Welcome Back Coffee
As we ramp back up to full return to campus in January, the Dean, Brian Mark, would like to invite...
News & Events
16.Sep.2021
News
Virtual Science Takeover (FREE) Science Public Talks – Science Literacy Week
Join the UM Faculty of Science and Science First for an exciting lineup of FREE Virtual Public Talks in celebration of Science Literacy Week, Sept. 20 – 26, 2021. Our Events: Thurs. Sept. 23 – Climate Change, Conservation, Ecology and Sustainability 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM Via Zoom – https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81512835911?pwd=TXIvMXdYV2ZZK1NJellJT3NFNnNUdz09#success Ariel Gordon, University of Manitoba...
08.Sep.2021
News
Welcome Back – a message from the Dean
Welcome to the Faculty of Science! The start of a new Fall term is full of excitement and possibilities. We are looking forward to the year ahead as we slowly transition to a return to campus and back to in-person learning. Please remember that all UM students, faculty, staff and campus visitors must be fully vaccinated...
30.Aug.2021
News
Welcome Back Coffee
As we ramp back up to full return to campus in January, the Dean, Brian Mark, would like to invite you to have a cup of coffee in the SSA lounge, and weather permitting the Court Yard, to start re-engaging with your colleagues. Please RSVP to Tracy Foster, on the dates noted to ensure we are keeping capacity (20 people) with Health orders. The...
30.Aug.2021
News
PV Magazine: Material concerns
The University of Manitoba led a group that used battery cyclers to test different material configurations for lithium-ion batteries. They specifically investigated new binding materials to hold the electrodes together through extended cycling. Image: Canadian Light Source As PV MAGAZINE: ISSUE 08-2021 reports: Shouldn’t we all be driving in affordable electric cars with 800-plus kilometers...
13.Aug.2021
News
Astronomers catch a pulsar wind powered by magnetar outbursts
Using NASA’s Chandra X-ray telescope, a team of international researchers including a UM astrophysicist and an alumna has found and imaged the first wind nebula around a radio pulsar likely being impacted by a magnetar outburst. “This is remarkable since we don’t know much about magnetar wind nebulae and this rare object is presenting us...
06.Aug.2021
News
Cheer on the Faculty of Science 3MT 2021 Competitors
On August 10 & 11th students will be challenged to showcase their research to a general audience in a three-minute or less in a 3MT competition. Part of the Faculty of Science, Student Undergraduate Summer Research Experience Program. There will be two competitions that will air live on the Faculty of Science YouTube channel. Life...
I am signing off now from the #umtakeover . Thank you everyone for spending some time to read a bit about my research and life as a student at the University. I'm very grateful. And thanks to @umanitoba and @umanitobasci for letting me post on this account for today.
The first picture is from an amazing sunset of purple, red, and blues in 2014 along the Red River. The second picture is of me waving goodbye.
You are all amazing people ❤️. And Science is awesome 👩💻👩🔬 / Aaron Petkau
#umanitoba #umanitobasci
One large area of Bioinformatics is to help aid in understanding and monitoring the spread of infectious diseases, such as COVID-19.
The genetic code that defines the COVID-19 virus can be analyzed by special machines to help people understand how it changes over time through evolution. This data can be used to infer a phylogenetic tree (shown above) which shows the relationship of different lineages of the virus.
This intersects with some of my research. The image comes from the website https://nextstrain.org/ (I am not involved in this project but they have a very nice website) / Aaron Petkau
#umanitoba #umanitobasci #umtakeover
@umanitoba @umanitobasci
Here is a picture of one of my old Microbiology textbooks.
I started my undergrad at the University of Manitoba back in 2004. I had no idea what I wanted to do, but I really enjoyed science. My first few years of University I remember being amazed at all I was learning, from Biology, to Chemistry, to Physics. And yes, Microbiology and Computer Science.
It took me a few years to settle on Computer Science, and until 2010 to graduate. In that time I was able to find a job (through the Computer Science Co-op program) with the Public Health Agency of Canada—in Bioinformatics. I was applying what I've learned from Computer Science and Biology.
And I'm back in school now, pursuing a Master's in Bioinformatics. All from the amazing experiences and support and opportunities from #umanitoba #umanitobasci
Learning is amazing 😁🎒📒/Aaron Petkau
As a student in Computer Science I write code for my studies. A useful project I've started using over the past few years is Jupyter (https://jupyter.org/). Jupyter lets you group code, output (such as visuals of data) and notes all in one electronic notebook. It also lets you modify your code and immediately see what happens.
The image is from a short demonstration I wrote on how to use Jupyter, found at https://github.com/apetkau/cardlive-presentation-2020. Feel free to check it out/Aaron Petkau #umanitoba #umanitobasci #umtakeover
I've found biking to be a great way to get outside, explore, and get some exercise. Since remote classes began I do all of my work from home. Sometimes I do want a change of scenery and biking around Winnipeg is a great way to do that. I have explored so many bike trails over the past few years that I never took the opportunity to before.
The picture was taken in August during one of my bike trips along the Red River/Aaron Petkau #umanitoba #umanitobasci #umtakeover
Bioinformatics is a large field which uses Computer Science to help gain insights into biological data. This can involve data visualization, or developing new ways to help people "see" the data they're working with.
Pictured here is part of a website (https://card.mcmaster.ca/live) I helped develop last summer in collaboration with #mcmasteruniversity and with the help of the VADA program at #umanitoba (https://vada.cs.umanitoba.ca/). It provides a place for people around the world to submit genomes of bacteria and predicts which antibiotic drugs they might be resistant to./Aaron Petkau
#umanitobasci #umtakeover
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