April 11, 2014
Genome British Columbia is taking our community engagement program, “Bringing Genomics Home” on the road to Whitehorse. “DNA Detectives” is a lively and engaging presentation by Dr. Jennifer Gardy, one of Canada’s shining stars in the science field. Community members are welcome to join her at the Yukon Beringia Interpretive Centrefor a conversation about genomics and how we can use DNA sequencing to solve all sorts of mysteries – including how a disease outbreak happens.
Dr. Jennifer Gardy is a scientist and science communicator. By day, she is fulfilling her childhood dream of being Dustin Hoffman in the movie Outbreak, working at the intersection of genomics and infectious disease. As a Senior Scientist Dr. Gardy leads the Genome Research Laboratory at the BC Centre for Disease Control where genome sequencing is used to understand how outbreaks of infectious diseases begin and spread. She is also involved in a number of other genomics-related research, including metagenomics surveys of human and environmental samples and the development of point-of-care devices for pathogen detection.
In Dr. Gardy’s ‘free’ time she works in science communication. She’s a regular guest host on Discovery Channel’s Daily Planet – a nightly science newsmagazine. She has also been the host of an eight-part science documentary series for CBC Television, three episodes of The Nature of Things and blogs for the Globe and Mail’s globecampus.ca site. She can also be seen in the short film Genomics: The Power and Impact on YouTube.
“We are delighted that Dr. Gardy is able to bring her energy, passion and impressive research to the people of Whitehorse and surrounding areas”, says Dr. Alan Winter, President & CEO of Genome BC. “Dr. Gardy is a dynamic ambassador for the power of science and a pleasure to hear her talk about how it impacts our everyday lives.”
This free public talk begins at 7:30pm on Sunday, April 13th at the Yukon Beringia Interpretive Centre, Kilometre 1423 (Mile 886) on the Alaska Hwy. For more information about this free event please visit: www.genomebc.ca/yukon.
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