorite Movie

Too many to describe for different reasons. In terms of recent movies, I would say the Avengers, Dark Knight Rises, and Avatar.

Place You Would Like to Visit

I would love to visit a variety of places, but for me it's not much of a place but an experience. I have snorkeled with sharks before, but I would love to cage dive with Great White Sharks. It would take my breath away and would be an awesome experience.

Graduate Spotlight Archive

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Aaron J. Myers

November 2013

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October 2013