cwsf 2018 - ottawa, ontario · cwsf 2018 - ottawa, ontario advait maybhate 3dpocket - computational...

CWSF 2018 - Ottawa, Ontario

Advait Maybhate3DPocket - Computational Prediction of Ligand Binding Sites inProteins

Challenge:Category:Region:City:School:Abstract:

InnovationSeniorWaterloo-WellingtonWaterloo, ONSir John A. Macdonald S.S.Identifying the binding sites of ligands, which bind to proteins, is a crucialtask. Understanding the shape and size of such binding sites allows for thecreation of drugs that bind to these binding sites, preventing other ligands,potentially stopping the spread of diseases such as HIV. This projectproposes a new geometry-based algorithm to tackle the challenge ofidentifying ligand binding sites within proteins.

Awards ValueExcellence Award - Senior - Silver MedalSponsor: Youth Science CanadaCarleton University Entrance AwardSenior Silver Medallist - $2,000 Entrance AwardSponsor: Carleton University

$2 000

Dalhousie University Faculty of Science Entrance ScholarshipSenior Silver Medallist - $2500 Entrance ScholarshipSponsor: Dalhousie University, Faculty of Science

$2 500

UBC Science (Vancouver) Entrance AwardSenior Silver Medallist - $2000 Entrance ScholarshipSponsor: The University of British Columbia (Vancouver)

$2 000

University of Ottawa Entrance ScholarshipSenior Silver Medallist - $2000 Entrance ScholarshipSponsor: University of Ottawa

$2 000

Western University ScholarshipSilver Medallist - $2000 Entrance ScholarshipSponsor: Western University

$2 000

Total $10 500

Youth Science CanadaPO Box 297Pickering ON L1V 2R4www.youthscience.ca / [email protected]

BiographyMy name is Advait Maybhate. I am a grade 12student and a SHAD fellow from Waterloo,Ontario. My passions include computerscience, the natural sciences andmathematics. In the past, I have worked as asoftware intern at Christie Digital where Iimproved their camera calibration tools forprojection mapping. My latest love is tocompete in hackathons, recently winning theCockroachDB prize at Hack the North for asoftware application that can summarizelectures using speech-to-text technology.Additionally, I love to compete in longdistance sports, specifically cross countryrunning and nordic skiing, in which I was the2016 regional champion. I am also the schoolchampion for the Pascal, Cayley and Galoismath contests, run by the University ofWaterloo. Currently, I am the president ofscience club and leader of computer scienceclub at my school where I deliver lessons onseveral concepts, e.g. recursion, evolution,time complexity, etc., and organizeexperiments. I competed at CWSF last year,where I created a novel algorithm to identifyDNA motifs, winning a silver medal. This year,I continued in the field of bioinformatics,tackling the challenge of identifyingprotein-ligand binding sites.


Connie ChengA Novel Kidney-Mimicking Microfluidic Device for Hemodialysis


InnovationSeniorWaterloo-WellingtonWaterloo, ONSir John A. Macdonald S.S.A novel biologically inspired device that cleans waste products from theblood for people with kidney failure was created. Current hemodialysisdevices are very expensive and too large to be portable. My device is oversixty-three times more efficient at filtration, costs less than a dollar to make,and fits in the palm of the hand. This device has the potential torevolutionize hemodialysis treatment.

Awards ValueS.M. Blair Family Foundation Award - SeniorSponsor: S.M. Blair Family Foundation

$1 000

Excellence Award - Senior - Silver MedalSponsor: Youth Science CanadaCarleton University Entrance AwardSenior Silver Medallist - $2,000 Entrance AwardSponsor: Carleton University

$2 000

Dalhousie University Faculty of Science Entrance ScholarshipSenior Silver Medallist - $2500 Entrance ScholarshipSponsor: Dalhousie University, Faculty of Science

$2 500

UBC Science (Vancouver) Entrance AwardSenior Silver Medallist - $2000 Entrance ScholarshipSponsor: The University of British Columbia (Vancouver)

$2 000

University of Ottawa Entrance ScholarshipSenior Silver Medallist - $2000 Entrance ScholarshipSponsor: University of Ottawa

$2 000

Western University ScholarshipSilver Medallist - $2000 Entrance ScholarshipSponsor: Western University

