Presentation explores specter of infectious disease

Despite advances in medicine, disease remains a threat to the well-being of humans around the planet.

Emma Chaput, assistant professor of human biology at COCC, took on the subject in a Sisters Science Club-sponsored Frontiers in Science event at The Belfry last Thursday evening.

Professor Chaput teaches anatomy and physiology courses and microbiology at COCC. She is an epidemiologist and worked with the Center for Disease Control's Emerging Infections Program and studied epidemiology of microbial diseases at Yale University. Lyme disease was first described by epidemiologists at Yale.

"I am completely captivated by the wild intricacies of human biology and by how people's population dynamics, behavior, and interactions with the environment cause diseases to emerge or re-emerge," said Chaput.

About 60 people attended as Chaput defined emerging infectious diseases and talked about patterns and variabilities of these diseases in humans and other species. She encouraged questions from the audience. When asked about the seemingly increasing frequency of infectious diseases, Chaput pointed to increases in population, urbanization and density of populations, continued resource use and habitat destruction, and increased human interaction through such means as air travel to foreign places.

Prior to the guest speaker's presentation, Bob Collins, Science Club president, introduced Bethany Bachmeier, a Sisters High School freshman in Rima Givot's biology class.

Bachmeier gave a presentation and slide show about her field study, "Different Niches of Rodents in the Trout Creek Conservation Area (TCCA)." She spent three weeks documenting and photographing rodents in five distinctive areas of the TCCA. Bachmeier visited the TCCA twice a day to watch the behavior and identify the species.

She found most of the rodents were yellow pine chipmunks and least chipmunks, and fewer numbers of grey squirrels and golden mantel ground squirrels.

By looking for specific rodent niches in the forest, Bachmeier was able to conclude that these animals helped to spread seeds, break down decomposing wood, oxygenate and break up the soil, and are a significant food source for predators.

The Sisters Science Club presents free lectures at The Belfry, with food and beverages available prior to the lecture. For more information about the Sisters Science Club visit www.sistersscienceclub.org.