CURRICULUM VITAE
Education
Science Communication Certificate (2017)
Seneca College | Toronto, ON, Canada
Ph.D. Physics, Engineering Physics & Astronomy (2012–2016)
Queen's University | Kingston, ON, Canada
"The SHIVir Survey: A Dynamical Catalogue of Virgo Cluster Galaxies and their Scaling Relations"
Advisor: Prof. Stéphane Courteau
M.Sc. Physics, Engineering Physics & Astronomy (2010–2012)
Queen's University | Kingston, ON, Canada
"The Dynamical Properties of Virgo Cluster Galaxies"
Advisor: Prof. Stéphane Courteau
B.Sc. Honours Physics (2007–2010)
McGill University | Montréal, QC, Canada
"A Multi-Wavelength Study of RCS Galaxy Clusters and their Galaxy Populations"
Advisor: Prof. Tracy M. Webb
Awards & Grants
Prix du recteur / Rector’s Award, Catégorie Initiative | Université de Montréal | 2021
Subvention NovaScience Volet 2 | Ministère de l’Économie, de l’Innovation et de l’Énergie du Québec | 2021-2023
Bourse DIALOGUE Volet Chercheurs | Fonds de recherche du Québec | 2020-2021
Young Researcher Ambassador Award | Partners in Research National Awards | 2018
Article of the Month | Let's Talk Science/CurioCity | 2017
NSERC PGS-D3 Fellowship (held at Queen's University) | NSERC | 2013-2016
Commemoration of Service | Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, Kingston Chapter | 2015
Senator Frank Carrel Fellowship | Queen's University | 2012
Best Poster Presentation, Honourable Mention | McGill Undergraduate Physics Poster Day | 2009
Work
Deputy Director | Observatoire du Mont-Mégantic, Université de Montréal | Montréal, QC | 2022–Present
Deputy Director | Trottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal | Montréal, QC | 2022–Present
JWST Outreach Scientist | Université de Montréal | Montréal, QC | 2018–Present
Coordinator | Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal | Montréal, QC | 2018–2022
Coordinator | Astro Research Group, Université de Montréal | Montréal, QC | 2018–2022
Communications, Education & Outreach Officer | Arthur B. McDonald Canadian Astroparticle Physics Research Institute | Kingston, ON | 2017–2018
Research Associate | Queen's University | Kingston, ON | 2016–2017
Graduate Research Assistant | Queen's University | Kingston, ON | 2010–2016
Observatory Coordinator | Queen's Observatory | Kingston, ON | 2010–2016
Physics Tutor | Queen's University | Kingston, ON | 2011–2012
Undergraduate Research Assistant | McGill University | Montréal, QC | 2008–2010
Counsellor | Camp de Jour Bois-de-Boulogne | Montréal, QC | 2006–2007
Selected Outreach & Service
EPO Committee Chair | Canadian Astronomical Society | 2020–Present
EPO Committee Member | Canadian Astronomical Society | 2019–Present
Referee | AAS, A&A, MNRAS Journals | 2018–Present
Subject Matter Expert | Partners in Research: Virtual Researcher on Call | 2018–Present
Volunteer Scientist | Skype a Scientist | 2017–Present
Contributor & Analyst | Various Canadian Media Outlets (e.g. CBC, Radio-Canada, Global News) | 2012–Present
Speaker | Various School & Public Events | 2008–Present
Communications Lead | Observatoire du Mont-Mégantic | 2018–2022
Telescope Time Proposal Reviewer | Canada-France-Hawai’i Telescope | 2018–2019
Volunteer Scientist | Letters to a Pre-Scientist | 2017–2020
Contributor/Mentor | CurioCity/CurioCité | 2017–2019
Local Organising Committee | Canada France Hawaii Telescope Users' Meeting 2019 | 2018–2019
Astronomy Session Chair | Canadian Space Summit 2018 | Nov 27-29 2018
