Integrating immunomarking with ecological and behavioural approaches to assess predation of Helicoverpa spp. larvae by wolf spiders in cotton
By: Rendon, Dalila, James R. Hagler, Phillip W. Taylor, and Mary EA Whitehouse. Biological Control 122 (2018): 51-59. | Find with Google Scholar »
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Dear all,
Just a heads up that next Tuesday is the monthly department meeting, but please note the time has shifted half an hour earlier to a 12.30pm start so that Mariella can join us for a Q&A session on the new curriculum that is on its way. Plus lots of other things for discussion as usual.
Meanwhile the autumn fairy has been busy just before the arrival of winter!
Cheers,
Michelle
Autumn leaf art – take a moment out of your day to walk by and enjoy the leaf art in the E8 biology courtyard. Below are some images of the wonderful display.
Building progress in the Fauna Park
Save the Date
This coming week 4th – 8th June
Tue 5th: Department Meeting; 12.30pm – 1.30pm; Biology Tea Room with lunch before @ 12:00pm. Note earlier time!
Wed 6th: Department Morning Tea; 10.30am – 11am; The Hill.
Wed 6th: Department Seminar – Prof. Saul Cunningham, Fenner School, ANU; 1.00pm – 2.00pm; Biology Tea Room.
Thu-Fri 7-8th: Department Annual HDR conference; 9.30am onward; 14EAR (E8A) Labs.
Following week 12th – 15th June
Wed 11th: Queens Birthday Holiday – PUBLIC HOLIDAY
Wed 13th: Department Morning Tea; 10.30am – 11am; Biology Tea Room – sponsored by Bio-Strategy
Wed 13th: Department Seminar series is on break until Semester 2.
Thu 14th: Biology Department Drinks; 5.00pm – 6.00pm; Biology Courtyard or Tea Room during inclement weather.
Coming Up
June 20th: Diversity & Inclusion Lunch Launch; 11.30am – 1.00pm; Biology Courtyard.
July 24-25th: Research Enrichment Program – Outlook Conference “The Future of the Human Landscape”; Incubator Building, MQU.
General News and Announcements
Date Change: Diversity & Inclusion Lunch Launch – 11.30am – 1.00pm, Wednesday 20th June 2018 – Biology Courtyard
Everyone is invited to join in for the Diversity and Inclusion Lunch Launch. It will be held in the E8 Biology Courtyard (or E8A 280 Biology Tearoom if raining), Wednesday 20th June 2018 from 11.30 am to 1 pm. Please bring along a plate from your country/culture to share. To assist us to manage the food, could you please tell us what you are bringing by filling out the spreadsheet (google doc)?
COMINGS AND GOINGS
Request for accommodation: A new PhD student (Farhad Masoomi) arriving in the department 30 July is seeking short-term accommodation until he settles and finds something suitable longer term. Transport and cost are the main determinants of what would best suit him. If anyone can assist, please contact Farhad directly on <masoomi.farhads2030@gmail.com>.
RESEARCH STORIES, OUTCOMES AND OPPORTUNITIES
A $5000 research equipment grant is currently on offer from Edaphic Scientific. The grant is open to any researcher and applies to any of the research equipment listed on the Edaphic Scientific website. Applications for the grant close on Friday, June 8th. For more information: http://www.edaphic.com.au/research-equipment-grant/
2018-19 Fisheries Scientific Committee Student Research Grant round now open – The Fisheries Scientific Committee (FSC) is now accepting applications for the 2018-19 Student Research Grants Round. The FSC has available $3,000 to fund 1-2 student projects, aimed at filling gaps in research information for threatened or potentially threatened species of fish and marine vegetation in NSW. The grants are intended for use by undergraduate 3rd year major project students, or as part of an Honours, Masters or PhD project. Projects funded through the Student Research Grants provide the FSC with information on threatened aquatic species and communities to help support their listing, conservation and management. This information is also assists in managing species recovery through initiatives undertaken by NSW Department of Primary Industries. How to apply – Visit the FSC website to access the online application form. Applications close 11.59 pm (AEDT) on Tuesday 31 July 2018.
