Georgian College students shine at Skills Ontario competition
Georgian's medalists from the Outdoor Powered Equipment category. From left: Bob Dundas, Marine Engine Mechanic Professor; Aiden Huibers; Alex Ptolemy French; and Emily Wentland. Wed., May 7, 2025. Submitted.
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Cision Canada
2 hours ago
- Cision Canada
Canada reaffirms international collaboration with the European Space Agency Français
LONGUEUIL, QC, June 6, 2025 /CNW/ - Today, Sherry Romanado, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence, on behalf of the Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Industry and Minister responsible for the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), joined CSA President Lisa Campbell and the Director General of the European Space Agency (ESA), Dr. Josef Aschbacher, at the John H. Chapman Space Centre (the CSA's headquarters in Longueuil). The two heads of space agencies signed a joint statement reaffirming Canada and ESA's unique, proven and productive partnership. This signature marks a key milestone in the mid-term review of the Canada–ESA Cooperation Agreement. For nearly 50 years, the Canada–ESA Cooperation Agreement has advanced Canadian innovation and expertise on the world stage. Canada's unique status as ESA's only non-European cooperating state gives Canadian companies privileged access to the European space market. Every dollar awarded to Canadian companies through ESA contracts generates nearly three dollars in return, benefitting Canadian businesses and injecting value into the Canadian economy. This collaboration helps Canada's space sector build long-term relationships with the European space community and contributes to strengthening innovation, competitiveness, and technological capabilities. It has propelled numerous Canadian organizations to the forefront of their fields, positioning Canadian expertise at the heart of bold international space missions. Dr. Aschbacher's visit to Canada was a unique and timely opportunity to underscore the deep ties between the space programs of Canada and Europe and to emphasize the shared commitment to fortifying their alliance in order to accelerate and grow their respective space sectors. As Canada looks to strengthen its ties with like-minded countries, including those in Europe, this longstanding partnership provides an opportunity and a proven path for Canada to bolster diversification of the space sector for the benefit of Canadians. Quotes "Today's signature is about reaffirming Canada's long-standing commitment to its collaboration with ESA, which has consistently yielded proven results for our Canadian space sector. As our focus is to unleash a new era of growth for our country, space represents the perfect domain to advance innovation and contributes to our goal of building a stronger Canada." — The Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Industry and Minister responsible for the Canadian Space Agency "With this signature and the creation of the ESA–CSA task force, we are finding even more common synergies between ESA's activities and Canada's own priorities and strengthening the long-standing relationship between Europe and Canada. Canada's status as a non-European ESA cooperating state positions Canadian expertise – and industry – at the heart of bold international space missions. In today's geopolitical and economic environment, strong and reliable partnerships are more important than ever. ESA is proud to partner with Canada, and I look forward to our continued successes together." — Dr. Josef Aschbacher, Director General of the European Space Agency Quick facts Funded by the CSA, the Canada–ESA program allows Canadian organizations access to contracts related to ESA programs. Between January 2018 and December 2024, this collaboration led to 233 ESA-funded contracts to 82 Canadian entities, valued at approximately CAN$192 million. Behind these numbers is a growing network of Canadian talent and technology now woven into ESA's most advanced programs – from space robotics to next-generation communications. Canada and ESA have been collaborating in the space sector since the early 1970s. Formal cooperation began in 1979 with the signing of the first Cooperation Agreement. The Agreement has been renewed five times since (1984, 1989, 2000, 2012 and 2019). Dr. Josef Aschbacher's official visit to Canada took place from June 4 to 6, 2025. It included engagements with senior government officials and industry leaders in Ottawa and Montreal. Links SOURCE Canadian Space Agency
Globe and Mail
6 hours ago
- Globe and Mail
New book humanizes Canada's most famous neurosurgeons, Wilder Penfield and William Cone
