BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES DEPARTMENT MATTERS | July 7, 2017

Dear all,

Well done to all S1 teaching staff who successfully delivered our units and made it through to the end of semester – now for a well-earned break from teaching! For those gearing up for S2 and looking for inspiration, try the REP workshop on ‘Making lectures interactive’ next Wednesday or any of the resources available through the Learning Innovation Hub.

Cheers,

Michelle

Save the Date

This coming week 10th – 14th July

Wed 12th: Department Morning Tea; 10:30am – 11:00am; E8A-280 (Biology Tea Room).

Wed 12th: Associate Professor John Alroy, Macquarie University; 1pm – 2pm; E8A-280 (Biology Tea Room).

Wed 12th: REP Workshop – ‘Making Lectures Interactive’ 

Thu 13th: Writing Workshop; 2:30-4:30pm, E8A-280 (Biology Tea Room).

Following week 10th – 14th July

Mon 17th: REP Event – ‘NSW Chief Scientist & Engineer Event: Mary O’Kane’; 1-4pm; The Australian Hearing Hub, Level 1 Theatre, 16 University Avenue, Macquarie University.

Tue 18th: Diversity and Inclusion Launch Lunch; 12:00 – 1:00pm, E8A-280 (Biology Tea Room).

Wed 19th: E8C Digital Teaching Lab Induction; 9am – 11:30am; E8C-106.

Wed 19th: Department Morning Tea; 10:30am – 11:00am; The Hill.

Wed 19th: No Seminar this week.

Thu 20th: Writing Workshop; 2:30-4:30pm, E8A-280 (Biology Tea Room).

Fri 21st: F7B Digital Teaching Lab Induction; 9:30am – 11:30am; F7B-108.

Coming up

Every Thursday for the next few months: Writing Workshop; 2:30-4:00pm; E8A-280 (Biology Tea Room).

July 24th: E8A Digital Teaching Lab Induction; 9am to 12 noon; E8A-120.

July 25 & 26th: REP Outlook Conference 2017

August 19th: Open Day

Sept 19th: ECR Showcase; E8A-280 (Biology Tea Room).

Nov 13-14: Department retreat for academic staff; venue TBD.

Department seminar schedule

August 2nd: Professor Rick Shine, The University of Sydney; 1pm – 2pm; E8A-280 (Biology Tea Room).

August 9th: Dr Katherine Moseby, The University of Adelaide; 1pm – 2pm; E8A-280 (Biology Tea Room).

General News and Announcements

Diversity & Inclusion Lunch Launch – July 18th, 11:30-1pm, E8A Tearoom

Bring a plate from your country/culture to celebrate the launch of the Diversity and Inclusion initiative in Biology. To help us manage the food, could you please let us know what you are bringing by filling out the spreadsheet in google docs:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1dIsYysBl1f8Yr8PChZxvHFI8ilVsUvyFxeP63VLe8GE/edit?usp=sharing

DEPARTMENTAL SEMINAR SERIES

Day/Date/Time/Place: Wednesday, 12th  July, 1-2pm, E8A-280 (Tea Room).

Speaker: Associate Professor John Alroy, Macquarie University.

Title: The onset of mass extinction in Amazonia.

Abstract: It is difficult to estimate the number of species to have gone extinct in recent decades because data are sparse and methods are based. One general approach is to back-estimate extinction counts by way of species-area relationships (SARs), which assume a power law relationship between area and species richness. Large-scale SARs are poorly constrained because of sampling biases. I present a better protocol that involves subsampling point records to make the data uniform (using a new equation) and then extrapolating from the subsampled data to obtain an overall richness estimate (using a different new equation). When applied to vascular plant data from the speciesLink museum portal, this protocol suggests that the SAR indeed follows a power law with an approximate exponent of 0.27. Because about 23% of the Brazilian Amazon is already deforested, about 7% of the 50,000 species in this system are either extinct or committed to extinction.

