LEED at the University of Ottawa

by Tyler Shendruk
Published: Jan 11
as an inset to Christopher Radojewski's
Social sciences under one roof

THE LEADERSHIP IN Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a rating system for judging green construction projects. Buildings are given a total of 100 possible points assessing the sustainability of the chosen site, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere impact, materials and resources used, quality of indoor environment, and 10 bonus points for innovative design and regional priority.

The number of achieved points gives the structure a grade:
Certified: 40–49
Silver: 50–59
Gold 60–79
Platinum: 79+

In 2008, the University of Ottawa’s Campus Sustainability Office pledged all new and retrofitted buildings would achieve Silver rating or higher.

What makes it green?

Green wall (also called a living wall).
One huge wall of the atrium will be entirely covered with vegetation and act as a natural air filter.

Heat recovery ventilation system 

Even with the green wall, some ventilation is needed, but exchanging warm indoor air with cold outdoor air (or vice versa) is a waste of energy. By processing the air before it leaves or enters the building, the ventilation system will keep 90 per cent of its heat.

Green roofs 

Three of the roofs will be covered in growth. This follows a strong tradition: The Colonel By building, built 40 years ago, was one of the first green roofs on a Canadian campus.

Data furnace 

The tower is designed to receive 80 per cent of its heat from local campus computers.

Natural light 

Only five per cent of the tower will require lighting. The rest will be naturally lit.

Cellular scaffolding

by Tyler  Shendruk
Published: Nov 30

The problem

EVERY CELL THAT makes up our body carries genetic information needed to create a human being. Before birth, those cells become specialized—some cells are blood cells, some are kidney cells, some are neurons, and some are stem cells that have the freedom to become any cell the body needs.
Cellular signalling summons stem cells to injuries, but doesn’t completely control the type of cell they turn into. The local environment plays a part in the process, deciding what the stem cells will become. Temperature, acidity, and material properties of the injury are essential to the stem cells. They will act differently whether the site is stiff, elastic, or immersed in a bodily fluid. Adding to the complexity, unless it’s blood or bone, our body’s contents are not pure solid or liquid—they’re something in-between, like jello or honey.

The researcher

Shane Scott, a master’s student in the physics department at the Univeristy of Ottawa, studies the properties of these complex fluids. He is a rheologist—he studies materials that both stretch and flow, like gels or molasses.

The project

To make stem cells in a lab, you grow them in protein gel. This gel can mimic the properties of different parts of the body. The gel is easy to tweak, and scientists like Scott can add binding domains that act like docking bays for cells to attach to, making them perfect cellular scaffolds.
The behaviour of those cells depends on the rheological properties of the gel, making it necessary to categorize the gel before you start growing cells.
Scott’s proteins are random coils with a helix cap at both ends, which means when he mixes these proteins into a solution, the coils tangle together and form a gel. If he wants a more permanent gel, Scott chemically links the proteins into a network.

The key

Scott characterized protein gels that were part physically tangled and part chemically linked for different temperatures, acidity, and concentrations. Scott showed when a binding domain was added to the gel to turn it into a cellular scaffold, the rheological properties didn’t change, meaning biologists don’t have to worry about stem cells behaving differently because making a protein gel into a cellular scaffold altered their environment.

Staring at the sun

by Allan Johnson
Published: Nov 16

The problem

THE WORLD IS in need of green energy solutions. Wind, solar, and geothermal are some of the energy-gathering meth- ods capturing researchers’ imaginations as alternative energy sources. Harnessing power from nature depends on geographic location. Solar is the best bet for Spain, while wind might be better for stormy Scotland. So, what type of power should Canada be using?

The researcher

Aaron Muron is an engineering student at the University of Ottawa SUNLab trying to figure out how advanced solar systems can work on campus. His work sits on the Sports Complex rooftop, tracking the sun.

The project

We can see the sun dim when a cloud passes over it, but there’s little data on how this impacts solar energy. Most simulations available are designed for a “standard atmosphere,” which might not accurately describe the climate in Canada.
To get a better sense of Ottawa’s and, subsequently, Canada’s climate, Mu- ron and his associates assembled a solar tracker with various types of solar cells. The cells include ultra-high efficiency triple junction cells that follow the sun throughout the day, generating power. The outputs of the various cells are constantly recorded and sent back to the lab for analysis.

