Innovative Projects Realized

Development of an universal method for the elimination of the HOP-Latent viroid in cannabis

Healius Naturals Inc. is a cannabis producer in Alberta that has also bred various superior medical-grade genetics cannabis lines. They witnessed the dramatic impact on the Canadian cannabis industry of the HLVd (HOP-Latent viroid) 1 and wish to develop innovative solutions to cope with it. This viroid is especially problematic as its symptoms start being visible only at the end of the life cycle of the plants. It means that growers invest time and money on the crop to realize only at the end that their yield will be drastically reduced by the viroid. In collaboration with the Technology Access Center in Bio-Innovation (TAC-B) from the College La Cité, the goal is to develop an easy and robust method to eliminate the viroid of the plants that could be use for any Canadian grower and worldwide.

Le droit suisse des migrations sous le prisme de la théorie de l’accommodement raisonnable

La recherche effectuée lors de mon séjour au sein de la Faculté de droit de l’Université de Montréal se penchera de manière générale sur les possibilités de proposer des mesures positives liées à des situations de discrimination ainsi que d’ancrer un droit à l’intégration en vue de favoriser le parcours d’intégration des personnes étrangères.

A ce titre, il s’agira essentiellement d’implémenter les réflexions entourant la théorie juridique de l’accommodement raisonnable – largement consacrée dans le droit canadien – au droit suisse des migrations sous l’angle des exigences relatives à l’intégration culturelle. L’étude de ce concept juridique permettrait d’en faire un instrument de lutte contre les discriminations et un nouvel outil d’intégration en droit suisse des migrations.

Keen Payroll Technology-Enabled and Client-Centred Financial Services

As a start-up and technology-focused provider with deep operational insights, Keen’s challenge is to establish automated processes to simplify and streamline secure client communications, authorizations, sales, document exchange to enable fast and reliable services that can scale quickly into markets across Canada.
The Mitacs project will focus on helping design Keen’s customer acquisition and service processes for scale through maximizing the use of existing technology solutions deployed at Keen and/or through the application of new softwares

Stratégie marketing OCI

En partenariat avec le Pôle de Formation en Coopération Internationale de l’Université de Sherbrooke et la compagnie de marketing web, LeadCo, la stagiaire aura comme mandat de trouver une stratégie innovante qui permettra aux organismes de coopération internationale de tirer leur épingle du jeu dans le marketing web afin de contribuer à l’obtention de nouveaux partenaires, de volontaires et de bailleurs de fonds. Cela représente une opportunité d’affaire pour LeadCo ainsi qu’une occasion de consolider certains partenariats pour le Pôle de Formation en Coopération Internationale de l’Université de Sherbrooke.

Development of high surface quality and large static displacement translating micromirror for MEMS FTIRS with application to alcohol interlock

This project is to develop a micromirror with large static translation displacement and high surface quality by combining two microfabrication processes. Based on the developed micromirror, the next generation alcohol interlock technology, i.e., MEMS (MicroElectroMechanial System) FTIRS alcohol interlock will be developed and commercialized in collaboration with ACS to overcome the limitations of the current technology to achieve much higher sensitivity and realize continuous monitoring of driver’s BAC, which is highly desired in the industry but cannot be realized with the current technology. This product will be added to ACS alcohol interlock product portfolio with much better performance than its existing products and its global competitors. Due to the high sensitivity and capability of continuous monitoring, the effectiveness and application of the automotive alcohol interlock can be significantly improved and expanded. With this new technology, the competitiveness and leadership of ACS in the automotive alcohol interlock industry will be greatly enhanced.

Exploring the Experiences of Individuals Impacted by Eating Disorder Symptoms with a Virtual Support Program: A Canadian Qualitative Study

With the number of eating disorders rising during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada, Body Brave launched the Recovery Support Program as an online platform for individuals (ages 17 and up) experiencing eating disorder symptoms to access support. In this program, clients are offered check-ins, recovery sessions, and resources using a stepped-care model. In addition to various numerical report about the success of the project, a deeper exploration of how clients are liking it and if their needs are being met is still needed. For this, our project aims to interview a range of individual who have accessed the Recovery Support Program since its launch about their perceptions and experiences of the platform. With this knowledge, Body Brave can improve the program so that it can better meet the needs of its client base and relieve some of the strain being experienced by the Canadian healthcare system.

