Professor Alastair McEwan, Acting Executive Dean

• the University will reopen on Thursday 20 January 2011, with the Faculty Office opening the same day at 8.30am
• Summer Semester classes will resume the same day on Thursday 20 January 2011 
• we expect classes to commence on schedule for Semester One on 28 February 2011
• student orientation will begin as planned on 21 February 2011, and
• academic advising for undergraduate students will proceed as normal.

Since the early 20th century mankind has been using birds to identify the presence of environmental hazards. In the 21st century we are using them to also warn of infections which now cross animal/human barriers.

Join Nobel Prize Winner and UQ alumnus, Laureate Professor Peter Doherty AC, as he shares insights about the threats we face from emerging diseases, how the One Health concept might provide a solution and why counting chickens could save your life.

Event details:  

About the presenter:

Laureate Professor Peter Doherty's pioneering research into human immune systems earned him the Nobel Prize for Physiology and Medicine in 1996. He was Australian of the Year and awarded a Companion of the Order of Australia in 1997 and currently divides his professional time between the University of Melbourne and St Jude Children’s Hospital in Memphis, where he is helping unravel the mystery of childhood cancer.

He is the author of The Beginner’s Guide to Winning the Nobel Prize: A Life in Science, A Light History of Hot Air and Sentinel Chickens.

Laureate Professor Peter Doherty is presenting at the 2012 Brisbane Writers Festival courtesy of the Faculty of Science, UQ. He is presenting this event on campus as part of the Festival's Visiting Authors Program.

Dr Conrad Hoskin with a  leaftail gecko.

We are delighted to invite you to the 4th Annual Steve Irwin Memorial Lecture proudly presented by The University of Queensland and The Brisbane Institute.

The 2012 speaker is UQ Science alumnus and biologist, Dr Conrad Hoskin. Credited with having discovered or co-discovered 13 new frog and reptile species, join Dr Hoskin as he reveals the stories behind these amazing discoveries and why we need to conserve their habitats.

WHEN Monday, 13 August, 5.45pm for a 6pm start

WHERE Auditorium 1, State Library of Queensland, Cultural Centre, Stanley Place, South Bank, Brisbane

COST $10 for UQ students, alumni and staff, $10  for Brisbane Institute subscribers, $20 for all other attendees. All prices include GST.

TO REGISTER visit: www.brisinst.org.au/registration-dr-conrad-hoskin-lecture

The quest for the ‘missing’ frog

How much frog and reptile diversity is out there? How does this diversity form? How do we discover and describe this diversity? How can we conserve Queensland’s diversity?

Dr Conrad Hoskin takes you on an adventurous journey to discover and re-discover some of Queensland’s most fascinating frog and reptile species. An ecologist and conservation biologist, Dr Hoskin has discovered spectacular new species, rediscovered a frog species long thought to be extinct and defined how new species can form.

Join The Brisbane Institute and The University of Queensland as Dr Hoskins presents the 4th annual Steve Irwin Memorial Lecture.

In this presentation Dr Hoskin will reveal the spectacular diversity of reptiles and frogs in Queensland, the amazing discoveries still being made, and the efforts to conserve this diversity.
 

Download the event flyer here.

REGISTRATIONS FOR THIS EVENT ARE NOW CLOSED. Please note that there is another opportunity to hear Dr Hoskin speak at the Annual Steve Irwin Memorial Lecture on Monday 13 August at 6pm. For more information and to register see here.

 

Dr Conrad Hoskin with a  leaftail gecko.

WHEN Tuesday, 14 August 2012, 11:45 for a light lunch and a 12pm start

WHERE AIBN Seminar Room, level 1, AIBN Building (#75), St Lucia Campus

WHO Students enrolled in Science Honours, Masters and RHD programs in areas such as Biology, Conservation, Environmental Management, Environmental Science, Veterinary Science, Wildlife Science or Zoology

RSVP Early RSVP is essential as seating is limited. Please register via the below form. 

