5MRT Finals
The 5MRT Finals (formerly known as the Appetizers for the Mind) is an annual event organized by The McCall MacBain Postdoctoral Fellows Teaching and Leadership Program showcasing the finalists from the 5min Research Talks competition.
The 2026 5MRT Finals event showcased talks by:
Dr. Peter Adesina (University of Toronto) – Liquefaction Mitigation in Tailing Dams: Towards Resilient Dams and Communities
Dr. Meghan McCue (McMaster University) – Muscle Matters in Type 1 Diabetes
Dr. Faizan Saleem (McMaster University) – Harnessing DNA Molecular Technologies in Environmental Monitoring: Bridging DNA Research with Practical Applications
Dr. Hosea Olayiwola Patrick (McMaster University) – Deliberative Governance and Climate Geoengineering: Community Perspectives on Justice-Oriented Frameworks
Dr. Mouna Reda (McMaster University) – From Healing Concrete… To Healing Spaces…
Dr. Nicholas Simard (Toronto Metropolitan University) – Multimodal Medical Imaging: Unifying CT and MRI for Stroke Care
Dr. Mallory E. Terry (McMaster University) – Attention and action in a moving world
Dr. Ramis Arby (Toronto Metropolitan University) – Making light work of heavy metals: Thin film optical sensors for heavy metal ion sensing in water
Dr. Milena Esser (McMaster University) – Are Our Cleaning Habits Cleaning More Than Just Germs? A Whole-Lake Experiment on Antimicrobial Pollution
Watch the talks from the 5MRT Finals (Appetizers for the Mind)
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Dr. Afshin Abrishamkar – Are There Better Treatments for Cancer Than Chemotherapy and Radiotherapy?
Appetizers for the Mind, February 15, 2023
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Dr. Amid Shakeri – The Heart’s Hidden Shield Against Cancer
Appetizers for the Mind, March 6, 2025
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Dr. Andrew Thompson – The Environmental Cost of Pursuing Happiness
Appetizers for the Mind, February 15, 2023
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Dr. Derek Somo – Environmental adaptation and comparative physiology: Windows into the flexibility and constraints on life
Appetizers for the Mind, February 14, 2024
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Dr. Emily Scherzinger – Broken, Bendy, Invisible Bodies
Appetizers for the Mind, February 15, 2023
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Dr. Faizan Saleem – Harnessing DNA Molecular Technologies in Environmental Monitoring: Bridging DNA Research with Practical Applications
5MRT Finals, February 11, 2026
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Dr. Harmanpreet Sidhu – Chemicals in Everyday Use Products: How to be Informed Consumers
Appetizers for the Mind, February 15, 2023
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Dr. Hosea Olayiwola Patrick – Deliberative Governance and Climate Geoengineering: Community Perspectives on Justice-Oriented Frameworks
5MRT Finals, February 11, 2026
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Dr. Idowu Olawoye – Catch Me If You Can: Accurate and Sensitive Detection of Mycoplasma genitalium
Appetizers for the Mind, March 6, 2025
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Dr. Jeremy Marty-Dugas – Does lecturer enthusiasm influence attentional engagement and learning during online lectures?
Appetizers for the Mind, February 14, 2024
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Dr. Jose Bermudez – The Effects of Climate Change on Insect Defoliation
Appetizers for the Mind, February 15, 2023
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Dr. Lindsay Santacroce – Emotional or “pop-out” blink?
Appetizers for the Mind, February 14, 2024
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Dr. Milena Esser – Are Our Cleaning Habits Cleaning More Than Just Germs? A Whole-Lake Experiment on Antimicrobial Pollution
5MRT Finals, February 11, 2026
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Dr. Mohsen Nazemi – VERONICA project: Using VR to understand and model pedestrian behaviour
Appetizers for the Mind, February 14, 2024
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Dr. Myanca Rodrigues – Beyond Overdoses: Multimorbidity Among People With Opioid Use Disorder
Appetizers for the Mind, March 6, 2025
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Dr. Nicholas Simard – Multimodal Medical Imaging: Unifying CT and MRI for Stroke Care
5MRT Finals, February 11, 2026
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Dr. Peter Adesina – Liquefaction Mitigation in Tailing Dams: Towards Resilient Dams and Communities
5MRT Finals, February 11, 2026
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Dr. Ramis Arby – Making light work of heavy metals: Thin film optical sensors for heavy metal ion sensing in water
5MRT Finals, February 11, 2026
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Dr. Ruth Rivkin – Can polar bears adapt to climate change? Insights from genetics
Appetizers for the Mind, February 14, 2024
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Dr. Sina Baleka – Decoding the Past: Insights from Ancient DNA of Extinct Species
Appetizers for the Mind, March 6, 2025
The 2025 Appetizers for the Mind event showcased talks by:
Dr. Myanca Rodrigues (McMaster University) – Beyond Overdose: Multimorbidity Among People with Opioid Use Disorder
Dr. Amid Shakeri (University of Toronto) – The Heart’s Hidden Shield Against Cancer
Dr. Ben Sclodnick (McMaster University) – Measuring Attentional Control
Dr. Idowu Olawoye (Western University) – Catch Me if You Can: Accurate and Sensitive Detection of Mycoplasma genitalium
Dr. Sina Baleka (McMaster University) – Decoding the Past: Insights from Ancient DNA of Extinct Species
Dr. Tom Kazmirchuk (Carleton University) – Designing the Future of Medicine
Dr. Romain Villot (University of Montreal) – How Studying Cellular Aging Could Help Treat Vision Loss