News

  • Join us for the next installment of the Department of Biological Sciences Seminar Series

     

    The next instalment of the Department of Biological Sciences Seminar Series is scheduled for next Friday, March 3rd 2023 with a talk from Dr. Elyanne Ratcliffe, Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics, McMaster University titled “Development of the microbiota-gut-brain axis.”

     

    Dr. Ratcliffe’s talk will be in-person in room TH 256 from 12-1pm.

    For additional details and a trainee lunch with Dr. Ratcliffe, please email Brittany Kalbfleisch –  bkalbfleisch@brocku.ca

     

    Please note that, as per Brock University’s announcement on August 29 2022 (https://brocku.ca/coronavirus/2022/08/29/brock-to-require-masks-in-all-instructional-spaces/), all students and instructors will be required to wear medical-grade or N95 masks in instructional spaces. The university has indicated that cloth masks no longer satisfy the masking policy requirement.

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  • Feb 2 – Master of Science Thesis Defence – Derek Hon

    Master of Science thesis defence in Computer Science

    Derek Hon, a Master of Science candidate in the Department of Computer Science, will defend his thesis titled “Distributed MAP-Elites and its Application in Evolutionary Design” on Thursday, Feb. 2 at 2 pm., in MC J404.

    The examination committee includes Cheryl McCormick, Chair; Brian Ross, Supervisor; Ali Emami, External Examiner (Brock University); and Robson De Grande and Ke Qiu, Committee Members.

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  • Feb 1 – Master of Science Thesis Defence – Mohammed Adib

    Master of Science thesis defence in Computer Science

    Mohammed Adib Khan, a Master of Science candidate in the Department of Computer Science, will defend his thesis titled “Time-Series Trend-Based Multi-Level Adaptive Tracing” on Wednesday, Feb. 1 at 9:30 am., in WH208.

    The examination committee includes Cheryl McCormick, Chair; Naser Ezzati-Jivan, Supervisor; Ali Emami, External Examiner (Brock University); and Robson De Grande and Renata Queiroz Dividino, Committee Members.

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  • Oct 18 – Master of Science Thesis Defence – Mohammad Ahmadi

    Master of Science thesis defence in Physics:

    Mohammad Ahmadi, a Master of Science candidate in the Department of Physics, will defend his thesis titled “Low-dimensional purple and blue bronzes: Crystal growth, characterization and optical properties” on Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2022 at 2 p.m. in WH 147, in hybrid format.

    The examination committee includes Cheryl McCormick, Chair; Maureen Reedyk, Supervisor; David Broun, External Examiner (Simon Fraser University); and David Crandles and Fereidoon Razavi, Committee Members.

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  • Oct 19 – Master of Science Thesis Defence – Jared Thomson

    Master of Science thesis defence in Chemistry:

    Jared Thomson, a Master of Science candidate in the Department of Chemistry, will defend his thesis titled “Semi-synthesis of Unnatural Narciclasine Derivatives” on Wednesday, Oct 19, 2022 at 12:30 p.m., virtually.

    The examination committee includes Cheryl McCormick, Chair; Costa Metallinos, Interim Supervisor; Dennis L. Wright, External Examiner (University of Connecticut); and Hongbin (Tony) Yan and Georgii Nikonov, Committee Members.

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  • Aug 4 – Master of Science Thesis Defence – Biotechnology

    Master of Science thesis defence

    Mary Onyekwelu, a Master of Science candidate in the Center for Biotechnology, will defend her thesis titled “Transient and Pulse Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Spectroscopy on Photosystem I Reaction Centers” on Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022 at 11 a.m., virtually.

    The examination committee includes Cheryl McCormick, Chair; Art van der Est, Supervisor; Wade Johnson, External Examiner (Susquehanna University); and Jeff Stuart and Tony Yan, Committee Members.

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  • April 6 – Master of Science Thesis Defence – Jesse H. Vanloon

    Master of Science thesis defence

     

    Jesse H. Vanloon, a Master of Science candidate in the Centre for Biotechnology , will defend his thesis titled “Re-evaluation of analytical chemistry techniques in studying DNA structures” on Wednesday, April 6, 2022 at 1 p.m., in virtual format.

