UNews - Cancer Cell Laboratory

Science fair judges and volunteers needed

trevor.kenney — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 18:50:48 +0000

In preparing for 52nd annual Canada-Wide Science Fair, to be hosted by the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge May 14-18, Chief Judge Dr. Roy Golsteyn is faced with a unique challenge.

Evaluating 500 of Canada's best young scientists requires judges with specific expertise to ensure that participants receive the highest-quality feedback on their exceptional projects.

Hosted at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge through the local host organization, the Southern Alberta Technology Council (SATC), this national event is a program of Youth Science Canada and strongly supported by corporate, community, federal, provincial and city organizations.

While Golsteyn, who leads the Cancer Cell Laboratory at the U of L, is a talented researcher and committed volunteer, he can't do this alone. Three hundred judges are being sought to make sure the participants get the highest-quality feedback.

There are three qualification levels for judges, including those with master's degrees or greater in sciences, those with professional diplomas such as engineering or veterinary medicine, and those with professional diplomas and experience in a science and technology-related field.

Judges are required for only one day (14 May) of the week-long event.

Judges with French language skills are also especially welcomed.

To date, the U of L community has stepped up to commit more than 60 judges, and the overall tally of committed judging volunteers has passed 150, but Golsteyn says there is still a need for judges from a variety of backgrounds including health sciences, math, and digital arts.

"Our ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ has a leadership role for science in Southern Alberta. The values of the Canada-Wide Science Fair are perfectly aligned with our values of education, mentorship and research," Golsteyn said. "Being a Judge is an excellent way to share these values."

"Finding 300 judges for the CWSF is no small feat. We are halfway there and we would like to build on this momentum. Plans are in place to solicit volunteers and judges from a variety of organizations in Lethbridge and area, and from across the province. The Science Fair competition date (14 May) will be a truly memorable experience. We will have 300 expert judges meeting 500 expert students, which certainly electrifies the atmosphere in the exhibition hall. I am looking forward to engaging the U of L and broader community as judges and volunteers to share this experience and to support science in our country. "

If you are interested in learning more about becoming a judge for the upcoming Canada-Wide Science Fair, please e-mail Dr. Roy Golsteyn for more information at roy.golsteyn@youthscience.ca.

In addition to judges, volunteers are required to assist with a variety of hosting duties, and there will be a specific need for those with bilingual capabilities. For more information on how you can volunteer, please email admin@satclethbridge.ca or visit this website.

Judging its own reward

trevor.kenney — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 22:46:13 +0000

Having seen the spark ignited in a young scientist's eyes, Dr. Roy Golsteyn is eager to stoke the fires of ingenuity once again. As the chief judge for the Canada-Wide Science Fair (CWSF), to be held at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge May 11-18, 2013, he'll get that opportunity, and it's one he'd like to share.

"I'm a huge believer in science fairs," says Golsteyn (BSc '84), an associate professor of biology and the director of the Cancer Cell Laboratory at the U of L.

He participated in science fairs as a kid, but never competed beyond the local level. Now, as a judge whose own children have competed nationally, he sees the true value of encouraging scientific discovery in our youth.

"You see it, there's a real sense of excitement in these kids," says Golsteyn. "Some are just starting to dabble in science, some have already acquired a lot of knowledge; they like it, they like the freedom of it and they revel in the challenge.

"Having judged science fairs for the last four years, I always walk away happily impressed, because there are some smart kids out there and we get an opportunity to not only meet them but to also encourage them to continue to pursue science."

Dr. Roy Golsteyn is the chief judge for the Canada-Wide Science Fair, which the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of lethbridge will be hosting May 11-18, 2013. A total of 400 judges are required for the massive event.

The CWSF is a massive undertaking, featuring 400 of the top science projects in the country and involving more than 1,100 students (Grades 7 to 12), chaperones, judges, sponsors and delegates. There are more than 400 judges alone who are needed to officiate the proceedings and as Chief Judge, one of Golsteyn's main duties is to recruit the best group of judges he can find.

"We are attracting the best science students from across the country, so we want to match those students with the best judges we have in southern Alberta," says Golsteyn. "Fortunately for us, southern Alberta is pretty scientist dense."

Golsteyn cites the valuable resources available at the U of L, Lethbridge College, the Canada Research Centre, the Regional Hospital and major industry such as Pratt & Whitney, which has a very strong engineering component to its operation.

"We know there are many qualified judges in southern Alberta, it's more an issue of people being able to find time to take part," he says.

To that end, judging is limited to just one day, and even half-day participation can be considered. A pre-competition orientation evening is also involved and judges are encouraged to stay through the evening of competition to ensure all major prizes are awarded accordingly.

The value of having a captive audience of Canada's brightest young scientific minds on the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ campus for a full week cannot be understated.

"The finalists truly do come from all over Canada, and there's this ripple affect associated with that," says Golsteyn. "It's not just that there are two or three students from every region, what you'll see is that individual schools all across the country will follow their students for the week. So for that week, an entire school will be talking about the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, whether that's in Nunavut or Victoria."

There are three qualification levels for judges, including those with master's degrees or greater in sciences, those with professional diplomas such as engineering or veterinary medicine, and those with professional diplomas and experience in a science and technology-related field. Scientists with French language skills are also especially welcomed.

