The research to be conducted involves the development of new technology that can detect breast cancer tumours using microwave technology. The necessary mathematical research to perform microwave imaging of the breast will be pursued together with the hardware design needed for such a system. The expertise and academic goals of the two interns offer a combination that will benefit this project.

This research project with Canadian Wollastonite, a company focused on the commercial development of a high grade wollastonite deposits located north of the St. Lawrence River in the eastern part of the Canadian province of Ontario, investigates the possibility of using the natural mineral to enhance the properties of concrete. The project will look at three main uses of wollastonite in concrete: (1) as reinforcement to enhance the tensile strength of concrete, (2) as mineral filler to obtain self‐flowable concrete; and (3) as filler to improve strength gain of concrete.

Microbiology analysis is an essential tool for diagnosing infectious diseases in health and medical services. The subfield of Bacteriology receives the largest volume in human specimens (i.e. urine and swab samples). For an average sized clinical lab, 1,000 to 5,000 samples would need to be processed daily. Such high demand in conjunction with the labour‐intensive and error prone analysis techniques makes automation an excellent solution for optimizing laboratory human resources.

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is new optical imaging technique similar to ultrasound imaging. It has ten to 100 times higher resolution than ultrasound and a penetration depth of 4-6 millimeters. The use of light is safer to most biological samples than X-\rays or gamma rays, and it also allows for chemical characterization of tumours in tissue. CancerCare Manitoba is interested in using OCT for early detection of breast cancer.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have been receiving rapidly growing interest in research and industry applications, including military reconnaissance, remote sensing, aerial photography, educational use, mining inspections, traffic monitoring, and environment monitoring. Practical applications of UAVs will demand highly accurate position control.

The objective of the research project is to design a method of measuring the neutron and photon attenuation properties of complex samples (such as toxic waste or mining ore) with a wide range of shapes and masses. Measuring these properties will permit accurate analysis of the sample’s elemental composition via Prompt Gamma Neutron Activation Analysis (PGNAA). Currently, accurate analysis of samples via PGNAA is typically restricted to low mass (<100g) samples with controlled geometries. This limits the usefulness of PGNAA.

Vitamin deficiencies are one of the key reasons for infant deaths and a variety of diseases for adults including breast cancer, prostate and cervical cancer, rickets, schizophrenic depression, etc. An invention of a low-cost Lab-on-a-Chip (LOC) microfluidic platform for the detection of Vitamin D and Vitamin A would be an answer for the potential multi-billion dollar market around the globe and represents one of the most desperately needed devices to enhance public health and prevent vitamin deficient related diseases.

This internship is in partnership with ISIS Canada. The Canadian Standards Association (CSA) Standard A23.1 requires air entrainment in concrete subjected to chlorides, not only for freeze-thaw environments but also for non‐freeze-thaw environments. Air entrainment presents some challenges in finishing of power trowelled surfaces, for example parking decks. Depending on the timing and amount of trowelling, air entrained slabs can be susceptible to surface de-lamination. As a result, air entrainment can not only add cost, it can make it more difficult to achieve a durable structure.

This project is designed to develop an inspection and evaluation method for structural brazed joints using ultrasounds. Priorities for such an application include the ability to ensure the integrity of brazed assemblies and detect internal flaws and vulnerabilities in the microstructure. Developing a reliable inspection method is essential for the use of structural brazed joints in aircraft-engine design and construction. This study will also complement brazing specifications for structural applications.

As mobile users are becoming more demanding and mobile devices are becoming more advanced, end to‐end Quality of Service (QoS) and improvement of user experience becomes an important issue. Traffic management plays a major role in mobility management. Previously proposed solutions for mobility management generally do not address the variability of the wireless link which leads to less optimized and less efficient use of network resources.