News Beyond Our Borders

Saskatoon company partners in Earth X-ray for Low-Impact Mining project

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Digital Technology Supercluster news release/Financial Post – Saskatoon company Dias Geophysical is among a group of Canadian innovators working on a project to help mining companies target deposits more precisely, reducing their need for drilling which saves them money and reduces their emissions.

The Earth X-ray for Low-Impact Mining project launched in November. With an investment from industry and Dias Geophysical is a partner in the project being led by muon tomography pioneer Ideon Technologies, which is based in Vancouver. Other partners in the project are Simon Fraser University (SFU), Microsoft, Fireweed Zinc, and Mitacs. BHP is also involved.

The project will deliver a new Discovery Platform to help mining exploration companies identify density and magnetic anomalies with greater resolution and certainty up to one kilometre beneath the Earth surface. The technology does for the earth what X-rays and MRIs do for the human body – make the inside visible.

The Discovery Platform uses hardware and software, novel data inversion and integration techniques, advanced AI algorithms, and geostatistical methods to construct detailed 3D profiles of subsurface anomalies — such as mineral and metal deposits, air voids, caves, and other structures.

Most deposits that are near the surface of the Earth have already been discovered. Mining companies are having to search deeper underground in more difficult-to-reach locations. Exploring those deposits can mean extensive drilling.

“This project will generate new technologies and breakthrough approaches to help solve one of the oldest problems on Earth,” said Gary Agnew, CEO and co-founder of Ideon.

“As co-innovators, we will deliver a solution to the global mining industry that will directly reduce the cost, time, risk and environmental impact of finding new mineral and metal deposits, while dramatically increasing certainty and discovery rates in a sector that has been historically characterized by uncertainty.”

A question asked by an unnamed geologist in Saskatchewan planted the seed that grew into Ideon Technologies’ pioneering of muon tomography. That geologist asked B.C.-based Triumf — Canada’s national particle accelerator lab, which partners with a number of Canadian universities — if muon tomography could be used for mineral exploration. Scientists affiliated with the lab have been developing the technology ever since. Ideon emerged in March 2020 out of Vancouver-based Triumf.

Muon tomography is studying the path of subatomic particles emitted by cosmic rays, which are known as muons, in order to learn more about the geology of the Earth.

“It sounds far fetched but the science is decades of understanding,” said Agnew.

Industry partners in the project will apply their deep expertise in exploration, geology, and geophysics to help inform product design and trials, economic value analysis, and commercialization strategy. Saskatoon-based Dias Geophysical brings unique knowledge of quantum magnetometry and synthetic diamond chip production to the project.

“We founded Dias on the principle of turning scientific discovery into innovative technologies that can be applied to tough geoscience challenges,” said Glenn Chubak, VP Technology for Dias Geophysical.

“Our partners in the Earth-X consortium share that vision, which is exciting for us as we work together on solutions to supply critical minerals to a world actively transitioning its energy production and distribution.”

Engineer warned of B.C. flooding

CBC – While some might think the flooding that occurred mid-November in the Lower Mainland was a result of an unforeseen weather event, engineers and others familiar with the dikes in the area have repeatedly warned what was likely to happen one day.

They say it is due to the governance structure that sees the province of B.C. set the standards for dike safety, but leaves local communities responsible for the cost of maintenance and repairs. Those elected to municipal governments say they are unable to afford that expense.

Jason Lum said he’s warned for years about the need to update infrastructure and the financial challenges municipalities face in trying to maintain dikes to the standard set by the province. Lum is chair of the Fraser Valley Regional District and is also a Chilliwack city councillor.

“It’s absolutely asinine to think that [these municipalities] could pay for a multimillion-dollar dike upgrade.”

Tamsin Lyle is an engineer who wrote a report for the B.C. government in May. In it, she stated that “the current model for flood risk governance in B.C. is broken.”

Lyle said she was asked by senior bureaucrats to “tone down the language.” But she declined.

“One of my proudest moments is that I kept that line in,” she said.

In the early morning hours of Nov. 16, the Sumas River dike in Abbotsford, B.C., overflowed and later broke apart, causing swelling rivers to flood some of the most fertile agricultural lands in the province.

The floods destroyed homes and farms, triggering an estimated $1 billion in damage, according to Abbotsford’s mayor.

Abbotsford Mayor Henry Braun said he was aware that the Sumas River dike was not built high enough, but the ability of his government to pay for upgrading was limited.

Local government doesn’t have the financial wherewithal because we only collect property taxes,” said Braun, who has been mayor since 2014.

“We have not been investing in our infrastructure at every level for decades…. And this is what happens when you ignore warnings.”

