UBC microbiologist examines the role of social media in the scientific process

Is the blogosphere changing the face of science? Dr. Rosie Redfield, a microbiologist from the University of British Columbia and a passionate advocate for making science more open to the public, thinks so.  She will outline her perspective in a public talk entitled ‘#arseniclife and Open Science’ as part of the Science in Society Speaker Series on Thursday, April 12 at 7:30 p.m. at the Okanagan College’s Kalamalka campus.

photo by John Roth

In December 2010, NASA-funded researchers reported finding bacteria whose DNA contained arsenic in place of phosphorus. The initial media storm was followed by events that were very unusual for science: a twitter-fueled blast of scientific criticism; open blogging about ongoing research progress and problems, and public posting of a scientific manuscript before it had been peer reviewed and formally published.  Dr. Redfield will talk about the science itself (the scientific motivation for the original paper, and the problems with the research it described) and about how social media are changing the way scientists communicate.  

Dr. Redfield is a game changer in her views about public access to tax-payer supported scientific research. She challenges the notion that this research should be only available in journals largely inaccessible to the general public and that the peer-review process should only involve a select few.   Dr. Redfield is promoting ‘open science’ by way of example.  She maintains a number of blogs including one which outlines the details of her daily research activities. As a result of her efforts, the journal Nature named her as one of “the 10 people who mattered this year” in the world of science.

“Now that we’re all online, published papers are also being discussed more publicly, in blogs and other places,” explains Redfield.  “Such discussions are extraordinarily valuable for the progress of science — they’re written public evaluations, drawn from a wide range of expertise, and usually greatly enriched by comments from and links [to] other researchers.”

The Science in Society Speaker Series (a joint project by Okanagan Science Centre and the Okanagan College) is sponsored by the Best Western Vernon Lodge, Starbucks Coffee, Sweet Caroline’s Bakery, and the Vernon Morning Star.

Admission is $5 in advance or $7 at the door. For advanced tickets and more information, visit the Okanagan Science Centre at www.okscience.ca or call (250) 545-3644.

For more information, contact:

Carl Doige, Okanagan College (250) 545-7291 ext. 2286

Sandi Dixon, Okanagan Science Centre (250) 545-3644

Green IT specialist reveals impact of ICT on climate change in public talk

Zero carbon networks, cloud computing, server farms and electric roads are among the topics that will be presented by Bill St. Arnaud, one of Canada’s most prominent figures in the information and communication technologies, in a public lecture as part of the Science in Society Speaker Series.

The lecture takes place Wednesday, Feb. 15 at 7:30 p.m. at the Okanagan College’s Kalamalka campus.

St. Arnaud, former Chief Research Officer for15 years at CANARIE, Canada’s Advanced Internet Development Organization, is now a Green IT networking consultant who works with clients on a variety of subjects such as the next generation research and education and Internet networks. He also works with clients to develop practical solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions such as free broadband and electrical highways.

“We must now focus on how to adapt to a much warmer planet,” St. Arnaud said. “ICT can be a powerful instrument in helping society adapt to this new world. But unfortunately ICT itself has become the heavy industry of the information age. CO₂ emissions from ICT exceed that of traditional heavy industry smelters, steel mills and cement plants with a continuing dramatic growth rate of over 6% a year. At this rate ICT will represent 12-20% of all CO₂ emissions by 2020”.

 “Energy efficiency is not enough,” explained St. Arnaud. “We don’t have enough time to reduce emissions of ICT through energy efficiency.  We need to find alternate solutions that enable ICT to become zero carbon immediately.  Building zero carbon networks, data centers and computers will be our major task in the coming years.  We also need to design ICT solutions that can survive dramatic climate disruptions such as floods and droughts”.

St. Arnaud is a regular contributor to the CBC’s technology show Spark and he also publishes a number of blogs including “Future Internet, R&E Networks, Green Internet, Green IT” and “Green Internet and Cyber-Infrastructure”.

The Science in Society Speaker Series (a joint project by Okanagan Science Centre and the Okanagan College) is sponsored by the Best Western Vernon Lodge, Starbucks Coffee, Sweet Caroline’s Bakery, and the Vernon Morning Star.

 Admission is $5 in advance or $7 at the door. For advanced tickets and more information, visit the Okanagan Science Centre at www.okscience.ca or call (250) 545-3644.

 For more information, contact:

Carl Doige, Okanagan College (250) 545-7291 ext. 2286

Sandi Dixon, Okanagan Science Centre (250) 545-3644

Extreme deep sea environments exposed by UVic professor in public talk

Exploring ocean frontiers – astonishing wonders revealed!

Dr. VerenaTunnicliffe, a pioneer and leading authority on deep-water life, dazzled the audience with images from extreme deep sea environments at a public lecture at Okanagan College’s Kalamalka campus on Thursday, November 17 at 7:30 p.m.  This talk was presented by the Science in Society Speaker Series (a joint project by Okanagan Science Center and the Okanagan College).

