Litoiu has won awards before, but these particular ones stem from his pioneering work in cloud computing, the next big evolution in computing technology. “It’s one of the hot topics in computing these days,” he says. Since cloud computing surfaced as a brilliant idea in 2007, he’s led much of the exploration into this new frontier.

Right: Marin Litoiu

Cloud computing will spell the end of desktop computers and institutional servers in five to 10 years, predicts Litoiu. Instead, hardware functions such as storage, memory and processing, and office and enterprise software will be provided and managed automatically from remote servers via the Internet (or “cloud”).

Through the Internet, off-site service providers will automatically update software, provide security and guarantee uninterrupted service. Software as a Service, as it’s called, will be cheaper, more convenient and more reliable, says Litoiu.

He compares it to the evolution of electricity delivery. In the early days, companies and institutions used their own generators to supply power. Now we all plug into a remote continental grid.

At 91��ɫ, a few cluster groups, including his own, already operate on clouds. Facebook and Google run on cloud computing systems, though they’re not completely automated, he says. Banks don’t yet, but “it’s just a matter of time before everything is run on virtual systems.”

Litoiu started his career as a computer science professor in Romania. He immigrated to Canada in 1996 and started a second PhD, this one in systems engineering. Within a year, IBM recruited him as a senior researcher at its Centre for Advanced Studies, where he led more than 30 research projects with academics and partners across the globe.

In 2007, when the idea of cloud computing began percolating in labs around the world, IBM created the Centre of Excellence for Research in Adaptive Systems () and appointed him director. “We were among the first in the world to create a centre to look at this very new concept of cloud computing,” says Litoiu.

Even after his return to academia in 2008, when he joined 91��ɫ’s School of Information Technology, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, Litoiu continues to collaborate with IBM on developing computing tools and infrastructure. “I’m a strong believer in collaborating with industry because it gives students industrial experience and a chance to apply their skills to real problems. I want their theses to be relevant.”

This year, IBM named him CAS (Centre for Advanced Studies) . The award recognizes Litoiu's leadership in cloud computing research, research that benefits IBM and industry at large, and Litoiu’s continuing efforts to share his research and knowledge with IBM developers.

Left: Marin Litoiu (left) accepts Faculty Fellow of the Year award from IBM's Bart Vashaw

Litoiu specializes in adaptive computing systems – in computers that take care of themselves. In naming him Faculty Fellow of the Year, IBM cited two of his collaborative research projects. One was “Real-time monitoring and simulations of business processes”, which aimed to pinpoint then shorten delays in automated functions, such as those used in finance and human resources applications. The other was developing a business-driven cloud optimization architecture, which resulted in several prototypes and papers. One paper won the at the 2010 Association for Computing Machinery Symposium on Applied Computing in Switzerland in March.

In 2009, Litoiu also won the IBM Project of the Year Award for building a two-layered cloud computing model for desktop virtualization: the first layer would provide storage and raw computation; the second, services such as software management (see YFile Dec. 18, 2008).

“These awards validate my assumption that the work we do is meaningful and has an impact not only on the academic community but also on industry, on one of the biggest players in the world in computing,” says Litoiu, of IBM. “The other important thing is that students involved in the research are directly or indirectly exposed to the industry and industrial technology and that their research is rewarded as well.”

At 91��ɫ, Litoiu leads a research team of 12 post-doc and graduate students. Soon they will be working in a new lab dedicated to cloud computing research. The Natural Sciences & Engineering Research Council of Canada has just granted him $234,000, and IBM has made up the difference for a total of $500,000 to start a new project in cloud computing.

“We live in a pretty exciting world,” says Litoiu. “There are a lot of things to be done in computing. We’re not even halfway through this computer revolution.”

By Martha Tancock, YFile contributing writer

Republished courtesy of YFile– 91��ɫ’s daily e-bulletin

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and 91��ɫ have launched Change Inc., a collaboration that will incubate and invest in promising innovations to tackle complex social issues and build capacity in 91��ɫ Region.

Daniele Zanotti, CEO of United Way, and Stan Shapson, vice-president research & innovation at 91��ɫ, made the announcement at Deloitte’s head offices in Vaughan as part of United Way Week (Oct. 4 to 8).

“We are proud to announce Change Inc. − a critical strategy in United Way’s impact agenda − in collaboration with 91��ɫ and our advisory group of business leaders,” said Zanotti.  “For our region to be great for all residents, we need a new infrastructure to incubate ideas and shift the way we solve social problems.”

