CHBE GSC Professional Development Speaker Series – Nov 27 – Dr. Shahab Sokhansanj

Posted on November 25, 2013 by JunSian Lee

Hi everyone,

The Chemical and Biological Engineering Graduate Club is organizing a seminar series where the faculty members of our department share the stories of achieving their first faculty positions as well as making
important career decisions. These highly interactive seminars provide an excellent opportunity to hear instructing, exciting and valuable experiences of our faculty members and can prove very helpful in developing skills necessary for professional work environments in academia and industry.

We are pleased to announce Dr. Shahab Sokhansanj as the speaker of the upcoming seminar in the series. Dr. Sokhansanj P.Eng. is a distinguished research and development staff at Oak Ridge National laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, Tennessee. He is also a Professor emeritus University of Saskatchewan and adjunct Professor University of British Columbia. His expertise is in harvest and post harvest engineering of biomaterials. Dr. Sokhansanj is a Fellow of the Canadian Society for Bioengineering and a Fellow of American Society of Agricultural & Biological Engineers, and Fellow of Engineers Canada.

For more information about Dr. Sokhansanj please see the attached files and,

http://www.chbe.ubc.ca/faculty-staff/sokhansanj.php

In this presentation, he will share his experiences of a professional career and the challenge to balance research, teaching and personal interests

The seminar information:

Date: November 27, 2013
Time: 12:00 – 1:00 PM
Place: CHBE 2.02

We hope to see you there.

Thank you,

CHBE GSC

Weekly News 11 – Break-in warning, Professional Seminar-Nov 27, Doug Vacation Day and more!

Posted on November 22, 2013 by JunSian Lee

Hello everyone! Here is our weekly news! Winter is coming, so is the flue season, so please stay active and stay healthy!

Break-ins in PPC last week

There have been several break-ins to buildings on campus over the last week. The PPC was hit and there was a lot of high value items stolen from offices of students and research personnel.
Joanne urged all the members of CHBE to, please check that the door is latched and locked behind you when leaving the building or other buildings after hours,. If there is any issue, please let her know (call, text or email) and/or call security so that the issue can be remedied immediately.

Professional Speaker Seminar Series Next Wednesday-Nov 27!

We are pleased to announce Dr. Shahab Sokhansanj as the speaker of the upcoming seminar in the series on November 27 at 12:00 PM in room CHBE 2.02.

Dr. Shahab Sokhansanj, P.Eng. is a distinguished research and development staff at Oak Ridge National laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, Tennessee. He is also a Professor emeritus University of Saskatchewan and adjunct Professor University of British Columbia. Dr. Sokhansanj has developed the Integrated Biomass Supply Analysis & Logistics (IBSAL) modeling environment. The value chain modeling platform is used for design and analysis of biomass feedstock supply in support of the emerging biorefineries in the U.S. and Canada.

To view Dr. Shahab Sokhansanj’s Biography, click HERE.

Doug’s Vacation Days

Doug, our Technical Supervisor, will be off Nov 22nd (Today), 25th (Next Monday), ½ day Dec 20th (Friday), full days Dec 23rd and the 24th 2013. In his absents Marlene Chow will be consulting and supervising shop. You can contact her by e-mail @ (Chow, Marlene Marlene.Chow(at)ubc.ca). Her location is room 173 in stores.

GSS Coffee will fix it schedule

Coffee socials are held every Thursday afternoon from 3pm, at Seedlings Café / the penthouse in the Thea Koerner House.

Thursday November 21 Games Afternoon Christopher Roach, Lili Meng
Thursday November 28 Discussion on GSS Funds Lili Meng
Thursday December 5 Coffee & Cake Yuanyuan Liu, Christopher Roach
Thursday December 12 Christmas social – wear your Christmas sweater!

Fun Picture

I really wish my computer can be faster!

If you have any suggestion for what you like to see on our weekly news, please email me at jslee@chbe.ubc.ca or comment on this blog post.
Also please join the CHBE Grad Student Club Facebook Group onhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/chbegsc/ if you are a graduate student or a recent alumni of graduate program of UBC CHBE.

Summary of Professor Madjid Mohseni’s Professional Development Seminar

Posted on November 19, 2013 by JunSian Lee

This summary is a bit overdue after the seminar. But here we have it. 🙂

As part of Professional Development Speaker Series, the CHBE Graduate Student Club has successfully arranged the second seminar of the year on October 30th with Professor Madjid Mohseni as the speaker. He completed his undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering at Amirkabir University of Technology, Iran, and then obtained his M.A.Sc. and Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Toronto. Prior to joining UBC in November 2000, Dr. Mohseni worked for nearly 3 years as research engineer at Trojan Technologies. He is currently the Scientific Director of RES’EAU-WaterNET Strategic Network, a program dedicated to develop affordable solutions to drinking water challenges of small and rural, and aboriginal communities.

