Sarah Burke Term 1, Section 109
Dr. Sarah Burke is an assistant professor and Canada Research Chair in Nanoscience cross-appointed between the Department of Physics & Astronomy and Department of Chemistry. She received her PhD from McGill University in 2009 using non-contact atomic force microscopy to study growth patterns of molecules on insulating surfaces. She then held an NSERC postdoctoral fellowship at UC Berkeley working with Mike Crommie investigating nanostructures of graphene with low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy before moving to the University of British Columbia in 2010. Her group at UBC uses scanning probe microscopy techniques at low temperature to investigate the electronic structure of materials ranging from single molecules to superconductors at the atomic scale.
Ed Kroc Term 1, Section 112
Dr. Edward Kroc is a postdoctoral research fellow in the Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education. He was recently granted his PhD from the Department of Mathematics at UBC, where he studied problems in high-dimensional geometric measure theory. In the realm of statistics, his interests currently lie within the broad fields of causal inference, measurement error, and scientific methodology. Dr. Kroc also studies the ecology of resident and migratory birds around the Salish Sea, with a particular interest in how species interact with and adapt to urban environments. Recently, his attention has been focused on the nesting distribution and fledgling success rates of urban resident glaucous-winged gulls. Working as an independent statistical consultant has afforded him many opportunities to actively engage professionals with a variety of statistical and scientific concerns. These and other experiences have impressed him with a major appreciation for the necessity of effective and active communication between practitioners of science and consumers of it. In his remaining free time, he enjoys playing guitar, beach walking, and photography.
Bruce Dunham Term 1, Section 111
Dr. Bruce Dunham is a senior instructor in the Department of Statistics. Prior to arriving at UBC in 2005 he held positions at the universities of Nottingham and Derby in England, his native country. Dr. Dunham studied at the University of London for his PhD in probability theory. After several years pursuing a traditional research-oriented academic career, he decided his interests resided in education and pedagogy. He has taught over thirty different courses in the areas of mathematics and statistics, and is delighted to be contributing to the Communicating Science course. When not working, Bruce enjoys his time with his daughter and is also an avid follower of his home-town soccer club, Blackpool FC.
Reinhard Jetter Term 1, Course coordinator
Dr. Reinhard Jetter got his undergraduate training in chemistry at the University of Munich, Germany, and his Ph.D. in Botany at the University of Kaiserslautern, Germany (1993). He did postdoctoral research at the Institute of Biological Chemistry at Washington State University with Rod Croteau (1994-96) on the cloning and characterization of enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of conifer resin diterpenoids, and he worked as an independent group leader in the Biology Department at the University of Wuerzburg, Germany (1996-2003) on the polyketides and triterpenoids found in plant skins. Finally, he joined the University of British Columbia in 2003, where he is now a full professor with cross-appointment between the Departments of Botany and Chemistry. He is leading a group of chemists and biologists focusing research on the various aspects of plant surfaces, with interdisciplinary projects ranging from molecular genetics over enzyme mechanism and chemical product identification to the physiology of water transport and the chemical ecology of plant-insect-interactions.
Vanessa Hrvatin Term 1, Journalism TA
Vanessa is
entering her final year of the Journalism program at UBC. Originally from Sarnia, Ontario, she completed her undergrad in biology and environmental science at Queen’s University. She is aspiring to have a career in science journalism, having just completed an internship at Canadian Geographic.
She has done extensive science writing, including a genetics honours thesis, but has also done feature writing and appreciates the difficulty scientists often face when attempting to communicate science to a broader audience.
She loves playing tennis, trying new activities, and visiting new places.
Alexander Kim Term 1, Journalism TA
Alexander Kim is a journalist and radio producer based in Vancouver. He is a producer for Cited and an associate producer for CBC Radio. He has reported for CBC Aboriginal, Arctic Deeply, Discourse Media, and Canadian Psychiatry Aujourd’hui. He is also the host and producer of Theoretically Speaking, a podcast about absurd science.
Before becoming a journalist, Alexander studied neuroscience at the University of Calgary. He spent his summers in labs researching epilepsy, the neurocircuitry of stress and neuronal regulation. After finishing his honours thesis, Alexander decided that instead of doing science, he’d rather tell stories.
He tweets @alexanderbkim.
Vincenzo Coia Term 1, Statistics TA
Vincenzo is a 5th year PhD student in the Department of Statistics at UBC. His research involves developing ways of forecasting a “worst-case scenario” — in particular, applied to forecasting floods. He has had the fortune of studying a wide range of natural sciences in his undergraduate degrees, particularly biology. He easily gets excited about science and loves sharing scientific knowledge, which he gets to do this fall at Science World’s “Zoom into Nano” exhibit. Looking forward to another term of SCIE300!
