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High school students get taste of campus life as DC hosts FIRST® Robotics Competition

While competing in the FIRST® Robotics Competition (FRC) Ontario District Durham College (DC) event on February 29 and March 1, high school students from across the province also got a first look at where they could be headed next while visiting the college’s Oshawa campus.

For the sixth year in a row, DC hosted more than 1,000 of the province’s brightest young minds, along with their mentors, family, friends and fellow robot enthusiasts, at the annual event. Competitors demonstrated their technological and engineering skills as they operated complex, 140-pound robots they had designed and built in only six weeks.

During the competition’s opening ceremonies DC president Don Lovisa shared additional campus highlights with attendees, including the recent launch of two new applied research centres: the Mixed Reality Capture Studio and the Centre for Cybersecurity Innovation.

After two days of intensive battles, organized with the help of numerous, dedicated volunteers, the following teams comprising the Red Alliance were declared district champions:

  • Alliance Captain: Team 188 – Blizzard (Toronto)
  • Team 2200 – MMRambotics (Burlington)
  • Team 8089 – Rockway (Kitchener)

Also notable was the winning team of the Chairman’s Award winner, Team 4039 – MakeShift Robotics (Hamilton), which is the most prestigious award a team can win. The Chairman’s Award honours the team that best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the mission of FIRST. It was created to keep the central focus of FRC on the ultimate goal of transforming the culture in ways that will inspire greater levels of respect and honour for science and technology, as well as encouraging more of today’s youth to become science and technology leaders.

See all awards winners and results.

Students had a lot of fun while gaining real-world engineering experience, developing leadership skills and learning to work as a team under pressure and tight timelines. 

Winners of the DC event now move on to the FIRST® Ontario Provincial Championship at the Paramount Fine Foods Centre in Mississauga, April 10 and 11, where they will compete for a spot at the World Championships that will be held in Detroit, Michigan, from April 29 to May 2.

Learn more about FRC.

DC’s recent Tech Talk hosted high-profile industry experts to explore the future of artificial intelligence and gaming

Durham College’s Hub for Applied Research in Artificial Intelligence for Business Solutions (AI Hub) hosted another sold out Tech Talk on December 2 – this time, focusing on the potential of artificial intelligence (AI) in the gaming sector, an industry comprised of over 2.3 billion gamers and worth more than $100 billion globally.

Simon Gill, director of Economic Development and Tourism at the Regional Municipality of Durham, and Shaun Collier, mayor of the Town of Ajax, joined more than 120 other attendees to hear the keynote presentation from Menashe Kestenbaum, founder and president of Enthusiast Gaming. A panel discussion followed, featuring Tanmay Bakshi, the world’s youngest IBM Watson programmer and an AI expert; Mahdi Raza, founder and CEO of SiberX; Michael Ball, information security advisor and vCISO at TeamCISO; and Sarah Wagg, manager of DC’s Esports Gaming Arena.

During the panel the speakers explored potential growth opportunities for AI and gaming, touching on how students can find success in these sectors and how the Durham Region may benefit from the rise of esports.

At the end of the session, the AI Hub team announced its second annual Enable AI Summit. Taking place on Friday, June 5 at DC, the summit will focus on developing and supporting Smart Communities. To help potential attendees prepare, Tech Talks over the next six months will address community related topics such as AI and transportation, agriculture, mental health and more.

Further details about the Enable AI Summit will be released as they become available.

DC announces new business incubator for social entrepreneurs

Durham College (DC) is pleased to share that its FastStartDC program has launched SHIFT, a new business start-up accelerator service designed to support social enterprises and entrepreneurs, as they work towards making a positive social, environmental or economic impact on the world.

The unique service was announced in front of more than 100 DC students, employees, community partners and local business leaders at a launch party co-hosted by the Business Advisory Centre Durham as part of Do It in Durham’s Entrepreneurship Week, held on November 22 in DC’s Global Classroom.

During the event, attendees heard from the member of parliament for Whitby, Ryan Turnbull, , who spoke briefly about the benefits of social entrepreneurship, as well as a panel of social entrepreneurs, including Janet Nezon, founder, Rainbow Plate; Shaun Frankson, co-founder and chief technology officer, Plastic Bank; Elisa Birnbaum, journalist, author and editor, SEE Change Magazine; and Dan Kershaw, executive director, Furniture Bank. Hosted by DC professor Lon Appleby, the panel discussion focused on shifting entrepreneurial mindsets to create businesses that will make a positive impact.

