Summary of Scheduled Meetings - Current Month and Beyond
please check this page regularly - updates posted as they are received

Nov 3, 2008 at 11:00 a.m.  Dr. Ali Khademhosseini from the Center for Biomedical Engineering, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, presents "Microengineered hydrogels for stem cell bioengineering and tissue regeneration," organized by our Signal Processing and Engineering in Medicine and Biology Chapters.  Click for details.

Nov 3, 2008 at 5:00 p.m. Prof. Walter Kellermann of the University Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany presents a Signal Processing Society Distinguished Lecture, "Acoustic Signal Processing for Next-Generation Multichannel Human/Machine Interfaces," organized by our Signal Processing Chapter.   Click for details.

Nov 4, 2008 at 6:00 p.m.  Dr. Daniel Fischer of University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) presents, "Artificial Intelligence Stops the Car (so you don’t have to)," organized by our Signals and Computational Intelligence Joint Chapter.   Click for details.

Nov 7, 2008 at 4:00 p.m. Bruno Di Stefano presents "Adding Wireless Communication to Embedded Systems," organized by our Communications Chapter.  Click for details.

Nov 13, 2008 at 4:30 p.m. Professor Sanzheng Qiao of McMaster University presents "Sphere Decoding and the LLL Algorithm," organized by our Communications Chapter. Click for details.

Nov 20, 2008 at 6:00 p.m.  Prof. Thia Kirubarajan (Kiruba) of McMaster University presents "Passive Coherent Location: Tracking Aircraft Using Radio and TV Stations," organized by our Aerospace and Electronic Systems Chapter and Communications Chapter.  Click for details. Registration required.

Nov 20, 2008 at 6:00 p.m.  Dr. Tony Redpath, Vice President, Partner Programs, MaRS, presents "Innovation in a Cold Climate," a talk, dinner and networking event organized by our GOLD Affinity Group and Engineering in Medicine and Biology Chapter.  Click for details. Registration required.

Nov 26, 2008 at 4:00 p.m.  Dr. Azadeh Kushki of McMaster University presents an online Webinar, "WLAN Positioning: Applications & Theory," organized by our Signals and Computational Intelligence Joint Chapter and IEEE Canada.   Click for details. Online Webinar – Registration required.

Nov 25, 2008 at 6:30 p.m. Dr. Venkat Venkatramanan of the University of Toronto presents "Optical Amplifiers for Telecommunication Applications," organized by our Communications Chapter. Click for details.

Nov 28, 2008 at 3:00 p.m. Dr. Alexander Loui of Kodak Research Labs presents, "Semantic Content Analysis and Indexing for Personal and Social Applications," organized by our Signal Processing Chapter.   Click for details.

Dec 3, 2008 at 6:00 p.m.  Prof. Yaakov Bar-Shalom, FIEEE, of the University of Connecticut presents an IEEE Aerospace and Electronic Systems Society Distinguished Lecture, "Data Fusion in Tracking: Architectures and Performance," organized by our Aerospace and Electronic Systems Chapter and Communications Chapter.  Click for details.

Dec 5, 2008 at 1:30 p.m. Dr. Patrick Mitran from the University of Waterloo presents "Cognitive Radio: some perspectives on interference mitigation," organized by our Communications Chapter.  Click for details.

Local IEEE Educational Programs

Launch of IEEE Toronto Section Consultants Network Affinity Group & Online Consultants Database

The petition to form the IEEE Toronto Section Consultants Network was approved by IEEE HQs on October 7, 2008. On October 25, the IEEE Toronto Section launched the online Consultants Database under the stewardship of Fasih Masood, Chair, Industrial Relations Committee & Consultants Network Affinity Group. The technical architect of the database is Karl Martin, IEEE Toronto Section Webmaster.

In phase-I, the objectives of the Consultants Database include, but not limited to, fostering the growth of Consultants in fields under the umbrella of IEEE & its Societies, encouraging local consultants to join the IEEE Toronto Section Consultants Network and form new alliances, promoting the use of independent technical and engineering consultants by industry and business, and providing educational activities for self-employed members.

Under the MOU of IEEE and PMI Southern Ontario Chapter, the Consultants Database will also be advertised on the home page of PMI SOC Website at http://www.soc.pmi.on.ca/

In phase-II, IEEE Toronto Section will publish a print catalogue of all consultants with pictures & profiles which will be distributed at all the IEEE Events.

Symposium on Alternate Energy and Global Synergy:
Proceedings and Presentations Slides Available for Download

On July 15, 2008, a highly successful one-day Symposium on Alternate Energy and Global Synergy was hosted by Ryerson University, co-sponsored the IEEE Toronto Section (represented by the WIE Affinity Group). The symposium proceedings and presentation slides have been made available here.

