Vehicle Access to E2 Parking Area – Please be advised that boom gates are now in place to control access to the E2 car park. All department vehicles are now equipped with a key fob to assist with access to the car park. The fob is placed along with the key bunch for the cars. If you have any issues gaining access to the car park, please contact Tarun on 0401 191 312 or ext 8149 or email <tarun.rajan@mq.edu.au> and he’ll liaise with property to have the issue resolved.

HDR Conference – Thanks The annual Biology Department HDR Conference wrapped up on Thursday with prizes and pizza.

Julian would like to thank all the ECRs for judging talks, academics for their time on HDR Panels, students who chaired sessions (Alfonso Aceves, Joni Pini-Fitzsimmons, Hue Dinh, Francisco Martinez-Baena, Shubham Chhajed, Kate Dodds, Annachiara Codello, Matthew Kerr, Georgina Binns, and Ariningsun Cinantya), other students who helped with the lunch and clean-up, and the Social Club organisers (Ivan Beltran, Shubham Chhajed).

Special thanks to George Binns, for leading the student organising committee, and to our guest speaker – Lizzy Lowe – for coming at short notice to talk to the Dept. about her PhD experiences.

HDR Conference – Prizes

Barbara Rice memorial field research award, for best presentation of field-based research: Alfonso Aceves “Poncho”

Best presentation of field-based research, equal runner-up: Kate Dodds

Best presentation of field-based research, equal runner-up: Georgina Binns

Best presentation of laboratory-based research: Tim Ghaly

Best presentation of laboratory-based research,  runner-up: Binh Nguyen

Best presentation of modelling-based research: Jim McLean

People’s choice award for best MRes poster: Tristan Guillemin

Closest guess for number of stick insect eggs in a jar (courtesy of Braxton Jones): Tim Ghaly

Christmas in July lunch; Tuesday 2 July 2019, 1 pm to 3 pm – The Outreach committee will be holding a special lunch following the S1 exam meeting. Everyone is welcome to attend and celebrate the hard work of the volunteers and the outreach activities carried out on behalf of our Department. Weather permitting, the lunch will take place in the Biology Courtyard. There will be music, games and prizes and certificates presented for the most outreach done and filled out in our online form  For catering purposes; please register at this link – http://bit.ly/2VZkgTv

Christmas in July Flier

Dr Helen Ramsay awarded an AM in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List – We congratulate Helen Ramsay who was awarded an AM in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List yesterday for significant service to plant science.

Helen retired as a senior lecturer from the University of New South Wales in 1988. After her retirement from UNSW, she was appointed as an Honorary Senior Lecturer in the Department of Biological Sciences here at Macquarie and she continues to hold an honorary position at the National Herbarium of New South Wales. Bryophytes (mosses and liverworts) have been the focus of her research, initially genetics studies at University of Sydney, in later years taxonomy and biogeography. However, Helen has had a long and continuous association with Macquarie from the late 1970s when, together with Macquarie University bryologist Patricia Selkirk, she edited the Australasian Bryological Newsletter from 1979 to 1991.

Helen has always been focused on her scientific research. Her achievements up until 2004 were summarised in a special edition of the Australasian Bryological Newsletter No. 49, http://www.utas.edu.au/docs/plant_science/ABN/index.htm. Since then, every year, she has added significantly to the knowledge of bryophyte taxonomy in particular. In the last year, she has published at least 4 scientific papers on bryophyte taxonomy, has another submitted, and one (with colleagues from James Cook University and Melbourne University) on bryophytes of the Wet Tropics of north-eastern Queensland. Over the years, she has collaborated with colleagues in Canada, the United States, New Zealand as well as in Australia.

At the National Herbarium of New South Wales, Dr Ramsay was the person responsible for implementing the curation of the bryophyte collection of a famous Australian bryologist, W. W. Watts, who collected in the late 1800s through to about 1914. The late Dr Elizabeth Brown from the National Herbarium of NSW wrote that without Dr Ramsay’s intervention, this famous collection may have been lost or destroyed. Now the specimens are available for review by botanists from both Australia and overseas.

Helen’s contributions to studies of the bryophyte flora of Australia are quite exceptional. This determined lady retired in 1988, and now in 2019, she continues to successfully publish the outcome of her research.