Reminder to All Researchers

The PURE portal is now live so it is important that all research staff check their details, upload a photo, enter some profile text and check/disclaim publications in PURE, as it is now a public facing representation of the University, Faculty, the Department and our staff.

PURE will become a source of truth for formal reporting including ERA, so the data quality is important. We need to get it right.

If you haven’t already done so please log in and complete your profile and check publications data.

The links are found here: https://staff.mq.edu.au/research/research-hub

Did you participate in an outreach activity recently for the Department?

Don’t for get to fill in the super-quick form here – – ACCESS OUTREACH FORM HERE

Ally Network Morning tea – July 18th, 10-11am Level 4, C5C 

The Workplace Equity & Diversity unit would like to extend their thanks to the members of the Macquarie Ally network for being visible supporters of LGBTIQ inclusion on campus. Ally members and supporters are most welcome.

Resources to support the MQ LGBTIQ community

Responding to Questions
References and Terminology
Actively Show Support

Absence on Duty

If there are any changes needed to the approved Absence on Duty cases can the staff/students please approach the concerned administrative staff who has handled that AoD directly by phone or e-mail or in person.  This is important because once the AoD is completed and closed any communication to that AoD is not delivered to the administrative staff and so they are not able to take any action. Thank you for your co-operation.

HDR Corner – UNSW Bragg Student Prize for Science Writing

http://www.refractionmedia.com.au/braggstudentscienceprize/

Library News

Electronic on and off-campus access to the Times Higher Education (THE) is now available through the Library’s subscription.

A personal account is needed for full access – an MQ email address is required for registration. http://multisearch.mq.edu.au/MQ:PC_PLUS_LOCAL:MQ_ALMA51177685250002171

Alumna Kate Umbers becomes a STEM Superstar

Congratulations to Kate, who did her undergrad, Honours and PhD in the Department, for becoming a STEM superstar. Read more here: https://scienceandtechnologyaustralia.org.au/what-we-do/superstars-of-stem/

Superstars of STEM will smash society’s gender assumptions about scientists and increase the public visibility of women in STEM. STA is working with 30 of the nation’s most dynamic scientists and technologists to create role models for young women and girls, and work towards equal representation in the media of men and women in STEM.

“We are equipping the Superstars with advanced communication skills and providing them with the opportunities to use them – in the media, on the stage, and in speaking with decision-makers. The program is connecting participants through a mentoring network, to encourage them to learn from women who have crafted a profile for themselves and who already serve as role models.”

Empowering Women in STEM Congress 18-19 October, Sydney

http://www.wisecongress.com.au/

IPWEA (NSW) is hosting an Empowering Women in STEM Congress, 18-19 October 2017, in Sydney, to establish, recognise and promote the outstanding contribution woman make to the engineering, scientific and technological communities that improve and evolve our society.

This Congress not only creates opportunities and pathways to inspire Australia’s future leaders but will allow you to have your say and influence future policy through our call to action communique.

This Congress will provide a positive action with outcomes on the issue of gender diversity and skills gap in STEM fields.

Come along and be heard! Who should attend? Aspiring, emerging and senior leaders in a variety of industries responsible for: Diversity & Inclusion, People & Culture, HR, Community Engagement, Engineers & Technicians, Training & Development and Champions of Change.

Plant of the Week

For this week, Pyrus calleryana – Ornamental Pear. Varieties of this tough, sturdy pear from China are currently extremely popular with landscape designers. However, caution should be taken, as it has become an invasive pest in many eastern states of North America.

Visiting Fellow, Dr. Melissah Rowe

Melissah is visiting the department to work with Professor Simon Griffith for 6 weeks over the Winter. She is collaborating with Simon on a number of projects that bring together expertise in avian ecology, sexual selection, sperm biology, speciation, and reproductive plasticity. Melissah is currently working at the University of Oslo (Norway) and did her PhD at the University of Chicago (USA). She is, however, a Macquarie University alumna, having completed her BSc (Advanced Biology with Honours) in 2000. Melissah’s primary research interests focus on understanding how ecology and evolution shape the reproductive biology and behaviour of individuals, with a particular interest in the evolution of animal ejaculates (including sperm and non-sperm components).

