Faculty of Art &amp; Science

Institutional Strategic Initiatives

Acceleration Consortium

Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre

Artificial Intelligence

Department of Chemistry

Department of Computer Science

Entrepreneurship

Hospital for Sick Children

Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy

University Health Network

Startups

The ��߲ݴ�ý is collaborating with the University Health Network, the Hospital for Sick Children and Sunnybrook Research Institute on a new program that aims to leverage the expertise of entrepreneurs and business leaders to advance commercialization of emerging medical technologies and regenerative medicine research.

Funded by the Government of Ontario, the Entrepreneur-In-Residence program will support projects that display high potential for clinical impact and spin-off company formation, spanning areas ranging from regenerative therapies and medical devices to AI-powered clinical tools and apps for patient care.

The one-year pilot program is being launched with the help of a $300,000 grant from Intellectual Property Ontario (IPON), a provincial agency that was established in 2022 to provide IP resources and supports to researchers and businesses.

“The Entrepreneur-in-Residence program will help take medical innovations developed in academic and hospital environments and translate them into the commercial arena, generating economic opportunity for the region and expanding clinical impact globally,” said Leah Cowen, U of T’s vice-president, research and innovation, and strategic initiatives.

“The ��߲ݴ�ý is grateful to IPON for its support of this initiative, which stands to strengthen existing networks of knowledge exchange and collaboration between the university and its partner hospitals.”

Jill Dunlop, left,Ontario’s minister of colleges and universities, said post-secondary institutions are critical incubators of innovation and commercialization (photo courtesy of IPON)

The program will see Entrepreneurs-in-Residence – individuals with a track record of launching science-based ventures and shepherding projects from proof-of-concept to incubation, acceleration and seed funding – liaise with U of T’s Innovations & Partnerships Office and IPON to generate and protect IP. It is designed to add capacity and scope to U of T’s thriving entrepreneurship and commercialization ecosystem, including existing Entrepreneur-in-Residence initiatives such as those offered by the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and Medicine By Design, an institutional strategic initiative (ISI).

“In today’s global knowledge-based economy, Ontario’s post-secondary institutions are critical – not just as centres of learning, but as incubators for innovation and commercialization,” said Jill Dunlop, minister of colleges and universities, in a recent announcement of new IPON-funded initiatives.

“Through the province’s support of IPON, our government is ensuring the social and economic benefits of publicly funded research stay in our province, so that Ontarians and the Ontario economy benefit from these new discoveries and innovations.”

Dunlop also spoke at an April 8 event with Christine Allen, a professor in U of T’s Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy who has an extensive track record of translating and commercializing lab discoveries.

Christine Allen, far right, is a professor in the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy and the founder and CEO of Intrepid Labs (photo courtesy of IPON)

At the event, Allen highlighted the growth of her startup, Intrepid Labs Inc., which she co-founded with Alán Aspuru-Guzik, a professor in the departments of chemistry and computer science in U of T’s Faculty of Arts & Science and director of the Acceleration Consortium. The company marries Allen’s prowess in drug formulation and development with Aspuru-Guzik’s expertise in AI and advanced computing in order to accelerate the development of next-generation medicines. In the fall, the company closed a pre-seed round of US$4 million.

“The availability of top-notch talent in AI and life sciences made Toronto a great place to launch our company,” says Allen, who is Intrepid’s CEO, noting all four of the startup’s co-founders are from U of T.

She added that U of T is a powerhouse for entrepreneurship and intellectual property, ranked second in North America for university-based startups, and that companies with founders or co-founders from U of T make up a significant percentage of some of the fastest-growing companies in Ontario.

“This is the beauty of being at the ��߲ݴ�ý and having the MaRS Discovery District across the street and all the hospitals around us. It’s such a rich environment,” she says.

“We can do this in Toronto.”

Allen stressed that a thriving lab-to-market ecosystem is critical to inspire the next generation of entrepreneurs.

“Students are increasingly seeking out roles in the private sector,” she says. “For them to see other students and faculty members [found startups] helps them realize that it’s possible for them to start companies, too.”

'A very ornate, unique experience': U of T alumnus Kokichi Kusano debuts theatrical and musical performance

Christopher.Sorensen — Mon, 01 May 2023 18:23:17 +0000

'A very ornate, unique experience': U of T alumnus Kokichi Kusano debuts theatrical and musical performance

Christopher.Sorensen Mon, 05/01/2023 - 14:23

Cutline

NAE, a theatrical and musical work created by U of T alumnus Kokichi Kusano, tells a story of life in Japan during a 13th-century famine (photo by Gak Tanaka)

Topic

Theatre

��߲ݴ�ý alumnus Kokichi Kusano is preparing to debut his theatrical and musical work NAE, which translates to “The Rice Seedling,” at Toronto’s Harbourfront Centre – a performance years in the making and inspired by his studies in the Faculty of Arts & Science.

