Althea Blackburn-Evans

The rankings, released October 9 by the National Taiwan University (NTU), are based on indicators representing three different criteria of scientific performance: research productivity, research impact and research excellence.

The University of Toronto and University of Oxford were the only non-American institutions to place in the top 10 (with Oxford tied for eighth spot with University of California – Berkeley and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology). It’s the first time U of T has placed in the top five; last year’s NTU rankings placed U of T eighth in the world.

The University also took top spot in Canada in five of the six fields: clinical medicine, engineering, life sciences, natural sciences and social sciences.

“This is an extraordinary achievement on the part of our faculty, staff and students,” said Professor Meric Gertler, president of the University of Toronto. “Ranking fourth in the world on the strength of our research excellence is an impressive accomplishment. But on top of this, we are the world’s top ranked public university, with 83,000 students on our three campuses, and with a strong commitment to student financial aid. We are arguably the world’s most accessible research powerhouse.”

Since 2007, U of T has consistently ranked between fourth and 14th in the world and first in Canada in the NTU rankings. Two other Canadian universities ranked among NTU’s top 50 this year: UBC (27th) and McGill (33rd).

“All rankings must be understood in their methodological context,” President Gertler emphasized. “But the University of Toronto’s consistency across major rankings tells a compelling story.”

This is the fourth consecutive major global rankings survey in 2014 to name U of T first in Canada and among the world’s best. Earlier this fall U of T ranked 20th in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings, 20th in the QS World Rankings and, in August, was the highest-ranked Canadian university in the Shanghai Jiao Tong’s Academic Ranking of World Universities.

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Fostering a public passion for STEM

sgupta — Thu, 18 Sep 2014 10:16:49 +0000

Fostering a public passion for STEM sgupta Thu, 09/18/2014 - 06:16

Liz Do

Althea Blackburn-Evans with files from Liz Do

Althea Blackburn-Evans

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Althea Blackburn-Evans with files from Liz Do

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Molly Shoichet to lead U of T’s science and engineering engagement activities

Molly Shoichet, the world-renowned expert in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, is the University of Toronto President Meric Gertler’s new senior advisor on science and engineering engagement.

Shoichet, who says she has been fascinated by science since she was six years old, hopes to motivate the next generation to pursue science, technology, engineering and math.

“It is the ‘geeks’ who change the world,” said Shoichet, about the message she wants to tell young people. “Embrace the geek in you, make a difference, and tell people about it.”

In her new role, Shoichet will be collaborating with U of T colleagues to communicate the excitement of their discoveries with the public. U of T’s science engagement initiatives include building partnerships for delivering science outreach programs; highlighting ongoing U of T lectures and public events; and coordinating a wide range of professional development and leadership opportunities, including an annual Science Leadership program for faculty members offered in April 2015, and a science journalism course for graduate students taught by Globe and Mail science writer Ivan Semeniuk.

“The goal is to bring people who are curious and engaged in the community into our world, and raise their awareness of the fantastic work being done at the University of Toronto – and across Canada,” said Shoichet.

Through her new role, Shoichet will support the upcoming Science Literacy Week at U of T, which takes place September 22-28. Spearheaded by alumnus Jesse Hildebrand and U of T Libraries – and in collaboration with the Toronto Public Library and York University – Science Literacy Week is a city-wide event that offers public access to documentary screenings, book displays and lectures, among other offerings, to showcase the field of science in its many forms.

“Science Literacy Week is a wonderful way to engage the Toronto public and U of T community in the wonders of science,” said Shoichet.

For more details on Science Literacy Week, visit: http://guides.library.utoronto.ca/scienceliteracy.

Internationally regarded for her lab’s ground-breaking research, Shoichet is a member of the Order of Ontario and holds the distinction as the only person to be a Fellow of Canada’s three national academies: the Royal Society of Canada, the Canadian Academy of Engineering and the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences.