In his presentation, Professor Mohseni urged the students to be clear about their career objectives. One must work hard and there is no shortcut, he said. According to him, one does not know when the opportunity will come and hence it is important to prepare oneself ahead of time not to miss the opportunity. Only right plan and hard work can make it possible.
Professor Mohseni acknowledged the highly supportive role of his PhD supervisor who allowed him to think independently, helped improve his communication skills and supported extracurricular activities. As a new faculty member in the department, he faced many challenges at the beginning. However, his response to those difficulties was extraordinary – he had discovered opportunities in each of these challenges and turned them into his favor.

In addition to scientific knowledge, he has put great emphasis on developing work ethics and soft skills such as communication, interpersonal, leadership and time management skills. Language skill is another important aspect for international students, he opined. Like previous seminars, this one was attended by large number of graduate students including some from other engineering departments.

Weekly News 10:

Posted on November 15, 2013 by JunSian Lee

Hello friends, it is weekly news again. We have reached a new milestone, a two digit index, our 10th weekly news.

1. CHBE Snow Policy!

I read from Joanne’s email that it might snow this weekend. So better be prepared for it! This link HERE to the CHBE Snow policy PDF! More info:

http://www.hr.ubc.ca/memos/preparing-for-winter-weather-conditions-at-ubc-nov-14-2013/

2. Volunteer Opportunity

Seeking Faculty and Staff Volunteers for AMS Safewalk
Safewalk (http://www.ams.ubc.ca/services/safewalk/) is a free service from the AMS that is looking out for UBC Community members’ safety on campus, and operates most nights during the school year with its walking service. Safewalk will send a co-ed pair of walkers to any point on campus and will walk anyone to any point on campus they need to go between 7:00 p.m. and 4:00 a.m.
If you are interested in volunteering with Safewalk, please contact:
Brittany Watson
Safewalk Assistant Coordinator
604-822-2181
Swassist1@ams.ubc.ca

Please let her know your availability (day(s) of the week and the evening times you are available to volunteer) as well as your contact information.

3. Job Opportunity:

Become the GSS Special Events Coordinator!
The GSS is currently looking to start of a new series of events and we need your help to get it off the ground. If you are interested in helping to organize events are a good team player and able to keep deadlines you may want to think about applying.

Deadline: November 20, 2013. More info: http://gss.ubc.ca/main/job-opportunity-become-the-gss-special-event-coordinator/

4. Typhoon Haiyan

The worst typhoon of the century hit Philippines a few days ago and some estimated over 10,000 death toll! As the result of food and water scarcity, this number might unfortunately rise in the next few days. I have posted a call for donation in the previous input. The link is below:

http://www.redcross.ca/donate/donate-online/donate-to-the-typhoon-haiyan-fund

5. Fun News: Movember

Watch this video from youtube about the movement to raise awareness in Men’s health issues, such as prostate cancer and other male cancers; and associated charities. University Affair News Posting on Movember:Here

Worst Typhoon in Philippines

Posted on November 13, 2013 by JunSian Lee

The worst typhoon of the century hit Philippines a few days ago and some estimated over 10,000 death toll! As the result of food and water scarcity, this number might unfortunately rise in the next few days. The unfortunate events after this natural disaster, such as looting/gunfire, and famine, was featured in today’s Metro News. Link here.

According to BBC news, Philippine President Benigno Aquino has declared a state of national calamity to speed relief efforts for victims of Typhoon Haiyan. The news link here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-24901993

We have a significant number of Filipinos in our department and they might be already affected by this catastrophe. As Philippines is on another side of the world, what we can do is to provide them with financial aids.

Below you can find the related donation address for Red Cross:
http://www.redcross.ca/donate/donate-online/donate-to-the-typhoon-haiyan-fund

Typhoon Haiyan Aftermath (Photo Credit: Metro News)

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Compliance check

Posted on November 12, 2013 by JunSian Lee

Safety in the laboratory is of paramount concern. I’m relaying this information from Marlene, our department’s Manager of Technical and Physical Resources.

Required Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) in CHBE labs are:

safety glasses
labcoat
waterproof footwear and
gloves (as appropriate for chemicals handled)

This month the Safety Committee is evaluating lab PPE compliance in all the labs that CHBE personnel use. Those who have all their required PPE will receive a ticket for a draw at the end of the month. To date, compliance is about 50% which we would like to see improved.

The draw price is a Starbucks Coffee card.

The check will be done at random. So, be prepare and wear all the appropriate PPE in your laboratory.

Remembrance Day Yesterday..

Posted on November 12, 2013 by JunSian Lee

Hi friends, yesterday, November 11 was the Remembrance Day, a memorial day observed in Commonwealth countries since the end of World War I to remember the members of their armed forces who have died in the line of duty. [Wikipedia] It happened to also be the US Veteran Day, an official United States holiday that honors people who have served in armed service, also known as veterans. [Wikipedia]

Canadians from coast to coast paused Monday to honour the sacrifices of soldiers who fought in past wars, and the many who serve in modern-day operations and conflicts around the world. [CTVnews]

For most of the graduate students, it might be a day of break from study and research. Some might go home to honor family, friends and relatives that had served in the war.

