Faculty of Arts &amp; Science

Department of Economics

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Florian Dendorfer (photo by Adriano Macedo)

Florian Dendorfer, an assistant professor, teaching stream in the department of economics in the Faculty of Arts & Science, has won the Best PhD Thesis in Economics Prize from the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland.

Dendorfer's thesis featured theoretical and empirical work in industrial organization, exploring topics that included how quickly Airbnb guests learn about the qualities of new listings through reviews.

“Pursuing a PhD is a struggle: you start out small and grapple with doubts about whether your work is worthwhile," said Dendorfer, who currently teaches ECO204 (Microeconomic Theory and Applications) and ECO380 (Markets, Competition and Strategy) at U of T. "Many attempts amount to nothing, and a lot of ideas end up in the trash. It’s incredibly rewarding to see all that work come to fruition and to have my thesis recognized by my alma mater with this prize."

“It’s always exciting when junior faculty members distinguish themselves and their research early on in their careers,” said Professor Ettore Damiano, chair of the department of economics. “All of us appreciate confirmation that we attract the world’s best and brightest to the ��߲ݴ�ý and are very proud to have Florian here at the department.”

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Andrei Yudin recognized by American Chemical Society

rahul.kalvapalle — Wed, 16 Oct 2024 14:50:09 +0000

Andrei Yudin recognized by American Chemical Society

rahul.kalvapalle Wed, 10/16/2024 - 10:50

Department of Chemistry

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Andrei Yudin (supplied image)

Andrei Yudin, a professor in the department of chemistry in the Faculty of Arts & Science, has been recognized with a 2025 Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award by the American Chemical Society (ACS).

The annual award recognizes outstanding achievements in the field of organic chemistry that have become apparent during the preceding half-decade.

“Since 2006, my research group has been involved in the study of amphoteric molecules. They show both electrophilic and nucleophilic reactivity,” said Yudin. "This chemistry has allowed us to prepare a broad range of structures with useful properties. It is our work in this area that is being recognized.”

Yudin, who will accept the award and deliver a lecture about his work at the 2025 ACS National Meeting in Washington, D.C. next summer, said he finds inspiration in the elegance of chemical structures and the diverse ways in which they react with one another. “I like the inherent logic of organic chemistry," he said.

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Geoffrey Hinton wins 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics

rahul.kalvapalle — Tue, 08 Oct 2024 20:54:37 +0000

Geoffrey Hinton wins 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics

rahul.kalvapalle Tue, 10/08/2024 - 16:54

Department of Computer Science

Artificial Intelligence

Vector Institute

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(photo by Lisa Lightbourn)

Geoffrey Hinton, a University Professor Emeritus of computer science at the ��߲ݴ�ý, has been awarded the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics.

Awarded since 1901, the Nobel Prize in Physics is one of five prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel and honours individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the field.

Hinton, widely regarded as the “godfather of AI,” shared the prize with John J. Hopfield of Princeton University for foundational discoveries and inventions that enable machine learning with artificial neural networks.

Hinton was recognized for his use of the Hopfield network – a neural network invented by his co-laureate – as the foundation for a new network called the Boltzmann machine that can learn to recognize elements within a given type of data.

“On behalf of the ��߲ݴ�ý, I am absolutely delighted to congratulate University Professor Emeritus Geoffrey Hinton on receiving the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics,” said U of T President Meric Gertler. “The U of T community is immensely proud of his historic accomplishment.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau lauded Hinton for being both “a stalwart in the field” of AI and an “outspoken advocate” for its responsible use. “Canada is at the forefront of AI technology thanks to trailblazers like Dr. Hinton,” Trudeau said in a statement. “His curiosity for discovery and contributions to innovation will inspire generations to come. On behalf of all Canadians, I congratulate him on his remarkable achievement.”

Hinton, who joined U of T as a professor of computer science in 1987, said he was "flabbergasted" at the accolade. “I had no expectations of this,” said Hinton, who is also chief scientific adviser at the Vector Institute, which he co-founded. “I am extremely surprised and I'm honoured to be included.”

Hinton's Nobel Prize is the latest in a long list of honours which includes the Association for Computing Machinery’s A.M. Turing Award in 2019 – widely considered “the Nobel Prize of computing” – alongside collaborators Yann LeCun and Yoshua Bengio, election to the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, a Royal Medal from the Royal Society, Companion of the Order of Canada and Fellow of the Royal Societies of Canada and London.

