If every great discovery begins with a question, researchers at Memorial University have nearly $10 million in funding to help find answers.
Forty researchers at Memorial sttudying everything from marine biodiversity to sustainable energy innovations to neuroplasticity are receiving support.
The funding comes from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada’s (NSERC) highly competitive research grant programs.
In total, Memorial researchers have secured $9,436,718 in funding. Teams are based in the faculties of Medicine, Science and Engineering and Applied Science, as well as the Marine Institute.
The support was announced on July 7 as part of a broader $630-million investment for natural sciences and engineering researchers nationwide.
‘Meaningful and impactful’
“Securing this level of support is no easy feat and reflects the scientific excellence and dedication of our research teams,” said Dr. Rod Russell, interim vice-president (research and innovation). “The longstanding support from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada underscores its confidence in the global expertise of Memorial University researchers and trainees, and their ability to lead meaningful and impactful work here and beyond.”
Below is a listing of Memorial’s results from NSERC’s Discovery Grants Program, Discovery Launch Supplement, Research Tools and Instruments Grants and Discovery Grants – Northern Research Supplements Program competitions.
Discovery Grants Program
Faculty of Medicine
Dr. Kensuke Hirasawa, Division of BioMedical Sciences, Viral control of exosome biogenesis and its role in transmission, $240,000
Dr. Anthony Incognito, Division of BioMedical Sciences, Stress-induced sympathetic neuroplasticity in humans, $210,000
Dr. Joseph Olayemi Olajide, Division of BioMedical Sciences, Molecular dynamics of synaptic signaling in memory circuits, $190,000
Total: $640,000
Faculty of Science
Dr. Lindsay Cahill, Department of Chemistry, Advanced solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance methods to understand environmental pollutant accumulation, biotransformation, and metabolic toxicity, $240,000
Dr. Elsa Cardoso-Bihlo, Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Geometric machine learning for geophysical fluid dynamics, $122,900
Dr. Suzanne Dufour, Department of Biology, A closer look at extracellular symbiosis using marine molluscs as model systems, $220,000
Dr. Travis Fridgen, Department of Chemistry, Molecular Level Insights Into Non-Covalent Interactions Affecting Structures, Energetics, Reactivities of Gaseous Biomolecular Complexes, $200,000
Dr. Patrick Gagnon, Department of Ocean Sciences, Structuring mechanisms of cold marine benthic ecosystems in the face of climate change: leveraging Western science and Indigenous knowledge, $270,000
Dr. Kathleen Hourihan, Department of Psychology, The influences of emotion and choice on the monitoring and control of memory, $220,000
Dr. Karl Jobst, Department of Chemistry, Development and application of analytical and computational tools to sequence the exposome, $295,000
Dr. Mikhail Kotchetov, Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Gradings in Lie theory and beyond, $185,000
Dr. Shawn Leroux, Department of Biology, Animal Effects on Ecosystem Elemental Cycling, $315,000
Dr. Annie Mercier, Department of Ocean Sciences, Life-history strategies in extreme benthic environments: insights into persistence and shifts in marine biodiversity, $270,000
Dr. Myongin Oh, Department of Chemistry, Integrative Data-Driven Discovery of Collective Variables for Molecular Dynamics: Applications in Biomolecular Interactions and Sustainable Catalysis, $175,000
Dr. Fereidoon Shahidi, Department of Human Biosciences, Molecular Interactions of Phenolic Compounds with other Food Biomolecules: Structural and Processing Effects, $195,000
Dr. Kapil Tahlan, Department of Biology, From Biosynthetic Gene Clusters to Molecules: Deciphering the Complexities of Streptomyces Specialized Metabolism, $270,000
Dr. Heloise Therien-Aubin, Department of Chemistry, Nanostructured sulfur-rich polymer nanocomposites, $225,000
Dr. Hélène Volkoff, Department of Biology, Comparative endocrine physiology and environmental modulation of feeding regulation in fish, $220,000
Dr. Susan Walling, Department of Psychology, Examining the Intersection of Sex, and Aging on Locus Coeruleus-Norepinephrine (LC-NE) Modulated Hippocampal Plasticity and Memory, $195,000
Dr. Yolanda Wiersma, Department of Biology, Micro to mega-landscapes: connecting knowledge systems to understand temporal impacts on species distributions, $240,000
Dr. Leonard Zedel, Department of Physics and Physical Oceanography, Development of Acoustical Oceanographic Techniques, $200,000
Total: $4,057,900
Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science
Dr. Salim Ahmed, Department of Process Engineering, Prognostic safety and security risk warning framework for process and marine systems, $190,000
Dr. Ibrahim Al-Nahhal, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Toward Intelligent Space–Air–Ground Integrated Networks for Future Wireless Systems, $210,000
Dr. Jonathan Anderson, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Compiler-assisted sandboxing for critical embedded systems, $210,000
