Science researchers join Royal Society of Canada

Three UBC Science researchers have been elected to the Royal Society of Canada. Election to the RSC is the highest honour a scholar can achieve in the arts, humanities and sciences in Canada. The 2020 UBC Science fellows are:

Mark Halpern (Physics & Astronomy)

Mark Halpern’s research focuses on measurements of the cosmic microwave background (CMB), the thermal radiation from the hot plasma that filled the universe for its first few hundred thousand years. His research group at UBC is also involved in a number of efforts to understand the history of galaxy and star formation in the early universe through the properties and distribution of galaxies at light redshift.

Alla Sheffer (Computer Science)

Alla Sheffer’s research addresses geometric modeling and processing problems, both in traditional computer graphics settings and in multiple other application domains including product design, mechanical and civil engineering, and fashion. Her mesh parameterization methods, particularly the ABF (angle-based flattening) algorithm, are referenced in most books and surveys on geometry processing and are taught in many advanced modeling courses worldwide.

Amanda Vincent (Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries​)

Amanda Vincent was the first person to study seahorses underwater, the first to document the extensive trade in these fishes and the first to initiate a seahorse conservation project. In 2020, she became the first marine conservation to win the world’s leading animal conservation prize (Indianapolis Prize). In 1996, she co-founded and still directs Project Seahorse, an interdisciplinary and international organisation committed to conservation and sustainable use of the world’s coastal marine ecosystems.