Product Design & Development (PD&D), a design engineering website, recently conducted an in-depth Q & A with Professor Cristina Amon, Dean of the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering.

In the interview, Dean Amon discusses her early mentors, her research in heat transfer and fluid mechanics, and the wide array of engineering research activities and initiatives taking place at U of T Engineering.

Dean Amon recently received the 2011 Achievement Award from the Society of Women Engineers for her groundbreaking contributions to the field of fluid mechanics and heat transfer; achievements in integration of practice, research and education; and active commitment to gender diversity in engineering.

“I seek to contribute my skills and expertise as an engineer to improve society and the world in whatever way I can. I view that as a personal goal, and I hope it is a goal shared by any organization in which I am involved,” said Dean Amon on her major goals as an engineer and as Dean of U of T Engineering.

To read the full interview, visit the PD&D website.

The World Health Organization considers HIV a worldwide pandemic. In sub-Saharan Africa alone, more than 22 million people are living with it.

ECE PhD candidate James Dou and his supervisor Professor Stewart Aitchison (ECE), Vice-Dean, Research, have developed an affordable and efficient lab-on-a-chip that can revolutionize HIV monitoring in developing countries.

Currently an HIV blood-testing device, called a flow cytometer, can cost up to $100,000. Dou’s patented lab-on-a-chip costs $5,000 to $10,000, and provides results in mere minutes.

“Flow cytometers are for the most part concentrated in first-world countries,” said Dou. “Many countries in the developing world simply do not have the facilities or infrastructure to offer HIV monitoring.”

Dou’s affordable invention eliminates the need for those affected by HIV to travel grueling distances to a central facility. But in order to make the chip accessible to the even the remotest parts of the world, Dou and Professor Aitchison had to bring the invention to the marketplace.

With the help of U of T’s Innovations and Partnerships Office (IPO) and Rotman School of Management, they and biological testing expert Rakesh Nayyar created the start-up company, ChipCare Corp.

“This proves how university research has direct and positive impact on people’s lives,” said Professor Peter Lewis, U of T’s Associate Vice-President, Research and acting Executive Director of the IPO.

With additional funding, ChipCare Corp. plans to shrink its current prototype from a size of a breadbox to a handheld version. Their goal is to deploy 100 devices to organizations in Malawi and Thailand in 2012.

Dou and Professor Aitchison were recently featured in the Association of University Technology Manager’s (AUTM) 2011 Better World Report. The report is a collection of stories that chronicle an array of technologies that impact the world.

Eight of the U of T students selected nationwide for 2012‘s The Next 36 come from engineering. Making this accomplishment an even greater one is the fact that U of T represents one-third of the total 36 chosen internationally.

The Next 36 is a prestigious entrepreneurship leadership initiative that helps launch the business careers of promising Canadian undergraduates. Throughout the eight-month program, they will work in multidisciplinary teams of four to innovate, launch and sell a product or service for the mobile or tablet market. They’ll also receive in-class instruction on entrepreneurship from world-class business leaders.

Several celebrated U of T Engineering alumni are involved in the initiative, including Board of Directors members Anthony Lacavera (CompE 9T7), Chairman and CEO of WIND mobile, and Francis Shen (EngSci 8T1, AeroE MASc 8T3), the Chairman and Co-CEO of Aastra Technologies Ltd.

The winning candidates from U of T Engineering are: Zerzar Bukhari (ElecE 1T3), Freddy Chen (CompE 1T3), Cheryl Cui (EngSci 1T1 + PEY), Rafal Dittwald (EngSci 1T1 + PEY), Layan Kutob (IndE 1T2 + PEY), Alexandru Litoiu (ElecE 1T2), Donnie Yee (MechE 1T2 + PEY) and Ji Zhou (EngSci 1T3).

“On behalf of the Faculty, I would like to congratulate our outstanding engineering students,” said Cristina Amon, Dean of the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering. “I have every confidence that they will utilize the engineering education and business acumen we provide to become leaders in the chosen areas. They are examples of the ever-broadening scope of what it means to be an engineer.”

U of T Engineering graduate Suneet Tuli (CivE 9T0) has a vision: to make computer technology available to people around the world, including some of the poorest.

The CEO of DataWind, a company that develops wireless web access products and services, seeks to empower millions in India with an inexpensive tablet PC: the Aakash. Retailing at less than $50, the tablet delivers the benefits of modern technology and the potential to bridge the digital divide in India and around the world.

Tuli returned to his alma mater on November 30 to speak with students and faculty about creating the Aakash and how technology, made broadly accessible, can enhance welfare and bring social change.

