STAC is a community of CAI students. Our focus is to provide a supportive community for our students from undergraduates through to HDR. We want to create a fun and active workspace for staff and students alike.
As research students, we lead busy lives. STAC believes it’s important to maintain a healthy balance and stay connected with your peers, colleagues and wider community in order to thrive as an up and coming researcher. We’re here to support you. As we are a student society, we aim to fundraise and provide all of our activities at little or no cost to our students.
Want to join an amazing team?
We accept new committee members at each research quarter. Each year at the commencement of RQ1 we hold an annual general meeting (AGM) and elect a new executive STAC committee. If you’d like to join as a general STAC member contact us by email. Otherwise come along to our next AGM (February 2022) and nominate for a position. Being a part of STAC is a fantastic way to help signal to employers that you’re a capable and active member of the lab, not just an incredible scientist!
Contact – stac.cai.uq@gmail.com
Role President
Name Mengdie Li
E-mail mengdi.li@uq.net.au
Mengdie is a second-year PhD candidate at CAI and a member of Professor Kris Thurecht's group, working on nanoparticles. Her project focuses on monitoring cytokine release at tumour sites based on polymeric nanoparticles. Mengdie loves riding bikes, reading history books and watching documentaries. Mengdie is always curious about new things and likes taking risks.
Role Treasurer
Name Jake Hattwell
E-mail j.hattwell@uq.edu.au
Jake is a third-year PhD student at CAI and a member of Dr. Horst Joachim Schirra’s group. His project focuses on the development of a genome-scale metabolic model for Caenorhabditis elegans and studying changes in cell metabolism. In his free time, Jake enjoys tinkering with non-PhD related code, chopping vegetables, playing Monster Hunter, and staring adoringly at his cat.
Role Secretary
Name Alexandra Gloria
E-mail a.gloria@uq.edu.au
Alexandra is a first-year PhD student at CAI and a member of Dr Horst Joachim Schirra’s group. Her project uses NMR-based metabolomics to study the metabolic effects of heat stress in cattle and pigs. When Alexandra isn’t working on her project, she draws, reads comics, plays Animal Crossing, watches period dramas, and jams to bardcore on YouTube - not all at the same time though! She dislikes coriander and loves mint chocolate ice cream.
Role Social Representative / STAC Wiseman
Name Biswa Prasanna Mishra
E-mail b.mishra@uq.edu.au
Biswa is a third-year PhD student at CAI and a member of Associate Professor Mehdi Mobli’s biomolecular NMR group, working on the structural basis of acid-sensing ion channel domains. He loves mountaineering and has successfully climbed several high altitude passes and peaks in the Himalayas. Biswa is a shutterbug and spends his free time travelling and clicking. He sings, plays the drums and basically loves everything musical. He adores basketball and is an avid follower of the NBA. He is an ex-president of STAC and is essentially the grandpa of the group.
