New Brunswick
BioAtlantech and Science East are coordinating the Sanofi-Aventis BioTalent Challenge (SABC). Each year, 14 Canadian regional biotechnology competitions are held with the regional first place teams advancing to the national competition. The purpose of this program is to encourage Grade 10 to 12 students to design and carry out original experiments under the guidance of industry, university and government mentors. The SABC is a really exciting way for students to learn what scientists do and to perform experiments where the answers are unknown and mistakes sometimes lead ot amazing discoveries. Participating in the SABC nurtures interest in the biological sciences, helps to shape the career paths for students and provides up to $6,000 in cash prizes which is shared between the winners and their schools.
The New Brunswick SABC Regional competition was held April 7-8, 2010 in Fredericton at the Crowne Plaza Lord Beaverbrook Hotel.
Congratulations to the 2010 winners:
1st Place – Lee Nicholas and Sarah Sullivan from Southern Victoria High School, “The Effects of Carbon Capture on the Growth of Cyanobacteria” mentored by David Wattie of the Potato Development Centre
Lee and Sarah will be competing against 13 other Canadian Regional winners in Ottawa at the end of April. Good luck!
2nd Place – Kayla MacLeod and Danielle Duplisea from Leo Hayes High School, “Preservation of Gary Acorns” mentored by Tannis Beardmore of the Canadian Forest Service
3rd Place – Jessica Fitzherbert, Courtney Skinner, Breanna DeLong, Kiersten Nissan, “Inhibition of Potato Scab (Streptomyces scabies) on Potato (Solanum tuberosum tuberosum cv. Jemseg)” mentored by David Wattie of the Potato Development Centre
4th Place – Jared Valdron and Matt Cooke from Riverview High School, ‘Attempted Synthesis of Novel D-Alanine-D-Alanine Analogues” mentored by Andrew Grant from Mount Allison University
5th Place – Mirae Lee and Matthew Sullivan from Bathurst High School, “Leachate Purification – Heterotrophs” mentored by Marc Caissie from Roy Consultants, Bathurst
Honourable Mentions:
Jennie Russell, Leah Abernethy, Kathleen Tozer from Bathurst High School, “Leachate Purification – Autotrophs” mentored by Marc Caissie from Roy Consultants, Bathurst
John Fraser from Riverview High School, “Synthesis of Sudan-1″ mentored by Mohamad Touaibia from the Universite de Moncton
For more information about the SABC, call Karen Matheson at (506) 457-2340 ext. 27 or e-mail sABC@bioatlantech.nb.ca