The U of L is uniquely suited to host a Canada-Wide Science Fair because of its already inherent science outreach programs.

"That's one of the reasons for my commitment to doing this," says Golsteyn. "It is so aligned with what we already do at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ and what so many scientists are trying to do across the country. Here's an opportunity to share our expertise and to influence the next generation of young scientists."

He's seen, first-hand, how beneficial it is to students. His children (Quentin, 15, and Charlène, 12) have participated in science fairs and attended CWSF in Charlottetown, PEI last year. His daughter Audrey, 10, also has a distinct interest in microbiology and is likely on the same path.

"Sometimes science isolates students at that age. There are things that are cool and things that are less cool and sometimes science falls into that less cool category," says Golsteyn. "One of the goals of the science fair is to give these kids a week dedicated to science, and the opportunity to share it with people their own age who are just like them, just as thrilled about science as they are."

Those interested in joining Golsteyn on the judging committee can contact him at roy.golsteyn@youthscience.ca. He promises it will be a rewarding experience.

"I'm really excited about the possibilities this week provides for the U of L," he says. "It's a lot of work to do this right but in the end, it's so valuable to everyone involved, it's definitely worth it."

GET THE FACTS

· Student finalists for the Canada-Wide Science Fair are winners of their regional or provincial science fairs

· Approximately 400 projects from 500 youth finalists from across 100 national regions will be attending the Canada-Wide Science Fair

· Up to $1,000,000 in scholarships and prizes are available to participants

· U of L Arts & Science faculty have confirmation from Dean Dr. Chris Nicol that serving as judges for CWSF qualifies as part of their community service component

· Golsteyn, as chief judge, has relief for one of the two courses he was scheduled to teach this semester. His research activities continue however, "It just gets pushed a little later into the night," he says

Golsteyn on cutting edge of cancer research

trevor.kenney — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 16:46:18 +0000

Roy Golsteyn is an associate professor of biology and an Alberta Ingenuity faculty member at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge. He is an example of the growing numbers of faculty who conduct world-class research while maintaining a teaching schedule that brings that research into the classroom.

He directs the Cancer Cell Laboratory where his team studies the problem of how cancer cells escape a cancer treatment. The majority of cancer patients in Canada will receive some form of treatment, such as chemotherapy or radiation, and unfortunately these treatments are not as successful as we would like them to be.

To improve them, we need to understand all the steps that occur after a treatment. Golsteyn's research team has developed a new experimental system that uses microscopes and special biological tools to study how cancer cells react to treatments. They have found that after a treatment, cancer cells will divide one more time, a "double-or-nothing" gamble called checkpoint adaptation that may produce cells that are resistant to future treatments.

Golsteyn's laboratory studies checkpoint adaptation in collaboration with biotechnology companies and the pharmaceutical industry, with the goal of helping doctors improve treatments for cancer patients.

5 questions with . . . Dr. Roy Golsteyn

trevor.kenney — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 22:38:56 +0000

Roy Golsteyn is an associate professor of biology and an Alberta Ingenuity faculty member at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge.

Dr. Roy Golsteyn directs the Cancer Cell Laboratory where his team studies the problem of how cancer cells escape a cancer treatment.

What first piqued your interest in your research discipline?

I actually recall clearly when I first became interested in cancer research. I was a research fellow at the Institute Curie. At that time, a medical research laboratory had published the results of a clinical trial in which a new anti-cancer drug was tested. The trial was deemed to be successful, and yet upon studying the results I was stunned to learn that many of the patients in the clinical trial succumbed to the disease. It was then that I realized just how difficult the disease is, and that doctors and patients need better treatments.

How is your research applicable in "the real world"?

I am a basic research scientist who studies cancer cells. In my laboratory, our goal is to contribute to the cure. Cancer is a major disease that touches many people, including indirectly our family and friends. We sometimes collaborate with biotechnology companies and with the pharmaceutical industry, in which case we focus on real world problems such as improving existing cancer drugs.

What is the greatest honour you have received in your career?

The greatest honour is leading research projects that are funded by charitable donations. People generously give their money without asking precisely how it will be used. We try to meet this honour by doing the best research that we can and by sharing our knowledge as quickly as possible.

How important are students to your research endeavours?

Students are the lifeblood of research. When we train them, we quickly see the weak points in our own knowledge. When they become autonomous, they think of questions that we had not yet even imagined and thus they push at the old barriers in science. Finally, the best students have incredible energy and an open mind, something that we seem to lose as we get older. We need students in research.

If you had unlimited funds, which areas of research would you invest?

Very simple. Rather than funding an area of research, I would fund scientists who are very motivated and propose a well thought-out question. Motivated people get things done, so it seems natural to help them go to work. Our best ideas come from the imagination, not from instructions. Our knowledge about how cancer cells divide came from someone who studied cell division in sea urchin eggs. It was not expensive research, but it was amongst the most valuable and that made it an excellent investment.

Each month, the Legend will present 5 Questions With . . . one of our researchers. For a look at the entire catalog of 5 Questions With . . . features, check out the Office of Research and Innovation Services website at www.uleth.ca/research/research_profiles. If you'd like to be profiled, contact Penny Pickles at pickpj@uleth.ca

This story first appeared in the February 2012 edition of The Legend. To view the full issue in a flipbook format, follow this link.

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