Innovative Projects Realized

Enhancing Environmental Toxicology Methods: Optimizing Culturing Techniques and Testing Protocols for Rainbow Trout, Earthworms, and Chlorella Algae

THIS IS A GENERIC TEXT PUT IN PLACE AS THERE WAS NO PROJECT OVERVIEW

Combining non-invasive brain stimulation with machine learning techniques to predict cognitive-sensorimotor interactions during skilled behaviours in healthy and clinical populations

The project aims to enhance our understanding and ability to predict the dynamics of cognitive and sensorimotor functions in skilled behaviors. Through the integration of non-invasive brain stimulation (like TMS) and machine learning algorithms, this research seeks to develop models that can foresee cognitive-sensorimotor interaction outcomes both in individuals with neurological conditions and healthy subjects. It involves collecting data on brain activity using non-invasive techniques while participants engage in predefined tasks. This data will then be processed and analyzed using sophisticated machine learning models to identify predictive markers of performance and recovery potential in clinical populations. These markers can provide invaluable insights into the design of personalized rehabilitation programs, enhancing the efficacy of treatments for neurological conditions such as stroke or traumatic brain injury.
The expected outcome of this project is a report describing a method that can be used to develop better diagnostic tools, rehabilitation therapies, ultimately improving people’s lives.

Modeling dynamics of the lateral geniculate nucleus of the thalamus

The proposed project aims to advance computational neuroscience by enhancing the MouseNet model, a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) designed to emulate the structure and function of the mouse visual cortex. By incorporating 3D convolutions and realistic temporal dynamics, the project seeks to model the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) dynamics more accurately. This enhancement will provide deeper insights into the mechanisms governing visual processing, contributing to our understanding of neural computation.

The expected outcome of the project is a refined MouseNet model that better captures the dynamics of LGN activity, thus improving accuracy within the training of specific visual tasks, particularly those involving motion. Participating institutions stand to benefit from improved computational models that better capture biological processes, facilitating research in various fields such as artificial intelligence, especially computer vision and neuroscience.

Online application for problem-solving by individual and groups

Group and individual problem-solving play important roles in industrial innovation, product development, strategy formulation, and many other applications. Prof. Duimering’s lab at the University of Waterloo has conducted experiments investigating the behaviour of individuals and groups solving problems under various conditions. Studies have investigated the effects of problem complexity, individual vs. group incentives, and the open-endedness of solutions (i.e., whether there is a single correct solution or many possible solutions) on problem-solving behaviour and performance.
This project aims to develop a software application that can be used to conduct online social experiments to investigate the problem-solving behaviour and performance of individuals and groups. The application will be used to gather and analyze experimental data from online participants, to support hypotheses testing using statistical and thematic analysis methods. Specifically, we plan to use the software application to conduct an experiment investigating individual and group behaviour solving open-ended problems online, and the outcomes will be compared to previous laboratory results.
The study will contribute to understanding factors influencing the effectiveness of individual and group problem-solving behaviour in online and face-to-face settings. These insights can guide future methods and problem-solving strategies to improve organizational effectiveness in innovation, product development, and other applications.

Trio Law Offices – Implementation of strategies to enhance online presence and robust cybersecurity protocols for safeguarding of client data

?Trio Law Offices is a private law firm which provides legal services in the domains of Family Law, Mediation, Immigration, Wills & Estates, Real Estates, Civil Litigation, Corporate and Employment. Currently they are having a limited online presence and are facing compliance issues with the data protection regulations. For these reasons they want to hire a Legal Project Assistant whose key responsibilities would be to enhance the law office’s online presence and implement robust cybersecurity protocols to safeguard client data.

GPU Scheduler Modeling for Early Power-Performance Estimation of Mobile Applications

User experience and battery life are key concerns for smartphone makers. Given the growing trend of graphic-rich applications on mobile devices, embedded Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) are increasingly being incorporated in smartphone hardware platforms. In this project the intern will develop fast, early and accurate models of embedded GPUs, before the GPU hardware is available. These models will be useful for early optimization of smartphone applications by determining the appropriate application code to execute on the GPU and by using the appropriate policy to schedule jobs on the GPU across multiple applications, while minimizing energy consumption.

Spandrel Interactive Inc. – Preparing market analysis of game products on specific marketplaces and regions to identify future projects.

Spandrel Interactive specializes in the development of cutting-edge training simulations that use virtual reality to provide realistic and immersive training experiences for businesses. We are seeking a motivated and experienced Business Development Representative to join our team.