LEARNING AND TEACHING
Highlight from the Twitter-sphere
Want to Develop your Teaching Portfolio? HEA Fellowship Opportunity
Macquarie academics and professional staff can now have their education practice and experience recognised through the Higher Education Academy (HEA) Fellowship program. These Fellowships provide international recognition of personal and institutional commitment, and professionalism, in higher education. HEA fellowships also look great on promotion applications, fitting into the categories of:
Professional development and/or accreditation: Record of continuous professional development, including through internal or external accreditation schemes (e.g. Higher Education Academy).
Scholarship of Learning and Teaching: Articulation of clear personal teaching philosophy with evidence of reflection and response to a range of evaluative feedback (this needs to be addressed in the HEA application).
This year MQ is funding applications for staff, including tutors and professional staff. Due to budget cuts this funding is not guaranteed for 2019 (~$5000 per person), so if you are interested please attend an info session to register. The work involved in applications increases with each level, but there are writing workshops and opportunities to have your application reviewed before submission to help. Contact Kath McClellan if you are interested <katherine.mcclellan@mq.edu.au>.
SEMINARS AND WORKSHOPS
Biological Sciences Weekly Seminar
Date/Time/Venue: Wednesday, 6th June 2018, 1 – 2pm, 14EAR (E8A)-280 Biology Tearoom.
Speaker: Professor Saul Cunningham, Fenner School, ANU. Title: Plant reproductive ecology, meet modern agriculture. More information at https://goto.mq.edu.au/biologyseminar2018-abstracts
MolSci Weekly Seminar
Date/Time/Venue: Tuesday, 5th June, 2018, 1 – 2pm, 4WW (F7B) 422 APAF seminar room. Speaker: Dr Remi Rouquette, Senior Analytical Technician, Macquarie University. Title: Supramolecular Self-assembly of platinum (II) complexes with tunable photophysical properties in confined spaces and in solution. For more information visit – https://goto.mq.edu.au/6q
MACQUARIE UNIVERSITY STATISTICS DEPARTMENT SEMINAR – Speaker: Mrs Dana Pascovici, Australian Proteome Analysis Facility, Macquarie University. Date: Tuesday 5 June 2018, Time 1-2pm. Venue: Room 264, 14 Sir Christopher Ondaatje Ave. Title: Recent Trends in Proteomics Experiments. Enquiries: Dr Georgy Sofronov Email: <georgy.sofronov@mq.edu.au>.
The Fourth EnCouRage Workshop, Part 2 – ECR workshops are conducted by expert ECRs who are willing to help you with techniques that you may want to improve in, or apply in your research. This fourth workshop focuses on Machine learning, and will be led by Dr. William Redmond from Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Human Sciences. The purpose of the workshop is to introduce new machine-learning techniques to data-mine potential biomarkers, cluster responses to visual stimulations, or predict patient cancer stage from a blood test.
Date: Thursday, 7th June 2018. Time: 10-11am, followed by morning tea and trade display. Venue: Seminar room, Level 1, 75 Talavera Road.
Program: Thursday, 7th June 2018. 10 to 10:15am: Bradley Horton-Introduction to Mathworks and the available resources in Macquarie university. 10:15 to 11am: Dr William Redmond- Machine learning. 11am onwards: Q&A and morning tea. Registration on this webpage: https://www.mathworks.com/mqubioscience Enquiries: <O365-Group-encourageworkshops@mq.edu.au>.
LSM 800 User Experience program and workshop June 4th – 22nd – We are looking forward to the upcoming opportunity to host a Zeiss Microscopy LSM 800 with Airyscan User Experience program in our Faculty of Science and Engineering Microscopy Unit from June 4th -22nd. A seminar workshop detailing advancements in Zeiss laser scanning confocal microscopy and superresolution image acquisition will also be held. In hands-on sessions, users will gain experience with laser scanning confocal microscopy to maximise your image resolution with very gentle illumination of your sample for fixed tissue or live cell applications.
