SBME Interfaces UBC School of Biomedical Engineering

Communicating with conspiracy theorists.
Teaching students to be advocates for science.
Rebuilding trust in science communications.

Special guest host Dr. Jenna Usprech and I sat down with Dr. Gabriel Potvin to discuss all this and more in our latest episode.

All episodes available on to watch on YouTube

Guest:
Gabriel Potvin
Associate Professor of Teaching, UBC Chemical and Biological Engineering

Dr. Potvin's current focus is in engineering pedagogy and curriculum development, with a particular interest in problem-based learning, laboratory instruction, sustainability education, and interdisciplinary education.

The challenges we face as a society, and as a species, are complex and multi-faceted. Engineers must be able to tackle them in creative ways, and be comfortable working on collaborative open interdisciplinary projects. The training of engineers must include these skills. To this end, he aims to create developmental opportunities for students, and actively support a number of undergraduate design teams, student projects, student competitions, and special research projects. He is a steadfast advocate of science and engineering literacy, and is also involved in a number of STEM outreach initiatives.

Learn more about Dr. Potvin here


Special Guest Host:
Jenna Usprech
Assistant Professor of Teaching, SBME

Dr. Usprech, PhD, PEng, is an Assistant Professor of Teaching in the School of Biomedical Engineering. She received her PhD from the University of Toronto, her Master’s from Queen’s University (both in different areas of tissue engineering research), and her Bachelor’s degree in Biological Engineering from the University of Guelph. Dr. Usprech joined UBC in 2019 so that she could introduce new areas of the field to undergraduate students and continue to be immersed in biomedical engineering education. She is particularly passionate about student wellness, science communication, and classroom strategies that promote critical thought and retention of material.

Learn more about Jenna here

Hosts:

MIGUEL EICHELBERGER
Communications & Engagement Manager, SBME

Miguel is an unflinching optimist. He is a communicator and writer whose work has appeared in literary magazines and on stages around the world. His most recent publications include Harpur Palate, the Literary Review of Canada, Plainsongs Magazine, and Soliloquies Anthology. He believes in authenticity; in doing and saying what you actually believe, and he is an obsessive student of leadership from the biological and anthropological perspectives. You've likely heard him rant about it, and he's not sorry.

Learn more about Miguel here

 UBC iGEM and Undergraduate Innovation.
Interdisciplinary scientific exploration.
Changing course through UBC iGEM.

We sat down with iGEM Executive Directors past and present, Emilia Chen and Janella Schwab, on all this and more in our latest episode.

Guests:
Emilia Chen
UBC iGEM 2021 Executive Director
Student, Microbiology & Immunology and Computer Science

Emilia Chen is a fifth year student studying Microbiology & Immunology and Computer Science. She is passionate about finding the intersection of computational and biological sciences. Synthetic biology has opened her eyes to the infinite possibilities we and the great power of multidisciplinary collaboration. She has been the Executive Director of the UBC iGEM team, and served as both software lead and a wet lab member. Her iGEM experience has truly transformed her undergraduate path, and she was thrilled to lead the team in creating something extraordinary together.

Janella Schwab
UBC iGEM 2022 Executive Director
Student, Honours in Applied Animal Biology

Janella Schwab is a fourth year honours student studying applied animal biology. She is itrigued by the parallels between the natural and human worlds and how synthetic biology can narrow that gap. Her curiosity in this field was harboured by having the opportunity to participate in iGEM during high school, after which she joined UBC iGEM in 2019. As the Director of UBC iGEM she hopes to inspire this admiration for biological systems in others, especially those outside the scientific community. In her spare time you can find her either climbing mountains or thinking about climbing mountains.

Learn more about UBC iGEM

Host:
Miguel Eichelberger
Communications & Engagement Manager, School of Biomedical Engineering

Miguel is an unflinching optimist. He is a communicator and writer whose work has appeared in literary magazines and on stages around the world. His most recent publications include Harpur Palate, the Literary Review of Canada, Plainsongs Magazine, and Soliloquies Anthology. He believes in authenticity; in doing and saying what you actually believe, and he is an obsessive student of leadership from the biological and anthropological perspectives. You've likely heard him rant about it, and he's not sorry.

Learn more about Miguel's work here

Getting science communication 80% right.
Concussion recovery and inspiring research.
The Olympics, doping, and human potential.

We sat down with Dr. E. Paul Zehr on all this and more in our latest episode.

Guest:
E. Paul Zehr
Author & International Science Communicator
Professor, University of Victoria
Affiliate Professor, UBC Department of Medicine

E. PAUL ZEHR, Ph.D., is a professor, author, and martial artist at the University of Victoria. He is passionate about the popularization of science using superheroes as foils for human achievement and ability. His recent pop-sci books include BECOMING BATMAN (2008), INVENTING IRON MAN (2011), PROJECT SUPERHERO (2014), and CHASING CAPTAIN AMERICA (2018).

His innovative work as head of the Rehabilitation Neuroscience Laboratory focuses on the recovery of function after neurotrauma using integrated whole body movement.

At an early age martial arts got him into science and he continues his daily practice in Victoria where he also teaches karate and Ryukyu kobujutsu in the community.

Paul is a regular speaker at conferences and comic conventions including San-Diego International Comic Con and New York Comic Con and has presented to the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences on the science of superheroes. In addition to articles and interviews on exercise, science and superheroes in Flipside: The Science, Engineering, and Technology Magazine for Teenagers, Scientific American Online, Men’s Health, Men’s Fitness, Maxim, Popular Mechanics, Discover and Maclean’s magazines, Zehr also blogs at Scientific American.

