2019-2020 STEM Talks
Thank you to all of our wonderful past speakers!
Thank you to the Sharon Education Foundation for funding our STEM Talks in the 2019-2020 school year!
Thank you to the Sharon Education Foundation for funding our STEM Talks in the 2019-2020 school year!
Dr. Andrew Murray, Harvard University
What sets the speed limit of evolution?
What sets the speed limit of evolution?

Andrew Murray grew up in England with American parents. When he was eleven he wanted to be a race car driver, but he discovered he had slow reflexes and was inspired to be a scientist by his high school chemistry teacher, “Doc” Powell. He did his Ph.D. with Jack Szostak constructing artificial chromosomes and a postdoc with Mark Kirschner showing that cyclin synthesis and destruction regulates the cell division cycle. His group works on experimental evolution using the brewer’s yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. They use genetic and physiological perturbations, synthetic biology, and collaborations with theorists to try to understand the “rules of the game” that explain how cells reproduce, respond to their environment, and evolve. In education, he is interested in breaking interdisciplinary barriers without sacrificing discipline.