Second Leg of Greek Sampling

September 19th 2010 After we picked up our samples in Maliakos Gulf and changed Greek collaborators we sailed overnight to Psara Island to collect sample #30 on the sample map. Weather became an issue as we tried to collect samples site #26. The winds were blowing over 30 knots and seas were...

The Start of Greek Sampling and Rough Sampling Conditions!

September 15th 2010 Aegean Sea Map On September 10th we arrived in the northeastern Aegean Sea and docked in the city of Alexandroupolis. We spent a few hours dealing with customs which was not normal for the Mediterranean countries. Turns out that this area is well known for being an...

Tourist in Turkey

September 11th 2010 Our time in Turkey was relatively short, but we saw and learned a lot in that time. Our first stop was in Canakkale, it would have been an uneventful 1 night stop if it wasn’t for this…..Byron Hellespont Bicentenary Swim. This yearly race allows you to swim the 3...

Turkish Transect

September 10th 2010 Tonight we arrived in the Greek town of Alexandroupolis, which is located in northeast Aegean Sea. In the last 3 days we have collected 10 samples from 5 sites; it has been a long couple days! In the last blog I talked about the 2 sample sites in the Black Sea, since then...

Back To Sampling In The Black Sea and Rough Rough Weather

September 9th 2010 Hello everyone! I know it has been a long time since the last post from Sorcerer II. Let me take the time to explain…………..in early August we sailed to Greece. As I have mentioned in the past we have permits with each country to collect samples, these permits have...

Take home message of the 2010 Amebiasis Montreal Meeting: beware of who you kiss…

The Entamoeba community is a small and collegial one. Everyone knows everyone and everyone else wants to collaborate, and learn and do more to tackle down this neglected among neglected diseases. For many, the thought of an amoeba brings to memory Garry Larson’s The Far Side amorphous...

Entamoeba histolytica research presented at the Molecular Parasitology Meeting

Entamoeba histolytica causes invasive intestinal and extraintestinal infections, known as amoebiasis, in about 50 million people and still remains a significant cause of human death in developing countries. However, for unknown reasons, fewer than 10% of E. histolytica infections are...

Virtual Comparative Metagenomics

We have created an open virtualization format (OVF) package of JCVI's Metagenomics Reports (METAREP)- a high performance comparative metagenomics analysis tool. The software runs on a web server, retrieves data from two different database systems and uses R for statistical analysis. The new OVF...

Italy: Sites and Sailing

Saturday July 31st When I last wrote we had finished our 10 day sampling window in Italian waters. On Wednesday July 21st we arrived in Rome the same day Dr. Venter, Heather Kowalski, and Darwin the super boat dog had flown in from the states. We spent 3 days in Rome, most of the time was...

S. pneumoniae sticks to dying lung cells, worsening secondary infection following flu

Sailing the Seas in Search of Microbes

Projects aimed at collecting big data about the ocean’s tiniest life forms continue to expand our view of the seas.

What the Public Should Not Know

J. Craig Venter, PhD, argues scientists have “a moral obligation to communicate what they're doing to the public,” and that more studies deserve greater public criticism.

Scientists coax cells with the world’s smallest genomes to reproduce normally

The discovery could sharpen scientists’ understanding of which functions are crucial for normal cells and what the many mysterious genes in these organisms are doing

San Diego arts, health, science and youth groups to share $71M from Prebys Foundation

The J. Craig Venter Institute is the recipient of three awards totaling more than $1.5M to study SARS-CoV-2 and heart disease

Reflections on the 20th Anniversary of the First Publication of the Human Genome

A new wave of research is needed to make ample use of humanity’s “most wondrous map”

Scientists rush to determine if mutant strain of coronavirus will deepen pandemic

U.S. researchers have been slow to perform the genetic sequencing that will help clarify the situation

After saving countless lives, Nobel laureate Hamilton Smith retires as his own health falters

He has been a fixture in San Diego science for decades