UNews - Co-author

Goater helps breathe new life into textbook

trevor.kenney — Tue, 11 Feb 2014 17:45:09 +0000

An internationally recognized textbook on parasites has received a substantial upgrade due to the efforts of a ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge biologist, his brother and an American colleague.

Dr. Cam Goater, his brother and an American colleague spent eight years rewriting The second edition of Parasitism - The Diversity and Ecology of Animal Parasites.

The second edition of Parasitism: The Diversity and Ecology of Animal Parasites, published by Cambridge ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Press, is the result of years of work performed by the U of L’s Dr. Cam Goater (biological sciences), his brother Dr. Timothy Goater from Vancouver Island ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ and Gerald Esch of Wake Forest ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ in North Carolina.

Canadian, American and European faculty members are already using the 2014 text, aimed at senior undergraduate students.

“The first edition of the book accomplished a great deal. It was a text used heavily by professors and students in North America and around the world including Malaysia, and Japan. But it was significantly out-of-date,” says Goater. “The text has been completely rewritten. It is more conceptual and theoretical than it was before.”

Early reviews of the text are glowing.

The Goater brothers were approached by Cambridge eight years ago about creating a second version of the text. After years of writing and revisions the result is an encompassing product.

“There are texts available that deal with the diversity of parasites and those that tackle their ecology. This is the first text to offer a synthesis of both components,” says Goater, adding that the text will be valuable for students focusing on disciplines including biology, immunology, evolution, conservation biology and medical sciences.

The early reviews of the text are glowing. The book has been described by peers as “a true parasitological tour de force” and that “even the pros will learn from this book”. For Goater, the positive reception by his colleagues has made the years of work worth the effort, adding that he hopes the text becomes a valuable tool that will inspire students around the globe for many years.

Goater and his brother were born in Moose Factory, Ont. and grew up in North Bay. With nature as their playground, the two developed a love of ecology and biology. The brothers were eventually mentored by the same professor, the late Dr. Al Bush (a co-author of the original textbook), at Brandon ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ.

“Many people are curious as to how brothers end up in the same field. Certainly, our love of nature was inspired by our surroundings and we were fortunate to share a mentor, but our proximity in age (three years) also played a role,” says Goater.

Goater recalls a childhood incident, when he and his brother were teens, and they came across a sickly fox. In trying to help, the boys brought the fox home not knowing the animal was rabid. While the brothers had to undergo intramuscular injections of the prophylactic drug available at the time, they started to question why the fox was infected, why other animals weren’t, and how it was possible that a disease could change the demeanour of an animal. It is this complexity and their fascination with the phenomenon of parasitism that provides the focus of their text.

The enthusiasm the Goater brothers shared as youth has translated into their enthusiasm for teaching, benefitting students at both the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge and Vancouver Island ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ.

��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Provost and Vice-President (Academic) Andy Hakin says the release of this new text is emblematic of the type of university the U of L has become.

“Certainly this new text is an excellent career accomplishment for Dr. Goater and the knowledge contained within will benefit students for decades. However, more compelling to me is the experience Dr. Goater’s students are subject to in his class. Dr. Goater isn’t just teaching from a textbook – he wrote the textbook,” says Hakin.

Book Overview

Two core philosophies underlie the second edition of ‘Parasitism’, co-authored by Tim Goater, Cam Goater, and Jerry Esch. The first is that complex interactions that occur between parasites and their hosts – from the molecular cross-talk that occurs at the host-parasite interface, to the effects of parasites on host communities – are fundamentally ecological. The second is that a real appreciation for the phenomenon of parasitism requires knowledge of how natural selection has shaped parasite life cycles, life histories, and morphologies to solve particular problems associated with the parasitic lifestyle. Thus, for senior undergraduates that are being introduced to the phenomenon of parasitism in animals, the authors see a need for a single text with dual focus on the biodiversity and ecology/evolution of parasites. This dual, interdisciplinary approach, under one cover, is the hallmark of the text. The 17 chapters, eight of which are new since the first edition, have been thoroughly revised to meet the needs of a new generation of parasitology students, whether their interests lie in ecology, conservation biology, evolution, immunology, medical, wildlife, or veterinary sciences.

