Classes
BMEG 373: Biomicrofluidics
Fall term
Microfluidics is the study of scaling down complex fluid processes — think of scaling a factory or a laboratory down to fit on a small chip — so that we can do things more efficiently. This course introduces students to the fundamentals of slow fluid flows so as to be able to understand the advantages and disadvantages of scaling down fluid processes. For example, without inertia, fluid dynamics are substantially simplified (no turbulence) but this can also make it quite hard to mix fluids. These concepts are particularly important in understanding biological behaviour at the very small scale of cells. In this class we also introduce important small-scale biological fluid dynamics (biological microfluidics) such as the flow of blood and the motility of bacteria.
MICB 413: Topics in Microbiome Research
Winter term
This course is structured to advance students' proficiency in critically engaging with microbiome research and in peer review practices. It is divided into three segments per term, where students collaboratively analyze and present findings from diverse research papers, thereby deepening their understanding of the subject. The curriculum is enhanced by the insights of three instructors: Dr. Brett Finlay, who focuses on the microbiome's impact on health and disease; Dr. Lisa Osborne, emphasizing methodological evaluation in microbiome research; and Dr. Carolina Tropini, specializing in novel microbiome study technologies. This comprehensive approach equips students with critical academic and research skills, fostering a thorough comprehension of the microbiome field.
MICB 506: Microbiological and Immunological Research
Winter term
Scientific Illustration - best practices (2 hrs): in this lecture we will cover principles of illustration for scientific publications. We will begin learning the basics of creating figures with Illustrator.
Hands on Illustrator Workshop (4 hrs): In this lecture we will continue using Illustrator to design a graphical abstract for each students’ research project. The graphical abstracts will then be handed in and reviewed by a professional illustrator and graded.
