With quantum technologies rapidly becoming one of the fastest growing advanced sectors globally,experts and policymakers recently gathered at the University of Toronto to discuss Canada’s new National Quantum Strategy and the university’s role in supporting it.Attended by federal and provincial government stakeholders,the discussion drew on the findings of arecent report commissioned from Deloitte Canada that compared Canada’s centres of quantum research.The GTA was the country’s strongest quantum hub,supported by Uof T’s global research leadership,the report found.“Quantum research at the University of Toronto places the university among the world’s leading producers of impactful knowledge in this domain,”said Timothy Chan,associate vice-president and vice-provost,strategic initiatives and aprofessor of mechanical and industrial engineering in the Faculty of Applied Science&Engineering.“The quantum ecosystem is strong here–not just because of our world-leading quantum expertise,but because we have the best scientists in other fields that will integrate quantum technologies and their applications.”In January,the federal government launched the$360-million National Quantum Strategy to support the sector in an increasingly competitive global market.It aims to boost research,talent and commercialization in quantum and solidify Canada’s position in the field.A rapidly emerging and economically promising field,quantum science and its applications draw on the unintuitive principles of quantum mechanics to solve problems too complex for everyday computers.By 2045,quantum applications–including artificial intelligence,cybersecurity,medical imaging and many more–are projected to be a$138-billion market,leading to more than 200,000 jobs in Canada,according to astudy commissioned by the National Research Council of Canada.The findings from the Deloitte report were presented during the Uof Tevent,which was hosted by the Munk School of Global Affairs&Public Policy as part of its New Frontiers series,which promotes dialogue between decision-makers and Uof Tresearchers on how to advance public policy priorities.The report’s analysis of Canada’s centres of quantum research ranked the country fourth in the world in the strength of its research in quantum science and technology.U of Tis akey contributor to Canada’s performance,with the university’s research impact in quantum-related sciences ranked fifth globally.The breadth of expertise across quantum fields is one of the university’s strengths,said Anna Dyring,quantum strategic initiative lead at Uof T’s Centre for Quantum Information and Quantum Control(CQIQC).CQIQC’s activities,which promote research collaborations in the sector,encompass Uof T’s departments of chemistry,physics,mathematics and computer science in the Faculty of Arts&Science,as well as the departments of electrical engineering and materials science in the Faculty of Applied Science&Engineering.“Quantum computing is afield where you need many different types of thinkers and knowledge in order to innovate and lead,”Dyring said.U of Tand partners such as the Vector Institute are leading in AI,data sciences,regenerative and precision medicine,climate change,pandemic preparedness and advanced materials–just some of the fields the university is supporting through its Institutional Strategic Initiatives,Chan told attendees.U of T‘s Schwartz Reisman Institute for Technology and Society also convenes and facilitates research on how these technologies improve human lives.“Our approach is interdisciplinary because the challenges Canada and the world face cannot be solved by remaining within our disciplinary boundaries.We aim to transform how we solve problems,and to work at the frontiers of knowledge–that is where quantum research currently resides.” 查看详细>>

Rozilaine Redi Lago,a visiting PhD student at the University of Toronto’s Centre for Critical Qualitative Health Research(CQ)four years ago,taught the only qualitative research course at the Federal University of Acre(UFAC)in Brazil following her graduation.But she saw apressing need for an entire program–a goal that Uof T’s Denise Gastaldo and Brenda Gladstone,both volunteers with Academics Without Borders(AWB),are now helping to realize.“She created agroup which included her colleagues from several faculties who had training in qualitative research and said,‘Please come here to help us get started,’”says Gastaldo,an associate professor at the Lawrence S.Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing who is cross-appointed to the Dalla Lana School of Public Health.The Amazon region of Brazil desperately needs qualitative public health training.UFAC offers the region’s only public health PhD program with asingle quantitative focus.The resource-starved region faces serious and complex public health issues that require both quantitative and qualitative research approaches.“While they have been monitoring endemic diseases like malaria,dengue and leprosy,they also need information on social and cultural practices to create more effective programs to prevent and treat these diseases,”says Gastaldo,who is the former CQ director.Access to care is an ongoing issue.Large rivers surround the equatorial region.Intemperate weather hampers patients’ability to access care.The region is also home to 20,000 Indigenous residents who speak over 15 languages and observe various health-related cultural norms. 查看详细>>

