Dates: February 13th to February 17th, 2012 (5 days: Monday to Friday)
Price: CAN$1400 (does not include room or board)

“This intense 5 day workshop will focus on a myriad of different techniques used in the molecular manipulation of DNA, RNA and protein, as well as inclusion of exercises in some basic bioinformatics tools. Primarily aimed at researchers who are new to the area, familiar but require a quick updating, or would like more practical bench training.”

See reviews from past workshops here.

(Click image for pdf of poster)

A) This program is free of charge, very popular, and fills fast. BOOKING IS ON A FIRST COME FIRST SERVE BASIS. To request a field trip
booking form please email, Dr Joanne Fox, joanne@msl.ubc.ca. Please send one form per class request.

You can also check the schedule online:
http://www.bioteach.ubc.ca/genetics-fieldtrips/#Gr9

“Updated for 2011: This intense 6 day workshop will focus on a myriad of different techniques used in the molecular manipulation of DNA, RNA and protein, as well as inclusion of exercises in some basic bioinformatics tools. Primarily aimed at researchers who are new to the area, familiar but require a quick updating, or would like more practical bench training.”

This event showcases various scientific pursuits, including the opportunity for you to engage in hands-on activities, as well as interact with some of the most prominent scientists in the world. This year’s program is looking awesome! We’re going to explore the science behind BIODIVERSITY themed pursuits.

You can download our 2011 Escapades Poster, if you want!

ESCAPADES IN SCIENCE – The HANDS-ON ACTIVITIES for the 2010 Conference.

I. DNA, GENOMES, + MORE
(Dr. Joanne Fox)
In this activity you’ll step into a real reasearch laboratory at UBC and isolate your own DNA!

II. THE PHYLOMON GAME
(Dr. David Ng)
Do you kind of wish Pokemon cards had REAL creatures not FAKE creatures? Here’s your chance to contribute to our lab’s latest Science project, http://phylomon.org/

III. BEATY BIODIVERSITY MUSEUM TOURS
(Bep Schipeers)
In this activity, students will get a chance to tour the brand new Beaty Biodiversity Museum located next door to the Michael Smith Laboratories. Graduate students and post-doctoral fellows will share their stories about research and what it’s like to be a scientist who studies biodiversity & evolution.

Speaker Biographies:

Jenny McCune is a PhD student in the botany department at UBC.  She earned her BSc in Biological Science at the University of Guelph, MSc in Ethnobotany at the University of Kent, Canterbury, and has worked as a plant ecologist in Florida, Oregon, California and Maryland.

Dr. Rob DeWreede. Rob’s research has dealt with both theoretical and practical aspects of the ecology of marine macro-algae, in both temperate and tropical habitats. His work has taken him to Hawaii, the Philippines and around the world where he has studied the ecology and taxonomy of Sargassum, and helped in establishing pilot farms for Eucheuma (a red seaweed and carrageenan producer). Closer to home, here In British Columbia, his research has focused on the structure and demography of marine algal populations, and of the biomechanical properties of selected species.

Dr. David Ng is Director of the Advanced Molecular Biology Laboratory, the educational arm of the Michael Smith Labs. Dave is a geneticist, science advocate, and occasional writer. Dave claims that his Dad beat up Bruce Lee once.

Dr. Joanne Fox is an Instructor at UBC.  She’s the director of a new first-year program that involves debates, discussions and other activities to get students thinking and talking about what science is, how it is done, and how it impacts their daily lives. She’s got a really fun creative job that combines education, outreach and science.  She lives with her family, which includes their singing dog, Penney, in a historic fishing village just outside of Vancouver.

Details:

Thursday April 14th, 2011
9:00am – 3:30pm
Michael Smith Laboratories, UBC
2185 East Mall, Vancouver, BC
maps, bus, parking,

For more information, please contact:
Dr. Joanne Fox
joanne@msl.ubc.ca
604-827-3911

Schedule:
8:30 am STUDENT Registration
9:15 AM WELCOME FROM Dr. Joanne Fox & Dr. David Ng
9:30 – 10:00 Dr. Rob DeWreede
10:00 – 10:30 Jenny McCune, PhD Student
10:30 – 11:30 EXCEPTIONAL ESCAPADE IN SCIENCE
Rotation #1 – DNA, Genomes, + More
11:30 – 12:30 EXCEPTIONAL ESCAPADE IN SCIENCE
Rotation #2 – Phylomon Game
12:30 – 1:30 LUNCH (on your own)
1:30 – 2:30 EXCEPTIONAL ESCAPADE IN SCIENCE
Rotation #3 – Beaty Biodiversity Museum Tours
2:30 – 3:30 NETWORKING GAME – Draw prizes at 3:15pm
3:30PM END

If you’re interested, you can check out last year’s program here.