Birth experiences often fail to meet mothers' expectations

trevor.kenney — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 21:18:22 +0000

What expectant mothers envision for their birth experiences often isn't what they realize, according to a ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge study.

The result is a drastic rise in Caesarean section rates that has alternative health-care providers, feminist advocates for women's health and mainstream medical providers all expressing serious concerns about the medicalization of childbirth.

In a paper titled "Best Laid Plans? Women's Choices, Expectations and Experiences in Childbirth," ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge sociology researcher Dr. Claudia Malacrida and co-author, doctoral candidate Tiffany Boulton of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Leeds, UK, found that, contrary to the belief that modern birthing experiences are consumer driven because women have the capacity to plan for, make decisions about and choose a particular type of birth experience, a woman's capacity to 'drive the machine' of birth is severely limited.

"In women's prenatal education, in their conversations with their friends and in the books and online media pregnant women read, there is a consistent sense that, if women simply prepare and inform themselves appropriately, they will be in a position to make the right choices when giving birth," says Malacrida.

"We may think that natural birth advocates have little in common with medical practitioners when it comes to discussing women's birth choices. However, each perspective assumes women can and will make appropriate birth choices. Our study found that in practice, such choice is often illusory."

Dr. Claudia Malacrida finds that as much as women prepare and educate themselves before the birth process, they still lack control of the experience once it begins.

Malacrida and Boulton interviewed 22 recent mothers as part of a larger project examining the culture of birthing in southern Alberta.

Every woman they interviewed was well informed about the birthing process, had attended prenatal classes, sought out information online and read popular books or magazines about what to expect in the birthing room.

From these interviews, it was clear that all the mothers expected to make birthing choices based on the knowledge they had acquired.

"In our interviews, virtually all of the mothers described hoping to achieve 'as natural a birth as possible', which for most meant a vaginal birth with no intervention," says Malacrida. "A lot of the medical and lay discussion seems to assume that the rise in C-section rates, for example, rests with women who are 'too posh to push'. On the contrary, much medical and popular writing positions natural birth as the ideal, responsible choice. Thus, women are given a strong message that natural is best for mom, and especially best for baby."

Many women prepared birth plans, hired doulas and attended classes on non-traditional birthing methods, all in seeking a sense of control over the birthing process and to limit medical intervention.

"Once in the hospital, however, women described a cascade of intervention that began with induction or epidurals and spiraled outward," says Malacrida.

In the end, Malacrida and Boulton contend that although the majority of women plan to have as natural a birth as possible, their lived experiences differ significantly from their birth plans.

Further, the implication that women have choices in the birth experience, rather than empowering expectant mothers as effective and active consumers, creates a situation where they are instead culpable for the increasing medicalization of childbirth.

"Because women are so pressured to work towards this idealized natural birth, when their hospital experiences do not work out as planned, they often blame themselves," says Malacrida. "Women in our study expressed distress about failing as mothers, and not living up to their expectations, or the expectations of family and friends. The magic of birth seemed to elude them. Instead, they felt like they had let themselves and their babies down."

The paper was recently published in Health: An Interdisciplinary Journal for the Social Study of Health, Illness and Medicine.

This story first appeared in the June 2013 edition of the Legend. For a look at the full issue in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Hunting and gathering in the casino

trevor.kenney — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 15:02:50 +0000

Study looks at how human evolutionary history may dictate decision-making in activities of chance

Humans, for survival reasons, are designed to react and make decisions within the context of their surroundings.

In the real world this serves people well. In artificial, random environments, like those associated with gambling, a person's inherent desire to react to past experiences is a fruitless exercise.

In a recent study published by Frontiers in Psychology, researchers from McMaster ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ, the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge and Liverpool John Moores ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ suggest that betting decisions made by gamblers may be linked to the basic attention inhibitory processes used by early humans for their search activities (i.e. food).

Dr. Dan Weeks, a psychology researcher at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, says humans tend to inhibit their responses to targets which they have already responded to. In other words, humans have evolved to modify their behaviour based on what they experience in certain locations.

"Humans make rational decisions on a day-to-day basis based on experience. Think about someone picking apples in an orchard. Once the apples from the first tree are picked, it is a rational decision to move on to the next tree," says Weeks. "We decided to undertake this study to see if there was a correlation in an artificial environment like a casino. How do gamblers react if they win? What about if they lose?"

