Thirteen University of Winnipeg students from across five Faculty of Graduate Studies programs will be participating in the 2022 Three-Minute Thesis (3MT) competition.
This competition will allow me to become more efficient at communicating my research in an easily understood way.
Bradley Howell
The virtual event is scheduled to take place March 3 from 2:00 to 4:00 pm on Zoom. Students are competing for a first-place prize of $1,000 and a chance to move forward to the Western Regional 3MT competition with a berth in the National 3MT competition on the line. There is also a $500 People’s Choice Award.
The 3MT is a research communication competition developed by The University of Queensland, which challenges postgraduate degree students to present a compelling oration on their thesis and its significance in language appropriate to a non-specialist audience. Each student will have the challenging task of explaining their complex thesis ideas with one static slide within just three minutes.
Bradley Howell is a first-year student in the Master of Science in Bioscience, Technology, and Public Policy program. After finishing his undergraduate studies at Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario, he reached out to UWinnipeg biologist Dr. Caleb Hasler about working with him.
Howell decided UWinnipeg was the perfect fit, and he’s now working in Dr. Hasler’s Fish Biology and Conservation Lab, focusing his research on behavioural and physiological responses of Manitoba’s trophy-sized lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) to catch-and-release angling.
“We’re doing research at Clearwater Lake Provincial Park, where there is a large trophy-sized lake trout population,” he said. “The community really relies on the economic benefits associated with the trout and tourism, so it’s important research.”
By monitoring the fish over a series of fixed time points, Howell is planning on examining how they respond behaviourally and physiologically to the catch-and-release angling.
“This will allow me to determine the tolerance of trophy-sized fish to catch-and-release angling, and the risk that it poses to their populations,” he added. “This study will allow fisheries managers to tailor management decisions for these fisheries and enhance them for the fish, anglers, and community.
Up until a few months ago, Howell had never heard of the 3MT competition.
But once he learned more about it, he knew it would be a great opportunity for him to sharpen is presentation skills, especially when describing his research to judges who are not familiar with the subject matter.
“I think it’s a great opportunity to explain and share what’s happening in our lab,” he said. “And science communication is really important too. This competition will allow me to become more efficient at communicating my research in an easily understood way.”
Meet this year’s 3MT participants!
Judging the competition are: Dr. Jason Hannan, Associate Professor in UWinnipeg’s Department of Rhetoric, Writing, and Communications; Stacey Wowchuk, Assistant Auditor General of Manitoba; and Dr. Alain Beaudry, Doctor of Medicine from the University of Manitoba.
Students from all programs are encouraged to attend, cheer on their peers, and vote for the People’s Choice Award.
This event is free and open to the public. To watch the competition live as an audience member, register here.
