Why symbolic awards for Employee of the Month may backfire Far from keeping up the good work, recipients of internal symbolic awards such as employee of the month or merit certificates perform worse after receiving the accolades, according to a recent international study. It’s not always that awardees lose the drive to perform after proving…
To scale up the production of hydrogen – a major goal of Alberta’s Hydrogen Road Map – the province will need a place to store large quantities of the fuel. Petroleum engineering researcher Hassan Dehghanpour says he may have a solution: enormous underground salt caverns, each capable of holding more than 2,000 tonnes of the…
Antimicrobial molecules can be safely and easily applied to everything from protective face masks and fabrics to doorknobs and handrails A University of Alberta engineering researcher has developed an antimicrobial solution that kills infectious pathogens on contact with face masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE). The substance can be sprayed on or used to…
The U of A houses one of the first clinics in Alberta dedicated to helping people manage long COVID More than two years after he succumbed to the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, Doug Norman’s long COVID symptoms are so severe he still can’t return to work as a letter carrier with Canada Post. In addition to dizziness…
To understand how to get artificial intelligence right, we need to know how it can go wrong Artificial intelligence is touted as a panacea for almost every computational problem these days, from medical diagnostics to driverless cars to fraud prevention. But when AI fails, it does so “quite spectacularly,” says Vern Glaser of the Alberta…
Airports under public ownership have no incentive to improve customer experiences New research from the University of Alberta’s School of Business shows airports perform better – with improved customer service, fewer cancellations and delays, and more routes – when purchased by private investors. Canada’s major airports, which are operated by private, not-for-profit airport authorities with…
Negative reaction to the Online Streaming Act (Bill C-11) is perplexing, says music professor In the early 1990s, rock musician Bryan Adams became a lightning rod for what many people said was wrong with Canadian content rules. His international hit song, (Everything I Do) I Do It For You, didn’t adequately meet the definition of…
Second cube satellite built by student-led team will help scientists monitor wildfires In the world of space science, all eyes were on NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida recently for the launch of a rocket carrying three cube satellites made by University of Alberta students and their partners at Yukon University and Aurora College. One…
Communications system will provide vital information about troop health and situational awareness, even in the harshest conditions Ashwin Iyer knows he isn’t cut out for combat. But the electrical and computer engineering professor has long wanted to help keep Canadian soldiers safer on the battlefield, and he’s hoping his recent funding from the Department of…
Both employees and employers need to be prepared for rapidly evolving expectations You finally land your dream job. The posting described your qualifications so well it might as well have had your name on it. But when you arrive on day one, it feels like the ground has shifted beneath your feet. The dream job…