     

    The examination committee includes Cheryl McCormick, Chair; Hongbin (Tony) Yan, Supervisor; Jean-Paul Desaulniers, External Examiner (Ontario Tech University); and Heather Gordon and Doug Bruce, Committee Members.

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  • Jan 6 – Doctor of Philosophy Thesis Defence – Fereshteh Moradi

    Doctor of Philosophy thesis defence

    Fereshteh Moradi, Doctor of Philosophy candidate in the Department of Biological Sciences, will defend her thesis titled “Investigating the Effect of Cell culture Compositions on Mitochondrial Metabolism, Dynamics, and Transcriptome and Proteome of cells” on Thursday, January 6, 2021 at 11 a.m., in virtual format.

    The examination committee includes Brian D. Roy, Chair; Jeff Stuart, Supervisor; Jim Uniacke, External Examiner (University of Guelph, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology); Val A. Fajardo, Internal External Examiner; Gaynor Spencer and Rebecca Macpherson, Committee Members.

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  • Sept 14 – Master of Science Thesis Defence – Binal Tejani

    Master of Science thesis defence

    Binal Tejani, a Master of Science candidate in the Department of Computer Sciences, will defend his thesis titled “Game Theory-based Allocation Management in VCC Networks” on Tuesday, September 14, 2021 at 1 p.m., in virtual format.

    The examination committee includes Cheryl McCormick, Chair; Robson De Grande, Supervisor; Ke Qiu, External Examiner; and Brian Ross and Sheridan Houghten, Committee Members.

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  • Experiential education exemplified through Earth Sciences field trip

    The cold weather didn’t stop a group of students from making a trip up north this April.

    Hernan Ugalde, Adjunct Professor for the Department of Earth Sciences, led the group of nine students to 10 different locations in the Bracebridge area as part of a field trip for ERSC 4P01 – Advanced Structural Geology.

    After securing a Teaching and Learning Innovation (TALI) grant, Ugalde planned out the trip so his students could apply the concepts they learned in class to real-world scenarios.

    In its third-year prerequisite, students focus more on the basic concepts of how rocks fracture and deform from a strain or stress point of view. This course further teaches students about additional concepts regarding the deformation of rock, with more of an emphasis on ductile deformation (i.e. how rocks fold) and the field recognition and description of all these features.

    “Geology is all about recognizing features in the field,” said Ugalde. “And while you can show pictures of how things look like in real life, that is never the same as seeing them on a fresh or weathered rock face.”

    “Most of the time you have a combination of features (e.g. a fold that has been deformed by joints or fractures after), and you can’t really replicate these features with photos on the screen,” he added.

    One week before the trip, Ugalde travelled to the area and scouted out locations for the students to examine. At each location, students are given a brief explanation on the geological context for that site and are then asked to look at the rock face and give an overview of what they saw (e.g. what kind of rocks, what kind of deformation features).

    Students then took measurements with their compasses which were later processed through compilation diagrams. These diagrams give an idea on the main directions of stress that each site has suffered. The measurements also help in forming a 3D view from the outcrop itself and provide insight into important quantitative measurements as well.

    As a follow-up, the students who attended the trip work on a report that will provide a summary of the location, geology, sketches, measurements for all 10 sites.

    The trip itself is an example of the many experiential education opportunities that are available for students in the Faculty of Math and Science both inside and outside the classroom.

    What Students Have to Say:

    “I found it very beneficial to apply the theoretical knowledge learned in lectures and labs, to real-life situations you would see in the workforce.” – Brendan Llew-Williams

    “I feel that I have learned more than I have over a semester of learning. Being able to visualize and find diagnostic properties within a rock formation rather than looking at diagrams from a lecture was, to me, so much more beneficial.” – Thomas Henley

    “The field trip was invaluable, especially for structural geology.  Some of the concepts learned in a lecture setting aren’t easily grasped until you can see them in real life.” – Nate Sabourin

     

     

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