Tim Perkins
Genetic Research Scientist, rows for Cambridge
BSc (majoring in Biophysics and Chemistry) 2001

I finished my biophysics degree at UWA in 2001 and headed for Europe where I took up a job as Research Assistant at Imperial College, London at the Centre for Molecular Microbiology and Infection.

I now work at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Centre, famous for human genome research, with a world class Pathogen Biology team. The work is on gene expression in salmonella and recently deep sequenced bacterial mRNA which I believe to be a world first.

The university’s dream of a new research facility for sleep science was outlined at an industry seminar titled Night Vision: The Future of Sleep Science Research at UWA.

The event was hosted by the faculty and the Science Futures Foundation.

Over the past decade, UWA’s Sleep Science Centre has been funded via a range of competitive national and State-based grants, and conducted research in conjunction with the WA Sleep Disorders Research Institute (WASDRI) at the QEII Medical Centre.

Headed by world expert, Professor Peter Eastwood, the Centre has played a key role in researching sleep disorders such as sleep apnoea. It is also a leader in analysing the effects of travel and sleep quality on the performance of elite athletes, neuro-cognitive function and depression.

A new program offered by the Faculty of Life and Physical Sciences is helping first year students adapt to the demands of life as a science student.

The Peer Assisted Learning (PAL) program provides students enrolled in large core units an opportunity to work together in groups under the guidance of study group leaders who have already completed the unit.

PAL provides a nurturing environment for students making the transition from the smaller high school environment to university, where classmates can number in the hundreds. The study groups also give them the chance to meet and interact with fellow students.

People who say that mosquitoes are inexplicably attracted to them might be interested in physicist Stephan Karl’s work.

Can the movement of an audience through a mechanical forest help to calm down cultured nerve cells in a remote laboratory?

Welcome to the latest edition of Science Matters. 2009 is the Chinese Year of the Ox. The Ox, sign symbolises prosperity through fortitude and hard work, and given the financial woes of the world, these characteristics may be in high demand.

The Faculty’s ox-like characteristics will see it take on the challenge of 2009 with the expectation of another successful year for our research and teaching.  I am writing this editorial not long after the inauguration of Barack Obama. His presidency is a cause for celebration and there is sense of expectation of great things to come.

UWA will host a prestigious new International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR). The WA Government will fund the new centre and its director will be Premier’s Research Fellow Professor Peter Quinn.

The centre will be a joint venture with Curtin University of Technology and will be a key driver in Australia’s bid to be the site of the $2 billion Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project. The SKA project will be the world’s largest, ground-based telescope array, capable of seeing the early stages of the formation of galaxies, stars and planets.

The discovery of a family of compounds that stimulates seed germination in many plants has led to a new scientific name – karrikins – derived from the Noongar word ‘karrik’, meaning ‘smoke’. 

Western Australia is home of the discovery of a substance in smoke that stimulates seed germination and seedling growth in many plant species after bushfires.

Now, new research at UWA and Kings Park Botanic Garden has now shown that there are several such compounds in smoke, and that they can even stimulate seed germination in plant species that do not normally experience fire or smoke. This family of germination stimulants has now been named ‘karrikins’ from ‘karrik’, a Noongar word for smoke.

A number of high profile guests, including a number of distinguished Alumni attended the European Launch of the Science Futures Foundation the Royal Automobile Club London on October 22.

In his pre-dinner speech the Vice-Chancellor, Alan Robson, outlined his vision for the university and the role the Science Futures Foundation will play in enlisting high-performing academic staff and the brightest and best students, develop state-of-the-art facilities, encourage talent and reward outstanding achievement. Special guests at the launch included David MacKinlay, Chair of the Friends of UWA in the UK and Europe; Professor Geoff Laurent, Chair of the Science Futures Foundation UK and Professor Barry Marshall, Nobel Laureate, UWA graduate and staff member.