Waterloo, Technion sign partnership agreement

Two of the world’s top innovation universities hope to accelerate breakthroughs in research and commercialization with a new agreement signed during a joint conference in Israel yesterday.

The agreement between the University of Waterloo and Technion-Israel Institute of Technology brings together some of the top minds in quantum information science, nanotechnology and water for pure and applied research.

“As two of the world’s top innovation universities, the University of Waterloo and Technion are natural partners,” said Feridun Hamdullahpur. “This partnership positions both Waterloo and Technion for accelerated progress in the key areas of quantum information science, nanotechnology, and water. These disciplines will help to shape the future of communities, industries, and everyday life.”

The conference to mark the start of the new partnership, and a reciprocal event in Waterloo planned for later in 2014, is funded by a donation to the University of Waterloo from The Gerald Schwartz & Heather Reisman Foundation.

“The agreement between the University of Waterloo and Technion will lead to joint research projects between Israeli and Canadian scientists in areas crucial for making our world a better place,” said Peretz Lavie, president of Technion. “I could not think of a better partner for such projects than the University of Waterloo.”

The new partnership agreement will connect students and faculty from both institutions with global markets through technology transfer and commercialization opportunities with industrial partners in Canada and in Israel.

“This partnership between two global innovation leaders puts in place the conditions to support research breakthroughs and new opportunities for commercialization on an international scale,” said George Dixon, Waterloo's vice-president, university research. “University of Waterloo and Technion have a history of research collaboration going back almost 20 years.”

The joint research conference in Israel to mark the signing featured presentations by some of the world’s top researchers, including Raymond Laflamme, executive director of Waterloo’s Institute for Quantum Computing.

The conference also featured the work of nanotechnology expert Carolyn Ren whose knowledge of Lab-on-a-Chip Technology has the potential to revolutionize medical diagnosis and treatment by making chemical and biomedical diagnosis faster, easier and less expensive. Canada Research Chair in Groundwater Remediation, David Blowes, also presented on his work to find new and better ways to stop or reverse contamination caused by mining operations.

The new research partnership will increase international opportunities for undergraduate, graduate and post-doctoral student research exchanges, along with joint training and education programs, including dual and joint degree programs. The institutions will also collaborate on applied research projects, workshops, seminars and conferences.

 

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Student portal now in testing phase

A message from the Student Portal project team.

The student portal is an exciting project currently in development that will act as a dynamic, online student communication tool. Students will be able to customize the information that appears in their portal and get the information that they need, just when they need it, in order to be successful at Waterloo.

This project, led by the Student Success Office and Information Systems & Technology (IST), has consulted broadly with students and 45+ campus partners to determine the needs and expectations of a student portal.

A beta version of the portal was launched in November 2013 with a small group of undergraduate and graduate students. New groups of students are added every few weeks and their role is to give feedback on what they like, what features they would like to see as well as report any bugs. This feedback is vital to ensure the portal will meet the needs of Waterloo students.

The current focus of the portal team includes:

• refining and creating new widgets while incorporating student beta tester feedback;
• working with campus partners to help turn existing information into data that can be captured and pulled into the portal;
• working with partners to address data integrity;
• testing data streams that will feed into the portal to ensure they can handle large volumes of student activity; and
• working with IST to address backend data infrastructure.

A key feature of the portal is notifications: 140-character call-to-actions that appears at the top of a student’s portal. Currently, the Registrar’s Office, Graduate Studies Office and Student Accounts are testing notifications with time-sensitive messages that direct students to complete an important action on a webpage, such as making course selections or arranging fees.

Over time, this critical feature will help reduce the volume of Waterloo email students receive. Next term, the Faculty of Environment will be a beta tester group, to help the project team determine best practices and governance for notifications.  

You can learn more about the current features available in portal beta on the student portal website. We are also regularly recruiting students who would like to be beta testers. They can sign up online. Questions can be directed to Jude Doble, in the SSO.

 

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Co-operative education: another great year

by Stephanie Tortorici, Co-operative Education and Career Action (CECA). Part of a weeklong focus

The numbers are in, and 2013 was another great year for Co-operative Education & Career Action (CECA) at Waterloo!

With over 17,000 scheduled work terms and upwards of 77,000 interviews, it really was an exciting year. Watch the video for an inside look at a year in the life of CECA:

A special thanks to Matt Regehr from Creative Services for designing the video!

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Mandela tribute concert at Conrad Grebel today

Today's Noon Hour Concert at Conrad Grebel is a tribute to the late Nelson Mandela.

One of many such concerts being mounted internationally in Mandela's name, today's concert will be performed by pianist/composer Carol Ann Weaver of Conrad Grebel, Toronto-based vocalist Rebecca Campbell, and the UW Chamber Choir, conducted by Professor Mark Vuorinen.

