UOIT's Dr. Carolyn McGregor profiled in new Science Museum exhibit in Britain

A profile of a leading University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) researcher is included in a new science museum exhibition in England which inspires young people to learn more about engineering.

Dr. Carolyn McGregor, Canada Research Chair in Health Informatics, and Professor, Faculty of Business and Information Technology, has garnered international attention for leading the award-winning Artemis Project research team. Artemis holds the potential to be one of the most significant developments in health care since genome research was initiated a quarter century ago.

Engineer Your Future at the London Science Museum will challenge visitors to put their problem-solving skills to the test through fun interactive gaming and digital experiences, to explore how researchers like Dr. McGregor apply cutting-edge engineering to change the world we live in.

Dr. McGregor’s software engineering profile is seen by players taking part in the museum’s Futureville game. The text in the game explains how she makes computer programs that keep an eye on thousands of readings from hospital monitors and determine if fragile newborns are getting ill. Futureville players also see her prediction and hope that “In the future, engineers like me will give doctors a heads-up when people are getting sick, before they can see symptoms.”

The exhibition runs from December 2014 to December 2017.

• Visit the London Science Museum website.

Launched in 2007, Artemis explores a ‘big data’ approach to the collection, distribution and processing of real-time physiological data to help physicians better recognize subtle changes in the condition of critically ill premature babies. Over the past seven years at UOIT, Dr. McGregor has assembled a diverse international research team of neonatologists, emergency physicians, nursing staff, computer scientists and engineers.

• Learn more about the Artemis Project
• See recent CBC and Global television news coverage of Dr. McGregor’s research
• Listen to CBC Radio One podcast about Big Data (Spark, May 2013; Artemis section begins at 8:20)