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My name is Thomas Canam, I received a PhD in Forged
Biotechnology from the University of British Columbia.
I'm currently an assistant professor with the Department of
Biological Sciences here at Eastern Illinois University.
I am a member of the Center for Clean Energy Research
and Education, or CENCERE here at Eastern, and I'm helping
to initiate the new interdisciplanary master
of science degree in sustainable energy, and the minor
in environmental sustainability through the College of Sciences.
I have two main research themes, the first is where I study
the utility of dedicated bioenergy crop species
like hybrid poplar miscanthus.
I do that by investigating their growth, their physiology,
and their energy potential for example in gassification.
I also study crop improvement strategies and ways to improve
growth, yield, and characteristics, and this is
done using microbes and molecular biology techniques.
For instance, you can alter gene expression to favor a particular
trait that is relevant to a particular industry.
I'm also an active member with a couple of societies,
for instance, the American Society of Plant Biologist,
and the Society for Industrial Microbiology, and in some
journals that I've recently published in include,
Bioresource Technology, Applied in Microbiology,
Journal of Experimental Botany, and Tree Physiology.
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