ThoughtGallery.org > Evening Talks Lecture: Are You Your Genome? Exploring Identity Through the Lens of DNA

Evening Talks Lecture: Are You Your Genome? Exploring Identity Through the Lens of DNA

Panelists Include:
Joseph Pickrell, PhD

Core Member and Assistant Investigator, New York Genome Center Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University

Dr. Pickrell runs a lab dedicated to developing computational and statistical tools to transform large-scale genomic data into a better understanding of human biology. Before joining the New York Genome Center in 2014, Joe was a postdoctoral researcher at Harvard Medical School. He holds a PhD in Human Genetics from the University of Chicago and a BS in Biology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Alondra Nelson, PhD 

Dean of Social Science at Columbia University, Author of The Social Life of DNA: Race, Reparations, and Reconciliation after the Genome
Dr. Nelson is professor of sociology and gender studies and Dean of Social Science at Columbia University, where she has served as director of the Institute for Research on Women, Gender and Sexuality. She is Chair-elect of the American Sociological Association Section on Science, Knowledge, and Technology. Prior to joining Columbia University, Nelson was on the faculty of Yale University, where she received the Poorvu Award for teaching excellence.

Wendy Kramer
Director and Co-founder of the Donor Sibling Registry (DSR) Wendy Kramer is Director and Co-founder of the Donor Sibling Registry.

The DSR is a charity organization, founded in 2000 by Wendy and her donor-conceived son Ryan, to assist individuals conceived as a result of sperm, egg or embryo donation that are seeking to make mutually desired contact with others with whom they share genetic ties. With more than 52,000 parents, egg & sperm donors, and donor conceived people in 105 countries, the DSR has helped to connect almost 14,000 donor conceived people with their half-siblings and/or their biological parents.  Without any outside support, the DSR has pioneered an international discussion about the donor conception industry and the families, with its research, speaking engagements and media appearances.

Wendy has co-authored many published papers on donor-conception, has reviewed abstracts for the American Society of Reproductive Reproductive Medicine and has has also been a peer reviewer for the journals Human Reproduction and Reproductive BioMedicine Online. She was Associate Producer on the Style Network’s 2011 Emmy nominated show Sperm Donor and on MTV News & Docs, series Generation Cryo, that aired in December 2013. Wendy and her son Ryan have appeared on 60 Minutes, The Oprah Winfrey Show, Good Morning America, CBS Sunday Morning, and many other news shows and publications. Wendy is co-author of the book Finding our Families: A first-of-a-kind Book for Donor Conceived People and Their Families. Wendy holds a B.A. from Long Island University.

Moderated By:
Yaniv Erlich, PhD Core Member and Assistant Investigator, New York Genome Center, Assistant Professor, Columbia University.

Prior to joining NYGC, Dr. Erlich was at the Whitehead Institute at MIT. He led his own research group there as the prestigious Whitehead Fellow from 2010-2014.

He received his PhD from the Watson School of Biological Science at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in 2010. Dr. Erlich is the recipient of the Burroughs Wellcome Career Award 2013, Harold M. Weintrab Award 2010, the IEEE/ACM-CS HPS Award 2008, and he was selected as one of 2010 Tomorrow’s PLs team of Genome Technology.

Dr. Erlich’s research focuses on building new teels and algorithms for studying human genomics. He is developing new strategies at NYGC to harness datasets from millions of people from social media and scientific resources, and, in turn, dissect the genetic artchitecture of complex traits to work toward bridging the missing heritability gap. His work has been featured often in the national and international media, including the New York Times, NPR and the Wall Street Journal.











When: Tue., Dec. 13, 2016 at 6:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Where: New York Genome Center
101 Sixth Ave.
646-977-7000
Price: Free
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Panelists Include:
Joseph Pickrell, PhD

Core Member and Assistant Investigator, New York Genome Center Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University

Dr. Pickrell runs a lab dedicated to developing computational and statistical tools to transform large-scale genomic data into a better understanding of human biology. Before joining the New York Genome Center in 2014, Joe was a postdoctoral researcher at Harvard Medical School. He holds a PhD in Human Genetics from the University of Chicago and a BS in Biology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Alondra Nelson, PhD 

Dean of Social Science at Columbia University, Author of The Social Life of DNA: Race, Reparations, and Reconciliation after the Genome
Dr. Nelson is professor of sociology and gender studies and Dean of Social Science at Columbia University, where she has served as director of the Institute for Research on Women, Gender and Sexuality. She is Chair-elect of the American Sociological Association Section on Science, Knowledge, and Technology. Prior to joining Columbia University, Nelson was on the faculty of Yale University, where she received the Poorvu Award for teaching excellence.

Wendy Kramer
Director and Co-founder of the Donor Sibling Registry (DSR) Wendy Kramer is Director and Co-founder of the Donor Sibling Registry.

The DSR is a charity organization, founded in 2000 by Wendy and her donor-conceived son Ryan, to assist individuals conceived as a result of sperm, egg or embryo donation that are seeking to make mutually desired contact with others with whom they share genetic ties. With more than 52,000 parents, egg & sperm donors, and donor conceived people in 105 countries, the DSR has helped to connect almost 14,000 donor conceived people with their half-siblings and/or their biological parents.  Without any outside support, the DSR has pioneered an international discussion about the donor conception industry and the families, with its research, speaking engagements and media appearances.

Wendy has co-authored many published papers on donor-conception, has reviewed abstracts for the American Society of Reproductive Reproductive Medicine and has has also been a peer reviewer for the journals Human Reproduction and Reproductive BioMedicine Online. She was Associate Producer on the Style Network’s 2011 Emmy nominated show Sperm Donor and on MTV News & Docs, series Generation Cryo, that aired in December 2013. Wendy and her son Ryan have appeared on 60 Minutes, The Oprah Winfrey Show, Good Morning America, CBS Sunday Morning, and many other news shows and publications. Wendy is co-author of the book Finding our Families: A first-of-a-kind Book for Donor Conceived People and Their Families. Wendy holds a B.A. from Long Island University.

Moderated By:
Yaniv Erlich, PhD Core Member and Assistant Investigator, New York Genome Center, Assistant Professor, Columbia University.

Prior to joining NYGC, Dr. Erlich was at the Whitehead Institute at MIT. He led his own research group there as the prestigious Whitehead Fellow from 2010-2014.

He received his PhD from the Watson School of Biological Science at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in 2010. Dr. Erlich is the recipient of the Burroughs Wellcome Career Award 2013, Harold M. Weintrab Award 2010, the IEEE/ACM-CS HPS Award 2008, and he was selected as one of 2010 Tomorrow’s PLs team of Genome Technology.

Dr. Erlich’s research focuses on building new teels and algorithms for studying human genomics. He is developing new strategies at NYGC to harness datasets from millions of people from social media and scientific resources, and, in turn, dissect the genetic artchitecture of complex traits to work toward bridging the missing heritability gap. His work has been featured often in the national and international media, including the New York Times, NPR and the Wall Street Journal.

Buy tickets/get more info now