'There are more connections between the hundred billion neurons in a human brain than there are particles of matter in the known universe.' This description of the brain's complexity appears late in Eric Andrew-Gee's story of neurosurgeons Wilder Penfield and William Cone. Along with a reference to Emily Dickinson, who said the brain is 'wider than the Sky,' the words serve to remind at once how little and how much we know about the organ and, thus, ourselves. But much of what we do know is thanks to the pioneering achievements of the famous Penfield and the forgotten Cone – the men who worked together for decades in what they called a 'double harness.' In The Mind Mappers: Friendship, Betrayal and the Obsessive Quest to Chart the Brain, Andrew-Gee, who is the Quebec correspondent for The Globe and Mail, recounts the story of Penfield's work on the brain, taking us well beyond what readers of a certain age will recall from the 'I can smell burnt toast' Heritage Minute, a reference to which opens the book. Andrew-Gee writes the history of not just Penfield, but also of the people who made his discoveries possible through his surgeries on patients with epilepsy, especially those conducted at Montreal's famous Neurological Institute, known as the Neuro. At the centre of Penfield's work was his best friend, Cone, also a groundbreaking and 'natural' neurosurgeon, but one who shunned credit and spotlight and was overshadowed by his partner. Beyond 'burnt toast': Eric Andrew-Gee probes the story of Penfield and Cone in The Mind Mappers Cone's story is equal parts extraordinary and tragic. As a scientist and surgeon, he was instrumental to the creation of the Neuro, to the mapping of the brain, to Penfield's success and to the care and well-being of his many patients. He invented surgical tools. He revolutionized methods of making surgical processes sterile. He helped lead a neurosurgery hospital in England during the Second World War. He also died by suicide in 1959 after struggling with mental health issues and, quite likely, his own sexuality (and possibly romantic and unrequited feelings toward Penfield). He died during a time, as Andrew-Gee notes, when approaches to both mental health and homosexuality were barbarous. This book is remarkable because it tells several stories in parallel, including histories in miniature of brain science, Canada, Quebec, Montreal and McGill University throughout the early-to-mid 20th century. Each of these intersects and enlivens the rest without any seeming superfluous, but Mind Mappers is first and foremost two stories. One is the mapping of the brain during an exciting and often gruesome era of discovery. The other is the relationship between Penfield and Cone, which is heavy with pathos in its biographical details and the author's own capacity for insight and compassion. For all the book's intricate and interesting folds, the story of Penfield and Cone is the most compelling of the lot. As Andrew-Gee concludes, 'Cone and Penfield mapped the brain but lost each other.' The theme of their story is asymmetry. Penfield became rich, famous and known to history. Cone did not. Penfield ran the Neuro and was known as 'the Chief.' When it came time to retire and find a replacement, he passed over Cone, who was known around the institute as 'the Boss,' but who was never seriously considered for the top job despite his tireless, at times compulsive, work ethic. Even the private practice the two ran was unevenly split, with Penfield doing fewer surgeries but making the lion's share of the money. Andrew-Gee nonetheless declares in the afterword that Penfield 'can stand easy about the body of work he left behind.' It's an important conclusion drawn from a nuanced reading of history that the author, to his credit, recognizes by way of acknowledging the scope of his own work and focus. 'The crux of my story,' he writes, 'was the worst chapter of Penfield's life – his betrayal of Cone and Cone's subsequent suicide.' Andrew-Gee calls this 'the period that saw Penfield at his least admirable, his most exploitative and self-centered.' The time Andrew-Gee focuses on is of historical importance because it's a relatively short period of several decades, from the 1920s to the late 1950s, during which neuroscience and neurosurgery were professionalized and grew by leaps and bounds. To put it plainly: One would have been desperate, if not utterly foolish, to risk brain surgery in earlier years. By the time Cone died, one's odds of a good outcome had shot way up. The shift in chances of surviving a surgery without serious and permanent damage, and of being cured, grew throughout the intervening years, in large part thanks to Penfield and Cone. And yet Penfield is remembered and Cone is not. Thus Mind Mappers is not just a book, but also the project of rebalancing history and recalling Cone to a contemporary audience. 'In trying to elevate Cone from obscurity,' Andrew-Gee writes, 'I also came to see how much of Penfield's reputation rests on the hidden work of others.' Thanks to this book, that work and those stories, especially Cone's, are no longer so hidden.
