Waterloo strengthens bonds in China

President Feridun Hamdullahpur will visit China this week to strengthen relationships with leading Chinese universities.

Hamdullahpur will meet with representatives from five of China’s top universities: Tsinghua University, Nanjing University, Beijing Jiao Tong University, Zhejiang University and Soochow University. He will also learn more about China’s education policy through meetings with representatives of the Ministry of Education.

“It is essential that we build strong relationships with Chinese institutions as we seek to provide researchers and students with a diversity of experience and insight that is vital to the pursuit of knowledge and discovery,” said Hamdullahpur. “China has an impressive group of universities that share Waterloo’s passion for expertise in research and academic excellence.”

Hamdullahpur’s visit to China is an important step in Waterloo’s efforts to expand its relationship with globally engaged research universities. It follows the announcement that Canada’s U15 Group of Research Intensive Universities joined China’s C9 League as members of the Global Network of research intensive university groupings.

As part of the visit, two of the world’s most innovative universities reached a new agreement that will prepare Chinese students for study in Canada.

Tsinghua University, ranked among the world’s top 50 universities, will offer a one-year pre-bachelor level course from its School of Continuing Education that will allow students from China to study at the University of Waterloo.

“This new agreement will allow gifted Chinese students to prepare at one of the top global universities for study in world-class programs at the University of Waterloo in Canada,” said Hamdullahpur. “Tsinghua and Waterloo share a spirit of innovation that will enable students to meet the challenges of life in an evolving global society.”

Hamdullahpur signed the new agreement on Monday as part of a weeklong visit to China. Earlier in the day, he met with Chen Jining, president of Tsinghua, to discuss opportunities for further collaboration between the two institutions. In addition to the new study agreement, Tsinghua and Waterloo share expertise in quantum information science in the Tsinghua-Waterloo Joint Center for Quantum Computing.

At Nanjing, Hamdullahpur will join a delegation of more than 10 researchers from Waterloo for a joint symposium on the environment. Among Waterloo’s delegation is Professor Daniel Scott, who recently released research that revealed that only six of the previous Winter Olympics host cities will be cold enough to reliably host the Games by the end of this century.

The University of Waterloo and Nanjing University have capitalized on opportunities for international education by establishing the Sino-Canadian College that has focused on environmental studies of coastal China.

More than 3,000 students from China currently study at the University of Waterloo.

 

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Save the date: WatITis is what it is

The WatITis 2014 Committee has announced that the 12th annual WatITis (Waterloo Information Technology and Information Systems) conference is set for Wednesday, December 3, 2014 in the quantum-nano centre.

WatITis is a one-day conference for those involved in IT planning, support and decision making at the University of Waterloo. It is an opportunity to see what others are doing on campus in information technology, to exchange ideas, and make new contacts.

The official call for submissions will be announced on September 15 and the committee will be receiving session abstracts until October 10, 2014.  Anyone wishing to submit a synopsis early can do so, but abstracts will not be selected until after the October 10 deadline.

For more information, please contact conference co-chairs Jenn Brewster and Craig McDonald, or subscribe to the WatITis mailing list.

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Watch your step: the geese are back

It could be said that the University of Waterloo has four seasons: summer, fall, winter and goose.

Thanks to the cold weather, goose season is happening a bit later than normal this year, but it's definitely happening, with Canada geese pairing up and getting ready to nest all over campus.

In the spirit of peaceful co-existence, there are a number of resources available to help ensure safety (for both people and geese).

Goose Watch, the crowdsourced tool for navigating campus safely during goose pairing and nesting season, is back for 2014.

Goose Watch is a collaboration between Mapping, Analysis, and Design and the Student Success Office. "You can use the map to view and report goose nest locations or to find a route across campus based on your comfort level around nesting geese," says a message on the site. "We've also provided a few goose nest etiquette tips to help everyone share campus space this spring." The web app has attracted more than 5,000 unique visitors, though there's no word on whether Ryan Wingstrong is among them.

The University's safety office recommends checking out a warning leaflet prepared by the Ohio state government that outlines how to avoid getting on a goose's bad side.

Some tips:

• Maintain direct eye contact and keep your chest and face pointed at the goose;
• If the goose acts aggressively, calmly and slowly back away; and
• Don't act hostile or show fear. Display a neutral demeanour.

Plant Operations will be taking the usual precautions by posting signs and barricades warning of goose nests and the possibility of aggressive bird behaviour.

Photograph courtesy of @uWaterlooLife.

 

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A public lecture on energy and our future

No energy source is free, and we must inform ourselves of the environmental impact of all our energy sources before we rush into untenable or excessively costly options.

Professors Maurice Dusseault (right) and Steve Evans of Earth and Environmental Sciences (below) will present their public lecture “Energy and the Environment; Risks and the Future” Tuesday, April 22, from 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. in the School of Optometry and Vision Science, room 347.

"An energy sources debate is swirling through the society, and it is vital that this debate be informed by science, rather than by ideology, political expediency, or populist tactics," says the lecture's promotional material.

Evans and Dusseault's talk will focus on the environmental impacts of various energy sources, and will try to quantify the relative benefits and risks for each of them.

Closing remarks will be presented by Dr. Gordon Woo of Risk Management Solutions, London, U.K.

The Public Lecture is free and all students, staff and faculty are welcome to attend.

More information is available on the Faculty of Science events website.

 

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Senate meets today and other notes

The University of Waterloo's Senate will have its April meeting this afternoon at 3:30 p.m. in NH 3001.

At today's meeting, Senate will vote on the acclamation of a number of nominees to University committees, and will vote on amendments to graduate studies regulations pertaining to the International Visiting Graduate Student program and terms of reference for the Millennium Bursary program. Senate will also consider a new Minor in Public Policy and Administration in the Political Science department.

Senate is also being asked to consider changes to the description and criteria for the University Professor designation, and exceptions to Policy 40, The Chair related to Religious Studies, which provide for the eligibility of the affiliated and federated institutions of Waterloo (AFIW) faculty members to serve as chair of the Department of Religious Studies and/or to serve on a nominating committee for the chair of that department.

Aside from the usual reports, Senate will hear a research presentation by Professor Melanie Campbell of Physics & Astronomy and a presentation on the Federation of Students by Feds president David Collins.

The Feds Used Books store has posted their extended hours for April and May. They are open Saturday, April 26 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and, starting May 1, their hours are as follows:

• Thursday, May 1, 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
• Friday, May 2, 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
• Saturday, May 3, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
• Sunday, May 4, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
• Monday, May 5 to Friday, May 9, 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
• Saturday, May 10, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Regular hours resume Monday, May 12.

Tammy Cumming of the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences writes, "I volunteer on a board for a local not-for-profit organization called Mom2Mom Africa. We have been working for the past few months on a fundraising campaign that would help build a new school and start a food program for some in-need children in Africa." The Indiegogo crowdsourcing campaign, launched publicly on April 14. Mom2Mom Africa founder Alison Fraser will be speaking at St. Jerome's University on Friday, April 25 at 1:00 p.m. as part of their Staff Day, and will be talking about becoming an "accidental philanthropist."

 

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