The event will feature several traditional South African songs as well as original compositions by Weaver, including Johnny Clegg's "Asimbonanga" ("We have not seen him"), written during Mandela's imprisonment, South Africa's national anthem "Nkosi Sikelel iAfrika ("God Bless Africa), and Weaver's "Every Three Children", written in 2006 in response to the composer's experience travelling in South Africa and encounters with child victims of AIDS.

Weaver has had a long-time interest in Africa, having travelled to South Africa a dozen times—before and after Apartheid—by herself, with her family, and with University of Waterloo students on four consecutive Music and Culture trips.

Donations stemming from this concert will go to the Stephen Lewis Foundation.

This will also be Weaver's final performance in a Noon Hour Concert, as she is retiring in July. Weaver is an associate professor of music at Conrad Grebel, teaching composition, theory, jazz, women and music, and African music.

The concert takes place in the Conrad Grebel Chapel at 12:30 p.m.

 

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Secretariat announces acclamations, elections

Following the call for nominations to fill seats on Senate and the Board of Governors, the Secretariat has announced that the following people have been elected by acclamation to serve on Senate:

• Faculty Representatives – John Garcia (Public Health and Health Systems), Neil Thomson (Civil and Environmental Engineering), Mark Seasons (Planning), Michele Mosca (Combinatorics and Optimization) and Paul Murphy (Optometry and Vision Science), terms 1 May 2014 to 30 April 2017.
• Faculty-at-large Representative – Bill Power (Chemistry), term 1 May 2014 to 30 April 2015.
• Federated University & Affiliated University Colleges Faculty Representatives – Susan Cadell (Renison University College) and Scott Kline (St. Jerome’s University College), terms 1 May 2014 to 30 April 2017; Kieran Bonner (St. Jerome’s University College), term 1 May 2014 to 30 April 2015.
• Graduate student Representatives – Robert Henderson (Physics and Astronomy) and Samantha Shortfall (Pharmacy), terms 1 May 2014 to 30 April 2016.

In addition to the acclamations, there will be elections for representatives on Senate and the Board of Governors. Online voting will begin Thursday, March 20 at 8:30 a.m. to fill the following seats:

• Arts Faculty Representative to Senate – candidates: Katherine Acheson (English Language and Literature) and Tara Collington (French Studies), term 1 May 2014 to 30 April 2017.
• Faculty-at-Large Representatives to Senate – candidates: Lutz-Alexander Busch (Economics), Michael Drescher (Planning), Samir Elhedhli (Management Sciences), Mike Hudson (Physics and Astronomy), Peter Johnson (Geography and Environmental Management), Jonathan Li (Geography and Environmental Management), Shoufa Li (Earth and Environmental sciences), Diana Parry (Recreation and Leisure studies) and Hamid Tizhoosh (Systems Design Engineering), terms 1 May 2014 to 30 April 2017.
• Staff Representative to the Board of Governors – candidates: Greg Smith (Information Systems and Technology) and Mark Walker (Registrar’s Office), term 1 May 2014 to 30 April 2017.

 

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Read your Face-Off at St. Jerome's; other notes

"A Canada Reads-style event comes to St. Jerome’s University on Thursday, March 20 at 1:00 p.m. in the cafeteria," writes Diana Bumstead. "St. Jerome’s University began SJU Reads, a common reading program for incoming first year students last year to build community on campus and improve the first year experience."

This year they have extended the program to include an event, "SJU Reads Face-Off: The Curious Incident of the Flying Troutmans on the Road to Sarajevo", where SJU students, staff and faculty will select the winning SJU Reads novel for 2014.

Four shortlisted books will be defended by two students, the Vice-President Academic & Dean, and the librarian. The shortlisted books are: The Flying Troutmans, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, The Cellist of Sarajevo and Road Ends. All are welcome to attend this brief 15’ish minute event.

Here's the latest Nutrition Month "myth vs. fact" from Health Services Dietician Sandra Ace:

Myth: Dietitians and nutritionists are the same thing.

Truth: This is often an area of confusion for those seeking advice on nutrition and today, National Dietitians Day, is a good time to clarify this. The titles “dietitian” or “Registered Dietitian” are protected by law; only an individual who has met specific educational and professional requirements is legally allowed to use them. In Ontario, Registered Dietitians must belong to the College of Dietitians of Ontario and use the initials “RD” after their name. Registered Dietitians are legally obligated to practice according to set standards and laws that protect the public, as are other regulated health professionals like doctors and nurses.

The terms “nutritionist” or “registered nutritionist” are not protected titles in Ontario. Nutritionists are not part of a provincially-regulated college, so anyone can use this title and there are no legal standards for quality of care. The really confusing thing is that, in some settings, such as public health, registered dietitians may use the title “Nutritionist.” However, they are still required to use the initials RD after their name, so look for this designation. Check the qualifications of any health professional that provides advice on health and nutrition; getting inaccurate or misleading advice could be detrimental to your health.

 

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