 

A graduate of UQ’s Bachelor of Science (Honours, 1996) and PhD (2006) programs, Conrad always knew his destiny lay in wildlife research and conservation. His studies have taken him to many extraordinary places around the world and have resulted in the discovery of spectacular new species, the rediscovery of a frog species long thought to be extinct, and the discovery of processes by which new species can form (particularly in hybrid zones).

At this exclusive luncheon for Faculty of Science students Conrad will share his career highlights commencing as a UQ science student through to becoming a world-renowned biologist credited with having discovered or co-discovered, 13 new frog and reptile species - six geckos, one skink and six frogs over a decade.

Upon the completion of his undergraduate studies Conrad spent several years travelling to locations such as Madagascar and Borneo, and working in various roles exploring remote areas of Queensland and studying the genetics of Amazonian River Turtles.

Following his travels, Conrad returned to UQ to commence a PhD under supervision of Jeremy Austin, Hamish McCallum, and Craig Moritz, investigating processes by which new species form, particularly how species can form in hybrid zones.

Throughout these years he continued to explore remote areas looking for new species, and discovered and described some spectacular new Queensland reptiles and frogs.

After completing his thesis he won a 3-year research fellowship (from the Australian Research Council) to continue his speciation research at The Australian National University in Canberra. This work continued to focus on the frogs and reptiles of north Queensland.

In 2011 he was simultaneously awarded a research fellowship from the Australian Biological Resources Study and a permanent lectureship in the School of Marine & Tropical Biology at James Cook University (Townsville).

For the next 3 years he will be focussing on research into the diversity and taxonomy of reptiles and frogs of northern and eastern Australia, and will progress to a research and teaching role.

Download the event flyer here.

 

Science Faculty 3MT winner: Catherine Tiplady

Catherine Tiplady, from the School of Veterinary Science, is our successful science contestant and will be moving on to represent our Faculty at the UQ Final round on the 18th of September. Our runner-up is Faith Reece, from the School of Biomedical Sciences. Catherine Tiplady is also the People’s Choice winner, which means that Faith Reece will be representing the Faculty of Science in the UQ Wildcard round on the 6th of September.

3MT 2012 Contestants

Congratulations to all the our science contestants who participated. The competition was fierce and we would have been proud to have any one of you represent the Faculty in the UQ round.

Front:

• Robyn Aston - Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences;
• Caitlin Syme - Biological Sciences;
• Faith Reece - Biomedical Sciences;
• Daniel O'Connor - Agriculture and Food Sciences;

Rear:

• Catherine Tiplady - Veterinary Science;
• Jessica Chan - Maths and Physics;
• Danielle Nilsson - Geography, Planning and Environmental Management;

Completing an Honours year with your science degree can open the door to many opportunities!

• Undertake exciting original research
• Develop skills highly sought by employers
• Enhance your career prospects

If you cannot attend the information sessions, but would like to enquire about Honours studies, please contact the respective Honours Coordinator: 

Free writing workshops available for Post Graduates - 6 & 8 June

Are you interested in a career in publishing? Or maybe you'd love to learn from an expert about how to get published?

We're pleased to invite you to learn about these topics in a two part workshop series presented by Diana Faulds on Wednesday 6 June and Friday 8 June 2012.

About the Presenter:

Diana Faulds is an Adjunct Professor with the UQ Centre for Integrated Preclinical Drug Development and is also the Global Editorial Director, Adis Products at Springer. Prior to starting this role in 2010, Diana held senior roles in the life sciences publishing field at Wolters Kluwer Health and Adis International, working in Journals, Databases, Books and Medical Communications.  Earlier in her career, Diana was a medical writer with Adis International and many of her publications are highly cited.

Diana has been involved in many workshops and presentations on the issues and ethics involved in presenting scientific data for publication. Come along and learn from Diana's wealth of knowledge and insight into multiple dimensions of the scientific publishing world. Light refreshments will be served at each session.