NAE runs from May 5–7 and uses elements of traditional Japanese theatre, music and art to tell a story of life on the island nation during a 13th-century famine.

Kokichi Kusano (supplied image)

“It's going to be quite a costume spectacle and a very ornate, unique experience,” says Kusano, who earned his honours bachelor of arts degree from U of T as a member of Woodsworth College in 2005.

“I'm very excited to share that with Toronto.”

The story centres on a lonesome monk offering comfort to the dead as they float down a metaphorical river to the afterlife. The monk will soon discover the mysterious forces that hold the fate of humankind in the balance.

The monk’s character was inspired by a book Kusano read while studying in the department of East Asian studies: Hōjōki: A Hermit's Hut as Metaphor, by Kamo no Chōmei – one man’s chronicle of natural disasters and war in medieval Japan.

Many people and events in NAE are rooted in Kusano's studies and instructors at U of T.

“He was a great student,” says Ikuko Komuro-Lee, a linguistics expert and associate professor, teaching stream, in the department of East Asian studies. “He was very motivated, diligent and it was obvious he cared a lot about his Japanese heritage.”

Kusano earned a scholarship through the Dr. David Chu Program in Asia-Pacific Studies to study abroad at Kyushu University in Japan – on the same southern island his grandparents came from.

“I met a lot of musicians and artisans who were influential to my musical style and writing techniques,” he says. “U of T opened so many doors inside and outside the classroom.”

Kusano was born and raised in Toronto, but his grandparents came to Canada from Japan more than a century ago. However, those decades of distance couldn’t erode the connection to his ancestry – a nexus that grew even stronger when he started at U of T in the late 1990s.

Kusano felt welcome right away, surrounded by students with similar life experiences who celebrated Asian cultures, languages and traditions in stark contrast to his childhood experiences.

"In the 1980s, being Japanese in Toronto was something that incited disgust in other people,” says Kusano. “The idea of eating sushi was cringe-worthy back then, but by the time I was in university, there were sushi restaurants all along Bloor Street.”

Canada recognized May as Asian Heritage Month more than two decades ago after U of T alumna Vivienne Poy, who would later become a chancellor at the university, put forward a motion while serving in the Senate.

At U of T, Kusano noted a cultural shift. After a painful struggle, the Japanese community had found acceptance in Canada's largest city.

In first year, Kusano joined Toronto’s Nagata Shachu taiko drumming ensemble as a flutist. The group played many shows at Hart House and performed at Faculty of Music events, which prepared him for his post-university career as a professional composer.

Kokichi ramped up writing music and dialogue for NAE at the start of the pandemic, a time when he – and so many others – struggled with isolation and existential fears.

He was also dealing with his father’s terminal cancer battle. In the spring of 2020, Kusano’s family made the difficult decision to move his ailing father out of a locked down hospital, allowing him to spend his final days with loved ones.

“At the time, I had no control over outcomes or cancer treatments or symptoms, and some very key characters in the show are depictions of my father’s desperation as well as my own ups and downs,” says Kusano, explaining that NAE is about the struggle with uncontrollable forces.

"Several hundred years ago, people were at the mercy of nature because it was still very unknown and unconquered. Plays and stories from that time have a supernatural element; this belief that there are demons and ghosts around every corner and in every shadow.”

NAE marks the culmination of hard work, personal pain and virtual rehearsals with a cast across Canada that will be reunited just one week before showtime.

"We exercised great care as we took this from the original Japanese script and put it in English – all while we respected the shape of the traditions,” Kusano says. “We know our family, friends and the core Japanese community will come to support us, but we’re very excited to share this experience with a broader audience.”

Role reversal: U of T student and faculty dean swap jobs, gain insights

Christopher.Sorensen — Fri, 14 Apr 2023 14:47:25 +0000

Role reversal: U of T student and faculty dean swap jobs, gain insights

Christopher.Sorensen Fri, 04/14/2023 - 10:47

Cutline

Second-year student Chelsea Wang recently traded places with Faculty of Arts & Science Dean Melanie Woodin for a day, sending Wang to high-level meetings and Woodin to a class on modern East Asia (photo by Sarah Khan)

Christine Elstub

Topic

Student Experience

Undergraduate Students

Victoria College

Chelsea Wang has been busy during her two years as a ��߲ݴ�ý student. The international relations major is vice-president of the East Asian Studies Students’ Union, a mentor to incoming Victoria College students and a U of T tour guide.

Now she can add “dean” to her already impressive resume – albeit for a single day.

Wang recently got to trade places with Melanie Woodin, dean of the Faculty of Arts & Science, after winning a raffle held by the Arts & Science Student Union (ASSU), with the money raised going to food banks. For one day, Wang attended Woodin’s meetings while Woodin attended Wang’s class and worked her shift as a campus tour guide – a role swap that gave each party new insights into the university.