A University Professor – U of T’s most distinguished rank – Shoichet holds a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Tissue Engineering and is a professor of chemical engineering and applied chemistry, chemistry and biomaterials and biomedical engineering. Her work focuses on polymers for drug delivery and regeneration – materials that promote healing in the body.

Shoichet currently leads a multidisciplinary team of researchers working on a range of projects, from approaches to brain and spinal cord regeneration to new drug delivery methods for treating cancer. She has published more than 400 papers, patents and abstracts and founded two spin-off companies from her research.

“I am delighted and grateful that Professor Shoichet has taken on this new responsibility,” said President Gertler. “She brings to the position immense talent and accomplishment, not only as a world-renowned scientist and innovator, but also as a teacher, mentor, and communicator. She is also a leading public-policy advisor on science, technology, and innovation.

"Science literacy is one of the core competencies we need, to advance our shared prosperity and to help build a happier, better world. Molly Shoichet is a powerful advocate of this crucial cause.”

For more information about U of T’s science engagement initiatives, visit: www.scienceengagement.utoronto.ca

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International Lego robot competition at U of T

sgupta — Wed, 11 Jun 2014 10:54:13 +0000

International Lego robot competition at U of T sgupta Wed, 06/11/2014 - 06:54

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(photos by Jim Ellis)

Althea Blackburn-Evans

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More than 500 competitors from around the world

Sarah Casson wasn’t yet in middle school when she discovered a love of robots. Her interest was sparked in 2010 when her mother and other parents in Long Island, New York started up a Saturday morning robotics class at the 10-year-old’s public school.

Four years and a regional FIRST Lego League (FLL) prize later, Casson and her team traveled to the University of Toronto to test their skills and ingenuity at Canada’s first-ever FLL International Open from June 4 to 7.

The competition – hosted by U of T and FIRST Robotics Canada – brought together 1,200 competitors, coaches and family members from around the world. It was the exciting finale of FLL’s 2013-14 season, themed Nature’s Fury, with 72 teams of participants ranging in age from 9 to 16 working to master natural disasters with their Lego robots.

Participants from as far away as India, Singapore and Brazil were tasked with three challenges. First, they shared innovative research projects for predicting, preventing or protecting people from disastrous storms, quakes and tidal waves. Then competitors tested their robots' mettle as they completed missions, such as crossing a flooded waterway to deliver emergency supplies. The third component, called “core values”, had participants completing a teamwork challenge in just five minutes, testing their ability to work collaboratively on the fly.

FIRST, which stands for “inspiration and recognition of science and technology”, is a non-profit organization that aims to inspire students to pursue careers in STEM: science, technology, engineering and math. That mission made the international open a perfect fit for the University of Toronto.

“We were excited to welcome students from all over the world to engage with the University of Toronto and the city itself, and to expose them to the amazing things our own students are doing,” said Micah Stickel, chair of first year in the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering.

Engineering students from the Faculty’s outreach office wowed FLL participants with a spin in a solar car and hands-on activities that had them investigating polymers, exploring the power of hydraulics and creating a “spy” circuit with batteries, wires and switches.

The event took place in several locations on campus, with competition at Varsity Arena and in a purpose-built tent on Trinity Field, judging at OISE, and the closing ceremonies, fittingly, at Convocation Hall.

“We were absolutely delighted to welcome these brilliant, budding engineers from around the world to the University of Toronto – and we would be very happy to welcome them back in the near future, as U of T students!” said President Meric Gertler. “Ever since we were selected to host the FLL International Open, the university has invested considerable time and resources to help ensure the event was a big success, and it’s been wonderful to hear so many stories bearing that out. Congratulations to all the winners, participants and organizers!”

Dave Ellis, director of FIRST LEGO League in Ontario and one of the key organizers of the event, said the multiculturalism in Toronto and at U of T made venue selection easy.

“Toronto was the clear winner for this first-in-Canada international event. And capping it off at Convocation Hall, where thousands of U of T graduates marked the culmination of their experience here, was so fitting. The energy in the room was amazing; everyone came together to cheer on the winners and celebrate their successes.”

