Blondie wins prize for PhD student
An essay inspired by a Blondie record has won a top prize for a PhD student at SCRI, Scotland’s leading crop research institute.
Lindsay McMenemy, of the Environment Plant Interactions and Plant Pathology programmes, has been awarded the runner-up prize in the 2008 Student Essay Competition run by the Royal Entomological Society, the oldest entomological society in the world.
Her essay, ‘One way or another: Blondie’s infectious record explains plant-virus-vector interactions’, explored how plant viruses hijack plant signalling pathways to manipulate the behaviour of aphids that transmit them into new host plants.
This novel comparison with Debbie Harry’s classic song builds on Lindsay’s PhD research exploring how raspberry viruses influence the behaviour of the large raspberry aphid, supervised by Scott Johnson (EPI) and Stuart MacFarlane (PP).
On congratulating Lindsay, the society awarded her a small cash prize and a grant to attend their 2009 annual meeting.
More details of the awards can be found on the RES website student awards page.
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Man it's cool to see how a
Man it's cool to see how a record can inspire students in all different ways. I have a bunch of woodstock cds and can only imagine what my parents were doing after that concert listening to these same tracks.
Music Inspired Essay
I wonder what a KISS inspired article relating to nocturnal varieties of carniverous plants would win (I want to rock and roll all night and party every day) . I think that this is another example of art inspiring intellect!
Jake Northwood