Erik Hom

Associate Professor of Biology

Email:
erik@olemiss.edu
Office Location:
401 Shoemaker Hall
Phone:
662-915-1731
Social Media:
- LinkedIn
Research Lab:
Darwin's Daemon

I lead a lab researching the fascinating and dynamic social lives of microbes as they other organisms and the environment. I am also equally active in teaching, outreach, and service commitments to local communities/institutions and beyond.

Research Interests

Synthetic ecology, the evolution of symbiosis and mutualisms, fungal-algal associations, the evolution of plant-microbe interactions, the microbial and chemical ecology of marine polycultures (including fungi and cyanobacteria), the microbial ecology of fermented foods, the sloth microbiome, the genetic basis of natural product production, biological soil crusts, algal biotechnology, biological approaches to waste valorization, sustainability, participatory systems analysis, machine-learning in biology, and pedagogical effectiveness in resource-limited contexts.

Biography

A native of NYC, Dr. Hom obtained his B.A. in Chemistry with High Honors from Swarthmore College (with minors in Biology and Physics) and pursued post-graduate research in Andrew McCammon’s group (computational chemistry) at UC-San Diego. He completed his Ph.D. in Biophysics in John Sedat’s lab at UC-San Francisco working on quantitative fluorescence methods and microscopic imaging.

Prior to coming to UM, Dr. Hom was a postdoctoral fellow in Andrew Murray’s lab a Harvard University in the Department of Cell & Molecular Biology and the FAS Center for Systems Biology. He is passionate about advancing holistic STEM training and experiential learning in Mississippi and directs the ARISE@UM research-immersion program for high school and community college students.

Joining the Lab

If you are interested in pursuing an M.S., Ph.D, or postdoctoral experience with Dr. Hom, please contact him directly via email. Undergraduate students interested in research projects are also encouraged to speak to Dr. Hom directly (do not be shy, he is direct but does not bite). Minority-identifying students, women, and high school students are especially encouraged to explore research opportunities in the lab. The lab operates with a team mindset of working hard, playing hard, having fun, caring for others, and doing the best cool science we can.