news 2023

Popular virtual assistant technology reinforces stereotyped and sexist expectations of gendered labour, according to a new study University of Waterloo professor and Canada Research Chair in Technology and Social Change Dr. Lai-Tze Fan analyzed hundreds of Amazon's virtual assistant Alexa's voice-driven skills.

Topics Western researchers have unveiled crucial insights into the sleep health of middle-aged and older adults in Canada, identifying social determinants that contribute to disparities in sleep satisfaction, efficiency, and duration. The study revealed that men report sleeping better than women, and contrary to previously held beliefs, sleep actually improves with age.

When speaking to one another, much of the communication occurs nonverbally - through body posture, hand gestures, and the eyes. Our eye gaze during conversations therefore reveals a wealth of information about our attention, intention, or psychological states.

People in Ontario who had recently been incarcerated were at far greater risk of opioid toxicity death during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new study from a Simon Fraser University researcher. The study, published in the journal PLOS One , by SFU criminologist Amanda Butler and colleagues from McMaster University and the University of Toronto, assessed the impacts of the pandemic on opioid toxicity death rates for individuals exposed and not exposed to incarceration in Ontario.

Research and collection of microbiome samples from Indigenous communities has a history of exploiting and harming Indigenous peoples Research on the trillions of microorganisms that make up a person's microbiome can lead to medical breakthroughs to treat diseases like inflammatory bowel syndrome and diabetes.

Research and collection of microbiome samples from Indigenous communities has a history of exploiting and harming Indigenous peoples Research on the trillions of microorganisms that make up a person's microbiome can lead to medical breakthroughs to treat diseases like inflammatory bowel syndrome and diabetes.

Two UdeM nutrition graduates went to the Newfoundland and Labrador community to identify nutrition problems among Indigenous youth. Last April and May, Université de Montréal researchers Ariane Lafortune and Milena Nardocci spent three weeks in Miawpukek , an Indigenous community in Newfoundland and Labrador.

More than 597,000 Canadians are living with Alzheimer's or another form of dementia, and yet big gaps remain in healthcare support. It's estimated that 85 per cent of people living with dementia are not receiving support after their diagnosis. And research shows being engaged in community is one of the biggest factors in slowing the condition's progression.

Study compares UV exposure and behaviours among different groups in with the goal of improving public health efforts aimed at reducing melanoma rates A new study led by McGill University examines why people living in Atlantic regions are more at-risk for developing melanoma than other Canadians, providing lessons on skin cancer prevention for the whole country.

In an era of unprecedented LGBTQ2+ visibility coupled with incredible backlash, coming out as a sexual minority can be a deeply ambivalent experience, according to new research. In a study published in Theory and Society , sociologists Dr. Amin Ghaziani and Andy Holmes conducted in-depth interviews with 52 adult Vancouverites about their experiences coming out over the last five years.

Reversing a 40-year decline in Pacific salmon populations requires a collaborative approach that combines traditional Indigenous knowledge with archaeology and genomics. A new project, funded by Genome BC, involves a team of researchers from the Tsleil-Waututh Nation, Simon Fraser University's Department of Archaeology and the University of British Columbia's Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries.

Findings from the Children's Health Policy Centre's (CHPC) scientific evaluation of the program Nurse-Family Partnership have shown that it improved maternal-reported child language and mental health at age two years. Results from the long-term randomized-controlled trial-known as the BC Healthy Connections Project (BCHCP )-were published today in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry.

Researchers from Universities of Waterloo, Toronto, Yale, UPenn discuss AI and its application to their work In an article published yesterday in the prestigious journal Science , leading researchers from the University of Waterloo, University of Toronto, Yale University and the University of Pennsylvania look at how AI (large language models or LLMs in particular) could change the nature of their work.

Foregrounding Indigenous Knowledge Systems in Water research Faculty of Environment and the Water Institute The Land Back movement has called for global solidarity to address the oppression and dispossession of Indigenous Peoples' lands and territories. The alienation of Indigenous Peoples from Water has largely been absent from this call to action.

A study led by Simon Fraser University criminology researchers has found that rates of child sexual abuse (CSA) among Indigenous Canadians surveyed were three to five times higher than global estimates, while those with parents or family members who attended residential schools are at significantly greater risk of experiencing CSA.

Hate speech and misinformation on social media can have a devastating impact, particularly on marginalized communities. But what if we used artificial intelligence to combat such harmful content? That's the goal of a team of University of Toronto researchers who were awarded a  Catalyst Grant  by the Data Sciences Institute  (DSI) to develop an AI system to address the marginalization of communities in data-centric systems - including social media platforms such as Twitter.

Challenges of gender-based violence in rural settings include loss of income, isolation, absence of financial autonomy Blocked from pursuing their careers and left without any source of income. Isolated from friends, coworkers and community. Low credit scores or resumé gaps that dog them for years after the abuse.

Participatory mapping project reveals that one in three citizens believe their appearance or identity contributed to their stop by the police The first research report from STOPMTL.ca , a participatory mapping project of police stop experiences, presents preliminary data contributed by citizens of Montreal.

University of Toronto researchers are investigating exposure to second-hand - and even third-hand - marijuana smoke in homes, including the THC that can collect on floors and surfaces. The researchers, in Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering, have  published a new study  that models how THC - the main psychoactive ingredient in cannabis - behaves and transforms once it is released in an indoor environment.

April 5, 2023 Research is the first to test how people predict social connections using only statistical information New research reveals that math can help people identify the bonds of friendship. The work from the University of Waterloo found that people use statistical information to determine bonds between people.