Winners of the 2022 3MT competition

A version of this story originally appeared on the UBC 3MT Graduate & Postdoctoral Studies website. 

Ten graduate students competed in the UBC-wide Three Minute Thesis (3MT) final in early May to find out who could best summarize and present years of research in only three minutes. Their research touched on topics such as lung cancer, human stem cells, sexual pain, honey bees and infant gut microbiomes.

The judges agreed that their research was impressive and that it took careful deliberation to declare the final results – four winners.

First place (and People’s Choice)

Emilie Carpentier, PhD in Physics, Liver cancer? No need to hold your breath for a cure! Supervisor: Dr. Tony Mestrovic

Emilie had the honour of representing UBC at the 2022 Western Canadian Regional 3MT Finals in Winnipeg on May 6. “It’s an honour to be a 3MT winner. This event really showcases some of the fascinating research happening at UBC. It was inspiring to be a part of that and to hear everyone else’s incredible talks, and I’m very grateful that I was chosen to be a winner.”

Emilie completed her undergraduate degree in physics, but says once she learned that physics could be applied to treating cancer, the field of medical physics felt like a fulfilling way to apply her skills. “I have really enjoyed my PhD and applying my physics background to health care by doing medical physics research,” says Emilie. “I’m really happy that my work has been useful and is improving radiation therapy treatments for liver cancer patients, and I hope I can continue to make positive contributions in this field over my career.”

Emilie’s 4D modelling technique as discussed in her presentation has already been applied in real-life scenarios. Organs in the body can move as much as 2 cm when the patient breaths, which is a huge amount for radiation targeting specific areas. The modelling technique she discussed is meant to improve cancer outcomes with better radiation targeting. “It is a really awesome feeling knowing that my 4D modelling has been applied in real life and is helping people,” says Emilie.

Other Finalists

Second and Third place winners went to students across different departments at UBC. PHAS student Simone Hagey, MSc in Astronomy, under supervisor Dr. Aaron Boley, also made the UBC-wide finals for her talk on "The deathspiral of hot Jupiters". 

The videos from the semi-finals and final events are available on our YouTube channel.

Media contact

3MT @UBC graduate.pathways@ubc.ca

Jacqui Brinkman
jacqui.brinkman@ubc.ca

Conny Scheffler
conny.scheffler@ubc.ca