Articles by author: Milica Petkovic

  • Applications open for teaching, learning innovation grants

    Tuesday, January 23, 2018 | By

    From funding a course held in Algonquin Provincial Park to supporting volunteer initiatives with local seniors, the impact of Teaching and Learning Innovation Grants within the University has been widespread.

    A new round of grant funding is now available and faculty members are being encouraged to apply.

    The Teaching and Learning Innovation Grants are administered by the Centre for Pedagogical Innovation (CPI) and Experiential Education and are designed to support initiatives that make a positive contribution to the teaching and learning environment of Brock University.

    Funding is available in the categories of experiential education, high-impact practices, international course development, online/blended courses, and professional development and special projects. The first four categories may receive a maximum of $3,000 per course (or up to $5,000 for international course development), while the professional development and special projects may receive a maximum of $500, which must also be matched by another source in order to be distributed.

    Proposals are adjudicated as they come in and distributed until March 1 or earlier if funds are exhausted.

    An information session is being held Tuesday, Jan. 30 from noon to 1 p.m. in TH135 (beside CPI).

    All full-time, tenured and probationary faculty are eligible to apply.  To access details of the grants or to submit a proposal, visit the CPI website.

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  • January 24: Master of Science thesis defence

    Tuesday, January 23, 2018 | By

    Aditya Joshi, a candidate in the Centre for Biotechnology, will present his Master of Science thesis defence by video conference on Wednesday, Jan. 24 at 1 p.m. in WH 147.

    His thesis is titled “A systematic view on mobile elements’ contribution to human transcriptomes.”

    His examination committee members are Dr. Michael Pisaric, Chair; Dr. Teresa Crease, External Examiner, (University of Guelph); Dr. Ping Liang, Supervisor; Drs. Charles Depres and Trevor Dudding, Committee Members.

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  • Brock researchers create groundbreaking DNA reader for disease detection

    Monday, January 22, 2018 | By

    A chemist and a parasite expert at Brock University have teamed up to produce and test out a simple device that can detect diseases from DNA samples. It’s a scaled-down version of what is normally an expensive and complicated DNA laboratory technique, yet it’s fast, inexpensive and accurate, making it ideal for use in developing countries.

    Brock University Assistant Professor of Chemistry Feng Li’s device consists of a strip of paper attached onto a glass slide. The paper contains several rows of what look like thermometers, lines with markings projecting out of bulb-like circles. DNA samples are loaded onto the circles and move up the lines, much like mercury rises in a thermometer.

    “Different concentrations of the genetic disease biomarkers in the samples would migrate different distances,” says Li. “So, all you need to do is read the distance they penetrate, just like you’d read a ruler.”

    Known as the quantitative paper-based DNA reader, each device costs only about 10 cents. They work with a scaled-down version of a traditionally expensive and complex DNA laboratory technique.

    While testing for the presence of disease markers, health-care workers use a technique called polymerase chain reaction (PCR), which makes millions of copies of a particular section of DNA. The PCR technique normally requires highly specialized equipment and expensive molecular probes. But Li’s device is able to read DNA samples through a PCR technique using simple technology and low-cost chemicals.

    “This is going to be extremely useful in resource-limited settings where you don’t have a lot of facilities to interpret the results,” says Li.

    One such setting is the National Autonomous University of Honduras, where Brock University Professor of Health Sciences Ana Sanchez runs an internationally-renowned research program focusing on parasites. She and her research team collected worms that had been expelled by children suspected of having soil-transmitted helminth infection, a disease affecting about 1.5 billion people worldwide and a major cause of childhood malnutrition and physical impairment.

    The researchers used the quantitative paper-based DNA reader to test the worms for helminth infection. She applauds the speed and sensitivity of the device, saying that diagnostic techniques in developing countries are traditional, basic and rely on the expertise of the person observing the sample.

    Sanchez says the device goes beyond just a yes or no result by measuring the amount of genetic disease biomarkers in the DNA sample.

    Both Sanchez and Li say they are happy with their research partnership, which evolved from casual conversations as they worked next to one another in their labs in Brock’s Cairns Family Health and Bioscience Research Complex.

    The research team’s results are in their study “Paper-Based DNA Reader for Visualized Quantification of Soil-Transmitted Helminth Infections,” published Tuesday, Jan. 16 in the journal ACS Sensors. PhD student Alex Guan Wang and master’s student Tianyu Dong are the study’s first authors.

    Read the full story here

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  • Early indicators of potential applicants particularly strong for FMS

    Monday, January 22, 2018 | By

    Early indicators of potential applicants for Ontario universities this fall are showing some strong signals for Brock.

    It will be months before universities have a clear expectation of September enrolment, but the first round of data shows Brock’s numbers up by more than five per cent over 2017 in terms of Ontario Grade 12 students putting Brock among their top choices of universities to attend this fall.

    Figures released Monday, Jan. 22 by the Ontario Universities’ Application Centre (OUAC) show the number of Ontario Secondary School applications to Brock is currently 15,534, an increase of 773 from a year ago.

    The OUAC report shows Brock gained 5.2 per cent more applications from Ontario Secondary School students, and a 1.4 per cent increase in the volume of Ontario Secondary students selecting Brock as their first choice institution  — an increase in Brock’s marketshare.

    The OUAC report does not include applications from outside Canada, outside Ontario, nor students transferring to Brock from other institutions.

    Overall, Brock has received 17,768 applications to date, an increase of 1,290 (7.8 per cent) over the same time last cycle, providing a strong indicator that Brock is a top choice in a fiercely competitive market.

    This year’s early indicators for Brock are particularly strong for the Faculty of Mathematics and Science, the Faculty of Social Science and the Goodman School of Business.

