We are interested in understanding the power and limitations of families of algorithms for solving combinatorial search problems, in particular those whose decision versions are NP-complete.   In some application areas involving such problems, the state of the art involves representing a problem instance as a formula of propositional logic (or a natural extension, typical examples […]

I’ve started a new research project with the goal of implementing a new algorithm which interpolates a polynomial F of degree D in N variables with T non-zero terms. It has long been known how to interpolate a polynomial F(x) in one variable of degree D from D+1 values of F in O( D log […]

In this project, we will explore the capability to produce meaningful amounts of electricity by thermoelectric generation from waste heat in industrial applications.  We will derive theory to evaluate the capability of thermoelectric power generators and design and build simple thermoelectric generation devices to test the theory.  We will compare metal and semiconductor thermoelectric materials.  […]

Recent studies have shown that many licensed spectrum bands are under-utilized, which formspectrum holes [1]. The concept of cognitive radio was introduced in order to increase theusage of the spectrum [2]. In cognitive radio systems [3], unlicensed users (which are alsocalled secondary users) can perform sensing over a wide range of spectrum bands. Thesecondary users […]

To perform changes to large software systems correctly, software developers must communicate efficiently and effectively about the intended change and must perform the technical work associated with the change precisely and completely. Currently, as developers collaborate with each other and interact with the many artifacts involved in a software change task, they must work frequently […]

The Curious George project aims to construct a spatial-semantic modeling system featuring automated learning of object appearance and object-place relations from online annotated database, and the application of these relations to a variety of real-world tasks. The physical system currently developed at UBC, a visually guided mobile robot, can recognize objects in an environment based […]

The accurate recording of EEG (electro-encephalographic) signals from the scalp provides an important source of information for many research topics focused on analyzing the correlation between brain dynamics and specific states of the body for patients or healthy subjects. The recording of clean EEG signals becomes nevertheless a daunting task when attempting to quantify the […]

Standing balance is controlled by several inputs, including vision, vestibular sense, and ankle proprioceptionResearch studies in this field actively engage and manipulate these input mechanisms to examine theireffects on the balance output, mainly muscle actuation in the lower limbs. While significant progress hasbeen made, it is often difficult to isolate a single input and test […]

The Multimedia Information Management and Security (MIMS) group in UBC has been actively involved in developing multimedia fingerprinting algorithms that can assist content-providers with finding copies of their assets such as videos or images in online databases. Almost all of the current image and video fingerprinting algorithms are designed for grayscale images and videos. In […]

With the advent of antibiotic resistance, it has become increasingly important to develop alternatives to currently used antibiotics. In our laboratory, we have investigated the structure and function of a number of potentially interesting drug candidates. In the proposed project, we will design and develop a new generation of peptides derived from the two peptides […]

This project involves the design, implementation and testing of a short range wireless communication network employing technologies such as Bluetooth or ZigBee. The objective is to collect signals related to physiological conditions and physical positions and activities using various sensors, including but not limited to accelerometers, gyroscopes and ECG. These nodes are placed around the […]

In photosynthesis a protein complex absorbs photons and converts them to charge.  This process is achieved with extremely high quantum efficiency.  We are investigating several means of incorporating these protein reaction centres into photovoltaic devices.  The key is to efficiently extract charge from the reaction centres.  We are doing this using direct tunneling to electrodes […]