News
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Researchers create inside-out plants to watch how cellulose forms
October 8, 2015
Researchers have been able to watch the interior cells of a plant synthesize cellulose for the first time by tricking the cells into growing on the plant’s surface. “The bulk of the world's cellulose is produced within the thickened secondary cell walls of tissues hidden inside the… read more
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Taking stock of women in STEM on Ada Lovelace Day
October 7, 2015
By Adriana Suarez-Gonzalez October 13 is Ada Lovelace Day, an international celebration of the achievements of women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Widely regarded as the first computer programmer, in 1842 Lovelace created an algorithm for Charles Babbage’s… read more
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Organic semiconductors get weird at the edge: UBC research
October 6, 2015
As the push for tinier and faster electronics continues, a new finding by UBC scientists could help inform the design of the next generation of cheaper, more efficient devices. The work, published this week in Nature Communications, details how electronic properties at the edges of organic… read more
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Four gut bacteria decrease asthma risk in infants
September 24, 2015
New research by scientists at UBC and BC Children’s Hospital finds that infants can be protected from getting asthma if they acquire four types of gut bacteria by three months of age. More than 300 families from across Canada participated in this research through the Canadian Healthy Infant… read more
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UBC Science students take ‘probeeotic’ idea to international genetics competition
September 18, 2015
A group of UBC students is betting probiotics could be the key to protecting bees from death caused by harmful pesticides. “We rely heavily on bees for our food. They pollinate more than $15 billion worth of crops in the U.S. every year, but they are dying at alarming rates,” said Yu… read more
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Could fast radio bursts help astronomers chart the cosmos in 3D?
September 18, 2015
If only calculating the distance between Earth and far-off galaxies was as easy as pulling out the old measuring tape. Now UBC researchers are proposing a new way to calculate distances in the cosmos using mysterious bursts of energy. In a study featured today in the journal Physical Review… read more
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Metal-eating microbes in African lake could solve mystery of Earth's iron deposits
September 9, 2015
An isolated, iron-rich bay in the heart of East Africa is offering scientists a rare glimpse back into Earth’s primitive marine environment, and supports theories that tiny microbes created some of the world’s largest ore deposits billions of years ago. According to University of… read more
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Phytoplankton waste in ocean spray could trigger ice formation in clouds
September 9, 2015
Organic waste from phytoplankton (plant life) in remote polar oceans contributes to rare airborne particles that trigger ice formation in clouds, according to an international team of researchers that includes University of British Columbia (UBC) and University of Toronto scientists. … read more
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Four UBC Science researchers elected to Royal Society of Canada
September 8, 2015
UBC researchers exploring forest genomics, fish conservation, ocean particle fluxes and software development where elected to the Royal Society of Canada today. They join 30 other UBC Science researchers recognize by the RSC since 2000. The fellowships are the highest academic accolade in the… read more
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First superconducting graphene created by UBC researchers
September 4, 2015
Graphene, the ultra-thin, ultra-strong material made from a single layer of carbon atoms, just got a little more extreme. University of British Columbia (UBC) physicists have been able to create the first ever superconducting graphene sample by coating it with lithium atoms. Although… read more