SCOTT CHIMILESKI
Microbial Science Photography
Current Affiliations
Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
Research Fellow, Kolter and Baym Labs
Communications, Harvard Microbial Sciences Initiative
Guest Curator, Harvard Museum of Natural History
Training
University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT
PhD, Genetics and Genomics, May 2015
BA, Biological Sciences, 2008
Minors: English, Molecular and Cell Biology
University of Montana, Bozeman, MT
Center for Biofilm Engineering, Visiting Researcher, 2012
Publications
> Life at the Edge of Sight: A Photographic Exploration of the Microbial World, Harvard University Press, 2017
Author profiles: Google Scholar / Amazon Author Page / Harvard Catalyst / PubMed / ResearchGate / Frontiers
Research Articles and Book Chapters
> Chimileski S, Franklin MJ, Papke RT (2014) Biofilms formed by the archaeon Haloferax volcanii exhibit social motility and cellular differentiation, and facilitate horizontal gene transfer. BMC Biology 12:65
> Chimileski S, Dolas K, Naor A, Gophna U, Papke RT (2014) Extracellular DNA metabolism in Haloferax volcanii. Front. Microbiol. 5:57
> Zerulla K, Chimileski S, Näther D, Gophna U, Papke RT, Soppa J (2014) DNA as a phosphate storage polymer and the alternative advantages of polyploidy for growth or survival. PLoS ONE 9(4)
> Ouellette M, Jackson L, Chimileski S, Papke RT (2015) Genome-wide DNA methylation analysis of Haloferax volcanii H26 and identification of DNA methyltransferase related PD-(D/E)XK nuclease family protein HVO_A0006. Front. Microbiol. 6:251
> Chimileski S, Papke RT (2015) Getting a hold on archaeal type IV pili: an expanding repertoire of cellular appendages implicates complex regulation and diverse functions. Front. Microbiol. 6:362
> Papke RT, Chimileski S (2012) Gene transfer mechanisms, population genetics and the evolution of haloarchaea, in Advances in Understanding the Biology of Halophilic Microorganisms. Vreeland R (ed.) Springer
Science communication
> TED-ED animation - Microbial Jungles, 2016
Articles written for blogs and popular press
> Chimileski, S, Kolter R. "Microbes Gave us Life," STAT, December 2017
Articles published at ASM.org
> Mystery of the Spring-Smelling Microbes, May 2016
> Glimpse of an Alien World, in Yellowstone National Park, July 2016
> Secrets in the Sandstone of Capitol Reef National Park, July 2016
> Hey Bear! Can I Sample Your Microbiota? Aug 2016
> Age of the Microzoo, co-written with Julie Wolf, Aug 2016
> No Democracy for Tardigrades, November 2016
> The Natural History of Cheese Mites, Dec 2016
> Microscopy Meets Photography, 200 Years Later, March 2017
> Haunts of Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, April 2017
> Ancient Imaginations of the Microbial World, May 2017
> The Mysterious Landscape, July 2017
> Microbial Reefs of New York, Sept 2017
> Bacterial Dyes in Fashion, Nov 2017
> Microbial Multitudes: A Tribute to Stephen Jay Gould's Essay on the Humongous Fungus, Dec 2017
Small Things Considered
> Bringing the Microbial World into our Natural History Museums, 2015
> Nature blog articles [7]
Top ten Naturejobs blog, November 2014
> Personal microbiology blog (legacy website): Animalcule
Teaching
> Invisible Life: Exploring the World through Microscopes
Program at the Harvard Museum of Natural History
> Content Creator, Cooking with Microbes
HarvardX course, 2017-2018
> Instructor, MSI Microscopy Workshop
Harvard University, Microbial Sciences Initiative, 2016, 2017, 2018
> Fundamentals of Microbiology
Univ. Connecticut, 2011-2015
> Microbe Hunting: Crowdsourcing Antibiotic Discovery
Univ. Connecticut, Yale Small World Initiative, 2014
Press
Link to list of articles written about my work or featuring my images.
Cover art & select image credits
> The Scientist, Image of the Day, Tardigrades!, 2/2018
> Book cover: Chemical Ecology of Insects, Jun Tabata (ed.), CRC Press, 2017
> Journal of Bacteriology, Fern leaf press, vol. 199, Issue 4, 2017
> Genome Biology and Evolution, Infected squash stem, vol. 9, Issue 6, 2017
> Journal of Bacteriology, Microbial mats at Octopus Spring, vol. 199, Issue 2, 2017
> The Scientist, Image of the Day, Biofilm Up Close, 12/2016
> Journal of Bacteriology, Slime mold eats bacteria, Aug 2016, vol. 198, Issue 16
> Ecdysis, Harvard College journal for the artistic expression of science, 2016, 2017
> Harvard Microbial Sciences Initiative, Annual Symposium Poster, 2016
> EMBO/FEBS Course, The New Microbiology, 2016
> Journal of Bacteriology, Haloarchaea in a salt crystal, Oct 2015, vol. 197, issue 20
> Science Magazine, AAAS, Photo competition winner, Dec 2014
> Journal of Bacteriology, The "volcano" colony, Dec 2014, vol. 196, issue 24
> Book Cover: Halophiles: Genetics and Genomes, Caister Academic Press, 2014
Awards
2017 FASEB BioArt Contest Winner
2016 Passion in Science Award, New England Biolabs
Arts and Creativity - See my talk at NEB: Microbes are Beautiful
2016 FASEB BioArt Contest Winner
2016 Nikon Small World Competition, 4th place (honorable mention)
A time-lapse video of cheese mites on a rind of cheddar
Poster Prize, The New Microbiology, August 2016
"Outstanding contribution" at EMBO/FEBES course, Spetses, Greece
Antonio & Marjorie Romano Fellowship in Microbiology
Univ. Connecticut, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, 2014
Winner, Naturejobs writing competition
Journalist for the day at Naturejobs expo, Boston, MA, May 2014
Finalist, iBiology Young Scientist Series Competition
An international competition for communicating science, Mar 2015