First nanotechnology conference held at QNC

The recently-opened Mike & Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum-Nano Centre is hosting its first nanotechnology conference today. Nano Ontario 2012, the third annual edition of the event, has brought together leaders from academia, industry, and government to discuss how best to build Ontario's nanotechnology future.

The conference, which started yesterday and concludes today has more than 200 participants, including 100 presentations from the next generation of nanotechnology researchers. Keynote speakers include Linda Nazar from the University of Waterloo, billed as a world authority on lithium batteries, John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Cornell University's Chris Ober, and Ted Sargent from the University of Toronto.

Some 20 companies are also on hand for a special industry session that includes a discussion of the opportunities and challenges facing nanotechnology in Canada.

The event includes a round of tours of the new Quantum-Nano building.

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Pension recommendations going to Board

Following public information sessions held in June of this year, the Pension & Benefits Committee has sent a memo to members of the University of Waterloo's pension plan that outlines the recommendations the committee will be making to the Board of Governors when it meets on October 30.

The recommendations are as follows:

• Effective January 1, 2013, employee contribution rates increase to 6.25% on earnings up to the year’s maximum pensionable earnings (YMPE), 8.95% on earnings between the YMPE and 2X the YMPE, 9.95% on earnings in excess of 2X the YMPE up to the earning at which the maximum contribution under the Income Tax Act is reached;
  
• Guaranteed indexing for the pension benefit accrued as of December 31, 2013 will remain at 100% of the increase in the consumer price index (CPI) (to a maximum increase in CPI of 5%); for the balance of your pension benefit (that is your pension benefit earned for all your pensionable service less the pension benefit accrued as of December 31, 2013), the guaranteed indexing will be calculated as 75% of the increase in CPI (to a maximum increase in CPI of 5%); and
  
• Effective January 1, 2014, the current averaging period of 36 consecutive months for determining final average earnings will increase by one month at the end of each calendar month until it reaches an averaging period of 60 consecutive months as of December 31, 2015. However, for any member who has entered into an arrangement for a 2% salary increase in lieu of vacation entitlement, along with an irrevocable retirement date, the final average earning calculation at his/her declared retirement date will remain at 36 consecutive months even if retirement is after January 1, 2014, provided that the election is made and all approvals have been received prior to December 21, 2012. (Note: due to holiday closures, the last business day of the year is December 21, 2012. Forms need to be submitted to Human Resources prior to that date in order to be processed by the end of year.)
  
• The cap on pension payable per year of service will increase from $3,200 to $3,300 as of January 1, 2014 and from $3,300 to $3,400 as of January 1, 2015.

The context for the four recommendations is the $170 million shortfall in the university's pension plan. As a frequently-asked questions document prepared by the committee explains, the pension plan's assets are made up of contributions by the university and by plan members, which are then invested in financial markets. The current rate of contribution was set based on the assumption that the invested assets will earn 6.35 per cent per year, including inflation. However, with the 2008 collapse of the financial markets, as well as what the committee refers to as "continued instability", the value of the pension's assets "declined dramatically" and has not yet recovered fully.

The slide deck and video used during the pension information sessions are now available online. The committee has developed some additional materials, including illustrated examples of the impact of the proposed changes and a FAQ document that answers common questions the committee has heard in the course of its consultations. In addition, the committee has posted a summary of its recommendations and communications to pension plan members since 2007.

These recommendations remain recommendations until the Board of Governors considers them at their meeting at the end of the month.

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Go ENG Girl tomorrow and other notes

On Saturday the University of Waterloo will host 150 girls in grades 7 through 10 and their parents at Go ENG Girl.

Go ENG Girl is a free event that encourages girls to have fun as they learn about current programs of study and careers in engineering. Hands-on workshops allow participants to experience the creativity, imagination and teamwork involved in engineering design. This year, participants will be constructing a robotic arm.

Parents and guardians are encouraged to attend and talk to students, faculty and alumna.

The event takes place Saturday at locations across Ontario, including Waterloo, and is organized by the Ontario Network of Women in Engineering. Running from 9:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., the event takes place in the Davis Centre and in the Student Design Centre in Engineering 5.

The Go ENG Girl event at Waterloo is the largest in Ontario. It's popular, too: there is such high demand for spots that registration is now closed. Over the past five years, more than 4,500 girls have participated in the annual events.

Other notes as this Friday appears to have shown up early:

The second Waterloo-local ACM-style programming contest this term will be held this Saturday, October 13 in MC 3003. All members of the university community are invited to try their programming skill in Scheme, C, C++, Java, or Pascal. The results of this local contest will be used to select the UW teams for the international ACM competition. We will send three teams of three to the East Central North America Regional in Windsor on November 3. Full details and registration information is available online. The contest will run from 1:00 p.m. until 4:00 p.m. and will be followed by pizza.

Take note that Creative Services will be closing at 11:15 a.m. today for a staff development event, and will be reopening Monday.

The 45th annual Naismith Classic basketball tournament is on today through Sunday in the PAC.

Today is the deadline for nominations for the two vacant faculty Senate positions. Nomination forms are due at the Secretariat by 3:00 p.m. today for the Engineering and Science vacancies. At least five nominators are required.

Some utility shutdowns to be aware of: Steam services in Engineering 6 will be offline on Monday, October 15 from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. for boiler maintenance. High pressure air in Engineering 5's Lab Room 2006 will be shut off Wednesday, October 17, from 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. due to renovations.

Next Tuesday the Waterloo Stratford Campus has its grand opening event at 11:00 a.m. at its location on Patrick Street in Stratford. A public open house follows at 1:00 p.m.

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