Talks

Monday, August 27
9:00 AM - 10:00 AMWarm-Up Talks: Metabolism, Evolution, Extremophiles, and Adaptations
10:15 AM - 10:30 AMA Metabolic Tree of Life: The Emergence and Early Evolution of Biological Carbon Fixation - Rogier Braakman
10:30 AM - 10:45 AMDetection and Quantification of Viable Environmental Surrogates by Propidium Monoazide-PCR/qPCR Methods - Nicholas Fingland
10:45 AM - 11:00 AMMapping Structural Interactions in a Model Ancestral Ribosome - Tim Lenz
11:00 AM - 11:15 AMMimicking Homologous Recombination In-Vitro - Jessica Bowman
11:15 AM - 11:30 AMGenomic Adaptations of Bacillus subtilis to Hypobaria: Implications for Planetary Protection and Lithopanspermia - Samantha Waters
11:30 AM - 11:45 AMPhysiological Adaptations of the Lichen Pleopsidium chlorophanum to Martian Surface Conditions Can Occur within 34 Days - Afshin Kahn
11:45 AM - 12:00 PMThe Role of the Air-Water Interface in the Emergence of Complexity - Elizabeth Griffith
1:15 PM - 1:30 PMIntroduction to Saganet.org - Sanjoy Som & Grasshopper Illangkoon
1:30 PM - 1:45 PMThe High Life: Microorganisms in the Upper Atmosphere - David Smith
1:45 PM - 2:00 PMDiversity of Ammonia-Oxidizing Archaea in Extreme Environments - Amy Jo Johnson
2:00 PM - 2:15 PMPotential for Survival and Adaptation of Extremophile Exiguobacterium antarcticum in Simulated Extraterrestrial Environments - Felipe Nobrega
2:15 PM - 2:30 PMSulfur Cycling in Sediments Associated with Springs on the Margin of a Saline Alkaline Lake - Cindy Elbaz
2:30 PM - 2:45 PMIsolation of Astrobiological Interest from the Sairecabur Volcano, Atacame Desert - Andre Pulschen
2:45 PM - 3:00 PMLooking for Life in All the Wrong Places: Microbial Communities in Low-Energy, Anoxic, Low-Light Environments - Rebecca McCauley
3:00 PM - 3:15 PMIsotopic and Lipid Signatures of Freshwater Microbialites in Kelly Lake, British Columbia - Sarah Soles
3:15 PM - 3:30 PMExtremophilic Life in Subzero Hypersaline Spring of the High Arctic - Guillaume Lamarche-Gagnon
4:00 PM - 6:00 PMFrontiers and Career Panel
Tuesday, August 28
8:30 AM - 9:30 AMWarm-Up Talks: Prebiotic Chemistry, Exoplanets and Organics in Space
10:00 AM - 10:15 AMAbiotic Synthesis Of RNA From Imidazole Activated Nucleotides Using “Molecular Midwives” And Montmorillonite Clay Catalysts - Bradley Burcar
10:15 AM - 10:30 AMDynamic Ligation: How Informational Biopolymers May Have Formed Before Enzymes - Brian Cafferty
10:30 AM - 10:45 AMIron (II) Mediated RNA Folding And Catalysis In An Anaerobic Environment - Lively Lie
10:45 AM - 11:00 AMMetal Ion And Buffer Effects On The Activity Of A Copper-dependent, Dual-site Self–kinasing Ribozyme - Raghav Poudyal
11:00 AM - 11:15 AMLife's First Energy Currency: Pyrophophate Synthesis in Alkaline Hydrothermal Vents - Laurie Barge
11:15 AM - 11:30 AMHydrothermal Fabrication of Iron Sulfide Chimneys and Organic Molecules - Lauren White
11:30 AM - 11:45 AMPrebiotic Chemistry on Cryogenic Worlds: Tribochemical Reactions of Organics and Water in Titan - Daniel Thomas
