Presidential advisory committee recommends targeted fossil fuel divestment
This story originally appeared on U of T News The University of Toronto can help the world meet the climate change challenge by undertaking targeted and principled divestment from specific companies in the fossil fuels industry, according to a presidential advisory committee headed by environmental engineering professor Bryan Karney (CivE). The committee, after a year […]
Can this engineering expert solve Toronto’s transit woes?
This story originally appeared on U of T News. For years, the University of Toronto has been an “under-utilized resource” for the City of Toronto, Professor Eric Miller (CivE) says — but he is at the forefront of changing that. A civil engineering professor and the director of U of T’s Transportation Research Institute, Miller has had a close […]
Kinetica: engineering safer buildings in Toronto, China and worldwide
This story is Part 2 of an eight-part series, Global Engineering Impact, running throughout fall 2015. Kinetica is reaching new heights at home and abroad. The company, which designs devices that safely dissipate the energy absorbed by high-rise buildings during high winds and earthquakes, just announced that its technology would be incorporated into the YC Condos at the corner of Yonge […]
World Toilet Day: U of T engineers reinventing hygienic toilets for developing world
This story is Part 1 of an eight-part series, Global Engineering Impact, running throughout fall 2015. Today, November 19, is World Toilet Day, but if you were able to celebrate it, you should consider yourself lucky. Worldwide, about 2.5 billion people — a third of the global population — have no access to safe sanitation. This […]
U of T Engineering post-doc wins Polanyi Prize for research into more efficient solar materials
Dr. Riccardo Comin, a post-doctoral fellow in The Edward S. Rogers Sr. Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, has won the 2015 John Charles Polanyi Prize for Physics for his research into a rapidly emerging new class of materials, called perovskites, that could lead to more efficient solar cells and lighting. The Polanyi Prizes are given […]
Meet undergrad Frank Gu, a U of T Engineering intern lighting up Nanoleaf
How does a second-year engineering undergraduate student nab a coveted internship with a global lighting startup like Nanoleaf? It helps to offer critical thinking, creativity and boundless energy — but having the boss share your intellectually impressive hobby doesn’t hurt. When Nanoleaf CEO Gimmy Chu (ElecE 0T6) met electrical engineering student Frank Gu (Year 2 ElecE), he discovered that the young applicant was a member of […]
Engineering alumni startup Nanoleaf launches new product for Apple home system
Nanoleaf, the fast-growing startup from U of T Engineering alumni, launched a new product Oct. 27 tied to Apple’s HomeKit line. “We’ve received Apple’s approval to join the HomeKit ecosystem,” said Nanoleaf spokesperson Leslie Chen. The Nanoleaf Smarter Kit combines “the world’s most energy efficient smart bulb” and a stylish, connected hub with Apple’s Siri-enabled HomeKit, Chen said. This will […]
An open data platform for improving Toronto transportation
This story is Part 6 of a seven-part series, U of T Engineering in the City, running throughout fall 2015. Last Friday, an unmanned octocopter lifted off from a grassy park in a Toronto ravine. It ascended 75 metres and then twisted its mounted camera to scan the volume of traffic moving along Don Mills Road. […]
Engineering a ‘social needs marketplace’ to help the urban poor
This story is Part 4 of a seven-part series, U of T Engineering in the City, running throughout fall 2015. Two years ago, U of T Engineering professor Mark Fox (MIE) spent 36 hours living on the street. He did it partly as a charity fundraiser, but mostly to get a better sense of how the homeless […]
