New to Berkeley Lab Computing Sciences Team
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May 31, 2012
Jonathon Bertsch, Biological Data Management & Technology
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| Jonathon Bertsch |
This month, Jonathon Bertsch joins the Computational Research Division’s Biological Data Management & Technology (BDMTC) Group to help manage the Integrated Microbial Genomes (IMG) databases and add new features to the IMG systems for genomic analysis.
Before joining Berkeley Lab, Bertsch was a programmer and technical lead at the University of California’s Office of the President for 12 years. Prior to that, he was a researcher in the departments of Plant Biology and Molecular and Cell Biology at the University of California, Berkeley.
"When I first started to analyze data from my molecular biology experiments in plant and yeast genetics, I became interested in understanding the programming details and how the information was made available to researchers," says Bertsch. "This is what sparked my interest in computers."
Bertsch earned his undergraduate degree in biochemistry at Cambridge University. He migrated to the Bay Area to attend graduate school at the University of California, Berkeley and has been here ever since.
"I like the ability to get to the mountains and ocean so easily, plus all the great food and restaurants here," says Bertsch. In his spare time, Bertsch teaches at the UC Berkeley Judo club. He also enjoys photography and horticulture.
Mary Hester, CRD Visualization Group
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| Mary Hester |
This month Mary Hester joins the Computational Research Division as a technical writer/editor for the Visualization group.
Hester began her undergraduate education at the University of Washington, Seattle, where she chose to major in English. But two years into her education, Hester took an astrophysics class that inspired her to switch her major to physics.
A native of Livermore, California, Hester returned to the "Golden State" to finish her bachelor's in physics at the University of California, Davis.
"My experiences with the different majors are helping me out with this job quite a bit," she says. "I really admire the work and research done by the visualization group. The simulations being researched and performed are crucial in many experiments and fields."
Although she was born and raised in Livermore, Hester really enjoys spending time in Oakland, Berkeley and San Francisco. “The Bay Area is a one-of-a-kind place. It is down to earth and has perfect weather,” says Hester, who also enjoys biking, reading and painting, in her spare time.
