AI can tell if a patient battling cancer needs mental health support
Psychiatrists and computer scientists at UBC and BC Cancer have developed a new artificial intelligence (AI) model that can accurately...
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At UBC Science, outstanding scientists and students strive to unravel the principles that underlie our universe - from the subatomic to the macroscopic, from pure mathematics to biotechnology, from ecosystems to galactic systems. Through the breadth and depth of our academic endeavours and the calibre of the people who make up our community, we take pride in discovering new scientific knowledge and preparing Canada’s and the world’s next generation of scientists.
A diverse range of highly ranked programs
With access to master’s and doctoral degrees through nine departments and 350 research groups, our graduate students work with world-class faculty to explore the basic sciences, and to pursue interdisciplinary and applied research across departments and units. UBC’s research excellence in environmental science, math, physics, plant and animal science, computer science, geology and biology is consistently rated best in Canada by international and national ranking agencies.
Committed to outstanding graduate training
UBC Science houses a wide range of prestigious NSERC Collaborative Research and Training Experience and related industry programs: from atmospheric aerosols to high-throughput biology, from biodiversity research and ecosystems services to plant cell wall biosynthesis, from quantum science and new materials to applied geochemistry. The options for enriched graduate training in industry related fields are almost endless.
World-class research infrastructure
Our affiliated institutes and centres include UBC's Michael Smith Laboratories, Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute, Biodiversity Research Centre, Life Sciences Institute, Pacific Institute for the Mathematical Sciences, Mineral Deposit Research Unit, and TRIUMF, Canada’s national laboratory for particle and nuclear physics.
Top research talent
UBC Science boasts more than 50 Canada Research Chairs, 12 fellows of the Royal Society of London, and has been home to two Nobel Laureates. Our graduate students have won 15 prestigious Vanier Scholarships.
A diverse, supportive community of scholars
UBC Science is committed to excellence, collaboration and inclusion. Women account for 41 per cent of the Faculty's graduate enrollments, and the percentage of international students has increased to 50 per cent over the past decade.
Mission
To nurture an exceptional scientific learning and research environment for the people of British Columbia, Canada, and the world.
Research Centres
Biodiversity, Evolution and Ecology
- Biodiversity Research Centre
- Botanical Garden and Centre for Plant Research
- Centre for Microbial Diversity and Evolution
Computational Sciences and Mathematics
- Data Science Institute
- Institute for Computing, Information and Cognitive Systems
- Institute of Applied Mathematics
- Statistical Consulting and Research Laboratory
- Pacific Institute for the Mathematical Sciences
Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences
- Geophysical Inversion Facility
- Lithoprobe: Canada's National Geoscience Project
- Mineral Deposit Research Unit
- Pacific Centre for Isotopic and Geochemical Research
- Seismic Laboratory for Imaging and Modeling
Genomics and Biological Sciences
- Centre for High-Throughput Biology
- Geomatics for Informed Decisions Network
- Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics
- Michael Smith Laboratories
Human-Computer Interaction
- Institute for Computing, Information and Cognitive Systems
- Vancouver Institute for Visual Analytics
Life Sciences
- Centre for Blood Research
- Centre for Microbial Diseases and Immunity Research
- Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health
- International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries
- Life Sciences Institute
- Michael Smith Laboratories
- Neglected Global Diseased Initiative
Chemistry and Materials Science
- Advanced Materials and Process Engineering Laboratory
- Max Planck-UBC Centre for Quantum Materials
- Quantum Devices Group
- Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute
Physics
- Antihydrogen Trapping and Spectroscopy at CERN
- Pacific Institute for Theoretical Physics
- TRIUMF: Canada’s National Laboratory for Particle and Nuclear Physics
- UBC ATLAS Project at Large Hadron Collider
Sustainability
Research Facilities
Designed to inspire collaboration and creativity across disciplines, the new Earth Sciences Building (ESB) lies at the heart of the science precinct on UBC’s Vancouver Campus. The $75 million facility is home to Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, Statistics, the Pacific Institute of the Mathematical Sciences, and the dean’s office of the Faculty of Science. ESB’s updated teaching facilities will help Canada meet the challenges of a transforming and growing resource sector. Just as importantly, the researchers and students working and learning in the new facility will offer a valuable flow of well-trained talent, new ideas, and fresh professional perspectives to industry.