“Change Inc. is transformative for 91��ɫ, for United Way and for capacity building in our community,” said Shapson. “Change Inc. will provide seed funding, space and support services to social innovators and entrepreneurs. It will provide better access to 91��ɫ’s research, graduate students and the programs − such as knowledge mobilization − that support their work with the region. It will match social innovators with business-leader mentors. This approach advances and broadens 91��ɫ’s innovation agenda, builds on our strong partnership with United Way, and engages 91��ɫ Region’s corporate leaders in social innovation, which is a persistent gap in Canada’s innovation agenda.”

Change Inc. will work with its Innovation Advisory Board, established in June, to actively develop a sustainable strategy. Co-chaired by Zanotti and Shapson, its current members include:
·         Charles Beer, board chair, United Way of 91��ɫ Region.
·         Anthony Gallo, vice-president, Social Media, OpenText
·         Pat Horgan, vice-president, Manufacturing, Development and Operations, IBM
·         Debora Kelly, editor-in-chief, 91��ɫ Region Media Group
·         Young Park, sector vice-president, CGI
·         Avi Pollock, head, Applied Innovation and Strategic Planning, RBC

“Change Inc. builds on the United Way’s Strength Investments announced earlier this week,” said Zanotti. “Together with our current program funding, Strength Investments and Change Inc. provide a continuum of support for people, groups and agencies doing good work across 91��ɫ Region.”  Information about the .

“Congratulations to United Way, 91��ɫ and the business advisory board for disrupting the status quo with the announcement of Change Inc. − an opportunity to research, try and scale new ideas to address social challenges,” said Lorrie King, partner, , and member of the 2010 United Way Campaign Cabinet. “Deloitte is a champion of United Way and a champion of innovation. At Deloitte, innovation is at the very cornerstone of our corporate strategic directions, and our own leading-edge research, across all sectors, clearly identifies innovation as the driver of long-term success and sustainability.”

Over the coming months, Change Inc. will announce its office location and release information about a community innovation summit, pilot projects and funding opportunities.

Republished courtesy of YFile– 91��ɫ’s daily e-bulletin

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, along with the Regional Municipality of 91��ɫ, the Town of Markham and YRDSB organized the tour to educate students about the potential of medical and biotechnology research and development in the region. As part of their day, the students also visited IBM, Estée Lauder, Apotex, AMD Markham, MDS Sciex, Dalton Pharma Services, sanofi pasteur, 91��ɫ Central Hospital, Markham Stouffville Hospital and Seneca College at 91��ɫ, to see how successes of scientific and health innovation contribute to the quality of life of Canadians.

During their visit to 91��ɫ's Keele campus, the students, led by Emmanuel Matiya, a 91��ɫ student ambassador for the University's Recruitment Division, had the opportunity to tour the new Sherman Health Sciences Research Centre. The building, which is set to open this fall, is home to researchers in the health, science and engineering fields. Students toured the future labs of the Centre for Vision Research and learned how biomedical and assistive technology experiments will be conducted. With support from the Faculty of Health, the high-school students also visited the School of Nursing's resource centre to watch how nursing students can run clinical simulations on low- to high-fidelity mannequins.

“Setting the foundation for future entrepreneurship and scientific innovation is an important role that YORKbiotech plays in the growth of the bio-economy in the 91��ɫ Region,” said Janet LeClair, chief administrative officer of YORKbiotech Inc. “Through programs like the Science in Action tour we are able to demonstrate the value of collaboration by bringing students closer to research and business in various sectors.”

91��ɫ Region is in the heart of a hub of Ontario's innovative technology sector with over 120 companies involved in producing medical devices, biopharma and medical assistive devices. In addition, more than 900 companies in the information and communications technology, digital media, software and manufacturing sectors reside in the region.

YORKbiotech is a regional innovation network for biotechnology-related industries at the centre of the Greater Toronto Area. The mission of YORKbiotech is to act as a catalyst, harnessing the wealth of intellectual and technical resources to promote economic success and growth of the biotechnology and related industries as a key component of regional economic development. Read their about this event.

By Sana Mulji Dutt, research communications specialist, YORKbiotech.

Republished courtesy of YFile– 91��ɫ’s daily e-bulletin.

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How do you look at millions of genomic patterns and see the diagnostic implications? How do you assimilate satellite data to better predict and visualize the effects of global warming, pollution, and weather patterns? How can you chart the global migration of millions of people under slavery? How do you assess the impact millions of blog entries have had on the print media economy? How do you sift global intelligence reports to identify the real threats?

Each day, humanity poses thousands of similar questions as we produce massive data sets in every field − but as the data grows, the challenge becomes translating this data for the human senses and delivering the best analysis to solve real-world problems.