$2 000

Total $11 500


BiographyHello! I am currently a senior at Sir John AMacdonald Secondary School, and plan todouble major in biology and design inuniversity. I have conducted research in a labat the University of Waterloo since eighthgrade, and recently presented my work at aninternational conference and in a publishedpaper. Outside of research, I love to work onmy startup, draw and paint, run track, andplay badminton. My project was inspired bypeople in my life who have kidney diseaseand require hemodialysis. Their negativeexperiences and dissatisfaction withtreatment prompted me to ask the question:"How can I improve current hemodialysisdevices?", which led me to create a noveldevice that targets design flaws and willhopefully improve user experience. I currentlyhave a patent pending, and in the future hopeto continue improving the device and use mydesign skills to turn this device into acommercially available product. For studentsthinking about doing a project - reach out toteachers, faculty, and others with expertise,who don't necessarily have to be in the fieldthat your project is in. The guidance,knowledge, resources, and uniqueperspectives they can give you areinvaluable.


Adam MartinezAn Engineered Biosensor for Detecting and Quantifying Silver &Copper Ions


EnvironmentIntermediateWaterloo-WellingtonConestogo, ONWaterloo Collegiate InstituteSilver and copper ions are commonly used as antimicrobials in the cleaningand medical industries. However, there are medical and environmentalconcerns regarding their use, making detecting and quantifying thesemetals important. Presented here are two genetically engineered bacterialbiosensors which are able to detect and quantify a variety of silver andcopper ion concentrations.

Awards ValueChallenge Award - Environment - IntermediateSponsor: Youth Science CanadaExcellence Award - Intermediate - Gold MedalSponsor: Youth Science CanadaWestern University ScholarshipGold Medallist - $4000 Entrance ScholarshipSponsor: Western University

$4 000

Total $4 000


BiographyMy name is Adam Martinez and I am a grade10 student from Conestogo-Waterloo,Canada. My main interests are in MolecularBiology, Biotechnology and PureMathematics. My research mainly deals withheavy metal antimicrobials, resistancemechanisms in bacteria, and applications inmedicine and environmental sustainability. InMathematics, I have a particular interest inLinear and Abstract Algebra. I also likeplaying the piano (grade 10 RCM) and violin,and studying foreign languages. Additionally, Ienjoyed playing Macbeth and Oberon inschool plays.


Sasha SeufertDelivering of DNA to Tardigrades via Nematocysts


InnovationIntermediateWaterloo-WellingtonGuelph, ONCentennial Collegiate & Vocational InstituteJellyfish posses millions of micro-needle like stinging cells embedded intheir tentacles, often used to inject venom into prey. My goal is to determinewhether or not these stinging cells can be used to deliver DNA into waterbears; a micro-organism of great interest in the scientific community. Thisfast and low-cost injection method would help scientists study the uniquegenomic makeup of water bears.

Awards ValueExcellence Award - Intermediate - Bronze MedalSponsor: Youth Science CanadaWestern University ScholarshipBronze Medallist - $1000 Entrance ScholarshipSponsor: Western University

$1 000

Total $1 000


BiographyMy name is Sasha Seufert and I live inGuelph, Ontario. I am a grade 10 student atCentennial Collegiate & Vocational Institute: Asecondary school well known for it's excellentAP biology and biotechnology courses. Myinvolvement in the STEAM disciplines datesback to when I was a child. My first interestwas circuit design, when I received my firstelectronic snap circuit kit. I was shocked!!Ever since, my interests expanded tocomputer science, biotechnology, andhardware engineering. Currently, I amworking on a faster and more cost-effectiveapproach to delivering DNA into tardigrades,which involves nematocysts: biological"syringes" which jellyfish use to sting anddeliver venom into their pray. Like manyindividuals in the scientific community, I gainmy inspiration from journals about recentinnovations in the medical industry. Once Ifind an interesting topic, I begin to ask myselfquestions: How can I improve this concept?What benefit does the innovation serve to thescientific community? And finally, does theidea hold a commercial value? If my ideameets all three criteria, I may confidentlybegin my scientific process. Holy piece ofadvice: Follow up EVERY lab session withvery detailed notes of what you did!


Holden FordGo Green or No Green?


EnergyJuniorWaterloo-WellingtonConestogo, ONCentennial P.S.In 2016, Canada burned more than 16 billion liters of diesel, just one ofmany non-renewable fossil fuels. Because of the environmental implicationsassociated with burning fossil fuels it's important that an alternative fuelsource is found. This project explores the viability of biodiesel as analternative fuel source. It considered fuel efficiency and economy, andobserved emissions from a variety of biodiesel fuel blends.

