Getting Creative with Twitter

I have been given a challenge. Both GHBN and Campus helper need thirty more followers by the end of the week. I have decided to come up with a fun and innovative way to do this, blogging. I'm hoping that this blog post will help get me some followers! Instead of following people who promise to follow back, then unfollowing them seconds after, I thought that I would get creative, because who doesn't love when someone gets creative?

http://twitter.com/ghbiosciences

http://twitter.com/campushelper

Twitter 101

Hey there it's Renee. As a teenager of generation Y I am supposed to be the leading, most cutting edge and tech savvy. I am suppposed to be able to navigate through any social networking site with ease but, like many, I'm still learning. Here is my journey to becoming a social networking/ marketing guru.


One of the most innovative marketing tool today, is social networking. Many businesses are seeking out people to, get this, blog all day about what the company is doing. A dream job for many teenagers has now become a reality. Big time companies need people to make their company or product famous over the web, and there are so many social networking sites that can do this. My task is to master Twitter, sounds simple enough, but this growing fad is changing every single day. I'm here to help you discover the best marketing options using Twitter.

Follow my Twitter turmoils and give me feed back.

http://twitter.com/ghbiosciences

http://twitter.com/campushelper

Renee.

New Recruit at GHBN

Hey there, my name is Renee and I'm the new co-op student at GHBN. I've been brought to GHBN to learn all about the business world as well as getting a feel for the bioscience aspect. I'm not a major in bio but I've always been interested in biology from the courses I've taken in high school and am fortunate enough to have this opportunity. I started my placement just last week and have been hurdled into a new environment with some pretty cool responsibilities and freedoms. So don't mind me as I try to get a feel for the corporate world!

Lucky for me it's National Biotech Week! (http://www.imagenenation.ca/)

Just yesterday GHBN helped host an Innovation Breakfast which is usually held on the second Tuesday of every month but got moved to accommodate the special occasion. It was my first ever networking project, scary I know, but I enjoyed it immensely. The speaker at yesterday’s breakfast was Dr. Yousef Haj-Ahmad who created a Canadian based company called Norgen Biotek Corp. (http://www.norgenbiotek.com). What the company does is it creates kits to isolate specific substances from a sample, such as DNA or proteins from a blood sample. These kits are bought for academic purposes by universities all over North America such as McGill, Yale and even McMaster, as well as many organizations outside of Canada such as the FBI. Makes me proud to be Canadian.

Currently the company has over 70 different types of kits to be used for research as well as different purposes and that number is thought to go up to 95 at years end. Norgen Biotek is on the cutting edge of quality and has new innovations that other companies lack.

Now you may be asking why does a high school student find this so interesting? Well I love CSI (http://bit.ly/f6wbG) and I love learning about genetics, DNA and anything to do with bio, so being able to see something, a product that is real and does real things with real research and real people behind it, instead of seeing an actor act out what's supposed to happen and not what's actually taking place, well that's pretty cool!

So check out National Biotech Week, find an event and learn something new. I know I have and I look forward to sitting in and listening at the next Innovation Breakfast.

~Renee

The Endless Possibilities at OCE

Hey everyone,

On May 17th and 18th , GHBN was at the OCE Discovery located in Toronto. OCE Discovery is an entrepreneurs dream. There was over 350 exhibits containing loads of information and new developing devices, along with dozens of executive and CEO business people; even Steve Wozniak the co-founder of Apple had something to say!

Other then the complimentary meals, thousands of free Ferrero Rocher chocolates and an open bar, OCE Discovery had one thing most events nowadays can't produce - opportunity. The ability to network with other people was outrageous, everywhere you turned there was someone with a product that interested you, whether it had to do with electric cars, blackberry's, 4-D images, plants or even pitch competitions to learn about new innovative technologies.

Here are the three things that I felt were most enjoyable at the OCE Discovery:

First, without a doubt I would have to say that the Brain Computer Interface presented by the Algoma University was outstanding. This is a device that can connect the human brain to the computer. That's right, I was writing words using my brain, specifically my thoughts. I remember watching this device on 60 minutes with my family and having to pick up my jaw after because of the vast capabilities! You can watch the same episode of 60 minutes that I did at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUR7lL3vlT0 . I was all set up with that device, and wrote the word "BRAIN", making only one mistake which is pretty good considering all the background noise, people, music etc.

