Wednesday, July 22, 2009

  • Banners flash Waterloo’s bold new look
  • Laflamme talks on research and giving
  • SDE students design to harvest energy
  • Student Life 101 prep for staff and faculty
  • Editor:
  • Chris Redmond
  • Communications and Public Affairs
  • bulletin@uwaterloo.ca

Banners flash Waterloo’s bold new look

New pole banners in dramatic black and bold colours are going up around the Ring Road and in the surrounding streets this week, in time to greet students and parents arriving for Student Life 101 on Saturday.

new pole banner in blackThe banners, designed by a team at Graphics, were mentioned in the joint memo from the president and V-P external relations circulated last week, as “reflecting the spirit of the new marketing-oriented visual identity for Waterloo.” They are almost the first public glimpse of some of the elements that will be associated with the new visual identity, and a hint of the direction that will be taken.

Meg Beckel, vice-president external relations, describes the banners as transitional. “We are not using the new logo, but we are introducing elements of the new visual identity: the Gotham font, the bolder look, and the colours.” She adds: “This is an evolution, not a revolution. We are gradually getting the new look out there, testing it and playing with it.”

The banners come in two kinds. The black one (left) shows “University of Waterloo” emblazoned prominently in white, with intensely coloured lines curving dynamically along the length of the banner. Eight others show the curved lines in white, along with one each of eight words — such as innovative, collaborative, and creative — on a strongly coloured background: red, teal, orange, green, deep pink, and two different blues.

They also come in two sizes. A larger set, 24 by 66 inches, will hang along the streets that frame the campus: University, Westmount, and Columbia avenues, and Phillip Street. The slightly smaller set, 17.75 by 61 inches, will hang around the Ring Road. They will be hung either in pairs, a black and a coloured one side by side, or in sequence, with a black and a coloured banner alternating.

Back to top

Laflamme talks on research and giving

President David Johnston. left, with Raymond Laflamme

In June, President David Johnston (left) sat down with Raymond Laflamme, director of the Institute for Quantum Computing, to discuss the field of quantum computing and the way private donation (especially from Mike and Ophelia Lazaridis) has supported quantum information research at Waterloo.

The conversation, which was filmed in Laflamme’s MRI lab, was intercut with scenes of Laflamme teaching and other researchers at work, and produced as a video to honour the members of the 1957 Society — donors whose cumulative gifts have reached $100,000 or more. Entitled "What great philanthropy can do," the video is now online.

Here is some of what Laflamme said:

On what IQC plans to do with the more than $300 million in private and government funding it has received: “My colleagues and I are trying to reach for excellence at the highest international level, and we’re focusing that excellence in three main directions. First, getting the best brains of the world to come to Waterloo and providing resources so they can do their research. Second, bringing the best graduate students to come and work at IQC. They are the ones who will take these ideas and apply them. And third, bringing this knowledge to government, industry, and the general public, so it’s not only focused within the academic community.”

On the impact of the work done at IQC: “It’s always hard to think about the impact of fundamental research – we can’t look in a crystal ball and say what’s going to happen. If we go back in history about 60 years, someone named Charles Townes invented the laser. It was just curiosity-driven. And suddenly today, lasers are everywhere, from the grocery checkout, to surgery, to your CD player. We know some of the applications of quantum information processing, from better and faster computers to cryptography and private information. But I’m sure when we look back in 30 or 40 years, we’ll say, ‘We were very naïve in 2009 at the University of Waterloo, thinking of only these few applications!’ There will be a lot more, and that’s the exciting thing about this field.”

On the impact and example of Mike and Ophelia Lazaridis’ gift of more than $100 million to IQC: “This donation inspires people and is changing the dynamics of how research is being funded in Canada. At IQC, Mike and Ophelia’s great philanthropy created a partnership between the university and government, enabling us to do something that has never been done in Canada before: gathering a concentration of talent so we can excel at the top international level. We’ll be able to compete with the MITs, Harvards, and Caltechs of this world. Waterloo can play its part and be known as the place where quantum information has flourished.”

Back to top

SDE students design to harvest energy

from a UW Media Relations news release

Waterloo systems design engineering students will display product designs this week that explore energy harvesting and sustainability in the home, community, transportation, and communications.

On Friday, 12 student groups in a third-year systems design engineering course will present the product design exhibition. The event runs 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. in Davis Centre room 1301.

"Fossil, hydro and nuclear sources will not address the world's increasing energy needs," says John Zelek, professor of systems design engineering, and event organizer. "Ambient energy sources such as the sun, wind, and waves and tides are alternative resources. Human kinetic motion is another source for powering small wearable electronic devices such as mobile phones, iPods and GPS navigators."

The student groups were each required to choose a problem area, identify a design problem objective, and solicit needs from stakeholders, then develop the concepts that are prototyped for display at this week's exhibit.

