Julius Barsi

PI Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences

Senior Fellow California Institute of Technology

PhD The University of Texas at Austin

Julius was born in Pasadena, a suburb of Los Angeles California, in 1977. His wanderlust led him to complete undergraduate studies abroad. He returned to the States after having spent several years in Patagonia. As a young man, he moved to Austin to pursue doctoral research at the University of Texas. In 2005 he published his first research paper on mammalian development and received his Doctor of Philosophy diploma in molecular biology the following year. He returned to his hometown of Pasadena to complete postdoctoral training at the California Institute of Technology, where he rose to the rank of Senior Fellow. In 2019, the Barsi lab opened its doors at the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences. Read more here and here.

Senior Fellow California Institute of Technology

Senior Fellow The University of Cambridge

PhD The University of Pennsylvania

Klára was born in the Czech Republic. After completing her education in Prague, she pursued a doctorate in Chemistry at the University of Pennsylvania where she harnessed chemical synthesis to target individual carcinogenic cells. Her approach exploited photoactive components derived from algae in order to locate tissues of interest. To close the gap between therapy and etiology she pivoted towards genetics, genomics and molecular biology; ultimately, carrying out her postdoctoral work in Cambridge, UK. From there, she was recruited to the California Institute of Technology where she worked on synthetic biology.

Intern Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences

Att. University of British Columbia, Vancouver Canada

Saxon grew up in Bermuda and completed the International Baccalaureate at Warwick Academy. She now attends the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, where she is majoring in Biology. She has completed an internship through the Bermuda Program at BIOS twice before, and this summer is looking forward to working in the Barsi Lab as genetics has captured her interest and been her favorite course subject at university thus far.

Intern Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences

Att. Westminster School, Connecticut USA

Born and raised in Bermuda, Tomasina completed her GCSEs at Bermuda High School. She currently attends Westminster School in Connecticut, with an eye on psychology and marine biology. Having grown up in and around the water, she has always held curiosity for the ocean. This summer she shall intern at the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences, supported by the Bermuda Program.

Intern Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences

Att. Lehigh University, Pennsylvania USA

Norman was born and raised in Harare, Zimbabwe. After completing his Advanced Level studies at Mazowe High School, he moved to the United States (Bethlehem, PA). Currently, Norman is doing his undergraduate studies in Computer Science and Bioengineering at Lehigh University. Norman has a deep interest in computational approaches to solve biological and medical problems ranging from molecular modeling to healthcare informatics. This summer, Norman shall intern remotely with the Barsi Lab on ‘Bioinformatic Analysis of Differential Gene Expression in Developing Deuterostomes’, supported by the Lehigh University Iacocca International Internship Program.

Intern Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences

B.S. McMaster University

Anik grew up in Toronto, ON Canada. Growing up with family ties in Bermuda, where she learned to scuba dive, she has always loved being by the ocean. She completed her undergraduate studies in molecular biology at McMaster University, during which she conducted research on sea urchin larval development for her thesis. She then worked as a cephalopod aquarist in Woods Hole MA, where she cultured and conducted research on cuttlefish, squid, and octopuses. Anik will be participating in a remote internship with the Barsi lab on Differential Gene Expression Analysis in Sea Urchins as a part of the CABIOS (Canadian Associates of BIOS) program, before commencing her Master's in Marine Biology, September 2021 at Northeastern University in Boston, MA.

Intern Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences

GCSE Oakham School

Born and raised in Bermuda, Matthew completed his GCSEs and A Levels at Oakham school in the UK. Studying Math, Biology and Chemistry at A level he also completed an extended project qualification in the regenerative and immune system abilities of Echinoderms. With a keen interest in marine science and biochemistry he aims to attend University College London to read Biochemistry MSci starting in September. This summer he will interning at the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences working on Differential Gene Expression in Sea Urchins, supported by the Bermuda Program. Employing tissue-specific transcriptomes, he shall differentiate between house-keeping genes and those that endow the cell with its functional properties.

Intern Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences

B.S. Scottish Association for Marine Science (UK)

Paula grew up in Singapore and the Netherlands – always living near the ocean. This summer -with support from the UK associates of BIOS program- she will be doing a remote internship in the Barsi lab on Differential Gene Expression Analysis in Sea Urchins. Paula will commence her Erasmus Mundus masters in ‘Marine Environment’ in September. Academic Interests: Ecology / interactions between environment and organisms (e.g. genetic & epigenetic effects of metals on marine organisms).