Ronald Stewart, University of Manitoba Daniel Scott, University of Waterloo Thursday March 26, 2015 In Canada and around the world, extreme weather phenomena are becoming more frequent and more damaging. As the costs to people, protected areas, and infrastructure rise, governments are increasingly being called upon to mount coordinated responses to droughts, wildfires, storms and […]
Gerry Wright, McMaster University Thursday April 23, 2015 As near daily headlines warn us, the rise of drug resistant microbes, or “superbugs”, – is impacting public health. We need antibiotics not only to treat infections, but to control them. Antibiotics are likewise the basis of modern-day medical miracles, from organ transplants and joint replacement, to […]
Chistopher Burn, Carleton University Thursday February 4, 2016 Climate change is the talk of the town these days. Not a day goes by without news about its effects. Much attention focuses on the potential release of organic carbon as frozen ground melts. In Canada, where a third of the country is underlain by permafrost, the […]
Ted Sargent, University of Toronto Thursday February 26, 2015 Humankind consumes electrical power at an average annual rate of 15 Terawatts (trillions watts). We meet this demand primarily by burning CO2-emitting stored fossil fuels. Meanwhile, the world’s trees, bacteria, and algae capture ten times that amount of power from the sun through the process of […]
Scott Knight, Royal Military College of Canada Thursday, March 10, 2016 Although cyber security regularly makes news headlines, the resulting discussions often fail to make crucial distinctions between cyber-crime, cyber-espionage and cyber-attack. This presentation will focus on the technology and methods used in cyber-attacks. Although these attacks happen in the virtual setting of computer networks, […]
Chris Eliasmith, University of Waterloo Jeudi, le 14 avril 2016 Large-scale brain models have become the centerpiece of many international "big science" projects. At the University of Waterloo, Chris Eliasmith and his team have created 'Spaun', the world's most comprehensive, functional brain model. The first to demonstrate realistic behaviours under biological constraints, Spaun can reproduce […]
Jean Caron, Université Laval Thursday May 12, 2016 Agriculture today faces increasing challenges ranging from extreme weather and soil and water depletion to the relentless conversion of food land to other uses. Professor Jean Caron of Université Laval is a leader in soil science and precision agriculture technologies. From his own research, he will present […]
Kenneth Lee, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) Thursday June 9, 2016 Even with a concerted global effort to replace carbon fuels with other energy sources, oil continues to be used widely around the world and will be transported by pipeline, rail, tanker trucks and ship for decades to come. Despite advances in technologies […]
Mike Flannigan, University of Alberta Thursday September 29, 2016 Every year, for millennia, thousands of small fires and dozens of large ones break out in Canada’s boreal forest. This will continue as long as people work, build, live, and play in the boreal forest. Disaster can strike when fires occur near populated areas. Last spring's […]
Jeremy Kerr, University of Ottawa Thursday October 27, 2016 Jeremy Kerr, Université d'Ottawa Jeudi, le 27 octobre 2016 Nous comptons sur la nature pour une foule de services essentiels pour assurer notamment le maintien de l’approvisionnement alimentaire et de la fertilité du sol ou tout simplement pour profiter de quelques moments de détente dans […]
Sylvain Martel, Polytechnique Montréal Thursday December 1, 2016 Sylvain Martel, Polytechnique Montréal Jeudi le 1er décembre 2016 L’intégration des nanotechnologies à la robotique connait une progression rapide, si bien que des nanorobots tout droit sortis de la science-fiction ouvrent des possibilités extraordinaires en médecine et en pharmaceutique. Ainsi, des armées constituées de centaines de […]
Gail Atkinson, Western University Jeudi, le 9 février 2017 Gail Atkinson, Western University Thursday February 9, 2017 La fracturation hydraulique a transformé l’économie des ressources en combustibles fossiles en Amérique du Nord et donné un nouvel essor à l’industrie pétrolière et gazière. Cependant, les tremblements de terre qui se produisent près des sites de […]