Awards ValueExcellence Award - Junior - Bronze MedalSponsor: Youth Science CanadaWestern University ScholarshipBronze Medallist - $1000 Entrance ScholarshipSponsor: Western University

$1 000

Total $1 000


BiographyHolden Ford is an aspiring engineer whohopes to attend the University of Waterloo formechanical or mechatronics engineeringbefore pursing graduate studies inbiomechatronics engineering atMassachusetts Institute of Technology.Holden fills his time playing lacrosse,snowboarding, reading and exploring theworld of STEM. Through his studies andinterests, Holden has focused a lot of timeand energy on the environment. His passionfor making the world better inspired him toresearch ways we can combat the very largeproblem of global warming. This lead him tomix his own biodiesel and blend it with nitroremote control (RC) fuel see if it could be runin an (RC) car. He hopes to try thesebiodiesel blends with diesel in a full-scale caror truck. Throughout this science project,Holden encountered a number of road blocks.But, he was certain of his research anddetermined to see the project through. Holdenhas demonstrated grit and perseverance andthrough the duration of this project, learnedthe importance of tenacity and resiliencewhen experimenting.


Ashok PandeyThe Effects of Yoga on Global Cardiovascular Risk: A 3-MonthIntervention


HealthIntermediateWaterloo-WellingtonWaterloo, ONWaterloo Collegiate InstituteCardiovascular events are the leading cause of death worldwide. Exercisecan improve heart health. I looked at the efficacy of yoga incorporated intoan exercise program on global cardiovascular risk. I found that the yogaintervention was significantly more effective than the standard exerciseprogram. If these results are validated, yoga may represent an opportunityto enhance the efficacy of standard cardiovascular rehabilitation/preventionprograms.

Awards ValueExcellence Award - Intermediate - Silver MedalSponsor: Youth Science CanadaWestern University ScholarshipSilver Medallist - $2000 Entrance ScholarshipSponsor: Western University

$2 000

Total $2 000


BiographyMy name is Ashok Pandey. I am a grade tenstudent from Waterloo Ontario. This is mysecond time competing at the national fair. Ibelieve the event in Montreal was one of themost impactful and enjoyable days of my life.My interests include both playing the pianoand the violin, and doing volunteer workthrough an NGO called Child2child.ca which Ifounded with my brothers 6 years ago. Withthis charity, we raised funds for disaster reliefin Fort McMurray, Syrian refugees, andMother Teresa's Orphanage in India. We do amonth of volunteer work each summer at thisorphanage mentoring disabled orphans andstreet children that come to this facility forcare and support. This volunteer work hasmotivated me to do my part to help meet theneeds of the less privileged and those inneed. My science fair research is looking atthe cardiovascular effects of incorporatingyoga into an exercise program over threemonths. In the future I hope to further validatethis research and promote the incorporationof yogic exercises in cardiovascularrehabilitation programs. To my fellowcompetitors: meet new people, make newfriends, have fun and best of luck!


Angela ZhangThe Ocean: Not a Rock Concert


EnvironmentSeniorWaterloo-WellingtonWaterloo, ONSir John A. Macdonald S.S.Anthropogenic noise is a major problem in oceans; affecting the behavior ofmarine life by masking sounds used for communication and causing stresslevels to hike, which has been shown to lead to mass strandings in whales.This project involves predicting the presence of whales in a certain locationat a certain time given past records of whale ID tagging, for re-routing ships.

Awards ValueExcellence Award - Senior - Bronze MedalSponsor: Youth Science CanadaCarleton University Entrance AwardSenior Bronze Medallist - $1,000 Entrance AwardSponsor: Carleton University

$1 000

University of Ottawa Entrance ScholarshipSenior Bronze Medallist - $1000 Entrance ScholarshipSponsor: University of Ottawa

$1 000

Western University ScholarshipBronze Medallist - $1000 Entrance ScholarshipSponsor: Western University

$1 000

Total $3 000


BiographyHi! My name is Angela Zhang. I'm a grade 11student from Waterloo, ON. I got theinspiration for my project after discoveringhow big of a problem anthropogenic noisewas in oceans. Anthropogenic noise is morethan just an annoyance; it physically harmsmarine life, causing bleeding, hemorrhaging,and mass strandings. My project involvesusing data that researchers have collectedfrom satellite tracking tags to predict wherewhales (who are really sensitive to noise) aregoing to be. I'm interested in science becausescience answers the fundamental questionsin life and is the driving force of innovation.My favorite pastimes include reading, writing,art, and programming. In addition to that, Ialso enjoy playing chess and table tennis. I'minvolved in running my school's science club,where we plan fun weekly activities, such asexperiments and design challenges. I've beeninvolved in my school's DECA for three years,qualifying to ICDC in 2016 and 2018 for SMGand FOR. Last summer, I attended SHAD atWestern, where I met and got to know manytalented students from all over Canada. Ifyou're looking to start a project, begin byresearching any topic that you're reallyinterested in!