Casson’s team took second place in the research project category. While she didn’t take home the top prize, she stands to be part of a future wave of engineering undergrads passionate about making an impact. “I didn’t really know much about robotics until I got involved with the Lego team. It’s really cool.”

Stickel said while he expected to see some impressive robots at the event, he was astounded by the creativity and collaboration of the competitors.

“That they came together to solve the same problem in such different ways was really incredible. These young people took their knowledge of math and science and worked as a team to find some outstanding solutions to the challenge they were given. They are exactly the kind of people we need in engineering.”

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The importance of the walk to school: experts

sgupta — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 10:36:51 +0000

The importance of the walk to school: experts sgupta Mon, 12/10/2012 - 05:36

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Children who live within two kilometres of school are still likely to walk, says Professor Guy Faulkner (Thinkstock photo)

Althea Blackburn-Evans

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“Walking to school is not dead,” proclaimed Professor Guy Faulkner, as he led a multidisciplinary panel of experts through a public symposium, What Happened to Walking? Encouraging Active School Travel in Toronto.

While Toronto has seen about a 10 per cent decline in the past 20 years, kids who live within one or two kilometres of school are still quite likely to walk, Faulkner told the audience at the Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education.

But sprawling city neighbourhoods and perceptions of safety are among the factors that make the trip by foot more difficult, he said.

Faulkner (pictured below left) and colleagues Ron Buliung and Caroline Fusco, who presented highlights of their multi-year study on active school travel, were joined by chief city planner Jennifer Keesmaat and Toronto Star architecture critic and urban affairs columnist Christopher Hume for a discussion about walking to school and how to create an environment more conducive to active travel.

Funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Heart & Stroke Foundation of Canada, the study comes at a time when children are heavier, weaker and less physically-active than they were just five years ago. And results show girls make the trip by foot less often than boys.

Buliung, a professor of geography at University of Toronto Mississauga, shared adults’ and children’s perspective on safety, which uncovered gender differences and disparities between kids' and parents' fears.

In terms of personal safety, strangers are the biggest fear for parents while their kids seem more concerned about bullies and dogs. But girls consider strangers a threat far more than boys do. And when it comes to traffic safety, both parents and children agree that street crossings are the biggest worry, while parents also factor in cars around the school and the maturity level of their kids.

Professor Fusco (pictured right) shared the stories of the children themselves, who in addition to being interviewed were asked to take photos of their commute to school. These “photo-voice interviews” highlighted the pros and cons of walking to school, but the most compelling stories were the ones kids told about the benefits beyond physical activity.

One 10-year-old child marvelled at the opportunity to enjoy some small wonders along the way:

“There’s this pathway I go by, and it’s actually in this puny, puny forest. So it has big tall trees around it. Yeah, it’s just spectacular.”

Just months into her role at Toronto’s new chief planner, Keesmaat admitted that in recent years “we’ve designed children out of public space” and says we need to make walking a fundamental part of transportation planning. A passionate advocate for “walking habitats,” Keesmaat identified some great examples in downtown Toronto – where sidewalks include treed boulevards, street-side café culture abounds, and cyclists and transit vehicles share a safe transportation infrastructure. All of these things make walking safer and more enjoyable.

Keesmaat said that under her leadership this model is becoming the gold standard for infrastructure renewal and new neighbourhood planning, adding: “We’re pursuing this pretty aggressively in the city.”

Hume made an impassioned case for the importance of walking in Toronto, insisting that, “Walking is a reflection of how we feel about the environment in which we live.” He marvelled at the need to make a case for the importance of what he called “the most basic human activity” and didn’t pull any punches when it came to Mayor Ford and his infamous statement that, “The war on the car is over.”

Before leading the question-and-answer period, Hume summed up the car travel conundrum: “We live according to the need for convenience. But convenience isn’t really that convenient; we can’t afford it anymore.”

Attended by more than 200 people, the symposium was the fourth in a series of free lectures hosted by the Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education to share its diverse areas of research with the broader public. To learn more about the research presented at this symposium, visit the BEAT Project website.