Wang says the highlight of her “Dean for a Day” experience was chairing a meeting of Arts & Science vice-deans, where she learned about ongoing initiatives such as improvements to student spaces like Robarts Common and the Sidney Smith Commons.

“I was able to give feedback on what the student experience is like in those spaces,” says Wang, adding that she was pleased to learn about the team’s efforts to solicit student voices on the projects. “I offered ideas about what can be improved, especially during exam time.”

Chelsea Wang, centre, leads a meeting of Arts & Science vice-deans (photo by Sarah Khan)

Wang’s schedule also included back-to-back meetings with members of the faculty’s academic leadership team, including Acting Vice-Dean of Undergraduate Students Bill Ju and Acting Associate Dean of Student Affairs Alana Boland, as well as meetings with U of T Vice-Provost of Students Sandy Welsh and Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering Dean Christopher Yip.

Chelsea Wang and Sandy Welsh, vice-provost, students (photo by Sarah Khan)

Meanwhile, Woodin attended Wang’s modern East Asia lecture, where she chatted with instructor Yurou Zhong, an associate professor in the department of East Asian studies, interacted with students and even participated in the class discussion – although she admittedly had not completed the required readings.

Faculty of Arts & Science Dean Melanie Woodin arrives early for Chelsea Wang's morning lecture (photo Christine Elstub)

After the lecture, Woodin headed to the Nona Macdonald Visitors Centre to cover Wang’s shift as a U of T tour guide. She greeted a group of incoming students and their families at the centre before they toured the St. George campus.

Faculty of Arts & Science Dean Melanie Woodin, right, prepares to cover Chelsea Wang’s shift as a U of T tour guide (photo by Sarah Khan)

“I really enjoyed attending class and chatting with current and future students. It was a great reminder of what it’s like to be a student here,” says Woodin, an Arts & Science alumna. “The Dean for a Day fundraiser was a wonderful opportunity for Arts & Science students, faculty and staff to come together to learn from each other while giving back to the community.

“Trading places with Chelsea gave me fresh insight into the student experience, and my team gained invaluable feedback from Chelsea’s participation in meetings.”

For Wang, who is involved in student government, her experience as dean was also not entirely unfamiliar. “I found the meetings I attended similar to how student government meetings work, with members of different teams working together to get feedback and make improvements.”

Wang says she would participate in any future Dean for a Day raffles and encourages other students to do the same. “It supports a great cause, so it’s a nice way to get to know ASSU and participate in administrative life for a day.”

Researchers develop new insight into the enigmatic realm of 'strange metals'

Christopher.Sorensen — Tue, 11 Apr 2023 15:02:52 +0000

Researchers develop new insight into the enigmatic realm of 'strange metals'

Christopher.Sorensen Tue, 04/11/2023 - 11:02

Cutline

Better understanding of non-Fermi liquids could help realize the potential of technologies like those based on graphene, a single layer of carbon atoms (photo by ktsimage\iStock)

Chris Sasaki

Topic

Centre for Quantum Information and Quantum Control

Graduate Students

Physics

Institutional Strategic Initiatives

The behaviour of so-called “strange metals” have long puzzled scientists – but a group of researchers at the ��߲ݴ�ý may be one step closer to understanding these materials.

Electrons are discrete, subatomic particles that flow through wires like molecules of water flowing through a pipe. The flow is known as electricity and it’s harnessed to power and control everything from lightbulbs to the Large Hadron Collider.

In quantum matter, by contrast, electrons don’t behave as they do in normal materials. They are much stronger and the four fundamental properties of electrons – charge, spin, orbit and lattice – become intertwined, resulting in complex states of matter.

“In quantum matter, electrons shed their particle-like character and exhibit strange collective behaviour,” says condensed matter physicist Arun Paramekanti, a professor in the U of T’s department of physics in the Faculty of Arts & Science. “These materials are known as non-Fermi liquids in which the simple rules break down.”

Now, three researchers from the department of physics and Centre for Quantum Information & Quantum Control (CQIQC) have developed a theoretical model describing the interactions between subatomic particles in non-Fermi liquids. The framework expands on existing models and will help researchers understand the behaviour of these “strange metals.”

Their research was published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). The lead author is physics PhD student Andrew Hardy, with co-authors Paramekanti and post-doctoral researcher Arijit Haldar.

From left: Andrew Hardy, Arijit Haldar and Arun Paramekanti

"We know that the flow of a complex fluid like blood through arteries is much harder to understand than water through pipes,” says Paramekanti. “Similarly, the flow of electrons in non-Fermi liquids is much harder to study than that in simple metals.”

Hardy adds: “What we've done is construct a model, a tool, to study non-Fermi liquid behaviour. And specifically, to deal with what happens when there is symmetry breaking, when there is a phase transition into a new type of system.”