Research Highlights
Receiving more than $120 million in annual research funding, UBC Science faculty members conduct top-tier research in the life, physical, earth and computational sciences. Their discoveries help build our understanding of natural laws—driving insights into sustainability, biodiversity, human health, nanoscience and new materials, probability, artificial intelligence, exoplanets and a wide range of other areas.
UBC Science boasts 50 Canada Research Chairs and 10 fellows of the Royal Society of London, and has been home to two Nobel Laureates.
Schools / Departments
Graduate Degree Programs
Recent Publications
This is an incomplete sample of recent publications in chronological order by UBC faculty members with a primary appointment in the Faculty of Science.
Recent Thesis Submissions
Doctoral Citations
A doctoral citation summarizes the nature of the independent research, provides a high-level overview of the study, states the significance of the work and says who will benefit from the findings in clear, non-specialized language, so that members of a lay audience will understand it.
| Year | Citation | Program |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Dr. MacDonald solved several problems related to symbolic dynamics, a mathematical field that explores deep, technical analogies between the thermodynamics of gases and magnets and the grammars of formal languages. She introduced definitions and methods that put earlier work in a systematic framework, emphasizing structural and combinatorial ideas. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mathematics (PhD) |
| 2023 | Dr. Morris studied advanced MRI scans which can measure white matter health in the brain and spinal cord. She used these scans to quantify myelin across the brain in healthy children and adults and to track myelin loss after a spinal cord injury. Her research validated the specificity of the scan contrast by comparison with histological staining. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2023 | Dr. Garg studied how proteins involved in ALS and COVID-19 work at the molecular scale in causing disease. A potential vaccination strategy against coronaviruses has emerged from this. Dr. Garg also established culturing protocols and genome sequence for a comb jelly which will be used to understand animal evolution. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2023 | Dr. Jarnikova used a submesoscale ocean model of the Salish Sea to study anthropogenic ocean acidification in this valuable ecosystem, showing that significant changes have occurred since the preindustrial era. She developed a carbonate chemistry module for the model, as well as applying machine-learning methods to model interpretation. | Doctor of Philosophy in Oceanography (PhD) |
| 2023 | Dr. Todorovic developed new methods for constraining cyclic peptides. These peptides showed preliminary utility in killing cancer cells or medical imaging of tumors. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2023 | Dr. Parada Torres developed two new methods to estimate distances to nearby galaxies by using evolved stars as calibrators. Besides measuring distances, her research helped identify systematic biases and uncertainties in current calibrations. These new methods will help improve the determination of the rate of expansion of the universe. | Doctor of Philosophy in Astronomy (PhD) |
| 2023 | Dr. Morova's research presents a novel computational framework to study the impact of non-coding mutations on the development of prostate cancer. By using advanced functional genomics techniques, he worked to identify key mutations that affect the growth of the disease, which provided useful insight into the study of prostate cancer genetics. | Doctor of Philosophy in Bioinformatics (PhD) |
| 2023 | Dr. Saito developed statistical and machine learning tools for understanding the roles of nuclear physics in the production of the heaviest elements in the Universe, the so-called r-process. These developments connect the uncertainties of our understanding of the r-process and the properties of exotic nuclei. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2023 | Dr. Forbes tested how ecological communities are affected by rising temperatures and fragmented habitats. Her experiments help us understand how species respond to global change. | Doctor of Philosophy in Zoology (PhD) |
| 2023 | Dr. Yu developed a series of analytical and bioinformatic methods for quantitative metabolomics using mass spectrometry. These novel tools assist us in understanding a wide range of biological questions. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |