All News & Events
UBC BrownBag Discussion - January 25, 2012
The BrownBag Series is a monthly event organized by the Society of Canadian Women in Science and Technology (SCWIST) whose purpose is to provide a place for learning and discussion of topics to help women in STEM fields advance their careers.
Date: January 25
Time: 12:00-1:30 PM
Place: UBC Point Grey Campus, Biodiversity Research Centre (Room 224)
Topic: Networking (Interactive Workshop)
We are excited to welcome Sabina Nawaz as our guest speaker for this meeting. Sabina is a personal coach and has extensive experience in leadership development. For more information, please visit http://sabinanawaz.com/index.html.
If you would like to join us for our BrownBag Meeting in January, please RSVP to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). For upcoming meetings in this series please visit http://www.scwistevents.ca.
Health Awareness Series - Facts vs. Myths on Liver Disease - January 19, 2012
Although liver disease is stereotypically linked to alcohol or drugs, the truth is that there are over 100 known forms of liver disease caused by a variety of factors and it can affect everyone from infants to older adults. Learn more about liver disease at our upcoming health awareness series!
Title: Facts vs. Myths on Liver Disease
Date: Thursday, January 19th, 2012
Time: 6:00pm – 9:00pm
Location: 570 West 7th Avenue (at Ash Street). Room: Boardroom on 5th floor.
Fees: Free for SCWIST members / $5 for non-members (collected at the door)
Snacks and refreshments will be provided.
Please RSVP to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), as space is limited.
IWIS - Major Cultural Challenges Facing Female Minorities in Engineering & Sciences - Nov 30, 2011
Join us on November 30th at another IWIS event addressing the problems facing women immigrants.
“Women face many challenges when it comes to working in a primarily male-oriented fields of science and engineering, but the problem goes even further when these women are from other cultures. As the world is globalized further and further, having people from different cultural backgrounds with English as a second language in the work place is very common. The main concept behind this presentation is to share our own experiences in this area as well showcase some interviews with other women from the industry and then provide some take-aways for both the women that regularly deal with these challenges as well as those who work with them and would like to improve the situation. The focus of the presentation will be on the differences in communication styles when it comes to different cultures and how it affects the success of the minority female engineers. In addition, the audience will be encouraged to share their experiences and advice on what worked for them to overcome these issues.”
This presentation was part of The Society of Women Engineers 2011 Conference held in Chicago last month. The presenter is Mehrnoush (Noush) Sardashti, Account Engineer at FM Global.
Noush immigrated from Iran in 1996 and in 2003 she obtained her bachelor degree from UBC in Electrical Engineering. She started her career with FM Global in 2005 as a Field Engineer and has since provided loss prevention services to variety of clients such as sawmills, MDF and plywood plants, warehouses, machine shops, high-rise buildings, hangars, shopping centers and others. In 2007 Noush accepted the Account Engineering position where she works with clients at the corporate level to achieve consistency and help prioritize Loss Prevention Programs across their facilities.
When: Nov 30th, 2011, 5:30pm to 8pm.
Where: 333 Terminal Ave, Vancouver, Room 614
Please RSVP: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
SCWIST Newsletter - October 2011
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UBC BrownBag Discussion - November 30, 2011
The BrownBag Series is a monthly event organized by the Society of Canadian Women in Science and Technology (SCWIST) whose purpose is to provide a place for learning and discussion of topics to help women in STEM fields advance their careers.
Date: November 30
Time: 12:00-1:30 PM
Place: UBC Point Grey Campus, Biodiversity Research Centre (Room 224)
Topic: Career Transitions
In this meeting, we will talk about the choices and issues to consider at different stages in our careers. Our invited speakers are role models from academia, industry and non-traditional fields who will share their insights into their area and discuss possible challenges and advantages when transitioning from one area to the other.
Dr. Lori Daniels – Assoc. Professor of Forestry, Director of Tree-Ring Lab
Dr. Diane Goodman – Personal Development Coach, Executive Success Programs
Dr. Jennifer Lynett – Technology Transfer Manager, UBC’s University-Industry Liaison Office
Dr. Judy Illes – Professor of Neurology, Canada Research Chair in Neuroethics at UBC, Director of the National Core for Neuroethics at UBC
Dr. Julie Wong – Business Development, Centre for Drug Research and Development
Facilitator: Dr. Gülnur Birol – Senior Educational Strategist at UBC’s Science Centre for Learning and Teaching
If you would like to join us for our BrownBag Meeting in November, please RSVP to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). For upcoming meetings in this series in 2012 please visit http://www.scwistevents.ca.