FSE has a New Dedicated Sci-comms Officer – Virginia Tressider has just joined the Faculty of Science and Engineering to provide science communication support. She would like to encourage any academics who have a new paper or have anything else they would like publicised to contact her. The Faculty will now be able do more in-house that was previously outsourced to Science in Public, which should hopefully make things faster and more seamless.

Please see contact details below:

Virginia Tressider, Communications Adviser, FSE

Group Marketing
Building 1, 58 Waterloo Road
Macquarie Park NSW 2113

Email: <virginia.tressider@mq.edu.au>

Science in the City Festival Display: Inspiring the future generation of Biologists? With the slogan ‘Celebrate all things science’, the Science in the City Festival organised by the Australian Museum hosts a range of interactive displays to the wider public.

And MQ Biology will be there!

We are looking for students and staff who would like to create an interactive display about science and their research for this year’s Science in the City (Sydney Science Festival) https://australianmuseum.net.au/learn/teachers/science-in-the-city/. This is an excellent opportunity to promote your research, develop your science communication portfolio as well as inspiring the general public. We have 2.5hr time slots available on the primary school (8th August), high school (13th August) and general public (10th August) days of the expo. If you’re interested in being involved please contact Vivian <vivian.cumbo@mq.edu.au>, or Juliano <juliano.morimoto@mq.edu.au> before June 21. The early date is because we wish to help foster your science communication skills. Prior to the event we will meet twice to help you develop ideas and ways to effectively communicate your display.

For more info about the event, visit https://australianmuseum.net.au/learn/teachers/science-in-the-city/.

Plant of the Week -click the thumbnails for larger images-

OPPORTUNITIES

Skype A Scientist connects “real scientists” with classrooms around the world. They match scientists based on their specialties with k-12 classrooms looking to met someone in your field. Once matched, you video chat into the classroom for a 30-60 minute Q and A style chat. The idea is to put a friendly face to science and lower the intimidation factor that surrounds science for some students. This is a great opportunity for PhD’s and ECRs to get some SciComm and outreach experience. Check it out here: https://www.skypeascientist.com/

Higher Education Academy Fellowship Program Now Open for Mid-2019 Applications – Macquarie educators interested in having their professional practice in higher education teaching, learning support, and leadership recognised, can now register to apply for HEA Fellowship. Applicants must first attend a 1-hour information session; sessions will be held between 29 May and 15 July – register and see more information: https://teche.mq.edu.au/2019/05/macquarie-hea-fellowship-program-now-open-for-mid-2019-application/

Faculty Staff (Professional & Academic) Travel Grants – support for staff travel is now provided centrally by the Faculty.  Funding is available for ECR travel, international collaboration, teaching and professional staff development. If you would like to apply, please discuss with your supervisor and A/Prof Andrew Barron (for research travel) or Dr Drew Allen (for teaching travel). Research Eligibility and application details can be found here.https://staff.mq.edu.au/intranet/science-and-engineering/faculty-awards,-schemes-and-procedures
One round remain for the rest of the year:
– Round 3 closes Friday 27 September 2019
Apply as soon as possible for any travel you intend on taking in 2019, that meets the criteria. Funds awarded must be spent in 2019 and will not be carried into 2020.

SEMINARS AND WORKSHOPS

PGRF Workshop “How to Improve Your Chances of Success”

Linda Beaumont, who has been involved in judging PGRF applications in the past, will give more tailored instruction in this workshop on how what to write to get ranked more highly.

Tentative workshop details:
Venue: 14 EaR (E8A) 280 Biology Tea Room
Date and Time: Wed 26th June, 2-3pm

To express interest in attending, please email <julian.may@mq.edu.au>

– Note: the Faculty will likely hold a workshop on the 1st of August (TBC), i.e. basic instructions on how to complete the grant application – NOT the same as the Dept. workshop.

PowerPoint Improv – Academics hilariously embarrassing themselves!

Now that the HDR students have finished their presentations, all are invited to judge some academics! A star line-up (TBC) will give improvised 5min presentations to a set of student-prepared slides.
Venue: 14 EaR (E8A) 280 Biology Tea Room
Date and Time: Wed 26th June, 2-3pm

To be followed by the usual Dept. Social Club.

