Innovative Projects Realized

Pacific Herring spawning habitat: Survey of historical sites and gap analysis using remote sensing

Pacific Herring is a very important species in the Salish Sea. Its position in the food web gives it an environmental role, notably because it is one of the salmon’s important sources of food. Its economic and social role for British Columbians is also well known among fishermen and Native communities. However, the reproduction dynamic evolution and repartition over the past decades is not well understood. During those spawning events, the release of the male’s semen allows the use of satellite imagery to survey and quantify the spawning phenomenon. This project aims to develop a robust method to detect those events to better understand how herring population is distributed and how spawning has evolved, giving the Pacific Salmon Foundation a useful tool to assess herring presence in coastal waters.

Blockchain et essor du droit de la protection des données personnelles

La discipline juridique fait plus que jamais face à l’essor du Web.3.0 (blockchain, IA, IoT, etc.). Le numérique nouvelle génération se déploie dès lors plus que mesure, il est de plu en plus présent dans la vie quotidienne des citoyens. Ainsi vu, le droit du numérique doit apporter des réponses juridiques de responsabilisation des acteurs blockchain et de protection de ses utilisateurs afin d’assurer une légitimité et une crédibilité à cette nouvelle économie du numérique. Comment se manifeste concrètement et manifestement la responsabilité juridique des programmateurs informatiques et des mineurs des blockchains ? Comment se protègent-ils ? Comment appliquent-ils les obligations qui leur incombent ? Est-ce suffisant ? Face à des cryptographies informatiques devenant de plus en plus techniques (homomorphes par exemple) quelle place peut et a à prendre la responsabilisation du droit du numérique afin de se rendre compatible, et non devenir un frein juridique, avec l’essor de cette nouvelle technologie ?

Sustainable Engineering Future: Bridging Skills Gap for Effective Carbon Emission Reduction

Evident in extreme weather events and a 1.1°C global temperature increase since the late 1800s, attributed to rising greenhouse gas emissions. It stresses the urgency of addressing climate change to meet 2030 and 2050 carbon and energy targets, presenting a sustainability challenge requiring broad-scale action on environmental, social, and economic fronts. The focus turns to the crucial role of a skilled workforce in addressing this challenge. The proposed research aims to identify necessary skills by investigating a skills gap among engineering students. The study has two objectives: assessing the skills gap and determining the best method for disseminating information gathered from industry experts through an anonymous survey. The research methodology involves conducting a literature review to establish a framework around greenhouse gas emissions, carbon accounting, and decarbonization.

Modelling and Imaging of Fluids in Fractures

Hydraulic fracturing is a process where fluids are injected in high pressure into wells and fracture the rocks. This process is the driver for shale gas extraction and therefore its efficiency plays a major role for unconventional oil recovery. One of the key questions in such a process is the extent that the pressurized fluids penetrate the reservoir. The goal of this research is to investigate the use of electromagnetic methods for the imaging, identification and control of this process. Modeling and imaging the electromagnetic response of fluids in fractured is a challenging task, and deeper
understanding will benefit the industry partners.

Development of A Digital Twin for SAGD Pads – Training and Integrity Testing of Data Analytic Models

Data analytics have been used extensively across various industries to predict and propose optimal operation conditions, ultimately improving project efficiencies and reducing execution costs. However, these methods have
not been widely utilized by any SAGD (Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage) operators. There is an opportunity to adapt this new technology to further optimize process operation and reduce costs and enhance ESG performance.
In order to de-risk this emerging technology, this project aims to develop a digital twin of several SAGD pads through numerical simulations. Synthetic data sets produced by these simulations will be utilized to train data-driven models, which will be used for digital pads optimization. The numerical simulator will monitor any short or long-term impacts on SAGD performance due to changes in the pad operation constraints, validating the integrity
of the data-driven models for process optimization at the pad/field level.

Factors and Mechanisms that Impact Cognitive Health in Aging

The larger study project aims to assess and enhance the impact of virtual health interventions on older adults with IDD, their family caregivers, and service providers. The first phase of the research project will explore and investigate current challenges older adults with IDD experience within academic and grey literature, and data collected from previous virtual education programs for providers, families, and older adults. By addressing this goal, the project seeks to bridge existing gaps in healthcare services, offering tailored virtual interventions that are catered and improve the overall quality of life for older adults with IDD. The significance of this research lies in its potential to inform the development of more effective and holistic approaches to support the unique needs of older adults living with IDD.

Understanding the biodiversity ecosystem function relationships of herbivorous reef fish at the Hawai’i Institute of Marine Biology

Hawaiian coral reefs are extremely diverse and host a suite of endemic species. This diversity is a key aspect of their resilience. Fishing is an important aspect of Hawaiian culture, providing food and livelihoods for local people. Most of the fishing within Hawai’i is non-commercial and occurs in the near-shore, where herbivores make up 21% of the total catch. Compared to historic levels, herbivore stocks in Hawai?i are depleted, especially on the most populated islands, making them vulnerable to algal overgrowth.

