Tuesday, April 9, 2024

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• Waterloo Student Venture Fund members victorious in Venture Capital Competition
• University Professor M. Tamer Ozsu receives IEEE education award
• CORE seeks soft lens wearers who use digital devices to test a contact lens
• Clean up campus for Earth Day and other April activities

Waterloo Student Venture Fund members victorious in Venture Capital Competition

By Hana Whatmough.

Two teams of students, undergraduate and graduate, from the University of Waterloo’s School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) and the University of Waterloo Student Venture Fund (SVF) competed at the Canadian Finals of the Venture Capital Investment Competition (VCIC) in Halifax in March, and both teams finished in first place! The undergraduate and graduate teams are now preparing to head to the University of North Carolina (UNC) for the Global Finals from April 11 to 13.

Mischa (AFM), Harry (AFM), Rachel (CFM), Shilp (AFM), Leo (AFM) and Tony (AFM) worked hard to secure a first-place win at the undergraduate championships for the fifth year in a row.  

Hufsah (MAcc), Zia (MAcc), Vireshaar (MAcc), Ryan (MAcc), Hisham (MBET) and Leo (AFM) were incredibly determined, scoring UW’s first ever win at the graduate level in the six years that SAF has competed in this category.  

VCIC is a highly interactive simulation of the venture capital process in which students are the venture capitalists. Two days prior to the event, the teams receive three pitch decks and complete 36 hours of due diligence, researching start-ups and developing their strategy. On the morning of the competition, students present their pitches followed by additional due diligence on the companies through Q&A sessions with the founders. This leads to crafting a written deliverable for the most favourable start-up, which is then presented to a panel of industry judges. Competitors also have the chance to network with the founders and judges after the awards ceremony. 

As they progress to the Global Finals, our undergraduate team will face seven top American business schools, and our graduate team will compete against 11 top MBA schools from around the world. Waterloo is joined by Boston University as the only schools that qualified in both events this year. 

SAF students have worked tirelessly in this competition with a great deal of support from faculty coaches and supporters including Mark Arnason, Neil Brisley, Frank Hayes and Ranjini Jha. The Student Venture Fund launched in 2017 and has equipped many students with the skills needed to become confident venture capitalists. 

Congratulations to these amazing SAF teams and best of luck in the Global Finals! 

University Professor M. Tamer Ozsu receives IEEE education award

This is an excerpt of an article that appeared on the Cheriton School of Computer Science website.

University Professor M. Tamer Özsu has received the 2024 IEEE Technical Committee on Data Engineering Education Award for his fundamental contributions to data management and data science pedagogy. One of four prestigious annual awards conferred by IEEE TCDE, the Education Award recognizes database researchers who have made an impact on data engineering education, including impact on the next generation of data engineering practitioners and researchers.

“I am pleased to extend my congratulations to Tamer on his receiving the 2024 IEEE TCDE Education Award,” said Raouf Boutaba, Professor and Director of the Cheriton School of Computer Science. “His scholarly and pedagogic contributions to distributed data management in particular and computer science in general over his career have inspired countless colleagues and students alike.” 

University Professor Özsu’s award will be presented at ICDE 2024, the 40^th IEEE International Conference on Data Engineering, which will be held in Utrecht, Netherlands from May 13 to 17.

Read the full article on the Computer Science website.

CORE seeks soft lens wearers who use digital devices to test a contact lens

A message from the Centre for Ocular Research and Education (CORE).

There is evidence that contact lens wearers experience higher prevalence of symptoms of eye strain, eye fatigue or blurred vision when using digital devices compared to non-lens wearers. 

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the performance of a daily disposable contact lens in individuals who use digital devices for at least 8 hours per day. We are seeking habitual lens wearers to test and rate the lenses for comfort, dryness, and quality of vision. 

Time commitment: 3 study visits over 2 weeks. Total time = 3 hours. 

Remuneration: In appreciation of your time, you will receive $60 upon study completion. 

All study products will be provided. Parking tokens provided as required. The visits will include standard clinical procedures that you might encounter when you attend an eye exam. 

Participant requirements

• Aged 18 to 40 years inclusive, with full legal capacity to volunteer
• Astigmatism/CYL  ≤-0.75DC 
• Wears spherical, soft contact lenses at least 5 days/week, 13 hrs/day and is willing to continue the same wearing schedule
• Can be fit with study lenses with a power between -0.50 and -9.00 DS 
• Use digital devices at least 8 hrs/day 
• EXCLUSIONS: Current active ocular disease and/or infection; currently wears DAILIES TOTAL1® lenses or toric lenses; presbyopia (uses a reading addition for close work); has undergone refractive error surgery

For more info visit the CORE website. 

How to participate

If you fit the requirements and are interested in participating, pleasecomplete the online pre-screening form. We will review your answers and contact you with more information by email.

To be eligible for any research studies at CORE, potential participants must have an active participant profile registered in our volunteer database: Create a Participant Profile.

All studies conducted at CORE have been reviewed and received ethics clearance through a University of Waterloo Research Ethics Board.

Clean up campus for Earth Day and other April activities

Students, staff and faculty across campus were watching the skies as the partial solar eclipse took place over Waterloo yesterday afternoon, wearing special glasses, looking through homemade pinhole cameras, and telescopes to catch the celestial event. The UWaterlooLife team snapped this pic of some skywatchers (safely) enjoying the view. This photo and more like it will be shared on the UWaterlooLife instagram account today - check them out!

Cleaning up campus for Earth Day: The Sustainability Office invites you to join their annual campus clean-up, happening on Monday, April 22 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in honour of Earth Day. Join as an individual or a team to help tackle litter ‘hot spots’ on and around main campus. Bags, gloves, and light refreshments will be provided. Supplies can be picked up anytime between 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. at the DC Green. To learn more and register, please visit the Earth Day Campus Clean-Up event page.

Among the finalists for the 2024 Hugo Awards is Waterloo's own James Davis Nicoll, a Waterloo alumnus and current Front of House staffer for Theatres at Waterloo. Nicoll is a finalist in the "Best Fan Writer" category. The results of the voting will be announced in August at Glasgow 2024, the 82^nd World Science Fiction Convention. Nicoll is also one of two people with Waterloo connections nominated for inclusion in the Canadian Science Fiction & Fantasy Association Hall of Fame, along with James Alan Gardner, who got his bachelor's and master's degrees in applied mathematics here.

The Metabolism, Exercise Training and Sex Differences (METS) lab in the Department of Kinesiology and Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo is seeking sedentary, overweight males aged 18-45 years for a research study investigating whether the addition of two nutritional supplements to an exercise regime can induce more favourable effects on body composition, strength, aerobic fitness, and insulin sensitivity. Participants will receive a gift card of up to $100 for completing the study. For more information and to see if you are eligible, please contact Gabriela Ocampo of the Kinesiology and Health Sciences department at gcocampo@uwaterloo.ca.

Finally, with tensions remaining high on campus (and off), here's a message: UWaterloo is here to listen, advocate and support. If you have experienced antisemitism, Islamophobia or other elements of hate, email: gethelp@uwaterloo.ca, an expedited way for you to report instances of hate or reprisal.