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  • January 28: Deadline for Deborah E. Roast Entrepreneurship Award

    Saturday, January 20, 2018 | By

    Applications are open for a competitive award that gives Brock’s entrepreneurial students an edge on the path to success. Established in 2014, the Deborah E. Rosati Entrepreneurship Award annually provides at least one student with $10,000 to become a full-time entrepreneur in the Spring/Summer term.

    The student who receives the award will work closely with BioLinc, Brock’s on-campus business incubator run by the Goodman School of Business, and gain access to physical space, support services, mentorship and networking opportunities from May to August.

    The award is open to any Brock student with almost any type of business concept. Co-op students are able to use the semester towards a co-op work term.

    Brock students Ethan Foy and Olivia Poulin were last year’s recipients, and they have both enjoyed entrepreneurial success thanks in part to their ability to focus their efforts to their businesses full-time last summer.

    Earlier this month, Foy won a $14,000 startup prize package at Monster Pitch, an entrepreneurial pitch competition hosted by the Brock Innovation Group in partnership with the Goodman School of Business and BioLinc. The fifth-year neuroscience student from Oakville won the competition by pitching LifePoints, his company that provides users with monetary rewards for time spent at fitness facilities.

    Students can apply for the Deborah Rosati award on the BioLinc website until Sunday, Jan. 28.

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  • Biological Sciences grad student develops computer codes to measure, track mitochondria

    Thursday, January 18, 2018 | By

    Mitochondria are essential to human and animal life, but analyzing their ever-changing configurations through a microscope is a challenge. As they continually fuse and fragment, they affect how cells, and therefore bodies, work.

    Studying the tube-shaped organelles that provide energy to cells has recently been made easier through the work of a Brock University graduate student. Andrew Valente, a student in the Department of Biological Sciences with an interest in computer coding, has developed a set of tools that researchers around the globe can freely access to better measure and understand the movements of mitochondrial networks.

    “I use a lot of open source software,” he says. “I thought it would be a good idea to adopt open source code because then we can have everybody looking at it and verifying that it’s working correctly.”

    In an open source software arrangement, anyone can study, modify and distribute software for any purpose, which encourages widespread collaboration and free, public use.

    Valente, from Thorold, is studying the structure and movement of mitochondrial networks, and is developing methods to track them for his master’s program.

    Valente and his MSc supervisor, Associate Professor of Biological Sciences Jeff Stuart, are now collaborating with research teams in Italy and Germany, with several international students and postdoctoral fellows visiting Stuart’s lab to learn more about mitochondrial networks.

    Mitochondria create most of the energy that the body needs in order to live and support the functioning of organs. More than 220 illnesses are associated with mitochondrial dysfunction, according to MitoCanada.

    Read the full story here

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  • January 23: Exploring Careers in Oenology & Viticulture

    Wednesday, January 17, 2018 | By

    You’re invited!

    This intimate event will give students the opportunity to meet directly with oenology and viticulture industry professionals in a wide variety of positions. Students can improve networking skills, learn about possible career paths and secure employment (part-time, co-op/internship or post-graduate, full-time).

    DATE: Tuesday, Jan. 23

    TIME: 5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

    LOCATION: Pond Inlet, Brock University

    REGISTER AT: careerzone.brocku.ca – Campus Career – Events

    For more information, please see Steven Trussler, OEVI Academic Advisor (IH 203) or email him at strussler@brocku.ca

    OEVI Careers_Jan 23

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  • January 18: Coffee Break with the President

    Tuesday, January 16, 2018 | By

    President Gervan Fearon invites Brock faculty and staff to kick off the new year by joining him for a coffee break, Thursday, Jan. 18 in Market Hall. Employees are welcome to drop in anytime between 2 and 3 p.m. to enjoy complimentary coffee, tea, sweets and conversation. No registration is required.

    With the majority of employees back from their holiday breaks, Fearon looks forward to catching up and having conversations with colleagues and meeting new people.

    “The event is purposely informal,” he said. “There won’t be any formal speeches or agendas. I want to chat and engage in conversation with faculty, staff and colleagues about their holidays, to introduce myself and provide faculty and staff with an opportunity to share and engage in dialogue.”

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  • January 24: Celebration of Excellence

    Tuesday, January 16, 2018 | By

    The accomplishments of faculty and staff within the Faculty of Mathematics and Science will take the spotlight during an upcoming celebration.

    The fourth annual Celebration of Excellence will take place Wednesday, Jan. 24 from 3 to 4:30 p.m. in Pond Inlet.

    Awards handed out during the ceremony include Distinguished Teaching, Distinguished Research, Distinguished Staff, Student Experience, Recruitment and Outreach, Distinguished Scholar and Lifetime Achievement.

    New this year is the Experiential Education Leadership Award, which will be presented to a faculty or staff member who has exhibited a passion for incorporating experiential education opportunities into their classes or placed an emphasis on providing first- and second-year students with experiential education opportunities.

    All are welcome and encouraged to attend.

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  • January 16: Master of Science thesis defence

    Tuesday, January 16, 2018 | By

    Daniel Hughes, a candidate in the Department of Earth Sciences, will present his Master of Science thesis defence by video conference on Tuesday, Jan. 16 at 10:30 a.m. in WH 147.

    His thesis is titled “Detecting spatial variation in hydrology and carbon export across a lake-rich permafrost landscape: Old Crow Flats, Yukon, Canada.”

    His examination committee members are Dr. Cheryl McCormick, Chair; Dr. Susanne Tank, External Examiner, (University of Alberta); Dr. Kevin Turner, Supervisor; Dr. Michael Pisaric and Dr. Francine McCormick, Committee Members.

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