Workshop details:

Please note, both workshops have reached capacity therefore no new registrations are being accepted.

Workshop 1: Careers in Publishing - please note, this workshop has reached capacity therefore no new registrations are being accepted.

• Overview: This practical workshop will help you to discover what career opportunities are available outside the lab, the challenges of working in Academic publishing and real life examples of others who've made this transition.
• When: Wednesday 6 June 2012
• Time: 9:00am- 12:00pm. Please arrive at 8:45am for a 9:00am start
• Where: Frank White Building (43), Room 102

Workshop 2: Getting Published - please note, this workshop has reached capacity therefore no new registrations are being accepted.

• Overview: Get practical tips from an expert about how to write a title, abstract, main text, method, results, discussion as well as how to choose a journal, how the publishing process works, how to deal with peer review comments and more.
• When: Friday 8 June 2012
• Time: 9:00am- 12:00pm. Please arrive at 8:45am for a 9:00am start
• Where: Frank White Building (43), Room 102

The University of Queensland Society for Undergraduate Science Students (SUSS) presents the inaugural An Invitation to Innovation Annual Lecture.

The inaugural 2011 speaker is Andrea Dupree. Having a plethora of experience, Andrea is currently a Senior Astrophysicist at Harvard Smithsonian Centre for Astrophysics (CfA) and is a member of the Science Working Group for NASA’s Kepler Mission. 

The Kepler Mission was launched in 2009 and aims to discover just how frequently planets appear outside the solar system. Results so far have been astounding; estimates based on Kepler’s data point to as many as two billion Earth like worlds in the Milky Way galaxy alone. Andrea is the former president of the American Astronomical Society and has served on and led a number of committees with the US National Academy of Sciences. Andrea is the former associate director of the CfA. Andrea was the first woman and youngest person to be appointed this position at the time.

The An Invitation to Innovation Lecture is organised by students for UQ students, staff and academics, as well as interested members of the community.

Please come along to the inaugural annual lecture, and join us for light refreshments afterwards. RSVP is essential.

Event details
Date: Monday 3 October 2011
Time: 5:00 - 6:00pm, with light refreshments to follow
Location: Parnell Building (7), Room 222, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Brisbane.
RSVP early - seating is strictly limited.

Professor Bryan Gaensler is one of Australia’s best known young scientists and winner of both Young Australian of the Year and the Young Tall Poppy awards. Bryan is an award-winning astronomer, who is internationally recognised for his groundbreaking work on dying stars, interstellar magnets and cosmic explosions.

Join Bryan for a 45 minute presentation focusing on Australian astrophysics, including what we've contributed to the body of knowledge, our strengths and the future of astrophysics in Australia. Bryan will also discuss his career trajectory as well as provide the audience with some advice and recommendations about career progression. Following the lecture, the audience will have the opportunity to participate in a Q&A session.

Event details
Date: Friday 9 September 2011
Time: 12:00 - 1:15pm
Location: QBI (79), Level 7, Auditorium, University of Queensland, St Lucia

Bryan's latest book, The Extreme Cosmos, views the way the universe works through the lens of extremes: the fastest, hottest, heaviest, brightest, oldest, and most gravitational. This book not only offers amazing facts and figures but also reveals the remarkable objects and the incredible physics that underpin these phenomena.

Bryan is also presenting at the Brisbane Writers Festival and is on campus as part of the Visiting Authors Program. Bryan is appearing courtesy of the Faculty of Science, UQ.

We want to welcome you to the Faculty of Science. Come along and meet your fellow science students, relax and enjoy free live music and snacks!