Seminar Details Zeiss
Date: Monday, June 4th 2018, Time: 2.00pm – 3.00pm with questions afterwards, Address: Level 4, 4 Wally’s Walk Room 422 – APAF Seminar Room.
Hands-on Sessions – Date: June 4th to 22nd , 2018, Location: Microscopy Unit room 6, Building 14 ER (E8A), Biological Sciences, Macquarie University.
Please register your interest for hands on sessions by email to Arthur Chien at <arthur.chien@mq.edu.au>. LSM 800 User Experience – Macquarie University
Social network analysis mini-conference & workshop – Social network analysis is increasingly used to study the social behaviour of animals and interactions in complex biological systems. We are holding a workshop to provide students and researchers with an opportunity to learn from leaders in the field and receive face-to-face guidance on applying these techniques to their own data. The workshop, run by Dr Damien Farine (Max Planck Institute of Ornithology) covers all of the knowledge needed to use SNA, including key concepts, methods and R packages.
The workshop is preceded by a mini-conference, after which attendees give a very short talk & present a poster. Each day workshop activities start with a plenary talk from guest speakers including:
Dr Mauricio Cantor (Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina) on social interactions and cultural transmission in cetaceans. Dr Stephan Leu (Macquarie University) on using network analysis to model disease transmission.
When/Where: 10 – 13 September 2018, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia. Attendance is free but places are limited so register soon! Flyer_SNA_NA_final
For details of content – https://sites.google.com/site/drfarine/teaching/sna_workshop For enquiries & registration details – Nicolette Armansin (Macquarie University), nicolette.armansin@mq.edu.au
The workshop is preceded by a mini-conference, after which attendees give a very short talk & present a poster. Each day workshop activities start with a plenary talk from guest speakers including:
Dr Mauricio Cantor (Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina) on social interactions and cultural transmission in cetaceans. Dr Stephan Leu (Macquarie University) on using network analysis to model disease transmission.
When/Where: 10 – 13 September 2018, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia. Attendance is free but places are limited so register soon! Flyer_SNA_NA_final
For details of content – https://sites.google.com/site/drfarine/teaching/sna_workshop For enquiries & registration details – Nicolette Armansin (Macquarie University), nicolette.armansin@mq.edu.au
Call for Abstracts and Registration Now Open – The Macquarie Neurodegeneration Meeting is an inaugural event hosted by the Centre for Motor Neuron Disease Research, Macquarie University. The aim of this event is for Australian neuroscientists to showcase their research and to stimulate conversation and foster collaboration to develop treatments for diseases including motor neuron disease, Alzheimer’s disease, frontal temporal dementia, Parkinson’s disease and other degenerative brain disorders. We have assembled a program which will feature several keynote speakers.
MQ Biology will host a full-day workshop on sap flow technology for research applications led by Dr Michael Forster (Edaphic Scientific & University of Queensland). The workshop will be held on Tuesday 10th July. In the morning (9am-12pm) we’ll cover the theoretical bases of sap flow technology, while in the afternoon (2-4 pm or so) will have practical activities in our Biology Courtyard. We’ll have some (limited) shelter in case of rain, but as the weather might be a bit chilly, please consider taking some warm clothes/raincoat with you. Meeting point is in front of Frank the Bear (entrance of buildings E8A and E8C on Wally’s Walk n.6) at 9:00am sharp. For more info contact <alessandro.ossola@mq.edu.au>.
