#1 Grolar bears-what are they and how common are they?

The topic of Grolar bears (hybrid of Polar Bears and Grizzly bears) showed up a few times on this list. The first time was after a group of researchers published their study on how common hybridization might be in Conservation Genetics Resources journal. The team of scientists from Polar Bears International, Environment and Climate Change Canada, MacEwan University, also included UM researcher Ruth Rivkin, from the Department of Biological Sciences. Some of the media outlets that featured the story included, Advnture.com, Yahoo! News, BBC.com, CBC, and Canadian Geographic.

#2 The Kyrenia shipwreck, UM expert perspective

CNN tapped Mark Lawall, UM professor in the department of Classics to give his insights on the how improvements to carbon dating and other techniques helped decipher exactly when the Greek-Hellenistic Kyrenia ship came to rest on the ocean floor. Lawall has studied ancient Greek containers used for shipping wine, olive oil and other goods from the Kyrenia shipwreck. The reach of this story was furthered after it ran on Yahoo! News, as well.

#3 Grolar bears hybrids traced to same ‘strange’ female Polar Bear

As more stories around climate change grabbed headlines around the world, media came back to the Grolar bear topic and how it may be an indicator of climate change. Researchers including UM’s Ruth Rivkin, who also works with Polar Bears International, talked about how most hybridizations could be traced back to one female polar bear.  “Rivkin suggested the initial mother may have been ‘pretty strange’ but also pointed out that while female polar bears do have ‘some level of choice’ about who they mate with, size makes a difference.” This story appeared in a number of places including, Yahoo! News, MSN, and The Guardian. Many stories also talked about the new genetic sequencing chip, which was used to track and gather information on the Grolar bears and could be used in the future to track more hybridization cases.  Some of these stories also linked to a study published in Nature by UM researchers Alex Crawford and Julienne Stroeve from Clayton H. Riddell Faculty of Environment, Earth, and Resources. 

#4 UM expert weighs in on case of serial killer, Jeremy Skibicki

The trial of Winnipeg serial killer, Jeremy Skibicki, and the lives of the women he admitted to killing caught the attention of many people worldwide and media outlets came to Brandon Trask, Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Law and adjunct fellow, St. John’s College, for his perspective. Some of the media outlets that featured the story with Trask’s insights included BBC, CBC, Winnipeg Free Press, Globe and Mail, and CTV Winnipeg

#5 Can a DNA analysis help improve your fitness?

Can DNA analysis help improve your fitness? UM jumped into the discussion for CNN’s Fitness, But Better series. UM’s Dylan MacKay, Assistant Professor, Department of Food and Human Nutritional Sciences, suggested people may want a level of skepticism when thinking Grandpa’s ability to throw a wicked caber toss at the annual Highland Games naturally gets passed down to them. Mackay noted while the accuracy in actual genetic testing is likely good, the science behind how the companies are interpreting the results could be problematic. This story was also picked up by Yahoo! News, intriguing readers across search engines and moving it into the top 5 most viewed news stories featuring UM experts.

#6 Are You A Bad Parent For Using Sarcasm Around Your Kids? Experts Have Thoughts

Tell me something we don’t know! So many thoughts to unpack in this interesting look at how children learn sarcasm. Melanie Glenwright, a Associate Professor of Psychology at UM, should know. She studied it and told HuffPost  “…it isn’t until ages 7 to 10 where children living in Canada begin to understand that a sarcastic speaker intends to be funny.” So, are you a bad parent for using sarcasm? Click the link above to find out. This story also ran on Yahoo! Life.

#7  and 8 A woman bought a vintage dress at an antique store. It had a secret pocket with a mysterious note

This story took two places in the Top 10 countdown because this story went big when it was first written and pitched to news outlets in December 2023, but then really took off in publications in 2024. It was covered everywhere from the New York Times, Washington Post, and CNN. When Rivers Cofield purchased the vintage dress—made in the 1880s— from an Antique mall in Maine, she found a code in a secret pocket. She posted a blog about it and for years she looked for someone to help her crack the code. Enter Wayne Chan, who is actually a data analyst at UM’s Centre for Earth Observation Science, but who also loves to solve mysteries in his spare time. So, if you missed what the code revealed, click on the story link above. 

