SFU Mathematics Professor Ailene MacPherson uses mathematical and statistical tools to address questions at the intersection of evolution, ecology and epidemiology. With advanced degrees in both zoology and mathematics, she has expertise in both biological diversity and applied mathematics.

In her recent paper, Unifying Phylogenetic Birth-Death Models in Epidemiology and Macroevolution, MacPherson worked with researchers from the University of Oregon and the University of British Columbia. The paper discusses several mathematical models used to track the evolution of species, and proposes unifying these models into a single framework that can serve as a guide for scientists and mathematicians.  

Before colonization, the coastal waters of Burrard Inlet were an abundant source of food. SFU Marine Ecology and Ecotoxicology Professor Leah Bendell and graduate student Bridget Doyle, in partnership  with the Tsleil-Waututh Nation to study if the addition of shell hash at specific sites in the inlet would help to restore traditional food sources.

The study, An evaluation of the efficacy of shell hash for the mitigation of intertidal sediment acidification, found that the addition of shell hash helped regulate the variation in sediment pH, an important finding in the understanding of bivalve habitat.

Simon Fraser University criminologist Martin Andresen researches the geographical and social factors associated with crime. His study on Vancouver, B.C. crime during the COVID-19 lockdown revealed some predictable trends amid the sudden social experiment of the pandemic. 

The article, In a world called catastrophe: the impact of COVID-19 on neighbourhood level crime in Vancouver, Canada, discusses the findings.

Parkinson’s disease is the most commonly diagnosed neurodegenerative disorder after Alzheimer’s and may affect one in 500 people in their lifetime. Symptoms include tremors, muscle stiffness, and impaired balance and coordination that worsen over time.

Research supervised by Professor David Vocadlo and led by Postdoctoral Fellow Matthew Deen and Senior Research Associate Yanping Zhu developed new chemical biology tools that could lead to better diagnosis and treatment of Parkinson’s. The study, A versatile fluorescence-quenched substrate for quantitative measurement of glucocerebrosidase activity within live cells was recently published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA.

Researchers worldwide have been working to solve the challenges of harnessing quantum characteristics for complex computation for many years. Simon Fraser University Physics Professor Stephanie Simmons and her team are at the forefront of this research.

With Professor Emeritus Michael Thewalt, Postdoctoral Fellow Daniel Higginbottom, graduate student Alexander Kurkjian and collaborators at the Université de Montréal, Simmons has published groundbreaking research in Nature magazine—the world’s leading multidisciplinary science journal. Their paper, Optical observation of single spins in silicon, documents their work to demonstrate a high-performance means to link silicon qubits, an essential precursor to building a silicon spin photonically-linked quantum computer.

Everyone has a gut microbiome, full of trillions of microbes that influence our health. According to researchers, everyone’s microbiome is different—of the trillions of organisms that reside in the gut, every individual has a unique combination. How do people acquire their personalized gut microbiome? And how can people change their gut microbiome to become healthier?

Postdoctoral Fellow Eric Jones and Physics Professor David Sivak set out to answer these questions. They collaborated with William Ludington from the Carnegie Institution for Science and Jean Carlson from the University of California, Santa Barbara on their recent study, Stochastic microbiome assembly depends on context.

Do not answer the phone. Do not go into the basement. Fans of scary movies may think they can predict fatal outcomes – but real life is much different.

SFU Criminologist Eric Beauregard has extensive experience interviewing violent offenders. His recent research looked into why some violent crimes turn lethal and others do not. The goal is to help law enforcement and policymakers better understand and prevent fatal crimes.

Over the past several decades, significant human-caused pressures have threatened Pacific salmon populations. Salmon may encounter many different stressors in both their freshwater and ocean environments that put them at risk.

SFU Resource and Environmental Management Professor Jonathan Moore and Salmon Watersheds Lab researcher Kyle Wilson embarked on a study that reviewed over forty years of cascading shifts in salmon and trout populations to better understand how B.C.’s wild salmon may be changing and why.

Biology Professor Vicki Marlatt teaches environmental toxicology courses at Simon Fraser University in one of the few professional environmental toxicology programs in Canada. She also collaborates on multidisciplinary research to understand, inform and improve regulations on the harmful chemicals found in everyday items.

Marlatt is a member of the Intersectoral Centre for Endocrine Disruptor Analysis (ICEDA) – a multidisciplinary research network dedicated to serve as a public resource to identify, recognize, and manage endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), a group of toxins that pose various health concerns to humans and the ecosystem.

Marlatt and several other ICEDA members have compiled their latest work into a Special Issue on EDCs in the Environmental Research Journal to guide the worldwide community on research priorities and regulating actions.

Simon Fraser University Professor of Education Sara Florence Davidson (sgaan jaadgu san glans) is a Haida/settler scholar, writer and educator whose teaching and research focus on Indigenous pedagogies, literacies and stories. She has extensive experience working with students and teachers in diverse communities at all levels of education. In the classroom and in her scholarship, Davidson embraces all forms of diversity to create deep learning opportunities.

She recently co-wrote a book chapter, Diversity as the Norm: Teaching to and through superdiversity in postsecondary education Indigenous courses, with lead author and Professor in Teacher Education at the University of the Fraser Valley Nikki L. Yee.

Davidson and Yee share perspectives on teaching mandatory post-secondary Indigenous education courses, in educational environments that are themselves superdiverse.