Departmental Seminar Series

trees through the seasons


Seminars are held Thursdays from 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m, in SSC 2315. All interested are welcome to attend.

Fall 2024

October 10, 2024 - Dr. Greg Gross, University of Alberta

Topic: Physiology of the Pacific hagfish: an extremophile extraordinaire!

Greg has established a large and multidimensional research program that connects individual responses to aquatic stressors through to watershed regulation and management, incorporating contemporary challenges of regional (e.g., fracking fluids) and global (e.g., aquatic acidification, nanoparticle and microplastic pollution) import. At the core of this broad and impactful research is a curious comparative physiologist; and so Greg’s seminar will highlight his contributions to understanding the novelties and wonders of hagfish physiology.


October 17, 2024 - Dr. Joe Kim, McMaster University

Topic: Evidence based practices in education


October 24, 2024 - Dr. Brent Patterson, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources

Topic: Population ecology of canids and ungulates


October 31, 2024 - Dr. Katie Marshall, University of British Columbia

Topic: Thermal physiology of invertebrates

Katie is an Associate Professor at UBC. She works with a wide variety of species to try to understand the physiological mechanisms driving species ranges. Her work combines 'omics technology with more traditional physiological techniques and ecological modelling to understand the causes and consequences of low temperature and desiccation stress.  A major focus includes using more ecologically relevant stressors that vary over time rather than the single exposures that are often used in physiological studies.


November 7 , 2024 - Dr. Jackie Goordial, University of Guelph 

Topic: Microorganisms and nutrient biogeochemical cycling

 

"Left out in the cold: the microbial ecology of cryophilic life"

"Though considered to be “extremophiles”, microorganisms that are metabolically active and that can replicate at sub-zero temperatures exist in cryoenvironments nearly ubiquitously on our planet. Cryoenvironments on Earth represent a natural laboratory in which we can observe the natural constraints to microbial activity and survival at low temperature, understanding where life can, and cannot, persist under conditions known to be harsh to life. This talk will present recent work in both Arctic and Antarctic permafrost settings. I will discuss Canadian Arctic permafrost where cold-adapted microbiota are thriving, with potential implications for our entire planet. I will also discuss arid, Antarctic permafrost settings, where the limits of active microbial life are being encroached upon. Finally, I will touch on how an increased understanding of cryophilic lifestyles on Earth will also help inform how (and where) we look for potential microbial life on cold planetary bodies in our solar system such as Mars, Europa, and Enceladus."


November 14, 2024 - Dr. Alexandra Karl, University of Guelph

Topic: Darwinism, evolution, and art

Dr Karl will present published and unpublished material drawn from her graduate studies (Munich, Cambridge) in which she considered how German artists were impacted by the Darwinian revolution in the 19th Century. By imagining scenes from deep time and evolutionary scenarios, the resulting works on canvas displayed imagery so uncanny, that it not only surpassed the popular cartoons of the day, but also the oeuvres of their contemporaries in Europe. Moreover, their renderings of the "Tiermensch" (Germ. 'Animal-in-Man') and various other hybrids are unprecedented in the History of Art. More information can be found on her website.


November 21, 2024 - Keshia Talking Waters DeFreece Lawrence, Harvard University

We are thrilled to be hosting Keshia De Freece Lawrence, a Ramapough Munsee tribal member, located in the Eastern Woodlands in what is commonly referred to as 'New England'. Lawrence completed her M.A in International Law and the Settlement of Disputes at University for Peace in Costa Rica. Keshia is an Indigenous Youth representative at the United Nations Youth office, educating and negotiating on environmental rights, and Indigenous sovereignty in climate research and sustainable development. Currently, Keshia is the Indigenous Education Specialist at Harvard Forest, and the Founding-Director of Sovereign Science, an Indigenous-led Think Tank.

Topic: Sovereign science & ecological kinship


November 28, 2024 - Alannah Grant & Jonathan Chu, University of Guelph

Topic: FREED: Field Research in Ecology and Evolution Diversified, time to put your money where your mouth is!


December 5, 2024 - Dr. Liana Zanette, Western University

Topic: Microorganisms and nutrient biogeochemical cycling


 

Winter 2025

TBA