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Congratulations to….

Lauren Sawich, who passed her M.Sc. Thesis Examination, in the area of “Ecology”, on August 22, 2017!

Dr. Eduardo Mendez, who passed his Ph.D. Thesis Examination, in the area of “Biochemistry”, on August 29, 2017!

Dr. Gareth Jones, who passed his Ph.D. Thesis Examination, in the area of “Microbiology”, on August 30, 2017!

Brittney Shabits, who passed her M.Sc. Thesis Examination, in the area of “Biochemistry”, on August 31, 2017!

Student Orientation 2017 - Yesterday was the Orientation session for 346 new Biological Sciences students. The students met each of our program chairs in sessions highlighting each program. Students also met David, Jillicent and Heather in Drummond Hall, where they learned about the Biological Sciences major as well as timelines/process for changing majors.

Department of Biological Sciences“from biomolecules to the biosphere”

Newsletter

Important Dates

Fall Lectures startSept 11

Last Add/Swap dateSept 22

Last Drop dateSept 25

Reading DaysNov 10-13

Lectures endDec 8

Final ExamsDec 11-21

#26 September 8, 2017 www.bio.ucalgary.ca

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2016 and 2017 BISI swag

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Students signed a departmental banner welcoming the class of 2021, which will be displayed in the hallway outside the main office, with the welcome banner for last year’s incoming class. This year, new students received a “We are BioSci” patch that can be ironed on to their lab coats. This idea was suggested by a group of undergraduate students, who thought it would be a good way for our first-year students to recognize each other in the labs for their various courses.

Many thanks to our student volunteers, Hasnaien Ahmed and Candice Parmer, as well as to David Bininda, Jillicent Webb, Vanina Zaremberg, Gordon Chua, Doug Muench, Sean Rogers and Jessica Theodor for their time and effort in giving presentations to each of the five student groups.

Graduate Student AffairsResearch Proposals

The M.Sc. Research Proposal for James Reeve entitled “Detecting signatures of convergent evolution from fish”, will be held on September 12, 2017 at 2:00pm. in Biological Sciences room 312.

The M.Sc. Research Proposal for Vinh Nguyen entitled “Structural analysis of ATP citrate lyase from Chlorobium limicola”, will be held on September 22, 2017 at 2:00pm in Biological Sciences room 389.

The M.Sc. Research Proposal for Danielle Clake entitled “Assessing the Resilience of Pollinating Insect Populations to Current and Future Landscape Changes”, will be held on September 27, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. in Biological Sciences room 312.

Ph.D. Candidacy Oral Examination - Candidacy Exams are Closed Exams.

Dilini Atugala (Supervisor: D. Muench), will be holding her Candidacy Examination, in the area of “Biochemistry”, on September 14, 2017 at 9:00 a.m. in Biological Sciences room 312. (Neutral Chair: E.C. Yeung)

Abhinandan Kumar (Supervisor: M. Samuel), will be holding his Candidacy Examination, in the area of “Developmental Biology”, on October 5, 2017 at 2:15pm in Biological Sciences room 389. (Neutral Chair: K. Ng)

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Thesis Oral Examinations - Exams are “Open” unless otherwise noted.

Navreet Suri (Supervisor: G. Voordouw), will be holding her Ph.D. Thesis Examination, in the area of “Environmental Microbiology”, on September 12, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. in Biological Sciences room 312. (Neutral Chair: G. Chua).

Biwen An (Supervisor: G. Voordouw), will be holding her Ph.D. Thesis Examination, in the area of “Environmental Microbiology”, on September 14, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. in Biological Sciences room 389. (Neutral Chair: M. Hynes).

Rola Kutby (Supervisor: R. Cartar), will be holding her M.Sc. Thesis Examination, in the area of “Ecology”, on September 19, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. in Biological Sciences room 312. (Neutral Chair: R. Turner).

Analisa Lazaro-Cote (Supervisor: L. Jackson & M. Vijayan), will be holding her M.Sc.Thesis Examination, in the area of “Ecology”, on September 21, 2017 at 2:00pm in Biological Sciences room 389. (Neutral Chair: P. Tieleman).

Gloria Okpala (Supervisor: G. Voordouw), will be holding her Ph.D. Thesis Examination, in the area of “Environmental Microbiology”, on September 28, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. in Biological Sciences room 312. (Neutral Chair: J. Cobb).

