Barbara Schaal, Ph.D.
Schaal to speak on cultivating nutrition through genetics
Plant biologist Barbara Schaal, Ph.D., will deliver the next Discovery Lecture, “Enhancing Nutrition in the Developing World: The Tropical Crop Cassava,” on Thursday, Nov. 20, at 4 p.m. in 208 Light Hall.
Cassava, probably best known as the main ingredient for tapioca pudding, is a major tropical subsistence crop that feeds millions in the developing world. Schaal's research on the evolution of this plant is laying the groundwork for breeding varieties with better yields and improved nutritional value.
Schaal, the Spencer T. Olin Professor of Biology at Washington University in St. Louis, is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and a member of the National Academy of Sciences. In 2005, Schaal became the first woman elected Vice President of the National Academy of Sciences.
The lecture is sponsored by the Vanderbilt Department of Pediatrics.
For a complete schedule of the Discovery Lecture Series and archived video of previous lectures, go to www.mc.vanderbilt.edu/discoveryseries.