The Biophotonics Team at Tyndall will host their annual Biophotonics Workshop series commencing today June 17th. In a bid to make science accessible to everyone, we are delighted to announce that the webinars will be open to the wider public for the first time. Biophotonics combines the study of biology and photonics and is used to detect, and in some cases treat, diseases such as cancer, both in and outside of the body.
As part of the Tyndall and Irish Photonic Integration Centre (IPIC) Summer Internship programme, this workshop series was originally designed to provide undergraduate students with an immersive experience of what it is like to be a researcher and to inspire them to pursue a career within the field. As an integral part of IPIC, the SFI Research Centre for Photonics, the biophotonics team have an important role in realising SFI’s vision of public engagement with STEM and are on a mission to inspire the public to explore STEM and future research activities.
Commenting, Marcelo Saito Nogueira, PhD student, Tyndall says –
“Since most biophotonics materials have been developed for research purposes and specifically for postgraduate students. Our workshop is part of a global initiative to expand the available educational materials to undergraduate students. This also expands teaching strategies in order to cater for students from diverse backgrounds, such as exploring short-term events facilitated by our biophotonics box and computer app, and will also be adapted to public engagement activities. Our goal is to make biophotonics accessible to everyone.”
The workshop series will feature 7 webinars, one of which includes the exciting launch of the Biophotonics Box and tutorial. This is a first-of-its-kind Biophotonics STEM kit, which offers materials for home experiments that have seen increased demand due to the restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic. The kit was first piloted with undergraduate students in 2020 and received very positive feedback.
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the Biophotonics Box
The Biophotonics Group intends to roll this kit out to secondary schools and are adapting the existing manuals of the STEM kit for this specific purpose and have ambitious plans for 2022.
“The intention is to engage secondary teachers and schools and give them the tools to present a Biophotonics workshop with our support. We will provide teachers with a teaching package, which includes background material, presentations, videos and pupil handouts for the next academic year. We are already in contact with interested parties. The ambition is to explore the material in 2021 and then refine, following feedback, in order to apply for a SFI grant in 2022 to expand this initiative” comments Dr Caitriona Tyndall, Education and Publication Engagement Officer at IPIC.
Emphasising the importance of Biophotonics, Yann Amouroux, Director, of the Optical Society OSA Europe said
“Biophotonics is certainly one of the most exciting areas of research involving light and developing hugely creative technology such as non-invasive cancer treatment using laser, or engineering highly efficient detectors (such as checking for COVID virus), and more!
There is no better time to consider a career in Biophotonics, the applications are incredibly varied and this is a sector that continues to expand… especially in Ireland”.
To learn more about the exciting Biophotonics STEM Kit and the world of Biophotonics, register for the upcoming workshop series today.
Biophotonics Workshop Series
Friday 18th June
14:00 – 15:00: Introduction to Biophotonics @ Tyndall
Presented by Prof. Stefan Andersson-Engels
15:00 – 15:30: Biophotonics Box Tutorial
Presented by Marcelo Saito Nogueira, Dr. Baptiste Jayet, Dr. Jacqueline Gunther, Dr. Katarzyna Komolibus, Dr. Sanathana Konugolu Venkata Sekar
Monday 28th June
14:00 – 15:00: Keynote Webinar - Biophotonics: Where Light and Life Meet
Presented by Dr. Brian C. Wilson