MCB Prizes
PERALTA AWARD
Named for MCB faculty Ernest Peralta (1959-1999), the Peralta Essay Award recognizes outstanding science and science communication as exemplified by an essay about your thesis or postdoc project. All doctoral candidates (post qualifying exam) in MCO, graduate students working in MCB laboratories as well as postdoctoral fellows in MCB labs are eligible to apply. The award includes a crystal award and a $1,000 prize.
Each entry shall consist of a 1-2 page (1000-1200 word) essay targeted to a literate but non-specialized audience about your thesis project (any figure or illustration must be contained within the two-page limit). It should be fun and deeply informative. The audience should understand why your question is important, how you are testing a hypothesis or collecting data to describe a system, and gain a feeling for your journey/progress.
The award recipient is announced at a ceremony during the MCB Retreat and nominees must be present at the awards ceremony in order to be eligible.
Previous Winners:
2024- Katelyn Boulanger (Lisa Goodrich Lab)
2023 - Anastasia Repouliou (Extavour Lab)
2022- Suhrid Ghosh (Postdoc, Extavour Lab)
2021 – Rachel Lily Terry (Paulsson Lab)
2020 – no awards given this year
2019 – Javier Masis (Cox Lab) and James Valcourt, SSQB (Ramanathan Lab)
2018 – Stephania Irwin (Balskus Lab) and Kalki Kukreja (Allon Klein Lab)
2017 – Vayu Maini Rekdal (Balskus Lab)
2016 – Jun-Han Su (Zhuang Lab)
2015 – Jenelle Wallace (Murthy and Stevens Labs)
2014 - Mackenzie Amoroso (Uchida Lab)
2013 – Sriram Srikant (Gaudet Lab and Murray Lab)
2012 – Ezgi Hacisuleyman (Rinn Lab)
2011 – Ghazaleh Ashrafi (Schwarz Lab, HMS)
2010 – Mary Wahl (Murray Lab)
2009 – Natalie Funk (Murray Lab)
2008 – Sarah Miller (D’Souza Lab)
2007 – Christopher Murphy (Michael Lab)
2006 – Martin Samuels (Jeruzalmi Lab)
2005 – Erik Procko (Gaudet Lab)
MESELSON PRIZE
Established in 2008 on the 50th anniversary of the groundbreaking experiment by Matthew Meselson and Franklin Stahl, the MCB Department awards the Meselson Prize to commemorate the “most beautiful experiment of the year.” The prize consists of a crystal award and a $1,000 prize, and is open to graduate students and post-docs in MCB labs.
The MCB Prize Committee solicits nominations from faculty advisors, and each candidate is evaluated based on the beauty of the experiment conducted (either individually or in collaboration with another graduate student or post-doctoral fellow). Prize winners are announced at a ceremony during the MCB Department Retreat and nominees must be present at the awards ceremony in order to be eligible. Important: Each nominee should prepare a short talk (~7 minute description) of the experiment for presentation, to be given at the awards ceremony, should they be the recipient of the prize. No slides are necessary but a white board is available if needed.
Materials Needed:
- A one-page essay describing the beautiful experiment.
- The essay must be accessible to a wide audience and should describe a concrete experiment or theoretical contribution completed in the preceding year, not a “life-time achievement.” The essay should also include an appraisal of the esthetic qualities of the work.
- A supporting letter from the research supervisor. This should include a description of the nominee’s involvement in the planning and execution of the study.
- A second letter of support from any other member of the MCB faculty.
Previous Winners:
2023: Giri Anand (SEAS, Ramanathan Lab)
2022: Malcom Campell (Postdoc, Uchida Lab)
2021: Jessica Osterhout (Dulac Lab)
2020: no awards given this year
2019: Navish Wadhwa (Berg Lab)
2018: HyungGoo Kim (Uchida Lab)
2017: Georgia Squyres (Garner Lab)
2011: Jeremiah Cohen (Uchida Lab)
2010: no recipient
2009: Itay Budin (Szostak Lab)
2008: Mariana Mihalusova (Zhuang Lab)