Kiara Bruggeman, Engineering PhD student has again taken out first place, in the ANU College of Engineering and Computer Science 2015 Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition.
The competition saw students from the both the Research School of Computer Science and the Research School of Electrical, Energy and Materials Engineering come together to battle it out and present their research in 180 seconds.
All of the topics presented on the day were engaging and well-received by the enthusiastic audience and expert judging panel. Kiara’s presentation “Your brain on drugs” stood out from the crowd, winning her top marks from judges Henry Gardner, Adi Chopra and Marina Lobastov.
“I think the 3MT competition is a great way to connect very specialized research with a very interested world. We all focus on our own little areas, but more and more research innovations are coming out of collaborative work where different fields come together. I hope that sharing our work through the 3MT, in a way that everyone can understand, might spark ideas and interest in other fields, potentially leading to some really clever collaborative solutions.”
Kiara’s research involves developing biomaterials that help brain cells repair damaged tissue.
“Stem cells look to their surroundings for clues as to how to behave, so I design biomaterials that tell them to become healthy brain cells in order to repair damaged brain tissue. I also hide drugs in the materials that release at prearranged times so healing can be aided over time without the damage of additional brain surgery.”
Kiara hope to improve on last year’s outcome and take out the 2015 crown, but admits that she has her work cut out for her.
“I’ve been attending the workshops and practices organized by the ANU 3MT people to prepare for the final. It would be great to win at the final, but there is some strong competition from the other colleges and quite a few people who deserve to represent the ANU.”
Kiara will battle it out against fellow Research School of Electrical, Energy and Materials Engineering student Noushin Nasiri and 11 other finalists across campus. Noushin, talking about her vital research on breath analysis and the possible impacts on patient health care, will ensure that
Register to attend the ANU 3MT final, Wednesday 16 September 6:30pm. Come along and show Kiara your support.