“Symmetry breaking” is the term used to describe a fundamental process found in all of nature. Symmetry breaks when a system – whether a droplet of water or the entire universe – loses its symmetry and homogeneity and becomes more complex.

For example, a droplet of water is symmetrical no matter its orientation – rotate it in any direction and it looks the same. But its symmetry is broken when it undergoes a phase transition and freezes into an ice crystal. As a snowflake, it is still symmetrical but only in six different directions.

The same thing happened with all subatomic particles and forces following the Big Bang. With the explosive birth of the cosmos, all particles and all the forces were the same, but symmetry breaking immediately transformed them into the manifold particles and forces we see in the cosmos today.

“Symmetry breaking in non-Fermi liquids is much more complicated to study because there isn’t a comprehensive framework for working with non-Fermi liquids,” says Hardy. “Describing how this symmetry breaking occurs is hard to do.”

In a non-Fermi liquid, interactions between electrons become much stronger when the particles are on the brink of symmetry breaking. As with a ball poised at the top of a hill, a very gentle nudge one way or the other will send it in opposite directions.

The new research provides insight into these transitions in non-Fermi liquids and could lead to new ways to tune and control the properties of quantum materials. While still a serious challenge for physicists, the work is important for the new quantum materials that could shape the next generation of quantum technology.

These technologies include high-temperature superconductors that achieve zero resistance at temperatures much closer to room temperature, making them much more practical and useful. There are also graphene devices – technologies based on one-atom thick layers of carbon atoms which have a myriad of electronic applications.

“Quantum materials exhibit both unusual electron flow and complex types of symmetry breaking which can be controlled and tuned,” Hardy says.

“It is exciting for us to be able to make theoretical predictions for such systems which can be tested in new experiments in the lab.”

Good for you, better for the planet: U of T cyclists pedal toward a more sustainable future

Christopher.Sorensen — Thu, 20 Oct 2022 20:13:42 +0000

Good for you, better for the planet: U of T cyclists pedal toward a more sustainable future

Christopher.Sorensen Thu, 10/20/2022 - 16:13

Cutline

Beth Austerberry, executive director of Bikechain, helps Walid Maraqa, a grad student in biostatistics, perform basic maintenance on his bike (photo by Geoffrey Vendeville)

Mariam Matti

Topic

City & Culture

Climate Positive Energy

Cycling

Cell and Systems Biology

Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering

Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy

One of Ayush Sharma’s first stops upon moving to Canada to attend the ��߲ݴ�ý was Bikechain on the George campus.

An international student from Delhi, Sharma says he had barely been in Toronto a week before visiting the educational bike repair space for students.

“I enjoyed cycling back home in India and I wasn’t sure how to go about doing it in Toronto,” says Sharma, who is completing a major in biodiversity and conservation biology and a minor in geographic information systems. “It’s a big city and it seems a little intimidating – and bikes are expensive.

“I wasn’t really sure where to start.”

Bikechain proved to be a great landing pad. The non-profit organization, which has been around since 2005, not only offers free workshops on how to fix a flat tire, do-it-yourself bike repairs and free bike rentals to students – it’s part of a supportive and growing local cycling community in and around campus.

“People come here on a basic level to fix their bike,” says Beth Austerberry, executive director of Bikechain. “A lot of people also come here because they want to learn.”

Bikechain is a non-profit on the St. George campus that offers free workshops on how to fix a flat tire, do-it-yourself bike repairs and free bike rentals to students (photo by Geoffrey Vendeville)

While Toronto is often criticized for its car-focused infrastructure, there’s no denying the rapidly growing popularity of cycling as a healthy, sustainable mode of transportation – a future that U of T is actively supporting through research, infrastructure and community building efforts.

On the St. George campus alone, there are 36 Bike Share Toronto stations – part of a larger, city-wide network of 680 stations and 7,185 rental bikes (U of T Scarborough also has a Bike Share station near the bus loop on Military Trail). There are also bike lanes that run through the campus along University Avenue, College Street, St. George Street, Wellesley Street, Bloor Street, Hoskin Avenue and Harbord Street, among others.

U of T is also adding hundreds of new above-ground and below-ground spaces to park your bike as part of as part of the Landmark Project, which will transform the historic heart of the St. George campus into a greener, more pedestrian friendly space on top of a massive underground geoexchange system that will significantly reduce campus emissions.

At U of T Scarborough, cycling admittedly requires a bit more planning than it does on the St. George campus – but there are enviable upsides, too.

Hanno Rein, an associate professor in the department of physical and environmental sciences at U of T Scarborough, says he discovered a particularly scenic cycling route to campus that he felt compelled to share via a blog post.

“The nice thing about it is that there are no cars around, so the entire trip is all trails,” he says. “I wanted to encourage others to commute by bike, even if it is in Scarborough.”

Rein, who also teaches in the David A. Dunlap department of astronomy and astrophysics and the department of physics on the St. George campus, says he loves cycling because of the environmental and health factors.