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15 doctoral students receive Connaught PhDs for Public Impact fellowships

rahul.kalvapalle — Fri, 04 Oct 2024 17:24:19 +0000

15 doctoral students receive Connaught PhDs for Public Impact fellowships

rahul.kalvapalle Fri, 10/04/2024 - 13:24

Students

Dalla Lana School of Public Health

Connaught Fund

Department of Political Science

Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering

Institute of Biomedical Engineering

Faculty of Dentistry

Faculty of Information

IHPME

OISE

School of Graduate Studies

Temerty Faculty of Medicine

U of T Mississauga

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Fifteen doctoral students at the ��߲ݴ�ý have received Connaught PhDs for Public Impact Fellowships for 2024-25.

The annual fellowships are designed to offer doctoral students the opportunity to explore the world of public scholarship. Fellows focus on engaging the public through their scholarly work – this can take a range of forms, from describing their work in a public forum to partnering with a school, community organization or cultural institution in an ongoing two-way exchange of knowledge and practices.

"The School of Graduate Studies is proud to support the creative work being done by our Connaught PhDs for Public Impact fellows as they find novel ways to engage the public with the incredible research being done at U of T," said Vina Goghari, vice-dean, research and program innovation at the School of Graduate Studies. "We are grateful for the generous support from the Connaught Fund in enabling this type of innovative scholarship, and we congratulate this new cohort of fellows as they begin work on their projects."

The 2024-25 Connaught PhDs for Public Impact Fellows are:

Hanne Bartels, Institute of Medical Science, Temerty Faculty of Medicine
Rhonda Boateng, Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation (IHPME), Dalla Lana School of Public Health
Mohammadamir (Amir) Moghaddam, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering
Mathew Iantorno, Faculty of Information
Nicolas Ivanov, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering
Yojana Miraya Oscco, department of political science, Faculty of Arts & Science
Kashoro Nyenyezi, department of social justice education, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE)
Adrian Petterson, Faculty of Information
Paul Pritchard, department of sociology, Faculty of Arts & Science
Jenna Quelch, department of political science, Faculty of Arts & Science
Shivam Sharma, Faculty of Dentistry
Mercedes Sobers, Dalla Lana School of Public Health
Rhonda Solomon, department of geography, geomatics, and the environment, U of T Mississauga
Lily Takeuchi, department of biomedical engineering, Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering
Sarah Urquhart, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE)

Gordon Anderson honoured by International Association for Research in Income and Wealth

rahul.kalvapalle — Thu, 26 Sep 2024 19:01:41 +0000

Gordon Anderson honoured by International Association for Research in Income and Wealth

rahul.kalvapalle Thu, 09/26/2024 - 15:01

Department of Economics

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Gordon Anderson (supplied image)

Gordon Anderson, a professor emeritus in the department of economics in the Faculty of Arts & Science, has received the Kendrick Prize from the International Association for Research in Income and Wealth (IARIW).

The annual award recognizes a paper published in The Review of Income and Wealth during the previous calendar year.

Anderson was recognized for his paper, "Has Canada’s 21st Century Grand Gender Convergence Stalled? Male and Female Income and Human Resource Stock Distributions Viewed Through an Equal Opportunity Lens," which was published in December 2023.

“The prize means a great deal to me because gender differences are a particular focus of my recent and ongoing research on economic well-being, health and human resources,” said Anderson, who retired in 2018 after spending three decades teaching at both the St. George campus and U of T Mississauga.

“Gordon Anderson is a remarkable example to young economists,” said Professor Ettore Damiano, chair of the department of economics. "He stays current and engaged with his field and continues to publish meaningful work while enjoying his children and grandchildren.

"I am very pleased to see the IARIW recognize his work and award him this honour.”

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34 U of T scholars receive research infrastructure support from CFI's John R. Evans Leaders Fund

rahul.kalvapalle — Tue, 24 Sep 2024 14:00:06 +0000

34 U of T scholars receive research infrastructure support from CFI's John R. Evans Leaders Fund

rahul.kalvapalle Tue, 09/24/2024 - 10:00

Dalla Lana School of Public Health

Dunlap Institute for Astronomy & Astrophysics

Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering

Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education

Faculty of Dentistry

Temerty Faculty of Medicine

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Thirty-four scholars from the ��߲ݴ�ý will receive research infrastructure funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) through its John R. Evans Leaders Fund.

The fund aims to support universities’ research infrastructure and help them compete in recruiting and retaining exceptional researchers. U of T projects will receive a total of $10.6 million in the latest round of funding, announced Sept. 13, 2024.

“From exploring the links between neural activity and stress to designing next-generation spectrographs to enhance our understanding of celestial phenomena, these research projects are poised to expand knowledge in an array of crucial fields,” said Leah Cowen, U of T’s vice-president, research and innovation, and strategic initiatives.