Scientific Organising Committee | Future of Space Astronomy Workshop | 2018
Local Organising Committee | The Physics of Galaxy Scaling Relations and the Nature of Dark Matter | 2017–2018
Volunteer & Team Leader | Let's Talk Science | 2012–2018
Subject Matter Expert | Beyond Classrooms Kingston | 2018
Research Panel Moderator | Canadian Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics | 2018
Writer | The Conversation | 2017–2018
Volunteer & Contributor | Queen's Observatory | 2016–2018
Instructor | Queen's Math Quest | 2016
Columnist | Vista Magazine (Kingston, ON) | 2011–2013
Committee Member | Queen's Academic Affairs Standing Committee (Kingston, ON) | 2010–2013
Council Representative (Physics) | Queen's Society of Graduate and Professional Students (Kingston, ON) | 2010–2013
Steering Committee Member | Science Rendezvous Kingston | 2010–2011
Volunteer Coach | Kidsfest Read & Run (Kingston, ON) | 2010
Representative (Physics) | McGill University Open House (Montreal, QC) | 2009
Speaker | McGill Freshman Interest Group (Montreal, QC) | 2009
Selected Press/Media Appearances
Since 2018, I’ve averaged about 1 media interview per week and no longer keep track of them here. For reference, we try to keep track of most of them on my Institute’s website!
First Image of a Black Hole, CBC News (TV interview), Apr 8 2019
Science Highlights of 2018, Dutrizac 6 à 9 (QUB Radio), Dec 21 2018
The Geminid meteor shower (7 radio interviews), CBC Radio Syndication all over Canada including Edmonton AM, Dec 13 2018
New type of galaxy discovered, Dutrizac 6 à 9 (QUB Radio), Dec 10 2018
David Saint-Jacques dans l’espace, Dumont (TVA Nouvelles), Dec 3 2018
David Saint-Jacques part pour l’espace, Dutrizac 6 à 9 (QUB Radio), Dec 3 2018
La sonde InSight atterrit sur Mars, Le retour de Mario Dumont (QUB Radio), Nov 26 2018
Le 20e anniversaire de la Station spatiale internationale, Dutrizac 6 à 9 (QUB Radio), Nov 20 2018
Talking Exoplanets, James Webb, Kepler, TESS, and galaxy formation (podcast interview), Den of Lore, Nov 16 2018
An extraordinary ‘exomoon’ (10 radio interviews), CBC Radio Syndication all over Canada including Edmonton AM and Daybreak North, Oct 4 2018
Demain le monde: la conquête spatiale (TV interview), Les francs tireurs (Télé-Québec), Oct 3 2018
Où regarder les Perséides en Ontario (radio interview), "Y'a pas deux matins pareils", Radio-Canada Toronto, Aug 10 2018
Astronauts' movement increased subsurface temperatures on the moon (5 radio interviews), CBC Radio Syndication all over Canada, Jun 11 2018
Le Canada abandonne un projet de télescope avec la NASA (radio interview), "Midi Info", Radio-Canada Montréal, May 29 2018
Le récipiendaire du Nobel en physique Arthur McDonald a son centre de recherche (online interview), Radio-Canada, May 10 2018
La NASA à la chasse aux exoplanètes (radio interview), "Y'a pas deux matins pareils", Radio-Canada Toronto, Apr 16 2018
NASA astronaut drops Queen's a line from space (TV interview), CKWS, Apr 6 2018
Sending Robotic Bees to Mars to Look for Signs of Life (6 radio interviews), CBC Radio Syndication all over Canada including All in a Day (Ottawa), Apr 4 2018
Astronomers baffled by galaxy that contains no dark matter (radio interview), CKNW, Mar 29 2018
Queen’s University Astronomer reacts to SpaceX rocket launch (TV interview), CKWS, Feb 7 2018
La super lune bleue de sang expliquée (radio interview), "Y'a pas deux matins pareils", Radio-Canada Toronto, Jan 31 2018