“It’s very enjoyable,” he said. “It’s the nicest commute I can think of.”

However, he’s also quick to point out that infrastructure for cyclists could be better and safer.

Many U of T students, staff, faculty and librarians treat cycling as a year-round activity in Toronto (photo by Daria Perevezentsev)

At U of T Mississauga, BikeShare offers 48-hour bicycle, helmet and lock rentals to U of T Mississauga students free of charge. Located in the Student Centre extension, BikeShare has commuter-style bikes and mountain bikes for rent and is open until the end of October. The program also offers educational repairs similar to Bikechain, providing tools for basic fixups.

Cyclists at U of T Mississauga also have access to the 3.4-kilometre Nature Trail Loop along Credit River and nearby Erindale Park offers a scenic route for cyclists and mountain bikers in the area. Meanwhile, the City of Mississauga is considering the implementing a system similar to Bike Share Toronto to expand transportation options. The system would include stations with bikes, e-bikes and e-scooters.

Southern Ontario’s snowy winters can pose a challenge to bicycle commuters on all three campuses – though many are increasingly treating it as a year-round activity.

Tony Harris

Tony Harris, a professor in the department of cell and systems biology in the Faculty of Arts & Science, says he appreciates being available to avoid traffic on his commute and likes that he’s reducing his environmental footprint by not driving.

His approach to slush and snow?

“I think it’s really important to find good routes that are safe,” he says, adding that it takes him about 30 minutes to bike to the St. George campus from his home. “In the winter, you have to be more cautious about slippery conditions.”

A long-time cycling commuter, Harris adds that he’s perfected the art of cycling during a Toronto winter.

“I wear my normal clothes and then my fleece and I have a yellow cycling jacket on top,” he described. “I wear two pairs of gloves and that really helps my hands. I have an inner glove that’s a running-type glove and then I wear a fleece glove over top. I also wear a toque underneath my helmet. “One other thing is long underwear.

“Having two layers everywhere seems to be the key.”

His advice to students who are new to cycling? Map out your routes.

“Before you head out, find where the dedicated cycling lanes are. If there aren’t dedicated cycling lanes, find one-way side streets that allow you to avoid the busier streets and cars,” he says.

U of T researchers are also playing a key role in helping to map out the university’s transportation future with sustainability – and cycling – in mind.

Marianne Hatzopoulou

Marianne Hatzopoulou, a professor in the department of civil and mineral engineering in the Faculty of Arts & Science, belongs to a research team that’s trying to understand how U of T commuters’ habits and other personal choices contribute to greenhouse gas emissions.

The project, funded by the Climate Positive Energy research initiative, will launch a travel survey in January to collect data from students, staff, faculty, and librarians to understand how they commute to campus every day.

“The second part of the project is to quantify the carbon footprint of commuting and the greenhouse gasses associated with commuting to U of T to measure what our footprint is from transportation,” explained Hatzopoulou.

“The third element is to run some experiments to understand what would make people switch their mode of transportation, especially those who are driving.”

Hatzopoulou’s team wants to understand where there are opportunities to promote more sustainable and active modes of transportation and where the challenges lie.

“There’s a lot of research out there that actually quantifies the benefits of cycling as a mode of transportation,” she says.

As for Sharma, riding his bike around campus not only introduced him to the city, it saved him precious time traveling between classes on the St. George campus – not to mention lowering his carbon footprint.

Most importantly, he says, it has helped him find a community through Bikechain, where he is now a co-president and runs workshops.

“There is a mix of undergraduate, graduate, PhD students as well as faculty and non-U of T students,” he says of the group. “Bike shops in general can be dominated by cis males and it can be an unwelcoming space for other people, but Bikchain has always been an inclusive and open space for everyone.

“That’s one of the main reasons I’ve stuck with the community for so long.”

With $4 million in funding, U of T-based program aims to improve local taxation in lower-income countries

Christopher.Sorensen — Fri, 08 Apr 2022 15:41:37 +0000

With $4 million in funding, U of T-based program aims to improve local taxation in lower-income countries

Christopher.Sorensen Fri, 04/08/2022 - 11:41

Cutline

Building on a pilot project in Freetown, Sierra Leone, the Local Government Revenue Initiative seeks to help local governments in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia collect more local revenue equitably and fairly (photo Abdul Karim Jalloh/Unsplash)

Munk School Staff

Topic

Global Lens

Global

Political Science

An applied research initiative based at the ��߲ݴ�ý’s Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy aims to improve public services and governance in lower-income countries through more effective local taxation.

The Local Government Revenue Initiative (LoGRI) – which has drawn more than $4 million from funders including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the French Ministry of Economics, Finance and Recovery – is developing policy-relevant research and tools to help local governments in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia collect more local revenue, more equitably and fairly, and in ways that promote trust, transparency and accountability.

