Winnipeg student buzzes in for national Brain Bee title

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This article was published 24/07/2023 (835 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Winnipeg student has used his big brain knowledge to conquer the national competition. Next up: the world.

Mark Piasecki, a recent graduate of Vincent Massey Collegiate, finished first at the Canadian National Brain Bee — a contest for high school students to test their comprehension of neuroscience — May 19-20 at McMaster University in Hamilton.

The 18-year-old will take his skills to the International Brain Bee world championship (to be held virtually from Washington, D.C.) next month. Respective champions from more than 40 countries will participate.

Piasecki said he became fascinated with neuroscience after attending “Health Sciences Outreach Day” for high school students at the University of Manitoba. He found the subject exhibits especially compelling.

“At the U of M, I got to see real human brains and someone explained what all the parts did — and that’s when I first got interested in it.”

Piasecki’s father, Paul, suffers from Parkinson’s disease, a neurodegenerative condition, which the teen said also helped spur his interest in neuroscience.

This year marked Piasecki’s first time participating in the Brain Bee contests. Humble in victory, the teen said he didn’t see wins at either the local or national level coming.

“I was surprised at both. The questions are really hard and it’s impossible to get all of them right, so it’s hard to gauge how you’re doing,” he said. “I was really happy and surprised. I was a little nervous every time they were announcing it, but I think that’s natural.”

There were 18 students at the national competition, all regional champions; 40 took part in the Winnipeg contest.

Piasecki said he studied for the Winnipeg Brain Bee independently, by reviewing his neuroscience textbooks and making flashcards.

Studying for the national competition was a different matter, however, and he received guidance from the co-ordinator of the Winnipeg competition, Sari Hannila.

Jennifer Piasecki, a physics teacher at Fort Richmond Collegiate, said although her son has always been a good student, she noticed him become especially interested in health sciences during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Looking at all the first responders and how they were really essential, that really twigged his interest in the helping professions,” she said. “He kind of started on that path after the pandemic and this neuroscience interest really started about a year ago.”

Jennifer said she cried when Mark won the national competition in Ontario, with her in attendance. “My other kids were laughing that, every five minutes, I was posting something new (on social media)… I was really proud. Everyone was congratulating me, even though it wasn’t really me, and congratulating him.”

The Canadian National Brain Bee title prize is $1,500, as well as the option to pursue an internship with a neuroscience lab — which Piasecki said he’s planning on investigating next summer.

Piasecki will be entering the U of M this fall. Still unsure of what he will major in, he said he is still interested in neuroscience and pursuing a career related to health sciences.

Judith Shedden, professor emeritus of neuroscience and psychology at McMaster and chair of the Canadian National Brain Bee, said past winners have gone on to have careers in medicine and neuroscience research.

Piasecki said he was proud to be representing Winnipeg on an international stage — and to have scored a second national bee win for the Manitoba capital. (Antoni Klonowski, also from Vincent Massey, claimed the crown in 2021, later finishing third at the international event.)

graham.mcdonald@freepress.mb.ca