IEEE Toronto Section Participates in Sections Congress

IEEE Sections Congress is a triennial gathering of Section leadership sponsored by the Member and Geographic Activities Board. This year, it was held on September 19–22 in Quebec City. More details and event photos can be found here.

Tesla, An Evening With Genius – Nov. 6, 7 and 8, 2008 *updated dates
Play organized by: Professional Engineers of Ontario (PEO) and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Toronto Section

He discovered alternating current, wireless and radio.  And no, he is not Marconi.  In fact, in 1943, the Supreme Court granted full rights to Tesla for the invention of radio, nullifying the claims of Marchese Gugliemo Marconi who had patented a two-tuned-circuit design and a more practical four-tuned-circuit modeled after Tesla's. Marconi's patent on the invention of radio was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court because Tesla's work predated it (Case #369, 6/21/43).  Nikola Tesla is known as the forgotten genius although we know him too well through his inventions.

In a unique event, IEEE Toronto Section and PEO have organized an evening with Tesla! This one-man play about Tesla's life is written by J. Michael Newlight and Frank Tabbita, with Frank Tabbita as Nikola Tesla. 

The play already had a number of successful performances in the USA, Europe, Australia and Vancouver, Canada. People from all walks of life - artists, dancers, new agers, musicians, janitors, lawyers - have enjoyed An Evening With Genius. Suitable for all ages, this play has enraptured children and adults alike.  So bring your entire family including your children and grandchildren.

You can buy tickets through TicketWeb Canada. Online: CLICK HERE or call 1-888-222-6608.

• Thursday, November 6th at 8:00pm - $20 (students and seniors $15)
• Friday, November 7th at 8:00 pm - $25 (students and seniors $20)
• Saturday, November 8th at 8:00 pm - $25 (students and seniors $20)

The above prices include all applicable taxes and fees. For more information visit the event web site: http://www.vasicweb.com/tesla/

Testimonials:
"Frank, I very much enjoyed your performance at the MMM conference in Tampa. After a day of meetings presenting our ideas on magnetism to our colleagues, we could well relate to the passion and struggles of Tesla. Many of us, of course, knew about the inventions and odd ideas of Tesla. However it was interesting to learn of his enigmatic character and personal life. It was amazing how you, in a one-man show, were able to portray the tensions and altercations between Tesla and his backers, Edison and Westinghouse. A wonderful treat for engineers and lay audience alike! "

"I had the enormous privilege of attending Saturday's performance at the Vancouver East Cultural Centre. As a long-time fan of Tesla, I extend my sincerest complements to the writers and performer for their impressively thorough research and dedication.  Cheers! "

IEEE Communications Society Offers Free Free Webinars/Tutorials

1. Free online tutorials available... Commercial Wireless Networking (3 hs, 220 slides) joins WiMax: Mobilizing the Internet (2 hrs 7 min; 89 sldes) and Next Generation Cellular Networks (2 hrs 40 min, 93 slides) as complimentary online tutorials.  See them now; limited time access.
2. VIEW a Webinar on the WCET Certification Program to learn more about it!
3. Watch the commercial on WCET brought to you by IEEE.tv

Summary of Local IEEE Conferences

May 12–15, 2009 — Canadian Conference on Climate Change – CCTC 2009 will be held in Hamilton, Ontario.

Sep 27–29, 2009 — Toronto International Conference – Science and Technology for Humanity – TIC-STH 2009 will be held in Toronto, Ontario.

Oct 19–21, 2009 — Product Safety Engineering Society Symposium – PSESS 2009 will be held in Toronto, Ontario.

All IEEE Conferences in Canada - please use this link.

Pas Pasupathy: Meeting Challenges Head On

IEEE Life Fellow and Toronto Section member, Prof. Subbarayan "Pas" Pasupathy, was recently profiled in the IEEE publication "The Institute":

"A lunch with co-workers and perhaps a fancy watch or a piece of luggage are typical retirement gifts for many people. But those weren’t adequate to mark the career of IEEE Life Fellow Subbarayan “Pas” Pasupathy. Instead, his students and colleagues at the University of Toronto, in Canada, devoted an all-day workshop to honor his contributions as teacher, pioneering researcher, and international authority on wireless digital communications, detection and estimation theory, and biomedical signal processing."

Read the full article by Kathy Kowalenko and visit the official workshop web page.

IEEE Milestone - First External Pacemaker   The IEEE Toronto Life Members affinity group has successfully nominated the "Hopps First External Pacemaker" as an IEEE Milestone.