Congratulations to Catherine Roome, 2011 APEG BC President’s Award Winner
R.A. McLachlan Memorial Award
Catherine Roome is a visionary for change with a dedication to service and public safety. Current President and CEO of the BC Safety Authority, Ms. Roome’s leadership was the driving force behind its switch from an inspection-based operating model to an evidence-based risk identification and safety management system. On top of her technical achievements, Ms. Roome’s community-based work is also impressive. She has promoted the advancement of women in engineering throughout her career, volunteering with the Division for the Advancement of Women in Engineering and Geoscience and SCWIST.
Science on Tap - Quench Your Interest - November 9, 2011
Cancer and Aging
It’s long been clear that cancer is a disease of aging. While children and younger adults are of course afflicted by certain types of the disease, the vast majority of cases occur in people over 50. But from that simple observation, researchers are
just beginning to tease out the intricate connections between the biological processes driving both the disease and the aging process. Come join us and take advantage of a rare opportunity to meet and directly ask
your questions from two of the most prominent and successful researchers in the field of cancer.
Dr. Gerald Krystal is an internationally renowned scientist in the field of immune and blood system.
Dr. Philip Beer is a hematologist and a Cambridge graduate who is working on human hematopoietic stem cell.
Nov 9th, 2011, 6pm to 9pm
The Wicklow Pub
610 Stamps Landing
Vancouver, BC
Please RSVP: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Experts:
Dr. Gerald Krystal
Senior Scientist,
Terry Fox Laboratory
BC Cancer Agency
Dr. Philip Beer
Post doctorate Candidate
Terry Fox Laboratory
BC Cancer Agency
Moderator:
Dr. Frances Lock
Presented by CIHR Café Scientifique
Global warming will reduce populations of plant-eaters: UBC research
Rising world temperatures will cause most populations of herbivores – including plant-eating fish – to decline, according to a University of British Columbia biologist.
That prediction resulted from updated mathematical models that integrate fundamental biological effects of temperature with the way herbivores and plants interact. These models were combined with data from experiments using “mini-ecosystems” of phytoplankton (aquatic microscopic plants) and zooplankton (aquatic microscopic animals) co-existing in four-litre tanks set to different temperatures over eight days.
As expected, higher temperatures increased the metabolisms – the conversion of resources to energy – of both plants and animals, but the effect on animal metabolisms was more intense. The zooplankton consumed more phytoplankton as a result.
But the plants could not keep pace with the animals’ increased appetites, and the lack of food ultimately led to a decline in the animals’ numbers.
“Herbivores are going to need more food than the plants are making just because of the higher temperatures,” says Mary O’Connor, an assistant professor of zoology who co-authored the article, published online today by The American Naturalist. “Eventually, the system is limited by how fast the plants can grow.”
O’Connor, who conducted the research as a postdoctoral associate at the National Center for Ecological Analysis & Synthesis in Santa Barbara, California, predicts that a rise of 3 degrees Celsius, which is forecast for many regions over the next century, could cause a 10-per-cent decline in herbivores.
In tropical oceans, this would likely mean a decline of plant-eating fish and crustaceans, with the possibility of corresponding declines of fish higher in the food chain – and an eventual decrease in seafood supplies in some parts of the world’s warmer oceans.
The effect in colder areas, like the northern Pacific, would be less severe because warming is expected to increase the supply of nutrients in those waters. The abundance of nutrients would enhance the growth of plants, allowing them to keep pace with animals’ increased appetites.
O’Connor, a member of the UBC Biodiversity Research Centre, says the findings could apply to land-based ecosystems as well but the implications are more difficult to predict because the thermal environment is more complex.
These findings are much more “big picture” than many previous experiments or models of global warming’s effects on plants and animals, which have focused on particular species – with widely varying results, O’Connor says.