Dr. Tunnicliffe is a University of Victoria professor in the departments of Biology & School Earth/Ocean Sciences. She led the world’s first expedition to observe the hydrothermal vents off the west coast of Canada in 1983 and has logged more than 120 submersible deep sea dives and hundreds of hours with seafloor remotely operated vehicle operations.

The human species is limited by terrestrial adaptations and dependence on a few senses to understand our interactions with the environment. Penetration of the oceans by humans is difficult. Lack of visual connectivity beneath the sea surface usually means “out of sight, out of mind.” In this talk, Dr. Tunnicliffe will explore some of the deep places in our ocean to reveal some astonishing wonders. Imagery from expeditions to hot vents, subsea volcanoes, and deep into Canadian oceans will illustrate the beauty and the extraordinary dynamics of ecosystems seldom seen. Canada is a leader in development of subsea technologies that allow us to undertake such exploration: submersible, remotely operated vehicles and subsea observatories are world leading!

Dr.Tunnicliffe, the Canada Research Chair in Deep Ocean Research, holds a Ph. D. from Yale University and is the author of many influential scientific publications and a children’s book, Kira’s Undersea Garden.  She is a member of the Royal Society of Canada and is awardee of both the NRC Steacie Prize and the BC Innovation Council’s “Frontiers in Exploration” prize.

Admission is $5 in advance or $7 at the door. Please contact the Okanagan Science Centre www.okscience.ca or call (250) 545-3644 for advanced purchase of tickets or for more information.

This event was sponsored bythe Best Western Vernon Lodge, Starbucks Coffee,  Sweet Caroline’s Bakery, and the Morning Star.

For more information, contact:

Carl Doige, Okanagan College (250) 545-7291 ext. 2286

Sandi Dixon, Okanagan Science Centre (250) 545-3644

Local scientist to discuss water issues in public speaker series

What’s up with water in the Okanagan?

A lot and Dr. Anna Warwick Sears is eager to tell you about it at a public lecture at Okanagan College’s Kalamalka campus on Tuesday, September 27 at 7:30 p.m.  This talk is presented by the Science in Society Speaker Series (a joint project by Okanagan Science Centre and the Okanagan College).

Dr. Warwick Sears is the Executive Director of the Okanagan Basin Water Board, a local government agency focused on water sustainability in the arid interior of British Columbia.  More information can be found about her work and concerns at Okanagan Basin Water Board website and Dr. Warwick Sears’ blog.

The Okanagan has become a center for water science and policy innovation in Canada. Many important questions need to be answered concerning our water resources: How do we protect our aquatic environments? What activities should be allowed in the forested drainages around drinking water sources? How will we adapt to climate change? Who will go after the polluters? Who pays for what? New models are evolving in British Columbia to regulate the use of water including such approaches as collaborative governance.  As the government of British Columbia is in the process of revising its century-old water act, informed input, from all stakeholders, is crucial. In this talk, Dr. Warwick Sears will be sharing the latest issues and approaches of the Okanagan Basin Water Board.

Warwick Sears received a Ph.D. in population biology at the University of California – Davis, studying competition for resources in arid environments. Before coming to the Okanagan in 2006, she was the Research Director of an environmental non-profit in California, leading watershed restoration and planning initiatives. Dr. Warwick Sears is particularly interested in using science to solve real-world problems and building bridges with community stakeholders.

Admission is $5 in advance or $7 at the door. Please contact the Okanagan Science Centre www.okscience.ca or call (250) 545-3644 for advanced purchase of tickets or for more information.

This event is sponsored by the Best Western Vernon Lodge, the Morning Star, Starbucks Coffee, and Sweet Caroline’s Bakery.

For more information, contact:

• Carl Doige, Okanagan College (250) 545-7291 ext. 2286
• Sandi Dixon, Okanagan Science Centre (250) 545-3644

Jet Propulsion scientist decodes comets

What can comets tell us about the origin of the solar system?

A lot, if you’re Dr. Paul Weissman, Senior Research Scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Weissman was the Harlow Shapley Astronomy lecturer for a public lecture at  Okanagan College’s Kalamalka campus on March 23 at 7:30 p.m.  This talk was co-presented by the American Astronomical Society and the Science in Society Speaker Series (a joint project by Okanagan Science Center and the Okanagan College).

Weissman unveiled scientists’ understanding of the origin of the solar system through the investigation of comets.

Comets are the most primitive bodies in the solar system.  They contain a mix of volatile ices, organics, and silicate dust brought together more than 4.5 billion years ago when the solar system formed.  For that reason, comets retain a record of physical and chemical conditions in the solar nebula at that critical time in our past.  Scientific exploration of comets using interplanetary spacecraft has greatly increased our knowledge of these primitive bodies over the past decade.  Weissman will review recent results from missions such as Deep Space 1, Stardust, Deep Impact, EPOXI, and Stardust-Next, and what they have told us about how our solar system came to be.

