U of A tech quenches thirst at home and in India

Sushanta Mitra, professor of engineering, holds a sensor that will help ensure safe drinking water. (Photo: Richard Siemens)

The University of Alberta recently unveiled new technologies that will result in better water for remote communities in Canada and India.

The advancements include new rapid detection for pathogens and contaminants, new low-energy UV treatment technologies, and novel engineered nanomaterials.

When introduced into a drinking-water supply, biologically benign engineered nanoparticles passively degrade organic and biological contaminants, thereby making the water safe to drink, said Greg Goss, executive director of the U of A's Water Initiative.

Goss presented the university's proposals at the annual conference of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Feb. 16 in Boston.

In Canada, U of A undergraduate and graduate students will work in communities as varied in size and location as Thorsby, 30 minutes south of Edmonton, and the hamlet of Pangnirtung, 50 kilometres south of the Arctic Circle.

In India, the U of A team will test and install next-generation water purification technology in two locations: the city of Nagpur and the remote town of Banga in Punjab.

"Our students and researchers will be boots on the ground in water-challenged communities, putting U of A technologies to work at home and in India," said Goss.

Ringette Ices Cancer

U of A Ringette hosted the fourth annual Ringette Scores on Cancer charity tournament this past January at West Edmonton Mall, raising money for cancer research at the Cross Cancer Institute through the Alberta Cancer Foundation. The reigning national university ringette champions broke their six-figure goal, ending up with $110,000, according to media reports. That's on top of the $250,000 raised over the first three years of the tournament.

Players from participating teams each raised a minimum of $100, and with 21 squads signed up from Alberta, Saskatchewan and British Columbia, Ringette Scores on Cancer IV was bigger, livelier and more fun, said organizers.

Participants also faced off against former NHL players, other athletes and local personalities for the media/celebrity game.

It's not easy saving Stan

Photo: Richard Siemens

In the span of minutes, future nurses, health-care aides, pharmacists, respiratory therapists, doctors, paramedics and other health sciences students go from nervous anticipation to full-out action, triaging, diagnosing and treating a steady stream of patients in a busy emergency room.

These 250 students took part in the annual Save Stan this March, which put them through nearly two dozen training scenarios in the state-of-the-art HSERC simulation lab and the Nursing Learning Resources Centre in the Edmonton Clinic Health Academy.

The simulations ranged from working with high-risk inner city youth to palliative care to prenatal care to the ER "mashup," featuring the high-fidelity mannequin nicknamed Stan.

The annual event brings together students from across the health sciences from the University of Alberta, MacEwan University, NAIT and NorQuest College.

Save Stan is an opportunity for U of A students to take their skills beyond the classroom and learn about programs from other institutions, says William Lau, a nutrition student and co-president of the Health Sciences Students' Association.

"We are doing our very best to prepare our students to provide the best care, whether they go into an emergency room, into the community, in palliative care or in the inner city," says Sharla King, '92 BPE, '95 MSc, '01 PhD, director of the Health Sciences Council's Health Sciences Education and Research Commons, creator and an organizer of Save Stan. "We've given them the skill sets they need, in scenarios that require collaboration across disciplines."

The Dinosaur Mating Dance

Ilustration: Sydney Mohr

Some dinosaurs used to strut their stuff like peacocks when looking for a mate, suggests a U of A researcher.

Scott Persons looked at the evolutionary process of four different dinosaur species, some separated by millions of years, and determined that a group called oviraptors had fused vertebrae in the ends of their tails that formed a blade-like structure. Among modern creatures, only birds have a similar structure - strong evidence these dinosaurs had feathered tails. Persons believes the dinosaurs waved their plumage to attract a mate.

Make your own dino discovories this fall as the U of A launches Dino 101, its first massive open online course.

The many faces of inclusion and exclusion

For this year's International Week photo contest, the University of Alberta International's Global Education Program posed a seemingly simple question: What do inclusion and exclusion look like? Students and staff took photographs as their answers.

The winning image, The Road Ahead, comes from Ruth Vilayil, '10 MD. Check out a slideshow of all 20 contest finalists here.

Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry produces more than great physicians

The Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry injected $2 billion into the Alberta economy in 2011-12, according to an impact study released in May.

That number is a result of the faculty's teaching, research and clinical care mission. When the study's authors took into account the related impacts - such as research and commercialization - the actual economic impact was closer to $4 billion, according to the study, conducted by Pennsylvania-based consulting firm Tripp Umbach.

"The purposeful linkage of education, research and patient care creates a critical mass of expertise in a system whereby research develops the evidence base, patient care applies and refines the evidence base and faculty members build on the evidence base to teach best practices for care and prevention," according to the study.

The faculty has played a critical role in at least 21 spin-off biomedical companies over the past five years.

Within Alberta, U of A Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry graduates make up:

• 28 per cent of practising family physicians and specialists

• 52 per cent of practising dentists

• 25 per cent of medical laboratory technologists

• 40 per cent of dental hygienists

Alumni Community Expands

The University of Alberta Alumni Association is welcoming two new groups into the alumni community.

Medical and dental residents, and U of A certificate holders are now considered associate U of A alumni, following a decision this spring by Alumni Council, the governing body of the association. "Alumni Council wanted to be as inclusive as possible," says Jane Halford, '94 BCom, president of the association. "These are people who complete a course of study at the U of A, and we want to ensure we include them in our alumni family."

Although benefits accorded to associate alumni will vary slightly from regular alumni, they will receive access to alumni events and initiatives, affinity partner discounts and New Trail.

The associate alumni designation will automatically apply to all residents and certificate holders going forward. Those who completed their courses before spring 2013 and want the associate alumni designation can call (780)492-3224 or email alumni@ualberta.ca.