WHAT: Outdoor get-together with live music (Music: guitarist Dave McGuire and singer Krystal Durant)

WHERE: Grassed area outside building 64

WHEN: Week 2 - Thursday 8th March, drop in anytime between 12-2pm

WHY:

• Meet new science students from around the world
• Connect to clubs and societies (SUSS - the Society for Undergraduate Science Students, Mates@UQ, etc.)
• Relax with FREE live music and food 

For more information contact: 
Julia Kaestner,  Engagement Officer - International & Research, Faculty of Science, j.kaestner@uq.edu.au

The Gloriously Messy Universe

Broadcast dates on Radio National. Visit the ABC Radio National Website to listen online or find the frequency (www.abc.net.au/rn/)
5pm, Sun 9 Jan, 2011
6pm, Thurs 13 Jan 2011

Is there an ultimate theory of everything? Could it be possible that after decades of searching, it may turn out that the universe is not perfectly and elegantly designed?
According to author Marcelo Gleiser, the universe is gloriously messy and we hear his controversial views.... along with alternative views from our panel of astronomers. This forum was recorded at the 2010 Brisbane Writers festival and your host is Dr Paul Willis from ABC TV’s Catalyst program.

Guests

• Professor Marcelo Gleiser - Professor of Natural Philosophy, Physics and Astronomy & author, Dartmouth College, United States
• Professor Andrew White - School of Mathematics & Physics, The University of Queensland.
• Dr Tamara Davis - School of Mathematics & Physics, The University of Queensland

Book

“Imperfect Creation – the Gloriously Messy Universe” by Marcel Gleiser
Published by Black Inc.

Credits

Event producer Abbie Thomas
Presenter Lynne Malcolm
Sound Engineer Leila Shunnar

Big ideas (ABC Radio National) is broadcasted on Thursdays 6pm (3pm WA, 5pm Q/NT) and Sundays 5pm, repeated 12am Monday and 3am Friday.

Big Ideas brings you the best of talks, forums, debates, and festivals held in Australia and around the world. From major public speeches to intimate bookshop conversations, Big Ideas puts you in the front row.
To find your local frequency: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/frequency/
These programs will also be available after the broadcast date as podcasts at: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/bigideas/

Celebrate National Science Week at UQ

National Science Week runs 13 - 21 August 2011 and celebrates Australia's talents and achievements in science, engineering, technology and innovation.

There are a range of great events and activities happening nationally that showcase science, engineering, technology and innovation.

Free events happening at UQ St Lucia campus:

1. Indigenous Knowledge, Natural Resources Management and Cultural Heritage Management

• 10 August 2011
• 4:00 - 5:00 pm
• Building 3, Room 320 University of Queensland, St Lucia Campus

Annie Ross from the University of Queensland presents a free one hour seminar on the topic of Indigenous Knowledge, Natural Resources Management and Cultural Heritage Management.

2. Free Scinema screening - Festival of Science Film

• 10 August 2011
• 5:00 - 6:00 pm
• Sir James Foots Building (47A), Room 141, University of Queensland, St Lucia Campus

Scinema is the Festival of Science Film. A selection of films from the 2011 Travelling Film Festival will be shown at this free, one hour event. Come along and enjoy this SUSS event and a few free slices from Pizza Cafe following the screening.
 

3. Bacteria and Phagocytes: Mortal Enemies

• 18 August 2011
• 4:15 - 5:30 pm
• Auditorium, John Hay Building, Queensland Biosciences Precinct, Chancellor's Place, University of Queensland, St Lucia Campus

The 2011 Skerman Lecturer is Victor Nizet, Professor of Paediatrics and Pharmacy at the University of California, San Diego and Chief of the Division of Paediatric Pharmacology & Drug Discovery at University of California San Diego School of Medicine and Skaggs School of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences. His lecture is entitled Bacteria and Phagocytes: Mortal Enemies.
 

4. Public Lecture: Genetic and genomic approaches to cancer prevention

• 19 August 2011
• Drinks & canapes 4:45pm - 5:30pm, Public Lecture & Prize-giving 5:30pm onwards
• Physiology Lecture Theatres, Building 63, University of Queensland, St Lucia campus

Professor Sir John Burn, MD, FRCP, FRCPCH, FRCOG, FMedSci presents the School of Biomedical Sciences public lecture on the topic of Genetic and genomic approaches to cancer prevention.
 