Herbivore management areas, where regulations are placed on the harvest of herbivorous fish, have been identified as a key tool to increase coral reef resilience within Hawai’i. Despite this, there has been little practical guidance on application and it remains unclear how much and which types of herbivory are needed to ensure desirable levels of algae. Protecting herbivore abundance and diversity may help maintain ecological function and improve resilience of coral reefs, but to act most effectively, we need to understand herbivorous fishes’ diets and whether herbivores work together, by targeting different types of algae, to prevent overgrowth.

Understanding drivers of fish stock recruitment to improve fisheries management

The objective of this project is to shed new light on the regulation of fish stock dynamics by revealing the drivers of growth and survival during early life. Otoliths, which consist of small concretions found in the inner ear of fish, will be used to estimate daily growth history, considered a key indicator of survival potential in fish larvae. This project, conducted at the University of Tokyo on three abundant Japanese clupeiform species (anchovy, sardine and round herring) used as models, will allow us to identify potential drivers of early life survival of clupeiform species worldwide, including key Atlantic herring stocks in Canada. These stocks include the one occurring in the Southern Gulf of St. Lawrence, which is now facing a concerning decline and requires an improved management strategy. Overall, this project will allow us to determine to what extent the growth-survival relationship and the recruitment potential vary in space and time, which will facilitate the development of improved management strategies for Atlantic herring and other important fishery resources in Canada.

Mise en valeur à des fins récréotouristiques au Site de la Nouvelle-France

De 1996 à2019,|e site de la Nouvelle-France s’est imposé comme un site touristique d’importance au Saguenay. En 2022, grâce à d’importantes subventions, la Société touristique de l’Anse-à-la-Croix qui gère le site a entrepris une refonte complète de I’offre touristique avec I’achat et la construction de nouveaux bâtiments afin de combler
un vide en matière d’offre touristique au Saguenay. À l’intérieur de cette refonte se trouve la volonté de mettre en valeur la discipline de l’archéologie et des données qui ont été colligées sur l’occupation ancienne des lieux depuis la paléohistoire jusqu’à l’histoire récente. Au-delà de ce qui a été découvert sur les lieux, l’une des missions du
lieu touristique vise également à documenter la période où les colons européens ont commencé à fréquenter les berges du Saint-Laurent.

Blue Dot Application

The main objective of this research project is to contribute to developing a model that can provide robust early warning to changes in influenza cases and help to reduce ILI spread globally. The model, Modified Exponential Growth Algorithm (MEGA), will characterize the early ascending phase of epidemic disease and will be used to detect changes in calculated exponential growth parameters that occur over a complete time series of influenza case data. What makes this model unique is that it will detect not only the start and peak of ILI activity, but also when its season ends. Understanding and identifying when it is ILI season is especially important with recent departures of seasonal influenza trends post-Covid-19 pandemic.

An intern who brings skills and knowledge in public health and epidemiology is needed to support the technology team members who don’t have that specific expertise. Because BlueDot is a social enterprise and limited in resources, we need to better optimize our budget while we are commercializing new technology. Hence, support from Mitacs would accelerate this project. This is an opportunity for a student to apply their knowledge in a real world and technology-driven setting.

Social determinants of health and use of diabetes technologies among adults with type 1 diabetes in Quebec

The intern will evaluate disparities in the use of diabetes technologies among individuals from historically marginalized communities in Canada, explore barriers and facilitators to use of diabetes technologies, and identify novel strategies to improve equitable use. The intern will determine associations between marginalization and the use of insulin pumps and CGM, as well as interactions between marginalization and the use of insulin pumps or CGM on Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) and diabetes-related hospitalizations.

The Prosserman Centre for Population Health Research (PCPHR) will benefit from the research as it will offer a nuanced understanding of disparities in technology use among historically marginalized communities in Ontario and Quebec, providing valuable insights into barriers and facilitators influencing adoption. This information will enable PCPHR to design targeted interventions, addressing challenges faced by these populations. The research contributes to PCPHR’s data resources for population health studies, aligning with its mission to reduce disease burden and improve overall health. Ultimately, the collaboration positions PCPHR to actively contribute to reducing health inequalities.
Additionally, this research may strengthen PCPHR’s position as a leader in epidemiology, biostatistics, and health research overall. The study provides unique contribution to the field, fostering collaboration with funding agencies and other research institutions.

Comparative Analysis of Sexually Transmitted Infections and Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Wastewater: A Transcontinental Wastewater-based Epidemiology Study Between Canadian and Japanese Communities

It is estimated that more than 1 million cases of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are acquired globally each day and significantly impact sexual and reproductive health. Existing STI outbreak surveillance methods rely largely on clinical reporting which can underestimate the scale of community outbreaks, primarily due to asymptomatic cases and patient test avoidance resulting from either negative social stigma or lack of access to testing. This study will employ a wastewater-based epidemiological (WBE) approach using qRT-PCR to detect and quantify 3-4 common STIs in wastewater collected from Canadian and Japanese communities. Once quantified, microbial titres present in the wastewater can be correlated with clinical cases, lending a new insight into community infection rates. Additionally, antimicrobial resistance is a growing public health concern, particularly surrounding Neisseria gonorrhoeae infections. Therefore, samples with positive detection will be further analyzed using Next Generation Sequencing to determine variant composition and resistance rates. A transcontinental comparative analysis will aid in understanding STI spread and resistance, while the WBE approach is crucial for rapid monitoring and outbreak intervention.