“Great things happen when entrepreneurship and social thinking go hand-in-hand,” said Dr. Elaine Popp, vice president, Academic. “We have seen so many incredible student entrepreneurs working with the FastStartDC team to develop products, brands and businesses. Now the next generation of students will be able to take advantage of all that FastStartDC has to offer but can do so while building a culture of social change through entrepreneurial thinking and action all thanks to SHIFT.”

SHIFT is the first FastStartDC service to support both students and social entrepreneurs from across Durham Region. FastStartDC is an extra-curricular entrepreneurship program housed within DC’s 360insights Entrepreneurship Centre in the Centre for Collaborative Education that offers DC students access to entrepreneurial services and training programs.

DC helps launch Canadian College Consortium for Cannabis

Durham College (DC), a recognized leader in cannabis education programming, has partnered with four Canadian colleges and a national advocacy body to form the Canadian College Consortium for Cannabis, an entity that will serve as a first-of-its-kind in the post-secondary sector. 

DC is joined by NorQuest, Niagara and Okanagan colleges and Collège communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick (CCNB) as founding members. A sixth seat will go to Colleges and Institutes Canada (CiCan).

“When post-secondary institutions join forces everybody wins,” says Dr. Elaine Popp, vice president, Academic, DC. “This consortium clearly recognizes the inherent opportunities within Canada’s fast-growing cannabis industry. Members also understand the value of working together to uncover solutions, drive education and advance the industry’s economic impact to keep momentum going.”

An MOU has been signed by all partners.

“The MOU will see us advance and action four main areas of focus,” says Debbie Johnston, dean of DC’s School of Continuing Education. “Generating a cohesive picture of the cannabis market; developing workforce-relevant courses and programs; establishing a cluster of subject matter experts; and pursuing shared funding for applied research.”

The consortium is a natural extension of DC’s leadership in cannabis-related post-secondary programming. In 2017, the college launched the two-day, introductory-level Medical Cannabis Fundamentals for Business Professionals course, the first of its kind to be offered by an Ontario college. Most recently, DC announced its Cannabis Industry Specialization program – a series of five short courses, primarily designed to provide professionals who are interested in moving into the industry with solid insights into this complex and rapidly-evolving area.

Working together, the consortium member institutions will leverage their wealth of resources – including subject matter expertise and industry connections – to influence and advance both education and research across Canada’s cannabis industry.

It is expected that the consortium will grow in size as more colleges enter the world of cannabis programming.

DC students create wayfinding tool for Oshawa Valley Botanical Gardens

Durham College (DC), with TeachingCity Oshawa, is proud to announce the launch of new Augmented Reality (AR) technology to encourage the community to explore and learn about the Oshawa Valley Botanical Gardens.

The community can now use their smartphone cameras, to scan Quick Response (QR) codes placed on signage throughout the park to learn about the park, points of interest and utilize a navigation guide between landmarks.

 “The innovative experiential learning opportunities created through Durham College’s partnership with TeachingCity give students the chance to investigate and problem solve, strengthening the skills they learn in the classroom,” said Don Lovisa, president, DC. “This augmented reality wayfinding app is just one example of the incredible things that are possible when we leverage the talent of our students and faculty in partnership with and in support of our community.”

Students researched, designed and created the AR platform as part of a TeachingCity partnership with the City of Oshawa and the Durham College’s (DC) Office of Research Services, Innovation and Entrepreneurship and School of Media, Art and Design. This was a pilot project that will be enhanced through future collaborations with DC students. The City and the College are also exploring the possibility of expanding the technology to include other City parks.

Durham College joins SHARCNET to advance applied research at AI Hub

Durham College (DC) is pleased to announce that it has become a member of the Shared Hierarchical Academic Research Computing Network (SHARCNET) to support the high-performance computing (HPC) requirements of the college’s Hub for Applied Research in Artificial Intelligence for Business Solutions (the AI Hub). Established in 2001, SHARCNET is the largest HPC consortium in Canada, which includes 18 universities, colleges and research institutes across southwestern, central and northern Ontario.

