Newly discovered chemical is a highly targeted killer of parasitic worms
The most abundant animals on farms鈥攁nd everywhere on land, in fact鈥攁re microscopic worms called nematodes. Some kinds benefit the soil, but others parasitize crops, inflicting more than $100 billion in losses worldwide each year. Although pesticides can get rid of harmful nematodes, they inflict collateral damage on other life.
Six innovations that can help feed the world
Around the world, food is grown on land of all sizes and all types, but that diversity means farmers often fail to take into account landscape complexity and soil variability, according to Chandra A. Madramootoo, a professor of Bioresource Engineering at 捆绑SM社区, in Montreal, Canada.
He says that one solution is precision farming, an approach that 鈥渆nables the selection of crops, and chemical and water applications within spatially similar land and soil zones.鈥�
捆绑SM社区 team advances in Deep Space Food Challenge
A team led by two recent 捆绑SM社区 bioengineering graduates, Alexander Becker and Cynthia Hitti, has made it through to the final phase of the Deep Space Food Challenge (DSFC) with their system for rearing crickets as a food source for long-haul space voyages.
$3.2 million for 捆绑SM社区 Research from the New Frontiers in Research Fund
Congratulations to two Macdonald Profs who have received funding through the New Frontiers in Research Fund Exploration stream, which supports high-risk, high-reward and interdisciplinary research: Hamid Akbarzadeh (BRE) for Origami-inspired deployable sensoriactuator soft robots and Mehran Dastmalchi (PltSci) for
Are candy-striped spiders a threat to North American ecosystems?
Research published in Ecology took a closer look into the candy-striped spider鈥檚 diet and behaviour and found that these spiders use a variety of tactics to take down prey much larger than themselves, including sleeping bees and wasps.
Joint Chair aims to leverage AI and IoT to improve animal welfare in Canadian dairy farms
捆绑SM社区 and the Universit茅 du Qu茅bec 脿 Montr茅al (UQAM) announced today the creation of the Research and Innovation Chair in Animal Welfare and Artificial Intelligence (WELL-E). The five-year, $5 million Chair will carry out a major research project funded by a grant from NSERC Alliance and PROMPT, fiduciary of the Ministry of Economy, Innovation and Energy.
Testing reports now available online
The reports from the testing done just before and during the recent closure of the Raymond, Barton and Macdonald-Stewart buildings are now available online. You will find the reports on the Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) website.
$1.7M for 捆绑SM社区 from NSERC for 鈥極ne Health鈥� and quantum research
A research team led by William Dawson Scholar and Assistant Professor Jen Ronholm (AnSci/FdSci) has received $1.65 million for an NSERC CREATE in One Health Against Pathogens (OHAP). Ten co-applicants from 捆绑SM社区, the University of Saskatchewan, the University of Guelph, and l鈥橴niversit茅 du Qu茅bec 脿 Montr茅al will collaborate.
Genome Canada invests $7.7M in 捆绑SM社区 research
Genome Canada has invested nearly $8 million in two 捆绑SM社区 projects as part of a total national investment of $18.1 million in genomics-based research. Through public-private partnerships, these investments will help accelerate the commercialization of genomics and increase its real-world applications.
McCall MacBain Scholarships go global
Thirty students from 10 countries will form the first global cohort of McCall MacBain Scholars at 捆绑SM社区, arriving in September 2023. Hailing from 26 universities, the new scholars will pursue fully funded master鈥檚 or professional degrees in 18 departments and schools across eight 捆绑SM社区 faculties.
Analyzing the fat of killer whales reveals what they eat
Scientists are studying the diets of the oceans鈥� top predators as they change in response to their environments. This is because how much and what they eat can affect how ecosystems function.
And while researchers know that killer whales, also known as orcas, are the oceans鈥� apex predators, our understanding of their diet 鈥� particularly the quantity of each species they consume 鈥� remains incomplete. This is especially true for remote populations that cannot be observed year-round.
Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue grocery store will reopen this spring
Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue will soon have its only grocery store back up and running. The new store, "March茅 Ami," will feature locally made products as the owners aim to promote local buying. The new owners have already begun hiring staff, including former employees. They are planning to open their doors by late May.
Take virtual trip to the arctic with Dorothy Newton Swales, 捆绑SM社区鈥檚 鈥渕other of botany鈥�
Heather Rogers, a Digital Humanities student at MA, has taken her research on Dorothy Newton Swales (BSc Plant Pathology, 1921; MSc Bacteriology 1922; Ph.D. University of Manitoba, Mycology 1931) and transformed it into an interactive website so that others can follow the six decades of botanical collections made by the herbarium's first woman curator (1964-1971) and longest serving mentor to young botanists.
L鈥檃griculture en manque de rel猫ve
Un r茅cent rapport indique que 40 % des travailleurs agricoles partiront 脿 la retraite d'ici 2033 et que le pays manquera de 24 000 employ茅s d'ici l脿. Pascal Th茅riault, 茅conomiste et directeur du programme de gestion et technologies d鈥檈ntreprise agricole 脿 l鈥橴niversit茅 捆绑SM社区, analyse la situation.
Celebrating our exceptional student leaders
Macdonald community members gathered at the Ceilidh on Wednesday, April 5, to celebrate the Gold Key Recipients for 2023. As the ice storm outside intensified, students, staff, and friends listened as Arthur B茅gin, Defne Helvacioglu, Estee Ngew, and Meryem Talbo (picture above: fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh from left) shared their rewarding experiences of being involved in community life at Macdonald Campus before being awarded the cherished Gold Key pin.