LoGRI is an initiative of the International Centre for Tax and Development (ICTD), a leading global policy research network dedicated to improving the quality of tax policy and administration in lower-income countries. The ICTD is based at the Institute of Development Studies in Brighton, U.K., with a large hub at U of T.

“Our goal is to improve people’s lives by helping local governments raise the revenue they need to provide better local public services and strengthen local governance,” said Wilson Prichard, an associate professor at the Munk School and the department of political science in the Faculty of Arts & Science, and chief executive officer of the ICTD. “We are especially focused on supporting stronger property taxes, which can provide the stable source of income cities need to provide key services like sanitation, critical small-scale infrastructure and environmental services. Yet in practice property taxes are the least effectively collected major tax in lower-income countries due to significant barriers such as incomplete property tax rolls, inconsistent ways of valuing properties and mistrust and low compliance among taxpayers.”

LoGRI works at the intersection of research and practice to overcome both technical and political challenges to reform and support the construction of more effective systems of local revenue raising. This includes building research-informed tools and resources to support reforms and partnering with local governments and international development agencies on property tax reform programs. It extends and expands the previous work of the African Property Tax Initiative (APTI), which counts among its achievements a highly successful pilot project in Freetown, Sierra Leone. That project tested a fairer, simpler and more consistent way of valuing properties in lower-capacity environments, led the design of a new IT system for property tax administration, supported the introduction of automated payments at banks and introduced and led a process of participatory budgeting for allocating a share of property tax revenues.

LoGRI has attracted support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the French Ministry of Economics, Finance and Recovery and German Development Cooperation implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. Several international development agencies have already contracted LoGRI to provide property tax reform expertise for their country programs and LoGRI is in discussions with additional donors to further expand the initiative.

“One of the exciting things about LoGRI is that it bridges the gap between traditional academic research, policy and practice,” said Titilola Akindeinde, executive director of LoGRI. “Our research is informing more effective approaches to property tax administration, while partnering with local governments across multiple countries to design and pilot reform programs that provide unique insights and experience that we can incorporate into our research. We believe this mutually reinforcing approach will enable us to develop robust tools and resources that will demonstrably improve property tax systems and quality of life in lower-income countries.”

Key to LoGRI’s success is engaging its project teams’ local tax experts and researchers to ensure its findings reflect a deep understanding of the complex legal, political and social contexts in the countries where it works. LoGRI is focusing initially on both francophone and anglophone countries in sub-Saharan Africa, with future plans to engage in south Asia. Projects are already planned in Zambia, Cameroon, Sierra Leone and Malawi, with more expected to be developed as LoGRI expands its networks.

“LoGRI is part of the Munk School’s strategy to shape global conversations about major challenges of the future of democratic and democratizing societies,” said Peter Loewen, director of the Munk School and a professor at both the Munk School and the department of political science in the Faculty of Arts & Science. “As many countries grapple with uneven economic growth, rapid increases in population, poverty and inequality, we see a tremendous opportunity to learn from and collaborate with partners in these regions to address these pressing issues through better governance. We also look forward to deepening our engagement and networks in Africa.”

How can lizards adapt to a changing climate?

lanthierj — Fri, 22 Oct 2021 21:02:00 +0000

How can lizards adapt to a changing climate?

lanthierj Fri, 10/22/2021 - 17:02

Cutline

A common wall lizard at a sun bath (Photo by Wolfgang Hasselmann/Unsplash)

Topic

School of the Environment

Trinity College

Undergraduate Students

Victoria College

Researchers at the ��߲ݴ�ý and Ohio Wesleyan University are collaborating in a quest to find out how lizards can adapt to the world’s changing climate.

Sophie Berkowitz and Simone Collier, undergraduate students at Trinity College and Victoria College in the Faculty of Arts & Science, are using computational tools to analyze lizard movement and body temperature under the supervision of Vianey Leos Barajas, an assistant professor in the department of statistical sciences and the School of the Environment.

They’re working closely with ecologists at Wesleyan, Assistant Professor Eric Gangloff and undergraduate students Ciara Pettit and Sierra Spears, who cared for the lizards and provided the primary data of lizard movement and temperature.

The team’s research focuses on analyzing movements of lizards when placed in an arena with a “thermal gradient,” meaning an observation area where one end is warmer than the other. The sand-filled arena is one metre long and has a lamp as a heat source. Using open-source object-recognition software, statistical and environmental science student Berkowitz extracted movement data from hours of lizard footage to prepare a dataset for statistical analysis.

A key challenge was tracking the movement of the lizard when it crawled into the sand or attempted to crawl up the side of the observation arena, out of view of the camera, Berkowitz says.

“They try to bury themselves in the sand and get caught. Then the ecologists have to fish them out,” Berkowitz says. “Lizards have minds of their own, and our research definitely has to accommodate for that.”