At this time of year, with the snow threatening to fly, the researchers stressed their results also showed that winter does not present a problem for walking to school.

“There’s no such thing as bad weather,” said Faulkner. “Just bad clothing choices.”

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Taking the marathon to the classroom

sgupta — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 14:27:10 +0000

Taking the marathon to the classroom sgupta Thu, 02/23/2012 - 09:27

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U of T physiologist Greg Wells (right) has teamed up with ultra-marathoner Ray Zahab to offer students a real-time lesson in the physiological effects of performance. (Physical Education photo)

Althea Blackburn-Evans

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Teaming up to teach through experience

Few people will ever run a marathon in their lives, let alone twice a day, every day, for nearly a month. Using this experience as a teaching tool is uncommon, too. But ultra-marathoner Ray Zahab and University of Toronto professor Greg Wells have teamed up to bring Zahab’s experiences directly into the classroom.

Zahab, the visionary founder of Impossible2Possible, challenged himself to run two marathons daily -- in extreme conditions no less. Zahab’s journey involves a three-week, 1,700-kilometre trek across South America that will see him run the distance between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, crossing the Andes Mountains in the process. Wells, a physiologist, is using Zahab’s expeditions – of which there have now been three in the past year – to stretch the boundaries of his own research and teaching by tapping into the evolving world of experiential learning.

“I think we’re still figuring out how to do experiential learning,” said Wells, who will perform a variety of physiological tests on Zahab and fellow athletes during the Andes portion of the trek and film it all for U of T’s fourth-year environmental physiology students to see back home. The goal is to give students a real-time window into the physical demands that altitude places on extreme athletes, and the 7,000-metre summit – the largest peak in the Americas – is the ideal teaching environment. While the original goal was to stream Wells’ research live to the classroom, the overlapping Reading Week break required a change in plans.

“We are going to record videos relevant to the material we’re covering in class, upload them to the web, email the students the video links, and then send them real-time data from the athlete testing,” said Wells. “The students will be able to see what we’re doing as we do it.”

Instead of delivering a standard lecture when he returns to the classroom, Wells plans to facilitate a more collaborative discussion about what took place and what the students learned from what they witnessed. That discussion will include a question-and-answer period with Zahab, who will still be in South America completing the run, plus a video chat with Calgary-based Jim Elzinga, one of North America’s leading high-altitude climbers and the only Canadian to have led a successful expedition that established a new route from Tibet to the summit of Mount Everest.

Wells hopes that this approach to teaching will make the students more engaged in and excited about the material.

“I really want to try to rethink the way we teach,” he said. “Kids want information on their iPods, on their iPhones; they want to be able to access information anywhere, anytime. They learn in short bursts via many different technologies. They want to listen to it, watch it, read about it, tweet about it. They want to engage with it.”

But the most critical goal for Wells is merging research and teaching.

“We’ve established a new research program around ultra-endurance physiology and extreme human physiology,” he said. “The potential for collecting data around how the human body responds to extreme training and extreme environments is tremendous – not much data is available in that area right now.”

The biggest challenge is building a mobile laboratory that can collect research-quality data and broadcast it from anywhere in the world. “I am trying to fit my entire lab into my backpack!”

To learn more about Professor Wells and his work, follow him on Twitter or visit his personal or faculty website.

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U of T breaks ground for high-performance sport centre

sgupta — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 10:04:21 +0000

U of T breaks ground for high-performance sport centre sgupta Thu, 02/02/2012 - 05:04

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The groundbreaking ceremony for the Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport took place Jan. 31. (Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education photo)

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Goldring Centre will house research labs, competition venues, fitness centre

Nearly 300 guests turned out at the Varsity Centre dome on Jan. 31 to celebrate the latest milestone for the Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education and the University of Toronto: the groundbreaking ceremony for the Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport.

“This centre represents a new paradigm for Toronto and Ontario – a true ‘sports institute,’ where researchers, graduate students and sport medicine experts will connect with athletes, coaches and sport organizations to create a rich environment for studying, teaching, fostering and engaging in sport at the highest levels,” said Dean Ira Jacobs.

