Page 13 - Luce 2014

Senior Co mmon Roo m ...versus Junior Co mmon Roo m

Nadia Mazarakis:

The health benefits of broccoli

Nadia Mazarakis, who starts as a College Resident Tutor
in 2015, has completed a Bachelor of Science degree with
honours, majoring in Food Science. She attributes her interest
in the study of food to her Italian-Greek heritage, which
exposed her to an appreciation of good food from an early
age.

In her two years as a resident student at JCH (2010-11), Nadia
was actively involved in community projects. As Social
Service Committee leader, she spearheaded the Carlton
Primary tutoring project, organised the “Shave for a Cure”
towards leukemia research and also knitted for the “Knit One
Give One” charity project.

Upon completing her Bachelor’s degree, Nadia found herself
drawn towards an Honours’ Year project in Food Science.
This year-long project combines her love and interest in Verity Johnson, Freddy Woodhouse, Hamish Brown, Rhea
Biochemistry, medical research and the health benefits Bhaghat, Rob Snelling & Jenny Tran nurse virtual adjudicator
of food. She was also inspired by a guest lecture given by Dr Bridget Vincent
her current supervisor Dr Tom Karginannis, who spoke
passionately about the benefits of broccoli and olives in
cancer prevention. Midwinter Dinner
Focusing her research on the health benefits of eating The 2014 Midwinter Dinner was the occasion for the
broccoli, Nadia and her supervisor have made a significant thirteenth Ethel Bage Memorial Debate, where the common
contribution towards discovering the link between eating rooms debated the motion that ‘Higher Education is a right,
broccoli and treating asthma. Nadia says “lab tests have not a privilege’. First contested in 2002 in a famous draw
shown that eating two cups of steamed broccoli a day between the teams, these debates run the gauntlet between
helps reduce inflammation of the airways and the major occasions of intellectual genius and moments of high farce.
characteristics of asthma can be reversed.” This year’s debate will go down in memory as the first of its
kind to be adjudicated remotely. Alumna and Monash Scholar
This exciting new finding has led to widespread media Dr Bridget Vincent (1998), though indisposed, stoically
coverage for Nadia. In recent months, she has been decided to carry on with her judging duties and was thus
interviewed by Science World Report, The Herald Sun and connected to the evening’s proceedings via the Principal’s
other news sites. In July 2014, she headed to Shanghai to iPad. The sight of Dr Powell holding up his electronic device
present her work at the Undergraduate Research Conference while Bridget read out her adjudicating notes will stay in
about Food Safety. Nadia is aiming to take her project the memory of all those present for
towards clinical trials and she is also looking forward to some time.
beginning a PhD at the University to continue working on
broccoli and treating asthma. Representing the Junior Common
Room were Rhea Bhaghat, Verity
Nadia is one of Johnson and Rob Snelling, who
JCH’s exciting spoke passionately in affirming the
up-and-coming need for higher education to be
scientists and we more accessible. On the negative
will be following team were Hamish Brown, Jenny
her work and Tran and Freddy Woodhouse, who
progress with argued that higher education, though
great interest. important, is more a ‘good’ than
an inherent ‘right’, as opposed to
basic education. This convincing
argument won the Senior Common
Room the trophy, in a closely-
fought contest which provided
just the right balance between
intellectual and entertainment
values to kick start the second
Nadia Mazarakis semester.

J anet Clarke Hall 13