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Protein coding information in eukaryotic genes is broken and scattered along the chromosome but is patched together by RNA splicing once the gene is turned on. Manuel Ares Jr. is asking how cells manage this strange barrier to gene expression. Answering this question must bring to bear genetics, biochemistry, genomics, and computational biology. Because current undergraduate curricula interfere with developing interdisciplinary thinking in students, Ares is also studying how inclusive and interdisciplinary educational interventions enhance students’ ability to work on interdisciplinary teams. To encourage the development of scientist-teachers, he recruited undergraduates to participate in a research group that conducted genomic studies of splicing in humans and Plasmodiumspp., the causative agent of malaria.