Interested in studying how teaching and learning happen in biology (or beyond)? I'm looking for 2-4 students to work in a group this semester on a pedagogy research project. Together, we will choose an aspect of a course or curriculum to investigate, collect data, analyze, and make recommendations for improvement. Note that this project does not count as a lab course. Please bring your creativity and your observations about what you've noticed in your own university education. Feel free to email me with any questions you may have.

The Fraser Valley is a rich agricultural area, but also hosts incredible natural diversity from salmon to insects to birds and wildlife. As part of Canada's push towards net-zero carbon emissions, a research team at UBC, SFU, KPU, and UFV is investigating how planting perennial vegetation as riparian buffers and windrows in agricultural landscapes can potentially sequester carbon. In addition to providing a carbon benefit, this strategy might provide "co-benefits" as well, by creating safe habitat for the area's biota. If you are interested in exploring carbon dynamics or biodiversity in agricultural landscapes, reach out about a USRA, ISS, or other research position. You can learn more about the overall project at its website: https://percs.landfood.ubc.ca

Interested in extending your BPK408W research project? This project is open to BISC and BPK students who have successfully completed BPK408W and the independent hands-on research project. This works well if you are curious about research, interested in taking next steps on your project (or something related), and reasonably independent. Note that this is slightly different than joining a research lab group, as we don't have any graduate students in these projects. I'm happy to support 1-3 students, to form a group that can help each other out. Please email me to chat about any questions you have.

Fall 2023 (498/499/497 students) Please note that pedagogical projects do not qualify for lab credit. I am looking for 6-8 students to work collaboratively on a project aimed at the gamification of or design of a game for the Bisc 202 course (Intro genetics). The project will be divided into several sections that will somewhat vary depending on the skills and interests students bring to the project. We will begin with a literature search on the topic of the use of games in education and the production of an annotated bibliography, followed by the development of a set of best practices in game use/gamification. You will then design a game or gamification strategy for intro genetics, describing the format the game should take, which learning outcomes are best suited for this purpose, how mastery of the outcomes can be rewarded in the game, and how achievement in the game can be connected to course credit (or not). There is a variety of models or forms this can take - you may work in teams or on your own. You will present your work in written form, but may also make an oral presentation if you wish. Skills you will develop or improve: Reading the pedagogical literature Teamwork skills Personal management, organization, meeting deadlines etc. Collaborative writing of rationale, report, and/or proposal CREATIVITY/Design Oral presentation skills (if you wish; most of our recent grads say they didn't have enough chances to develop oral communication skills during their undergrad) Note that these courses don't result in an automatic A. But you'll have lots of feedback and practice that should lead to you improving greatly, especially in writing, so that you can produce work you are proud of. Not a straight A student? Who cares? I am looking for a variety of students, who are looking to develop skills and use some creativity. The more diverse our group, the better it will be. If you are enthusiastic, hardworking, reliable and willing to explore some unknown territory, that is good enough for me. Also, please note that this project does not count as a lab course. And I cannot run it as designed without a large enouch group. I need at least 6 participants!

Mitochondria are usually described as the "powerhouses" of cells, however they also play other pivotal roles in the life and death processes of eukaryotic cells. They display great variation in number, shape and location inside different cell types, appearing as large reticular networks in some cells and as small, punctate, autonomous organelles in others. Mitochondria are also highly dynamic organelles, they can undergo fission, fusion and can be rapidly transported around cells. In my lab we study the mechanisms of these processes in living cells. In addition we study the role of "mitochondrial dynamics" in disease processes, particularly in neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson's Disease and Stroke. Student projects are available in my lab to study the basic mechanisms of regulating mitochondria dynamics, and to examine how changes in mitochondrial dynamics are involved in neurodegenerative diseases. Students in my lab will employ techniques including molecular biology (amplification and purification of DNA vectors, construction of mammalian expression vectors), cell culture (tissue culture techniques for various cell types, aseptic technique, transfection of astrocytes/neurons with expression vectors) and fluorescence microscopy (live-cell image acquisition, real-time perfusion experiments, image analysis).