Articles by author: Milica Petkovic

  • Grad’s cancer research continues at University of Cambridge

    “I wouldn’t be where I am today without my experience at Brock,” said Biological Sciences grad, Lucas Maddalena. “Having such a great relationship with my supervisors has been important for me, allowing me to keep growing as a student.”

    Maddalena credits the support of his Brock supervisors, Biological Sciences Associate Professor Jeff Stuart, whom he worked closely with during his time at the University, and Professor Jeffrey Atkinson in Chemistry.

    The research that began in Brock University’s labs has taken Maddalena (BSc ’12, MSc ’17) nearly 6,000 kilometres across the Atlantic to one of the world’s most renowned institutions. Maddalena crossed the pond this past fall in order to walk the halls of the University of Cambridge, where he has accepted a prestigious $300,000 scholarship to complete his PhD.

    The Thorold native was the only overseas recipient of the Cancer Research U.K. Cambridge Centre 2017 Non-clinical PhD Studentship Award, of which five were awarded in 2017. The scholarship covers three years of study, the typical length of a PhD program at Cambridge, and will support the costs of Maddalena’s research, as well as his living expenses.

    “It’s surreal. That’s probably the best word to describe it,” he said of this new chapter in his life, which has him researching within Cambridge’s Department of Medicine.

    His research continues the theme of his master’s work, which explored mitochondrial function and oxygen usage in the context of health and disease.

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  • Jan 15: Math Ed Seminar Series

    Math Ed Seminar Series

    Dr. Chantal Buteau
    Dr. Eric Muller
    Department of Mathematics & Statistics
    Brock University

    Dr. Joyce Mgombelo
    Faculty of Education
    Brock University

    DATE: Monday, Jan. 15

    TIME: 10am

    LOCATION: TA403

    Math Ed Seminar Series – Jan 15

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  • Jan. 12: Chemistry Seminar Series – Dr. John Golbeck

    Department of Chemistry – Seminar Series

    Dr. John Golbeck
    Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics
    Professor of Chemistry
    The Pennsylvania State University

    DATE: Friday, Jan. 12

    TIME: Noon

    LOCATION: H313

    Chemistry Seminar Series – Jan. 12, 2018

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  • Neuroscience student Ethan Foy wins Monster Pitch

    Monday proved to be a dream come true for Ethan Foy.

    The fifth-year neuroscience student from Oakville won a $14,000 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 and sponsored by Spark Power Corp.

    More than a year ago, Foy began working on his business called LifePoints. He envisioned a mobile application that would offer monetary rewards to its users based on the time they spent at fitness facilities.

    He first applied for Monster Pitch last year and although he was not selected to present at the competition, he had started on a journey toward his vision. He also applied for — and received — the Deborah E. Rosati Entrepreneurship Award, which provided him with funding, space and mentorship to help him launch his business. Since receiving the award at last year’s Monster Pitch event, he has worked tirelessly to build his business.

    This year, he returned to Monster Pitch armed with a year of experience and with his mind set on winning. He did just that, walking away with much more than the $14,000 prize package.

    “The biggest thing I was looking to get out of Monster Pitch was being able to present in front of a world-class group of judges. I wanted to know where LifePoints stands in the eyes of the them and to get feedback from individuals who have seen a multitude of businesses,” he said.

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  • First female Associate Dean for Math and Science

    Cheryl McCormick is no stranger to the road less travelled.

    Her passion for STEM research (science, technology, engineering and math) has driven her forward in the once male-dominated field, and recently led her to a new position at Brock after more than two years as Director of the University’s Centre of Neuroscience.

    McCormick began her three-year term as Associate Dean, Research and Graduate Studies for the Faculty of Mathematics and Science on Jan. 1, becoming the first female appointed to the role.

    In her new position, she hopes to inspire other women to pursue a career in STEM research, particularly at Brock.

    McCormick’s main goal is to help promote the success of research at the University.

    Along with primary thesis supervision, she has supervised the research training of 13 graduate students and more than 70 undergraduates. Passionate about helping and recognizing the research of students, McCormick works with Science Without Borders research interns, participates in the Faculty’s Science Mentorship Program and assists with Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council-funded (NSERC) research.

    She has been with Brock’s Department of Psychology and Centre for Neuroscience since 2004, participating in various Department committees and speaker series. She also remains part of the Behavioural Neuroscience Committee, which she has served on for the past 14 years.

    McCormick is an associate member of the Department of Biology and has been a member of the Environmental Sustainability Research Centre since 2013.

    Along with departmental, faculty and University committees, McCormick has also served on numerous national and international research committees during her time at Brock. Most recently, she was a presenter for an NSERC grant workshop through the Office of Research Services and helped complete an internal review of graduate student scholarships for the Dean of Graduate Studies.

    She is the recipient of several awards, scholarships, internal and external grants and has been an invited symposia and colloquia speaker across Canada, the U.S. and abroad.

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  • State-of-the-art fermentation equipment for CCOVI

    Scientists at Brock University’s Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute (CCOVI) will be able to determine ideal fermentation conditions for a range of wine styles and varieties thanks to a new $482,000 state-of-the-art facility.

    With support from the Ministry of Research, Innovation and Science, CCOVI is purchasing 30 individually controlled stainless steel tanks along with a computerized glycol heating and cooling system that controls the temperature of the fermentation process occurring within each individual tank.

