Dry mass production, allocation patterns and water use efficiency of two conifers with different water use strategies under elevated [CO2], warming and drought conditions
By: Duan, Honglang, Guomin Huang, Shuangxi Zhou, and David T. Tissue. European Journal of Forest Research (2018): 1-14. | Find with Google Scholar »
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Hi all,
Another busy week with plenty of on-campus sessions and student field trips, plus continuing work with the curriculum architecture project – special thanks to Drew Allen for all his hard work on this. If you walk through the Biology Museum you will also notice a few small changes, with more improvements on the way. We had a beautiful day for the Biology Garden’s 40th birthday party – thanks to Sam Newton for her organisation, enjoy the photos below!
cheers,
Michelle
Save the Date
This coming week 2nd – 5th October
Tue 2nd: REP Workshop ‘Conservation Conversations: Saving Our Smallest Species’; 9.00am – 11.00am; 14EAR (E8A) 280 Biology Tea Room.
Tue 2nd: Department Meeting; NO MEETING THIS MONTH – DUE TO SCHOOL HOLIDAYS AND OTHER BUSY THINGS!
Wed 3rd: Department Morning Tea; 10.30am; 14EAR (E8A) 280 Biology Tea Room.
Wed 3rd: Department Seminar – Michael Rampe,CEO Pedestal 3D Pty Ltd and Senior Learning Designer, Faculty of Human Science, MQU; 1.00pm – 2.00pm; 14EAR (E8A) 280 Biology Tea Room.
Thu 4th: HDR Completion Seminar – Mo Haque; 4.30pm – 5.00pm; 14EAR (E8A) 280 Biology Tea Room.
Thu 4th: Biology Social Club; 5.00pm – 7.00pm; Biological Sciences Courtyard.
Following week 8th – 12th October
Wed 10th: Faculty Safety Day; 10.00am – 2.00pm; Biology Courtyard.
Wed 10th: Department Morning Tea; 10.30am; The Hill.
Wed 10th: Department Seminar – Dr Simon Clulow, MQU; 1.00pm – 2.00pm; 14EAR (E8A) 280 Biology Tea Room.
Thu 11th: Darwinian Medicine; 10.00am – 3.00pm; Continuum room, level 3, 75 Talavera Road.
Thu 11th: aaRgh – R drop-in help; 3.00pm – 4.00pm; 14EAR (E8A) 280 Biology Tea Room.
Future Events
Nov 5th – 7th: Supplementary HDR Conference; exact date and times TBA; Location TBA.
Want to know what Department seminars are coming up? You can check out the Dept webpage at any time!
General News and Announcements
Faculty of Science and Engineering Faculty Safety Day – Wellbeing – Day/Date/Time: Wednesday 10 October 2018,10:00am to 2:00pm.
Frank Mercer Biological Sciences Garden, 6 Wally’s Walk
October is National Safe Work Month and the Faculty of Science and Engineering. The Health and Safety Committee is holding a Safety Fair on Wednesday 10 October.All FSE staff and HDR students are invited to attend. Please REGISTER before Wednesday 3 October to help us with catering numbers. REGISTER HERE
Visit the stands and complete activities for your chance to win prizes. When you have completed 5 activities come to the ‘Wheel’ for your chance at more FREE prizes. The day will include fun and games for all, featuring: Frankly speaking, Align your MYnd, Virtual Survivor, May the Quartz be with you, Safety Slogan Scramble, e-Hazard & mobile phone challenge, Free Throw away Stress, Tease your Brain, Laterally thinking and First Robotics.
Also, on the day Ron Claassens will be running 3 x 30 Minute YOGA Classes. Where: 12 Wally’s Walk – E7A 801-803. Times: 10.15am, 11.00am and 11.45am. Please bring your own large beach towel or yoga mat if you would like to attend a yoga class. Come along and join in the fun….. IT’S ALL FREE!
Biological Sciences Graduations! Congratulations all our graduates from last week’s ceremony. Pictured below are Dr Maria Louise Vozzo and Dr Domanic McAfee receiving their PhD degrees. Congratulations also to Adjunct Professor David Mabberley for the conferring of an Honorary Doctorate.
Supplementary HDR Conference: 5th-7th Nov 2018 (exact date TBC) – PhD students who started before May 2018 and who did not present at the June conference are required to attend. Any students who cannot be there on those dates due to already-booked fieldwork or other commitments must let the HDR co-ordinator know so an alternative date for HDR panel interviews can be arranged. Contact <fse.bio-adm@mq.edu.au>
Train Station Closure 30th September 2018 (THIS WEEKEND!) With the Macquarie University train station closure from 30 September 2018 for 6-7 months, this website offers information about bus options from your closest train station. http://www.mysydney.nsw.gov.au/stationlink It will be the first place to look for information and will be continually updated. https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/travel/station-upgrade
Also Stationlink Route Information and University Parking Info.