Researchers conducted two experiments to test this theory.

First, participants were asked to take part in a reaction test in which one of two targets was illuminated. The lighting of these targets was random but participants were able to react to lights after the fact. Researchers then gave the participants two dollars worth of nickels and asked them to bet on the outcome before the targets were illuminated. Researchers found that participants maintained the amounts of their bets regardless of whether they won or lost. But in instances where they won, they were more likely to move their bets to the other target for their next wager.

In a second test, participants took turns undertaking the same test with a partner. As was the case in the initial experiment, players maintained the amount of their bets regardless of whether they won or lost. What was interesting is that after observing their partner guess right on a certain target, participants were more likely to move on to the next target when their turn came.

Lead author, Dr. Jim Lyons, a kinesiology researcher at McMaster ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ notes that there are several exciting implications resulting from the study.

"The results suggest, perhaps for the first time, that certain aspects of problem gambling behaviour may be related to basic, neurobiological factors that drive the orienting of attention," says Lyons. "Of even greater interest perhaps is how this relationship is strongest in social settings where watching whether another person wins or loses influences how you bet."

Co-author Dr. Digby Elliott comments that "these are also important findings because they suggest that, at least in some cases, these behaviours might be resistant to current behavioural intervention strategies."

The research team plans to continue this research by looking at how this sort of behaviour may change as people age,, since there is considerable evidence to suggest that problem gambling can be particularly acute in elderly populations.

The Frontiers article can be found at http://www.frontiersin.org/Cognition/10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00072/full

Small business, big opportunity

trevor.kenney — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 22:01:06 +0000

According to the provincial government, small businesses make up about 96 per cent of all businesses in Alberta. While they may be small, they certainly are mighty. In fact, small businesses in the province contribute nearly 30 per cent of Alberta's gross domestic product (GDP) – a figure that puts them first in the country for small business GDP per capita in 2009. But it's not just small enterprises in Alberta that are economic powerlifters. Across Canada, small businesses are doing their bit by employing half of the total workforce.

The hard reality, however, is that 75 per cent of Canadian small businesses fold within nine years. Why does that happen, and what factors contribute to the long-term success of some small businesses?

These questions and others like them are being explored at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge's newly established Small Business Institute (SBI) in the Faculty of Management. Founded earlier this year, the SBI links small businesses to the expertise of researchers, professionals and other business people. Simply put, the SBI serves as a hub for research on small businesses and a resource for those who own, work at and are interested in them.

Dr. M. Gordon Hunter and Dan Kazakoff want to help area small businesses avoid the pitfalls that doom many great ideas.

The Institute investigates many issues related to businesses, including succession, sustainability and franchising. The SBI also works with rural areas throughout southern Alberta, where small businesses are often the lifeblood of the community.

"The SBI is an excellent example of U of L professors and researchers working to ensure that their work is relevant and valued in the community, and that leading business practices can be adopted by small businesses in the region," says David Hill, director of Centres and Institutes at the U of L.

The SBI was established by researchers Dr. M. Gordon Hunter and Dan Kazakoff. Both professors in the Faculty of Management, they worked together initially to co-author the book Little Empires: Multi-Generational Small Business in Southern Alberta, Canada. Published in 2008, Little Empires profiled 11 local, family-run operations.

"We wanted to help small businesses learn from each other," says Kazakoff, noting that the SBI was a logical evolution of the work invested in Little Empires. "With the Institute, we wanted to raise the profile of small businesses and interact with the community. It was our way of giving back."

The strategy works well, says Paul McDonald (BMgt '88), one of the entrepreneurs featured in Little Empires. McDonald, along with his brothers Jim (BMgt '80) and Gord (BMgt '89), owns the McDonald Auto Group, which has operated in southern Alberta since 1942. While the family business originally sold John Deere tractors, it now owns McDonald Chevrolet Buick GMC in Taber and McDonald Nissan in Lethbridge.

Participating in Little Empires, says McDonald, was an eye-opening experience. "It allowed me to see how other businesses operate and what allowed them to prosper." Today, he repays those insights by serving on the SBI's Advisory Board. "They want to know the challenges small businesses face and the resources we need to succeed in the future. We provide that feedback."

