Innovative Projects Realized

Quantifying fusarium toxins in greenhouse-derived matrices

Canadian sweet peppers have become common in our grocery stores, providing us with year-round access to fresh produce. These are grown in greenhouses, but in the past two years, a mould, fusarium, has been found attacking greenhouse peppers across the world. The best weapon against this mould is clean water and early detection, but this early detection is done by looking for chemicals in the water and no Canadian lab has this capacity. This partnership between the SEF Centre for Horticultural Innovation, and the Trant Team at the University of Windsor combines genomic sequencing with chemistry to find better ways to detect moulds early, and to establish this tool into Canada so that we can protect our food, act fast, and reduce waste.

Analytical Techniques for Understanding and Enhancing Consumer Sustainability Behaviour

This research explores the factors influencing Generation Z and Millennial consumers’ engagement with sustainable fashion, particularly within collaborative consumption models. By applying machine learning techniques, the study segments consumers based on their sustainability behaviors and identifies key drivers and barriers, such as cost, quality, and environmental awareness. Clustering methods are also employed to uncover patterns in consumer preferences and brand attributes, enhancing market segmentation. Additionally, robust optimization techniques are used to improve the reliability of predictive models. The ultimate goal is to provide brands with insights to better align their marketing efforts with environmentally conscious values and foster a broader shift toward sustainability.

La motivation à réviser avec Évadigraphe

Ce projet de recherche vise à évaluer la motivation à réviser d’élèves du premier secondaire dans un contexte de dictées numériques et manuscrites. Les dictées numériques seront réalisées par l’entremise d’ÉvadiGraphe, qui est un outil numérique permettant la réalisation de dictées diagnostiques offrant une rétroaction simultanée et détaillée sur les types d’erreurs orthographiques. Le projet proposé a pour but de comparer la motivation à réviser d’élèves du premier cycle du secondaire dans trois conditions : 1) dans des classes où des dictées seront rédigées à la main, sans support numérique et avec la rétroaction habituelle de la personne enseignante, 2) dans des classes où des dictées diagnostiques seront réalisées à deux reprises avec ÉvadiGraphe et 3) dans des classes où, en plus des deux dictées diagnostiques, des dictées d’entraînement avec ÉvadiGraphe auront lieu régulièrement. Ce projet permettra de recueillir des données et de vérifier l’apport d’ÉvadiGraphe sur la motivation à réviser d’élèves du premier cycle du secondaire.

Assessing the Environmental Impact of Electric Vehicle Battery Recycling in British Columbia, Canada

The project, “Assessing the Environmental Impacts of Electric Vehicle Battery Recycling in British Columbia,” aims to evaluate the potential benefits of recycling lithium-ion batteries from electric vehicles (EVs) in the region. As British Columbia increases its adoption of zero-emission vehicles, there is a growing need to address the environmental impacts of sourcing materials like lithium, cobalt, and nickel, which are essential for battery production. With the guidance of the host supervisor from the University of Tokyo, the intern will estimate the volume of recyclable lithium, cobalt, and nickel in retired batteries and assess the multiple environmental benefits of recycling compared to using raw materials for battery manufacturing. The findings will support enhanced decision-making for sustainable resource use and transport decarbonization in the context of British Columbia, benefiting both industry and government efforts in Canada and stakeholders from Japan. By strengthening academia-industry cooperation in battery recycling research and supporting international academic collaboration for the advancement of science, this project directly supports MITACS and JSPS’s commitment to advancing sustainability.

Walk with Me: Emotional and Physiological Impact of Legged Robot Companions

Robotic technology is starting to leave enclosed industrial spaces and research labs and enter human society and communities. However, the impact of robots on humans is not well understood, and this lack of understanding limits the safety and effectiveness of their deployment. The primary objective of this research project is to investigate the emotional and physiological responses of humans walking with legged robot companions. We will employ a mixed methods approach, combining quantitative gait analysis, physiological measurements, and questionnaires, to assess human behaviour. Both the home and host institutions have unique access to legged robots, expanding their research programs in human-robot interaction to multiple types of robot morphology and locomotor methods. In addition, cross-institution training and application of interdisciplinary analysis techniques, tools, and best practices will enable a more holistic assessment of human responses. This collaborative research project is vital towards advancing our understanding of human behaviour towards interactive machines and how to design and deploy these robots aligned with human-centred principles.

Multiple Pathways to Well-being: An Asymmetric Analysis of the Nova Scotia Quality of Life Survey

Engage Nova Scotia (ENS) leads the Quality of Life (QoL) Initiative in Nova Scotia (NS). In 2019, we asked ~13,000 Nova Scotians about 230-questions on their perceptions, feelings, and behaviors related to wellbeing. The results provided the largest single non-government dataset in Canada. We’re now preparing to do a novel analysis of the 2019 survey results to uncover new insights, as well as a follow-up survey in 2025 to check in on Nova Scotians and see how their wellbeing has changed, and what might be driving those changes. To accomplish this, we are seeking academic help to conduct a new analysis, provide advice on constructing the next iteration of the survey, and help build better data visualization tools which will be used by ENS and policy makers to help improve wellbeing for all Nova Scotians. By building on the lessons learned from the 2019 survey, we hope to use the follow-up data to help build positive change within communities.