The state-of-the-art facility will house international-level basketball and volleyball courts, a relocated and expanded David L. MacIntosh Sport Medicine Clinic, a range of sport and exercise research labs, and a strength and fitness centre accessible to all U of T students. It will also create a place where U of T’s growing list of key partners – including the Canadian Sport Centre Ontario, Swim Canada and the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport – can converge in support of the region’s top athletes.

“The Goldring Centre will build upon a proud tradition at the University of Toronto – a culture of fostering and nurturing innovation, and of creating and sharing knowledge,” said President David Naylor. “The result, as always, will be dramatic breakthroughs in many disciplines, a pool of remarkably talented graduates, a growing number of new products and services...and, not least, we hope, many proud spots for Canadian athletes on podiums around the world.”

The Goldring family, the lead donor for the centre, was well-represented at the event. Blake and Judy Goldring were joined by their mother Barbara Goldring – wife of the late Warren Goldring, who championed the plan to support the project – as well as Blake's wife Belinda Goldring, sister Jane McCabe, her husband Paul and their daughter Caitlin McCabe, and brother Bryce Goldring and daughter Sabrina. Tori, Lindsay and Cailey Stollery came to honour their late father, Gord Stollery, a passionate advocate of athletics, chair of the Golding Centre campaign, and one of the centre’s key donors. Ron Kimel, whose generous gift will result in the Kimel Family Field House within the complex, was out of the country. The Honourable Michael Chan, minister of tourism, culture and sport, represented the Province of Ontario, which last year contributed $22.5 million to the Goldring Centre.

A feather in the cap of the $98 million Varsity Centre complex, the Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport is slated for completion in January 2015.

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Tracking athletes with a GPS

sgupta — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 08:45:27 +0000

Tracking athletes with a GPS sgupta Tue, 11/01/2011 - 04:45

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Varsity Blues field hockey players test a GPS unit during practice. (Varsity Blues photo)

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Researcher studies movements of U of T field hockey players to improve training regimes

Opponents know that Kaelen Watson, U of T’s most recent female athlete of the year, is a force to be reckoned with on the field hockey turf. What few would know is that Watson and her 2010 CIS championship-winning team are playing with an unprecedented, hidden edge: a tiny GPS tracking system tucked between their shoulder blades that’s tracking their game to enhance the team’s training strategy.

Jason Vescovi, a former post-doctoral fellow in the Faculty of Phyiscal Education and Health and one-time research associate with Dean Ira Jacobs, recently chose the University of Toronto team to broaden his research using GPS technology. Currently an applied sport scientist at the Canadian Sport Centre Ontario (CSCO) and the physiologist for the women’s national field hockey team, Vescovi is one of the only experts in North America to use a GPS system for studying female athletes.

Monitoring Demands of the Game

Much like the systems in many cars today, Vescovi’s GPS units track where athletes go, how far they travel and at what speed. “Just as endurance athletes train in certain heart rate zones, we’re able to track distances covered in different speed zones,” said Vescovi. “So instead of monitoring heart rate ranges, we’re looking at speed zones from zero to six kilometres an hour, being walking, all the way up to above 18 kilometres an hour, which is considered sprinting, and then everywhere in between.”

The technology sheds new light on the demands of the game, giving Vescovi more detailed information to make targeted recommendations for training and developing players from one level to the next.

“If one of these players is identified as a contender for the national team, I would be able to use this information to determine whether she’d be able to handle the demands in a game, or if not, what we need to do to get her physiologically prepared to play at the next level.”

Tool to Improve Player Preparedness

The U of T study is part of Vescovi’s continuing work as a research associate at York University, but it’s also an extension of his work with Field Hockey Canada.

“One of the assistant coaches on the women’s national team is [Blues head coach] John DeSouza,” said Vescovi. “I told John that we need to get a broader perspective of what the demands are at every level so [we need to look at the university level]. John was so open and willing; he understands the benefits of this and saw it with the national team, so he welcomed the idea with open arms.”