A report commissioned by the B.C. government in 2015 found that the Sumas River dike, which protects the Sumas Prairie from floodwaters, was “substandard,” “too low” and “need[ed] to be updated.”

The same report also found that none of the 74 dikes examined in the Lower Mainland fully met the province’s standards.

“It was preventable and I think it was predictable,” Lum said. “There’s going to be a time and a place where we’re all going to be held accountable for our role.”

The Sumas Prairie area was a lake until the 1920s, when it was drained to create a fertile farming region that now generates about $1.8 billion in revenue annually. A series of dikes, canals and a pumping station were constructed to prevent the lake from returning.

Still, these protections have not always worked. As recently as 1990, the Nooksack River overflowed, flooding parts of Washington state and north into Abbotsford’s Sumas River basin.

B.C.’s Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth said the province has invested $105 million over the past few years in projects that strengthen dikes and flood mitigation.

At the same time, he said responsibility for maintaining dikes was transferred from the province to local governments a number of years ago.

Farnworth said it was time for his government to rethink that responsibility.

“One of the lessons from this event, obviously, is the need for continued investment in dikes and, in my view, a stronger role for the province in that process.”

But a 2020 report commissioned by the City of Abbotsford indicates that without a longer-term solution, the low-lying prairie remains at significant risk. Climate-change impacts will make dike breaches more common, the report says.

“The climate is changing and the traditional infrastructure that we have in place is not going to keep us safe the way it did when it was built 100 years ago,” said Lum.

Women reflect 32 years after tragedy

CBC – Twenty-three-year-old engineering student Asmae Danouj sees December 6 as a statement of resilience by women engineers who are carrying on the legacy of those who were killed at l’École Polytechnique de Montréal on that date in 32 years ago.

On December 6, 1989, a mass shooting at the school ended the lives of 14 young women and injured another 14 people. Twelve who died were engineering students in their early 20s. Danoouj is their age now.

“In my studies, I just came to realize how privileged I was,” the fourth-year undergraduate student, who is studying biomedical engineering at the school now known as Polytechnique Montréal.

“[It shows that] no matter what, or no matter who is standing in our way, we will take the place that we have the right to. And it’s like a fuel, we will not be stopped,” she said.

As president of the student association at Polytechnique, Danouj says the school places a large emphasis on equality.

“I think there’s this community that gives so much importance to the women’s place in engineering,” she said. “It’s just so strong here, like in between these walls, everyone’s talking about [equality.]”

She feels women must still work hard today to be accepted in engineering.

“I cannot deny the fact that it is a struggle, no matter what, no matter how far we’ve come in the industry, the women still have to fight for their places,” she said.

“As a woman, you still need to make that extra effort to make your place acknowledged, to make your value acknowledged, so that other students do understand that you’re here because of your skills.”

Justine Petrucci, a 25-year-old master’s student in civil engineering in her sixth year at Polytechnique, reflects on earlier generations and considers the future.

“It allows me to remember all the woman who have come before me and the path they have travelled,” she said.

“And because of that, I feel like … now it’s up to me to keep going for those who will come after me.”

When asked to explain what being a woman in engineering is like in 2021, Petrucci said that, thanks to the women pioneers in the field before her time, she doesn’t have to.

“At Polytechnique, at school in general … I didn’t feel that different [from] my male colleagues,” she said.

“The goal is that we don’t think about this question anymore and that women are just part of the engineering world.”

She said there have been times she has wondered if it could happen again, but feels the subject of sexism and misogyny are topics discussed much more widely these days among her male colleagues, and they are “sensible to our calls and the challenges that women experience in the engineering world.”

Petrucci works to encourage young girls to enter engineering. She’s a student ambassador for GéniElles, a program offered at Polytechnique that aims to encourage the next generation of young women to enter science or engineering fields by demystifying career possibilities.

“We also give scholarships … we do some conferences. And so the girls can ask me their questions about how it was to get [to be] a woman in engineering, why did I choose to do my studies in engineering…. It’s all about sharing my experience and getting women being more represented.”

The program offers a host of various initiatives for girls ages 12 to 20 and contributes to Engineers Canada’s 30 by 30 initiative, which aims to have at least 30 per cent of women among newly licensed engineers by 2030.

Aerospace engineers no smarter than general population, study finds

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CBC – A recently published study found no significant intelligence differences between aerospace engineers and the general population, a finding the lead researcher hopes will help encourage more young people to pursue careers in STEM.

