Karun Thanjavur (UVIC) Title: Cosmic applications of Gravitational Lens Assisted Spectroscopy (GLAS) Abstract: My principal research interests are to understand the effects of star formation and associated feedback on galaxy evolution at high redshift, and to resolve the nature of matter distribution at the characteristic mass scale of galaxy groups. As part of my doctoral work, I developed and successfully implemented two novel observational techniques that effectively harness Nature's telescope, gravitational lensing, along with the power of state-of-art integral field (IFU) and multi-object (MOS) spectroscopy to achieve my science goals. Generating a catalog of lenses suitable for such investigations is key to the progress of my observations. As part of my doctoral work, I developed an efficient search method for gravitational lenses, tuned for multi-color imaging surveys such as the CFHT-LS. The current sample of nine lenses with which I am pursuing my observations, was discovered by the application of my algorithm to 171 sq. deg of CFHTLS-Wide survey gri-bands imaging. In this presentation, I will highlight results and contributions from all aspects of my doctoral work, and elaborate on my postdoctoral research plans, which I am eager to pursue as a Resident Astronomer at CFHT.