The ideal candidate will have an MBA degree, a strong background in business development, excellent communication skills, and the ability to work collaboratively with internal and external stakeholders. This is an excellent opportunity for an individual looking to learn more about the rapidly growing field of XR/VR and to take their career in business development to the next level.

TP3 Mobile

TimePlay’s project aims to revolutionize the entertainment experience by providing innovative solutions that increase engagement and participation among players and participants, ultimately enhancing the overall satisfaction and enjoyment of their environment. Our TP3 Mobile, serves as a platform that hosts various interactive games and components, including features that allows hosts to control the flow of the game, a Big Screen that displays live game content, and interactive gameplay for audiences via mobile web browsers or mobile client applications. This opportunity has the potential to enhance existing entertainment offerings, such as the social interactive experience, by incorporating more interactive elements. By allowing audience members to participate in solving puzzles from their seats. TimePlay’s solution not only increases engagement but also provides a new outlet for passengers to actively participate in the entertainment experience.

Focus group execution as a step to Integrating Critical Design for Responsible Innovation

The project focuses on integrating critical design methods into the tech development workflow to address ethical concerns and promote inclusivity, diversity, and equity. As an intern, I will contribute to designing focus group questions, conducting focus group sessions, documenting the research group’s activities, and coding data from focus groups. Additionally, I will assist in organizing events such as critical design showcases and will participate in visits from guest lecturers.

Moreover, I will collaborate with the research team on developing educational tools to teach students and tech professionals about responsible innovation and the integration of critical design, contribute to cataloging interdisciplinary critical design projects created by students and faculty in the Critical Media Lab.

RBC Patient and Family Learning Space Summer Practicum: Policy, Program and Evaluation Development

The RBC Patient and Family Learning Space (PFLS) at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) is a
non-clinical educational program that aims to increase mental health literacy through workshops, patient education resources, and navigational support. The PFLS is open to CAMH patients, families, and the general public. The PFLS launched in November 2021 with 3 staff and limited resources. As the number of people entering the space and accessing our programming grows, the demands on our staff also grows,
highlighting the need for standardizing our processes, increasing programming opportunities and developing a robust program evaluation plan. We are looking to support two interns, one student from the University of Toronto and one from Western University, to help us create new programming, evaluate the overall program and draft an onboarding manual for new staff, volunteers and students joining the program.

Growth Strategies for DTC clients

Counter Culture Agency stands out as a premier marketing and influencer agency in Canada, specializing in a diverse range of activities aimed at enhancing brand presence and engagement. Our core services encompass branding and design, content creation, and community management across various social platforms. Additionally, we excel in forging strategic partnerships and impactful collaborations with influencers. Our client portfolio primarily consists of scaling Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) and Software as a Service (SaaS) companies, like GUAP, alongside a curated list of creators who are scaling internet communities.

The primary challenge that Counter Culture Agency seeks to address through this project revolves around building a robust top-of-funnel strategy for two of our key clients. In today’s highly competitive landscape, increasing brand awareness is paramount to driving sales and fostering sustained growth. Recognizing the evolving dynamics of the digital marketplace, our clients are keen on amplifying their reach and making a significant impact on potential customers. The challenge lies in creating a comprehensive and effective top-of-funnel approach that not only captures the attention of the target audience but also converts awareness into tangible business outcomes.

Building an AI-powered semantic search for historical records

The Royal Canadian Numismatic Association (RCNA) is a non-profit educational organization, founded in 1950 and incorporated in 1963. It provides a national platform for coin collectors to connect, share knowledge, and celebrate the rich historical and cultural significance encapsulated in coins. Coin collecting provides a unique lens through which to explore the evolution of societies, art, and economics. Since 1956, the RCNA has published the Canadian Numismatic Journal (CNJ), which has published seminal papers related to Canadian numismatics. Unfortunately, access to them is restricted to members due to reproduction rights, and limited to lexical search, which requires searchers not only to identify relevant keywords, but to correlate them with more than 60 years of linguistic changes. Finding detailed information within the CNJ archives is time-consuming and difficult.

In this project, a Mitacs Intern at Mohawk College will create a publicly accessible, more intuitive interface to RCNA’s knowledge base integrating Natural Language Processing (NLP) and sentiment analysis (SAn) to refine search accuracy, ensuring users receive the most pertinent information. The intern engaged in the project will apply and further develop their technical skills in programming, machine learning, and language processing within a business context.

The immediate impact of this project is expected to be a repositioning of the RCNA in the Canadian Numismatics digital landscape. The website will be positioned to become a destination for users of many skill levels to engage in the hobby, simply by leveraging the information it already holds and making it available appropriately.