ROM highlights latest research and innovation at 37th Annual ROM Colloquium on February 23, 2016
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Event features series of 15-minute talks that are free of charge
Presentations share latest findings on blue whale genomes, climate change and more
Evening features presentation of 2016 Vaughan Lecture on Exploring Canada’s Record of Ancient Life
TORONTO, February 16, 2016–The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) presents its 37th annual ROM Research Colloquium on Tuesday, February 23, 2016 at 9:00 am. The day-long event features 16 ROM curators and researchers sharing their latest discoveries in a series of fifteen-minute talks. The Colloquium is free of charge and takes place in the ROM’s Signy and Cléophée Eaton Theatre (Admission to Colloquium does not include General Admission to the ROM and RSVP is required to attend). Presentations will include research updates on blue whale genomes, bat biodiversity in the Caribbean, Iran’s Silk Road, a panel discussion on “Climate Changes Culture Changes Climate”, and more.
Following the daytime presentations is the 2016 Annual Nora Vaughan Lecture. This year’s Vaughan Lecture, Life in the Past Lane: Four Decades Down and a New Dawn to Come, features the ROM’s David Rudkin, Assistant Curator of Invertebrate Palaeontology. Rudkin will share his experiences exploring Canada's extraordinary record of ancient life. The Vaughan Lecture is a separately ticketed event and starts at 7:00 pm in the Signy and Cléophée Eaton Theatre and includes a post-event reception.
ROM RESEARCH COLLOQUIUM SCHEDULE ON FEBRUARY 23, 2016
9:00 - 9:15 am Introduction by Dr. Mark Engstrom, Deputy Director of Collections & Research
9:15 - 10:15 am Natural History in the Field
Madame Waptia: First Evidence of Broodcare from the Burgess Shale
Dr. Jean-Bernard Caron, Curator of Invertebrate Paleonthology, Department of Natural History
Tropical Paradise for Bats but not Many other Mammals: Biodiversity and Extinction in the Caribbean
Dr. Burton Lim, Assistant Curator of Mammalogy, Department of Natural History
From Fossils to Genomes: Building the Tree of Life and the Timeline of Evolution in a Modern Museum
Dr. Hernán López-Fernández, Curator of Ichthyology
A Comparison of Fungal Diversity Between Temperate and Tropical Regions
Simona Margaritescu, Technician of Mycology
10:45 - 11:45 am Natural History in the Collections/Lab
Preliminary Report on the Blue Whale Genomes: Evolution and Historical Population Dynamics of the Largest Species that ever Lived
Oliver Haddrath, Technician of Natural History and Dr. Mark Engstrom, Deputy Director of Collections & Research
Using Evolutionary Genomics and Phylogeographic Analyses to Guide Potential Conservation Efforts of the North American Medicinal Leech, Macrobdella decora
Dr. Sebastian Kvist, Associate Curator of Invertebrate Zoology
Testing Phylogenetic Hypotheses Concerning Hybrid Hawthorns with Next-Generation DNA Sequence Data
Dr. Tim Dickinson, Curator Emeritus of Botany
The ROM Triceratops Project
Dr. David Evans, James and Louise Temerty Chair of Vertebrate Palaeontology
1:00 - 2:00 pm Panel Discussion: Climate Changes Culture Changes Climate
Moderated by Sascha Priewe and Dave Ireland, ROM Managing Directors
Interactive conversation on how ecology, law, policy and archaeology intersect around climate change, and key findings from the Paris Climate talks in November 2015.
Panel features: Dr. Chen Shen, ROM Curator of East Asian Archaeology, Doug Currie, ROM Curator of Entomology, Rowan Sage, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, and Jutta Brunee, Faculty of Law, University of Toronto
2:00 - 3:00 pm World Cultures in the Collections/Lab
The Real Deal? Investigation the Mysteries of a Zapotec Urn in the Royal Ontario Museum
Laura Lipcsei, Senior Conservator, Ceramics, Stone and Glass, Conservation
Beautiful Money
Paul Denis, Assistant Curator (Greek, Etruscan, Roman and Byzantine), Department of World Cultures
Biblical Admonitions on Early English Pottery
Dr. Peter Kaellgren, Curator Emeritus, Department of World Cultures
"A Lot of Damned Curios": Robert Flaherty's Proposal
Ken Lister, Assistant Curator of Anthropology (Arctic, Subarctic, Great Lakes, Northwest Coast, Paul Kane collection), Department of World Cultures
3:30 - 4:30 pm World Cultures in the Field
Competitive Iconography: Asafo Imagery from Festivals to the Art World
Dr. Silvia Forni, Curator of African Cultures, Department of World Cultures
How to Create a Sacred Site in Pre-Columbian Peru: Lessons from Quilcapampa
Dr. Justin Jennings, Curator of New World Archaeology, Department of World Cultures
Warlord on the Silk Road. A ROM Archaeological Project in Iran
Ed Keall, Curator Emeritus, Ancient and Islamic Near East
Introducing the Man in Draped Clothing: Raymond Duncan (1874-1966)
Dr. Alexandra Palmer, Senior Curator, Nora E. Vaughan Fashion Costume Curatorship
Event schedule and presentation abstracts are available at: https://www.rom.on.ca/sites/default/files/event/downloads/2016-colloquium_detailed-program_final.pdf.
RSVP at: ROM Research Colloquium.
Registration for the 2016 Vaughan Lecture is at: 2016 Annual Vaughan Lecture: A Life in the Past Lane.
The Vaughan Lecture Fund was established with a generous gift from the estate of Nora E. Vaughan in 1994.
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