From the Bottling Line to the Biochemistry Lab

Dane Santa didn’t follow a conventional path to a Ph.D. program in biochemistry.

Santa had no real aspirations of going to graduate school six years ago. He was working on the packaging team at Samuel Adams Brewery in the Lehigh Valley, and part of his job included participating in quality assurance panels. This involved tasting and smelling beer to help identify any off-flavors or odors, like the flavor compound diacetyl, which gives beer the scent of movie theatre popcorn.

As Santa sipped and sniffed the beer, he discovered he had a taste for science.  

Read the full story on the College of Arts and Sciences News.