|
reports and analyses of the forces driving science and technology investment in Canada
editor: Mark Henderson How it looks to me.... by Mark Henderson FEATURE REPORTS | RESEARCH BRIEFS | PERSONALITIES How it looks to me.... by Mark Henderson, editor, RE$EARCH MONEY Recent data from Statistics Canada confirm what most in the business of university research already know: the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) is having a huge impact on the research base in this country. After barely registering in StatsCan's R&D expenditure survey for the first two years of its existence, the CFI has vaulted to the top of the heap and is now Canada's largest source of public research funds (see related item). Therefore it's not surprising to learn that the CFI is transforming the whole process of planning and conducting university, college and hospital research. The extent of that influence will be on display later this month when the CFI holds Innovation Canada, a conference designed to showcase the research it funds to a much wider audience than ever before. CFI managers rightly understand that effective communications will ensure the widest possible exposure to the Foundation's work and place it in good stead for future funding consideration. Even after the CFI's current funding runs out, its work will be far from complete. Indeed, its activities to date have created an even larger demand for follow-on support, as well as funding in the areas of operating and overhead costs. For universities, it's strongly encouraged to incorporate CFI funding requests into a larger strategic context. In the future it may even be a pre-requisite to any successful bid.
FEATURE REPORTS...
RESEARCH BRIEFS
CTV pledges $2 million for science journalism research chairs Television network CTV has pledged $2 million for two research chairs in science journalism at Univ of Laval and Carleton Univ. CTV made the offer to the CRTC as part of a benefits package tied to winning its bid to acquire NetStar Communications Inc, owner of the Discovery Channel and The Sports Network specialty services. Under the plan, each university would receive a $1-million endowment. The urgent need for more science and technology journalists has already been established and CTV argues that these endowments will go a long way towards filling the void. The national network also proposes to fund a $1.5-million contribution to the Discovery Channel over five years. The funds would pay for five research projects at $100,000 each, with another $150,000 each going to the making of an associated documentary for airing on the specialty channel....
Equivalency recognized between Canadian and French engineers The Canadian Council of Professional Engineers has signed an agreement with its French counterpart, Commission des titres d'ingénieur to recognize the equivalency of their respective engineering programs. The accord also provides for the free flow of researchers and students between Canada and France. The differences in the engineering programs of the two nations have made it difficult to recognize possible equivalencies. The agreement joins others Canada has signed with the UK, New Zealand, Australia, Ireland, South Africa and Hong Kong....
New CRC technology to expand reach of wireless broadband The Ontario government is using new wireless technology developed by the federal Communications Research Centre for a Broadband Multimedia Wireless research project targeting northern and remote communities in the province. The government will provide $1 million in funding under the Telecommunications Access Partnerships program for the $2.6-million project. The remainder of the project's costs will be covered by community and private sectors groups. The project will collect information on how the technology will work best in a field situation and bring in private sector partners willing to exploit the technology for use in Canada and export markets. The technology addresses the so-called 'last mile' challenge of getting broadband technology to the home, allowing for video conferencing, distance education and telehealth....
CIHR and HEALNet fund health curricula program The Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR) is helping HEALNet underwrite the cost of a project to develop model curricula for health informatics education. The $80,000 initiative ($50,000 from CIHR and $30,000 from HEALNet) targets the serious lack of knowledge about health information among health professionals, and the inability to manage the technology required to retrieve, analyze and synthesize available information. Once developed, the curricula will contain health informatics courses and programs at all academic levels, and will also be applicable to the post-professional education level and for clinical and health professionals. The project will also result in a national networking infrastructure to facilitate work beyond current objectives....
PERSONALITIESPearse Flynn has been appointed president and COO of Newbridge Networks Corp, following the sudden resignation of Alan Lutz who held the position for 17 months. Flynn was brought in from Newbridge's European operations where he was GM for Europe, Middle East and Africa. Lutz vacated the executive suite after the Kanata ON-based company issued preliminary estimates for its second quarter, with lower earnings per share than projected. Flynn, like Lutz, left Compaq Corp in 1998 to join Newbridge, where he is credited with increasing revenue from European operations 40% over last year. As president, Flynn will focus on improving sales in the all-important US market and moving the firm away from what he contends is an over-fixation on technology. Newbridge is Canada's #4 R&D spender.... Dr Brad Wouters has won the 1999 Polyani Prize in Medicine. A professor at the Univ of Ottawa and a researcher at the affiliated Ottawa Regional Cancer Centre, Wouters was recognized for his work examining genes and molecular pathways that determine the characteristics of malignant tumours and the way in which they response to treatment. The Saskatchewan native returned to Canada after completing postdoctoral studies at Stanford Univ. Wouters and his research colleagues hope to discover ways to improve the efficacy of chemotherapy and radiation therapy. The Polyani Prize is named in honour of Dr John Polyani, a 1986 Nobel prize winner in chemistry.... Dr Peter Nicholson has been appointed chair of the board of directors for the Canadian Institute of Telecommunications Research. He replaces Charles Terrault, who resigned for health reasons. Nicholson has enjoyed a long and distinguished career of public and private sector service, including his current position as chief strategy officer at BCE Inc. He holds a BSc and MSc in physics from the Univ of Dalhousie and a PhD from Stanford Univ. Nicholson also sits on the board of the National Research Council, the Canada Foundation for Innovation and the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation....
Return to TOP OF PAGE | RE$EARCH MONEY INDEX |
Applied PeR$pectives
Building with CCNB-INNOV… Relationships that go a Long Way! CCNB-INNOV, the applied research and development arm of CCNB has adapted its range of services to better meet the unique needs of the regional shipbuilding industry.
 |
Applied PeR$pectives is a new monthly blog dedicated to highlighting the innovative work being done in the college and institute community. |
|---|
Fast Policy Facts
 |
December 12, 2018: Requiem for a National Network Program
|
|---|
Research Money on Twitter
Loading tweets...