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Interested in joining our group? Contact Laina for current research opportunities
High School Researchers
Evan Jones
Evan was born and raised in Reno, NV and is attending Earl Wooster High School as a senior. He is going to attend UNR, majoring in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology with a pre-med emphasis. Evan enjoys reading, skiing, medicine, and all things science.
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Undergraduate Researchers
Umme Simanto
My name is Umme Nafisa Simanto. I moved to the US from Bangladesh in 2013. I have been living in Reno since then. I went to Earl Wooster High School. My college career started in 2017 fall. Currently, I am a junior, majoring in chemistry (pre-medicine emphasis), and planning to go to medical school. I love to travel. I enjoy music and traditional Bangladeshi foods very much
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Shannon Adams
Hi, I am Shannon Adams. I have lived in Reno, NV my whole life. I am now a Senior at UNR and I am going to graduate in December 2019. I love outdoor activities such as rock climbing, mountain biking, hiking, and camping. A few of the places of have camped at are Yellowstone, the Grand Canyon, and Mount Lassen. I particularly enjoy outdoor rock climbing around Tahoe and Donner Summit.
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Kayla Galli
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Kayla Galli
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Jessica Hein
Jessica grew up in Humboldt County, CA and moved to Reno after high school to get her undergraduate degree. She is currently planning on attending veterinary school after she acquires her Bachelor’s degrees in Biology and Veterinary Science. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, skiing, and reading.
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Gaurav Addagatla
Allison Harpin
I grew up in the Carson City / Minden Nevada area and am currently pursuing a major in chemistry with a minor in math. I’m planning on graduating in December 2020 and I’m excited to see where life takes me. I enjoy spending my time drawing and making ceramic sculptures.
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Levi Whittaker
My name is Levi Whittaker, I was born and raised in Ely, Nevada. After earning my Bachelor's degree in Biology I plan to attend medical school. Outside of school, I like to spend my time discovering new restaurants and watching all the new Netflix originals.
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Graduate Students
Julia Duncan (2014)
Julia was born and raised in Fairbanks, Alaska. In 2014, she obtained her Bachelors of Science in Chemistry with a concentration in Biochemistry and a minor in Mathematics at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. Previously, Julia worked on the synthesis of highly conjugated compounds with non-linear optical properties. She is currently investigating intramolecular Diels-Alder reactions using catalysis while working towards her PhD. When not in lab or studying, she likes to go fishing, play with her dog, snowboard, mountain bike, or play basketball.
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David Ricker (2015)
David graduated from the University of North Carolina Asheville in 2011 with a B.S. in Chemistry. His interests include organometallic trans-formations. He enjoys most self-propelled outdoor recreation activities
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Vahid Mohammadrezaei (2016)
I was born in 1984 in Tehran, I studied applied chemistry and Analytical Chemistry in my bachelor and Master course in Azad University of Tehran. I am doing my PhD in University of Mashad. I love synthesis and I am so happy to work at Dr.Geary's lab and I think it is a good opportunity to me to study hard and learn better. I like playing football ping pong ,singing and I can play Tonbak (Iranian musical instrument).
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Kim Wasik (2017)
Kim was born in Houston, Texas and received her B.S. in Chemistry and B.S. in Biochemistry from the University of Texas at Austin in 2016. While at UT, she worked on the total syntheses of bryostatin analogues and terpenoid natural products under the guidance of Prof. Michael Krische. In the spring of 2017, Kim began her graduate studies at the University of Nevada, Reno in the Geary group. She is currently interested in developing new catalytic synthetic methodologies.
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Megha Khandelwal (2018)
​I am a synthetic chemist with background in Biotechnology and Biochemistry. I completed M.Sc. in Biotechnology and Bachelors in life Sciences from University of Rajasthan in India. Later I pursued my research in studying DNA dynamics at single molecule level using TIRF microscopy at Wesleyan University in Connecticut, USA. My current focus is in the field of synthesis of novel organic molecules and studying their effect on real life organic systems. At present I am working on synthesis and characterization of azo-surfactants. This study will be helpful in the understanding of bactericidal activity and anti-cancer activity of polybia MP1 peptide found in Brazilian wasp.
Honorary Members
Anna (top) and Faye (right)
Spicy (top), Crimshaw (middle), and
Lorenzo von Tubesock (right)
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