Old Mobile Phone Anyone? Does anyone have a phone they’re not using that <mark.westoby@mq.edu.au> could borrow for a week in November? The situation is that we have an overseas visitor for a workshop who’s only able to walk a few steps. We thought we might put a sim card with a few $$ into an old phone and make sure he could reach organisers or security or taxi as needed. Many thanks in advance!
SEMINARS AND WORKSHOPS
RESEARCH ENRICHMENT PROGRAM: Conservation Conversations: Saving Our Smallest Species
Date/Time/Venue: Tuesday, 2 October 2018, 9 am – 11 am, 14EAR (E8A) 280 Biology Tea Room.
Almost all animals are invertebrates, yet their vital role in maintaining the health of our environments and providing essential ecosystem services is systematically undervalued. These “other 99%” are under threat from a range of human activities but the need for their conservation is virtually ignored. In order to save our smallest species, we need increased public engagement, new ideas and improved collaboration between interest groups. Click here to register to attend.
Biological Sciences Weekly Seminar – Date/Time/Venue: Wednesday, 3rd October 2018, 1 – 2pm, 14EAR (E8A) 280 Biology Tea Room.
Speaker: Michael Rampe, MQU. Title: Virtual 3D Biology. More information on this and all department seminars ON OUR WEBPAGE HERE
HDR Completion Seminar – Date/Time/Venue: Thursday, 4rd October 2018, 4.30 – 5pm, 14EAR (E8A) 280 Biology Tea Room.
Speaker: Mo Hasque Title: Knowns and Unknowns: An Assessment of Knowledge Shortfalls in the Digistised Collection of Australia’s Flora. ON OUR WEBPAGE HERE
Darwinian Medicine – Thursday 11th October (10am – 3pm) Continuum room, level 3, 75 Talavera Road. Organised by Steve Simpson, Helen Rizos and Marie Herberstein.
Evolutionary theory is a powerful approach to many phenomena encountered by practicing medicine, including antibiotic resistance, personalised medicine, tumour cell evolution. This half-day workshop will explore how an evolutionary approach and medical practice can be mutually informative by pairing evolutionary biologists with medical practitioners from the fields [tentatively]:
- Nutrition and the gut biome
- Virus/human interactions
- Cancer treatment
- Neuro degenerative disorders
- Infectious diseases
This workshop aims to:
- Explore research connections and collaborations between biological and medical researchers (with the possibility of further workshops to develop and foster collaborations around ‘wicked problems’)
- Increase opportunity to meet researchers working on similar topics across faculties
- Identify opportunities to embed Darwinian medicine principles into curriculum
- Build collegial and collaborative relationships across Faculties and with external groups.
Click here to register for ‘Darwinian Medicine’
Weekly Writing Workshops for HDR Students and Early Career Researchers – Convened by Ken Cheng – Running weekly for most of the year: Fridays 2-4pm in room E8B 111
If you are interested in attending a session email Ken Cheng <ken.cheng@mq.edu.au> by Wednesday 12:00-noon, preferably with a draft attached of what you are working on and some indication of what you especially need help with.
Environmental Sciences Seminar
Date/Time/Venue: Tuesday, 2nd October 2018, 11.00am – 12.00pm, 12WW 801.
Topic: Reconnaissance for the largest ever ape, Gigantopithecus, to be continued……
Speaker: Professor Yingqi Zhang – Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences Beijing
Abstract: Gigantopithecus blacki, the largest hominoid that ever lived, was first described just over eighty years ago based on an isolated lower molar purchased from a traditional Chinese drugstore in Hong Kong. Since that time, almost two thousand isolated teeth and four partial mandibles of G. blacki have been recovered from Early and Middle Pleistocene cave sites in southern China. This entire region is dominated by karst topography with steep-sided limestone peaks penetrated by solution caves and sinkholes.
Professor Zhang will discuss this infamous and relatively unknown species and outline the ongoing hunt for Giganto remains in southern China funded by a joint MQ and CAS ARC Discovery grant. There will be an opportunity to stand in the caves Professor Zhang discusses using our VR rig at the end of the talk – so stick around and come for an adventure in China!