With the dataset of lizard movements, body temperature and environmental temperature, mathematics and environmental science student Collier used hidden Markov models to gain insight into the lizards' movements and behaviour.

“What we're trying to do with these models is to determine their thermoregulation behaviours,” Collier says. “We want to find patterns in the lizards’ movement based on how they move between these different temperature zones.”

Lizards are ectothermic, which means they rely on the temperature of their environment to regulate their body temperature. One would expect, then, rising temperatures to affect a lizard’s behaviour. These changes in behaviour in turn hold important clues about how lizard species might be affected by climate change.

"It's really important for us as scientists to get a better understanding of how their thermoregulation works, and how it is affected by their environment,” says Berkowitz. “The hidden Markov models work on the premise that the observations are the product of an underlying behavioural process.

“If we can understand things that we can't readily observe, we can help understand the future of our lizard species in terms of climate change."

The research partnership highlights the intersection of statistics and ecology: Gangloff’s team of ecologists provided the primary data to the statistical and environmental sciences team at U of T for further analysis.

“We get to do a lot of fun projects and work with a lot of diverse students that are quite capable. They are using their statistical skillset to expand the notion of what statistical sciences mean in practice,” says Barajas.

The team is continuing their modelling and plans to publish their results, along with their modelling tools.

In addition to contributing to the field, the two U of T students say they enjoyed gaining hands-on research experience under the supervision of a professor while building important skills. Berkowitz and Collier encourage students to pursue research projects if they are interested in the topics.

“If you meet a professor that's researching something you're interested in, just reach out and see what comes of it. You never know,” says Collier.

In fields ranging from math to medicine, U of T researchers awarded 27 Canada Research Chairs

Christopher.Sorensen — Tue, 15 Jun 2021 13:29:50 +0000

In fields ranging from math to medicine, U of T researchers awarded 27 Canada Research Chairs

Christopher.Sorensen Tue, 06/15/2021 - 09:29

Cutline

Brenda Andrews, a pioneer of functional genomics, is one of 27 U of T researchers to be awarded a new or renewed Canada Research Chair (photo by Michael Schertzberg)

Jovana Drinjakovic

Topic

Sunnybrook Health Sciences

Temerty Faculty of Medicine

Donnelly Centre for Cellular & Biomolecular Research

Canada Research Chairs

Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

Chemistry

Computer Science

Dalla Lana School of Public Health

Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering

Hospital for Sick Children

Faculty of Law

Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy

Mathematics

Mount Sinai Hospital

Ontario Institute for Studies in Education

Philosophy

Psychology

University Health Network

St. Michael's Hospital

U of T Mississauga

In Brenda Andrews’s lab at the ��߲ݴ�ý, researchers are working toward understanding why cells with the same errors in their genetic codes don’t always develop the same defects.

Known as incomplete penetrance, the phenomenon is familiar to those with a history of genetic disorders, since people with the same disease-causing gene variant can experience different disease symptoms and severity.

“We are beginning to appreciate that any kind of genetic perturbation can have a highly variable penetrance and there’s a large cell-to-cell variability,” says Andrews, a University Professor of molecular genetics in the Donnelly Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research and the Temerty Faculty of Medicine.

“That has implications for understanding the mechanisms of disease, and for thinking about potential treatments.”

Andrews is one of 27 researchers at U of T awarded new or renewed Canada Research Chairs today. The prestigious federal appointment aims to recruit and retain top researchers and scholars in the country.

At the same time, the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) – in collaboration with the CRC program – announced support for two U of T researchers through its John R. Evans Leaders Fund (JELF), which helps universities pay for laboratories and equipment. They are Kelsie Thu of the department of laboratory medicine and pathobiology in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael’s Hospital, and Daniel Schramek of the department of molecular genetics in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Sinai Health System.

Researchers at U of T were also awarded more than $37 million in funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada’s Discovery Grants program and more than $20 million in funding from Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council programs.

“I want to personally congratulate all of the researchers at the ��߲ݴ�ý who were either named new Canada Research Chairs or had their existing chairs renewed – as well as those who received funding through other programs,” says Professor Leah Cowen, U of T’s associate vice-president, research.

“Your inspired work in critical fields, ranging from mathematics and medicine to engineering and human development, is expanding knowledge and developing innovative new ideas that will ultimately benefit Canadians and people around the world.”

Andrews, for one, is a pioneer of functional genomics and has dedicated her career to studying cells as dynamic systems composed of a multitude of components whose roles need to be co-ordinated to sustain health. Using Baker’s yeast cells as a model, her lab has shown how thousands of genes engage in interactions with each other, and that it’s these webs of interactions that hold the clues to health and disease.

Her tier one chair in systems genetics and cell biology includes seven years of funding (renewable once). It is the latest among many honours recognizing her leadership in the field. Andrews is a Companion to the Order of Canada, the highest national honor which can be held by a civilian. She is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and a foreign member of the American National Academy of Sciences, among other honours and appointments.