Super lune de sang (radio interview), Radio-Canada Manitoba, Jan 30 2018
Super Blue Blood Moon (13 radio interviews), CBC Radio Syndication all over Canada including Edmonton AM, The Calgary Eyeopener and Daybreak South (Kelowna), Jan 30 2018
Feb 4th is not only Super Bowl Sunday. An asteroid 2002 AJ129 will pass earth at 76,000 mph. (TV interview), CKWS, Jan 26 2018
NASA Kepler Spacecraft Finds Two New Planets (radio interview), CKNW, Dec 14 2017
Study shows global rise in light pollution (television interview), Global National, November 26 2017
An Asteroid from Out of This World (11 radio interviews), CBC Radio Syndication all over Canada including The Early Edition (Vancouver) and Daybreak South (Kelowna), November 22 2017
The Harvest Moon explained and myths debunked (television interview), CKWS TV, October 5 2017
SpaceX's Ambitious Mission to Mars (television interview), CBC News, The National and Local Evening News, September 29 2017
To the Moon and Back: Lunar Space Station (13 radio interviews), CBC Radio Syndication all over Canada including Ontario Morning, September 28 2017
Solar Eclipse Coverage (TV interviews), CBC News National, August 21 2017
NASA Announced The Discovery Of 219 New Planet Candidates—and 10 Might Be Habitable (radio interview), CKNW, June 19 2017
NASA's mission to the sun (television interview), CBC News National, May 31 2017
NASA: Nearby Ocean Worlds Could Be Best Bet For Life Beyond Earth (radio interview), CKNW, April 13 2017
New NASA findings (radio interview), NewsTalk 770, April 13 2017
NASA: Ocean world near Saturn could support life (television interview), CTV News National, April 13 2017
Saturn's moon Enceladus holds 'food source' for potential life (online feature), CBC News, April 13 2017
NASA finds 7 new earth-like exoplanets (television interview), CBC News National, February 22 2017
Queen's Astronomer Explains the Big NASA Shocker (online interview), Station 14, February 22 2017
NASA announcement of 7 earth sized planets (radio interview), NewsTalk 770, February 22 2017
7 Earth-size worlds found orbiting star; could hold life (radio interview), CKNW, February 22 2017
The Camelopardalids Meteor Shower (radio interview), Corus Radio Calgary, May 22 2014
Transit of Venus (television interviews), CBC News + CKWS TV, June 5 2012
A Galactic Discovery (online, in print), The Whig-Standard, May 22 2012
Ring of Fire — Double treat for Canadian astronomy enthusiasts (online), GlobalNews, May 18 2012
Herschel Sees Intergalactic Bridge Aglow with Stars, NASA/JPL press release, May 17 2012
Abundance matching tested on small scales with galaxy dynamics, MNRAS, vol. 496, L101. (2020)
The assembly of the Virgo cluster, traced by its galaxy haloes, MNRAS, vol. 488, 1111. (2019)
Astronomy Advocacy and Engagement (first author), Canadian LRP2020 white paper, 2019.
LRP2020: CASCA's EPO Committee White Paper: Proposed National EPO Projects for CASCA, Canadian LRP2020 white paper, 2019.
Entering a new Era of Astrophysics with the James Webb Space Telescope, Canadian LRP2020 white paper, 2019.
Astronomy in a Low-Carbon Future, Canadian LRP2020 white paper, 2019.
The SHIVir Survey II: Data Catalog & Kinematic Profiles (first author), ApJS. (in prep.)
Space Junk, CurioCity, October 31 2017 (chosen as Best Article of September-October 2017).
Star Trek discovery of alien life veers away from likely reality, The Conversation (picked up by The National Post), October 5 2017.