In addition to guiding the SBI's initiatives, Alberta businesses are also supporting them financially. This fall, ATB Financial made a $36,000 investment in the SBI that will sponsor a speaker series and bring industry leaders and researchers – including Hunter and Kazakoff – to rural communities throughout southern Alberta. The purpose of the business education seminars is to share knowledge and experiences on topics pertaining to small businesses.

That expertise is also showcased in Hunter and Kazakoff's second book, which was released earlier this year. Unlike Little Empires though, Small Business: Journey to Success was written primarily for an academic audience, reflecting the researchers' goal to eventually develop new courses within the Faculty of Management that focus on small businesses and bring new knowledge into the classroom.

In the meantime, Hunter and Kazakoff are busy with a number of research projects. The team, for example, has previously examined why small businesses fail (e.g., owners lack passion and focus) and how small enterprises survived the financial crisis (e.g., they were already operating in a fiscally conservative manner). Now the researchers are studying why small businesses typically do not partake in insolvency processes to deal with deteriorating financial situations (e.g., owners usually cannot afford the inherent expense).

Down the road, Hunter and Kazakoff will also look at small businesses' contributions to the local economy and how the agricultural industry has been affected by changes to the Canadian Wheat Board. The researchers also plan to compare the success stories of indigenous entrepreneurs in Canada with those of the Maori in New Zealand.

"Through our research," says Hunter, "we hope to expand our reach locally, regionally, nationally and internationally."

For more information on the U of L's Small Business Institute, please visit: www.uleth.ca/management/sbi

This story first appeared in the Fall 2012 issue of SAM. For a look at the full issue in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Lapadat named first VP Students

trevor.kenney — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 18:28:21 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Board of Governors has approved the appointment of Dr. Judith C. Lapadat as the institution's first associate vice-president (students).

Lapadat is currently a professor in the School of Education, College of Arts, Social and Health Sciences at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) and the Chair of the UNBC Northwest Regional Campus, based in Terrace, B.C.

The associate vice-president (students) is a new position within the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ administrative system, and reflects the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ's commitment to student success and enhancing the student experience.

Lapadat will oversee the Registrar's Office and Student Services and will work closely with the Office of the Vice-President (Academic).

"We are very pleased to have Dr. Lapadat join our team," says Dr. Andy Hakin, the U of L's vice-president (academic) and provost. "She has a broad range of skills and experiences in teaching, research, course and program development as well as a keen understanding of the student services environment and student experience, which we expect will greatly assist the U of L as we reinforce our own student-centred processes."

Lapadat holds a PhD from Simon Fraser ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ (Education; Instructional Psychology, 1992) a master's degree from The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of British Columbia (Audiology and Speech Sciences, 1983) and a bachelor of arts degree from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of British Columbia (Linguistics, 1979).

Prior to her career as an academic researcher, teacher and administrator, Lapadat worked as a speech pathologist in public and private practice in Saskatchewan and British Columbia. She is the author or co-author of three books and numerous peer-reviewed journal articles and, as an artist, has had her award-winning work exhibited throughout northern British Columbia.

As she transitions from her UNBC position, it is expected she will be on campus during the spring 2012 semester.

Hurly study explores hummingbird habits

trevor.kenney — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 17:40:53 +0000

By TAMERA JONES, UK (Natural Environment Research Council, with U of L Communications staff and researcher input)

Hummingbirds are a welcome sign of spring, and a colourful reminder that the flowers in your garden are not just nice to look at, but are also an important food source.

But hummingbirds don't rely on taste alone when deciding how much nectar to drink from a new flower. Instead, they wait to see how they feel after their first meal, a new study reveals.

This is unexpected, because scientists know that hummingbirds can detect minuscule changes in nectar concentrations from one flower to the next. This "choice behaviour" research is one result of nearly 20 years of hummingbird study at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Westcastle Field Station by U of L biological sciences researcher Dr. Andrew Hurly, Dr. Sue Healy and numerous colleagues and students from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Edinburgh and the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of St. Andrews.

A hummingbird feeds from a constructed feeder. Photo by Dr. Andrew Hurly.

Hurly and Healy have been studying cognition, behaviour and ecology of rufous hummingbirds since 1992.

