Collaboration and Capacity building are required to engage with the challenges and benefits of technical expertise within, and available to, municipal politics and policy, the challenges and benefits of both representative and direct democracy, and the existence of multiple sources of knowledge, including the social sciences, Indigenous knowledges, and local knowledge.

According to the literature, up to 75% of all fungicide applications are either off-target or are applied where no disease is present. Paramoria Agri-Science aims to reduce that by providing farmers with real-time monitoring of disease-causing spore populations, such that pesticides are applied on an as-needed basis, rather than as-feared. Currently, Paramoria uses quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) to quantify the amount of disease present in the field. While highly accurate, qPCR requires a lab and cannot handle soil contamination without expensive post-processing.

This collaborative project between Vulcan County and the University of Lethbridge will allow an intern to use multispectral and thermal imaging as well as terrain analysis using topography rendered from Structure from Motion (SfM) to locate potential grave sites at a variety of locations in rural Southern Alberta. Sites vary from single plots to larger sites containing victims of the Spanish Flu outbreak in 1918. Application of these technologies provide the intern with an opportunity to recover lost records of graves in a non-destructive and cost-effective manner.

Today, there is an abundance of stakeholder engagement and data visualization platforms. However, they are overwhelming to use, and the data is not easy to interpret. To explore how new methods of visual design and data visualization, Veras Technologies Inc. will work with intern Divine Okonkwo to research, design, and test a comprehensive design language, adaptable visual components, and a interactive data visualization system. The intern will test the data visualization system with internally company data and publicly available population statistics.

Psilocybin is produced in over 200 species of mushrooms, colloquially known as ‘magic mushrooms’. Although psilocybin-producing mushrooms have been consumed for centuries, little research has been performed on magic mushrooms until recently. Studies suggest psilocybin or extracts from magic mushrooms could potentially treat numerous neurological disorders with minimal medical risks. Due to prohibition and stigmatization, little research has been performed on methods of psychedelic mushroom propagation.

This project will examine the potential of interactive, digital online resources to assist teachers in introducing, increasing and/or improving music instruction in their classrooms, particularly if they are not music specialists. The research will focus on how such tools can promote student-centered, teacher-facilitated learning models, examining their capacity to meaningfully engage students, meet curricular objectives, and provide teachers with confidence-building training opportunities. The web-based software resources in question have been created by Whacky Wizards Music Inc.

The proposed Mitacs Elevate project is to develop and test a bedside artificial intelligence system for seniors in care. The goal of the project is to investigate the best uses for AI in assisted-living facilities and aging-at-home scenarios. Artificial intelligence technologies offer two life-changing solutions to a looming crisis in care: first, if carefully developed and designed, they can interact with seniors directly - leading them through daily activities and providing immediate real-time interaction until a human caregiver can help.

After analyzing the moving market in Canada, which is worth more than one billion dollars, and noting that more than 15 % of Canadians move every year, the conclusion is that the rates in the moving industry are quite expensive. More specifically, professional moving companies charging exorbitant fees while most customers rely on independent movers from Facebook and Kijiji who do not always respond at a timely manner, let alone the reliability issue. The study has surveyed potential customers in the Calgary area who recently moved, paved the way for a good start of the study.

This project involves first steps needed to begin growing rice under irrigation in southern Alberta. Trials will use Seed Film Cultivation (SFC) technology to suppress weeds, increase soil temperature, and reduce evaporative moisture losses. Rice grown with SFC will be compared to direct seeded plots and transplanted rice seedlings. Irrigation will be provided by an overhead pivot system or by sub-surface drip irrigation. Plant growth parameters and yield will be assessed, and this work will inform future research required to establish a rice production industry in Alberta.

Archaeology is important in understanding our past cultural heritage. Traditionally, this is accomplished through the excavation of, and the analysis of artifacts discovered at archaeological sites. Excavation, however, is an inherently destructive process, as once a site is excavated, the original state is lost. This has negative impacts on both the cultural significance of the site and the ability to conduct future. It is beneficial to look for additional ways to study sites that are less destructive, and to preserve the archaeological site when possible.