“Piled Higher and Deeper” by Jorge Cham www.phdcomics.com

Graduate Student Affairs continued...

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WHEN Friday, September 29, 2017 6 pm - 10 pm Doors open at 5:30 pm

WHERE Varisty Community Centre 4303 Varsity Drive, Calgary, AB T3A 0Z7

EXPERIENCE ETHIOPIAN CULTURE Traditional Coffee Ceremony • Merkato • Cultural Display • Trivia • Music • Food

FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY

DINNER TICKETS $50 General* Kids free under 10 yrs *Charitable receipt provided

BENEFITING Orphaned children who’s parents perished from HIV/AIDS AND A Girls Centre for young girls to continue their high school education

Think globally.

Act globally.

Build a legacy.

Fortify a community.

Rise up.

APPHASS FUNDRAISING DINNER

WWW.APPHASS.COM Tickets & Event Information also available on Event Brite

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ResearchAssistantPositioninZoologyEducationResearch

Fall2017/Winter2018

Aresearchassistantopportunityisavailabletostudyhowstudentslearninzoology.Theprojectwillfocusondevelopinganewassessmenttooltoexplorehowstudentsusedrawingtolearnanddevelopvisualliteracyinundergraduatezoologycourses.Thestudywillalsoseektoassessstudents’attitudestowardandmotivationtodrawaspartofcourseworkandstudying. Workwillinvolvecodingandanalyzingtrendsinqualitativeandquantitativedata,interviewingfacultyandstudents,andgenerating,reviewing,andrevisingassessmentquestions.Abackgroundinbiologyandinterestineducationresearchisrequired.Experienceinresearch,workingwithothers,anddataanalysisisrecommended. Ascholarshipof$3000willbepaidfor320hoursofworkduringFall2017andWinter2018(24weeks;~15hours/week).ExpressionofinterestandquestionsregardingthispositioncanbesenttoDr.MindiSummers(mindi.summers@ucalgary.ca).Pleaseincludewithyourcoverletteracurrentunofficialacademictranscriptandresume/CV.Applicationswillberevieweduntilasuitablecandidateisfound.

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The Athabasca Watershed Council (AWC-WPAC) is seeking applications for the position of Outreach Coordinator.

The AWC-WPAC is a provincially-recognized Watershed Planning and Advisory Council (WPAC) that works in partnership with the Government of Alberta to achieve the goals outlined in the Provincial Government’s Water for Life strategy. Our Mission is to promote, foster respect, and plan for an ecologically healthy watershed by demonstrating leadership and facilitating informed decision-making to ensure environmental, economic, and social sustainability.

The Outreach Coordinator will be responsible for developing, planning, and implementing outreach activities such as educational activities, promotional events, and stakeholder engagement sessions, and will contribute to the implementation of the AWC-WPAC’s digital communications strategy through the development of website, newsletter, and social media content.

The successful candidate will be able to explain scientific concepts to a general audience and will have a post-secondary degree or diploma in a related field. He or she will have experience with event planning, digital communications, and a knowledge of the many stakeholders and indigenous peoples that live, work, and play in the Athabasca River watershed. He or she will have excellent written and spoken communication skills and have a demonstrated ability to work independently and cooperatively.

This is a full-time position based out of the AWC-WPAC’s office in Athabasca, Alberta. Some travel and occasional work on evenings and weekends will be required. The salary range for this position is $55,000 to $60,000 per year, depending on qualifications and experience.

To apply for this position, please submit a cover letter and resume, with the subject line, “Outreach Coordinator” to:

Jason Ponto Executive Director jason.ponto@awc-wpac.ca.

Applications will be accepted until midnight on Friday, September 8, 2017.

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“Stone Tools, Diet and Sociality” Lab Volunteer Opportunities

Gain practical experience working with one of the largest ethnobotanical collections found in any archaeological institution with over 700 species from more than 20 countries in Africa. Opportunity to help assist in the creation and implementation of a world class botanical record system.

Open to all paleoscience and biology students with an interest in plant curation for reference collection purposes who seek hands-on experience volunteering in a university research lab. Applicants will be working under the guidance of Professor Julio Mercader in the Department of Anthropology and Archaeology.

Volunteers will have the opportunity to assist in the creation of a curation system for researchers and will engage in the handling, processing, measuring, weighing and photographing plant samples.

All interested parties please contact David Isilebo at info@olduvaigorgesds.com for more information

African Paleoethnobotany Reference Collection