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BIO-BULL
May 2005
After a short hiatus, the Bio-Bull is back once again! This issue promises to be packed with lots of ÒahaÕsÓ, ÒoohÕsÓ and ÒhmmmÉthatÕs interestingÓ facts.
NEWS FROM THE CHAIRÕS OFFICE
Update on the recent searches:
- Julian Christians, Michael Silverman and Gordon Rintoul have accepted positions here (negotiations concluded, we are just waiting on the final offer from BOG);
- Sherryl Bisgrove made a second visit end of April, and so far she has indicated she is keen to join SFU.
- We have also started a search for a new technician (who will provide support for shared equipment rooms/facilities as well as teaching labs) and a new instructor associated with the 100-level expansion and SFU Surrey.
- Finally, we are currently searching for a limited-term lecturer (2 years) to replace Bernie Crespi (admittedly irreplaceable!) during the tenure of his Killam Fellowship.
We have been able to purchase a considerable amount of new research equipment lately (thanks in large part to the Dean), e.g. a gel doc system, table-top ultracentrifuge, UL freezer, PCR, homogenizer, film processor, water purifier, large autoclave, and growth chamber; much of this equipment will be housed in common equipment rooms (B7202/07/13/19). We have also been able to upgrade some teaching equipment, in addition to the investment in BISC 101, e.g. new microscopes (28), gel doc, Qubit CO2 system, Labcor datalogger, shakers, etc. ItÕs likely that investment of this kind might continue (sporadically) so keep sending ideas/requests to Brian Medford or the Chair.
Construction of the new research greenhouse has finally started, headed up by Jim Mattsson et al., just across the road from SSB. The ground is leveled and there is a very nice sign erected by the road!
PROFILES
DEBBIE
SANDHER Ð NEW STAFF
Debbie Sandher, our newest staff member, began our meeting by telling me my office was nice and tidy. So perhaps she isn't truthful, but she is charming. I started by asking whether Debbie was her actual first name.
DS: Actually, it is Gurdev. In Punjabi, Deb and Dev sound alike.
AM: You grew up here?
DS: I grew up in Birmingham, England, and moved over to Canada in 1980. My husband and I were born in the same district in the Punjab. But we met in Birmingham, at school, actually. We weren't supposed to do that. But my brother saw what was going on, and sort of arranged it so that we could be officially introduced.
AM: Sneaky. Tell us a bit about your home life.
DS: I have two girls - one has just started here at SFU, actually, in Psychology. The other runs a driving school with her mother-in-law. I volunteer a lot at my Sikh temple, and read fluent old Punjabi from our 'bible.'
AM: Sikhs have a 'bible?'
DS: Yes, the Guru Granth Sahib Ji. We actually read it from end to end every weekend - I even get up at five-o'clock on a Saturday morning to take a turn.
AM: Wow. But we digress. What brought you to BISC?
DS: I actually worked here in the Biology department as a temp for almost a year, six or seven years ago. I wrote up a lot of manuscripts for Prof. Borden, and also worked on a conference for Mark Winston. I remember he gave me a t-shirt. I was last upstairs in the Dean's Office.
AM: What have you been doing since you've come down here?
DS: Graduate fellowship applications mostly. I'm the scholarships secretary and also the undergraduate secretary, taking over from Faith. I also register students and manage Emelia's calendar.
AM: And the atmosphere here compared to up in the Dean's Office?
DS: I'm still new, but I do like it here. I have well-defined tasks, and I can get down to them. It is a bit quieter than upstairs. Also, working closely with Fiona and Derek is great: Fiona and I are both jokesters, so we get along just fine. Ð A. Mooers
MIKE HART Ð NEW FACULTY
HeÕs the newest kid on the block having been lured away from the ÒotherÓ coast last year. His son, Henry (3 yrs old), and his wife, Liz Stockwell, arrived last October and were soon joined by brand-new baby girl, Rachel, in January. Mike and his family are, perhaps, the only family in the Biology Department who actually live in the UniverCity residential community.
Mike Hart has been zigzagging across the continent, since he earned his undergraduate degree in Edmonton. He completed his Masters at Dalhousie, his Ph.D. at the University of Washington, and made a stop at Dalhousie again before being snatched up the mountain. Mike is no stranger to the halls of SFU Biology however, having done a post doc with Mike Smith in 1994/95. Currently, he is doing research on the population genetic consequences of mating system evolution in bat stars. Interestingly enough, the local species of bat star (Patiria miniata) has a mating and dispersal system that has parallels that of some plants.
This past Spring, Mike taught Invertebrate Biology and he is teaching a special topics course, Ecology and Evolution of Larvae, this summer. His lab is currently staffed by Carson Keever, and they collaborate with various researchers around the globe. In September, Jennifer Sunday will be joining Mike and Carson to study Patiria miniata. ÐL. Dodd
BIOLOGY HALL OF FAME
Congratulations to the following people who successfully defended during the Spring semester:
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MSc: Kristen B. Gorman Kimberley Jean Mathot Bart DeFreitas Jonathan Arthur Whiteley James Kenneth Kenyon |
MPM: Christy MacDougall Bruce J. Leighton Kristine Schlamp |
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PhD: Joline Widmeyer Susan Mary Sanders David Brent Gurd Guillermo Juan Fernandez Aceves Ananchanok Tirajoh |
MET: Vicki Maria Fleming |
COMPUTER HELPFUL HINTS
Where to backup at SFU
Windows: ftp://sfuusername@fraser.sfu.ca (this works nicely with Internet Explorer but firefox- needs an extension fireftp http://fireftp.mozdev.org/).
Macintosh: afp://home.sfu.ca
Note these are the same location; they use different servers to get to the same storage place.
Other methods: CD's and email.
Google ÒGmailÓ - send yourself a copy of the file. It is great free email with 2 Gigabytes storage. Email me if you want an account. ÐDave Carmean (carmean@sfu.ca)
How to get rid of a junk email message in Eudora
Control (or Apple) + j (J) is the fastest way (depending on the version/setup you use, of course).