“I would like to congratulate all the recipients of this funding support, and express U of T’s gratitude to the Canada Foundation for Innovation for its continued backing of critical research infrastructure.”

The recipients of John R. Evans Leaders Fund support at U of T are:

Myrtede Alfred in the department of mechanical and industrial engineering at the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering – HFE visual design studio
Artem Babaian in the department of molecular genetics at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine – The Open Virome: Infrastructure for planetary-scale virus surveillance
Celina Baines in the department of ecology and evolutionary biology at the Faculty of Arts & Science – Impacts of environmental change on organismal movement
Jaideep Bains at the University Health Network and the department of physiology at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine – Anticipating and buffering stress: from synapse to behaviour
Deryk Beal at Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital and the department of speech-language pathology at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine – Advancing neuromodulation for pediatric rehabilitation
Robert Bentley at the Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education – Cardiovascular exercise physiology laboratory: Individual differences in oxygen delivery during physical activity
Laurent Bozec at the Faculty of Dentistry – 21st-century challenge for dentistry: Breaking the cycle of irreversible dental tissue loss
Jennifer Campos in the department of psychology at the Faculty of Arts & Science – Innovative strategies and simulation technologies for sensory-cognitive health of the aging population
Timothy Corson at the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy – New targets and therapies for neovascular eye diseases
Niv Dayan in the department of computer science at the Faculty of Arts & Science – Universal filters for storage engines
Tilak Dutta in the department of mechanical and industrial engineering at the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering – Advancing fall prevention research
Micah Freedman in the department of ecology and evolutionary biology at the Faculty of Arts & Science – Effects of climate change, migratory plasticity, and habitat modification on monarch butterfly migration
Liisa Galea in the Institute of Medical Science at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine – Sex and sex-specific factors influencing brain health across the lifespan
Michael Hardisty at the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and the department of surgery at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine – Enabling precision diagnostics/image-guided therapy: Advanced computational infrastructure for musculoskeletal health
Eno Hysi at Unity Health Toronto and the department of medical biophysics at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine – Structural and Functional Assessments of Diabetic Skin Microvasculature using Photoacoustic Imaging
David Kirsch at the University Health Network and the department of medical biophysics at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine – Dissecting mechanisms of cancer development using genetically engineered mouse models
Caitlin Maikawa in the Institute of Biomedical Engineering at the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering – Biointerfacing materials for drug delivery lab
Kuldeep Meel in the department of computer science at the Faculty of Arts & Science – Scalable discrete integration engines
Juan Mena-Parra in the David A. Dunlap Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the Faculty of Arts & Science – An advanced laboratory to enable novel radio telescopes for cosmology and time-domain astrophysics
Emily Moore in the Institute for Studies in Transdisciplinary Engineering Education and Practice at the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering – A collaboratorium to improve problem framing in engineering design
Seyed Moosavi in the department of chemical engineering and applied chemistry at the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering – Machine learning for nanoporous materials design
Trevor Moraes in the department of biochemistry at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine – Upgrade Glacios-2 200 keV cryo-electron microscope
Long Nguyen at the University Health Network and the department of medical biophysics at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine – Molecular regulation of clonal propagation and dissemination in human breast cancer
Kacey Prentice in the department of physiology at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine – Mechanisms of beta cell dysfunction in diabetes
Chenxi Qian in the department of medical biophysics at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine – Next-generation vibrational imaging platform for biomedical research and applications
Laurie Rousseau-Nepton in the Dunlap Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics at the Faculty of Arts & Science – Development of a high-resolution imaging spectrograph
Arneet Saltzman in the department of cell and systems biology at the Faculty of Arts and Science – Heterochromatin regulation in development and inheritance
Wilder Scott at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and the department of laboratory medicine and pathobiology at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine – Mechanisms regulating the stem cell niche in tissue regeneration and aging at single cell and spatial resolution
Mikko Taipale in the Donnelly Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine – Interrogating cellular pathways with pathogenic effectors
Jiannis Taxidis at the Hospital for Sick Children and the department of physiology at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine – Advanced imaging and manipulation of hippocampal activity patterns linking memories across time
Tatsuya Tsukahara at Mount Sinai Hospital and the department of molecular genetics at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine – Molecular logic and functions of transcriptional adaptation
Anatole von Lilienfeld in the department of materials science and engineering at the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering – Large memory compute nodes for generation of quantum machine learning data
Andy Kin On Wong at the University Health Network and the Dalla Lana School of Public Health – Sarcopenia and musculoskeletal interactions (SaMI) collaborative hub
Olena Zhulyn at the Hospital for Sick Children in the department of molecular genetics at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine – Targeting translation for tissue regeneration and repair

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3 U of T scholars named finalists for 2024 SSHRC Impact Awards

rahul.kalvapalle — Thu, 12 Sep 2024 16:01:54 +0000

3 U of T scholars named finalists for 2024 SSHRC Impact Awards

rahul.kalvapalle Thu, 09/12/2024 - 12:01

Students

Department of Political Science

Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work

Munk School of Global Affairs

OISE

SSHRC

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(L-R) Lynette Ong, Peter Newman and Louis Busch (supplied images)

Two faculty members and a doctoral candidate at the ��߲ݴ�ý have been shortlisted for the 2024 Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Impact Awards.