By participating in the SHARCNET ecosystem, applied researchers and students at the AI Hub will have access to an on-demand selection of specialized software that will allow them to create, host and deploy their own applications. Additionally, accelerated computing power, increased memory and storage will support the development of large-scale, enterprise-grade prototypes faster and more efficiently for clients and applied research partners.

“Becoming a member of the SHARCNET consortium is very exciting and a significant benefit for faculty and student researchers at the college. Access to valuable software and high-performance computing capabilities will not only drive efficiencies in our research projects, but will also allow us to reduce cost and project time, impacting customer satisfaction and increasing research output,” said Debbie McKee Demczyk, dean, Office of Research Services, Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

Leveraging ORION’s digital infrastructure, the AI Hub will be able to access all that SHARCNET has to offer through cloud technology, without the need for on-site hardware installation. As a member of the consortium, AI Hub faculty and students will also have access to ongoing training programs, webinars, workshops and HPC resources offered by SHARCNET.

For more information, please visit www.sharcnet.ca.

DC to host Global Cyberlympics Finals in October

Durham College (DC) in partnership with The Regional Municipality of Durham announced earlier this morning at an official media launch that they will be co-hosting the Global Cyberlympics Finals on Saturday, October 26 at the Oshawa campus. Organized by EC-Council and SiberX, this will be the first time that the highly-competitive event will be held in Canada.

The Global Cyberlympics is an ethical hacking and cyber security competition that pits teams from all over the world against each other to compete in a series of challenges in areas such as digital forensics, malware analysis and cryptography. Following the 12-hour online elimination round on Saturday, September 7, finalists will compete for the winning title during the in-person Finals competition at DC. The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony, to be held in Ajax, after the competition.

“We are so excited and proud to be hosting this unique competition at Durham College and seeing the very best talent in cyber security and artificial intelligence descend on the Durham Region for one of the most advanced competitions worldwide,” said Dr. Elaine Popp, vice president, Academic at DC. “As we continue to encourage advancement in the field of cyber security, I am confident this event will encourage interest and present new opportunities to address the talent gap that exists in this sector.”

“Durham Region is a hotbed of innovative thinking; a place where a diverse and inclusive workforce drives innovation and creativity,” said John Henry, Regional Chair and Chief Executive Officer for Durham Region. “Durham College plays a strong role within this innovative ecosystem—offering collaborative research, leading-edge innovation, and market-driven academic programming that is transforming our communities. We look forward to an engaging series of events, coming to Durham Region this fall.”

Since its inception in 2012, the Cyberlympics have seen more than 2,100 participants from 500 teams and 75 countries compete. Last year’s event included finalists from locations such as Brazil, Netherlands, India, Nigeria and Australia.

DC announces new Certified Threat Intelligence Analyst training program

Durham College (DC) is pleased to announce that its Hub for Applied Research in Artificial Intelligence for Business Solutions (the AI Hub) and the School of Continuing Education will be delivering the first Canadian training session of the Certified Threat Intelligence Analyst (CTIA) course.

Offered in collaboration with International Council of Electronic Commerce Consultants (EC-Council), SiberX, and the Town of Ajax, the three-day course will take place from Wednesday, October 15 to Friday, October 18 in Ajax. The CTIA course was announced at the CISO Forum Canada event on August 22 in Niagara Falls, Ont. by DC President Don Lovisa.

“As technology advances and cyber threats become more sophisticated and complex, it’s crucial for security professionals to have access to relevant, specialized training that will prepare them for the ever-changing threat landscape,” says Lovisa. “This unique course offers a holistic and modern approach to threat intelligence that will equip professionals with the tools they need to protect their organizations.” 

The CTIA course has been designed and developed in collaboration with cyber security and threat intelligence experts across the globe to help organizations identify and mitigate business risks by converting unknown internal and external threats into known threats. It is a comprehensive, specialist-level program that teaches a structured approach for building effective threat intelligence and is compliant to government and industry published frameworks.

