Research & Innovation

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Health & Medicine

Marek Smieja smiles while standing outside on a bright day.

McMaster scientist Marek Smieja receives prestigious national award for infectious disease research 

The John G. FitzGerald Award recognizes Smieja for advancing the diagnosis and epidemiology of respiratory and gastrointestinal infections, including those caused by SARS-CoV-2, influenza, rhinovirus, and C. difficile.
Toronto skyline enveloped in yellowish smog.

Everyday air pollution linked to poorer brain function, study finds

New research suggests that fine particles from traffic, industry and wildfire smoke are linked to worse cognitive function.
Smiling Sheila Singh wearing a McMaster lab coat, looking over lab equipment.

New McMaster-made drug candidate shows promise as a brain cancer treatment 

The drug candidate can eliminate deadly and aggressive glioblastoma tumours, which typically resist standard treatments and often recur rapidly.

Canada & The World

A grid of four professors' headshots.

Complete scholars: Four exceptional faculty members named Distinguished University Professors

Professors Lehana Thabane, Megan Brickley, Parminder Raina and Hendrik Poinar will be formally recognized at Spring convocation ceremonies.
The Strait of Hormuz on a bright sunny day, with ships in the distance.

Strait of Hormuz blockade will cause months of instability, expert warns

Countries and companies are bracing for far-reaching and long-term economic effects long after the Strait of Hormuz reopens, Behrouz Bakhtiari says.
Students hold up protest signs, one reading 'F Your Fascism.'

Analysis: The war on DEI reflects the quiet normalization of white nationalism — in the U.S. and beyond

The backlash against DEI initiatives casts diversity itself as a threat. Here’s why that’s so dangerous in an era of rising authoritarianism, writes expert Henry Giroux.

Energy & Sustainability

Nine people stand side by side against a McMaster branded backdrop

McMaster expands Forest Nature Preserve and launches first-of-its-kind climate research station

The additional 14 acres of ecologically significant land includes the Carbon Sink Forest and the Urban Environmental Monitoring Station, which measures greenhouse gas.
Mike Brook, wearing a lab coat and rubber gloves, holds up a fragment of rubber to look at it closely. IN the corner is a

Rubber reborn: McMaster startup converts tire waste into sustainable solutions

Mike Brook’s Neopara Materials combines a novel ingredient with tire rubber to create new materials - like hockey pucks.
A person with a backpack walks through a large field. A forest is visible at the back of the field.

From forgotten potato farm to research and conservation forest preserve

Get to know the origin story of McMaster Forest Nature Preserve - a place for ecologically sensitive teaching, research and recreation.

Science & Technology

Moo-ving research: Student projects combine agriculture and AI

Capstone teams highlight the growing intersection of engineering and agriculture with projects improving cow health, welfare and dairy farm efficiency.
A grid of headshots of 10 people.

Ten McMaster researchers named Canada Research Chairs

Eight are newly named CRCs, and two have had their chairs renewed.
Tohid Didar wearing a lab coat, sitting in a lab, smiling.

Tohid Didar named Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering

The Engineering professor enters rare territory with the appointment, already being a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences.

Leadership, Culture, & Society

A black and white 1940s photograph of a group of men.

History PhD candidate receives fellowship to study Black Canadian telegraph workers 

Nnamdi Nnake is on a side quest from his study of telegraphy in Nigeria to look at the contributions of Black telegraphists in Canada, including former Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander. 
A man in a suit smiles at something off-camera.

‘We bring the human in’

As the world of work is redefined by AI, communications professor Alex Sévigny is preaching the gospel of opportunity – and the necessity of change.
Graduating students wearing Kente stoles smile at the Black Graduation celebration 2023

Analysis: Why I celebrate Black graduation magic: An anti-racist perspective

Black graduation celebrations, which are complementary to academic convocations, remind students they are powerfully supported and offer a sense of empowerment and belonging, writes Clare Warner.

Business & The Economy

A grid of headshots of 10 people.

Ten McMaster researchers named Canada Research Chairs

Eight are newly named CRCs, and two have had their chairs renewed.
Illustration of a stylized human and a stylized robot running a race.

How will AI impact the workforce? DeGroote experts weigh in 

Researchers from the DeGroote School of Business share insights on the pros and cons of using AI in managerial decision-making, hiring and more. 
A city street with traffic and pedestrians on a smoggy day.

People spend more money on days with more air pollution, research shows

Consumers spend more money on discretionary 'hedonic' purchases — entertainment, leisure and small indulgences — when air pollution spikes, DeGroote Marketing professor Sanghwa Kim finds.