The annual awards recognize achievements by outstanding scholars and students in research, research training, knowledge mobilization and outreach activities funded by SSHRC, and are considered Canada's highest honours in social sciences and humanities research.

The finalists for the 2024 SSHRC Impact Awards from U of T are:

Professor Lynette Ong (department of political science, Faculty of Arts & Science and Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy) – Insight Award
Professor Peter Newman (Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work) – Partnership Award
Louis Busch (PhD candidate, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education) – Talent Award

The winners in each of the award categories will be announced on Nov. 25, 2024.

Renée Hložek awarded Rutherford Memorial Medal by Royal Society of Canada

rahul.kalvapalle — Tue, 10 Sep 2024 18:21:44 +0000

Renée Hložek awarded Rutherford Memorial Medal by Royal Society of Canada

rahul.kalvapalle Tue, 09/10/2024 - 14:21

David A. Dunlap Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics

Dunlap Institute for Astronomy & Astrophysics

Rutherford Memorial Medal

Royal Society of Canada

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Renée Hložek (photo by Portmanteau Media Inc

Renée Hložek, an associate professor at the Dunlap Institute for Astronomy & Astrophysics and the David A. Dunlap Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics at the Faculty of Arts & Science, has been awarded the Royal Society of Canada's Rutherford Memorial Medal.

The annual award recognizes researchers in the early stages of their careers in chemistry or physics. It is presented in memory of Ernest Rutherford, a scientist and a leader in nuclear research who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1908.

Hložek's research involves advancing our understanding of the universe’s structure, origin and evolution. She is a member of the recently decommissioned Atacama Cosmology Telescope collaboration, as well as the active Simons Observatory in northern Chile, where she studies the Cosmic Microwave Background – light from the universe when it was approximately 400,000 years old. She is also investigating dark matter and dark energy through her work with the Vera C. Rubin Observatory’s Large Synoptic Survey Telescope dark energy science collaboration.

“[The medal] was something that I wanted, but not something that I ever really expected to get because there are so many great people in Canada, so I’m kind of shocked – but pleased,” says Hložek.

“I work in big teams, so my work represents a ton of people working together. I wouldn't be here without the support of all the people in my collaborations building instruments and figuring out how to do analysis and all of that good stuff.”

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Jacob Tsimerman receives John L. Synge Award from the Royal Society of Canada

rahul.kalvapalle — Tue, 10 Sep 2024 17:55:08 +0000

Jacob Tsimerman receives John L. Synge Award from the Royal Society of Canada

rahul.kalvapalle Tue, 09/10/2024 - 13:55

Department of Mathematics

Royal Society of Canada

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Jacob Tsimerman (photo by Richard Poissant)

Jacob Tsimerman, an associate professor in the Faculty of Arts & Science’s department of mathematics, has received the prestigious John L. Synge Award from the Royal Society of Canada.

The annual award recognizes outstanding research in the mathematical sciences. It is awarded in honour of the late John Lighton Synge, former head of U of T's department of applied mathematics and one of the first mathematicians working in Canada to receive international recognition for his research.

Tsimerman’s research focuses primarily on analytic number theory and arithmetic geometry. He studies whole number solutions to certain types of polynomial equations. One of his most notable research accomplishments is his contribution to a proof for a longstanding mathematical hypothesis called the André-Oort conjecture.

“I am truly honoured to accept the Synge Award,” says Tsimerman. “Mathematics is a collective endeavour and I am thrilled to share this honour with a wonderful community of friends, colleagues and students. I am grateful to be given the opportunity to delve even deeper into the challenges and beauty that mathematics offers.”

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18 faculty members elected Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada

rahul.kalvapalle — Mon, 09 Sep 2024 16:58:49 +0000

18 faculty members elected Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada

rahul.kalvapalle Mon, 09/09/2024 - 12:58

Centre for Criminology and Sociolegal Studies

Department for the Study of Religion

Department of Biochemistry

Department of Computer Science

Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

Department of Germanic Languages & Literatures

Department of Medicine

Department of Physics