Quantum-Hybridized Cloud Integration for Next-Generation Security and Performance

The main goal of this research endeavor is the development of a hybrid cloud infrastructure that incorporates quantum computing techniques into its design in order to increase the security, scalability, and level of usability of existing cloud computing systems. This specifically means integrating the more sophisticated aspects of quantum computing, such as quantum cryptography and quantum optimization algorithms, in order to tackle one of the main problems in cloud management and data security. Thus, the result will definitely be a more cyber-terrorism proof cloud architecture that is capable of processing larger sets of data placing itself ideally positioned in the market, especially for such industries as health care, banking and logistic.

Uncovering genetic interactions of the translesion synthesis pathway: targeting DNA repair mechanisms as a therapeutic strategy in cancer

This project investigates how different genes involved in DNA repair work together to keep cancer cells alive. We’re focusing on a specific process called translesion synthesis (TLS), which helps cells bypass damage in their DNA. By understanding these genetic interactions, we hope to identify new ways to target and kill cancer cells, especially those that have become resistant to standard treatments. This research will benefit both Canadian and Japanese research institutions by providing new insights into cancer biology, fostering international collaboration, and potentially leading to the development of new cancer therapies.

The Politics of Consent in United Nations Peace Operations

My research explores a key challenge in United Nations (UN) peace operations: maintaining reliable consent from host countries. Consent from the host government is crucial for the UN to operate effectively, but this support often fluctuates. Some countries initially welcome UN missions but later restrict their activities or withdraw consent, which can disrupt peace efforts and force missions to scale back or even close.

To address this, my project examines why host-state consent changes over time, the factors that influence this consent, and how the UN can respond to maintain cooperation. Focusing on three UN missions—in South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Central African Republic—I aim to answer three main questions: (1) How can we define and measure consent in peace operations? (2) What factors impact the reliability of host-state consent? (3) How does the UN adapt when consent weakens?

Understanding these dynamics is vital for improving UN peacekeeping effectiveness. By examining the factors that drive consent, this research can inform strategies to build stronger partnerships with host countries, ultimately leading to more effective, stable peace operations that better serve civilian populations.

Ranking Elements of Realism of VR Avatars

In (VR, we can’t see our bodies due to replacing the real world with a virtual one. This leads to disembodiment, which has been shown to impact performance. An avatar, a digital body, can create that embodiment. The proposed research aims to combine the topic of the intern’s master’s thesis, “Investigating Graphical Realism in Mixed Reality and its Correlation with Performance and Presence,” and research conducted by the host institution, “Third-Person Perspective Avatar Embodiment in Augmented Reality: Examining the Proteus Effect on Physical Performance.”

This research will design an experiment that will vary the graphical qualities of an avatar. Participants would be tasked with voting for the avatar they feel has the higher quality, and, similar to the intern’s thesis, the system would apply a ranking to the results. These results would be compared to a participant’s self-reported sense of embodiment for each avatar’s graphical quality. This experiment aims to understand what elements of graphical realism are necessary for embodiment and their impact on embodiment. By combining these research topics, we can better understand the effects of graphical realism on user embodiment in new XR systems. This will inform the intern’s PhD dissertation on graphical elements in XR systems.

Validating chemical candidates for axon regeneration in the rodent visual system

Neurons are like electrical wires that help the brain communicate with itself and other parts of the body. If broken, this ability is impaired, leading to reduced sensation and or motor function. Neurons in the mature mammalian central nervous system (CNS) don’t grow back after injury due to cellular, biochemical and physical barriers. Currently, there are no therapeutics for complete functional recovery from CNS injury, so identifying treatments that target different barriers to regeneration will be important for the development of a novel therapeutic strategy. Collapsin response mediator protein 2 (CRMP2) stabilizes microtubules, which are part of the cell’s cytoskeleton, and promotes their regeneration, but CRMP2 cannot perform this function when it’s phosphorylated. CRMP2 phosphorylation increases after injury, making regeneration more difficult. Excitingly, several candidate chemicals that inhibit CRMP2 phosphorylation have been identified and screened in a zebrafish spinal cord injury model. This project aims to determine which of these chemicals promotes the most effective regeneration in the mouse visual system, which is part of the CNS. This will be accomplished first by applying the chemical to mouse retinal ganglion cells on a plate and later by administering the chemical to a live mouse following optic nerve crush injury.

Simple Receptor Protein Generation

Receptor proteins are important for therapeutics, medicines, diagnostics and biomanufacturing. Generating new proteins is incredibly difficult however machine learning techniques have been developed to assist in evolving proteins. Using these techniques, I plan to create receptor mimics that are smaller and have improved properties. These will benefit many industries such as therapeutics, medicines, diagnostics and biomanufacturing. The Pardee lab at the University of Toronto will gain expertise in machine learning while the Umetsu lab will learn about cell free protein synthesis. The synergistic skill sets of both labs will lead to many future projects together.