The key

The tracker was also fitted with a spectrometer and a camera that point directly at the sun. This allows the SUNLab team to match changes in the computer systems to changes in the sun’s intensity and spectrum, com- paring them to weather conditions.
Different types of cloud cover have different effects on the sun’s light and can be dealt with differently—low-lying clouds tend to block most of the light while higher, thinner clouds just distort it.
With new information about how the climate changes the sun’s light, researchers can assess how solar energy will fit into Ottawa’s, and Canada’s, future.

Survival of the same

by Tyler Shendruk
Published: Nov 2

The problem

NATURAL SELECTION IS one of the cornerstones of modern science. Genetic mutations cause organisms to be more or less fit to survive; those who can’t compete die, while the strong pass on their genetic strengths to a new generation.
Still, genomes are complicated things. Genes can react to internal and external stimulus by changing the type and amount of proteins expressed at any given time. This allows species to respond to new situations faster than if they had to evolve over many generations.

The researcher

Daniel Charlebois is a PhD student in the physics department at the University of Ottawa who conducts research out of the Ottawa Institute of Systems Biology. A physicist studying biology may be a surprise to some, but Charlebois has an undergraduate degree in biology and his training in physics brings with it an extensive knowledge of non-linear systems and computation, which help him to understand gene expression.

The project

Charlebois wanted to look at the potential survival mechanisms besides genetic mutations. Clones all have the exact same genes, but natural variations in the local environment of each cell cause different genes to be expressed in each individual. This “noise” means even a population of genetically identical clones has some natural diversity.

The key


Charlebois simulated a community of clones, which he subjected to a harmful drug. He didn’t let the virtual-reality cells evolve through mutations. Because the cells couldn’t evolve and had no specialized defence against the drug, traditional evolution theory would say they could never develop any drug resistance and would all die—but that’s not what Charlebois saw.
Instead of all dying, a small amount of cells lived through the attack, because at the time they expressed the exact protein mix needed to survive by chance. The generations, which grew out of this small community, were genetically identical to the clones. No mutation or evolution had taken place, despite survival of the fittest occurring.
Genetic noise isn’t always something annoying to be rid of. Charlebois believes natural fluctuations are a survival mechanism life takes advantage of for adaptation without mutation.

Play on—nom, nom, nom

by Tyler Shendruk
Published:  Nov 2

Illustration by Devin Beauregard

    

New study shows correlation between video games and weight gain

Chaput and his collaborators invited 22 healthy, normal-weight boys between ages 15 and 19 into the lab. The night before the experiment, the boys were instructed not to eat. They arrived at 7:30 a.m. and were all given the exact same breakfast. At 10:30 a.m., they started playing the soccer game FIFA 09 on an Xbox 360 for one hour. Chaput then gave the participants a huge spaghetti lunch. The leftovers were weighed so that researchers could know how much they ate.

The boys usually ate more after gaming. In fact, they ate an average of 163 calories more. This may not sound like much compared to Health Canada’s recommendation of 2,450 calories daily, but these extra calories can have a long-term impact according to Chaput.

“Weight gain is just a small but chronic energy gap over time. Even a surplus of 50 calories per day on a chronic basis can lead to 10 kilograms of weight gain over 25 years,” he explains.

Chaput also wanted to know why boys eat more, so he took blood samples while they gamed. The samples told Chaput heart rates and blood pressure had gone up, but none of the hormones that trigger hunger were found in the work up.

“It seems that it’s more eating in the absence of hunger. Participants don’t feel [hungrier], but they eat more,” says Chaput.

“It’s not explained by the hormones that trigger hunger, so we think that it’s more related to the mental stress aspect of video gaming.”

Chaput’s findings are less than they would be in an outside setting because his subjects played alone, while kids tend to play with friends and usually eat more with others. Chaput also didn’t allow any eating during gaming and the boys played for only an hour.