The Centre for Innovation in Information Visualization and Data-Driven Design (CIV-DDD), led by 91��ɫ in partnership with the (OCAD), promises to develop the next generation of data discovery, design, and visualization techniques by developing new computational tools, representational strategies, and interfaces.

The $11.5 million five-year project brings together a unique multidisciplinary team of over 50 researchers from 91��ɫ, OCAD, the University of Toronto, 14 industry partners, and significant international collaborators.

(left), Canada Research Chair in Computational Vision and Distinguished Research Professor of Vision Science at 91��ɫ, is the project’s principal investigator. , professor of artificial intelligence and data mining in the Faculty of Science & Engineering, will co-lead 91��ɫ’s team of 14 researchers, who include , professor and chair of the Department of Computer Science & Engineering, and , Canada Research Chair in Digital Culture and associate professor of film in the Faculty of Fine Arts.

Sara Diamond, visualization design researcher and president of the Ontario College of Art & Design, will lead OCAD’s team of 12 researchers, who include Vladimir Spicanovic, dean of the Faculty of Art, and Greg van Alstyne, professor in the Faculty of Design and director of Research, Strategic Innovation Lab.

has provided over $3.8 million in funding through the Ontario Research Fund-Research Excellence Program; industry partners will contribute over $3.6 million, with the remaining $4.1 million coming from the project’s institutional partners.

“Humans’ capacity to interpret sensory stimuli is limited, which is why the human processing strategy is to attend to the relevant and ignore the irrelevant,” says Tsotsos. “Determining what’s relevant is a key task. Equally important is discovering how best to present such data in a form that is quickly and effectively understood. By combining our team’s expertise in computer science, design, digital media, visual perceptual science, fine arts, and the social sciences, CIV-DDD will discover and provide new visualizations for underlying patterns, processes, and relationships within data sets. These in turn will suggest new research directions and applications, laying the foundation for a new wave of knowledge creation and technological products.”

CIV-DDD formalizes many existing research collaborations, both within 91��ɫ’s faculties and departments and among researchers at 91��ɫ, OCAD, and U of T. “In the new paradigm of data-driven discovery, art and design researchers have a profound role to play in partnership with scientists, making the invisible visible, heralding a new era of knowledge, cultural creation, and technological products,” said Diamond. “This preeminent research hub for the development of next-generation data visualization techniques is unique in its level of interdisciplinary fire power, strong collaboration with end-users and international links. It aggregates and extends much successful collaboration amongst the researchers, and between OCAD and 91��ɫ.”

Many techniques and technologies developed by research groups associated with CIV-DDD will become resources for the entire team as they focus on new data-driven design and information visualization solutions in four thematic areas:

• bioinformatics and medicine
• fine and performing arts
• engineering and physical sciences
• humanities and social sciences

Collaboration between industry and academia is crucial to the project’s success. “Platform Computing is honoured to support the CIV-DDD project and provide the students and researchers at 91��ɫ and the OCAD with cutting-edge technologies to explore and create the next generation of visualization solutions and services and help them tackle scientific, social and human challenges,” said Jingwen Wang, vice-president, products, at . “Collaboration and information sharing are fundamental to academic research and Platform products enable researchers and students to easily collaborate and manage data and resources to capture, simulate and analyze their results.”

CIV-DDD’s industry partners highlight its wide applicability across sectors, including:

• Mass media and communications studies, ethnography, and cultural studies −
• Enterprise and knowledge management businesses −
• Technology service providers − , , and
• Physics −
• Sustainable, intelligent systems, and green technology −
• Computer and communication technologies − , , and
• Entertainment and Web-related industries − , , and
• Research and innovative presentation −
• Business intelligence work − and
• Mobile technology and applications developers − Zameen
• Medicine and bioinformatics − U of T’s , the , and McMaster University’s

“CIV-DDD responds both to a dramatic paradigm shift in the health, social and economic challenges facing Canadians and the need for more research capacity and state-of-the-art infrastructure in this region,” said Stan Shapson, 91��ɫ’s vice-president Research & Innovation. “It also builds on the existing strengths of 91��ɫ’s , the Institute for Research on Learning Technologies in the Faculty of Education, and in the Faculty of Fine Arts, among others.

“By leading the Consortium on New Media, Creative, and Entertainment R&D in the Toronto Region (CONCERT), 91��ɫ and its partner universities and industries identified the preconditions necessary to develop a high-end visualization industry in Ontario. This unique collaboration will help fulfill one of CONCERT’s long-term objectives, which was to grow the region’s entertainment, screen-based and other innovation-driven creative industries into a globally competitive cluster.”