The SHIVir Survey: Scaling Relations and the Stellar-to-Total Mass Relation of Virgo Cluster Galaxies (first author), ApJ, vol. 843, 74. (2017)
The Dynamical Properties of Virgo Cluster Disk Galaxies (first author), ASPC, vol. 480, 89. (2014)
The Herschel Filament: A Signature of the Environment Drivers of Galaxy Evolution during the Assembly of Massive Clusters at z=0.9 (co-author), ApJL, vol. 749, L43. (2012)
Selected Papers/Articles
Roque de los Muchachos Obversatory
Gran Telescopio Canarias | MEGARA | La Palma, Canaries, Spain | 5 hours (2019)
Paranal Observatory
Very Large Telescope | XSHOOTER | Cerro Paranal, Chile | On-site | 3.2 nights (2015)
Gemini Observatory
Gemini-North | GMOS (long-slit) | Maunakea, HI | Queue mode | 32 hours (2014, 2018)
Gemini-South | GMOS (long-slit) | Cerro Pachón, Chile | Queue mode | 75 hours (2014, 2015, 2018)
Apache Point Observatory
ARC 3.5m | DIS Spectrograph | Sunspot, NM | On-site + Remote | 22 half-nights (2012, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2018)
Telescope Time & Observing
I now average 1-2 public talks per month. For reference, we try to keep track of most of them on my Institute’s website!
Astro Seminar Speaker | NRC-Herzberg | Victoria, BC | 2018
Conference Speaker | Collège Notre-Dame | Montréal, QC | 2018
Conference Speaker | CÉGEP du Vieux-Montréal | Montréal, QC | 2018
Speaker | Astronomie en fût | Montreal, QC | 2018
Webinar Speaker | Discover the Universe | 2018
Speaker | Conférence AstroPoly | Polytechnique | Montreal, QC | 2018
AstroPizza Seminar Talk | Université de Montréal | Montreal, QC | 2018
The Physics of Galaxy Scaling Relations and the Nature of Dark Matter, Contributed Talk | Queen's University | Kingston, ON | 2018
Keynote Speaker | Air and Space STEM Expo | Uvalde, TX | 2018
Colloquium Speaker | Southwest Texas Junior College | Uvalde, TX | 2018
Colloquium Speaker | San Antonio College | San Antonio, TX | 2018
NASA Education Downlink, Speaker | Queen's University/NASA Collaboration | Kingston, ON | 2018
Monthly Seminar, Speaker | Royal Astronomical Society of Canada | Kingston, ON | 2013, 2018
Queen's Space Conference, Speaker Panel Member | Queen's University | Kingston, ON | 2018
Canadian Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics, Presentation Skills Workshop Leader | Queen's University | Kingston, ON | 2018
Open House, Speaker | Queen's Observatory | Kingston, ON | 2014, 2015, 2017
Queen's Space Conference, Speaker | Queen's University | Kingston, ON | 2017
IACTalks, Colloquium Speaker | Instituto di Astrofísica di Canarias | 2015
Queen's Astronomy Club, Speaker | Queen's University | Kingston, ON | 2014
Guillermo Haro Advanced School on Integral Field Spectroscopy, Presenter | Instituto Nacional de Astrofísica, Óptica y Electrónica | Tonantzintla, Mexico | 2014
Galaxy Masses as Constraints of Formation Models, Presenter | Oxford University | Oxford, England | 2014
RÉMO DEC Intégré, Speaker | Collège Bois-de-Boulogne | Montréal, QC | 2014
Structure and Dynamics of Disk Galaxies, Presenter | University of Arkansas at Little Rock | Petit Jean Mountain, AR | 2013
SITELLE Workshop, Presenter | Université de Laval | Wendake, QC | 2013
CASCA Annual General Meeting, Poster Presenter | St-Mary's University | Halifax, NS | 2010
McGill Undergraduate Research Conference, Poster Presenter | McGill University | Montréal, QC | 2009
Canadian Undergraduate Physics Conference, Poster Presenter | University of Alberta | Edmonton, AB | 2009
Physics Undergraduate Summer Research Showcase, Poster Presenter | McGill University | Montréal, QC | 2009