Research Enrichment Program – Outlook Conference
July 24-25, Incubator Building, Macquarie University – “The Future of the Human Landscape”
The Outlook Conference (Research Enrichment Program Outlook Flyer) will bring together leading thinkers in diverse disciplines, spanning molecules to landscapes, and from scientific, historical and social viewpoints. Speakers at 2018 Outlook conference include Professor Tim Flannery (Writer and Social Commentator), Professor Angela Moles (UNSW), Associate Professor Greg Downey (MQ) and Professor Rob Brooks (UNSW). The objective of Outlook is to immerse participants in the frontiers of adjacent, and more distant disciplines. Speakers will present their vision for humanity’s future. 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 applications, and to expose postgraduate students and early career researchers to different ways of thinking. REP Outlook is free and open to all. Please register for REP Outlook here
The upcoming PRIMER v7 workshop to be held at the National Marine Science Centre (NMSC), Southern Cross University, in Coffs Harbour. The dates for this PRIMER workshop are 25th-29th June 2018. Also, to follow this, there will be an Advanced workshop on PRIMER v7/PERMANOVA+ which will be held from 16th-20th July 2018 in Canberra at Geoscience Australia. This latter one might be of particular interest to staff and students, because it showcases the more advanced features of PRIMER v7 and also delves into the PERMANOVA+ stuff and complex experimental designs. For more info on these and to download registration forms, etc. visit this website: http://www.primer-e.com/workshops/workshops.htm
aaRgh (ask an R geek for help) – Second Thursday of every month 3 – 4pm, Biology Tearoom – 14EAR (E8A) 280. Frustrated? Having an R-related problem? We will also run regular afternoon tea sessions where you can get one-on-one help, or just introduce yourself and chat. Snacks provided!
Writing Workshops – Running weekly for most of the year: Fridays 2-4pm in room E8B 111. Convened by Ken Cheng.
These writing workshops are meant for HDR students and early-career researchers. In these face-to-face encounters, writing at any stage of any genre is welcome, from first draft to final polish, from empirical paper to literature review to popular news story. Ken envisages personal feedback linked perhaps with rounds of revisions on selected passages during the session. The aim is not just to get stuff written, but to write everything well. Those interested in attending a session should email Ken Cheng <ken.cheng@mq.edu.au> by Wednesday 12:00-noon, preferably with a draft attached of what they are working on and some indication of what they especially need help with.
ADMIN THINGS
Session 2 2018 Tutor Applications are now open! Click here to apply. Applications close Sunday 24 June. Please contact caitlin.kordis@mq.edu.au with any questions.
Do you want to learn how to use the features of your Avaya desk phone handset? Check out this guide for more instructions. 1608__MM_guide
PURE Training – The PURE system is used to manage researcher profiles, outputs including publications, funding applications, awards, projects and reports. Do you feel like you could use some more PURE training? Please register your interest via an email to <jenny.ghabache@mq.edu.au>.
OUTREACH ACTIVITIES – Have you participated in an activity for Biology recently? Don’t forget to fill in the super-quick form here – ACCESS OUTREACH FORM HERE
Photo Competition – JUNE 2018 – Enter to win a $100 Gift Card this month!
This month’s theme is BLACK & WHITE! Your images could be used on our Department website, this newsletter, on our social media and in other biology publications. A lucky person’s name will be drawn each month, and they will receive a $100 Gift Card! Criteria: you must provide caption information including details of what/where/who(names of people)/date & you must have taken all photos & the image was taken in the last five years. Please follow the dropbox file request link to submit your images. Submission close: 30 JUNE 2018 You can enter as many photos as you like – one entry to the draw for each good photo, good luck!
Here are some inspiring images from the April category all creatures great and small!
Location-W (Fauna Park) Admin Support – Monday, Wednesday & Friday from 10am – 1pm in W19F.
Deliveries – You will notice that we have placed a red “transfer Box” in W19F, put anything in this box that needs to be delivered to the E8 area location. We also have a red “Transfer Box” in E8B Level 2 location, which is for goods to betaken to the W location. These boxes will be emptied every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 10am. Deliveries from the main “MQ” store will be delivered daily. Any questions please contact Sharyon O’Donnell.
Building Name Changes – Cheat Sheet – If you are trying to identify buildings on campus with new names or old names, please use this link to convert them from old to new or vice versa.
Correct Method for Submitting to Department Matters
Department Matters submissions now have their own email address. Please send all future submissions to the newsletter to <fse.bionewsletter@mq.edu.au>!
Also, please see the following to correctly format your additions, and keep them rolling in!
