It is not every day that an undergraduate student is the lead author of a manuscript published in a leading international journal, but at the University of Lethbridge everything is possible.

Marielle Stoutjesdyk, a senior in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, in collaboration with Dr. Borries Demeler in the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, and co-authors Geoff Minors and Amy Henrickson, designed, manufactured and tested a calibration disk and associated calibration software for the analytical ultracentrifuges used in the Canadian Centre for Hydrodynamics (CCH) at the U of L. The work was accepted for publication in the European Biophysics Journal.

Her research focuses on the measurement of the compressibility of liquids, an important parameter in the hydrodynamic evaluation of biopolymer solutions under investigation at the CCH.

“Marielle demonstrates all of the key attributes of a successful scientist — curiosity, ingenious solutions to difficult problems, hard work, and the ability to focus on a goal and achieve it,” says Demeler. Above photo, Marielle holds the calibration disk she designed.

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