Science researchers nab UBC’s premier awards
Material scientist Dr. Andrea Damascelli and statistical ecologist Dr. Marie Auger-Méthé have earned two of UBC’s top research honours—the...
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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.
Biodiversity, Evolution and Ecology
Computational Sciences and Mathematics
Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences
Genomics and Biological Sciences
Human-Computer Interaction
Life Sciences
Chemistry and Materials Science
Physics
Sustainability
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.
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.
This is an incomplete sample of recent publications in chronological order by UBC faculty members with a primary appointment in the Faculty of Science.
Year | Citation | Program |
---|---|---|
2011 | Dr. Sember studied problems involving points in the geometric plane, where each point's location has some amount of uncertainty, and developed a number of algorithms for generating figures from such points. These figures can provide a more accurate view of certain types of uncertain data. | Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Science (PhD) |
2011 | Dr. Charish showed that Drosophila septate junctions and Gliotactin are necessary for epithelial cell division. This work demonstrates a new and unconventional role for junctional proteins | Doctor of Philosophy in Zoology (PhD) |
2011 | Dr. Marchand used computer simulations to study models which describe polarons, objects composed of one electron and a surrounding cloud of sound waves. He discovered that the properties of polarons can be significantly modified in those models. This work extended previous techniques to allow these more complex models to be investigated efficiently. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
2011 | Dr. Markel investigated how variable ocean climate, marine protected areas, and the loss of top predators such as sea otters affect rockfish population dynamics on the west coast of Vancouver Island. His findings contribute broadly towards understanding how marine species and ecosystems respond to climate change and overfishing. | Doctor of Philosophy in Zoology (PhD) |
2011 | Dr. Charbonneau contributed to the description of an exotic new current, which is not generated by a voltage, like a typical electrical current, but is generated by the processes that occur in the dense cores of neutron stars and the remnants of high-energy particle collisions. His work furthers our understanding of matter in extreme environments. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
2011 | Dr. Yang investigated the surface chemistry of water and organic solvents at liquid/mineral interfaces using nonlinear spectroscopy. These studies are relevant to environmental and industrial processes, such as the mechanism of ice formation and the development of oilsands extraction. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
2011 | Dr. Ren studied electron spin transport in low-dimensional nanoscale devices. He developed a spectroscopy technique employing thermopower to image effects of electron interactions in these devices. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
2011 | Dr. Tafti's research focused on the geochronology and petrogenesis of igneous rock suites and the metallogenic evolution of the Gangdese belt, in Tibet. The research identified a major, previously unrecognized but economically important magmatic event of Jurassic age, and also made a substantial contribution to our understanding of the tectonic evolution of this part of the Himalayan Orogen. | Doctor of Philosophy in Geological Sciences (PhD) |
2011 | Dr. Asgeirsson developed a novel method for analyzing experimental data based on comparisons to a large sample of computer simulations. This new method was applied to the measurement of the oscillation frequency of neutral B mesons. The method can also be used by scientists analyzing other types of experimental data. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
2011 | Dr. Hall examined the relationship between harbour porpoise behaviour, and oceanographic and celestial events. She found the foraging strategies used by porpoise are specialized and are related to season, tidal direction, and lunar phase. She also discovered two sites where porpoises breed, the first to be identified in British Columbia. | Doctor of Philosophy in Zoology (PhD) |