Melissah will be located in W19F (room 135) and can be contacted by email (melissah.rowe@nhm.uio.no) if anyone is interested in meeting with her during her stay.

New MRes Student: Osazee Oyanoghafo – Accommodation Needed

Osazee has just started in Year 2 of MRes, supervised by Ian Wright. Osazee is looking for accommodation, as he has just arrived in Australia; if you have a room available, even for a short time, please contact him at <osazee.oyanoghafo@uniben.edu> or contact Julian May <julian.may@mq.edu.au> x4288.

Osazee’s project will involve plant flammability and looking at invasive plants. He will be sitting in the HDR office space in E8C153 – please say hello and make him feel welcome!

Official Opening of the ARC Industrial Transformation Training Centre for Fruit Fly Biosecurity Innovation

On 27 June, we celebrated the official opening of the ARC Centre for Fruit Fly Biosecurity Innovation at Macquarie University. The research focus of the Centre is to conduct strategic biological and chemical research on fruit flies to support development of new tools for sustainable and environmentally benign control of fly pests that threaten Australia’s $9 billion p.a. horticulture industries. The Centre has a particular focus on training insect biosecurity researchers, funding the research of ten PhD candidates and three research fellows, spread across the Centre’s three participating universities and five partner organisations.  The Centre also provides a support framework for numerous additional students and research fellows at the participating organisations.

The ARC Centre for Fruit Fly Biosecurity Innovation brings together a community of researchers from Macquarie University (lead institution), Queensland University of Technology, Western Sydney University, NSW Department of Primary Industries, the QLD Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, the CSIRO, the New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research, and Ecogrow Environmental Ltd.

The Centre research teams will:

• Find out how fruit flies move in the environment to predict ‘hotspots’
• Develop tools to accurately and rapidly identify fruit flies, enabling a faster response
• Develop lures to attract flies to traps, isolating insecticides away from crops, people and non-target animals. This includes using developing lures based on pheromones used by fruit flies to find mates, and bacteria used to find food and hosts
• Investigate the cues fruit flies avoid, including products produced by predators such as spiders and ants, as a starting point to develop ways to protect crops by repelling rather than killing fruit flies
• Investigate the use of nematodes, fungi and bacteria for use in biopesticides for use against fruit flies. In particular, the team is investigating a bacteria passed from mother to offspring and can make fruit flies unable to reproduce, controlling the population.

Prof Phil Taylor, the Centre Director, emphasised that the role of the Centre is not only to train and support the next generation of insect biosecurity researchers, but also to provide a support network for insect biosecurity researchers of all career stages across Australia.

The ARC Centre for Fruit Fly Biosecurity Innovation is supported by $3.7 million from the Australian Government through the ARC’s Industrial Transformation Training Centres scheme and $70,000 of supplementary support from the NSW Department Industry Research Attraction and Acceleration Program, as well as substantial contributions from each of the participating organisations.
Read more: http://www.mq.edu.au/newsroom/2017/06/28/centre-for-fruit-fly-biosecurity-innovation-launches-at-macquarie-university/#ixzz4lp3Jjbln

Final Reminder: REP Workshop – ‘Making Your Lectures Interactive’ (10:30am – 12, 12^th July)

Develop. Design. Deliver. These are the key steps to any presentation, but how can we improve our process?

We need to constantly think of different ways to actively engage students in our lectures if we want to achieve a deeper learning experience.

Join Beverley Miles, Learning Designer from the Faculty of Human Sciences, over a tea or coffee and we will explore the strategies you can use to engage students using Echo’s Active Learning Platform (ALP). You will then apply what you learn to your own lecture content, design and delivery. You can use these strategies with any other interactive tool that you may be using. Don’t forget to bring along a laptop or device to work from as we can only provide a limited number of loans.

This is an expanded version of the first successful running of this workshop, so we will discuss the positive impact these strategies have had on staff and students since then.