Approximately 40 undergraduate and graduate students from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Edinburgh and the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of St. Andrews have been involved in the hummingbird research project.

Like their extraordinary talent for flying thousands of kilometres from Mexico to Canada, taking the right amount of nectar onboard is a bit of an art – especially for such a tiny bird that weighs just three grams.

If they drink too much weak nectar, the extra load makes flying inefficient; if they don't take on enough of the same nectar, they'll have to eat again much sooner. On the other hand, if they drink too much of a rich nectar, they could easily get fat.

"The birds will almost certainly be able to detect the change in taste, but it seems they choose to ignore it until they get post-ingestive information before altering how much they drink the next time," explains Healy from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of St. Andrews, a co-author of the study.

The researchers wanted to see how a group of wild rufous hummingbirds that breed in the Canadian Rocky Mountains responded to changes in food quality.
They dotted feeders containing different concentrations of nectar solution along the Westcastle river valley to be ready for the birds' return to the area from their overwintering grounds in Mexico.

Nectar concentrations in the flowers hummingbirds feed on vary from as low as seven per cent sugar to as high as 60 per cent. The researchers started by filling the feeders with a 14 per cent sugar solution.

Once the birds got used to this concentration, Healy and her colleagues changed to a 25 per cent solution. They found that the birds didn't change how much nectar they drank, sometimes persisting until the fourth meal.

"They take the same volume irrespective of concentration," explains Healy.

When they trained the birds to expect more concentrated sucrose in the feeders and then switched to the weaker solution, they got exactly the same result. Hummingbirds usually feed every 10 or 15 minutes, and only drink for a few seconds at a time. But because they digest nectar so quickly, they don't have to wait long to get the information they need to decide how much to drink for their next meal.

Other researchers have found that other creatures, like molluscs, wolves and cattle also rely on post-ingestive information about food before deciding how much to eat the next time. So even though hummingbirds certainly prefer sweeter nectar, it may not be surprising that taste alone is not enough to make a decision.

This story first appeared in the Legend. For a look at the Legend in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Fenske made the most of his U of L opportunities

trevor.kenney — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 21:50:46 +0000

When he enrolled in psychology at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, Dr. Mark Fenske (BSc '96, Distinction) had a goal – he wanted to help people.

The associate professor in the Department of Psychology at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Guelph, and co-author of the Canadian best-seller, The Winner's Brain: 8 Strategies Great Minds Use to Achieve Success, initially thought about becoming a counsellor. But after the opportunity to work as a research assistant for
Dr. Scott Allen opened up, Fenske found he was hooked on cognitive psychology.

"Lethbridge has some really good people. You get to know these people on a level that you probably wouldn't at a larger institution," says Fenske. "Working with Drs. Scott Allen, John Vokey and Don Read, who were the cognition faculty in the psychology department at the time, was a bit of an awakening for me. I was able to learn about memory, about how we interact with the world around us, what drives our behaviour, how we make decisions and how we pay attention.
"I learned there is so much more to psychology than the commonly-held view of people lying on a couch and talking about their problems."

Alumnus Mark Fenske is thankful for the research foundation he established while still an undergraduate student.

Fenske made the most of his one-on-one opportunities with faculty.

"I was able to get a lot of face time with faculty and learn what life in a research lab is all about," he says. "It really cultivated a sense of excitement for research, and I was given a lot of responsibility. I learned a lot in terms of computer programming, setting up experiments, running subjects and how to analyze data. Those are skills and training that I otherwise might not have gotten until grad school."

By the time he graduated in 1996, Fenske knew that he wanted to pursue a career in academia.

"One of the driving forces for me has always been about how I can have a positive impact on others. A lot of the people who have had a major influence on my life have been teachers or instructors," he says. "If you are teaching three or four classes a year and each class has up to 100 students, you have the potential to have a positive influence on lots of people. And as an academic, when you are not preparing or giving lectures, you get to investigate important issues that you find interesting. It is a fantastic job."

Supported by NSERC scholarships, Fenske completed both a master's and PhD in psychology from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Waterloo by 2001. After a two-year post doc at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Wales in Bangor, Fenske moved to Boston, Mass. in 2003, where he began to integrate cognitive psychology with neuroscience, the study of the brain.