Weissman was a co-investigator on NASA’s Galileo mission to Jupiter and is an Interdisciplinary Scientist on ESA’s Rosetta mission to comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko; he is also a co-investigator on several Rosetta instruments. He is the author of more than 115 refereed publications in the scientific literature and 30 popular articles, is an editor of the Encyclopedia of the Solar System (Academic Press, 2007) and co-author of The Great Voyager Adventure, a children’s book written with Alan Harris. Weissman received his Ph.D. in Planetary and Space Physics from the University of California, Los Angeles, in 1978, and his A.B. in Physics from Cornell University in 1969.

McGill Professor demystifies the magic of chemistry

Dr. Joe Schwarcz, professor of chemistry and director of the McGill University’s Office for Science and Society presented a public lecture at the Okanagan College, Vernon Campus on Feb 10, 2011. This talk was organised by the Science in Society Speaker Series (a joint project by Okanagan Science Center and the Okanagan College) and was in celebration of the International Year of Chemistry, 2011 and the Vernon winter carnival, “Cooking with Carnival”.

Dr. Schwarcz addressed in his talk such questions as:  Why for years and years there were no red M&M’s or how do they get that maraschino cherry to float in the syrup inside a Cherry Blossom?  What is the link between the bombardier beetle at the V-2 rocket?  Why does popcorn pop?  Why are there holes in Swiss cheese?  Have you ever considered why there are no nuts or grapes in Grape Nuts Flakes or why witches supposedly use broomsticks as a method of transportation?  Why did Van Gogh mangle his ear?  Were Agatha Christie’s accounts of dastardly poisonings based on real science?  Can chocolate really make you fall in love?  After this presentation you’ll wonder no more!

Professor Schwarcz is well known for his informative and entertaining public lectures on topics ranging from the chemistry of love to the science of aging.  He has received numerous awards for teaching chemistry and for interpreting science for the public.  Among these are the Royal Society of Canada’s McNeil Award and the American Chemical Society’s prestigious Grady-Stack Award.  His latest awards include the Royal Canadian Institute’s Sandford Fleming Medal, the Society of Chemical Industry’s Purvis Award and the Chemical Institute of Canada’s Montreal Medal.  Dr. Schwarcz was also awarded an honorary Doctorate degree by Athabasca University.

“Dr. Joe” has appeared hundreds of times on the Canadian Discovery Channel, TV Ontario, Global Television, CBC-TV, CTV-TV and various radio stations.  He hosts the “Dr. Joe Show” on Montreal’s CJAD every Sunday from 3-4 PM.  He also hosted “Science To Go,” a series on the Discovery Channel that focused on common foods.  Dr. Schwarcz writes a weekly newspaper column in the Montreal Gazette entitled “The Right Chemistry” as well as a monthly column in Canadian Chemical News.  He was the chief consultant on the Reader’s Digest best sellers “Foods That Harm, Foods That Heal” and “The Healing Power of Vitamins, Minerals and Herbs” and contributed the chemistry chapter to the best-selling “Mental Floss.”  His books “Radar, Hula Hoops and Playful Pigs,” “The Genie in the Bottle,” “That’s The Way The Cookie Crumbles,” “Dr. Joe and What You Didn’t Know,” “The Fly in the Ointment,” “Let Them Eat Flax,” “Brain Fuel,” “An Apple A Day,” “Science, Sense and Nonsense,” and his latest, “Dr. Joe’s Brain Sparks” have all been best sellers.  The books have been translated into seven languages and are sold around the world.

Responding to the Climate-Change Challenge in British Columbia: Science, Social Science, Politics and Opportunity

Dr. Tom Pedersen, Director of the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions, presented a talk in Vernon entitled: Responding to the Climate-Change Challenge in British Columbia: Science, Social Science, Politics and Opportunity on November 12, 2010 in the Lecture Theatre of the Vernon campus of the Okanagan College.

 Global warming caused by human activities is happening, it is scientifically well understood, and it presents a serious challenge to human societies.  Dr. Pedersen will explore how this challenge provides an opportunity for us to do things better, to unleash a new era of creativity, to improve the stewardship of our natural environment, and to revitalize our economy while generating new, cleaner industrial activity. The talk will describe in lay terms the scientific underpinning of the reality of global warming, present the latest observational evidence that confirms the theory, explore mitigation and adaptation possibilities, and offer an optimistic view of a better environmental and economic future for Canada. The role the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions, an endowed four-university consortium hosted and led by the University of Victoria, is now playing in contributing to British Columbia’s response to the climate-change challenge will also be briefly described.

Dr. Thomas Pedersen was appointed Director of the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions beginning September 1, 2009. His previous positions included dean of science (2003-2009) and director of the School of Earth and Ocean Sciences at the University of Victoria (2002-2003), and associate dean, research, for the Faculty of Graduate Studies at the University of British Columbia (2000-mid 2002). Pedersen holds a degree in geology from UBC and a PhD in marine geochemistry from the University of Edinburgh. He is also a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and a fellow of the American Geophysical Union. He is an internationally recognized authority on ocean chemistry, has published extensively in the field of paleoceanography, and has longstanding interests in climate change issues and the application of government policy to climate-change mitigation and adaptation.