“The world needs inexpensive computing and Internet access. Tablets become the de-facto form factor for that,” Tuli explained.

By using inexpensive hardware and technology that utilizes cellular phone networks for Internet access, his company was able to create a device “that would be affordable within a week’s salary [in India], which is $50 (CDN).”

“And how important is affordability?” asked Tuli to the crowd. “In my opinion, the floodgates have opened. The next billion Internet users are coming. And with that, you are going to get innovation you’ve never seen before.”

“It is an honour to have Suneet Tuli here today,” said Cristina Amon, Dean of the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering. “It is a story that is quite familiar in our Faculty. Inspired by a culture of innovation at U of T, he is now an engineer innovating and changing the world.”

As Tuli explained, launching an inexpensive tablet in India required problem-solving on every level.

“The important things I learned at U of T is problem-solving and thinking outside the box,” Tuli said.

The event, which drew a large crowd to the Sandford Fleming Building, was hosted by The Indian Innovation Institute at the Rotman School of Management, Munk School of Global Affairs and the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering.

Moving stem cell technologies from the lab to the marketplace will take time. But once commercialized, regenerative medicine could lead to curing everything from heart disease to neurodegenerative illnesses.

“What we all hope is that there will be new curative treatments for debilitating diseases,” said Professor Peter Zandstra (IBBME), a Canada Research Chair in Stem Cell Bioengineering. “It’s not clear right now if our approaches will be successful, but I think there’s a lot of hope and promise.”

Professor Zandstra is the Chief Scientific Officer of the new Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine (CCRM). The Toronto-based centre takes early-stage technologies from Ontario institutions and adds value to help commercialize them, he explains.

“One of the problems that we face in regenerative medicine – and there are many – is that numerous technologies that come out are too early for real commercialization, and we need this extra step of turning them into products,” he said.

The Globe and Mail will hold a live discussion with Professor Zandstra on stem cell research and commercialization on December 1 at noon. For more information and the full article, visit The Globe and Mail.

The University of Toronto celebrated the opening of the renovated Lassonde Mining Building on November 28. The transformation of the building, which first opened in 1904, converted the previously unused attic into new collaborative student design studios and teaching spaces and added a rooftop meeting room.

“We are celebrating a new chapter of mining innovation at the University of Toronto with the opening of this building,” said David Naylor, President of the University.

The new 4th and 5th floor space, known as the Goldcorp Mining Innovation Suite, provides 100 workstations for students studying mineral and civil engineering to complete engineering design projects. It will also be home to the Lassonde Institute of Mining, an interdisciplinary research institute focused on a whole spectrum of mining activities, including mineral resource identification, mine planning, excavation, as well as extraction and processing. In addition to classes, the suite will host public events ranging from small meetings to seminars and lectures.

The project was made possible by generous financial support from Dr. Pierre Lassonde, the chairman of mining giant Franco-Nevada, Goldcorp Incorporated, as well as Knowledge and Infrastructure Project (KIP) funding from the federal government matched by provincial funds.

“What we do is always for the students,” said Dr. Lassonde. Referring to the new collaborative space, he remarked, “… there is no doubt that the student experience here will be absolutely incredible.”

Wladyslaw Lizon, Member of Parliament for Mississauga East–Cooksville, was on hand at the opening to extend the federal government’s best wishes.

“Modernizing and improving research and training facilities at Canada’s university and college campuses will help us build the foundation for future growth. It will help us protect and create more jobs for Canadians and ensure we are well-positioned for future prosperity,” said Mr. Lizon.

In addition to new space, the project allowed a number of sustainable features to be added to the building. This includes photovoltaic panels that power the new suite’s lighting and computer needs. It also includes improved insulation, the addition of skylights and rain harvesting to water the surrounding grounds. An elevator was also added, making the building more physically accessible.

“The Lassonde Mining Building is an excellent example of what can be accomplished through a combination of private philanthropy, industry investment and government support,” said Cristina Amon, Dean of the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering.

As a major research university located in Toronto, U of T is well situated to support Canada’s mining industry, Dr. Lassonde remarked.

“We have the pulls of the industry here (in Toronto). We have the services, we have the legal firms, the equity firms, the investment bankers and we have the University that does an incredible amount of research,” stated Dr. Lassonde.

“I am confident that the University of Toronto, through the intellectual capital of its world-class engineering and physical sciences faculties, has the capacity to create an academic enterprise of unprecedented depth, focus and impact to address these challenges,” said Dean Amon.