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By Sharon Miki, on May 9th, 2011
 Professor Tony Bailetti (Credit: Carleton University)
Carleton University Professor Tony Bailetti has been awarded the 2011 Ottawa Innovation Community award from the Ottawa Centre for Research and Innovation (OCRI). Professor Bailetti, who is faculty in the Carleton University Department of Systems and Computer Engineering and the Sprott School of Business, received the award for his work related to the economic development of the Ottawa, Ontario region.
“Tony has been instrumental in developing very successful local ecosystems including Lead to Win and Coral CEA, and the LTW companies represent a significant portion of the successful start-ups in Ottawa over the past two years,” said Claude Haw, president and CEO of the OCRI.
Carleton Professor Tony Bailetti Honoured by OCRI [Carleton University]
By Sharon Miki, on April 12th, 2011
 Carleton University Associate Professor Gabriel Wainer has been awarded the Outstanding Professional Contribution Award from the Society for Modeling and Simulation International (SCS). Wainer, who teaches in the Department of Systems and Computer Engineering, works with improving models and simulations and has had over 240 papers published in his career. “The whole idea of modelling and simulation is that you try to use a computer to mimic the real world,” said Wainer. “You want to know more about the specifics of a system or you want to build something new that doesn’t exist. You try to reproduce that behavior in something that’s called a model, and then you use that model to build a computer program called a simulation.” [Carleton University] The Wilfrid Laurier University Library has won the 2011 Canadian Library Association/3M Canada Award for Achievement in Technical Services in recognition for the Library’s work to automate . . . → Read More: Recognizing Research: Carleton Professor Wins SCS Outstanding Professional Contribution Award
By Sharon Miki, on March 24th, 2011
In a world where most of us are far more likely be playing Angry Birds in our spare time than reading a good book, it is no wonder than literacy skills are being threatened. With this in mind, Simon Fraser University education professor emerita Selma Wassermann is investigating ways to supplement traditional teaching methods with modern technologies as a way to bolster literacy levels among elementary and secondary school students.
Wassermann developed a new app for the iPad, called the My Word! Reader, as a resource for students struggling with reading to learn and improve their reading skills at their own pace.
“In my dream world, I would hope the high-tech tools can be used as supplementary resources that complement what a teacher does, thus freeing the teacher to do much, much more with individual kids and with the curriculum,” says Wassermann.
The app strives to assist users . . . → Read More: Oh My Word! SFU Professor uses Innovate Apps to Promote Literacy
By Sharon Miki, on February 24th, 2011
YouTube has exposed the world to the light-hearted likes of Justin Bieber, the Evolution of Dance and the “leave Britney alone” guy—but could this seemingly blithe medium carry hidden dangers for Canada’s youth? In an era of omnipresent online video where kids can—quite literally—carry the Internet with them in their pockets, a University of Guelph study purports that YouTube videos depicting self-harm can negatively impact some youth by making destructive behaviors seem normal.
Professor Stephen Lewis (Credit: Universit of Guelph)
The researchers, led by University of Guelph psychology professor Stephen Lewis, studied the top 50 YouTube videos showing a person engaging in an act of self-harm. These videos–which had a combined total of over two million views—contained both live acts as well as graphic photographs and text. The most common form of self-harm depicted was cutting.
According to Lewis, between 14 to 24 per cent of youth . . . → Read More: YouTube Youth: Guelph Study Finds Danger in Catching it on Video
By Sharon Miki, on February 9th, 2011
 What if your doctor could detect your risk for life threatening diseases with less bloodshed than you’d expend on a paper-cut? A University of Victoria researcher is working on developing the technology to do just that.
Dr. Christoph Borchers (Credit: University of Victoria)
Dr. Christoph Borchers, working with the University of Victoria and the Genome BC Proteomics Centre, is conducting research using a machine called the Agilent ion funnel 6490 mass spectrometer. Using the mass spectrometer, Boucher takes the weight of protein molecules in blood to ascertain if certain biomarkers for heart disease or cancer are present. In this way, Borchers’s research could help detect serious diseases with a small amount of a patient’s blood.
According to Borchers, “[w]hen we can quantify the amount of proteins in the blood, then this can be a diagnostic tool for the doctor. If the doctor knows how much of a certain . . . → Read More: More Bang for Your Blood: Using a Single Drop of Blood to Test for Heart Disease, Cancer
By Sharon Miki, on January 31st, 2011
 With about a zillion web applications (apps) serving as flashlights and tip calculators, it’s easy to overlook the potential for smartphones, like the iPhone, to function as useful tools for your health. Medical researchers from the University of Western Ontario, however, have developed an app that could do more than play a game on your phone—it could motivate you to change your lifestyle to improve your health.