#9 Mutated strain of mpox with ‘pandemic potential’ found in DRC mining town

UM is known for its world-renowned experts doing groundbreaking research to track and find solutions to some of the world’s most complicated viruses and pathogens. In the number nine position, is a story that features Dr. Jason Kindrachuk, Associate Professor in infectious disease at UM’s Max Rady College of Medicine in the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences. He was the co-author of a paper that looked at the ‘pandemic potential’ of a certain strain of Mpox. The story was featured in the UK’s Telegraph, and shared in Yahoo! News.

#10 UM apologizes for housing Indigenous remains and artefacts, develops repatriation policy

This story was the final story on our list that received a lot of media coverage. First, for the apology  and recognition by UM for the harms it caused First Nations, Métis and Inuit descendant communities for housing remains and artefacts without permission. Second, for developing the Respectful Rematriation and Repatriation Ceremony to coordinate next steps to return these artefacts and remains to affected communities. It was covered in a variety of outlets, including MSN and The Canadian Press.

This list was compiled by UM’s Media Relations team, based on data provided by the media-monitoring platform, Cision.

Discover Your Future in Science

Do you have a passion for science but you aren’t sure what you can do with a science degree? If so, consider attending The Discover Your Future in Science series.

Learn valuable information about the careers in science, and our Science Co-op program. UM Career Services will be talking about professional careers in science. Academic advisors and professors will be on hand to talk about degree programs, (both undergraduate and graduate level) and supports available to you. Student group representatives will also be there to share the many ways to get involved the Faculty of Science.

Come discover the many options available for you! 

FREE to attend! Light refreshments will be served.

Register in advance. Space is limited.

Attend one session or all three!

Discover Your Future in Science: Life Sciences
Thursday, Jan. 26, 2022
5:45 PM – 7:30 PM
W230 Duff Roblin Bldg. Register

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Discover Your Future in Science: Math & Computing
Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2022
5:45 PM – 7:30 PM
W230 Duff Roblin Bldg. Register

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Discover Your Future in Science: Physical Sciences
Monday, Feb. 6
5:45 PM – 7:30 PM
W230 Duff Roblin Bldg. Register 

 There will be two competitions that will air live on the Faculty of Science YouTube channel.

• Life Sciences
  Tuesday, August 10, at 1 PM: Watch online: https://youtu.be/SNNuIyD3KVY 
• Physical Science and Computational & Data Sciences
  Wednesday, August 11, at 1 PM: Watch online: https://youtu.be/8jOZRoIlQfs  

Tune in, and cheer on our undergraduate students! Discover world-changing research at the UM Faculty of Science.

Listing of undergraduate student 3MT competitors and topics:

Life Sciences
3MT Competition
Tuesday August 10, 2021 at 1:00 pm

Watch online: https://youtu.be/SNNuIyD3KVY 

• Does one size really fit all: Determining ideal filter type and porosity for use in environmental DNA
  Katrina Audet
  Supervisor: Dr. Margaret Docker, Department of Biological Sciences 
• Evaluating SKP2 as a Chromosome Instability Gene in Colorectal Cancer
  Gillian Boychuk
  Supervisor: Dr. Kirk McManus, Department of Biochemistry and Medical Genetics 
• PGP- what? The microbes feeding our future
  Stefanie Chaput
  Supervisor: Dr. Mark Belmonte, Department of Biological Sciences 
• Family Experience of Elopement in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder
  Rashi Chhabra
  Supervisor: Dr. Toby Martin, Department of Psychology  
• RNAi: Our green Saviour
  Sharon Felix
  Supervisor: Steve Whyard, Department of Biological Sciences 
• Protecting the Diabetic Heart: Can roflumilast prevent cell death in cardiomyocytes exposed to lipotoxicity
  Amy Fernando
  Supervisor: Dr. Joe Gordon, Department of Human Anatomy and Cell Science 
• Re-New Contracting
  Juanita Garcia
  Supervisor: Dr. Kristine Cowley, Department of Physiology  
• Drug resistance and variation among yeast infection isolates
  Devin Habon
  Supervisor: Dr. Aleeza Gerstein, Department of Microbiolog
  