"In Boston I worked at the Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, where I had a dual appointment as a research fellow with Harvard Medical School and as an assistant in neuroscience at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). With rapid advances in neuroimaging technology, it became clear that we could learn a lot more by combining our study of human cognition with neuroscience," says Fenske. "Using MRI scanners, we were able to look at the structure of the brain and the areas of activation that related to different cognitive operations. What I now do is try to understand how it is that we do what we do. How do we pay attention to things, remember things and what elicits different emotional responses?"

Fenske spent four years at MGH and Harvard, the last two as faculty, before returning to Canada to work at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Guelph in 2007. In spite of the years of intense research and study, he has never lost sight of his original goal of helping people.

In recent years, he has worked on bringing the knowledge he has gained about cognitive-affective neuroscience to the general public. His work on The Winner's Brain with Dr. Jeff Brown serves as an example.

"The book is all about the neuroscience of success," says Fenske. "What we do with our brain – the different ways in which we stimulate, engage and care for it – can have a significant impact on the way it works, and even alter its physical landscape. We looked at what the latest brain science says about people that excel in key areas related to success, and the various strategies the rest of us can use to fine-tune our brains and become more successful."

GET THE FACTS

· The Winner's Brain was on Amazon Canada's bestseller list, ranking 20th in the All Books category and first in both the Psychology and Success classifications. U of L neuroscience instructor, Dr. Bryan Kolb, is featured in the book.

· Fenske writes a bi-weekly column, Better Brain, for the Globe and Mail newspaper.

· He is the recipient of grants in excess of $1 million and is currently working with the Gambling Research Exchange Ontario.

· Fenske has published more than 35 articles, abstracts and theses, and has presented at more than 40 conferences and seminars.

This story first appeared in the Legend. For a full look at the January issue of the Legend, follow this link.

Fenske appreciates opportunities he was given

trevor.kenney — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 22:48:22 +0000

When he enrolled in psychology at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, Dr. Mark Fenske (BSc '96, Distinction) had a goal – he wanted to help people.

The associate professor in the Department of Psychology at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Guelph, and co-author of the Canadian best-seller, The Winner's Brain: 8 Strategies Great Minds Use to Achieve Success, initially thought about becoming a counsellor. But after the opportunity to work as a research assistant for Dr. Scott Allen opened up, Fenske found he was hooked on cognitive psychology.

Alumnus Mark Fenske is thankful for the research foundation he established while still an undergraduate.

"Lethbridge has some really good people. You get to know these people on a level that you probably wouldn't at a larger institution," says Fenske. "Working with Drs. Scott Allen, John Vokey and Don Read, who were the cognition faculty in the psychology department at the time, was a bit of an awakening for me. I was able to learn about memory, about how we interact with the world around us, what drives our behaviour, how we make decisions and how we pay attention.
"I learned there is so much more to psychology than the commonly-held view of people lying on a couch and talking about their problems."

Fenske made the most of his one-on-one opportunities with faculty.

"I was able to get a lot of face time with faculty and learn what life in a research lab is all about," he says. "It really cultivated a sense of excitement for research, and I was given a lot of responsibility.
I learned a lot in terms of computer programming, setting up experiments, running subjects and how to analyze data. Those are skills and training that I otherwise might not have gotten until grad school."

By the time he graduated in 1996, Fenske knew that he wanted to pursue a career in academia.

"One of the driving forces for me has always been about how I can have a positive impact on others. A lot of the people who have had a major influence on my life have been teachers or instructors," he says. "If you are teaching three or four classes a year and each class has up to 100 students, you have the potential to have a positive influence on lots of people. And as an academic, when you are not preparing or giving lectures, you get to investigate important issues that you find interesting. It is a fantastic job."

Supported by NSERC scholarships, Fenske completed both a master's and PhD in psychology from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Waterloo by 2001. After a two-year post doc at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Wales in Bangor, Fenske moved to Boston, Mass. in 2003, where he began to integrate cognitive psychology with neuroscience, the study of the brain.

"In Boston I worked at the Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, where I had a dual appointment as a research fellow with Harvard Medical School and as an assistant in neuroscience at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). With rapid advances in neuroimaging technology, it became clear that we could learn a lot more by combining our study of human cognition with neuroscience," says Fenske. "Using MRI scanners, we were able to look at the structure of the brain and the areas of activation that related to different cognitive operations. What I now do is try to understand how it is that we do what we do. How do we pay attention to things, remember things and what elicits different emotional responses?"