5. Patterns of light and fire in a human dominated landscape

• 24 August 2011
• 12:00 - 1:00 pm
• Building 3, Room 318, University of Queensland, St Lucia Campus

Naomi Levin from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem presents a free one hour seminar on the topic of Patterns of light and fire in a human dominated landscape.

Dr Shelly Lachish with a  Tasmanian devil

• WHEN 11:45am for a light lunch and a 12pm start, Wednesday 5 October 2011
• WHERE James Birrell Room, Staff Club, 41 Staff House Road, UQ St Lucia
• WHO Students enrolled in Science Honours, Masters and RHD programs in areas such as Conservation, Environmental Management, Environmental Science, Veterinary Science, Wildlife Science or Zoology
• RSVP Early RSVP is essential as seating is limited. Register below until Friday 23 September 2011.

A graduate of UQ’s Science (Honours, 2000) and PhD (Zoology, 2009) programs, Shelly has dedicated her life to wildlife ecology and management. She has studied the effects of the fatal cancer in the wild Tasmanian Devil, studied wild primates in the South American jungle, and today works at the University of Oxford studying the impacts of disease on wild birds.

Shelly will share her career trajectory and highlights from UQ science student to international ecologist and conservation biologist at this exclusive luncheon for Faculty of Science students.

Upon completing her undergraduate studies Shelly worked as a research assistant to Professor Mark Blows at UQ, investigating the complexities of evolution and natural selection, with the humble fruit fly as a model species.

But the call of the wild soon led Shelly out of the confines of the laboratory and into the jungles of Mexico, where she undertook an academic internship in the Primatology Laboratory of the National University of Mexico, studying the ecology, behaviour and conservation of wild primates in Lost Tuxtlas Reserve, Veracruz.

Following her time in Mexico, Shelly returned to UQ to commence her PhD under the supervision of Professor Hamish McCallum, Professor Anne Goldizen and Dr Menna Jones, investigating the population impacts and conservation implications of a new and apparently fatal cancer in wild Tasmanian devil; what we now know to be Devil Facial Tumour Disease.

The demands of this research soon saw Shelly take up residence in the island state of Tasmania, a move that fostered important and rewarding collaborations with the researchers and managers whose mission it is to save the Tasmania devil from this debilitating disease.

After completing her thesis, Shelly continued to work in devil research and conservation as a contract scientist working for the Tasmanian government’s Save the Tasmanian Devil program. In 2010, Shelly began working at her current position as a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Oxford. Her current work focuses on understanding the dynamics and impacts of diseases of wild birds, with particular focus on understanding the conservation implications of a new strain of avian pox that has recently been detected in British garden birds. Dr Lachish is currently working as a post-doctoral research associate at the Edward Grey Institute in the Department of Zoology at the University of Oxford.

The annual Staff vs Students debate:

Should Science strive towards a world without death?

Watch nail-biting action as UQ's finest scientific minds battle it out:

• Location: The Prentice Building Room 216
• Date: Tuesday August 23rd at 5:30pm

Visit the SUSS facebook events page: http://www.facebook.com/UQSUSS?sk=events

Science Ball 2011 is your ticket to celebrate the successes of the academic year in the UQ Faculty of Science. September 23 is the date where you can take off your lab coat and dress in your finest - so get excited!

After the SUSSness of last year, Science Ball 2011 will be bigger, better and more SUSSpicious than ever before. Your ticket includes entrance into Cloudland's exclusive Rainbow Room and a 5 hour drink and canapé package. You are also invited to the After Party downstairs in Cloudland after the main event.

• Members: $95
• Non-Members: $100

Tickets are available online and in the SLC at St Lucia and other locations. Check here for other locations during semester.

Numbers are limited... Get in quick.

Find our more: http://www.facebook.com/UQSUSS