The picture below summarized very well the essence of Remembrance Day.

Weekly news 9

Posted on November 8, 2013 by JunSian Lee

Hello friends! How is everyone? It is Friday again! 😀 Here is the list of news for the week!

1. The University is offering free influenza (flu) immunizations to UBC students, faculty and staff at clinics throughout UBC Vancouver starting November 5 and running through November 28, 2013. Here is the link to the program. http://riskmanagement.ubc.ca/health-safety/influenza-immunization-program.Closest clinic is in CEME.

2. We have new CUPE 2278 (Teaching Assistant Union) Representative in our department. Joylene Yu and I (Jun Sian Lee) will be the person to contact if you about any concerns about the right of your TA position.

GPS: Graduate Pathways to Success

GPS/SCARL Workshop II: Exploring and Visualizing Data is next Wednesday, November 13, 2013; 10:00am to 12:00pm. For a complete session description, please visit: https://www.grad.ubc.ca/about-us/events/10563-gpsscarl-workshop-exploring-visualizing-data . To register, see: https://www.surveyfeedback.ca/surveys/wsb.dll/s/1g2ce8

Bring Lunch and Learn 4

Our department’s 4th Lunch & Learn Workshop: Swagelok Hands On Introduction on Wednesday, November 20th 12:00 to 1:00 pm at CHBE Courtyard (north side of CHBE). What is different this time is, we will be provided with FREE food! Click here for more info. RVSP here.

5. Ivan, our safety officer will be a unavailable November 12-15. Please contact Ken Wong @ 604 827-4833
should any safety issues arise, any building related issues should be directed to trouble calls @ 604 822-2173.

6. Helsa, our graduate secretary is away for the whole November!

In her absence, Stephen Godfrey will be covering. You may reach Steve by emailing gradsec@chbe.ubc.ca.

Please note that Helsa will not be checking her email while she is away. Effective immediately, all emails should be send to gradsec@chbe.ubc.ca.

Some Notes: (1) Please check your @CHBE.UBC.CA email. Staff members communicate with graduate students through those email. (2) Helsa and other staff members are only doing their job distributing information. There is no intention to spam anyone with emails.

7.. Interesting comic from GSS weekly news.

Bring your Lunch and Learn 4: Swagelok Hands-on

Posted on November 7, 2013 by JunSian Lee

Swagelok will be bringing samples of their product lines including valves, fittings, measurement devices, quick connects etc. This is an opportunity to see how their products work and to try your hand at making assemblies.

A chicken paella lunch will be provided (sorry, no vegetarian). (Now this is really LUNCH & Learn! :D)

Event Details:

Wednesday, November 20th
12:00 to 1:00 pm
CHBE Courtyard (north side of CHBE)

RSVP for lunch at http://doodle.com/fz3w6ewv7h9vzmin

Weekly News 8 – Firetalk, and others.

Posted on October 31, 2013 by JunSian Lee

Hello everyone, I hope everyone has an awesome week so far! Here are our news! If anyone has special announcement, please let me know!

1. FIREtalk: Learning Machines

The Research Commons invites graduate students from any discipline – engineers, philosophers, computer scientists, writers, neuroscientists, artists, psychologists, social theorists, and others – to explore the boundary between mind and machine.
Join us for the next FIREtalk (bit.ly/firetalk), Learning Machines.
When: Wednesday, November 27, 4-6 pm
Where: Koerner Library, Room 216

2. Congratulations to our department’s Adjunct Professor, Dr. Alfred Guenkel (info link), P.Eng., for receiving the Association for Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of B.C. 2013 Meritorious Achievement Award at the APEGBC Annual Conference and AGM in Whistler, B.C. (October 24-26, 2013). A Youtube video (LINK here) was made to celebrate his achievement as partner and Principal Chemical Engineer of NORAM Engineering and Constructions Ltd.

3. Doug Yuen, our Technical team leader (also, “Workshop Supervisor”) will be off starting this Friday, Nov 1st 2013 to next Friday, Nov 8th 2013. In his absents Marlene Chow will be consulting and supervising shop. You can contact her by e-mail @ (Chow, Marlene Marlene.Chow@ubc.ca) or by Phone 604-827-3537 or cell 778-879-5105. Her location is room 173 in stores.

4. Next week is Thrive Week at UBC! www.thrive.ubc.ca is a weeklong campaign (Nov. 4-8) promoting mental health for all.
Movember @ Mahoneys will be an open forum about men’s mental health facilitated by UBC faculty, staff and students.
Details: Monday November 4^th, 3:00-5:00pm at Mahony & Sons Public House – UBC
Food will be provided and drink specials will also be available. Attendees must be 19 years of age to take part in this event. Please forward the event links to others who might be interested; however, space is limited so be sure to RSVP (link below) to ensure your spot.

RSVP CLICK HERE!

5. Hello November! I wish everyone had a great October and will have a even more awesome month in November. Cheers!

CHBE Graduate Students Council

Where CHBE, UBC events and news are shared

Author Archives: JunSian Lee