University of Western Ontario professor and Lawson Health Research Institute scientist Femida Gwadry-Sridhar at the iThink Research Labs has led the development of an iPhone app that will show certain patients what their arteries look like. Targeted at those individuals with a high risk of stroke, Gwadry-Sridhar’s app would provide an ultrasound rendering of plague deposits in the carotid artery. The app, which will be tested in randomized control trial, would allow patients to access a password-protected site online where their artery . . . → Read More: Better for You Than Angry Birds: Researchers Create iPhone App to Show You the State of Your Arteries
By Kirsten Scott, on January 27th, 2011
 While consumers may like the convenience that the Internet lends to certain tasks, going online isn’t always the best way to go. As such, a new Canadian study explores the complexities of buying a home—and whether it can be effectively accomplished in cyberspace.
The effectiveness of online real estate tools are examined in a March 2010 study published in The Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences, led by Ryerson University professor of marketing Jane Saber and the University of Alberta’s Paul Messinger. The study, entitled “The impact of e-information on residential real estate services: Transaction costs, social embeddedness and market conditions,” surveyed 260 middle class Canadian households and found that, with the surge of online resources available, buyers and sellers will react differently to working with an agent based on whether or not the real estate market is hot. That is, when the market is hot and information can be . . . → Read More: Do-it-Yourself Real Estate: Ryerson University Researchers Explore Buying and Selling Online
By Sharon Miki, on January 4th, 2011
 Photo Credit: mecredis
Ever hacked a game or unlocked a cell phone? Relax. According to a new, award-winning study from researchers at Simon Fraser University, companies should be thankful rather than angry with you.
The study, entitled “Creative Consumers: Awareness, Attitude & Action – Instrument & Preliminary Results,” investigated the role of so-called “creative consumers”—those inquisitive users who take it upon themselves to modify, alter and hack the propriety products of technology companies like Apple and Microsoft.
The researchers found that these (unapproved) user-initiatives to modify products, such as unlocking an Apple iPhone, are actually helpful to the companies. According to the researchers, those with the will and know-how to tinker with certain technologies often make changes that the company itself may not have realized consumers wanted.
Using the example of podcasting, the researchers show how creative consumers are impacting the business world. According to the study, it . . . → Read More: Creative consumers: SFU study advises companies to embrace techno-tinkerers
By Sharon Miki, on January 3rd, 2011
 While many Canadian college and university campuses are beautiful because of their well-crafted historic buildings, perhaps new construction can start a new tradition of environmentally sustainable, green construction; with the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold designation of its Claudette MacKay-Lassonde Pavilion, the University of Western Ontario firmly asserts its place within this trend.
Rendering of the Claudette MacKay-Lassonde Pavilion. (Credit: University of Western Ontario)
The LEED Green Building program is a third-party certification system of rating that promotes environmentally sustainable building and development practices. For the Claudette MacKay-Lassonde Pavilion—which cost $20-million dollars and is 45,000 square-feet in size—to attain this rating, it had to employ several sustainable, green features and construction technologies such as a cistern and greywater system, geothermal heating and cooling, carpooler parking areas, local and recycled materials and a specially-designed plant-based roof.
Example of living material used to cover the roof . . . → Read More: It ain’t easy being green: UWO “Green Building” designated LEED Gold
By Sharon Miki, on December 1st, 2010
 The next time you’re looking to kill some time with a good game, consider leaving the Wii remote in its cradle—choose a different game your pastime could be helping humankind.
Phylo – A Human Computing Framework for Comparative Genomics is a new interactive game developed by researchers at McGill University as a way to harness people’s spare time to help decipher genetic sequences.
Genetic Code (Credit: RambergMediaImages)
In order to better understand the structure of genes, researchers compare genetic sequences to each other to try to identify common regions. This comparison, called multiple sequence alignment, is traditionally carried out through complex computer algorithms. However, because people are naturally inclined to solve puzzles, they are to recognize and correct gaps in patterns more efficiently than computers.
Capitalizing on human abilities to optimize genetic sequences, McGill researchers—led by researcher Dr. Jérôme Waldispuhl—have developed the Phylo game.
People who play the . . . → Read More: This Ain’t No Atari: McGill Researchers Want You to Play Genetic Games
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