Team:Calgary/Team

The Team

Undergraduates

I’ve just completed my first year in Biomedical Sciences at the University of Calgary. As a biomed student, I have a strong background in basic cell biology, DNA replication and lab work with E.coli bacteria. As a team leader for iGEM marketing, I will focus on promoting and marketing our project to a larger audience and work with sponsors to fund our project. The idea of a student-run research program immediately caught my attention because it encourages undergrads to work collectively in a group as well as individually to exercise our own creative thoughts, ideas and innovations. I also enjoy the interdisciplinary system of the iGEM project, especially the wet lab and marketing components. Aside from iGEM, I am also actively involved in the community with numerous volunteer activities. In my spare time, I love reading, camping, biking, travelling, and most importantly, shopping! I’m looking forward to working with the team and learning about synthetic biology!

Email: pmoinul@ucalgary.ca

I am majoring in Biomechanics of Kinesiology. As part of the wetlab section of the team, I am responsible for carrying out biological lab procedures and communicating with both the wetlab and computer modeling groups. I joined because I am interested in the concept of engineering bacteria as well as application of physics and biology. I have always liked playing with legos, which is quite similar to synthetic biology, with some background biology and nerdiness. I am interested in putting parts together in order to make one big system work, such as legos and electrical circuits. Outside of iGEM, my hobbies include hiking, fiddling with electronics, and playing sports. I am quite excited to be working with the iGEM team as it will be my first real opportunity to do research in the biology field.

Email: syshin@ucalgary.ca

I have just completed my first year of Health Sciences in the Bioinformatics stream. I became interested in iGEM because I saw it as a chance to learn about the emerging field of synthetic biology. Being part of a team environment was also desirable due to this project being my first research experience at the university level. I am interested in working on the implementation of technology in science, and developing my own skills as my educational career progresses. I am working with the Second Life team to construct educational tools to further promote science by using technology. The goal will be to provide a high quality service to a large audience that has the potential to be more personal and effective than traditional teaching methods. It will give me the chance to apply my current computer programming skills as well as learn from the other team members and experience the difference between computational problem solving and traditional laboratory investigation.

Email: klovens@ucalgary.ca

My major is in Bioinformatics under the Bachelor of Health Sciences program at the University of Calgary. I was a member of the iGEM team in the University of Calgary's first and second iGEM competitions in 2006 and 2007. In the past, I have worked on the chemotaxis and quorum sensing projects. It's exciting to be back again this year, guiding one of our 2009 projects: online outreach and education via Second Life. I'm most interested in the standardization and characterization aspects of synthetic biology, and I have gained lots of wet-lab and programming experience through my experiences in iGEM.

Email: pfking@ucalgary.ca

I am currently studying chemical engineering with a biomedical engineering specialization at the University of Calgary. Prior to starting my engineering degree, I completed a degree in biomedical sciences. The reason I decided to join the 2009 iGEM team is because the idea of synthetic biology is new and exciting. More importantly, I have the great opportunity to experiment engineering with biology, which is where most of my interests lie. I will also be exposed to collaborative teamwork which is an essential element of engineering. Some of my other interests include sports, sports and more sports. I don't play very many sports, but I sure love watching football and hockey on TV! I also like cooking, learning new recipes from dad and watching movies!

Email: chancwy@ucalgary.ca

I just wrapped up my fourth year in the University of Toronto’s Engineering Science program, with a specialization in biomedical engineering. I am excited to be back in Calgary and representing my hometown in my first iGEM experience, with a focus on the lab work and modeling. My experience over the last four years has been all across the board, with summer research projects in biomechanics and rehabilitation engineering; as well as coursework that entailed a series of rather nefarious biomedical and nanoparticle-based wet labs. When I’m not satisfying my lust for bacteria genomics, I’m usually either swimming, skating or learning German in preparation for a work placement in Bern, Switzerland. If you’re at the jamboree, come say hi. I’ll even throw in a free horoscope reading for the fun of it! Cheers!

Email: vickikomisar@gmail.com

I am a 3rd year student studying Chemical Engineering at the University of Calgary. This year, I will be helping to promote iGEM alongside the Marketing and Management teams. I joined this team because synthetic biology fascinates me. I believe that it is paving the way for a technological revolution. I hope to increase awareness in the community about synthetic biology and how it may open doors for further advancements through the accomplishments of our iGEM team. Outside of summer work, I enjoy playing the piano. I often sing classical Indian songs. I love painting, sketching- anything involving art! I also love photography and gardening.

Facilitators

What we did

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Where we're from