Entrepreneurship

Communication is fundamental to a child's wellbeing and development, but if language skills are delayed, it can impact a child for life.

When University of Waterloo psychology professor Daniela O'Neill created the Language Use Inventory (LIU) to assess language development in children aged 18 to 48 months, she knew it would be a powerful tool.

The idea hit a few weeks before graduation in April 2012: University of Waterloo students Matthew Bailey and Stephen Lake were sitting at a bar talking about the new frontier of wearable computer controllers.

Lake mentioned work he'd done studying muscle activity in his biomechanics courses. Perhaps, the pair mused, the electronics could be shrunk to a wearable size.

Thus, Thalmic Labs was born.

"We prototyped the idea, proved that it was viable one week after graduation, and have been working on it ever since," Bailey says.

In the four years since Aeryon Labs launched its first unmanned surveillance unit, its snap-together Scout has aided freedom fighters, helped guide emergency deliveries to an ice-bound town, monitored oil spills and shaped fire-fighting plans.

Aeryon Labs co-founders Mike Peasgood, Dave Kroetsch and Steffen Lindner (l-r).

Neil Randall, an associate professor in the department of English Language and Literature and director of The Games Institute at the University of Waterloo.

Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne stopped at the University of Waterloo’s VeloCity Garage and Institute for Quantum Computing during a visit to Waterloo Region focused on economic growth and prosperity on Friday.

Ed Sudicky occasionally pushes a sports car beyond 250 km-h on a race track. But he is just as fascinated by the performance of water systems, where speeds below ground might be measured in as little as millimetres per decade.

Ed Sudicky, professor of earth and environmental sciences at the University of Waterloo.

When Henry Shi arrived in New York City for his co-op term at Bloomberg Sports, the pressure was on:  The major league baseball season was set to start in April, and a losing team was looking for statistical tools to change its fate.

University of Waterloo president Feridun Hamdullapur presents Henry Shi with the top co-op student of the year award.

As pioneers in co-operative education, Waterloo was one of the first to recognize the educational value of connecting students and industry.

Peggy Jarvie, executive director of Co-operative Education and Career Action (CECA) at the University of Waterloo

On Valentine’s Day, with so many students separated by a co-op term, a group of Waterloo alumni has launched a promotional video for an app they created for long-distance sweethearts.

Couple, which was previously known as Pair, helps couples share everyday life even if they’re not in the same city. Couple lets two people chat by video or text, share photos, sketch together and even give each other a “Thumbkiss”.

Rohit Ramchandani and a group of children in Zambia, Africa.

The problem is huge, the solution simple, and Rohit Ramchandani and his team are closing the gap.