UBC News Digest

The UBC News Digest is a weekly summary of news stories about UBC people, research, learning, community, and internationalization initiatives. News Digest past issues are also available on-line.

May 20, 2005

• Entrance Scholarships Offered to Canada-Wide Science Fair Winners
• Civil Engineering Prof Receives 2005 E. Whitman Wright Award
• UBC Dentistry Paper Most Downloaded from Medical Radiology Journal
• UBC Steel Bridge Student Team Takes High Honours at U.S. Competiton
• UBC-Designed Aircraft Wins International Honour
• Vancouver Aquarium Awards Two UBC Professors’ Dedication to Aquatic Science
• More Transit, Less Strip Malls -- UBC Student Wins Eco Award for Urban Planning Project
• UBC Fraternity for Pharmacy Students Raise More Than $9,200 for Charities
• UBC Student Receives Engineering Scholarship

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Entrance Scholarships Offered to Canada-Wide Science Fair Winners

For the first time, UBC is offering entrance scholarships to winners of the Canada-Wide Science Fair (CWSF), which took place on UBC campus May 15-21.

Gold- and silver-medal winners in seven divisions received $2,000 and $1,000 respectively in scholarships if the recipient is admitted to the Faculty of Science or Faculty of Applied Science at UBC.

“We are delighted to help encourage aspiring scientists through our entrance scholarship program for National Science Fair winners,” says UBC dean of science John Hepburn. “We look forward to seeing many of them come back to UBC as students, researchers and faculty members.”

In addition to competing for the highest honour in high school scientific achievement, the 478 regional winners from 11 provinces and territories had the opportunity to visit one of 15 UBC science labs, Science World, the town of Whistler and Vancouver Island.

The Canada-Wide Science Fair is organized by the Science Fair Foundation of BC and Youth Science Foundation Canada. For more information, visit http://www.cwsf2005.ca/.

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Civil Engineering Prof Receives 2005 E. Whitman Wright Award

UBC Civil Engineering Prof. Alan Russell has received the 2005 E. Whitman Wright Award from the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering (CSCE) for developing innovative computer applications in civil engineering. CSCE will present Russell the award on June 3 at its annual conference in Toronto.

Russell has created an integrated and intelligent computer-based environment for designing and controlling the construction process. This process supports a multi-view representation of a project, which helps government and the private sector to make better decisions when building and financing infrastructure projects.

To learn more about CSCE, visit: http://www.csce.ca/.

To learn more about Russell's research, visit: http://www.civil.ubc.ca/faculty/ARussell/ARussell.htm.

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UBC Dentistry Paper Most Downloaded from Medical Radiology Journal

A paper published by UBC Dentistry Assoc. Prof. David MacDonald on “Fibro-osseous lesions of the face and jaws” was among the top 20 most downloaded articles since its 2003 publication in Clinical Radiology -- one of four general medical radiology journals.

Of the top 20 articles published in the journal, MacDonald’s is the sole dental paper and the only one from North America. Published under the name of MacDonald-Jankowski, the paper was the number one download between January and June of 2004, and the third most read paper in 2003. Topics in this issue of Clinical Radiology ranged from Prevention of contrast media nephrotoxicity-the story so far to The Role of MRI in the Diagnosis of MS.

MacDonald’s paper examines the central role radiologists play in diagnosing fibro-osseous lesion (FOL), a generic term for jaw disorders characterized by the replacement of bone by a benign connective tissue matrix. These lesions are difficult to diagnose as they are can be microscopically similar, but differ in character, ranging from those for which surgery is actually contraindicated to those where surgery is necessary.

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UBC Steel Bridge Student Team Takes High Honours at U.S. Competiton

A team of UBC Civil Engineering students built a steel bridge so quickly in a recent competition that it has been invited to compete nationally in the American National Student Steel Bridge Competition.

In just 13.55 minutes, the UBC steel bridge team assembled 47 modules to construct a bridge weighing a total of 200 lbs in the Pacific Northwest regional competition. The bridge, at 6.7 meter long and 1 meter wide, was then loaded with 1134 kilograms of weight where it had an aggregate deflection of 1.9 centimeters -- within 2 millimeter of the deflection predicted by their computational model.

Each bridge is judged on lightness, construction speed, deflection and aesthetics. The UBC team placed first in construction speed -- and second overall -- against 16 other entrants including the University of Washington, Oregon Institute of Technology, Montana State University and the University of Alaska Fairbanks, which took first place overall.

The national competition, sponsored jointly by the American Society of Civil Engineers and the American Institute of Steel Construction, will take place May 27-28 at the University of Central Florida in Orlando. For more details, visit http://www.nssbc2005.org/.

