|
|
February 2009
Join ORION at OCE Discovery '09
ORION invites researchers and educators from Ontario postsecondary and research institutions to join us at the Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE) Discovery '09 conference, May 11 and 12 in Toronto. Discovery targets private industry, innovators, investors, scientists, researchers, and governments to pursue opportunities for collaboration. This year, ORION is partnering with the OCE and will be the exclusive host of the Digital Zone at Discovery, a space that includes exhibitor booths and a mini-stage for a line-up of special guest speakers. More information about the conference program and opportunities for showcasing in the ORION Digital Zone will be available in the coming months. In the meantime, visit www.ocediscovery.com.
Call for Proposals: Digital Humanities Fellowships
SHARCNET has issued a call for proposals for Round 1 of SHARCNET's Research Support Programmes: Digital Humanities Fellowships. The objectives of the program are to allow researchers from the Digital Humanities and Arts communities to undertake projects of exceptional promise that leverage the HPC resources and infrastructure of SHARCNET, and to increase the interaction and integration between the Digital Humanities and Arts communities and the traditional HPC disciplines in the use of SHARCNET's resources and infrastructure. Deadline is March 31. Learn more at www.sharcnet.ca.
CANARIE invests $3M in green IT
CANARIE will invest $3 million in a Green IT pilot program to demonstrate the technological feasibility and business advantages of an internationally distributed zero carbon cyber-infrastructure facility to be located in Canada. Aiming to develop and test possible business models that would measure and trade the carbon credits generated by reduced use of greenhouse gas (GHG) producing non-renewable energy for ICT activity, this research pilot project will be collaboratively undertaken by academia and industry. The pilot aims to make more extensive use of network services by laying the foundation for a potentially significant cyber-infrastructure architecture that will provide the first steps in supporting the building of a zero carbon economy. To kick off the project, CANARIE will bring together experts from within Canada and around the world to participate in a workshop on March 4th in Ottawa to define objectives and determine a process to identify partners and contributions. To learn more, visit www.canarie.ca.
Ottawa invests in digital media research
Communitech and the Stratford Institute of the University of Waterloo have been awarded $10.7 million from the Minister of State (Science and Technology) to establish the Corridor for Advancing Canadian Digital Media (CACDM), which will focus on commercialization and research. The University of Waterloo's Stratford Institute will be a research, education and convergence centre that will drive the next generation of digital media applications and content models. The institute will draw leading researchers, businesses and entrepreneurs to create, examine and commercialize opportunities in the digital media field in a global economy. The Digital Media Convergence Centre, based in Kitchener, will bring together the Waterloo Region's expertise in digital media and mobile technology, to generate new digital media products, applications and businesses. The scope of digital media extends well beyond film, TV and gaming, with a growing number of applications in medical imaging, 3D cinema and animation, virtual prototyping in manufacturing, virtual reality environments for enhanced education, and financial modelling. Read more...
Ontario launches high-speed connectivity website
The Ontario Ministry of Government Services recently launched a website to share opportunities and best practices for using high-speed connectivity to produce economic and social value, and improve the delivery of government services. As well as being a resource for finding reports, presentations and toolkits, the site also facilitates an ongoing community of broadband knowledge and practice in Ontario, featuring video streams, discussion forums and wikis. Read more at www.digitalontario.mgs.gov.on.ca.
Humber students make contact with space
Four students at Toronto's Humber College became the first college-level students in the world to build and successfully operate the apparatus required to make contact with an astronaut in outer space. The students devoted hundreds of hours to their senior technical design project - "Operation First Contact" - designing and constructing a radio communications system to meet NASA's criteria. It is a feat only those with extensive radio experience - professional radio engineers, radio frequency technologists or graduate-level engineering students - have accomplished. The encounter lasted about 10 minutes, and during that time the students communicated with an astronaut at the International Space Station (ISS) during one of its daily orbits of the earth. The students had a short window to find its signal and speak with the astronaut before the ISS hurtled out of range at nearly 27,000 km/hour. Learn more at www.humber.ca.
York observatory launches live online views of night sky
The York University observatory recently launched a website broadcasting live telescope images of the stars to astronomy lovers around the world. The university's Department of Physics and Astronomy will simultaneously host an interactive forum online to answer questions from the public and to field requests that telescopes be moved to view a particular planet or star cluster. The free online access, coupled with the interactive question and answer format, is a unique portal for both astronomy buffs and curious observers. The launch coincides with the International Year of Astronomy events and part of York's 50th anniversary celebrations. Learn more at www.physics.yorku.ca and http://astronomy.blog.yorku.ca.
St. Lawrence launches two first-of-their-kind programs
Ontario's first Wind Turbine Technician program will launch at St. Lawrence beginning in 2009, supporting growth in this new industry. The Ontario government is investing $1.6 million in a new training facility at the college and providing extra funding for training. The new facility will provide space for about 80 apprentices in several trades, including 20 Wind Turbine Technician students. The Kingston area is home to what will be one of Ontario's largest wind farms. The college also recently launched a new online program that will meet the rising interest in, and need for, "how-to" training for local food system development that is sustainable, socially just, and economically viable. The introductory course, Field to Fork: Introduction to Local and Global Food Systems, is the first of its kind in Canada. The focus is on how to change the food systems in the communities we live in to make them more sustainable.
Read more about the wind turbine program and the sustainability of food program .
Ontario universities team up to build solar-powered house
Students and faculty at the University of Waterloo, Ryerson University and Simon Fraser University, along with industry partners, have teamed up to build North House, an advanced solar-powered home. Under the title Team North, the group will design and build North House to demonstrate Canada's commitment to sustainability and promote alternative energy sources as part of the prestigious 2009 Solar Decathlon competition. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the decathlon will be held in October 2009 in Washington, D.C., drawing 20 university teams with prototype solar homes from around the world. The teams will each build a full-scale house to compete in 10 categories measuring quality and performance. North House is one of only two Canadian entries selected to participate. Team North aims to combine green building, solar and interactive technologies in order to reduce energy demand, foster a conservation ethic and boost the quality of life for Canadians. Deploying the latest in energy-efficient technologies and materials, North House will demonstrate how design can reduce energy use while maintaining a high quality of life for its occupants. Learn more at www.team-north.com.
Cambrian promotes sustainable energy research and training
Currently under construction, the Xstrata Nickel Sustainable Energy Centre at Cambrian College in Sudbury will be both a showcase for sustainable design as well as a hands-on applied research facility for Cambrian faculty and students, and private and public sector partners. As a model for responsible building practice, the "living building" will set new standards for performance in site development, water and energy usage and resource conservation - exceeding the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum-level standards in green building. The facility will also be a technology laboratory and a venue for prototype development by students in Cambrian's Energy Systems Technology program. Students will work with entrepreneurs and experts in the field of alternative energy to study and test the harnessing of energy from renewable sources in order to help meet, manage and conserve our present and future energy needs. Learn more at www.cambriancollege.ca.
Ryerson launches student-run campus TV
Students at Ryerson University have just launched RUtv - a student-run television station broadcasting content from a variety of genres including drama, comedy, music, entertainment, news, current affairs, reality, lifestyle, sports, events and more. It will feature student-produced content, with a student-centric perspective, created by any student at Ryerson University. RUtv can be viewed on cable television in two Ryerson campus residences and on select monitors throughout campus, as well as on www.RUtv.ca.
Back to Headlines
|
| |
|