As well as running her lab, Andrews also served as inaugural director of the Donnelly Centre through three successive five-year terms. During that time, the centre became globally renowned for its multidisciplinary research, education and innovation in biomedical science.

Now, Andrews’s interdisciplinary team are working to find out how cell-to-cell variability arises and may contribute to severity of a genetic disorder. Co-supervised by Andrews and her long-term collaborator Charles Boone, a professor of molecular genetics and interim director of the Donnelly Centre, they are collecting measurements from millions of individual cells in a mixed population.

“By looking at all kinds of different mutant scenarios and by measuring how that affects cellular traits at the single cell level, we can begin to [decipher] the mechanisms behind disease penetrance,” Andrews says.

The entire process – from cell culture to image acquisition and data analysis – is automated and took about a decade to develop. It includes some of the first machine-learning tools for computer vision applications in cellular biology.

“This is an exciting time for research thanks to the range of new technologies and endless possibilities they present,” Andrews says. “When you have people collaborating across scientific fields, the potential to do important work is just extraordinary.”

Here are the new and renewed Canada Research Chairs at U of T:

New Canada Research Chairs

Brenda Andrews of the Donnelly Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research, tier one in systems genetics and cell biology
Isabelle Boileau of the department of psychiatry in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, tier two in endocannabinoid imaging in mental illness
Grant Brown of the department of biochemistry in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine, tier one in genome integrity
Yaron Finkelstein of the department of paediatrics in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and the Hospital for Sick Children, tier one in pediatric drug safety and efficacy
Spencer Freeman of the department of biochemistry in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and SickKids Research Institute, the Hospital for Sick Children, tier two in immune surveillance
Stephen Girardin of the department of laboratory medicine and pathobiology in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine, tier one in intestinal inflammation
Linda Hiraki of the department of paediatrics in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and SickKids Research Institute, the Hospital for Sick Children, tier two in genetics of rare systemic inflammatory diseases
Michael Laflamme of the department of laboratory medicine and pathobiology in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and McEwen Stem Cell Institute, University Health Network, tier one in cardiovascular regenerative medicine
Robert McCann of the department of mathematics in the Faculty of Arts & Science, tier one in mathematics, economics and physics
Padmaja Subbarao of the department of paediatrics in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and the Hospital for Sick Children, tier one in pediatric asthma and lung health
Walter Swardfager of the department of pharmacology and toxicology in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and Sunnybrook Research Institute, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, tier two in clinical pharmacology of cognitive neurovascular disorders
Kelsie Thu of the department of laboratory medicine and pathobiology in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael’s Hospital, tier two in lung cancer therapy response

Renewed Canada Research Chairs

Ya-Huei (Cathy) Chin of the department of chemical engineering and applied chemistry in the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering, tier two in advanced catalysis for sustainable chemistry
Yasmin Dawood of the Faculty of Law, tier two in democracy, constitutionalism and electoral law
Abby Goldstein of the department of applied psychology and human development in the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, tier two in the psychology of emerging adulthood
Prabhat Jha of the division of epidemiology in the Dalla Lana School of Public Health and Centre for Global Health Research, St. Michael’s Hospital, tier one in global health
Gillian King of the department of occupational science and therapy in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and Bloorview Research Institute, Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital, tier one in optimal care for children with disabilities
Loren Martin of the department of psychology at U of T Mississauga, tier two in translational pain research
Aleksandar Nikolov of the department of computer science in the Faculty of Arts & Science, tier two in algorithms and private data analysis
Elizabeth Page-Gould of the department of psychology in the Faculty of Arts & Science, tier two in social psychophysiology
Keith Pardee of the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, tier two in synthetic biology and human health
Elodie Passeport of the department of civil and mineral engineering in the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering, tier two in environmental engineering and stable isotopes
Tarek Rajji of the department of psychiatry in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, tier two in neurostimulation in cognitive disorders
John Ratcliffe of the department of biology at U of T Mississauga, tier two in neuroethology
Sophie Rousseaux of the department of chemistry in the Faculty of Arts & Science, tier two in organic chemistry
Daniel Schramek of the department of molecular genetics in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Sinai Health System, tier two in functional cancer genomics
Nicholas Stang of the department of philosophy in the Faculty of Arts & Science, tier two in metaphysics and its history

Spooky subjects: U of T 'Monsters' course explores our fascination with the frightful

Christopher.Sorensen — Fri, 30 Oct 2020 14:33:54 +0000

Spooky subjects: U of T 'Monsters' course explores our fascination with the frightful

Christopher.Sorensen Fri, 10/30/2020 - 10:33

Cutline

Mythological monsters like Medusa are among the many frightening subjects studied by students in Professor Erik Gunderson's first-year foundations seminar (photo by Araldo De Luca/Corbis via Getty Images)

Sean McNeely

Topic

Classics