Everyone is welcome to attend. Whether you are completely new to interactive learning techniques, you’ve been using them with other tools or you just want to find out how you can bring you lectures up a notch, we would be more than happy to see you there.

Click here to register for ‘Making your lectures interactive.’

NSW Chief Scientist & Engineer Lecture: Mary O’Kane

July 17, 2017
1:00 PM – 4:00 PM
The Australian Hearing Hub
Level 1 Theatre, 16 University Avenue
Macquarie University, New South Wales 2109

The MQ Research Enrichment Program and the Faculty of Science and Engineering are delighted to host Professor Mary O’Kane AC, Chief Scientist and Engineer for the NSW Government at Macquarie University.

Under the theme “the science communication problem”, Professor O’Kane will present a lecture entitled “What government needs from university researchers” and explain how her office deals with highly-politicized issues.

Following the talk, you are invited to join focus group sessions with Professor O’Kane and members of her office which will run from 2:00pm – 4:00pm. The aim of these focus groups is to identify upcoming issues that might be at risk of developing the “science communication problem”, meaning topics that become politicized to an extent where the public decides what to believe in order to remain aligned with their social circle, rather than on a basis of evidence or scientific authority. The focus groups will also scope ways to better communicate these topics to the public. The last 30 minutes will involve reporting back, looking forward and closing. Everyone is welcome to attend the focus groups, but they are not in any way obligatory.

For more information and registration: https://www.cvent.com/c/express/91d71bdc-1c92-4364-aee1-422c72628cb6

About the Speaker
Professor Mary O’Kane AC is NSW Chief Scientist & Engineer. She is also active on many Boards, being currently Chair at CRC for Spatial Information, Space Environment Management CRC and Institute of Marine and Antarctic Studies at the University of Tasmania, and director of New Zealand Antarctic Research Institute, Capital Markets Cooperative Research Centre and Business Events Sydney.

Among previous activities she has served as Vice-Chancellor and Rector of University of Adelaide (1996-2001), on the Finkel Review, the Commonwealth’s Review of the National Innovation System, the Australian Research Council, the Cooperative Research Centres Committee, and the Boards of FH Faulding & Co Ltd and of CSIRO. She is a Fellow of the Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering and an Honorary Fellow of Engineers Australia. In 2014 she was awarded the Pearcey Medal for lifetime achievement in ICT.

REP ‘Outlook conference’ 2017 (25 and 26^th July)

The Research Enrichment Program’s annual Outlook Conference – this year run with the Sydney School of Entrepreneurship in their new building in Ultimo – brings together leading thinkers in diverse disciplines, spanning molecules to landscapes, across deep time frames, and from scientific, historical and social viewpoints. Our objective is to immerse participants in the advancing fronts of research in adjacent, and more distant disciplines.

The 2017 meeting is called What Matters, and Why. Invited speakers will present ideas on why their discipline matters, and how research fronts in these disciplines inform diverse areas of human enquiry. These talks will not recount personal research findings, but will be future-scoping exercises. Our goal is to identify promising areas for high level trans-disciplinary collaboration, for novel commercial or industrial applications, and to expose researchers at all career stages to different ways of thinking.

The two day meeting will consist of seminars by invited speakers, followed by afternoon discussion and brain-storming sessions. A key feature of the conference is the opportunity to meet and interact with research leaders across the breadth of human enquiry.

Click here to register for ‘REP Outlook.’

Marine Scientist Position

The role could be well suited to someone coming out of a Masters or even undergraduate and is looking for a little experience in the field. 12 month contract to start. See pdf linked below for more.

Job advertisement marine scientist

Teacher Seeking Opportunities

Sam McElvenny completed a Master of Science in Biodiversity and Conservation in 2015 at Macquarie. Currently, he is working as a high school science teacher. However, he would like to pursue opportunities outside of the school environment. Preferably, Sam would like to pursue careers related to his Masters. If you would like to see Sam’s CV, please contact <sam.mcelvenny@gmail.com>.

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