Dr. K. Nkongolo, research associate Mr. Wayne S. Gratton, and graduate student Mr. Andrew Deck attended the 43rd Annual Meeting of the Genetic Society of Canada at McGill University in Montreal, June 6-10. They presented a paper "Genetic variation in the genus Pinus with reference to heavy metal tolerance and associated ecogeography" (KKN & W.S. Gr).
Dr. K. Nkongolo recently facilitated a Workshop on Gender issues in conservation of Genetic resources held in Lilongwe, Malawi. This project which will receive $300,000 from Canadian International Development Agency (Ottawa) to be administered by Laurentian University will be part of a much larger project on Agrobiodiversity already funded by IDRC/ Ottawa and United Nations.
Dr. K. Nkongolo visited the University of Oxford (UK), Université de Gembloux and Université Catholique de Louvain in Belgium between 9th and 20th July 1999 to set collaborative projects with European scientists in Forest Biotechnology.
Drs. S.M. Nasserulla and V. Clulow attended the Sudbury '99 Mining and the Environment II - L'exploitation minière et l'environnement II conference held 13th - 15th September. In the Technical Sessions they presented "Vegetation Status of the Revegetated Acid Generating Tailings at Elliot Lake, Ontario, Canada" (co-authored with Dr. N.K. Davé of CANMET). Dr. Clulow chaired a session on Acidic Drainage
Dr. P. Couture attended the Fifth International Congress of Physiology and Biochemistry (ICCPB99) in Calgary, 23rd - 28th August 1999, where he presented the invited talk (co-authored by Messrs S. Eastwood and J. Rajotte) "Impact of metals on the physiological condition of wild yellow perch (Perca flavescens) and walleye (Stizostedion vitreum) populations" (abstract in Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology 124A-Supplement, August 1999).
On May 4, Dr. G. Ferroni visited the Biology Department of the University of Waterloo, where he acted as the external examiner for the Ph.D. thesis defence of Ms. Susan Barbaro. The candidate was successful in defending her thesis "Effects of low temperature, cold shock and various carbon sources on the physiology of an Acinetobacter species".
On August 4, Dr. L.G. Leduc was an external examiner for the Ph.D. Oral Examination of Mr. Mike Colucci, Department of Biology, University of Waterloo. The thesis was "Deicing/anti-icing fluid degradation and ethylene glycol uptake by a psychrotrophic Pseudomonas fluorescens".
Dr. L.G. Leduc is using the Internet software package - World Wide Web Course Tools (WebCT) to deliver some parts of his courses to Laurentian students. Dr. Leduc is using WebCT as a delivery system for 150+ students in two courses (BIOL 2126E - Cell Biology and BIOL 1506F - Biologie I) and is developing two other courses with this instructional management system. WebCT is quite popular world wide and its use at Laurentian is expected to grow substantially during the next year or so. If you would like to know more about WebCT at Laurentian, go to http://webct.laurentian.ca/webct/ and http://www.webct.com/users/userlist.html.
Dr. S. Fairgrieve recently hosted the Ontario Volunteer Emergency Response Team K9 unit on campus. This group specializes in finding living and dead individuals using specially trained dogs. On campus, the ability of the "cadaver dogs" to detect human tissue was tested in the area of the arboretum. The dogs were successful in detecting human teeth, cremated bone samples, prepared human anatomical specimens and archaeological bone (some 200-500 years old and another approximately 2000 years old). The dogs ignored other faunal samples. The unit will be on campus again shortly to work with Forensic Biology students.
Dr. S. Fairgrieve gave a presentation on Forensic Odontology and the Moffatt Homicide case (with Sgt. Dave Linney of the Sudbury Regional Police Service Forensic Identification Branch) to a local chapter of Dental Hygienists on 8th September , 1999. The lecture covered specific details of the case as well as the means used to identify the decedent from cremated dental remains.
Dr. S.I. Fairgrieve and Ms. Tracy Oost were recently asked by the Regional Coroner for Northeastern Ontario to assist in assessing human skeletal remains found on an island near Kirkland Lake. After preliminary examination of skeletal elements gathered by police, Dr. Fairgrieve consulted with Dr. G. Courtin concerning some associated botanical remains. It was concluded from the context that the remains were not of recent forensic interest. The remains were returned for eventual burial by the local aboriginal band council. Botanical specimens from this case are being studied further by Drs. Courtin and Beckett.
Alarie, Y. and M. Balke, 1999. A study of the larva of Carabdytes upin Balke, Hendrich and Wewalka (Coleoptera: Adephaga: Dytiscidae), with comments on the phylogeny of the Colymbetinae. The Coleopterists Bulletin 53: 146-154.
Alarie, Y., A. Nilsson, and L. Hendrich, 1999. Larval morphology of the Palaearctic genera Deronectes Sharp and Scarodytes Gozis (Coleoptera: Dytiscidae: Hydroporinae) with implications for the phylogeny of the Deronectes-group of genera. Entomologica scandinavica 30: 173-195.
Fairgrieve S.I., (1999) Forensic Osteological Analysis: An Introduction. In SI Fairgrieve (ed.) Forensic Osteological Analysis: A Book of Case Studies. Springfield, Illinois: Charles C Thomas Publisher Ltd. pp. 3-9.
Fairgrieve S.I., (1999) Of Beasts and Humans: A Case of Recognition. In SI Fairgrieve (ed.) Forensic Osteological Analysis: A Book of Case Studies. Springfield, Illinois: Charles C Thomas Publisher Ltd. pp. 10-16.
Fairgrieve, S.I., editor (1999) Forensic Osteological Analysis: A Book of Case Studies. Springfield, Illinois: Charles C Thomas Publisher Ltd. ISBN 0-398-06963-8.
Nkongolo, K.K., 1999. Genetic relationships and variation in the genus Picea assessed by Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA and cytological analyses. Proceedings of The International Biotechnology Symposium and IUFRO Working Party 2.04-06 on Molecular Genetics of Trees held in Oxford, United Kingdom, July 11-16: pp. 62-63.
Paquette, D. and Y. Alarie,. 1999. Dytiscid fauna (Coleoptera: Dytiscidae) in cattail ponds of northeastern Ontario, Canada. The Coleopterists Bulletin 53: 160-166.
Schwarcz H.P., T.L. Dupras, and S.I. Fairgrieve. 1999. 15N Enrichment in the Sahara: In Search of a Global Relationship. Journal of Archaeological Science 26: 629-636.
Mr. David "Rude" Salmoni (B.Sc. 1997) is now animal keeper and wrangler at a zoo in southern Ontario.
Mr. Matt Binks (B.Sc. 1996) is director of operations for Adventure Travel Ontario, the non-profit agency established to expand ecotourism in the aftermath of the cancellation of the spring bear hunt.