Zehr won the 2012 Craigdarroch Award for Research Communications at the University of Victoria and the 2015 Science Educator Award from the Society for Neuroscience. "Project Superhero" received the 2015 Silver Medal for Juvenile Fiction from the North American Independent Book Publishers.

Learn more about Paul's work

Host:
Miguel Eichelberger
Communications & Engagement Manager, School of Biomedical Engineering

Miguel is an unflinching optimist. He is a communicator and writer whose work has appeared in literary magazines and on stages around the world. His most recent publications include Harpur Palate, the Literary Review of Canada, Plainsongs Magazine, and Soliloquies Anthology. He believes in authenticity; in doing and saying what you actually believe, and he is an obsessive student of leadership from the biological and anthropological perspectives. You've likely heard him rant about it, and he's not sorry.

Learn more about Miguel's work here

Our renewed interest in science.
The state of scientific funding in Canada.
Supporting both applied and pure research.

We sat down with Dr. Alejandro Adem on all this and more in our latest episode.

Guest:
Alejandro Adem
President, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)

Professor Alejandro Adem was appointed President of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) in October 2019.

As a highly accomplished researcher in the field of mathematics and a faculty member at the University of British Columbia, Professor Adem has significant leadership experience in the Canadian research and innovation ecosystem. Before joining NSERC, he was CEO and Scientific Director of Mitacs (2015–19) where he oversaw a significant expansion of its domestic and international internship programs, as well as launching the Mitacs Canadian Science Policy Fellowships, an Indigenous engagement initiative and an innovative entrepreneurship program. Prior to that, he served as Director (2008–2015) of the Pacific Institute for the Mathematical Sciences , a research and training consortium supporting the mathematical sciences across Western Canada. From 1989 to 2004 he was a faculty member at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (USA).

Professor Adem is currently the Chair of the Canada Research Coordinating Committee and Vice-Chair of the Governing Board of the Global Research Council. Over his career he has served on a variety of scientific, editorial and governance boards for the worldwide mathematical sciences community, and is a member of the International Mathematical Union's Committee for Women in Mathematics.

Alejandro Adem is a Canadian citizen who was born and raised in Mexico City, and is a proud member of the Latin American community in Canada. He is married and has two grown children.

Learn more about Alejandro here

Host:
Miguel Eichelberger
Communications & Engagement Manager, School of Biomedical Engineering

Miguel is an unflinching optimist. He is a communicator and writer whose work has appeared in literary magazines and on stages around the world. His most recent publications include Harpur Palate, the Literary Review of Canada, Plainsongs Magazine, and Soliloquies Anthology. He believes in authenticity; in doing and saying what you actually believe, and he is an obsessive student of leadership from the biological and anthropological perspectives. You've likely heard him rant about it, and he's not sorry.

Learn more about Miguel's work here

Connecting Climate Change to our gut.
Doing better in the EDI space.
Did we learn from the pandemic?

We caught up with Dr. Carolina Tropini on all this and more in our latest episode.

Guest:
Carolina Tropini
Assistant Professor, SBME & Dept. of Microbiology and Immunology

Dr. Tropini’s interests lie at the nexus of medicine, microbial biophysics, and engineering. Working in the field of the gut microbiota, she is applying novel tools to longstanding questions regarding the stability of microbial communities and their response to perturbations during disease. By combining imaging, microfluidics and computational techniques to animal studies, she is building a comprehensive and quantitative understanding of the complex interactions between microbes and their hosts. Dr. Tropini is also keenly interested in teaching and outreach, particularly with the goal of building a common language between physicists and engineers, biologists and clinicians.

Learn more about Carolina here

Host:
Miguel Eichelberger
Communications & Engagement Manager, School of Biomedical Engineering

Miguel is an unflinching optimist. He is a communicator and writer whose work has appeared in literary magazines and on stages around the world. His most recent publications include Harpur Palate, the Literary Review of Canada, Plainsongs Magazine, and Soliloquies Anthology. He believes in authenticity; in doing and saying what you actually believe, and he is an obsessive student of leadership from the biological and anthropological perspectives. You've likely heard him rant about it, and he's not sorry.

Learn more about Miguel's work here

In this special episode, Miguel Eichelberger chats with Payam Zahedi, former host and Strategic Planning and Operations Director for the school as he looks back over his time with SBME, and says farewell.

Guest:
Payam Zahedi
Former Strategic Planning & Operations Director, SBME
Current Director, Office of the Vice Principal, Research, UTM

Payam is a born problem solver and dot connector who believes that real impact only occurs when everyone is given the means to chase it. He's the Director of Strategic Planning and Operations at UBC's School of Biomedical Engineering and holds a BASc in Biomedical Engineering and an MSc and PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences, from the University of Toronto. He believes we are better together and is an advocate for equity and inclusivity. In his spare time, when he's not chasing his two sons around, he's experimenting in the kitchen, reading crime fiction and untangling the mechanisms of effective leadership.

Learn more about Payam here:

Host:
Miguel Eichelberger
Communications & Engagement Manager, School of Biomedical Engineering

Miguel is an unflinching optimist. He is a communicator and writer whose work has appeared in literary magazines and on stages around the world. His most recent publications include Harpur Palate, the Literary Review of Canada, Plainsongs Magazine, and Soliloquies Anthology. He believes in authenticity; in doing and saying what you actually believe, and he is an obsessive student of leadership from the biological and anthropological perspectives. You've likely heard him rant about it, and he's not sorry.