Research

Canadian luge athletes speed down icy tracks in open sleds at upwards of 130 kilometres an hour. It’s thrilling to watch, but for Pro Stergiou, a Waterloo alum, the most interesting part is the start.

Stergiou, a biomechanics expert, uses high-speed video and accelerometers to help him analyze those early moments in the race when Olympic luge athletes pull off the starting handles.

“We know that their start is very vital to the race,” says Stergiou, who has been working with luge Olympic athletes for almost ten years.

The Government of Canada announced significant funding for transformational research at the University of Waterloo with the federal budget tabled today.

"I am so pleased that the University of Waterloo stands to benefit from such important investments contained in the budget," said Feridun Hamdullahpur, president and vice-chancellor of Waterloo. "They will strengthen our economy and increase our innovative capacity."

The University of Waterloo thanks the Government of Canada for renewing its support for the Institute for Quantum Computing (IQC).

Economic Action Plan 2014 announced today allots a further $15 million to IQC over three years.

"With this federal support, IQC and the University of Waterloo can help Canada lead the world in quantum research and in developing the new companies that will build the quantum information science industry," said Feridun Hamdullahpur, president and vice-chancellor of Waterloo.

Some of the world’s most pressing challenges will be discussed in Chicago this week at a meeting that brings together top scientists and researchers from around the globe.

University of Waterloo researchers will be there, sharing their insights into what the virtual world can reveal about human health, how quantum information will shape our future, and the ethical implications of innovation.

World’s largest scientific society

Tucked in the corner of a lab in B.C. Matthews Hall is a piece of equipment set to change the way patients recover from stroke.

While it may not look like much to the untrained eye, the exercise bike and connected video screen is the prototype for an innovative rehabilitation technology that uses Google Earth to improve stroke patients’ cognitive skills.

Good for the heart; good for the brain

The University of Waterloo, Maplesoft, and Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada are the recipients of a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Synergy Award for Innovation, which recognizes their success in collaborating on the model-based design and control of automotive systems that improve vehicle safety and comfort while reducing fuel consumption and emissions.

A University of Waterloo professor is the recipient of an E.W.R Steacie Memorial Fellowship – the prestigious award from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) – for his work in understanding how people view the quality of images and videos.

The University of Waterloo, Maplesoft, and Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada are the recipients of a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Synergy Award for Innovation, which recognizes their success in collaborating on the model-based design and control of automotive systems that improve vehicle safety and comfort while reducing fuel consumption and emissions.

Arctic lakes have been freezing up later in the year and thawing earlier, creating a winter ice season about 24 days shorter than it was in 1950, a University of Waterloo study has found.

Arctic lakes have been freezing up later in the year and thawing earlier, creating an ice season about 24 days shorter than it was in 1950, a University of Waterloo study has found.

The research, sponsored by the European Space Agency (ESA), also reveals that climate change has dramatically affected the thickness of lake ice at the coldest point in the season: In 2011, Arctic lake ice was up to 38 centimetres thinner than it was in 1950.