Innovative Projects Realized

Secondary forest permanence in the Brazilian Amazon

To avoid dangerous climate change, large quantities of carbon dioxide must be removed from the atmosphere. Forest growth is one of the most efficient strategies for achieving this, with tropical secondary forest key to recovering carbon stocks. The carbon benefit of secondary forest, which grows on cleared land following abandonment, is determined not only by its extent but also by its permanence. However, the patterns of its persistence are poorly understood. Secondary forest is a valuable resource and it is vital that we improve our understanding of it so we can ensure its potential carbon benefits are achieved. We will model the probability of secondary forest growth and clearance in the Brazilian Amazon using a number of forest characteristics (e.g. distance from roads, patch size) known to influence forest permanence and estimate the carbon potential of future secondary forest cover.

Photonic Computing and Brain-Computer Interfaces

My lab’s research projects involve developing integrated silicon photonic devices for both brain-computer interfaces and artificial intelligence computing hardware. My focus will be developing photonic computing hardware that is neuromorphic, meaning it emulates the way our brains work. My main objectives will involve developing and characterizing integrated photonic chip designs that involve functional and trainable light-based neural networks, such as networks comprised of silicon waveguides and phase change materials. Working with photonics provides the computing benefits of high bandwidth and fast signaling properties, so these photonic neural networks can theoretically complement traditional electronic circuits to lead to machine learning and artificial intelligence that is orders of magnitude faster and more energy efficient than today, enabling data processing in data-intensive and power-critical applications such as edge-computing.

Implantable Nanophotonic Device Development for Optogenetics

Brain-inspired computers are a developing technology that use biological foundations to inform computational processes. The study of complex brain circuitry is crucial for creating such technologies. However, progress is limited as neural circuits are difficult to study in vivo. Under the directorship of Joyce Poon, the Nanophotonics, Integration and Neural Technology department of the Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics (MPI-MIKR) aims to advance the field of brain-inspired computing by becoming a leader in neural circuitry research. The student will work with Professor Poon at MPI-MIKR to apply biomedical engineering principles to microfluidic cell cultures. The project entails creating novel microfluidic designs that replicate layered brain structures such as the cortex and the hypothalamus. The goal of this work is to develop exciting new cell culture techniques through the use of microfluidics and optogenetics to inform the next generation of computing devices.

3D photonic microsystem design

The core of the research is multi-technology devices that stimulate and record neurons, integrated photonic devices for micro-displays, and photonics-enabled computing hardware. The novel foundational technologies underpinning the research are foundry-manufactured integrated photonics platforms on silicon for the visible spectrum and advanced 3D printing of biological and other organic materials. Macro-scale systems (mechanical and electronic) would have to be developed to deploy these novel nano- and micro-scale devices and circuits. The research unites the forefronts of the fields of integrated photonics, micro-system integration, optogenetics, neurophysiology, and computing. Working with experts from across the scientific spectrum, students will work closely with scientists and PH.D. students to design and implement these novel photonic devices.

Developpement d’une culture durable de la laitue de transformation en solmineral

L’experience sera conduite sur la Ferme des Fraises de I’lie d’Orleans inc Les plants seront

prepares en mottes cubiques par Ie partenaire de Veg-Pro. Les semences proviendront

d’AAC ou d’un grainetier local et les semis seront effectues selon les besoins des dispositifs

experimentaux. Les plantules seront cultivees en serre pendant 14-20 jours selon la saison,

puis transportes a l’lle d’Orleans dans des plateaux specialement congus a cette fin. Les

plants seront ensuite cultives sur buttes d’environ 1 m de largeur et de 15 cm de hauteur. Les

buttes seront espacees de 1,5m centre a centre. Les laitues seront implantees selon un

systeme standard de production sur buttes comportant 4 rangs de laitues espaces de 30 cm

environ. La densite de population sera d’environ 60 000 plants par ha. Nous prevoyons des

cycles de culture de 7-9 semaines, selon la saison. La fertigation sera effectuee au moyen

d’un systeme goutte-a-goutte comportant 2 tubes sur chacune des buttes et un systeme

d’injection des……TOBECONTINUED

Coordination and coherence of respiratory muscles in chronic lung disease patients

People with chronic lung diseases must breathe with more force and with more breaths because their diseased lungs do not exchange oxygen as well. This occurs in interstitial lung disease, when the lungs are stiffer and in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, when the airways are obstructed due to phlegm and swelling. The breathing muscles in patients with these conditions are especially stressed and fatigued during illnesses requiring hospitalization. When leg muscles become fatigued, their loss of coordination decreases efficiency of force production and we can even trip and fall. Coordination has not been examined among the breathing muscles. We are examining this in healthy people by evaluating the timing their electrical activity using a technique called electromyography. We propose to examine the lack of coordination of the breathing muscles in hospitalized patients with chronic lung disease Because the heart’s electrical activity, EKG, contaminates the electromyography, we will develop a method to extract that artifact during the analysis. Examination of dyscoordination of the breathing muscles in hospitalized patients has the potential to open up another avenue of treatment to decrease breathlessness, improve physical activity and improve overall well-being.