Molecular Sciences Seminar #1
Date/Time/Venue: Tuesday, 2nd October 2018, 1 – 2pm, 4WW (F7B) 322 Seminar Room.
Speaker: Prof Bostjan Kobe, The School of Chemistry and Biosciences, UQ. Title: Signalling by cooperative assembly formation (SCAF) by TIR domains in innate immunity and cell death pathways. More information on this and all department seminars at https://goto.mq/6q
Molecular Sciences Seminar #2
Date/Time/Venue: Tuesday, 9th October 2018, 12 – 1pm, 4WW (F7B) 322 Seminar Room.
Speaker: Dr Andrew Piggott, the Molecular Sciences, Macquarie University. Title: Adventures with Natural Products. More information on this and all department seminars at https://goto.mq/7l
ADMIN THINGS
ROAR (Risk Online Active Reporting) – university’s online system for reporting risks and hazards. The university’s ROAR system is a reporting system designed to provide help and advice on a range of issues from concerning and threatening behaviour to hazards and risks, health and safety issues. You can report about any kinds of breaches, hazards or concerns and the team will get back to you and provide support. https://staff.mq.edu.au/support/other-resources/online-systems/roar . To report concerning or threatening behaviour https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/safety-at-work/reacting-to-an-incident/concerning-and-threatening-behaviour
Pure Training Registration – Date changed to 15 October 2018 – 1.00 pm to 3.30 pm
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 for this session 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
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.
Photo Competition – OCTOBER 2018 – go into the draw to win a $100 Gift Card this month! This month’s theme is Your best shot! 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 must have been taken in the last five years. Please follow the dropbox file request link to submit your images.
Submission close: 31 OCTOBER 2018. You can enter as many photos as you like – one entry to the draw per photo with caption info, good luck!
RESEARCH FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
Lake Macquarie Environmental Research Grants 2018 – 2019
Letter to researcher – Lake Macquarie Environmental Research Grants 2018-2019
Information package – Lake Macquarie Environmental Research grants 2018-2019
Application form – Lake Macquarie Environmental Research Grants 2018-2019
Ecological Society of Australia Student Research Awards – closing date 31st October – Ten student research awards of up to $1,500 will be available to Australian postgraduate and honours students conducting ecological research. The award can be used to cover expenses such as field travel, research assistance, equipment or consumables. Applicants must be a member of the ESA and not have previously won a research award from the Society. Info here
Are You an Early-Career Researcher Who Loves Sharing Your Research? The NSW Office of Environment & Heritage (OEH) and the Ecological Society of Australia (ESA) have joined forces to establish a new prize for early-career researchers who are doing an exceptional job of communicating ecological research to the public. The OEH/ESA Prize for Outstanding Outreach is a $400 cash prize which will provide much-deserved recognition, and additional experience, for up to six early-career researchers who are doing an excellent job of communicating their research.
Applications are now open, closing at midnight Saturday 13 October. Details here
OPPORTUNITIES
Mental Health support: Upcoming Workshops – One of the hardest parts of doing a research degree is giving your attention to the thesis each day. While students may face many kinds of obstacles, it is the ordinary experience of being with one’s work and oneself that often presents the greatest challenge.
This four-part workshop series focuses on the role that awareness and our states of mind play in the experience of being a researcher. It looks closely at the mind states – both positive and challenging – that students commonly report, and explores how these relate to experiences of self, research practice and the wider university culture.
The first workshop offers a basic introduction to mindfulness principles and their relevance to research. It discusses the importance of awareness for both our understanding the research experience, and how we face the challenges it presents.
02/10/2018 The Mindful Researcher, Part 2: The Research Environment: Busyness and Slowness in the Academy
08/10/2018 The Mindful Researcher, Part 3: Attention and Distraction in the Research Process
15/10/2018 The Mindful Researcher, Part 4: Cultivating Balance
Register by clicking on the course names here: https://myrdc.mq.edu.au/
Curious Minds STEM Coaching (Mentoring) Opportunity – APPLY NOW!
Do you want to see more females study and work in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics? Can you help make it happen? Curious Minds is a six-month program for 64 girls in Years 9 and 10 that combines two residential camps and a coaching/mentoring program. We are seeking women from STEM backgrounds who are keen to make a difference by coaching/mentoring a high school student who has enrolled in the Curious Minds program. You can get full details of the coaching/mentoring opportunity from our website<https://www.asi.edu.au/programs/curious-minds/how-to-participate-in-the-curious-minds-program/mentoring-program/> and also in the attached document.
Click here<https://asicanberra.typeform.com/to/zlbRQa> to apply online before Sunday 7 October 2018.