Fenske spent four years at MGH and Harvard, the last two as faculty, before returning to Canada to work at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Guelph in 2007. In spite of the years of intense research and study, he has never lost sight of his original goal of helping people.

In recent years, he has worked on bringing the knowledge he has gained about cognitive-affective neuroscience to the general public. His work on The Winner's Brain with Dr. Jeff Brown serves as an example.

"The book is all about the neuroscience of success," says Fenske. "What we do with our brain – the different ways in which we stimulate, engage and care for it – can have a significant impact on the way it works, and even alter its physical landscape. We looked at what the latest brain science says about people that excel in key areas related to success, and the various strategies the rest of us can use to fine-tune our brains and become more successful."

GET THE FACTS

• The Winner's Brain was on Amazon Canada's bestseller list, ranking 20th in the All Books category and first in both the Psychology and Success classifications. U of L neuroscience instructor, Dr. Bryan Kolb, is featured in the book.

• Fenske writes a bi-weekly column, Better Brain, for the Globe and Mail newspaper.

• He is the recipient of grants in excess of $1 million and is currently working with the Gambling Research Exchange Ontario.

• Fenske has published more than 35 articles, abstracts and theses, and has presented at more than 40 conferences and seminars.

For a full look at the January issue of the Legend, follow this link.

Wood, Hosgood appointments ratified

trevor.kenney — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 20:59:38 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Board of Governors recently ratified the appointment of Dr. Robert Wood as the dean of the School of Graduate Studies and the re-appointment of Dr. Christopher Hosgood as the dean of the Faculty of Heath Sciences.

Hosgood, an historian, former associate dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and a U of L faculty member since 1988, begins his second term as dean of Health Sciences. He presided over the transition of the Faculty from a School, the expansion of both student enrolments and Faculty programs, and a recent move into Markin Hall.

His main research interests deal with consumerism and shopping in Victorian Britain. He has recently been involved in research projects on, among other topics, the social history of gambling in Alberta.

Wood, a sociology researcher and faculty member since 2000, had served as the interim head of Graduate Studies since July 2010. He is the author or co-author of two books and numerous research articles on gambling issues, and has recently produced a unique educational program on gambling reduction strategies for children.

Wood recently produced a unique educational program on gambling reduction strategies for children with colleague Dr. Robert Williams (addictions counselling).

Wood to take over interim SGS role

trevor.kenney — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 21:07:59 +0000

Dr. Robert Wood (Department of Sociology) will serve as the interim head of the School of Graduate Studies while the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ conducts a search for a permanent replacement for Dr. Jo-Anne Fiske.

Wood takes on the interim role, effective July 1, following Fiske, who resigned in May after a five-year term as dean.

"Dr. Fiske is stepping down for health-related reasons and will be commencing an administrative leave prior to returning to a faculty position within the women's studies department," says Dr. Andy Hakin, vice-president and provost.

"I would like to thank Dr. Fiske for her stewardship of the School of Graduate Studies and I wish her much success in her future endeavours."

Wood studies problem gambling in adults and youth and, among other topics, several types of youth subculture.

He is the author or co-author of two books and numerous research articles on gambling issues, and has recently produced a unique educational program on gambling reduction strategies for children with colleague Dr. Robert Williams (Faculty of Health Sciences, addictions counselling).

Wood joined the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge faculty in 2000 and is currently an associate professor of sociology. Hakin says a national search for the position of dean of Graduate Studies has been initiated, with the goal of making an appointment to commence January 1, 2011 or, at the latest, July 1, 2011.

"I am very pleased that (Dr. Wood) has chosen to take on the role of interim head of the School of Graduate Studies, and look forward to his leadership as we move the school through this time of transition," says Hakin. "Our community has identified the growth of graduate opportunities at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge as a key strategic direction within the 2009-13 Strategic Plan and we are not losing sight of that important decision."

Hakin adds that with Wood's interim appointment, and a new administrative structure in place that involves a number of faculty members from all areas of campus to guide the School of Graduate studies in an advisory capacity, the daily and future operations of SGS are assured while a search begins for a new dean.

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