“I’m backing way out, looking for something in common among all of species,” she says. “And what we’re suggesting is that we can expect herbivores, en masse, to decline, even though some species of herbivores might increase and others might decrease. By looking at it from this perspective, we will get a clearer picture of what is likely to happen.”
UBC evolutionary biology professor wins $500,000 ‘genius grant’
By Gerry Bellett, Vancouver Sun, September 21, 2011, p. A4
UBC evolutionary biology professor Sarah Otto, who studies how populations evolve, has been awarded a $500,000 grant from the MacArthur Foundation.
Known as the “genius grant,” the no-strings-attached award is given by the foundation to U.S. citizens or residents who display “exceptional creativity, promise for important future advances … and potential for the fellowship to facilitate subsequent creative work.”
Otto, who was born in New York, said she was thrilled to receive the award, one of 22 to be given out this year.
Asked what she would do with the money, payable over five years, Otto – who uses mathematical modelling to answer fundamental questions of evolution – said she will use some of it “to carve out more time to do research.”
She also has some pet programs she’d like to support, although she’s not in a position yet to announce them, she said.
Otto, director of UBC’s Biodiversity Research Centre, is on sabbatical at the University of Texas in Austin until June 2012.
When she received an email two weeks ago telling her to call for “some wonderful news” she almost deleted it thinking it was spam.
Otto, 43, came to UBC in 1995 and has helped make mathematical modelling a more accessible tool for biologists. She has done groundbreaking research on why some species reproduce sexually while others reproduce asexually, and why some carry more than one copy of each gene.
“It turns out that there’s a lot of need for math in biology. You can use it for figuring out the number of people who might get the flu or the size of a salmon run.
“It can be used to give a map of how evolution might proceed,” she said.
“As an evolutionary biologist at UBC, where I’m surrounded by so many creative people, I’ve been able to go places intellectually that I might otherwise not have explored,” she said.
Simon Peacock, dean of UBC’s faculty of science, said Otto’s insights into evolutionary processes had already made a “huge impact on science.”
“She is a key reason UBC ranks among the world’s leaders in evolutionary biology and biodiversity,” he said.
BrownBag Discussion - UBC and SFU - October 26, 2011
The BrownBag Series is a monthly event organized by whose purpose is to provide a place for learning and discussion of topics to help women in STEM fields advance their careers.
@ UBC
Personal Branding
When: Wednesday October 26, 2011 (and the last Wed. of every month) from 12pm-1:30pm
Location: UBC Point Grey Campus, Biodiversity Research Centre, Room 224
What to bring: Your lunch and your friends/colleagues – guys are invited too!
What to expect: A guest speaker (Oct 26 – Teg Brar), then open discussion and networking. Teg Brar is a personal branding expert and has extensive experience working with individuals to achieve career success. For more information, please visit http://www.scwistevents.ca and Teg’s blog http://www.personalbrandingedge.com/
@ SFU
Who Succeeds in Science and Personal Branding
When: Wednesday October 26, 2011 (and the last Wed. of every month) from 12:30pm-2:30pm Special 2 hour session
Location: SFU Burnaby Campus, TASC 1 Room 9204
What to bring: Your lunch and your friends/colleagues – guys are invited too!
What to expect: A guest speaker (Oct 26 – Malgorzata Dubiel, YWCA Woman of Distinction in Education/ Prof. Nancy Forde (Physics)/ Hiromi Matsui (Dir. of Diversity and Recruitment and Honorary SCWIST member)), then open discussion and networking.
We are looking for volunteer moderators: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
UBC-Vancouver Coastal Health researcher discovers new type of spinal cord stem cell
A group led by a University of British Columbia and Vancouver Coastal Health scientist has discovered a type of spinal cord cell that could function as a stem cell, with the ability to regenerate portions of the central nervous system in people with spinal cord injuries, multiple sclerosis or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig’s disease).
The radial glial cells, which are marked by long projections that can forge through brain tissue, had never previously been found in an adult spinal cord. Radial glia, which are instrumental in building the brain and spinal cord during an organism’s embryonic phase, vastly outnumber other potential stem cells in the spinal cord and are much more accessible. The findings were published online this week in PLoS One.