Mathematical analysis of a dynamical model describing the hedonic dimension of happiness

Happiness has always captured the attention of societies around the world. However, it was just at the beginning of the twenty first century, with the emergence of Positive Psychology, that a more scientific approach to the subject was undertaken. Due to the dynamic and fluctuating nature of happiness, mathematical modelling is recognized as an important tool to understand the psychological processes involved in the experience of well-being.
This project aims at analyzing, both numerically and analytically, the dynamical behaviour of a mathematical model describing the hedonic (pleasure) dimension of the experience of happiness based on an approach-avoidance motivation and behaviour towards pleasant or unpleasant stimuli and the effect of a hedonic adaptation mechanism. The analysis will be carried out by simplifying the model into cases so that traditional discrete dynamical systems tools can be used to identify possible causes for steady or cyclic behaviours in an individual’s levels of happiness.

Sub-analysis of the North American COVD-19 and STEMI (NACMI) Registry

Research has confirmed the lethal effects of the COVID-19 virus on the cardiac function, and thus the proposed research will investigate the use of heart imaging data during a hospital intervention can help us understand what happens to those with both COVID-19 and a heart attack. This research is being conducted using a multi-centre approach across North America in 16 different sites, and will provide the most rigorously assessed database currently available on COVID-19 and heart attacks. This study will all allow healthcare providers to better address the medical needs of patients with COVID-19 and heart attacks, and will allow the partner organization (PVRI) to be recognized world-wide for the research capacity in Canada.

Predicting stellar flares using hidden Markov models

Certain classes of stars in the universe emit flares – dramatic bursts of energy that appear across the electromagnetic spectrum. Flare activity for these stars is highly variable across time, and predicting this behaviour is an interesting problem both from an astronomical and from a statistical viewpoint. Within the field of astrostatistics, “changepoint detection” models seek to identify the previous times at which a flare star switches from a low-energy to a high-energy state by examining streams of photon emissions from the star. In this project, we aim to upgrade the astrostatistical toolbox by applying “hidden Markov models” to the same kinds of data, which will not only let us simulate the mechanisms that drive flare emissions, but also allow us to predict future flares.

Investigation of eDNA air sampling as a tool for bat conservation and management: implications for mine reclamation and closure planning

A new method to determine whether wildlife are present in certain habitats has been developed that involves collecting environmental samples (water, soil, air) and testing them in a laboratory for the presence of cells and tissue that have been shed by wildlife into their environment. These cells and tissue can include hair, saliva, skin cells, faeces, urine, and once shed are referred to as environmental DNA or eDNA. This project will test whether the presence of bats in underground mine habitats can be detected by sampling the air from inside the mine and testing it in the laboratory for the presence of bat eDNA. The results of this research will demonstrate the strengths and limitations of eDNA air sampling for bats and will guide improvements if necessary. Effective, safe, and cost­ efficient methods to identify and monitor underground mine sites used by bats are critical to balancing the needs of wildlife with mine closure and reclamation.

Decision Making Using Multi-Criterion DecisionAnalysis

This project is to enable groups of people to better brainstorm decisions in which people can have divergent opinions. Building on ValueCharts that lets people input their utility, we will build a tool that lets decision makers explore the space of the expressed opinion to see where there are differences and whether they matter to the decision being made.

Population dynamics of urban black-tailed deer in response to experimentally manipulated fawning rates, across landscapes with high and low immigration potential

Urban black-tailed deer in Esquimalt BC have increased in number, leading to their perception as pests and posing risks to residents through traffic accidents. Lethal removal programs (i.e., culling) are unethical and based on little scientific evidence. We seek to use more humane methods of population control by reducing deer birth rate using birth-control vaccines. However, any management actions taken should require testing to ensure effectiveness (a step rarely taken with culling programs). To estimate the effectiveness of these vaccines on reducing deer density, we will use remotely operated cameras to estimate deer density before and after vaccine treatment. The benefits to the Township of Esquimalt will be the implementation of a humane urban wildlife control program, which will be more cost effective in the long term and result in reduced human-wildlife conflict.