Frederick Cohan, professor of biology, professor of environmental studies, presented his research poster, "Genetic Sweeps by Whisk Brooms and Garage Brooms — the Role of Ecology" at the 16th annual International Symposium on Microbial Ecology, held Aug. 21-26 in Montreal. Cohan presented his models on the origins of bacterial species, in particular that the rate a bacterial group forms new species is determined by the foods it consumes. Microbial ecology is the study of microbes in the environment and their interactions with each other. The International Society for Microbial Ecology is the principle non-profit scientific society for the burgeoning field of microbial ecology and its…