Insect Preservation Workshop – To those who have seen an insect and though “Wow! This is the most beautiful creature” – this workshop will help attendees learn about different preservation techniques and get hands-on experience! Whether for research or just a general love for these fascinating creatures, this workshop will set up attendees with the equipment and knowledge required to preserve insects for many years of admiration. All materials are provided, including an insect to preserve and keep. All attendees need to bring are questions and curiosity.

RSVP: <braxton.jones@mq.edu.au> by Wed 26th June

Venue: 6WW(E8C) digital teaching labs 106 & 110.

Date: Monday 1st July; Time: 1-2:30pm; Schedule: 1:05pm – official start

1:05-1:20 – talk about preservation techniques

1:20-1:40 – demonstration under visualiser.

1:40-2:00 – your turn (wonder around answering questions and helping)

2:00-2:30 – any keen people who want to learn more/need more time

Insect Preservation Workshop

Venture Café – Want to know more about innovation, and how to achive it?  Come along to the Venture Cafe, Thursday, 3pm – 8pm, 58 Waterloo Road, Macquarie Park, NSW (map). Find out what is on each week here – https://venturecafesydney.org/

R-Users Group (RUG) Fortnightly Help Sessions – Do you have a problem with data analysis? You might want to give R a go which is a fantastic analytical and plotting tool. For all your R-related queries, drop by ‘Ask An R Geek for Help’ (aaRgh) session where you can get one-on-one assistance. No registration is required and there will be snacks and beverages (BYO mug). Date: 27 June, 2019. Time: 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM. Venue: Continuum Room (75 Talavera Road, room 3114).

Workshop on ‘Maps and spatial analysis in R’ by Matthew Kerr. Description: “People tend to use R for their stats, but move to GIS when it comes to anything spatial. Here’s the secret – R has many powerful tools for implementing spatial data into your analyses, without the need for learning a whole new piece of software! We will briefly go over a few major spatial functions, including reading and writing raster files in R, before looking at how ggplot and base R can be used to create publication-ready maps for any situation you may bump in to.“ Presenter: Matt is a PhD student in the palaeobiology lab with John Alroy, working on spatial trends in coastal molluscs. He has used R for several very different projects and is yet to find his favourite package. Date: 27 June, 2019. Time: 3:30 PM to 5:30 PM. Venue: Continuum Room (75 Talavera Road, room 3114).

Wildlife at the Watering Hole – 3rd Tuesday of each month, 6:30pm @ Botany View Hotel, King St Newtown!

HDR NEWS AND OPPORTUNITIES

Fulbright 2020 Program provides prestigious, high-quality, transformative exchange experiences to Australian students wishing to conduct research in collaboration with US institutions. In 2019 they have doubled the number of Fulbright Scholarships on offer to Australian applicants. Open to: Postgraduate, Postdoctoral, Scholar, or Distinguished Chair positions.

The 2020 round of Fulbright applications will remain open until 15 July 2019, for programs to commence June/July 2020; see application information here: https://www.fulbright.org.au/applicants/australian-applicants/
NOTE: Applicants must hold Australian citizenship, and not be dual-Australian-US citizens.

An information session recording can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/QpLRAMpvyl0

PhD Students: got a grant? Dept. will co-fund up to $1500 – The Department would like to encourage students to seek external sources of funding, and has a small budget with which to support successful candidates.New limits from 2019:PhD students ONLY: Dept. will match up to $1500 of external (non-MQ) funding ONCE during the student’s candidature.

Are you a HDR student? Need help with writing? HDR Mentors in collaboration with HDR Learning Skills is running another round of Peer Writing Assistance (PWA) for the rest of the year! This program is designed to support MRES and HDR candidates in managing thesis writing and research-related concerns. All peer writing assistants have undergone training for their role and are current PhD candidates at Macquarie.
The PWA program is based on the principle of collaborative learning in which a more experienced research student helps you develop stronger academic and research skills. Peer Writing Assistants are not teachers. Rather, they are trained to function as a ‘friendly audience’ or ‘fresh pair of eyes’ to help you gain new perspectives on your writing or research ideas.
Registrations are now open for individual consultation bookings. If you are interested, please go to book in for a 45-minute session with a PWA here.

And:

ADMIN THINGS