Research Expo: What’s Happening in the Lab?
Written by Daniel MacGregor
Thumbnail Photo by The Climate Reality Project on Unsplash
Students usually only interact with professors through their courses. Especially if you’re an undergraduate, it can be easy to forget that professors are also researchers. It’s really important for students to be exposed to that research. Thus, on March 5th, 2021, the university hosted the 11th annual Research Expo where 16 faculty and staff from various departments presented some of their research findings.
For those of you who could not make it to the Expo, welcome to the spark notes version. Learn a little bit about lots of cool research in one quick read. Before delving into the content of each presentation, note that the format was, on average, 3 minutes of presenting coupled with a PowerPoint slide or two. The following are short summaries to highlight the research that was presented:
Photo by Chris Montgomery on Unsplash
Dr. Yigit Aydede (Economics Department):
Mobility and Covid-19 Spread: Why is it so hard to analyze the relationship?
As part of the Covid-19 Research Coalition, Dr. Aydede is looking at various factors to better understand the effectiveness of government policies at limiting the spread of Covid-19 by analyzing their efficiency and mobility, using Montreal, Toronto, and New York as test samples
Dr. Ivana Damjanov (Astronomy and Physics Department):
Measuring the Invisible Universe: Dark Matter in Luminous Galaxies
Dark matter composes a majority of the weight of the universe, yet it’s pretty well a mystery. Dr. Damjanov’s research involves gathering data such as wide-scale photography surveys of surrounding galaxies in order to better understand the invisible yet gravitational present dark matter. One finding has been that it seems dark matter gathers faster than visible matter in terms of galactic formation.
Dr. Jacob Hanley (Geology Department):
The Bay of Fundy Region: A copper-producing center in pre-contact Maritime Basin history
Looking at Indigenous copper artifacts, Dr. Hanley’s team has shown that contrary to the belief that the region’s copper came via trade from Lake Superior, it seems a large majority was collected locally by Indigenous people at the Bay of Fundy. Furthermore, this was determined through cutting-edge technology that collects samples from artifacts without causing major damage to the environment.
Dr. Khan Rahaman (Wicked Problems Lab):
Wicked Problems Lab: Addressing Local and Regional Problems through Learning and Research
Dr. Rahaman introduced the key points of the Wicked Problems lab, like its focus on applying problem-solving techniques through experiential learning.
Dr. Danielle Tokarz (Chemistry Department):
Seeing the Invisible: Optically Active Molecules for Nonlinear Microscopy
Dr. Tokarz presented how ultrafast, a new step in optical analysis microscopes, is providing a deeper look into the optical signals of materials, with such applications as assisting in the creation of contact lenses made for those with colour blindness.
Dr. Teresa Heffernan (English Department):
The Science and Fiction of Artificial Intelligence
In the defence of the human element of the humanities, Dr. Heffernan’s research sheds light on the dangers of integrating current AI systems into the humanities. For instance, one concern is that AI only engages in an advanced form of imitation, and can never truly think and comprehend the nuanced details of human language and art.
Dr. Myles McCallum (Modern Languages and Classics Department):
Re-examining Roman Villas: Research in the Velino Valley of Central Italy
Travelling to the Italian countryside, Dr. McCallum provided information on their research regarding the lives of the non-elite population of Italian villas in the Velino Valley.
Dr. Claudia De Fuentes (Management Department):
Crowding-in or crowding-out? Analysis of innovation government support for firms located in Canada
Dr. Fuentes’s research focuses on the impacts of public subsidies through five public funding programs, looking at factors such as the number of unique enterprises by employment size and value of support type by support program stream.
Dr. Nicolas Roulin (Psychology Department):
Hiring with Video Interviews: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
In another study on Covid-19, Dr. Roulin’s research takes a deeper look at the effects and implications of asynchronous job interviews on applicants, with a focus on interviews that are not live, but rather recorded and submitted to the employer for later review.
Dr. Andrés Arteaga (Modern Languages and Classics Department):
Colombian Post-Traumatic Literature
Dr. Arteaga’s research focuses on the literature created in the aftermath of a 52-year long conflict in Columbia, specifically the creative writing of a group of women who used the medium to go from victims to authors. The writing in question has been published in Phoenix’s Haven: The End of a Night of Agony.
Dr. Arla Day (Psychology Department):
(Post-) Pandemic Productivity: Developing Inclusive ‘Workplaces' for all Workers
Dr. Day’s research develops the idea of bridging the gap between diversity and inclusivity in the work environment by establishing an inclusive culture through means that focus on functional well-being and how the pandemic can be used to leverage improvements in work culture.
Dr. Cristian Suteanu (Geography and Environmental Studies and Environmental Science Departments):
Capturing the wind signature across time scales
Advancing sustainable energy, Dr. Suteanu’s research collects information on wind variability in order to determine the optimal locations of wind turbines.
Dr. Alison Barclay (Modern Languages and Classics Department):
Ancient Greek Heroes Meet the Maori: The Lithographs of Marian Maguire
Dr. Barclay’s research focuses on the Maori artist Marian Maguire, who takes classical Greek art depictions and adapts them to Maori history and culture. This work is meant to combat colonialism and promote cultural interaction.
Dr. Daphne Rixon (Accounting Department):
Measuring SDG Performance in Co-operatives and Credit Unions
Dr. Rixon’s research is working to develop metrics to study the sustainable development goals (SDGs) of co-operatives and credit unions, which are evaluated through a survey of originally 50, now cut down to 25 metrics, with the final goal of submitting to all Canadian co-operatives.
Mrs. Shawna Murphy (Patrick Power Library):
Making Your Work Open
Focusing on open access publishing, Outreach & Engagement Librarian Shawna Murphy highlighted the advantages of academics releasing their work on open access locations, and how they can do so.
Dr. Ather Akbari ( Economics Department):
Immigration in Nova Scotia: Who Comes, who stays, who leaves and why?
Dr. Akbari’s research highlights the reasons immigrants between 2011 and2018 left or remained in Nova Scotia. The results have shown that 74% of new immigrants have remained in Nova Scotia since landing.