CBC
7 hours ago
- CBC
Canada's brightest young minds gather in N.B. to showcase solutions to global challenges
Some of the brightest young scientific minds in Canada are in Fredericton this week, presenting their research into how to solve many of the world's problems, including in the fields of climate change, public health, food security and sustainable energy. "We're a long way from the old days of the baking-soda volcanoes and Styrofoam-ball solar systems," said Reni Barlow, executive director of Youth Science Canada The 63rd annual Canada-Wide Science Fair began Monday, featuring about 340 projects, the best from 100 regional fairs across the country. It's open to the public for a final day on Friday, from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Fifteen of the competitors are from New Brunswick. "These are real-world scientific investigations or engineering innovations, and they really are quite astounding," Barlow said. Project categories include aerospace, agriculture, fisheries and food, digital technology, disease and illness, energy, environment and climate change, natural resources and plain old scientific curiosity. "It really spans quite the gamut," he said. The student scientists are in Grades 7 through 12 and some are from the CEGEP level in Quebec. Grade 7 student Arnav Samanth of Saint John's Millidgeville North School did a project to help improve radiotherapy cancer treatment for patients who have a tumour in the thoracic region. His dad works in cancer treatment. "When the patient breathes, the cancer tumour can move and radiation can go to the wrong areas," Arnav said. "So this is dangerous for the patient." He built a model of a device to coach patients on their breathing during this treatment that is more user friendly and portable than what's currently available. First-year CEGEP student Mateo Jarquin of Sherbrooke, Que., built a robotic hand that can use a camera from anywhere in the world to detect and copy finger movements in real time. "It was a real Tony Stark moment," when he first got it to work, he said. Then, he tested out the remote capability with the help of his cousin in Ontario. "He was able to control the robotic hand as if it was his actual hand," said Mateo. "He didn't have to wear any gloves or physical attachments … that kind of restrict your movements." He said it could have all kinds of applications, like disarming bombs, space exploration or remote surgery. Mateo posts videos on YouTube under the name Mateotechlab. He said he hopes it inspires others to try hands-on learning. "I didn't know how to do any of this before I got started … 3D printing, coding. ... In my opinion, there's no better way to get good at something than to simply start doing it." Grade 10 student Sara Waqas goes to STEM Innovation Academy in Calgary. She likes to read journal articles and watch science videos online and thinks about what she might do to fill the gaps in scientific knowledge. For her project, Sara designed a molecule that she hopes could help the 33 per cent of patients who are resistant to current antipsychotic drugs for schizophrenia. She said it's more effective at targeting dysfunction in the brain, and she hopes it will help improve quality of life and function for people with schizophrenia. Grade 8 student Callie Dennis of Highview Public School in Pembroke, Ont., developed a way to compost plastic using mushrooms. "I see blue oyster mushrooms growing all over in the back behind my cottage, and I saw an article that said maybe mushrooms might have the potential to degrade plastic. So I decided I'm curious about this. I'd like to see for myself." She used mycelium spores on barley to grow mushrooms on plastic bottles. The mushrooms degraded 24 per cent of the plastic. She sees a day when instead of putting plastic bottles in a recycling bin, they can be composted in the backyard. "Our Earth is just infested by this gross plastic stuff. I feel like we should take better care of the place that helps us stay alive." From science fair to real-life applications Almost all of the projects at the science fair are based on a personal interest or hobby, Barlow said. "It's an opportunity to explore what science, technology, engineering and math are about by immersing yourself in a real problem or a real research situation and taking it as far as you can go," he said. "Many of them tell us afterwards that it was a life-changing experience." Some go on to publish or commercialize their projects or start companies. For example, Adam Noble of Peterborough, Ont., won best project in 2013 and went on to found Noblegen, which produces food materials from algae, Barlow said. About 5,000 students from the area are also visiting the fair and a trade show related to science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM, which is happening at the same time.
