Research Resources Reporter July 2025
CONTENTS
- MWACD announcement
- New Core Director: Owen Tamplin
- Core Highlight: Data Science Hub
- Question of the Month
- Shout-outs
Midwest Association of Core Directors (MWACD)
Looking for Cores/Labs on Campus to Tour
The Midwest Association of Core Directors (MWACD) is hosting its annual meeting at Memorial Union this year in October. MWACD is the Midwest regional chapter of ABRF (Association of Biomolecular Resource Facilities). We are currently looking for core facilities that would like to give a tour of their facility. You do not need to currently be a member of ABRF to participate. The tours would be on October 22nd in early afternoon. To volunteer your facility or to learn more about ABRF and MWACD, please contact Molly Zeller.
New Core Director
Dr. Owen Tamplin is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Cell & Regenerative Biology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His research program focuses on understanding the blood stem cell microenvironment. He has always had a passionate interest in imaging and microscopy. As a graduate student at the University of Toronto, he found novel approaches to perform live imaging of notochord development in the early mouse embryo. As a postdoctoral fellow at Boston Children’s Hospital, he helped developed new transgenic zebrafish lines and used spinning disk confocal microscopy to observe endogenous stem cells in their microenvironment. In his own lab, in addition to spinning disk, he also uses light sheet microscopy, correlative light and electron microscopy, and 2-photon microscopy for intravital imaging of zebrafish and mice. He is excited to take on the role of Director of the UW Optical Imaging Core and is looking forward to making UW-Madison’s excellent microscopy resources widely available to the UW research community.
Core Highlight
The Data Science Hub supports graduate students and researchers in developing skills in data science and software development. Based in the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, the Hub offers workshops, personalized consultations, and collaborative events that help participants navigate data analysis, programming, machine learning, and reproducible research practices. It is especially valuable for student researchers working on data-intensive projects or aiming to strengthen their computational toolkit.
The Hub fosters a welcoming, interdisciplinary environment where researchers can connect with experts, join peer learning communities, and access training tailored to their research needs. Whether just beginning to explore data science or looking to deepen existing skills, researchers will find the Hub a supportive space to grow and apply data-driven approaches in their work.
Visit the Data Science Hub Research Core Directory page for more information including services offered.
Question of the Month!
We need your feedback! Please fill out the 1 question survey below: “What piece of equipment or service do you plan on asking for in your next proposal?“
Shout-outs
We would like to recognize Lex Oliver for her outstanding contributions as the Program Coordinator for the Emergency Department Research Coordinator Program. Lex brings deep expertise in implementing research studies and clinical trials within the complex emergency department environment and consistently goes above and beyond as a tireless problem solver and solution generator.
Lex is also known for her willingness to support colleagues across the other heterogenous research programs in the larger Department of Emergency Department, generously sharing her knowledge of tools and platforms to strengthen our collective efforts. Her contributions have been instrumental in shaping plans to launch research activities and participant recruitment at East Madison Hospital’s emergency department.
Thank you, Lex, for your dedication, collaborative spirit, and unwavering commitment to advancing emergency care research!
***Want to thank or recognize a core staff member who went above and beyond to support your research or the research of a core user? Email Sarah Brodnick (skkorinek@wisc.edu) with the individual’s name and a sentence or two about why they deserve a shout-out. Shout-outs will also be posted at https://research.wisc.edu/research-cores/research-resources-reporter/.