The death of George Floyd from police brutality has put an international spotlight on the sustained injustice faced by Black people. We recognize that the University of Waterloo and Faculty of Science are not immune to racism. This is our time to reflect, stand together and build a more inclusive community for Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPOC).
Trevor Charles, a professor from the Department of Biology and Director of the Waterloo Centre for Microbial Research, visited the Beyond the Bulletin Podcast to talk about COVID-19’s potential to persist on surfaces, ways to mitigate the risk and testing that could help officials monitor the level of infection in communities (9:22 to 27:47). 
The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted every sector of society, including education: remote teaching has become, at least for now, the new norm. At the University of Waterloo, instructors have met the challenge of remote teaching by developing alternative ways of presenting course content, by recasting learning activities, and by adjusting how students are assessed. Creativity and flexibility have informed all these modifications.
What can be done to track the spread of COVID-19 on surfaces in our community?
Every year, one student from each faculty is presented with a Co-op Student of the Year Award for exceptional contributions to one or more of their work term employers. The 2019 Faculty of Science Co-Op Student of the Year is Lydia Vermeer (Biochemistry). These awards take place toward the end of the winter term and celebrate student achievements from the winter, spring and fall terms of the previous calendar year.
Last week, the Water Institute announced the results of their seed grant program. Prof. Sherry Schiff from the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences is leading one of the projects which will build a network to examine methane emissions. Several scientists from the Departments of Biology and Earth and Environmental Sciences are part of the other funded interdisciplinary projects focused on forest ecosystems and managing watersheds.
Accustomed to working in Waterloo’s Neufeld lab, Al-Ajeel, like many other science students, have pivoted their studies and research to adjust to this new work-from-home culture.
Hydroxychloroquine has been in the news lately, touted as a possible treatment for COVID-19. But what is it, and does it really work?
Professor Brian Dixon, an expert in immunology, answers some frequently asked questions about the drug.
Yesterday afternoon, 17 graduate students presented their research in just three minutes, using one static slide in the Science Faculty 3 Minute Thesis (3MT) competition. While this task may sound daunting, the competitors were well suited for the task, delivering interesting and captivating research presentations on a variety of topics, from microbes to black holes, and everything in between!