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UBC-Designed Aircraft Wins International Honour

A team of UBC Mechanical Engineering students has won first place in a landslide victory in the joint Lockheed-Martin & SAE International Aero Design West Open Class competition, which took place in Texas earlier this month.

The only Canadian entrant, the UBC Super Heavy Lift Team designed and produced a propeller-driven aircraft that successfully took off and landed, carrying 48.8lbs of cargo -- almost five times its weight.

The competition, which also attracted teams from the U.S. and Mexico in various divisions, is judged by the design of the aircraft as well as its capacity to carry weight and complete flights off a short runway.

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Vancouver Aquarium Awards Two UBC Professors’ Dedication to Aquatic Science

Their dedication to aquatic science has earned UBC professors Colin Levins and Carl Walters the 2005 Murray A. Newman Award Significant for Achievement in Aquatic Conservation from the Vancouver Aquarium Marine Science Centre.

Levins, an expert in B.C. marine ecosystem and habitat conservation and management, has conducted long-term environmental monitoring of the Squamish estuary and Britannia Mine shoreline along the Sea to Sky corridor. Levins is currently writing a major review article on the ecology of salmon in estuaries around the world. He is a research scientist at Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) / UBC Centre for Aquaculture and Environmental Research.

Walters is acclaimed for his provocative global influence on fisheries stock management and ecosystem modeling. A professor at the UBC Fisheries Centre and in the Department of Zoology, Walters focuses on adaptive management—or how to behave adaptively in the face of extreme uncertainty. He has been the lead in developing an ecosystem simulation program known as Ecosim, which provides a valuable tool for sustainable harvesting (http://www.fisheries.ubc.ca/members/cwalters/).

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More Transit, Less Strip Malls -- UBC Student Wins Eco Award for Urban Planning Project

Darren Enns, a student of UBC School of Community and Regional Planning, pictures suburbia redefining itself through transit-oriented development where vibrant town centres can flourish rather than endless strip malls. Enns’ vision garnered a Student Award for Environmental Excellence 2005 from the Environmental Careers Organization of Canada (ECO Canada).

Each year, ECO Canada awards five Canadian students who propose innovative solutions to environmental problems. Valued at $1,000 each, the award also confers an invitation to Americana 2005, a biennial conference on environmental technologies. Held in Montreal, Americana showcases students’ projects and fosters dialogue between academia and environmental industry leaders.

Other Canadian students who received the 2005 award included Drummond Lawson, Environmental Science student at the University of Calgary for his project on treating city wastewater treatment and Rémi Charron, Building, Civil and Environmental Engineering student at Concordia University, who addressed zero energy solar homes.

For more information about ECO Canada, visit http://www.eco.ca/portal/about_cchrei.aspx?display=background.

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UBC Fraternity for Pharmacy Students Raise More Than $9,200 for Charities

UBC Alpha-Lambda, an international professional fraternity for pharmacy students, has raised more than $9,200 to support local and provincial charities.

This year’s efforts have been the most successful in the chapter’s history. Funds will go to the Food Bank and the Community Health Initiative by University Students, which provides health-care services to Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside.

Founded in 1956, the UBC Alpha-Lambda chapter currently has 20 members. Fraternity members attribute their fundraising success to streamlined planning and strong teamwork. The chapter attracted good turnouts to their events, namely lunchtime lectures, orientation events and a meet and greet where pharmaceutical manufacturers informed students about new products and educational materials.

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UBC Student Receives Engineering Scholarship

UBC Engineering student Zoë Sarrat-Cave has been earmarked as a future leader in her field. The Canadian Engineering Memorial Foundation (CEMF) has selected her as one of five recipients for the 2005 Undergraduate Engineering Scholarship, which recognizes individuals for their volunteer contribution and leadership to their communities.

A Vancouver resident, Sarrat-Cave describes teamwork and compassion as essential tools for leadership. She demonstrates these qualities through her work with the UBC Disability Resource Centre and at a summer camp for children on Gabriola Island.

The CEMF scholarships, valued at $5,000, have also been awarded to Cynthia Ené of Montreal, Que. (McGill University), Andrea Evans of Ottawa, Ont. (Queen’s University), Johanna Hoyt of Stillwater Lake, N.S. (Dalhousie University) and Annalisa Wilson of Lantzville, B.C. (University of Alberta).

CEMF is dedicated to redressing the imbalance of women in engineering. Of the 160,000 engineers in Canada, only 10% are women. CEMF partners with other organizations that help promote the study of mathematics and sciences to young women -- recognizing that a strong foundation in these subjects is the prerequisite for entering the engineering field.

For more information about CEMF, visit http://www.cemf.ca/.

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