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Top 12 of 2012

December 24, 2012

Hunting for tsunami debris, sunken ships and the Higgs boson are just some of the many compelling stories UVic has been telling over the past 12 months.

Eyes and apps on deep blue sea
UVic's Ocean Networks Canada—which manages the world-leading VENUS and NEPTUNE Canada observatory networks—had a number of exciting stories to share from the sea, including a new app to track the March 2011 tsunami debris from Japan and a live stream of continuous data from UVic's new mini-observatory at Cambridge Bay, the first real-time cabled undersea monitoring system in the Arctic.

Arctic search for Franklin's sunken ships
UVic researchers were in the Arctic this past summer with UVic's Ocean Technology Lab's underwater vehicle to assist Parks Canada in its search for the lost ships of 19th century British explorer Sir John Franklin.

Hunting for Higgs boson
A major new chapter in the global hunt for the Higgs boson particle opened in July, and a large group of UVic researchers had good reason to cheer. The UVic-ATLAS team has been in the loop with the LHC since bringing Canada into the giant underground experiment in 1992.

UVic is turning 50! ...and first in Canada for "100-under-50"
In September, a year of celebration kicked off with UVic's 50th Anniversary Festival, including a rooftop concert. One month later, UVic was again among the top one per cent of universities in the world in the Times Higher Education's World University Rankings, as well as 11th in the world and first in Canada among universities under 50 years of age in an earlier "100-under-50" list.

Economic impact over $3 billion
Over its 50-year history, UVic has become a cornerstone of Greater Victoria. Its economic contribution to the surrounding communities has grown to approximately $3.2 billion annually. UVic released its new economic impact report, highlighting the university's intellectual, cultural, social and economic contributions to the surrounding communities.

Opportunity agenda
In October, the presidents of BC's six research universities released the Opportunity Agenda, a practical plan to expand post-secondary opportunities for young people, close the skills gap, and create jobs throughout the province.

UVic scholar wins prestigious teaching fellowship
Dr. A.R. "Elango" Elangovan rang in the new year with a 3-M national teaching fellowship in February. He is the ninth UVic scholar to receive this honour, Canada's highest award for teaching, since the program's inception.

Thawing permafrost brings a chill
A UVic study released in September predicts the thawing of permafrost in Canada's Arctic and other northern latitudes will significantly accelerate the rate of global warming in the coming decades.

Aboriginal language revitalization
For thousands of years, Aboriginal words have been passed along orally from generation to generation. Now, in this era of tweets and touch screens, UVic has also launched a new Aboriginal dictionary app and lauded the latest graduates from UVic's Certificate in Aboriginal Language Revitalization program. The group of CALR grads journeyed to UVic in June, three from the Northwest Territories and one from the west coast of Vancouver Island.

STEHM is here
Small has been very very big at UVic ever since the most advanced microscope in the world was installed in the basement of UVic's Bob Wright Centre earlier this year.

2013 Rhodes Scholar
The Rhodes Scholarships will mark their 110th anniversary in 2013 and, in UVic's own 50th anniversary year, we celebrate a new Rhodes Scholar. Humanities and social sciences student Tara Paterson is heading to Oxford in October 2013.

Faces of UVic research
At UVic, more than 800 faculty researchers are at the forefront of discovery—on everything from aging to music to zoology—and are working with various partners to turn new knowledge into action. The "Faces of UVic Research" video series went online in 2012 on YouTube so everyone can quickly get to the heart of what our researchers do.