• Electrochemical Detection of Resistance to Tobramycin in Pseudomonas aeruginosa
  Muhammad Hayat
  Supervisor: Dr. Sabine Kuss, Department of Chemistry 
• A species-specific approach to mosquito population control
  Kousha Kamal
  Supervisor: Dr. Steve Whyard, Department of Biological Sciences 
• Signal Jamming: The computational design of Netrin-1/DCC inhibitors
  Matthew Kirby
  Supervisor: Dr. Jörg Stetefeld, Department of Chemistry 
• Synthetic Fertilizers and Fungicides, Who Needs ‘em?!
  Patrick Lloyd
  Supervisor: Dr. Mark Belmonte, Department of Biological Sciences 
• Exploring the role of metabolism in glioblastoma
  Eliz Malaso
  Supervisor: Dr. Tanveer Sharif, Department of Pathology 
• Accessing the stability of dsRNA in A. aegypti to develop a species-specific pesticide
  Japji Matharu
  Supervisor: Dr. Steve Whyard, Department of Biological Sciences 
• Photodynamic Inactivation Effect on Influenza using TLD-1433 as a Photosensitizer
  Tolani Olanrewaju 
  Supervisor: Dr. Kevin Coombs, Department of Microbiology 
• Overcoming nitrogen pollution through Rhizobium-legume symbiosis
  Zeel Patel
  Supervisor: Dr. Ivan Oresnik, Department of Microbiology 
• Unlocking the Potential of the Fungal Secondary Metabolome
  Randi Roy
  Supervisor: Dr. John Sorenson, Department of Chemistry 
• Managing mycotoxins: understanding nutrient acquisition in Fusarium graminearum
  Meagan Smith
  Supervisor: Dr. Matthew Bakker, Department of Microbiology 
• Cytochrome C Oxidase Deficiency Detection using Scanning Electrochemical Microscopy in Living Cells
  Shubhneet Thind
  Supervisor: Dr. Sabine Kuss, Department of Chemistry 
• The Electrochemical Characterization of Auranofin in Aqueous media
  Melak Yossief
  Supervisor: Dr. Sabine Kuss, Department of Chemistry

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Physical, Computational, Mathematical & Statistical Sciences
3MT Competition
Wednesday, August 11, 2021 at 1:00 pm
Watch online: https://youtu.be/8jOZRoIlQfs   

• Fabrication and characterization of micro-optical ring electrodes
  Nafisa Ahmed
  Supervisor: Dr. Sabine Kuss, Department of Chemistry   
• TBD
  Aishat Bello
  Supervisor: Dr. Celine Latulipe, Department of Computer Science 
• PCEV With Alternative Covariance Estimators
  Thomas Czubryt
  Supervisor: Dr. Max Turgeon, Department of Statistics 
• Domination in Networks
  Laura Funk
  Supervisor: Dr. Karen Gunderson, Department of Mathematics 
• Representing Information In a Smaller Way
  Connor Hryhoruk
  Supervisor: Dr. Carson Leung, Department of Computer Science 
• Iso-photo-metry – Equal-Light-Measurement
  John Jiwa
  Supervisor: Dr. Chris O’Dea, Department of Physics and Astronomy 
• Infect Everyone: Modelling infection spreading via bootstrap percolation
  William Kellough
  Supervisor: Dr. Karen Gunderson, Department of Mathematics 
• The Universe’s Most Powerful Particle Accelerators
  Alan Nguyen
  Supervisor: Dr. Samar Safi-Harb, Department of Physics and Astronomy 
• Friction-Coupled Pendulums: Understanding the Widespread Phenomena of Coupled Oscillators Using a Unique Model System
  Bentley Turner
  Supervisor: Dr. Can-Ming Hu, Department of Physics and Astronomy 
• Evidence for Jet Driven Outflows in Hercules A
  Daniel Turon
  Supervisor:  Dr. Chris O’Dea, Department of Physics and Astronomy 
• Rotational Spectroscopy of Astrochemical Species
  Keighlynn Veilleux
  Supervisor: Dr. Jennifer van Wijngaarden, Department of Chemistry

