Research

Waterloo will install Dominic Barton, managing partner emeritus of McKinsey & Company, as its 11^th chancellor on October 27 at 10 a.m. Barton stepped down as the firm’s global managing partner after nine years and completing the maximum of three terms. Barton is the chair of the Advisory Council on Economic Growth. He holds degrees in economics from the University of British Columbia and the University of Oxford, where he studied as a Rhodes Scholar.

Millions of people undergo what has become routine laser eye surgery. Tools such as laser-based cameras that can create super slow-motion movies of chemical and physical reactions are standard technology in laboratories around the world.

Laser technology is now so ubiquitous, we tend to take it for granted.

But in 1985, when Donna Strickland, an associate professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy who leads the ultrafast laser research team at the University of Waterloo, was working on her PhD, that wasn’t the case.

Climate change and extreme weather continue to dominate headlines around the world. From devastating fires to unprecedented flooding, shifting to mitigation and adaptation strategies is crucial.

There’s no single approach to solving this global issue. Monitoring and managing complex natural systems requires interdisciplinary solutions.

Students walking into Engineering 7 this term are entering a building like no other. Since the first shovel went in the ground in November 2015, excitement has grown for our seven-storey, 242,000-square-foot building, which officially opens its doors on October 29. With its extraordinary facilities, we are ensuring our continued educational leadership while equipping students to tackle the truly difficult problems facing our society.

Here’s a sneak peek at seven of the many ways Engineering 7 provides a dynamic gateway to educating the engineer of the future.

From the design of the Waterloo Pump, which brought clean water to communities in developing countries, to the invention of the BlackBerry, which opened the floodgates for the ubiquitous smartphone, Waterloo Engineering students, graduates and researchers have made an indelible mark on the world.

And in a technological age that includes artificial intelligence, ever-faster wireless communications and soon-to-be-self-driving vehicles, that process of innovation and contribution is only accelerating.

On Friday, September 28, Waterloo celebrated the launch of the Cybersecurity and Privacy Institute (CPI) with 100 attendees including security leaders from the private and public sectors. CPI was formed to uncover new approaches to security and privacy and educating Canada’s future leaders to be able to understand and respond to emerging online threats.

The University of Waterloo launched its Cybersecurity and Privacy Institute today. 

The interdisciplinary Institute has the mandate to uncover new approaches to security and privacy and educating Canada’s future leaders to be able to understand and respond to emerging online threats. 

The Institute will also work closely with corporations and government to advance their cybersecurity and privacy protection capabilities.

The new lab, funded through an $800,000 investment by national eye care provider FYidoctors, will accelerate the development of essential clinical skills for optometrists.  The authentic experience simulates a patient’s eye and provides students with an opportunity to use virtual reality to practice on many cases that range from wellness through to diseases such as macular degeneration and diabetes.   

More young women are likely to go into engineering if it is promoted as a profession for well-rounded people with a desire to serve society, researchers at Waterloo Engineering have found.

The results suggest that efforts to close the field’s gender gap should stress key reasons for women to pursue engineering in addition to the current approach of instilling confidence in their technical and academic abilities to succeed.

A multi-disciplinary research team is bridging the gap between psychology and gamification that could significantly impact learning efforts in user experience design, healthcare, and government.

The research, conducted by researchers at the University of Waterloo and the University of Minnesota, has integrated models from psychology with human-computer interaction, which allows for a more deliberate, interactive connection between the two disciplines in the understanding of gameful experiences.