Chaput also looked at males for a couple of reasons: First, they didn’t want to complicate things by having physical gender differences and “because there are more boys than girls playing video games,” says Chaput.
“Although I would like to know if it’s the same thing with girls,” he adds.
What are the next steps for Chaput’s research? Besides studying adults and interactive gaming, Chaput’s says his study is a warning and direct action is needed.

“Do we find this same pattern in adults? We don’t know … The next step is with active video gaming,” says Chaput. “Of course, we burn more calories when we’re playing this active gaming … but none of those studies have assessed energy intake.”

Chaput adds, “We need to have a better balance between physical work and mental work. We’re doing too much screen time and not enough physical activity.”

Demystifying tradition

by Allan Johnson
Published: Oct 10

The problem

THOUGH TRADITIONAL MEDICINE has been around for thousands of years, only recently has modern science started showing interest in the craft. In the past, peoples, such as the Maya and Native Americans, practiced herbal medicine and developed an extensive knowledge of their environment.
Today, many traditional healers wish to have their methods validated. Their wide expertise on vegetation and medicinal plant properties could provide modern medicine with new pharmaceuticals and a greater appreciation for biodiversity.

The researcher

John Arnason is a professor of biology at the University of Ottawa. His work focuses on ethnopharmacology, which studies the medicinal properties of plants. Like traditional healers, he seeks to validate folk medicine and better understand the role it can play today.

The project

Arnason was invited to Central America by Maya healers to collect plants believed to have medicinal properties. Back in Ottawa, the plants were grown and examined for active compounds, which can be recognized by their similarities to well-known drugs. These plants were then tested on animals in collaboration with the Royal Ottawa Hospital.

The key

Arnason’s team was shown over 70 active and previously unknown plants by the Mayan healers, many of them used for psychiatric purposes. The team applied this knowledge to identifying avenues for further research.
The results clearly show the strength of traditional medicine. The traditional beliefs are grounded; natural medicines can work. The breadth of plant life uncovered shows the value of biodiversity.
“Working with native healers is wonderful because they have a cosmocentric world view,” said Arnason, “I think the world needs a little more ecological vision right now.”

Liquid crystals can be radical

by Tyler Shendruk
Published: Oct 5

The problem

HEY, SCIENCE! WHY haven’t you built me an iPod the size of a single cell yet? I’m waiting.
Currently electronics are built out of bulk materials and have inherent size limitations: A wire can only be carved so small if it’s made from an everyday chunk of copper. But imagine if electronic components could be made from large molecules or organics instead of bulky metals.
One day, organic components might be smaller, cheaper, and even easier to fabricate than traditional wires. Sure, it sounds like a great idea, but is it possible?

The researcher

Alicea Leitch doesn’t know either, but she’s trying to find out. Leitch is a post-doctoral researcher in the chemistry department at the University of Ottawa who likes to work on projects that have concrete applications.
Before she arrived at the University of Ottawa, Leitch had already started working on highly reactive chemical substances called radicals.

The project

Radicals can be extremely reactive because they have an unpaired electron, which is just dying to find its soulmate. It’s not exactly picky—radicals will react with just about anything. However, when they are stabilized, the unpaired electron can become very valuable. Sometimes radicals can help carry charges, making otherwise non-conductive materials more interesting.
This makes radicals tempting for molecular electronics. Unfortunately, chemical stabilization almost always vetoes the properties of interest.

The key

To control the radicals without loosing the conductivity, Leitch doesn’t bother with chemical stabilization. Instead, she attaches the radicals to microscopic discs so the previously troublesome unpaired electron doesn’t belong to a single atom. It becomes shared between all the atoms that make up the disc, making it less reactive but still conductive.
On top of that, using discs has unexpected bonuses: They float in liquid and they like to stack in an orderly fashion, like a crystal. This makes them a liquid crystal. If Leitch can get the liquid crystals just right, the discs will automatically assemble into tiny chains.
This natural stacking is great because the structure of molecular electronic components plays a really important role, but is usually hard to control. Because they are stacked together, the single electron can jump from plate to plate, and eventually make its way from one end of the chain to the other.
Together, the conductivity of the unpaired electron and the discs’ self-assembly into long, flexible chains could make Leitch’s liquid crystals into pretty radical wires.