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[Left to Right] Andrew Ponomarov, a SWAP student, and Ji Yong Yang, a Langara biology instructor, discuss their coding system for hops. vioLETTA KRYAK PHOTO

Decoding hops and brews

DNA coding system makes hops varieties easy to identify

By VIOLETTA KRYAK

DNA bar coding system
developed by a student and
an instructor in the Lan-
gara biology department
could help the local craft beer industry.

Biology instructor Ji Yong Yang and
Andrew Ponomarov, a student from
Langara’s Student Work Assistance
Program (SWAP), worked together
to develop an efficient DNA marker-
based method to distinguish between
different types of hops.

Yang and Ponomarov will present
their final project at the Scholarship
Cafe at Langara on March 30.

“Preliminary results suggest there
are unique DNA markers that seem
to be limited to particular types of hop
varieties. We are now in the process of
confirming whether those variations ac-

tually exist,” Yang said.

There are over 150 hop varieties and
they all have distinct genetic markers,
Yang said. In the research, Yang is try-
ing to identify the markers.

Yang said he enjoys drinking beer and

wanted to work on something that can

kind of beer they make.

“As soon as you do DNA bar cod-
ing you can start to quantify data rather
than having it purely subjective. And
that gives the brewer more informa-
tion on exactly what he is dealing with,”

be applied by the Batty said.

local industry. . The roject
“[Breweries) | «that givesthe brewer | is ac ice final

came up wth | moreinformation on | See now and

really interest Ponomarov says

ing beers, really
interesting beer
profiles,” Yang
said. “I thought
that there should
be a DNA bar coding system that could
identify different varieties of hops.”
Thomas Batty, head brewer at Dog-
wood Brewing, said because of the
DNA marker system's ability to identify
and categorize different flavours, brew-
ers will have more control over what

exactly what he is
dealing with.”

— THOMAS BATTY, HEAD BREWER, DOGWOOD

each step can
produce false
results. “So we
need to double
check, triple
check, cross check. It’s complicated and
you need to approach the problem from
different angles.”

Although brewers will benefit from
the project, Yang is not planning to
market it.

“The plan is to publish the results,”

Yang said.

“In terms of my own interest, I have
no business interest here, it’s purely aca-
demic.”

DNA carries genetic informa-
tion and is found in every living
organism.

A hop is a green cone that
surrounds the female flower of
the hop plant. Several different
varieties of hops are used in the
beer-making industry.

SOURCE: LIVESCIENCE.COM AND
MOUNTAINROSEHERBS.COM

Marketing pros mentor students

Students paired with industry professionals to gain real-world experience

SAM MOWERS PHOTO

By SAM MOWERS

I angara students had the oppor-
tunity to spend a workday with
a professional to experience first
hand what their future careers could
entail, as part of Strive for Success, a job
shadowing program.

Forty students, with the largest group
being in marketing, participated in the
event that was started by the Langara
Business Association four years ago.
This year, the special events class of the
business program organized the activity
and found mentors, half of which were
Langara alumni, for each student. After
their job shadowing, students and their
mentors attended a networking event in
Yaletown.

Marketing management
Stavros Arvanitis, said he got a realistic
sense of what marketing involved, from
Michael Alvaro, his mentor and a mar-
keting professional.

“He gave me good insight about how
my future might look and what to ex-
pect,” Arvanitis said. “It was really nice
to be able to see behind the scenes.”

Alvaro, a Langara alumnus, said he

student

benefitted from the job shadowing be-
cause it gave him the opportunity to
meet new people who might become
future colleagues.

“As someone who went to Langara
and is now in the field working full-
time, I think this is an amazing oppor-
tunity for both sides,” Alvaro said. “It’s
an opportunity to further my network
and potentially meet other people who
could work for my company or who I
could do work with in the future.”

Students such as Bryn Tucker, who's
studying marketing, got more than they
expected. Tucker’s mentor, Keith Corn-
ies, a Re/max franchise owner and life
coach, gave Tucker, a coaching session.

“T gave him a life-coaching session,”
Cornies said. “[I gave] him as much
as I possibly could so he could under-
stand my philosophies in business and
my philosophies in how to tap into his
genius.”

Tucker found the session invaluable
to his future career. “What I’ve learned
from his life coaching will help me
in business. It can be taken with me
throughout my entire business career,”

Tucker said.

Campus
garbage

piling up

Anger rises at trash
bins spilling over,
unswept floors and
unkempt classrooms

By SYDNEY MORTON

I angara staff and students have
been complaining about trash
cans not being regularly cleared,

floors not being swept or mopped and

dust balls gathering in the corners of
the college.

The lack of cleanliness distracts stu-
dents from their studies and indicates
the campus is not properly maintained.

“I felt disrespected in the space be-
cause we are paying to be here and have
our classes in here,” Kristina Simic, a
second-year design formation student
said. “To be around an environment
that is unclean is uncomfortable for
me.”

According to Raymond Yeung,
manager of facilities services at Lan-
gara, janitorial services start early in the
morning and most are finished before
midnight. Cleaners follow set routes in
buildings on campus and busier places
such as the caf-
eteria get more
attention.

“If we see a
pattern, janitorial
supervisors would
then put an area
on patrol — sta-
tus to make sure
that the service is
no longer being
missed, and that
the problem is addressed,” Yeung said,
in an email, after declining to speak to
‘The Voice by telephone.

Bruce Kennedy, technical director at
Studio 58, founded a compost service
for the theatre company and is disap-
pointed in Langara’s janitorial services.

“Because we are here all the time the
waste bins get filled quickly and when
it doesn’t get taken we really notice it,”
Kennedy said. “I would say it’s lacking
and could certainly be improved.”

The department chair of Langara’s
design formation program, Marcela
Noriega, is so disturbed by the level of
uncleanliness that she no longer allows
her students to eat in the classrooms.
Noriega believes the lack of hygiene

promoted a mouse infestation on cam-

Kristina Simic
DESIGN FORMATION
STUDENT

pus.

“One time I went to use my printer
and the paper was coming out with
stains, and when we opened it there
were mice nesting in there,” Noriega
said. “If you pay attention there are
mouse traps everywhere.”

Students and employees can email

facilities@langara.ca to report cleaning

issues.

A mouse trap under electrical wiring.
SYDNEY MORTON PHOTO