11:45 AM - 12:00 PMDetection of Primary Amines in Titan Tholins using 18-Crown-6 Ether Complexation and Fixed Charge Derivatization - Kathleen Upton
1:15 PM - 1:30 PMScience & Technology Capabilities in Africa - Julia DeMarines, Grasshopper Illangkoon, & Kennda Lynch
1:30 PM - 1:45 PMPrebiotic Molecules in Interstellar Ice Analogues and Comets: The Origin of Prebiotic Handedness - Amanda Evans
1:45 PM - 2:00 PMA Search for the Potential Glycine Precursor Hydroxylamine (NH2OH) - Brett McGuire
2:00 PM - 2:15 PMEfficient Surface Formation of Interstellar Hydroxylamine through NO Hydrogenation - Sergio Ioppolo
2:15 PM - 2:30 PMThe Debris Disc - Habitable Planet Connection - Mark Booth
2:30 PM - 2:45 PMC/O Ratios Of Stars With Transiting Hot Jupiters: Connecting Stars To Planets - Johanna Teske
2:45 PM - 3:00 PMThe Effect Of Host Star Spectral Energy Distribution Ice-Albedo Feedback On The Climate Of Extrasolar Planets - Aomawa Shields
3:00 PM - 3:15 PMThe Influence Of Clouds On The Spectra Of Earth-like Planets Around Various Host Stars - Sarah Rugheimer
3:15 PM - 3:30 PMEffect Of Radiative Transfer In The Photochemistry Of Rocky Planets Atmospheres - Alfonso Delgado Bonal
Wednesday, August 29
8:30 AM - 9:30 AMWarm-Up Talks: On Planetary Habitability, Earth Analogs, & Biosignatures
10:00 AM - 10:15 AMThe New Era Of Exoplanet Imaging - Sasha Hinkley
10:15 AM - 10:30 AMQuantifying Habitability Through Time - Andrew Rushby
10:30 AM - 10:45 AMNature's Starships: Amino Acid Synthesis, Distribution, And Their Delivery To Earth Via Meteorites - Alyssa Cobb
10:45 AM - 11:00 AMRadiogenic Heating In Exoplanet Systems - Bryce Carrande
11:00 AM - 11:15 AMPlate Tectonics On Large Terrestrial Exoplanets - Lena Noack
11:15 AM - 11:30 AMAn Integrated Picture of Europa as a Habitat - Britney Schmidt
11:30 AM - 11:45 AMCarbon Dioxide And Methane – Are Carbon Molecules Available For Life In Icy Moons? - Olivier Bollengier
11:45 AM - 12:00 PMCaptured Exomoons: A New Frontier In Habitability - Simon Porter
1:15 PM - 1:30 PMMartian Hydrogen Loss Observed By Mars Express: Implications For Long-term Climate Change - Michael Chaffin
1:30 PM - 1:45 PMThe Role Of Groundwater In Subglacial Habitats In Antarctica - Brad Gooch
1:45 PM - 2:00 PMA Multi-component Model Of A Subglacial Ecosystem With Implications For Mars - Thomson Fisher
2:00 PM - 2:15 PMBiogeochemical Characterization Of A Late Archean Sub-seafloor Hydrothermal System, Dome Mine, Timmins, Ontario, Canada - Jessica Stromberg
2:15 PM - 2:30 PMThe Great Salt Lake Desert: Exploring The Habitability Of Paleolakes On Earth And Mars - Kennda Lynch
2:30 PM - 2:45 PMGeochemical And Mineralogical Investigation Of Lake Deposits At Da Langtan (China) - Implications For Exobiology On Mars - Pablo Sobron
2:45 PM - 3:00 PMMicrobially-induced Precipitation Of Salt From Sodium Sulfate-rich Brines: Biology’s Role In Evaporite Formation - Ian Foster
3:00 PM - 3:15 PMExceptional Preservation Of Ancient Life And The Early Evolution Of The Biosphere - Leila Battison