Three听Cape Breton University researchers were recently awarded funding from the听鈥�(NSERC) Discovery听Grant听program.听Their work will听progress听over five years, thanks to the investment of federal funds.听听
Enayat Rajabi, Assistant Professor in Business Analytics in the Shannon School of Business (SSOB), will study听Semantic Web Data Analytics over Nova Scotia Open Data听with $156,000 from the federal funding agency. Dr. Rajabi says that this research will help capture the benefits of data analytics on current and future open data platforms. 鈥淭here are extensive published data openly accessible in different domains, where organizations and governments hope that such data are used, analyzed听and presented to a wide range of people, from professional statisticians to the lay public,鈥� says Dr. Rajabi.听听鈥�Open data published in different provincial open data platforms across Canada in 福利免费在线看 health, for example, provide value in the hidden relationships among the published datasets that may currently exist in isolation.鈥澨�Dr.听Rajabi鈥檚听research听will听lead to a semantic web analytics approach, which will provide a valid framework to examine open data in Nova Scotia.听
Hamid Afshari,听Assistant Professor Supply Chain Management听in听the听SSOB,听received听over听$140,000 to support听a project听in听Optimal Design of Renewable Energy Supply Chains Under Uncertainty. Dr. Afshari says this work will contribute to the听big听picture听of working towards sustainable energy accessibility and practice. 鈥淭he long-term objective of this research program is to develop a methodological framework to help different stakeholders like industries, communities听and government through听the听transition to sustainable sources of energy,鈥�听explains Dr. Afshari.听听鈥淭he research will focus on developing an analytical framework to support the application of a renewable energy supply chain,听considering听the optimal mix of renewable energy sources in different geographical, size, and energy profile settings听This research is essential for Canada due to the large number of small and medium sized energy users living in rural and distant communities.鈥�听
Deanne van Rooyen,听Associate Professor in Geology in the School of Science and Technology,听will听study听Igneous intrusions, their metamorphic host rocks, and shear zones, Cape Breton Island, NS; age relationships and tectonic context, with $30,000 from an NSERC Discovery Development Grant. This research involves field mapping听to determine the ages of specific rocks and find out under what pressure and temperature conditions they formed.听“Some areas in Cape Breton are closely related to the North American continent and are over one billion years old, while others originally formed off the coasts of what are now West Africa and South America,鈥� says听Dr. van Rooyen.听“This work will help us understand the complex processes that formed Nova Scotia and Cape Breton Island and how the terrains connect with those in Newfoundland and Labrador, New Brunswick, and the larger Appalachian system which extends from the southern USA, through Canada,听into Western Europe and Scandinavia.鈥澨�听
鈥淭he continued support from research funding agencies is a testament to the expertise of CBU researchers in addressing important research questions across disciplines,鈥� says鈥疍r.听Tanya Brann-Barrett, Associate Vice-President, Academic & Research. 鈥淭he NSERC grant program is designed to support established and emerging researchers, which is allowing us to maintain and grow our research programs. We are thrilled that our researchers continue to be recognized with support from our funding partners.鈥�听
狈厂贰搁颁鈥檚听Discovery Grants program supports ongoing research with long-term goals, while also allowing researchers to pursue promising high-risk, high reward topics and ideas.听
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