If you have previously applied to be a mentor but were unsuccessful please feel free to apply again. Selection of a mentor is based on STEM area of interest and, where possible, geographical location – this year we might have a student for you. Returning mentors, we’d love to see you again, so please feel free to complete the expression of interest.<https://asicanberra.typeform.com/to/zlbRQa> If you have any questions please contact me on (02) 6125 6266 or vanessa.kates@asi.edu.au<vanessa.kates@asi.edu.au>
Femme in STEM – Interested in pursuing a career in STEM? See the attached poster. Femme in STEM_Poster_27September18
BLOGS AND OTHER THINGS OF INTEREST
Plant of the Week – click on thumbnail to enlarge the image
This week – Eggplant, Aubergine – Solanum melongena. We usually think of edible members of the Solanaceae or Nightshade family (capsicums, potatoes, tomatoes, for example) as coming from South America. However, the Eggplant, or Aubergine, is a notable exception and its origins still shrouded in mystery. Some consider it evolved in southeast Asia; others believe it evolved from a North African species, Solanum linnaeanum, was subsequently dispersed throughout the Middle East, eventually reaching Asia where it was domesticated.
Correct Method for Submitting to Department Matters
Department Matters submissions now have their own email address. Please send all your news items for 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.
Have You Missed Out on an Issue of Department Matters? Back issues can be found at this newsletter archive link for your reading pleasure.
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New Publications
Advantages of social foraging in crab spiders: Groups capture more and larger prey despite the absence of a web
By: Dumke, Marlis, Marie E. Herberstein, and Jutta M. Schneider. Ethology (2018). | Find with Google Scholar »Male mate choice in the chameleon grasshopper (Kosciuscola tristis)
By: Muschett, Giselle, Kate DL Umbers, and Marie E. Herberstein. Ethology 124, no. 10 (2018): 751-759. | Find with Google Scholar »Role of the voltage-gated potassium channel subunit Kv8.2 in inherited retinal disease and interaction with other channel proteins
By: Hunt, David M., Nathan Hart, Jessica K. Mountford, Melanie Barth, Paula Fuller-Carter, and Livia S. Carvalho. Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science 59, no. 9 (2018): 2328-2328. | Find with Google Scholar »Patterns of developmental plasticity in response to incubation temperature in reptiles
By: While, Geoffrey M., Daniel WA Noble, Tobias Uller, Daniel A. Warner, Julia L. Riley, Wei‐Guo Du, and Lisa E. Schwanz. Journal of Experimental Zoology Part A: Ecological and Integrative Physiology (2018). | Find with Google Scholar »In the Media
Andrew Barron was featured in Computerworld
Associate Professor Andrew Barron from the Department of Biological Sciences was featured in Computerworld regarding the applications of bee brains for artificial intelligence.
Simon Griffith and Samuel Andrew were featured by ABC Broken Hill, ABC Western Queensland, The North West Star, Southern Cross Broken Hill, the Townsville Bulletin and The Barrier Daily Truth
Professor Simon Griffith and Samuel Andrew from the Department of Biological Sciences were featured by ABC Broken Hill, ABC Western Queensland, The North West Star, Southern Cross Broken Hill, the Townsville Bulletin and The Barrier Daily Truth in relation to sparrows adapting to lead contamination.
Michelle Leishman was featured in the Sydney Morning Herald
Distinguished Professor Michelle Leishman from the Department of Biological Sciences was featured in the Sydney Morning Herald regarding plants that can adapt to Australia’s changing climate.
Culum Brown was interviewed on Radio New Zealand
Associate Professor Culum Brown from the Department of Biological Sciences was interviewed on Radio New Zealand regarding shark culls.
Simon Griffith was featured on ABC Gold Coast Breakfast, ABC North West Queensland Breakfast, Zinc 666 Mt Isa, 2SER Drive and 2MCE Radio Orange
Professor Simon Griffith from the Department of Biological Sciences was featured on ABC Gold Coast Breakfast, ABC North West Queensland Breakfast, Zinc 666 Mt Isa, 2SER Drive and 2MCE Radio Orange in relation to sparrows adapting to lead contamination.
Jane Williamson was interviewed on Sky News
Associate Professor Jane Williamson from the Department of Biological Sciences was interviewed on Sky News regarding the deployment of drum lines in response to the two shark incidents in the Whitsundays.
Recent Completions
Kaja Wierucka submitted her PhD thesis entitled “Multimodal mother-offspring recognition in the Australian sea lion (Neophoca cinerea).”
Supervised by Professor Rob Harcourt