The unit fits into the pocket of a vest and sits between the shoulder blades. It is specifically designed for team sports, when an armband or wristband would interfere with play. The Blues field hockey players have worn the systems in both practices and competition this season.

Vescovi acquired the GPS system with funds from two grants: a young investigator award from the National Strength and Conditioning Association in the United States, and funding from the Research Program in Applied Sport Sciences – a joint program through the Ministry of Health Promotion, U of T and CSCO. His system debuted in both Canada and United States, with the single largest study dedicated to women’s soccer using GPS technology. Vescovi continues to explore all levels of the sport, including youth, college, pro and elite women soccer players on both sides of the border.

Differences Between Sports Come to Light

Vescovi originally assumed he would find a lot of similarities between field hockey and soccer in terms of the demands of the game, but he quickly discovered he was wrong. “Field hockey players are typically covering less total distance but at a surprisingly higher intensity. The relative proportion of high intensity work they’re doing is 10 percentage points higher. They’re covering more ground, more quickly: shorter and harder, so to speak.”

The differences between the two sports also extend to peak speeds, where soccer wins out. “In field hockey, we see the average player achieve about 20 to 22 km per hour, whereas in soccer we’re at 24 to 27; I’ve even tracked some players at 29-30 km an hour in a game. The demands of the game are different, and we’re able to quantify what those precise differences are with this system.” Vescovi says this makes a big difference for training field hockey players versus soccer players.

The Blues are the first intercollegiate field hockey team to be studied in this way.

“From a scientific perspective, there’s not much literature out there on field hockey in general, let alone women’s field hockey, let alone women’s field hockey at the intercollegiate level,” said Vescovi. “The knowledge and information we’re getting is brand new.”

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Gender imbalance lingers in varsity sport

sgupta — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 11:11:03 +0000

Gender imbalance lingers in varsity sport sgupta Thu, 10/27/2011 - 07:11

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Women in varsity sports are shortchanged in terms of funding and coaching opportunities. (Varsity Blues photo)

Althea Blackburn-Evans

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U of T experts call for stronger policies, more opportunities for women

Researchers at the University of Toronto have found that the country has a long way to go in providing equal opportunities for female student-athletes and leaders.

The researchers at U of T’s Centre for Sport Policy Studies conducted the most comprehensive analysis to date of gender equity in Canada’s interuniversity sport system, culminating in a report entitled Gender Equity in Canadian Sport. The report, which will become a biannual check-up, calls for national and regional interuniversity sport bodies to establish stronger equity policies and take the lead in improving opportunities for female athletes and coaches.

Athlete participation data were analyzed based not only on the number of opportunities across all Canadian universities, but on the gender split in the student body. While men make up only 44 per cent of the university student body, they have 56 per cent of the varsity sport opportunities. The exact opposite is true for women, who make up 56 per cent of students and enjoy 44 per cent of the spots on varsity teams.

The numbers get far worse at the top, where women make up only 19 per cent of head coaches and only 17 per cent of athletic directors.

“Certainly there have been great strides in the last 30 years in terms of female participation in interuniversity sport, but there is still some distance to go in terms of interuniversity sport’s own aspirations for equity,” said Professor Peter Donnelly, director of the centre and one of the lead authors of the report.

Co-investigator Professor Bruce Kidd, a long-time international advocate for equity in sport, agreed. “Gender equity has hit a plateau and is stuck in a position that is still inadequate. Women deserve opportunities proportionate to their participation in university – and they also need to be better mentored and prepared to take on leadership roles down the road.”

The study’s authors are tasking Canadian Interuniversity Sport and its four regional counterparts with three challenges:

• to revamp their gender equity policies based on these results;
• to create an immediate 50 per cent target towards proportional female participation; and
• to develop a plan for improving leadership opportunities for women in coaching and senior administration.

The full report can be found on the Centre for Sport Policy Studies website.

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