KATE BREDBENNER, PhD S c i ence Commun i ca to r

E D U C AT I O N

Rockefeller University New York, NY 2013 – 2020

Ph.D. Biological Sciences Laboratory of Cellular Biophysics “Visualizing protease activation, retroCHMP3 activity, and Vpr recruitment during HIV-1 assembly”

University of Rochester Rochester, NY 2009 – 2013

B.S. Molecular Genetics B.A. Philosophy

Magna Cum Laude

S C I E N C E C O M M U N I C AT I O N E X P E R I E N C E

SimpleBiologist New York, NY 2016 - present

Creator, Editor, and Manager of YouTube Channel - Created and manage a YouTube

channel which takes new scientific papers and translates them into animated videos.

- Channel has >1500 subscribers, >60,000 views, and is viewed in >18 countries.

Skills include:

• Script writing • iMovie, Final Cut

Pro, GarageBand, and Adobe Illustrator

• SEO

• Website Design/Maintenance with WordPress

• Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube

Rockefeller University/ASBMB New York, NY 2018 Jul-Oct

SciOut UnConference Coordinator - Moderated frequent table discussions at

the UnConference. - Helped design the flow of the event

for ~100 attendees.

New York Academy of Sciences New York, NY 2016 Jan-May

Scientist-in-Residence for PS238 - Worked with 25 ESL fourth graders on a

semester length research project designed by their teacher and myself.

- Determined what colors of light plants use to grow using the scientific method.

C O N TA C T

P R O F I L E

I’m a scientist working at the intersection between research and society. I use my scientific training combined with my ability to talk to anyone at any level to make scientific research more accessible.

I currently make research more accessible through my SimpleBiologist YouTube channel, my volunteer work with science outreach organizations, and my research on effective means of science communication. I’m quick to learn, quick to laugh, and addicted to organization.

V O L U N T E E R O R G A N I Z AT I O N S

• B i o B u s • B r a i N Y

• N Y C S E F • K n o w S c i e n c e

• Ta s t e o f S c i e n c e • N Y H a l l o f S c i e n c e • R o c k e f e l l e r O u t r e a c h

P R O F E S S I O N A L M E M B E R S H I P S

• A S C B • P h i B e t a K a p p a

• A A A S • N YA S

Kate.Bredbenner@gmail.com

New York, NY

@SimpleBiologist

www.SimpleBiologist.com

R E S E A R C H E X P E R I E N C E

Rockefeller University New York, NY 2013 – present

Graduate Fellow Simon Lab - Focus on HIV-1 protease activation which leads to virus maturation

which is necessary for infection. - Determined protease activation occurs during assembly of new

viruses. - Used molecular biology, microscopy, and image analysis skills.

Rockefeller University New York, NY 2018 – present

Independent Research Fellow - Focus on science summaries including video abstracts, graphical

abstracts, and plain language summaries. - Identified plain language summaries and videos as high impact

summary methods.

Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry Göttingen, Germany 2012 June-Aug

DAAD Rise Fellow Shcherbata Lab - Worked with the Drosophila hormone ecdysone to determine its

effects on proteins responsible for the local environment of germ line stem cells with the goal of understanding stem cell maintenance.

University of Rochester Rochester, NY 2011 - 2012

Undergraduate Research Assistant Gorbunova Lab - Worked on the DNA repair protein SIRT6 in human culture cells to

determine its upstream connections to the stress response pathway. - Determined how oxidative stress connects to increased DNA repair via

protein pathways.

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Rockefeller University Outreach Department New York, NY 2014 - 2015

Science Saturday Head Engineer Jan-May 2015 - Lead a team of six engineers to create a Rube Goldberg Device for

500 children ages 9-13. - Worked on vision and specific design. - Interacted with multiple departments including IT, development, and

carpentry.

Science Saturday Booth Leader Jan-May 2014 - Taught Designed and headed a booth for ~500 children age 6-18 to do

a DNA extraction from bananas.

University of Rochester Rochester, NY 2010 - 2013

Head Teaching Assistant - Genetics Fall 2011,2012 - Taught material, ran review sessions, graded exams, and organized

other teaching assistants.

Workshop Leader - Biochemistry Spring 2011,2012 - Ran two 2 hour workshops per week, graded exams, and took a class

about how to teach workshops for different learning styles.

University Tutor 2010-2013 - Tutored students one-on-one in chemistry, genetics, and calculus.

TA L K S A N D P R E S E N TAT I O N S

Nepris New York, NY 2016 - ongoing

Guest Science Speaker - Speaker for the online classroom platform Nepris. Give a variety of

different talks that teachers request for their classrooms. - Specialize in last minute requests for biodiversity, genetics, and career

talks.

Know Science New York, NY 2015 - ongoing

How and Why Genetically Modified Organisms Are Used in the World Today - Created a presentation on genetically modified organisms (GMOs) for

non-science adults which focuses on the what, why, and how of GMOs.

