Tuesday, April 7, 2015

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• Waterloo representatives speak in Nanjing
• Fee arrangement deadline looms
• Staff conference kicks off today
• Tomorrow will be a day for brains

Waterloo representatives speak in Nanjing

In March 2015, two University of Waterloo Deans and two professors had the opportunity to travel to China to lecture at Nanjing University for Nanjing’s International Academic Week.

Jean Andrey, Dean of Environment and Professor in Geography and Environmental Management (GEM), presented on "Climate change adaptation in the Canadian transportation sector". Andrey has been with GEM for 24 years and is an expert of weather and society and how weather, in combination with other variables, affects road safety in Canada. According to Andrey, as the Canadian climate changes, flooding, fire, tornadoes and drought are becoming of increasing concern and commuters could face increasingly treacherous commutes in the future.

Dr. Margaret Dalziel, Associate Professor in the Conrad Business Entrepreneurship and Technology Centre, presented a lecture on “Government support of business emergence, research, innovation and entrepreneurship”. Dalziel’s research is focused on understanding the structure of the economy, the roles of organizations within it, and the impact of government interventions designed to promote sustainable economic growth. 

Ken Seng Tan is a University Research Chair and Math Professor in Statistics and Actual Science. Tan’s research interests lie at the intersection of actuarial science, finance, mathematics and statistics. During Nanjing’s International Education Week, Tan gave two seminars, "Mortality-linked Securities: Pricing and Applications" and "Quasi-Monte Carlo methods in computational finance: An overview and some recent advances". Professor Tan helped develop the Quasi-Monte Carlo method which makes mathematical computations more efficient. According to the investment council of the Society of Actuaries, Professor Tan's work on Quasi-Monte Carlo is one of the seven most important contributions in investment research in the last fifty years.

Douglas Peers, Dean of Arts and Professor for the Department of History, gave a lecture titled "Echoes of Retribution: Empire, Race, Gender, and the Memorialization of the Mutiny of 1857/1858". His research and teaching interests include India, Imperial, transnational/global history and historiography. He is currently working on several projects which address aspects of the relationship between the military and state formation and the consolidation and commemoration of colonial rule in mid-19th century India. Peers’ lecture was part of the closing ceremonies for International Education Week.

Nanjing University is one of China’s top universities. The University of Waterloo’s connections with Nanjing University include various research and academic partnerships. Nanjing University is also Waterloo’s Confucius Institute partner. The Confucius Institute (CI), which is housed in Renison University College, is a joint-venture between Nanjing University, Renison University College, the University of Waterloo and the Office of Chinese Language Council International (Hanban). The CI is dedicated to the promotion and development of the Chinese language, culture, studies and business at the University of Waterloo.

Fee arrangement deadline looms

With classes concluded for the term, there's no better time to start thinking about getting "Fees Arranged" for next term. The due date for students to submit their payment or promissory note for the Spring term without a late fee is Monday, April 27.

If students are not Fees Arranged by June 30, they will be unable to access assignments, exams and course materials on LEARN.

There are two ways to become Fees Arranged:

• Payment in full; and
• a Promissory Note

Students can view their bills for Spring 2015 by logging into Quest, going to "Student Centre" and then clicking Finances - Account Inquiry.

For more information, contact Finance-Student Accounts via email or visit their website.

Staff conference kicks off today

The eighth annual University of Waterloo staff conference, hosted by Organizational & Human Development (OHD), gets underway today and tomorrow.

"From customer service excellence to redefining intelligence, the 2015 conference will look at the way that we, as members of the campus community, can help Waterloo achieve the single goal of its Strategic Plan: to be recognized as one of the top innovation universities in the world," says a note on the OHD website. "As well, in a follow-up to the previous topic at the 2013 conference, the conference will further explore work-life balance by looking at our families, our commitments, the quality of our leisure activities, and -- most importantly - time. Finally, we will close the conference on the topic of  innovation by exploring how technology will be integrating into objects that make up the very fabric of daily living. The enchanted objects of fairy tales and science fiction are appearing in real life and can aid and help us focus on the things that matter - us." 

The conference keynotes organized for this year are quite diverse and include a TEDx alumnus and a former head of training at Disney. Keynote speakers for 2015 are:

• Doug Lipp, internationally acclaimed expert on customer service, leadership and global competitiveness, "The Magic of Exceptional Customer Service";
• Scott Barry Kaufman, cognitive psychologist who studies the development of intelligence, creativity, and personality, "Ungifted: Intelligence Redefined";
• Brigid Schulte, award-winning journalist for the Washington Post – and harried mother of two, "Overwhelmed: A Call to Pause"; and 
• David Rose, instructor and researchers at the MIT Media Lab, "Enchanted Objects: Connectivity, Design, and the Internet of Things".

The workshops are equally diverse, exploring topics such as The Excellence Canada process, Decision Making and Values, and Advising Advisors ...  and how a Habitat for Humanity Build can teach you all you need to know about a workplace. And much, much more, including a few returning favourites. 

On-site registration is available on the days of the conference in the Don Craig Atrium of the School of Accounting and Finance, Hagey Hall. 

Tomorrow will be a day for brains

The Centre for Theoretical Neuroscience is hosting the 9th annual Waterloo Brain Day tomorrow.

"The brain is a horrendously complex and poorly understood system that poses both an immense challenge -- and possibly rich rewards -- to neuroscientists, psychologists, philosophers, and computer scientists," says a note on the CTN website. "To celebrate Waterloo's Centre for Theoretical Neuroscience, which integrates these approaches to the brain, and to highlight the already established Cognitive Science Program, we have invited four internationally renowned speakers to present generally accessible lectures from each of these perspectives."

The event will take place in EV3 1408 and will feature the following guest speakers:

• Psychology: Thomas Griffiths, University of California, Berkeley, "Revealing Human Inductive Biases by Simulating Cultural Evolution";
• Philosophy: Valerie G. Hardcastle, University of Cincinnati, " Radical Embodied Cognition, Projection, and the Problem of Consciousness";
• Neuroscience: Mriganka Sur, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, "The Functional Logic of Cortical Circuits";
• Computation: Kenneth Miller, Columbia University, "The Stabilized Supralinear Network: A Simple Circuit Motif Underlying Cortical Multi-input Integration"

Refreshments will be available in the EV3 atrium at 8:30 a.m. with the official welcome being given at 9:00 a.m. Following the day's final lecture, there will be a reception in PAS 2464.

Waterloo Brain Day is sponsored by the University of Waterloo Centre for Theoretical Neuroscience (CTN), the Cognitive Science Program, and the Faculty of Arts.