The course is delivered in a compressed three-day in-classroom format and prepares participants to challenge the Certified Threat Intelligence Analyst Certification exam by EC-Council. EC-Council is a world leader in cyber security and this credential is an industry-recognized certification.

“With a focus on teaching a detect, respond and defeat approach to cyber security, course attendees will be qualified to develop their own comprehensive threat intelligence program,” says Dr. Elaine Popp, vice president, Academic at DC. “The completion of this course will benefit participants by increasing their employability in the cyber security and threat intelligence sectors.”

For more information or to register for the course, please visit www.durhamcollege.ca/CTIA.

Lakeridge Health and Durham College project applies artificial intelligence to predict emergency department wait times

A new partnership between Lakeridge Health and Durham College’s (DC) Hub for Applied Research in Artificial Intelligence for Business Solutions (the AI Hub) will test the power of artificial intelligence (AI) to predict how long an individual will wait in the emergency department (ED), improving decision making and the patient’s experience in the ED.

The 40-week project, led by DC faculty researcher Amit Maraj and a team of four research assistants from the Computer Programmer Analyst program, will result in a prototype for an AI-infused recommender system. If successful, this system would make individual wait-time predictions for ED visits based on the person’s condition, what ED they are visiting and the time of day and year. The predictions would also take into account a person’s individual health status and other factors, including staffing, the number of people waiting for care and the urgency of everyone’s needs.

“People waiting in the emergency department often feel frustration and anxiety because they don’t know how long they will be there or what to expect,” said Dr. Ilan Lenga, chief information officer and chief medical information officer of Lakeridge Health. “We are pleased to be able to harness the ingenuity of the students and faculty at Durham College to develop a system that will benefit the community and improve people’s experiences in the emergency departments.”

The program team will look at a set of actual, anonymized patient data from the past to build a system – using machine learning – that can predict with a high degree of accuracy their wait time given everything that was happening in the ED at the time that they visited.

“We are excited about this opportunity to collaborate with Lakeridge Health to optimize the use of our health-care system’s resources using artificial intelligence,” said Don Lovisa, president, DC. “The work we are doing in this project has the potential to be tremendously helpful for patients while showcasing the real-world application of AI in a health-care setting in a way that will positively impact the system as a whole.”

Personalized predictions are important because emergency departments must treat the most urgent patients first, and do not operate on a “first-come, first-served” basis.

DC’s AI Hub receives $210,000 from Ontario Centre of Excellence

Durham College (DC) is pleased to announce that its Hub for Applied Research in Artificial Intelligence for Business Solutions (the AI Hub) received $210,000 in May from Ontario Centre of Excellence (OCE) for the College Voucher for Technology Adoption (CVTA) program.

Through the CVTA program, student teams guided by college faculty will act as consultants to local businesses, applying their skills and training to solve industry challenges related to innovation and technology adoption.

The funding awarded to DC will allow the college’s AI Hub to work with 21 small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) who are facing barriers in the face of AI adoption, preparing them for pre- and post-AI development, including data collection and processing, algorithm selection, and the development of IT infrastructure, API or cloud computing servers. SMEs participating in the program will receive access to faculty and student expertise, collaborative workspace and valuable programs and resources.

 “Very few companies have in place the foundational building blocks that enable them to develop an effective AI solution that can generate value at scale,” said Dr. Elaine Popp, vice president, Academic. “We are thrilled that this funding will allow us to further support local businesses as they implement AI capabilities into their business systems, all while giving our students more opportunities for experiential learning.”

The college currently has a roster of projects lined up as a result of this funding with 10 vouchers still available for businesses interested in initiating a project with the AI Hub.

 “This funding is allowing 1COMMUNITY1 to connect with a diverse and passionate team of students that are eager to share their expertise, and who exhibit an honest and dedicated interest in fulfilling the success of our project,” said Kevin Craddock, chief technology officer, 1COMMUNITY1 – one of 11 current voucher recipients working with the AI Hub. “With this support, we have the opportunity to collaborate on innovative solutions that will help us leverage artificial intelligence to engage community through unique and accessible interactions.”

This is the second round of funding that the college has received from OCE for the CVTA program. The most recent funding of $100,000 allowed the AI Hub to develop technology-based solutions for 10 SMEs, including automation, online collaborative tools, and data visualization.