    This is done through a ‘jacket’ that wraps around every custom built 50-litre tank. A glycol solution pumped into the jacket can cool the tank to a low of -10°C or up to a high of 40°C.

    “The ability to manipulate fermentations on an individual basis allows us to simultaneously research the impact that different conditions have on the quality of a certain wine style or variety for effective, immediate industry uptake,” says CCOVI Director Debbie Inglis.

    The tanks and the heating and cooling system are among an impressive list of CCOVI equipment being funded by a $960,000 research infrastructure grant from Ontario’s Ministry of Research, Innovation and Science, announced Monday, Jan. 8 by Minister of Research, Innovation and Science, Reza Moridi.

    This money adds onto a $960,000 Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) grant awarded towards the end of last year.

    The two grants, plus contributions from industry, amount to a $2.4-million project that expands and enhances CCOVI’s fermentation, wine flavour and consumer behaviour facilities.

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  • Ontario grant helps Brock create first-of-its-kind wine consumer lab

    The Ontario Government has announced $960,000 in funding to help Brock University create the world’s first augmented reality, virtual reality and sensory reality consumer laboratory.

    The new money from the Ontario Research Fund matches a recent federal grant, and combines with support from the grape and wine industry that will enable Brock’s Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute (CCOVI) to launch the landmark facility, to be known as the R3CL.

    The Ontario grant was announced Monday, Jan. 8 by Reza Moridi, the Minister of Research, Innovation and Science. The $1-million R3CL lab is part of a $2.4-million project that will greatly enhance CCOVI’s research and studies into fermentation, wine flavour and consumer behaviour.

    After making the announcement Monday, Moridi was invited to test out the virtual reality technology that will be included in the $1-million R3CL (Physical, Augmented and Virtual Reality Consumer Lab), which will be used to create a variety of environments in which people purchase and consume wines. Researchers will study how a range of factors such as sights, sounds and smells impact choice and impression of wine.

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  • CCOVI Lecture Series kicks off with tribute to industry icon Karl Kaiser

    Brock University’s annual Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute (CCOVI) Lecture Series will be returning in January with a tribute to the late wine industry mogul Karl Kaiser.

    The CCOVI Lecture Series will begin on Monday, Jan. 15 with long-time winemaker David Sheppard giving a special presentation of Kaiser’s popular talk, “Pinot Noir: The Savage Yet Seductive Grape.”

    Sheppard is a 35-year industry veteran and winemaker at Flat Rock Cellars in Jordan Station. He also worked under the tutelage of Kaiser at Inniskillin in Niagara-on-the-Lake for 21 years, largely with a focus on the production of Pinot Noir.

    Kaiser’s lecture on the Canadian-winter-friendly red wine grape was first given at the 2008 CCOVI Lecture Series.

     

    Sheppard will be presenting the lecture on Monday, Jan. 15 at 2 p.m. in Mackenzie Chown Room H313 at Brock The lecture is free and open to the public, and it will also be livestreamed and can be viewed at brocku.ca/ccovi.

    The CCOVI Lecture Series will continue to run Monday afternoons until March 26 at the same time and location. More information about the series and the complete list of speakers will be announced in the early 2018 and can be found on the lecture series website.

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  • Fifth-year Neuroscience student Monster Pitch finalist

    The rewards are starting to add up for Ethan Foy. The fifth-year neuroscience student from Oakville, is working on his business idea called LifePoints. The mobile application rewards users for time spent at a fitness facility with points they can later cash in at local businesses. The application is now live on the App Store for iPhones, with a version soon to follow for Android users.

    Foy will be presenting LifePoints on the stage at the upcoming Monster Pitch competition Monday, Jan. 8 at the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre.

    It’s a moment he’s had his eye on for more than a year.

    LifePoints had been percolating in Foy’s mind since before last year’s Monster Pitch and his goal was to one day join the finalists on the stage to share his vision with the judges. Having previously worked as a student ambassador with BioLinc, Brock’s business incubator run by the Goodman School of Business, he was familiar with the resources that would benefit him when it came time to launch his own business.

    Foy began to work on his idea for LifePoints and it paid off at the end of last year’s event, when BioLinc announced that he was one of two recipients of the Deborah E. Rosati Entrepreneurship Award, which provided him with mentorship and funding over the summer while he worked full time on his business.

    Foy is passionate about the idea of having customers receive monetary rewards, and has designed his mobile application as an experience-driven reward platform, breaking away from the conventional loyalty model companies use to reward customers for their purchases through accumulated points and product discounts.

    “I fell in love with the idea of being able to provide a monetary reward for every other aspect of life, outside of work life,” said Foy.

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  • As cider booms, Brock’s CCOVI continues to be a key industry partner

    Grocery stores across the province are vying to be one of 95 new retailers authorized to sell cider to Ontario consumers next year. With Ontario’s thirst for cider far from quenched, Brock University’s Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute (CCOVI) continues to be at the forefront of advancing the booming industry.

    CCOVI is the only institution in Canada to offer a certification in cider production through the Cider Institute of North America, and it also provides analytical testing services to help cider makers deliver the best product possible.

    CCOVI’s Continuing Education Manager Barb Tatarnic says that pairing the foundational educational program with testing services brings a holistic approach to the learning process.

    “CCOVI has been able to branch out into an industry that is important here in Niagara and all across Canada,” Tatarnic says. “By delivering the foundational learning elements and then providing the opportunity to test the finished product, we are ensuring cider makers are delivering the quality of product their communities are looking for.”

     

     

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