Dr. Paul Auerbach
When and where did you cross?
I think that's well-known at this point. March 9th, 1997, the foundling
line for University of California at Riverside.
What degree(s) do you currently hold?
Bachelors of Science from UCR in Biology, PhD in Biological Sciences in
Public Health from Harvard University. As I've mentioned before, I was
at the School of Public Health (part of the Longwood Medical Campus
arm of Harvard, located in Boston), doing nothing directly public health
related. My research was best categorized as molecular biology, some
genetics, some cell biology, and some biochemistry.
If people really want to know the twisty history of why I was at that
particular campus, rather than the medical school or "across the river"
on the Cambridge campus: A little ways back, one of the epidemiology
professors at HSPH wanted to study the biological basis for the
population work he was doing, so he set up a laboratory of Toxicology,
then started recruiting other scientists, eventually turning that into the
Division of Toxicology, which was all laboratory research. Around the
same time, another group was studying the effects of radiation
exposure, and started the division of Radiation Biology. These later merged (about a year before I started) in the Department of Cancer
Cell Biology, which, again, was all lab work and no actual public health work. During my last year there, we merged with the half of the
Nutrition department that was doing actual lab research, as opposed to population studies, to become the Department of Genetics and Complex Diseases.
|
Founding Brother Dr. Paul Auerbach
Alpha Zeta Chapter |
|
My own thesis work was entitled "Mutagenic specificity of endogenously generated abasic sites in Saccharomyces cerevisiae
chromosomal DNA". I have a paper from 2005 in PNAS for anyone curious enough to read up on part of my work. The rest
may get published eventually. I was steered towards Harvard due to being at UCR. During my senior year, I did volunteer
undergraduate work in the lab of Dr. Andrew Grosovsky, who, once upon a time, gothis degree from that same program at
Harvard. He recommended I apply to it, and so I did.
What motivated you to achieve the highest degree?
I've wanted to conduct scientific research for a long time. While I have great respect for medical doctors, I decided
that I would ultimately be able to help more people for a longer period of time if I contributed to research aimed at better
understanding how our bodies respond to and deal with damage--cancer, mutations, fighting infections, etc.
What's the most interesting thing you've come across in your course of study?
Most of the work, and the results of the research, has been interesting to me. Beyond the work itself, my time in grad school
was a great experience.Boston is a wonderful city, once you get past the weather, and I made some good friends and learned
a lot about myself and my own capabilities.
During this time, have you also worked with the Fraternity? If so, in what capacity? If not, what
would you have wished you'd done?
The Fraternity does not have a presence in Boston, so I wasn't able to do much with Lambda Theta Phi directly. I kept in
touch with some of the brothers, and visited UCR a few times, but that was about it. Iwould have liked to become involved
with any local chapters while I was there and taken a more active part in the history and expansion of Lambda.
Ultimately, though, my bonds with the brothers closest to me have stayed true, even across the country. A line brother (our
own "he who who must not be named"--we had our own falling out some years ago) introduced me to my now-wife, and
three brothers served as groomsmen at my wedding--my line brother Christian, my little brother Frank, and my retroactively-
adopted little brother from Long Beach, Gus Sagredo.
What's your ultimate career goal?
My likely next stop would be to work in industry, for a biotech or pharmaceutical company. I'm not ruling out an academic career
but those are becoming harder to come by, and I saw the worst aspects of competingfor tenure while I was at Harvard. Besdies
which, I would like to start making a decent wage before I'm 40, and that wouldn't happen if I bummed around as an assistant
professor for a while. My alternate career path is to work for a winery or brewery, due to my experiences of working with yeast.
Do you see any ways in which you could enhance an undergraduate's experience through your
experiences?
My main tip for undergraduates would be to have an idea of where you want to be after graduation, and aim your time in college
towards that. It isn't always necessary to have everything planned out, but know where you generally want to end up. Make
time to enjoy yourself while you can, but don't be stupid about it -- while you're in school, your schoolwork must come first.
When we were pledging for this great fraternity, we were told our priorities should be, in order: family, school, then Fraternity.
This is true. Unless you're hoping for reincarnation, you get one shot at this life, so live it well and live it smart.
What advice would you give to a Brother on the cusp of graduating?
The latter half of my previous answer would somewhat apply here. Mainly, make sure of your next step. Try to remain close to
your Brothers, as they are going to be a support network for you for the rest of your life.
Did you receive any awards or recognition post Bachelors?
I received a Student Speaker Award for the best student presentation at my PhD program's annual retreat in 2004. I also
currently have a grant from the NIH funding my work for which I had to apply and compete against other postdoctoral researchers.
|
