Waterloo engineers named to new RSC college

Wednesday, September 17, 2014
Susan Tighe, a civil and environmental engineering professor, and Chris Eliasmith, a systems design engineering and philosophy professor, are among the inaugural 91 members of the Royal Society of Canada's College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists. 
Together, the members of the College will address issues of particular concern to new scholars, artists and scientists, for the advancement of understanding and the benefit of society, taking advantage of the interdisciplinary approaches fostered by the establishment of the College.
Respected experts in their fields
TigheCanada Research Chair in Pavement and Infrastructure Management and the Norman W. McLeod Professor in Sustainable Pavement 
Susan Tighe
Engineering, has conducted pioneering work in pavement engineering resulting in major changes to road and highway technology, specifications and standards worldwide. Work through novel integration of field and laboratory performance has led to improved safety, unique material usage and structural designs which are cost-effective and resilient to climate and loading impacts. 
Eliasmith, Canada Research Chair in Theoretical Neuroscience and the director of Centre for Theoretical Neuroscience at Waterloois well known for his expertise in the rapidly-developing field of theoretical neuroscience. 
Chris Eliasmith
He and his team built Spaun, the world’s largest functional model of the brain. Behind Spaun’s success is an influential body of work implementing an innovative approach to the problem of how brains encode meaning.
The presentation for the first cohort of the RSC's College of  New Scholars, Artists and Scientists will take place on November 21  in Quebec City.
"This is an important moment in the history of the Royal Society of Canada," said RSC President Graham Bell. "The College is Canada's first national system of multidisciplinary recognition for the emerging generation of leaders." 
RSC President Graham Bell