St Andrews iGEM European Jamboree: An Advisor’s Perspective

Basking in unseasonable autumnal warmth on the grey streets of St Andrews, we waited for the final straggler to arrive before embarking on our minibus-plane-train-Metro-taxi journey to the jamboree. The enthusiasm of the students lifted any sense of another-week-another-conference, though spirits were a little dampened by the failure of the team’s fetching light blue shirts to turn up, delayed somewhere en route from China. Alternatives, minus sponsors’ names, were swiftly procured from the Student Union shop. After a year’s hard work, here was our opportunity to show that we could compete with the best.

It would be a hectic, tiring and balmy weekend, from which a number of vignettes remain etched in the memory. Spending 45 minutes fighting with a Metro ticket machine (after which two out of nine of us had been successful); an amazing sense of community amongst the diverse personalities and backgrounds of our team, and more widely of all the competitors; looking for a hotel that should be just around the corner as the district became dodgier with every step – is that why there were no directions on its website? We would come to ask why we bothered paying for hotel rooms at all for the students, who stayed up the first night rehearsing the presentation and the second night getting lost on the Metro and partying.

It’s always interesting to attend a meeting outside one’s core field – the personalities are barely known and the jargon unfamiliar. Yet, and despite missing half the Opening Ceremony due to an over-running excursion past a shop selling only bricks to visit a so-called eco-mall, it would have been immediately apparent to anyone that Synthetic Biology was a young, enthusiastic and vastly ambitious field. The first day became a blur of distributing ourselves amongst parallel sessions, learning to recognise other teams by their T-shirts, and trying to read 42 teams’ posters.

No doubt that some teams raised the bar this year with exceptional projects and productivity. At the same time, iGEM requires plentiful yarn-spinning because most projects’ storyboards imagine release of modified organisms into the environment way beyond the current enthusiasm of public or regulators. In some cases, the excellence of presentations and posters transcended the gap between a handful of BioBricks and a science fiction project description. No doubt picking winners would be a tough job for someone.

Our presentation went smoothly, perhaps more so than we’d dared hope. We described how we used antimicrobial peptides as a kill switch in bacteria. We summarised weeks of modelling work in what seemed like a few moments. Our statistical analysis of the “fairness of iGEM” engaged the judges’ attention and, so soon, our half hour of fame was done.

Lots was learnt, helpful tips picked up from other teams – especially on outreach, into which we’d put lots of effort but perhaps could have made more of. Most other teams impressed, a handful disappointed. One or two team members grabbed some rest spread-eagled on the seats in the foyer.

Day two, and the results. Tension, and wondering – what were our prospects? Some prizes announced, though we inwardly knew most to be unattainable. Then Human Practices – maybe, just maybe? And, very quickly, an “honourable mention” – so we hadn’t won, but we were second. Or third. Or fourth. This we would later spin as “Human Practices Runners-Up “. And so to the medals … Medals are a tick-box thing, criterion-based as the jargon has it. We knew we had ticked the boxes, even if we had left it to the last possible moment to get our biology to work; so it surely ought to be gold. A tense moment as the announcement was made … and there it was. G-O-L-D for St Andrews. Thoughts immediately of matching last year’s achievement, of prospects for funding 2012’s team, and of six student (and some academic) CVs with “iGEM Gold Medallist 2011” adorning them.

 Then the announcement of qualification for the World Jamboree. We were gold medallists … but not on the list of qualifiers. Disappointment initially, dare we say mixed with some relief from the advisors that we didn’t have to find nine fares to MIT from a fully spent budget. Most of the teams ahead of us were truly excellent, no complaints. Only later would we learn of controversies around the judging; but again, no whingeing about our result. Later a judge offered us “Commiserations”. Had we been oh-so-close to qualification, or maybe to that Human Practices prize?

For the students, a unique and maybe even life-changing experience. For us advisors, determination to raise our sights next year.

Dr John Mitchell, University of St Andrews

St Andrews iGEM European Jamboree: Student Perspectives and quotes.

"The iGEM Jamboree at Amsterdam was one of the most memorable and exciting experiences for me at IGEM. Our presentation at the jamboree was nerve wracking but perhaps the best part of the entire experience was when we were given time to explore and understand the projects done by others in the competition. It opened my eyes to the brilliance of iGEM where students at an undergraduate or postgraduate level could contribute to the scientific committee and meet others from all over the world. All the projects were excellent and it broadened my perspective on the different ways that synthetic biology could change the world".

"The Jamboree was an excellent experience for me. Getting to present the project I had been working on all summer to my European peers was an excellent experience and great practice for the future. It was also great to have experts in the field critiquing our work during the poster sessions and being able to see what the other teams from throughout Europe had been up to. The whole event was an excellent conclusion to a great summer during which I learnt a huge amount and after the Jamboree, also felt a sense of achievement. It was also nice to explore Amsterdam a bit after the Jamboree the next morning!"

"Probably the best memory of iGEM I have is of the Jamboree in Amsterdam. After sitting through very interesting talks by other teams, I got to meet a lot of people from other teams from various universities. We had very interesting talks that range from research topics, to just common interests". 

After having a great meal at the end of the presentations, we all headed out with people from several different universities downtown. The groups were form various countries and we all had a good time finding our way round Amsterdam. It was a great time to meet new people and get ideas about why they did iGEM and what they liked about it."

"A personal significant highlight of the iGEM experience was at the Regional Jamboree in Amsterdam, where we were given a special mention with regards to our statistical findings. This was based primarily on the iGEM analysis that I ran by some statistical modelling, to predict the fairness of the competition. I, now, hold a much higher regard for statistics and am currently seeking graduate schemes that may incorporate some statistical analysis, such as actuarial science'."

'I had never visited Amsterdam previously and the buzz of being in a new country was very exciting.  The best parts of the entire trip were probably learning we had won a gold medal, my later visit to the dungeons, as well as meeting new people. Pinpointing a particular area I found most interesting is quite difficult as the experience as a whole was very interesting. However, one thing I enjoyed most was presenting the poster of our project to people at the conference as well as seeing the work others had done over the summer. It was an opportunity to tell everyone about all our hard work over the summer.  In all, the final phase of iGEM in Amsterdam was very interesting, and was truly the ‘icing on the cake’."