You may have noticed that we try to keep all the articles to the same format for the Department Matters, however, rest assured, they do NOT all turn up in this format! To help keep your Department Matters looking as good as possible, when sending in additions to the Newsletter, please try to keep these formatting guidelines in mind.
- Please write in third person. The information is coming from the Newsletter, not directly from you.
- Do not use fancy text formatting. Bold heading, normal text, and only italics or bold to highlight. No font size changes will make it through, sorry.
- If sending via email, set your email output to basic. HTML output will add all sort of formatting that will have to be removed before your article can go into the newsletter.
Keeping to these guidelines will streamline your article’s addition to the newsletter. Thank you.
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SUSTAINABILITY
Worm Castings and Juice Available for Your Home Garden – In the Biology courtyard (next to the fern bed) are our wonderful worm farms. This week we harvested some of the worm castings and emptied off the worm juice – which is a bit of a slurry. This stuff is full of nutrients and great mixed into the garden. The juice should be diluted approx 10:1, and the solids can make around 20% of the soils volume (more for vegie gardens). Please help yourself – BYO container.
BLOGS AND OTHER THINGS OF INTEREST
Plant of the Week!
This week: Himalayan Ash – Fraxinus griffithii
Fraxinus griffithii – Himalayan or Evergreen Ash – seems to have been a relatively recent introduction to Australia. However, this small tree that is so popular for street plantings because of its small size, produces an abundance of seeds and is now increasingly regarded as a potentially serious invasive plant, not surprising when you look at the track record of some of its close relatives, privet and olives!
Very important article on depression in academia by a Professor of Geosciences at the University of Edinburgh with a special message for postgraduate supervisors: “As the supervisor of dozens of students and staff, empathy is useful, listening is vital. Just a chat, making time for people; it can mean the world. We are mentors, not therapists, but our university communities are under enormous stress. Insecure jobs and mounting debt, endless metrics and poor management – all are risks to our mental health in the edifice of corporatization that our higher education system has become.” https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-018-05080-6
New Publications
Contrasting patterns of changes in abundance following a bleaching event between juvenile and adult scleractinian corals
By: Álvarez-Noriega, M., Baird, A.H., Bridge, T.C., Dornelas, M., Fontoura, L., Pizarro, O., Precoda, K., Torres-Pulliza, D., Woods, R.M., Zawada, K. and Madin, J.S., 2018. Coral Reefs, 37(2), pp.527-532. | Find with Google Scholar »Remotely sensed spatial heterogeneity as an exploratory tool for taxonomic and functional diversity study
By: Rocchini, D., Bacaro, G., Chirici, G., Da Re, D., Feilhauer, H., Foody, G.M., Galluzzi, M., Garzon-Lopez, C.X., Gillespie, T.W., He, K.S. and Lenoir, J., 2018. Ecological Indicators, 85, pp.983-990. | Find with Google Scholar »Measuring acoustic complexity in continuously varying signals: how complex is a wolf howl?
By: Kershenbaum, Arik, Éloïse C. Déaux, Bilal Habib, Brian Mitchell, Vicente Palacios, Holly Root-Gutteridge, and Sara Waller. Bioacoustics (2017): 1-15. | Find with Google Scholar »Climate differentiates forest structure across a residential macrosystem
By: Ossola, A. & Hopton, M., 2018. Science of the Total Environment, 639:1164-1174 | Find with Google Scholar »In the Media
Vanessa Pirotta was interviewed on ABC Radio Sydney Drive and ABC TV News Afternoons
Vanessa Pirotta from the Department of Biological Sciences was interviewed on ABC Radio Sydney Drive and ABC TV News Afternoons about a whale that got tangled in a fishing net near Bondi.
Rachael Dudaniec was interviewed on Triple R radio Melbourne
Dr Rachael Dudaniec from the Department of Biological Sciences was interviewed on Triple R radio’s science show ‘Einstein a go go’ about her research on how damselflies are genetically adapting to climate change. https://www.rrr.org.au/program/einstein-a-go-go?an_page=2018-05-27