Rocky reef fish play an important role in marine ecosystems and socially as First Nation Food, Social, and Ceremonial, commercial and recreational food fish. Many species of rocky reef fish are vulnerable to fishing pressure and other human impacts like vessel noise. Multiple species are currently listed as Threatened or Species of Special Concern in […]

The proposed research will evaluate changes to ecosystem composition and configuration from the recent unprecedented outbreak of mountain pine beetle (MPB) in JNP, and use new extended time-series data and innovative spatial assessments to consider how altered and novel disturbances have impacted the historical range of variability (HRV) in the park. The outcomes of this […]

Canada’s unconventional gas resources are an emerging low-cost, clean burning energy source, the export of which presents both a major economic opportunity for Canada. To unlock this gas from the low permeability rocks it is found in, hydraulic fracturing is used. This process involves pumping fluids under high pressure into the reservoir rock to generate […]

How do warming temperatures affect local ski resorts and what can be expected for the future of alpine skiing in British Columbia? This study aims to determine how important natural snow and weather conditions are for customers at ski resorts in British Columbia and what this means under future snow conditions. By analyzing natural conditions, […]

The mineral mining industry in Canada is rapidly shifting toward more sustainable practices that reduce the environmental impacts of extraction, wastewater, and emissions. Although often overlooked, microorganisms, or bacteria, living in the soils and water of mine sites and mining waste materials, collectively known as the ““mining microbiome”, exert strong influence on all stages of […]

Surfactants (including emulsifiers) are a group of molecules that are critical for the function of many industrial processes and commercial products. Conventional surfactants are produced from non-renewable sources (e.g., petroleum products), can persist in the environment for long periods of time, and can be toxic to various plants and animals. “Biosurfactants” are surfactants that are […]

Fort Nelson & its surrounding area have been devastated economically by recent changes to their Gas Industry leaving more than 1000 well sites abandoned and not restored. Currently, the area is looking to explore other natural resources in an attempt to save their livelihoods. A previous MITACs partnership with Mindbody Networks Inc. (2018-2020) revealed several […]

This research aims to address one of the challenging problems in open science, i.e., how to reliably ensure that authors share all of the datasets, code, protocols, and any new lab materials associated with their articles. The solution will employ state-of-the-art natural language processing techniques to detect sentences where authors describe data collection or the […]

Visual analytics “the science of analytical reasoning facilitated by interactive visual interfaces” is a new approach to the timely and effective analysis of complex technical and operational systems. Our previous MITACS internships at Aeroinfo applied this scientific approach to mixed-initiative human/computational analysis to improve aircraft safety & reliability analysis and business planning, resulting in changes […]

Shortening the difference between where energy is generated and where it is being used, the need for heavy-duty transmission infrastructure could be avoided to reduce the amount of energy lost along the way and eliminate the impact of grid failure. The proposed project, a thermal microgrid, can connect alternative generation, renewable generation, rejected or waste […]

In order to achieve breakthroughs in the understanding and development of materials, new and advanced analysis methods are crucial. Especially, looking at the µm to atomic scale, which is still challenging, helps to understand fundamental mechanisms behind macroscopic phenomena. This understanding, in turn, can help to improve manufacturing processes and in the design of new […]

Energy storage technology is critical for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and transitioning to renewable energy and should be designed to suit the cold environment in Canada. In collaboration with Atlas Power Technologies Inc., a B.C.-based clean technology company, Dr. Liu’s group will design and build an aqueous zinc-ion capacitor (AZIC) technology with high-power, intrinsic safety, […]