Research
Alberta’s strong research base attracts world-class researchers, companies, and research organizations.
Examples of ICT related Alberta research and development organizations include:
National Institute for Nanotechnology (NINT)
Canada’s premier nanotechnology research institute, a provincial-federal initiative, is an integrated, multi-disciplinary institution involving several hundred researchers in physics, chemistry, engineering, biology, informatics, pharmacy, and medicine. This 15,000 square metre facility is one of the world’s most technologically advanced research facilities and houses the ‘quietest’ laboratory space in Canada with ultra-low vibration and minimal acoustic noise or electro-magnetic interference.
Alberta Research Council Inc. (ARC)
ARC partners in strategic ventures to help companies develop early stage ideas into marketable products and services. ARC is a trusted resource for over 900 companies, government agencies, and research organizations around the world in the energy, life sciences, agriculture, environment, forestry, and manufacturing sectors. More than 500 scientists, engineers, business managers, and support staff maintain a multi-million dollar infrastructure of over 100,000 square metres of specialized bench, large-scale manufacturing, and pilot scale facilities.
iCORE Inc.
Exceptional people produce exceptional results. iCORE was established by the Government of Alberta to attract world-class university technology researchers. iCORE targets the highest caliber research scientists in the areas of networks and communications, high performance computing, human and computer interfaces, intelligent information systems, bioinformatics, software systems, and new architectures and devices. Currently 24 research teams are working on solutions and new discoveries in these areas.
TRLabs
TRLabs is Canada’s largest research consortium (industry, university, and government) in information and communications technology. The research program is based on industry/university collaboration that produces original, industry-relevant, pre-competitive research with a time horizon of one to five years. TRLabs operates five laboratories in Western Canada where university professors, graduate students, industrial partners, and staff researchers work together to conduct applied research.
Alberta Ingenuity
This endowment fund develops internationally competitive science and engineering expertise and builds greater capacity for innovation, particularly in areas with lasting social and economic impact. Through a $1 billion Government of Alberta endowment in 2000, Alberta Ingenuity nurtures the discovery of new knowledge and encourages its application to benefit Albertans and the world.
Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research (AHFMR)
Through a $1.5 billion endowment fund, AHFMR supports both biomedical and heath research at Alberta universities, affiliated institutions, and other medical and technology-related institutions. Since 1980, the foundation has directly contributed more than $850 million to the scientific community. In 2004, an International Board of Review lauded AHFMR on its record of programs and achievements.
International Recognition
Researchers that have garnered recognition from the international research community include:
- Dr. Gerrard Lachapelle has helped make Calgary an internationally recognized centre of excellence for GPS. Among other international awards and distinctions, he has been named a Fellow of the Royal Institute of Navigation (UK), and Fellow of the US Institute of Navigation.
- Dr. Jonathan Schaeffer developed the checkers program, Chinook, the first computer program to win a human world championship in any game —an accomplishment noted in the Guinness Book of World Records. He is a Fellow of the American Association for Artificial Intelligence.
- Dr. Richard McCreery, a leading American chemist in molecular-scale electronics, relocated to Alberta to continue his research at NINT. He is a recipient of the C.N. Reilley Award, American Chemical Society Award in Electrochemistry, and a Fellow of the Electrochemical Society.