The study began by looking at aerospace engineers and neurosurgeons before comparing them to the general population. Lead researcher Inga Usher, a neurosurgery PhD candidate at the University College London, said she and her colleagues were initially driven to find out who is smarter — brain surgeons or rocket scientists.

The researchers performed a series of cognitive tests on 329 aerospace engineers, 72 neurosurgeons and about 1,800 members of the general U.K. population who had no expertise in either field. The results were published in December in the British Medical Journal.

While no significant difference could be found between the rocket scientists and the general population, neurosurgeons could solve problems faster than the average person. But they also showed a slower memory recall speed.

“I guess I hope one of the messages is that science is for everyone and that these stereotypes should be questioned. Obviously, we often say this in jest, but these phrases do link to quite durable stereotypes,” said Usher.

Children are often interested in science, math and technology at a young age, she said, but as they age, they begin dropping away from STEM, women and people of colour disproportionately so.

“I think it’s important to question these stereotypes for that purpose, to try and encourage some of these disadvantaged groups to continue considering a career in these specialities,” she said.

“The problems we face are complex and we’re going to need diverse workforces to deal with them.”

As for comparing neurosurgeons and aerospace engineers, the study found they performed equally on most cognitive tests, with just a few noticeable differences.

The brain surgeons largely performed better at semantic problem solving, which means tests involving definitions and other word-based problems. But the aerospace engineers performed better on the mental manipulation tests — for example, rotating a shape in one’s head.

“In some engineering courses, my understanding is that this is taught. So it’s a skill that’s actively nurtured by training,” Usher said. “But it’s also something that perhaps people have a flair for if you go into engineering, and that’s probably quite a useful skill.”

Quebec labour shortage prompts government scholarships and incentives

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CBC/Montreal Gazette – To address its labour shortage, Quebec is investing an additional $3.9 billion over the next five years in the hopes of requalifying and attracting 170,000 workers in certain priority sectors.

Premier François Legault unveiled the action plan, dubbed Opération main-d’oeuvre. Nearly 80 measures targeting six areas of activity will be implemented.

The government has selected what it considers three strategic sectors — engineering, construction and information technology — where the province hopes to add 110,000 skilled workers. It is also focused on essential public services, including mental health and youth protection, the education sector and the childcare sector, to try to integrate an additional 60,000 qualified people.

Legault said his government will be deploying a major incentive scholarship program in higher education, something he said is expected to increase the number of graduates in essential public services and strategic sectors at CEGEP and university levels.

The targeted professions include engineers and engineering technologists, analysts, programmers, clinical and auxiliary nurses, respiratory therapists, psychologists, social workers, preschool, elementary and secondary school teachers, as well as special education technicians and early childhood educators.

All Quebec students enrolled full time in these priority areas will be eligible for a total of $9,000 in scholarships for a three-year program at the CEGEP level, $15,000 in scholarships for a three-year program at the university level and $20,000 for a four-year program. There is also an allowance of $475 per week for those unemployed taking up studies in sectors where there is a shortage of workers.

Whether students are at the beginning, in the middle or at the end of their schooling, they will begin to be eligible starting in the fall of 2022.

One Quebec employer, Airbus, is working to strengthen ties with universities and technical institutes to attract workers, including engineers, more easily. It announced in November a $200,000 partnership with Polytechnique Montréal and McGill University that will see Airbus will offer 10 engineering scholarships annually — five at each university — over four years. The European planemaker is planning to hire at least 500 people in Mirabel over the coming years as production of its Bombardier-designed A220 narrowbody jet ramps up.

Engineering degree offered by northern B.C. university to meet demand

University of Northern British Columbia – In anticipation of northern B.C. needing to fill thousand of jobs in technology, the University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) in Prince George is offering a master of applied science in engineering degree.

It is the first of its kind in B.C.’s northern region. This degree program expands UNBC’s engineering student spaces by 30, with an additional 15 graduates per year. These additional engineering seats mean Prince George tech businesses will have a greater supply of advanced engineering graduates in the area. Of the 75,000 job openings in tech-related fields anticipated in the next decade, 2,200 are expected to be in northern British Columbia.

Approximately 42,000 engineers are working in B.C. and nearly 16,000 job openings are forecast over the next 10 years. Civil, mechanical and electrical engineers represent more than 50 per cent of these job openings, while computer and software engineers represent another 35 per cent.

The program is a research-based degree and focuses on managing engineering challenges and needs specific to cold environments. The 30-credit degree program builds on UNBC’s existing engineering degrees: master of engineering in integrated wood design, and two bachelor of applied science (BASc) degrees. One is in civil engineering and the other in environmental engineering. UNBC also offers a joint BASc degree in environmental engineering with the University of British Columbia.