- Talk given to NYC Public School Teachers, a class of non-science majors at Fordham, and to the public.

Wiley Hoboken, NJ 2020

Life as a Researcher - Presented a breakdown of academic life to the partner marketing team

at the Wiley Publishing Company.

Rockefeller University New York, NY 2015

Twitter for Scientists - Brief introduction to how and why scientists might want to use twitter

as part of the Tri-Institutional Career Symposium.

Rockefeller University New York, NY 2015

Imaging HIV-1: One Virus at a Time - A short TED-style talk on how I image HIV-1 to study virus assembly. - Talk was given as part of a student series for students of Rockefeller

University, Sloan Kettering, and Weill Cornell Medical Center.

P U B L I C AT I O N S

“One Ph.D., Hold the Pastries” Bredbenner Science, 2019

“Video abstracts and plain language summaries are more effective than graphical abstracts and published abstracts” Bredbenner and Simon PLoS ONE, 2019

“HIV-1 Vpr co-assembles with Gag” Bredbenner and Simon bioRxiv, 2020

“HIV-1 Protease becomes active during viral assembly” Bredbenner and Pulupa, Johnson, and Simon In Preparation

“retroCHMP3 inhibits viral budding through ESCRT interaction” Rheinemann and Bredbenner, Shineman, Simon, Elde, and Sundquist In Preparation

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B O A R D P O S I T I O N S

Women in Science at Rockefeller New York, NY 2017 - 2018

President - Promoted the institutional equality and success of women scientists. - Hosted self-defense courses, began a fund for portraits of female

scientists to be hung at the University, and oversaw lactation room and unisex bathroom restorations.

NYCSciComm New York, NY 2016 - 2018

Institutional Representative - Helped fellow students understand career options through speaker

invitations and networking events.

Rockefeller University New York, NY 2013 - 2017

Student Representative Committee Member - Consolidated and brought student concerns to the administration. - Created an annual open forum with the President of the University to

hear student concerns. - Oversaw changes to the student housing lottery, upgrades to the

campus gym, and the creation of a happy hour to promote student-faculty interactions.

Rockefeller University New York, NY 2015 - 2016

Career Symposium Planning Committee Member - Helped organize the structure, invited speakers, and hosted the

speakers for a symposium with over 500 graduate and postdoctoral fellows.

- On the planning committee for both the 2015 and 2016 Career Symposiums.

P R O F E S S I O N A L P R E PA R AT I O N

Wiki Education 2019

WikiEdu Scientist Course Twelve week course on using Wikipedia for Scientists - Wrote ~80% of the content for the Pathogen wikipedia page which is viewed over 1,000 times per day

Wiley 2019

Scientific Publishing Course 5 day course covering all aspects of publishing including:

• Editorial workflow • Manuscript writing and reviewing • Marketing and business models

• Launching new journals • Ethics • New developments such as

format-free submission and open access

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Rockefeller University 2016, 2018

Science Writing Workshop Two separate four week courses on science writing with science writer Stephen Hall. Learned to write:

• Short and long form research descriptions

• Op-eds • Personal narratives

• Book reviews • Character sketches • Also learned copy editing

NYAS 2018

Scientists Teaching Science Completed an online 40 hour course designed to teach the fundamentals of undergraduate teaching. Skills developed include:

• Designing effective assessments • Creating course objectives and a

syllabus

• Online Teaching • Curriculum design • Diversity and learning style

inclusion

AAAS 2017

Communicating Science: Fundamentals for Public Engagement An online course through AAAS that helps scientists:

• Identify the key components of communication

• Recognize the benefits of public communication

• Refine the goal of your public communication

• Define your audience

NYAS 2016

Science Alliance Leadership Training Week long immersive leadership training at the New York Academy of Sciences. Learned and practiced:

• Leadership and management skills • Communication skills

• Conflict resolution • Team dynamics

NYAS 2016

Speaking Science Improv Workshop Two day workshop run by the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science. The workshop focused on:

• Knowing your audience • Connecting with your audience

• Public speaking • Basics of Improv

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AWARDS AND HONORS

• AAAS Honorable Mention for Student Poster “How Scientists Should Summarize their Research”

2019

• Alan Alda FLAME Challenge Finalist “What is Climate?”

2018

• ScienceSeeker Award for Best Cell/Molecule Post of the Year “2017 Nobel Prize for Circadian Rhythm”

2018

• AAAS Data Stories Contest Student Winner “Wait…How Many People Died?”

2017

• New York Falling Walls Lab Winner “Breaking the Wall of Science Communication”

2017

• Science Showcase Eyes on Science Award Winner “Tanning Without the Sun”

2017

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SCHOLARSHIPS and FELLOWSHIPS

• Women & Science Fellowship

2013-2014

• Nathaniel Wisch Scholarship

2011-2013

• Wilder Trustee Scholarship

2009-2013

• Farber Foundation Scholarship

2009-2013