Among the problems addressed: reducing the amount of energy used in home water-heating systems; capturing wind energy in urban settings; using kinetic energy to power mobile devices and home gaming systems; tracking animals in Africa; sustainable cooling of an car's engine and interior; minimizing energy losses for refrigerated delivery trucks; capturing wave power for recreational boats; cooling computer server systems; and recovering energy from landfill sites.

The course and theme meet several engineering design learning objectives. It exposes students to relevant world issues which may lead to cost-effective solutions. It also shows that engineering plays a key role in society, improving the quality of life for all.

Back to top

Student Life 101 prep for staff and faculty

Student volunteers with Student Life 101 2009Student Life 101 is coming up this Saturday and these members of the student co-ordinating team look ready to take it on: (from left, rear) Joe Collins, Cassandra Piroutz, and Abeer Rahman; (front) Josh Layton, Nilani Logeswaran, and Keriece Harris.

For faculty and staff members who want to know more about what to expect on the big day, the student leaders who run the program are offering two information sessions on Thursday in Needles Hall room 1101. The first session, at 10:30 a.m., is for staff who are brand new to Student Life 101. The second, at 11 a.m., is for staff who have taken part in SL101 before.

“If you are interested in being a part of Student Life 101 in 2010,” says Cora Dupuis, student life co-ordinator: first-year experience, send her email.

CPA staff

Back to top

Link of the day

Eclipse of the sun

When and where

Career workshop: “Work Search Strategies” today, 10:30, Tatham Centre room 1208. Details.

PDEng alumni lecture: three recent graduates speak on “Beat the Traffic: from University Avenue to Career Highway” today, 11:30 a.m., Davis Centre room 1304.

Purple yourself for Alzheimer's. Engineering student fundraiser, today, 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m., CPH Courtyard.

Institute for Computer Research seminar: Robert Kroeger, Google, “A General-Purpose Caching Architecture for Offline-Capable Web Applications” today, noon, Davis Centre room 1302.

Farm market operated by UW food services and volunteers, Thursday, 9 to 1, Environment I courtyard.

Shad Valley program open house to show off teenage participants’ achievements, Thursday, 1:30 to 4, Conrad Grebel University College great hall. Details.

Job information sessions for graduating students, Thursday, 2:30, Arts Lecture Hall room 116. Attend if you are on a work term September-December, for information about on-campus recruitment and career services.

Career workshops Thursday: “Success on the Job” 2:30 p.m., location to be announced; “Business Etiquette and Professionalism” 3:30, Tatham Centre room 1208; “Getting a US Work Permit” 4:30, Tatham 1208. Details.

180 Degrees of Change event by UW Sustainability Project. Thursday, 5-7 p.m., outdoor games behind Student life Centre; board games and documentary in SLC. 9-11 p.m., bonfire and music jam at EV1 fire pit on Seagram Drive.

Orchestra @ waterloo players perform chamber music by Strauss, Tchaikovsky, Brahms, Villa-Lobos: fund-raiser for orchestra, Thursday, 8 p.m., at KWCMS Music Room, 57 Yonge St. W., Waterloo. Tickets $15 (seniors $10, students $8). Details.

Free soda pop floats Friday, 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m., CPH courtyard and between RCH and Physics. Donations accepted to Waterloo Region Food Bank.

Disorderly Conduct: conference on language and concepts in a shifting model of medical and clinical care, UW and WLU, July 24-25. Details and to register.

Student Life 101 special hours for Book store, Waterloo Store, Campus Tech and Write Stuff: Saturday, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Waterloo at the Zoo outing to Metro Toronto Zoo for alumni, family and friends, Saturday. Details.

Class enrolment for fall term courses: appointments until July 26 for new students; open enrolment begins July 27.

UW Bookstore Read and Relax book sale. July 28 and 29, 9:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., South Campus Hall Concourse.

‘Dealing with Difficult Students’ workshop organized by Centre for Teaching Excellence, Friday, July 31, 10:30, Flex Lab, Dana Porter Library. Details.

Spring term classes end Tuesday, July 28. Exams August 4-15; unofficial grades begin appearing on Quest August 17; grades become official September 21.

Civic Holiday Monday, August 3, UW offices and most services closed.

CECS employer interviews (main group) begin August 4 and continue to August 28.

Co-op job postings open August 4 and continue into the first week in October.

Architecture co-op employer interviews August 6, 13, 20.

Ontario Mennonite Music Camp August 9-21, Conrad Grebel University College. Details.

Positions available

On this week's list from the human resources department:

• Financial aid customer service assistant, Office of the Registrar, USG 5
• Supervisor, undergraduate studies records & communi- cations, Electrical & Computer Engineering, USG 6
• Faculty financial officer, Dean of Environment, USG 9

Yesterday's Daily Bulletin