Hadi AlmalkiTracking Bird Migration: A Novel Approach


InnovationIntermediateWaterloo-WellingtonWaterloo, ONSir John A. Macdonald S.S.Developing a method of recognizing the species of bird calls and songusing a computer algorithm allows for tracking bird migration in a scalableand timely manner. In comparison to traditional methods of tracking birds,this approach allows for more accurate study of bird species behavior andmore effective identification of changes in environmental factors such asclimate by analyzing shifts in bird migration patterns.

Awards ValueExcellence Award - Intermediate - Bronze MedalSponsor: Youth Science CanadaWestern University ScholarshipBronze Medallist - $1000 Entrance ScholarshipSponsor: Western University

$1 000

Total $1 000


BiographyCurrently a 15-year-old living in Waterloo,Ontario, I enjoy tinkering with computerprogramming. My passion for computingbegan during the fifth grade by experimentingwith different Linux distributions. Since thenI've focused on developing software that canbe used to improve human life and softwarethat can interact with the real world. I alsomake efforts to contribute to open sourcedevelopments. During my free time I enjoywatching motorsports such as Formula 1 andWRC. I also enjoy reading about financialmarkets and epistemology. With the increaseof pace in many aspects of daily life, I find itvery enjoyable to spend time drowsing on asofa while doing nothing. For my science fairproject this year, I developed a system thatcan automatically recognize the species ofbird from a recording of the bird's calls orsong, which allows for a completely automaticmethod of tracking bird migration. Incomparison to traditional methods of trackingbird migration such as ringing or attachingGPS trackers on birds, this approach is muchmore effective as it does not require thephysical capture of birds.


Zachary TreflerVoiceShield: Teaching Computers to Distinguish Real Data FromFake


InformationSeniorWaterloo-WellingtonWaterloo, ONWaterloo Collegiate InstituteVoice recognition systems powered by machine learning are widely used tosecure critical data, e.g. on smartphones and in banking systems. But canthey be fooled? My research reveals a critical vulnerability: adversarialmachine learning techniques can generate convincing faked audio prints. Ithen introduce a novel method for voice recognition systems to flag fakedata, thus reducing this risk.

Awards ValueCanadian Acoustical Association Award - SeniorSponsor: Canadian Acoustical Association

$1 000

Challenge Award - Information - SeniorSponsor: Youth Science CanadaExcellence Award - Senior - Bronze MedalSponsor: Youth Science CanadaCarleton University Entrance AwardSenior Bronze Medallist - $1,000 Entrance AwardSponsor: Carleton University

$1 000

University of Ottawa Entrance ScholarshipSenior Bronze Medallist - $1000 Entrance ScholarshipSponsor: University of Ottawa

$1 000

Western University ScholarshipBronze Medallist - $1000 Entrance ScholarshipSponsor: Western University

$1 000

Total $4 000


BiographyHi, my name is Zachary Trefler. I am 17 yearsold, in grade 12 at Waterloo C.I. in southernOntario. I am mainly interested in physics andcomputer science, but all sciences fascinateme (University has meant tough decisions).Besides science, I am reading booksconstantly, as well as running, wood-carvingand kite-flying. I also talk to peoplesometimes. My project, WaveFire, was myattempt to improve voice recognition, or moreaccurately, speaker verification (SV). I'veshown that many machine learning algorithmsused for SV are vulnerable to fake data. Bygiving an SV algorithm training experiencewith intentionally fake data using theWaveFire model, the algorithm grows muchmore robust. I am continuing to improveWaveFire, making it increasinglygeneralizable and user-friendly. To otherstudents doing science fair projects, I wouldadvise you to simply try to learn more aboutwhatever you are curious about. Thequestions will flow naturally, and eventually,answers will follow. Work hard, work smart,and don't stop!

cwsf 2018 - ottawa, ontario · cwsf 2018 - ottawa, ontario advait maybhate 3dpocket - computational...

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