High-precision laser sensor for unburnt hydrocarbon emissions

Improving air quality while supporting clean growth and future transportation technology represents a significant societal challenge for Canada and the UK. Emissions of unburnt hydrocarbon (uHC) fuel directly affects public health, and their reduction from vehicles such as hybrid cars require new solutions. Recent research conducted by Professor Cyril Crua’s team at the University of Brighton has demonstrated that large fuel films on the tip of injector nozzles can be stripped and released in the form of unburnt fuel. However it is not currently possible to establish how much of this liquid fuel is actually released into the exhaust in the form of uHCs. This project will establish a new collaboration with the team led by Prof. Patrick Kirchen at the University of British Columbia to develop a novel high-precision laser-based sensor that can unveil the link between the formation of fuel films inside engines, and the release of unburnt fuel into the exhaust. This will enable both teams to significantly accelerate our understanding of the mechanisms that lead to the release of uHCs into the environment, and their impact on air quality.

Albeniz’s Music and the Sentence Principle

The proposed research project will examine the applicability of William Caplin’s theories of formal functions to the music of the 19th-century Spanish composer Isaac Albéniz. Caplinian formal-function theory considers the “syntactical” roles played by various parts/sections of particular musical work in relation to the whole, and the capacity of different compositional techniques to express musical temporality, all resulting in well-defined archetypical formal constructions. The importance of this research lies in the fact that it will contribute to diversify our discipline by enlarging the repertoire traditionally dealt with in Music Theory and Analysis. In particular, I will focus on Albéniz’s use of one of Caplin’s “formal types”: the sentence. This work will form one of the chapters of my PhD dissertation, while my larger dissertation research project seeks to elucidate the weight of 18th-century tonal and formal syntax in the music of Albéniz.

A Study of Multimodal Guitar Augmentation for Gestural Expressivity

Although the electric guitar has widely been valued as a vehicle for musical expression, many of the efforts that have been carried out to bring the instrument up to date with the era of digital music fail to capture that richness. Attempts at creating interfaces based on the guitar using either sensors or analysis of the sound produced by the instrument have been carried out in the past but, given the complexity of the analysis of musical gestures and the translation of expressive meaning, these methods have never been widely adopted.
With this research we propose to validate an augmented instrument prototype based on a guitar with sensors and an hexaphonic pickup to detect different kinds of string bending, a technique commonly used by guitarist to raise the pitch of the
string to add articulation to their playing. This gesture has been popularly said to provide singing and talking qualities to guitar playing.
We will extract information from both the audio signals produced by the instrument and sensors that detect string movement to obtain enhanced information enhanced information on how guitarists use this resource.

Machine Learning and Automatic IDS Signature Generation

Founded in 2011, StreamScan is an organization specialized in computer security operational. The company is composed of several experts in the fields of management security incidents, intrusion detection, security audit, penetration testing, security governance, security breach detection and of artificial intelligence applied to cybersecurity. StreamScan’s expertise is used by many cyber-victimized organizations attacks. Its incident response team has supported several companies to minimize the damage from hackers and ensure that cyber threats are eradicated from the company infrastructure. StreamScan’s advanced detection technology of cyber threats has been selected by the Canadian government as an innovation. StreamScan markets the new generation of detection systems for SMEs as well as big enterprises. The proposed project aims at improving the AI algorithms developed by StreamScan and their management.

Outil decisionnel pour I’exploitation miniere : Etude geo environnementaledu gisement Marban, Val d’Or, Quebec

L’etude sera realisee sur la caracterisation des residus miniers, des sols,

des sediments, des eaux et de I’air (associe aux poussieres) effectuant un suivi spatiotemporel

par la speciation physique des elements-traces metalliques (Solubilite et

adsorption des elements dans Ie sol) et la speciation chimique des elements-traces

metalliques ( Solubilite des elements dans I’eau, liens des elements avec les oxydes de Fe et

Mn, liaison des elements avec les carbonates, les sulfures, les elements-traces metalliques

residuels et detritiques) pour permettre de degager les grandes lignes de considerations

environnementales du projet de developpement minier.

Athletes Embodied: Developing and disseminating a sport-specific body image program

The goal of the project is to develop relationships between academic and non-academic partners to gain insight and knowledge that can be used to inform the Athletes Embodied program. This initial partnership is the first step in establishing an effective and feasible program to reduce body image concerns in girls’ sport, enhance sport experiences, and contribute to retaining female adolescents in sport. The Canadian Eating Disorder Strategy, informed by NEDIC, has identified sport as a significant area of concern among female body image and disordered eating. Athletes Embodied will aim to address the needs of this population and enhance the sport experience among female adolescents