Accounting grad wins gold

a media release from the School of Accounting and Finance

A recent graduate from the School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) has won the national and provincial gold medals for the Chartered Accountancy Uniform Final Examination (UFE), described as one of the most challenging professional examinations in the world.

Juliana Yuen (MAcc ’11) (right) won the prestigious Governor General’s Gold Medal and the Chartered Accountants of Canada’s cash prize of $5,000 for having the highest standing in Canada on the UFE. Yuen’s impressive accomplishment follows on the heels of Vicky Au (MAcc ’10) who took home the honour last year.

“A year ago to the day of results, I had spoken to Vicky Au, congratulating her on her success, and she had told me that she thought I could do it too” explains Yuen. “I'm just happy to be able to represent Waterloo, and I would love to be able to encourage the upcoming classes to strive as high.”

The three-day examination is a critical component of the CAs qualification program. It assesses a person’s knowledge, ability to think analytically, and gauges their professional judgment and ethics.

A total of 18 Ontario CA students placed on the respected 52-member National Honour Roll, seven MAcc grads among them. Overall, 1,135 Ontario CA students and a total of 2,858 across the country successfully passed the UFE.

Dave Vert, Director of the MAcc and Diploma programs, on behalf of the SAF faculty and staff, extended congratulations to all the SAF graduates who achieved success on the 2011 UFE saying “The class of 2011 had amazing results and to have one of our grads taking gold for the second year in a row is icing on the cake.”

In addition to the UFE, the CA qualification program requires a person to successfully complete prescribed practical work experience, before they are entitled to use the internationally-recognized CA designation.

Photograph by Jonathan Bielaski of Light Imaging.

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ZENN car on display

with material from Ross McKenzie

Zero emissions, no noise. That was the promise of the ZENN Low Speed Vehicle (LSV), produced by the ZENN Motor Company of Toronto between 2006 and 2010. A rare pre-production model is currently on display in the Engineering 5 lobby and was brought to the university by Professor Mehrdad Kazerani of electrical and computer engineering, whose research team will be using the vehicle after the exhibition ends in mid-January.

The ZENN is a fully functional, two passenger, front wheel drive, electric vehicle that was produced at an assembly plant in Saint-Jerome, Quebec. With a top speed of 40 km/h, and a range of 50 to 80 km per charge, the LSV was marketed primarily to urban consumers.

The vehicle’s drivetrain is an electric motor located between the front wheels. Energy is stored in six industrial-grade lead acid batteries, two located up front under the hood and four in back behind the rear wheels. Charging is provided from a standard 120V outlet, taking 4 hours to reach 80 per cent and 8 hours for a full charge.

The vehicle’s chassis and body are a long wheelbase version of the Microcar MC2, imported by the ZENN Motor Company to its kit assembly factory in Quebec, where the electric motor, shifter, wiring, and batteries were installed.

Low Speed Vehicles are street legal in 46 of 50 U.S. states, but in Canada, British Columbia and Quebec were the only provinces with regulations in place to permit operation on a roadway during the car’s production lifetime.

The ZENN debuted with a splash: in 2006, it was entered in the annual Michelin Bibendum Challenge, a sustainable road mobility competition. Competing in the Urban Vehicle category, the ZENN took the gold medal. It was also featured in a 2007 episode of the CBC's Rick Mercer Report.

The ZENN Motor Company ceased manufacturing the vehicles in 2010, concentrating instead on selling drivetrain and energy storage technology to other electric vehicle makers. Only 600 vehicles were produced and sold across the United States, with limited numbers also sold in British Columbia and Quebec. The ZENN vehicle joins such luminaries as the Bricklin SV-1 as a memorable piece of Canadian automotive history. (Dig those powered gull-wing doors!)

This display is open to the public and is the second in a continuing series of interactive exhibits in the Engineering 5 lobby, and is a collaborative initiative of the Student Design Centre and WatCAR.

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Showcase, scholarships, snow, and such

The WE Innovate showcase gets underway today. More than 40 exhibits will be on display from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. today on the third floor of Engineering 5. The public event will include demonstrations of mechatronic devices used in planetary rovers and sports engineering, adhesive technology that mimics a gecko's footpad, equipment used to monitor early embryo development and cancer metastases, projects related to hybrid-electric vehicle development, and thin-walled steel crush tube testing for automatic crash resistance.

More than 150 representatives from industry will attend the event to identify collaborative research opportunities. WE Innovate is organized by the Waterloo Engineering research office and sponsored by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). The showcase is open to the public but pre-registration is required.

A Waterloo graduate, Krysteena Gadzala, has received a $1,000 scholarship from McGraw-Hill Ryerson Limited. 20 individuals were selected from over 500 nominations for the scholarship that is intended to recognize and reward students who enhance the learning environment at their college or university. Gadzala, who graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in French studies, is currently attending Nipissing College to become a teacher, and is planning to return to Waterloo to pursue a Master's program in French.

The first scatterings of snow this month should be a reminder to all of the risk of slips and falls. The Safety Office has prepared prevention posters that can be printed, placed, and otherwise passed around. “Watch out for icy conditions,” says one that features a picture (left) of the kind of sand bin that sits at many spots near parking lots and walkways. “Play your part,” says the poster. “Use sand/salt from the bins." It adds that people on campus should report unsafe walking conditions to the plant operations 24-hour line at ext. 33793.

Another poster encourages all to "give falls the slip" by watching out and avoiding black ice. "Do not get caught by surprise — monitor the weather," the poster says. "Wear winter footwear, even for short walks."

"During storms UW's first priority is main road routes to ensure emergency access and then primary walkways. Attention to some walkways and parking lots may not be possible until at least 24 hours after a storm has subsided. Keep clear of snow removal equipment for your safety and to expedite their response to storm conditions.”

Finally, the Registrar’s Office and Student Awards and Financial Aid will be closed today from 11:30 am until 1:30 p.m. for a holiday celebration.

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