The funding supports five multidisciplinary infectious disease modelling networks, that will significantly improve the coordination of infectious disease modelling to help Canada better respond to future public health threats.

Dr. Julien Arino is co-lead of Data Management on the One Health Modelling Network for Emerging Infections (OMNI), led by Huaiping Zhu, York University. OMNI also includes UM researchers, Drs Stephanie Portet and Kang-Ling Liao. The multidisciplinary team was awarded $2.5 million to study the interplay between humans, animals, and the environment, and traces the disease from detection through to early warning, early response, and mitigation of new disease threats.

Dr. Arino is also part of the $3 million Mathematics for Public Health (MfPH) network, led by Vijayakumar Murty, Fields Institute & University of Toronto, which comprises renowned experts who worked on the SARS outbreak (2003), and the $2.5 million Canadian Network for Modelling Infectious Disease (CANMOD), led by Caroline Colijn (Simon Fraser University). Within MfPH, he leads a project on Transport and Importation.”

“These multidisciplinary networks of experts across the country will strengthen Canada’s ability to manage threats from emerging and infectious diseases, protecting all Canadians from current and future pandemics. At the same time, they will help advance Canada’s equity, diversity and inclusion goals through research design and team composition, as well as training the next generation of research leaders.” said the Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry  

“Manitoba and the Faculty of Science are excited to be a part this interdisciplinary pan Canadian team and sees this kind of approach as being critical to addressing society’s wicked problems.”  explained, Stefi Baum, Dean of Faculty of Science, University of Manitoba.

Dr. Julien Arino

Professor (mathematics) 

Dr. Arino’s research deals primarily with mathematical population dynamics in epidemiology and ecology, with a focus on modelling population movement. Dr. Arino studies the spatio-temporal spread of infectious diseases, with a focus on the relationship between modern commercial aviation and the fast-global spread of infectious pathogens. Dr. Arino uses modelling and graph analysis to consider the risk of importation of disease to various public health entities. Other areas of interest include the stress imposed on public health systems by the variety of health practices used around the world, for example, the treatment of infections or vaccination schedules and other problems concerning population dynamics in ecology and biology. Dr. Arino is a participant in the Data Science NEXUS multidisciplinary program as well as the VADA (Visual and Automated Disease Analytics) graduate studies program. 

 
Dr. Stéphanie Portet

Professor (mathematics)

Dr. Portet’s research encompasses different domains such as biophysics and mathematical biology. Including models of the organization of networks and assembly of filaments composing networks. Dr. Portet uses deterministic and stochastic dynamical models; mathematical and computational analysis to characterize transient and asymptotic behaviour of models. Dr. Portet’s research specialty is intermediate filament networks.

Dr. Kang-Ling Liao

Assistant Professor (mathematics and biological sciences)

Research interests include mathematical modelling and analysis of medical and biological systems, dynamical systems, delay differential equations, differential equations, and bifurcation theory. Dr. Liao works on mathematical biological problems to understand biological mechanisms, such as G protein signalling pathway, cancer immunoediting modelling, somitogenesis (somite formation and morphology), gene regulation, and evolution in ecology.