Second, I enjoyed watching the numerous pitch competitions that the OCE Discovery was holding. There was everything from elevator pitches, to standard pitches to even business pitches - there were a lot of pitchers. Pitches are extremely informative about new and innovative technologies that are soon to come and show that the newest generation is going to raise the benchmark for astonishing technological developments.

Lastly, I would have to say that listening to Steve Wozniak was an amazing experience. Listening to the co-founder of an almost gazillion dollar company (Apple) was awesome! He talked about everything from how to not make your business flop, to how to select the name for your company. Currently Steve is working with a new company Fusion- IO, so stay tuned for information about them!


Sal

The one…the only…the “BIO”

In today’s society, Biotechnology is everything. Biotechnology has been around from the time people planted their own crops and breed their own animals for the first time, to today’s society which has lead to the advanced splicing lengths of DNA from one specie and placing it into another. These biological advancements are developing everyday and provide for the science behind almost everything that is used in society.

For the last seventeen years BIO has been rapidly developing, offering its tradeshow services to over 60 countries worldwide! BIO allows you to contract your company with others, partner with companies and even provides imperative presentations from global industry leaders that will provide knowledgeable information for you and your company. Networking is the most important aspect of BIO because you are allowed to exploit the services and information of the over 15 000 people that will be there!

This year, BIO is located in Chicago from May 3 – 6 (Monday to Thursday). If interested, you can register at http://convention.bio.org/register/.

Sal

Where will our youth take us? - Mentoring a Coop Student - A 2010 Update

Hello Everyone, Justin Here.

I know I havent written on this blog in awhile, but that's because GHBN received its COOP student back in February.

His name is Sal Macaluso, and you've probably been reading some of his Blog posts, including 100% Pure...eh? and Olympians...Genetic Geeks?GHBN has been getting a LOT of good feedback from its partners and colleagues about the social aspect of the GHBN website. We've been able to take advantage of our website by always posting new information while our Blog and Twitter page is getting fresh eyes, and it's all thanks to our Grade 11 COOP student Sal.

The Hamilton Industry Education Council continues to take a strong role in organizing COOP placements, and we even had a small interview session yesterday to discuss Sal's progress. Potentially it will be in the Hamilton Spectator, so get ready to see our names in the coming month :)

Sal has been an integral part of another project as well as working at GHBN. He has become an ambassador for a new Start Up company called Campus Helper. More news on this company will be in a future post in the coming weeks. Till then, you can check out the website here: www.campushelper.ca; and the Twitter here: www.twitter.com/campushelper

We hope to update you all on Sal's continuing progress soon. Till then, keep reading our Blog and Twitter to know What's New in the Bioscience area.

Engineers on top of the world

“There are some very interesting ones this year and I think there is the possibility for commercialization, definitely.”
--Mohamed Bakr, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering

Dr. Bakr’s talking about the projects by more than 200 students in electrical, computer, and biomedical engineering programs, work that starts in the fall and can take up to eight months. Some of these projects originated in his Engineering Design course.

So, engineers say they rule the world? Head over to the McMaster student centre on Tuesday and get in on this little conceit. You’ll see projects that feature wireless devices that ‘talk’ to biomedical implants, heart-smart clothes that offer ECG readouts, a hovering robot. Or how about blinds that control lights and temperature, a sleepy-driver detection system, and an automated sorter for recyclables? Demos -- or at least cool posters -- of more than 50 projects in all.

The day starts at 9 a.m. at the CIBC Hall, third floor. It’s all about innovation, engineering-design creations, and the top three even score some cash: on Tuesday, six judges -- including two from RIM in Waterloo -- will assess the entries and give the top three $500 awards. Some entries might even go to market. This year, one group of participating fourth-year students is among five finalists in a North American innovative design contest involving Altera Corporation. Their Big Idea is on-screen 3D imagery that uses two cameras. Three years ago, I wrote about the CPRGlove team, whose entry went on to national competitions and later grabbed sales in the cardiac-products market.