Egag is now pursuing amaster’s degree in social work at Uof Tand working as astudent counsellor at Family Services Toronto,a career track influenced by his lived experience of mental health challenges.At the same time,he is helping shape the future of mental health services on campus by lending his time and insights to the Presidential&Provostial Task Force on Student Mental Health.The group,composed of students,faculty and staff,is reviewing mental health supports across the university and has already conducted alengthy consultation process on all three campuses.Now,the task force is seeking students’feedback on the broad themes that emerged from the consultations.From Monday to Friday this week,students,staff and faculty can weigh in on the draft summary of themes during student-run feedback sessions on the three campuses that have been organized by the Innovation Hub.No registration is required for the“pop-up”events,which are being held in high-traffic spaces. 查看详细>>

he University of Toronto has once again been ranked the top university in Canada and in the top 25 globally by the prestigious Shanghai Ranking Consultancy.The 2019 edition of the Academic Ranking of World Universities(ARWU),a research-focused international ranking of higher education institutions,ranked Uof T24th in the world.Among public universities,U of Tcontinues to be aglobal leader,ranking 12th in the world and seventh in North America.“These results are areflection of the incredible and influential research that takes place at the University of Toronto,”said Cheryl Regehr,U of T’s vice-president and provost.“It’s an honour to be among academic colleagues at Uof Twho share acommitment to advancing knowledge and addressing pressing global challenges across many different disciplines.”More than 1,800 universities are ranked by the Shanghai Ranking Consultancy for the ARWU,with the top 1,000 published in the annual list.The ARWU rankings rely on six weighted indicators to determine an institution’s academic and research performance.They include:the number of faculty and alumni winning Nobel Prizes and Fields Medals;the number of highly cited researchers;the number of papers published in Nature and Science;papers cited in major citation indices;and the per capita performance of each institution.Since the ARWU rankings launched in 2003,U of Thas consistently remained in the top 30,reflecting the university’s position as aworld-leading research university.Three other Canadian universities ranked alongside Uof Tin the top 100:University of British Columbia(35th),McMaster University and McGill University(tied for 90th). 查看详细>>

The project plans to transform math education by incorporating engineering applications across first-year courses and redesigning course instructor and teaching assistant training(photo by Laura Pedersen)..The Faculty of Applied Science&Engineering and the Faculty of Arts&Science are teaming up to revitalize the university’s first-year mathematics curriculum.The collaborative project recently received aSTEM Network mini-grant of$20,000 from the Association of American Un... 查看详细>>

Alicia Chin,Shaik Jifridin and Siddharth Madhavan have come to Toronto for ayear under anew“international entrepreneurship highway”exchange that give students work-study opportunities(photo by Lisa Lightbourn)..The wheels are already turning on anew“international entrepreneurship highway”linking the University of Toronto and the National University of Singapore(NUS).The first cohort of nine students from NUS arrived in Toronto in August as part of the work and study pr... 查看详细>>

Three university leaders,including University of Toronto President Meric Gertler,are calling on Ottawa to respond to the government-commissioned Fundamental Science Review and improve funding for research.In aGlobe and Mail op-ed published this week,Gertler,along with McGill University Principal and Vice-Chancellor Suzanne Fortier,and Santa Ono,president and vice-chancellor of the University of British Columbia,warn that the consequences will be dire if the federal government doesn’t act on the panel’s roadmap for research.“What is at stake?"the leaders write."Nothing short of decades of missed opportunities that could constrain innovation and prosperity,diminish health outcomes,limit our understanding of societal challenges,and impair our ability to support the kinds of social programs we value.”The Fundamental Science Review panel,led by Uof TPresident Emeritus David Naylor,recommends reversing the decline of research funding and rebalancing the proportions between investigator-led and strategic research.The three university leaders argue that investigator-driven research,or discovery research,is crucial to build an innovative society.It is the research that is anecessary precursor to strategic,or applied,research.“We cannot expect industry to fill this gap–only university researchers and their affiliated health institutes conduct this kind of work,”they write.“We have an opportunity,and the moment to act is now.” 查看详细>>