Today’s 13th annual Randy Kobes Undergraduate Research Symposium* saw a 20% increase in participation from last year, with 24 undergraduate students from seven different departments presenting their research. Chemistry took 29% of the wins this year and geography took 50% of the honourable mentions, with women in science winning big by 86%.
Randy Kobes Undergraduate Research winners
This year’s winners, coming in first place was Hannah Bloomfield ~ Structural Influences on the Function of Selenium Containing Compounds, supervisor, Dr. Jamie Ritch, chemistry; second place went to Brooke Ritchtik ~ Synthesis, Single Crystal Growth and Magnetism of the s = ½ garnet Ca3Cu2GeV2O12, supervisor, Dr. Christopher Wiebe, chemistry; and third place was Taylor Hanson ~ Vaccination Model for Seasonal Influenza, supervisor, Dr. Murray Alexander, physics.
There were four honourable mentions (in alphabetical order), Daniel Denton ~ Behavioural Responses to Diluted Bitumen in Wood Frog Tadpoles, supervisor, Dr. Caleb Hasler, biology; Danielle Nowosad ~ Does Seasonality and Sediment Properties Affect Rate of Nutrient Uptake in Tundra Ponds?, supervisor, Dr. Nora Casson, geography; Alexandra Wiebe ~The Effects of Climate Change and Flow Path on Dissolved Organic Carbon Dynamics in Forested Catchments, supervisor, Dr. Nora Casson, geography; and Alyssia Wilson ~Neural Responses to Consciously and Unconsciously Perceived Emotional Faces: A Spinal fMRI Study, supervisor, Dr. Stephen Smith, psychology.
“It is so exciting to see so many young researchers tackling complex science problems,” said Dr. Melanie Martin, physics. “I am confident in the future of science in Canada with these talented scientists becoming our new leaders. There is a lot of great science research being done at the University of Winnipeg. Today we saw just a small picture from a diverse group of students across many of the departments and disciplines here on campus. Congratulations to all the students for their research projects and giving great presentations.”
This competition is a valuable opportunity for students to obtain experience in presentations of scientific research, because much of the research presented will ultimately be published in leading scientific journals. The yearly poster contest displays high-quality research by undergraduate students at UWinnipeg.
The poster contest has been named in memory of Professor Randy Kobes, Associate Dean of Science and Professor of Physics. Dr. Kobes’ untimely death on September 18, 2010 represents a great loss to the University of Winnipeg and to the world of science. A co-founder of the annual poster contest, Dr. Kobes was committed to research, especially with undergraduate students.
UWinnipeg would like to thank the following judges who volunteered their time: Katherine Breward, Associate Professor, business & administration; Jennifer Cleary, Program Officer, Research Development; Jill Condra, Program Officer, Research Partnerships; Rebecca Danos, Research Scholar, physics; Pam Delorme, biology; Marissa Dudych, UWFA, Administration Assistant; Lianne Kobes, UWinnipeg Alumna; Landon Mah, Senior Business Officer, Operations, Western Economic Diversification Canada; Frank Nolan, Research and Innovation Development Officer, Prairies Regional Office, The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada; Janice Reyes Bain, Library; Jacqueline Romanow, Chair of Indigenous Studies and President of UWinnipeg Faculty Association; Sandy Tolman, history; and Brent Wennekes, Director of Business Development, Mitacs
We gratefully acknowledge sponsorship from The University of Winnipeg’s Dean of Science Office.
* Formerly known as the Randy Kobes Undergraduate Science Poster Contest.