MacLean’s annual rankings include all comprehensive universities in Canada — those with a significant amount of research activity and a wide range of programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels, including professional degrees.

The status of UM’s Computer Science program has also improved; it is currently No. 14 overall out of 21 programs across Canada.

“We are pleased to be among the highest-ranked comprehensive universities in the country. As the demand for mathematical, statistical and computation science expertise in nearly every industry grows, we are focused on increasing our program options, delivery, and accessibly. We continue to demonstrate our commitment to excellence in teaching, research, and student success. Improving math literacy and supporting outreach in this area is also at the forefront,” explains Stefi Baum, Dean Faculty of Science.

Recently, the Faculty of Science announced the establishment of a new Bachelor in Data Science degree option to begin Fall 2021, which will include integrated learning opportunities with a Co-op option. New partnerships with the Pacific Institute for the Mathematical Sciences (PIMS) and the Canadian Statistical Sciences Institute (CANSSI) have also been established.

The Faculty has introduced several new integrated course offerings, together with student supports including a Student – Industry Mentoring Program. Dean Stefi Baum says there are many reasons to be excited. Fall 2020 enrolment in the Faculty of Science increased by 10.6%, and plans are in the works for the development of an Indigenous student support program called Wawatay (Anishinaabe for northern lights), which will be announced shortly.

“I’m not surprised, we have world-class research faculty throughout the Faculty of Science, in every area, who are also dedicated teachers, and very hard-working students. This is also the result of outstanding leadership, namely that of Professor Stephen Kirkland, former Head of the Department of Mathematics,” said Shaun Lui, Acting Head, Professor, Mathematics.

The annual Maclean’s rankings place universities in one of three institutional categories – smaller primarily undergraduate schools, larger comprehensive schools, and those with medical schools.

Read the full university rankings here.

Margot Henry knows the difference one choice can make. Prior to entering the Faculty of Science’s Co-op program, UM Science student Henry hadn’t even considered going for a Master’s degree. To hear her tell it, she was focused on finding a job after graduation, plain and simple.

“Science Co-op was by far the best decision of my undergrad. You learn many things in your classes, but a lot of it is theoretical. I didn’t actually know how statistics and all the things I was learning in class was applied in the real world. I didn’t know what I was going to do with my undergraduate degree after I graduated.”

Henry’s first co-op term was spent under the supervision of Dr. Aleeza Gerstein. At the time, Gerstein was new to the UM, a shared hire between the Departments of Statistics and Microbiology. Not only was it Henry’s first time as a co-op student; it was Gerstein’s debut as a co-op supervisor. Henry says that it was during that time when she was able to experience the research side of applied statistics. It was also the beginning of learning how to code, and the importance of coding with regard to statistics.

Both Henry’s second and third co-op terms were spent at Manitoba Health. She reports her stints there as a junior epidemiologist taught her a great deal about how statistics is applied in a government setting. During that time, one of her supervisors at the government agency was Dr. Carla Loeppky, Director of Epidemiology and Surveillance Information Management and Analytics.

Loeppky says that Henry’s work went from “… preparing simple descriptive code relating to reportable diseases to merging different data sets to run complex analyses. It has been exciting to see her gain confidence, develop expertise in the field of public health, and provide interpretation of her work. Recently, the evidence she has generated relating to COVID and hospitalizations has been used to drive public health action.”

Henry’s final co-op term allowed her firsthand knowledge of how statistics is applied during a pandemic. Henry says, “The whole work term was COVID-19 projects and reports. It was exciting to be on that side of the pandemic.”

Senior Epidemiologist Dr. Songul Bozat-Emre was another of Henry’s supervisors at Manitoba Health. She describes the hard-working co-op student as “exceptional”, adding that “… her work has provided evidence to better understand the risk factors associated with severe outcomes among COVID-19 cases in Manitoba.”

