Top High School Students Join Astronaut Marc Garneau at UBC

Canadian astronaut Marc Garneau will help kick off a month-long
educational program for 52 of Canada’s top high school math and
science students at UBC.

Students of the Shad Valley program will be treated to a video
and slide presentation by the famous Canadian space pioneer at UBC’s
Hebb Theatre on Thursday, July 4 from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. A question-and-answer
session will follow.

Garneau made his second flight into space on May 19 for a 10-day
mission which showcased Canadian experiments and the use of the
Canadarm, the Canadian-built robot arm used to retrieve satellites.
One of Garneau’s responsibilities during the flight was to monitor
a UBC-based study which looked at how zero gravity affected the
early muscle development of starfish embryos.

The Shad Valley program, which this year celebrates its 10th anniversary
at UBC, immerses some of Canada’s brightest young minds into the
world of science, technology and entrepreneurship. Students are
selected for the program on the basis of their academic achievements
and leadership potential.

Shad Valley Director Alice Cassidy said the program is supported
by Canadian businesses who place students in jobs for the month
of August upon completion of the Shad program.

Cassidy said one of the themes for this year’s program is Greening
the Environment.

“The students will be working to solve real problems that face
our community from the planning of bicycle routes to overall green
space allocation,” she said. Cassidy added that the students will
also design products aimed at helping people with disabilities.

Garneau’s presentation is open to the public. The Hebb Theatre
is located on East Mall across from the Student Union Building and
the bus loop.

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