Dr. Bing Chen, Department of Civil Engineering, A Community-based Arctic Spill Preparedness, Assessment, Response and Knowledge (ArcSpark) System under Climate Change, $260,000
Dr. Octavia Dobre, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Wireless–Quantum Computing Convergence for Next-Generation Sensing- Communication Networks, $490,000
Dr. Xili Duan, Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering, Advancing Interfacial Fluid Dynamics and Heat Transfer for Sustainable Energy Innovations, $235,000
Dr. Khalid El-Darymli, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Sovereign Cognition: Multimodal Foundation-Model-Driven Explainable AI for Maritime Intelligence from Spaceborne SAR, $190,000
Dr. Mahzabeen Emu, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Quantum Accelerated Optimization Methods for Network Management, $205,000
Dr. Lorenzo Moro, Department of Ocean and Naval Architectural Engineering, Passive control of structure-borne noise from marine engines using acoustic black holes, $235,000
Dr. Adam Noel, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Signaling and Communication in Heterogeneous Biological Environments, $190,000
Dr. Kevin Pope, Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering, Resilient Sustainable Energy for Harsh and Remote Locations, $215,000
Dr. Rocky Taylor, Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering, Advancing Ice Mechanics Models Through Real-Time Imaging of Microstructural Damage Under Mixed-Mode and Environmental Loading, $305,000
Dr. Thumeera Wanasinghe Arachchige, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Sense, Share, Navigate: A Multi-Robot Localization for Autonomous Navigation in GPS-Limited Environments, $210,000
Dr. Jingrong Wang, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Efficient Distributed Systems for Decentralized Machine Learning, $190,000
Dr. Ting Zou, Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering, Development of robotic solutions for the Canadian green energy infrastructure, $215,000
Total: $3,550,000
Marine Institute
Dr. Frédéric Cyr, Centre for Fisheries Ecosystem Research, Fisheries Environment in the Arctic-Atlantic Gateway, $195,000
Total: $195,000
Discovery Launch Supplement
Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science
Dr. Ibrahim Al-Nahhal, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Toward Intelligent Space–Air–Ground Integrated Networks for Future Wireless Systems, $12,500
Dr. Khalid El-Darymli, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Sovereign Cognition: Multimodal Foundation-Model-Driven Explainable AI for Maritime Intelligence from Spaceborne SAR, $12,500
Dr. Mahzabeen Emu, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Quantum Accelerated Optimization Methods for Network Management, $12,500
Dr. Thumeera Wanasinghe Arachchige, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Sense, Share, Navigate: A Multi-Robot Localization for Autonomous Navigation in GPS-Limited Environments, $12,500
Dr. Jingrong Wang, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Efficient Distributed Systems for Decentralized Machine Learning, $12,500
Total: $62,500
Faculty of Medicine
Dr. Anthony Incognito, Division of BioMedical Sciences, Stress-induced sympathetic neuroplasticity in humans, $12,500
Dr. Joseph Olayemi Olajide, Division of BioMedical Sciences, Molecular dynamics of synaptic signaling in memory circuits, $12,500
Total: $25,000
Faculty of Science
Dr. Elsa Cardoso-Bihlo, Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Geometric machine learning for geophysical fluid dynamics, $12,500
Dr. Myongin Oh, Department of Chemistry, Integrative Data-Driven Discovery of Collective Variables for Molecular Dynamics: Applications in Biomolecular Interactions and Sustainable Catalysis, $12,500
Total: $25,000
Marine Institute
Dr. Frédéric Cyr, Centre for Fisheries Ecosystem Research, Fisheries Environment in the Arctic-Atlantic Gateway, $12,500
Total: $12,500
Research Tools and Instruments Grant
Faculty of Science
Dr. Michael Babechuk, Department of Earth Sciences, Powdered sample preparation for diverse Earth Sciences applications, $150,000
Total: $150,000
Faculty of Medicine
Dr. Anthony Incognito, Division of BioMedical Sciences, End-tidal respiratory gas control system for hypoxia and hypercapnia exposure in humans, $135,654
Dr. Qutuba Karwi, Division of BioMedical Sciences, Heart perfusion rig for studying cardiodynamics and cardiac energy metabolism, $138,164
Total: $273,818
Discovery Grants – Northern Research Supplements Program
Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science
Dr. Rocky Taylor, Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering, Advancing Ice Mechanics Models Through Real-Time Imaging of Microstructural Damage Under Mixed-Mode and Environmental Loading, $100,000
Total: $100,000
Faculty of Science
Dr. Annie Mercier, Department of Ocean Sciences, Life-history strategies in extreme benthic environments: insights into persistence and shifts in marine biodiversity, $75,000
Total: $75,000
Discovery Grants Program – Ship Time
Marine Institute
Dr. Maxime M. Geoffroy, Centre for Fisheries Ecosystems Research, MAZE: Marine processes study of the Inuit Nunangata Ungata (Queen Elizabeth Islands area), $270,000
Total: $270,000