After finishing her co-op, Henry reflected on everything she had learned in order to decide what she wanted to do after graduation from UM. As such, she plans to pursue a Masters in statistics with an interest in biology and coding. Her advisor is her former co-op supervisor Gerstein. Henry feels that they worked well together previously, and is very excited to be back in Gerstein’s lab in the Buller Building.

When asked if she feels that the Science Co-op program was a worthwhile experience, Henry is quick to say that without it, she wouldn’t have opted to continue her studies at the graduate level.

“I had my mindset on finding a job after I graduate; a Masters was not even crossing my mind.”

Henry’s final thoughts on co-op are positive:

“The [Science] co-op team are superstars. They are there when you need them. They make you feel confident, help you build your resume, prep you for interviews, are there if you just need to talk or have any questions. I highly recommend the co-op program to every single student!

Ralph Dueck and Reynard Dela Torre from RRC’s applied computer education department and Carson Leung in computer science in the UM Faculty of Science have teamed up with the ARF on a joint project that is the first of its kind: it will allow easy access to a quantity of “Arctic-sized” data that will put that data into the hands of northern communities, government, universities, research institutes and the public. 

ARF is a Canadian non-profit organization creating new scientific infrastructure in the Canadian Arctic. It partners with governments, universities and research institutions to provide access to its Arctic program initiatives and is working to build relationships with Arctic Indigenous peoples to advance understanding of the region through traditional knowledge. ARF has collected a huge volume of “big data” from cutting-edge research vessels and mobile labs including hydrographic and bathymetric assessments, soil and salinity samples, changing ice conditions, animal stock assessments and data collected through the Naurvik plant production pod.  

This collaborative project will gather these disparate data and make them accessible in an Arctic Research Database, unifying research teams in Canada’s North and enabling minimally-invasive research practices. Through research and development across UM and RRC, the project team will centralize and catalogue these data from across the Arctic through leading-edge methods in data labelling and database design, making them publicly accessible through a universally readable, easily searchable database with a highly usable interface.  

“This research collaboration joins the unique strengths of UM and RRC, to tackle challenging questions related to climate change and its impacts on human, animal and environmental conditions in the Arctic,” says Dr. Digvir Jayas, vice-president (research and international) and Distinguished Professor at UM. “Making the research data accessible is a critical aspect of knowledge translation that enables creative approaches to solution-finding.”

“Projects like these are integral to giving our students the hands-on experience they need to problem-solve and come up with solutions to real-world issues,” says Dr. Christine Watson, Vice President Academic, RRC. “Of course, this year the challenge is even greater due to the pandemic. While students aren’t able to work together and brainstorm in person, we have absolute trust that these student interns will produce exceptional results.”

This project will provide students with work-integrated learning opportunities through support from Mitacs a federally and provincially funded not-for-profit research network that supports collaborative research and talent development.  College and UM graduate student interns will team up to design a back-end database, develop a User Experience (UX) central user interface and integrate the two for enhanced user experience, following UX integration best practices.  

“Mitacs is pleased to make and support the vital connections between the Arctic Research Foundation and top talent within Manitoba’s colleges and universities. Connecting this important organization with highly qualified research personnel, while providing public access to Arctic data is a win-win-win for Canada. We are grateful to the Government of Canada and the Government of Manitoba, through Research Manitoba, for providing support for Mitacs internship programs,” says John Hepburn, CEO and scientific director, Mitacs. 

The resulting Arctic Research Database will enable insight on everything from the mapping of shipping routes to the development of natural resource projects to the growth of food sustainability programs and improvement of local economies. The project is expected to have powerful and long-lasting impacts on the economic, research and innovation ecosystems in the Arctic.  

“Too much Arctic research is ‘siloed,’” explains ARF vice president Tom Henheffer. “It’s time to bring it all together so communities, governments, and research institutions can effectively share data and better coordinate work. We’re excited to create this database and expect it will be a huge step-forward in improving Arctic research, environmental stewardship, and economic development, and in creating a greater public understanding of the North.” 