Stem cells have the capability of dividing into more specialized types of cells, either during the growth of an organism or to help replenish other cells. Scientists consider stem cells a promising way to replace injured or diseased organs and tissues.
The search for spinal stem cells of the central nervous system has until now focused deep in the spinal cord. Jane Roskams, a professor in the UBC Dept. of Zoology, broadened the search by using genetic profiles of nervous system stem cells that were developed and made publicly accessible by the Allen Institute for Brain Science in Seattle.
Roskams, collaborating with researchers at the Allen Institute, McGill University and Yale University, found cells with similar genes – radial glial cells – along the outside edge of spinal cords of mice.
“That is exactly where you would want these cells to be if you want to activate them with drugs while minimizing secondary damage,” says Roskams, a member ICORD (International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries) and the Brain Research Center, both partnerships of UBC and the Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute.
Roskams’ team also found that radial glial cells in the spinal cord share a unique set of genes with other neural stem cells. Several of these – when mutated – can lead to human diseases, including some that target the nervous system. That discovery opens new possibilities for potential gene therapy treatments that would replace mutated, dysfunctional spinal cord cells with healthier ones produced by the radial glial cells.
“These long strands of radial glial cells amount to a potentially promising repair network that is perfectly situated to help people recover from spinal cord injuries or spinal disorders,” Roskams says. “For some reason, they aren’t re-activated very effectively in adulthood. The key is to find a way of stimulating them so they reprise their role of generating new neural cells when needed.”
The research was supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and the Jack Brown and Family Alzheimer’s Research Foundation.
The University of British Columbia (UBC) is one of North America’s largest public research and teaching institutions, and one of only two Canadian institutions consistently ranked among the world’s 40 best universities. Surrounded by the beauty of the Canadian West, it is a place that inspires bold, new ways of thinking that have helped make it a national leader in areas as diverse as community service learning, sustainability and research commercialization. UBC offers more than 50,000 students a range of innovative programs and attracts $550 million per year in research funding from government, non-profit organizations and industry through 7,000 grants.
Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute (VCHRI) is the research body of Vancouver Coastal Health Authority, which includes BC’s largest academic and teaching health sciences centres: VGH, UBC Hospital, and GF Strong Rehabilitation Centre. In academic partnership with the University of British Columbia, VCHRI brings innovation and discovery to patient care, advancing healthier lives in healthy communities across British Columbia, Canada, and beyond. http://www.vchri.ca.
International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries (ICORD), is a world leading health research centre focused on spinal cord injury. From the lab-based cellular level of understanding injury to rehabilitation and recovery, our researchers are dedicated to the development and translation of more effective strategies to promote prevention, functional recovery, and improved quality of life after spinal cord injury. Located at Vancouver General Hospital in the Blusson Spinal Cord Centre, ICORD is supported by UBC Faculty of Medicine and Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute. Visit http://www.icord.org.
The Brain Research Centre comprises more than 200 investigators with multidisciplinary expertise in neuroscience research ranging from the test tube, to the bedside, to industrial spin-offs. The centre is a partnership of UBC and VCH Research Institute. For more information, visit http://www.brain.ubc.ca.
“Climbing the Career Ladder” Presentation - October 20, 2011
SCWIST and Worksafe BC have organized a special presentation on career advancement for women in science, engineering, and technology. Come and meet our panellists and hear their career stories—get inspired by their career success! This will also be a great opportunity to meet and network with other professionals.
“Climbing the Career Ladder” Presentation
Panel:
Anne Naser—Chief Information Officer (CIO)
Pamela Cohen—Vice President—Human Resources & Facilities
Joo Choon—Manager—Systems Development & Support
Andrea Goddard—Manager—HR Operations & IT Specialist
Izabella Wieckowski—Manager—IT Solutions
Zorana (Ana) Ostojic—Senior Engineer
Date —Thursday, October 20th
Time — 6:00 – 9:00 PM
Place —Hycroft University Women’s Club of Vancouver
1489 McRae Avenue, Vancouver, BC
Fee —Free for SCWIST members
$20 for non-members
Snacks and refreshments will be provided!
Space is limited.
Please register at www.scwistevents.ca
Google Map: http://g.co/maps/5gs2t
Wed Feb 01