CIV-DDD will also support Ontario’s economy by producing innovative technology for commercialization, such as new:

• data-mining algorithms
• 3D-vision and 3D-modeling technologies
• data-display tools and protocols
• visualization-design methods and techniques
• data-inquiry paradigms
• user-friendly interfaces that can be scaled to a variety of screen displays
• new aesthetics and research practices

“We’re proud of the cutting-edge work that our researchers do at 91��ɫ and the wealth and jobs they create in 91��ɫ West and across Ontario,” said , MPP for 91��ɫ West. “New discoveries will continue to be made and we want those people, those ideas and those jobs right here in our community.”

CIV-DDD is one of 21 projects funded by the Ontario Research Fund–Research Excellence program, which has provided almost $69.5 million to support more than 214 researchers in seven cities across Ontario. The Ontario Research Fund is a key part of the province’s Innovation Agenda, a $3.2 million strategy designed to move world-class research from the lab to the global marketplace in key areas such as life sciences, digital media, and green energy to ensure Ontario will be among the 21^st Century’s winning economies. The Research Excellence program helps develop Ontario’s research talent while ensuring Ontario researchers have the operating funding they need to undertake world-leading projects.

For a full list of funded projects, visit MRI’s .

91��ɫ’s researchers:

• John Tsotsos, Canada Research Chair in Computational Vision, distinguished research professor of vision science, Faculty of Science & Engineering, and member of the Centre for Vision Research (CVR)
• Nick Cercone, professor of artificial intelligence and data mining, Faculty of Science & Engineering
• Amir Asif, associate professor and chair of the Department of Computer Science & Engineering, Faculty of Science & Engineering
• Caitlin Fisher, Canada Research Chair in Digital Culture and assistant professor of film, Faculty of Fine Arts
• Robert Allison, associate professor, Department of Computer Science & Engineering, Faculty of Science & Engineering
• Melanie Baljko, assistant professor, Department of Computer Science & Engineering, Faculty of Science & Engineering
• James Elder, associate professor, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Health and a member of CVR
• Jimmy Huang, associate professor of information technology, Faculty of Science & Engineering
• Michael Jenkin, professor, Department of Computer Science & Engineering, Faculty of Science & Engineering and a member of CVR
• Jennifer Jenson, associate professor of pedagogy and technology, Faculty of Education
• Paul E. Lovejoy, distinguished research professor in the Department of History and Canada Research Chair in African Diaspora History
• Don Sinclair, professor and coordinator of Fine Arts Cultural Studies, Faculty of Fine Arts
• Wolfgang Stuerzlinger, associate professor, Department of Computer Science & Engineering, Faculty of Science & Engineering, and a member of CVR
• Nell Tenhaaf, associate professor, Department of Visual Arts, Faculty of Fine Arts, and associate dean, Graduate Studies, Research, Planning, in the Faculty of Fine Arts.
• Laurie Wilcox, associate professor of psychology and biology, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Health and associate director of CVR
• Richard Wildes, associate professor, Department of Computer Science & Engineering, Faculty of Science & Engineering

OCAD’s researchers:

• Sara Diamond, visualization design researcher and president of the Ontario College of Art & Design
• Vladimir Spicanovic, dean, Faculty of Art
• Greg van Alstyne, professor, Faculty of Design and director of research, Strategic Innovation Lab
• Patricio Davila, assistant professor, Faculty of Design
• Paula Gardner, associate professor, Faculty of Liberal Studies
• Julian Goss, professor, Faculty of Design, and chair of Industrial Design
• Anda Kubis, associate professor, Faculty of Art, and chair of Drawing and Painting
• Martha Ladly, associate professor and director of the Interdisciplinary Art, Media and Design Program
• Francis LeBouthillier, sculpture and installation artist and chair of Sculpture and Installation
• Laura Millard, associate professor, Faculty of Art
• Luke Painter, assistant professor, Faculty of Art
• Barbara Rauch, assistant professor, Digital Futures Initiative, Faculty of Design
• Suzanne Stein, associate professor, Digital Futures Initiative, Faculty of Design

U of T’s researchers:

• Ravin Balakrishnan, associate professor of Computer Science and Canada Research Chair in Human-Centred Interfaces in the Department of Computer Science
• Karan Singh, associate professor of Computer Science, Department of Computer Science

By Elizabeth Monier-Williams, research communications officer. Photos courtesy of YFile – 91��ɫ’s daily e-bulletin.

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