CANSSI Prairies; will support data-intensive research, provide opportunities for University of Manitoba researchers to expand their research activities, provide opportunities for regional collaborations, and assist in strengthening the network of statistical scientists in the region and across Canada.

“To function efficiently and with maximum impact, CANSSI has the complex problem of considering both national and provincial conditions and perspectives in its policies and operations, explains Don Estep, Director, Canadian Statistical Sciences Institute.

A key component in CANSSI’s strategy is establishing CANSSI Regional Centres which will allow CANSSI to deploy its national resources effectively at the provincial level and to organize local consensus regarding CANSSI operations and programs. I am very thankful for the vision and leadership demonstrated by the University of Manitoba in taking on the responsibility of establishing and supporting CANSSI Prairies for the benefit of Saskatchewan and Manitoba. I am very excited by the many scientific opportunities that await us.”

CANSSI Prairies will be hosted in the UM’s Department of Statistics, the first department of statistics at a post-secondary institution in Canada; the department is known for its excellent graduate program, and for producing internationally recognized leaders in evidence-based decision-making.

“Given our increasingly data-driven world, the UM Faculty of Science is excited to partner with CANSSI to enhance and promote statistical sciences research in the Canadian prairies,” says Brian Mark, Associate Dean Faculty of Science.

Life Sciences

1st Place:

• Juanita Garcia – “Can we use current to treat orthostatic hypotension after spinal cord injury?”
  Supervisor: Dr. Kristine Cowley, Department of Physiology

2nd Place:

• Kyra Cebula  – “Brain Imaging-Based Biomarker for Alzheimer’s Disease”
  Supervisor: Dr. Ji Hyun Ko, Department of Human Anatomy and Cell Science

Students’ Choice:

• Amy Irvine  – “Friend or Foe: Humpback and Killer whale communication”
  Supervisor: Dr. Gail Davoren, Department of Biological Sciences

Physical, Computational and Data Sciences

1st Place:

• Delica Leboe-McGowan – “Learn Everything, Know Nothing: The Medical Applications of Privacy-Preserving AI”
  Supervisor:  Dr. Noman Mohammed, Department of Computer Science

2nd Place:

• Tasnim Rahman – “Assessing the effects of asymptomaticity and testing on COVID-19 dynamics”
  Supervisor: Dr. Stephanie Portet, Department of Mathematics

Students’ Choice:

• Brydyn Mac Intyre – “The most powerful accelerators in the universe; Can W50 guide us to the Galactic PeVatron?”
  Supervisor: Dr. Samar Safi-Harb, Department of Physics and Astronomy

Forty undergraduate students enrolled in the Faculty of Science Summer Undergraduate Research Program participated in the inaugural 3MT competition, which was virtual and broadcast on YouTube August 11 & 12.

The Faculty of Science congratulates all of our incredibly talented students who participated and the excellent work that went into preparing for the competition. Three Minute Thesis challenges a students’ ability to communicate their ideas and research concisely to a non-specialist audience, in three minutes or less.

Special thanks to our 3MT judges:

• Dr. Stephen Pistorius
  Professor, Department of Physics and Astronomy
• Dr. Scott Kroeker
  Professor, Department of Chemistry
• Dr. Karen Brassinga
  Professor, Department of Microbiology
• Ellen Sykes
  PhD Student, Department of Microbiology
• Sarah Flett
  MSc Student, Department of Physiology and Pathophysiology
• Saulo dos Santos
  PhD Student, Department of Computer Science
• Kristen Bouma
  PhD Student, Department of Microbiology

You can watch the presentations on the Faculty of Science YouTube channel.

• August 11 – Life Science presentations – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rb96sh5aekU 
• August 12 – Physical, Computational & Data Sciences presentations – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whbojzlS8Rw