UPDATE (Mar 1st): We’re full, with 100+ students registered! Online registration is now closed, please email Dr. Fox at: joanne@msl.ubc.ca if you would like to be added to the waiting list.

Looking for the program? You can find all the detail here!

http://www.bioteach.ubc.ca/highschool-conference-2011/

This event showcases various scientific pursuits, including the opportunity to engage in hands-on activities, participate in workshops that highlight hands-on classroom activities, as well as interact with some of the most prominent scientists in the world.

You can download our 2010 MSL Teacher Conference Poster here and see the full conference content below.

Speaker Biographies:

Dr. Sarah Otto. Sally studies population genetics and evolutionary biology. She develops and analyzes mathematical models to study how populations change over time. The aim of this work is to identify when and whether particular evolutionary transitions are possible.  Sally is the director of the Centre for Biodiversity Research located in the new Beaty Biodiversity Centre building on campus.  This building is also where you’ll find the spectacular blue whale skeleton hanging in the atrium of the new Beaty Biodiversity Museum.

Dr. Rob DeWreede.  Rob’s research has dealt with both theoretical and practical aspects of the ecology of marine macro-algae, in both temperate and tropical habitats. His work has taken him to Hawaii, the Philippines and around the world where he has studied the ecology and taxonomy of Sargassum, and helped in establishing pilot farms for Eucheuma (a red seaweed and carrageenan producer). Closer to home, here In British Columbia, his research has focused on the structure and demography of marine algal populations, and of the biomechanical properties of selected species.

2010 MSL TEACHER CONFERENCE – The HANDS-ON ACTIVITIES

I. THE NATURE OF SCIENCE CARD GAME

Dr. Joanne Fox is an Instructor with AMBL. She’s looking forward to a fun day of science and has some really cool prizes to give out to teachers at the end of the day. Joanne has recently launched a new kind of course at UBC that explores the nature of science with first year students. She also has a dog named Penney who is quickly becoming famous on You-Tube for her singing.

Exploring the nature of science is often a difficult subject to teach effectively. This activity will introduce you to an activity that we use in first year classes to engage students in thinking about the philosophy of science. With this activity, you will participate in a card game that helps you to explore your own views on science and gets you thinking about how you might explore this subject in your own classrooms.

Card Exchange publication, Cobern & Loving (1998) GAMEcards, modified by Fox (2010)

II. POM POM CHALLENGE
(David Savory, Science World)
Do you think you have what it takes to meet the “Pom Pom” challenge? Pneumatics, that’s what we’re doing. Who knew that applied physics could be so much fun!

III. TOURS OF THE BEATY BIODIVERSITY MUSEUM
(Bep Schipeers)
In this activity, teachers will get a chance to tour the brand new Beaty Biodiversity Museum located next door to the Michael Smith Laboratories. Graduate students and post-doctoral fellows will share their stories about research and what it’s like to be a scientist. Teachers will participate in classroom activities related to biodiversity & evolution.

Details:
Friday October 22nd, 2010
9:00am – 3:30pm
Michael Smith Laboratories, UBC
2185 East Mall, Vancouver, BC
maps, bus, parking

For more information, please contact:
Dr. Joanne Fox
joanne@msl.ubc.ca
604-827-3911

Schedule:

If you’re interested, you can check out last year’s program here.

Our 2010 Michael Smith Labs Teacher Conference will be held on Friday October 22nd, 2010. Attending this event is FREE, but registration is required.

Please see our conference webpage for more details:
http://www.bioteach.ubc.ca/teacher-conference-2010/

Sorry, registration for this event is now closed!

We’ll also be launching registration for our annual high school teacher conference in the coming week. Save the date! Friday October 22nd, 2010