About
Benjamin (Benny) Rice
I am a postdoctoral fellow interested in the ecology and evolution of infectious diseases. My research aims to better understand the remarkable variation we see in host-parasite systems, from spatial heterogeneity in emergent pathogens such as SARS-CoV-2, to temporal heterogeneity in long-established pathogens such as malaria. Much of my work has focused on disease ecology in Madagascar.
- Please see the Projects tab to find out more about current and future research projects
- A list of published work (with abstracts and PDFs linked) is available at the Publications tab
- The CV tab contains a copy of my CV
- For photos (mostly of chameleons) and non-work/fun items please see the Posts tab
Please don't hesitate to reach out to discuss and new collaborations are always welcome (email: b.rice@princeton.edu)
Contact
Benny Rice
Associate Research Scholar
b.rice@princeton.edu
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Princeton University
Bio
I was born in Denver, Colorado, and attended Arizona State University for college. Resultingly, I remain a proud Sun Devil alum (as well as Rockies, Nuggets, Broncos, and green chile fan).
For my undergraduate studies, I majored in microbiology with a minor in global health, graduating in 2012. I had the immense good fortune to work in the lab of Ananias Escalante and Maria Andreina Pacheco Delgado, which launched a fascination with parasites that continues to this day. Additional good fortune, and one which left a lasting impression, came from getting the chance to study alongside a diverse student body (now reflected in ASU's recognition as a Hispanic Serving Institution) and see representation in my Latino/a mentors. This launched a continuing engagement with efforts to improve representation in the sciences.
For graduate school, I was mentored by Dan Hartl in the Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University and co-advised by Chris Golden at the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health. My dissertation focused on the ecology and evolution of Plasmodium falciparum malaria in Madagascar. Better understanding the forces shaping trends in the parasites of human and wildlife hosts remains a research passion.
I am currently a postdoc in the lab of Jess Metcalf in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Princeton. Please see the Projects tab for more about current research topics.
For my undergraduate studies, I majored in microbiology with a minor in global health, graduating in 2012. I had the immense good fortune to work in the lab of Ananias Escalante and Maria Andreina Pacheco Delgado, which launched a fascination with parasites that continues to this day. Additional good fortune, and one which left a lasting impression, came from getting the chance to study alongside a diverse student body (now reflected in ASU's recognition as a Hispanic Serving Institution) and see representation in my Latino/a mentors. This launched a continuing engagement with efforts to improve representation in the sciences.
For graduate school, I was mentored by Dan Hartl in the Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University and co-advised by Chris Golden at the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health. My dissertation focused on the ecology and evolution of Plasmodium falciparum malaria in Madagascar. Better understanding the forces shaping trends in the parasites of human and wildlife hosts remains a research passion.
I am currently a postdoc in the lab of Jess Metcalf in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Princeton. Please see the Projects tab for more about current research topics.
