DEEP Summer Academy | Enrichment Studies | Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering

Ali received his Bachelor of Applied Science and Engineering in Electrical Engineering with honours standing in 2008. During his undergraduate study period, he has taken numerous courses in almost all areas of electrical engineering. His past work experience include working as a research assistant for two consecutive summers at University of Toronto. Throughout his undergraduate study period, Ali has received scholarships such as Queen Elizabeth II Aiming for the Top, and NSERC Undergraduate Summer Research Award. Ali’s strong communication skills allowed him to be awarded with the Best Laboratory Project and Presentation award in one of his undergraduate level courses in fall 2007. Ali enjoys playing soccer, camping, and biking.

Ankur is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Toronto. He completed his M.Sc. degree at the University of Calgary and his B.Tech. degree, in Mechanical Engineering, at the Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee in India. He enjoys teaching and has been a teaching assistant for four years and is also a Teaching Assistant Trainer for the Office of Teaching Advancement at U of T. Ankur is deeply interested in scientific entrepreneurship and has attended courses and professional development seminars on the topic at the Rotman School of Management and the MaRS Discovery District. In his spare time, Ankur likes to play squash, watch movies and play computer games.

April received her Bachelor’s of Engineering and Master’s of Applied Science degrees from Ryerson University in 2004 and 2006, respectively. During this time, April was awarded several awards and scholarships, including the Governor General’s Gold Medal and “Best Teaching Assistant of the Year Award” for two consecutive years. Her M.A.Sc. research involved image processing algorithm development for computer-aided diagnosis systems for biomedical images, including mammograms, small bowel imagery and retinal images. For her Ph.D. studies, April will continue to investigate the exciting area of biomedical image analysis. Along with her passion for engineering and research, April thoroughly enjoys teaching and educating young people about engineering. This is easily noticed by her dedication to the Women in Engineering Society where she served as an Instructor, Presenter and Girl Guide Conference Leader.

This is April’s 2nd year teaching this course for DEEP.

Brendan is currently a Ph.D. candidate in Biomedical Engineering, where his research includes using muscle cells to create tissue engineering constructs. He completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Ottawa, where he participated in a combined program to obtain his Honours Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry and a degree in Chemical Engineering. He has been the recipient of many prestigious awards, including the University of Ottawa Merit Scholarship, the Lalor Foundation Travel Fellowship and the Outstanding Research Award through the Department of Obstetric and Gynecology in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Ottawa. Brendan enjoys an active and creative lifestyle, with hobbies that include photography, volleyball and water polo.

Brenna was born in a small town in rural Saskatchewan, where she lived until she was 18. She then came to the University of Toronto to pursue engineering. Brenna completed her undergraduate degree in Biomedical Engineering in 2006, which she took through the Engineering Science program. Her favourite courses included neuroanatomy, biomaterials and BIOMECHANICS! She is currently a student in the Faculty of Pharmacy. She plans to stay in Toronto as she finds it a fascinating place to live, where there are always new and fun things to experience with all of the wonderful people who she has met during her time at U of T.

Caroline Spiteri is a final-year Ph.D. student in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Toronto. She works primarily with tissue engineered cartilage and focuses her attention on improving the quality of this tissue so that it may be useful for individuals with cartilage damage or arthritis. Caroline completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Toronto in Materials Science and Engineering. While completing her graduate degree, she enjoyed teaching both university and high school students mathematics, science, and engineering-related courses. In her spare time, Caroline loves outdoor activies such as hiking, rollerblading, camping, and especially, rockclimbing.

Carolyn is a recent graduate of Civil Engineering from the University of Toronto. She entered into a master’s program in the fall of 2007 where she studies Construction Management. Carolyn worked as a research student for St. Lawrence Cement where she studied the life cycle effects of concrete and buildings on the environment. During her time at U of T, Carolyn has had the opportunity to get involved with many student groups including Residence Council, the Engineering Society, the engineering play (Skule Nite), university-level synchronized swimming, intramural sports and many other activities. She finds the built environment fascinating and is looking forward to exploring its many different aspects with her students.

Daphne is currently studying for her Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering, with a focus on operations research in health care. Her previous studies include a master’s degree from the University of Toronto, as well as a Bachelor of Commerce and a Bachelor of Science in statistics from the University of Calgary. While in Calgary, Daphne worked for 3 years as a swimming instructor to children of all ages. As well, she has experience in her field working as a summer student for a local company. When not working on her research or schooling, Daphne volunteers on the Alumnae Board of Alpha Gamma Delta, as a mentor and the treasurer. She is also involved in the Graduate Student’s Union and the Association of Mechanical and Industrial Graduate Students (AMIGAS), representing and organizing events for graduate students. This is Daphne’s fourth summer teaching this course at DEEP.

David is currently a postdoctoral research fellow within the Bone Interface Group at the Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering. He completed his Ph.D. at the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia investigating the osteogenic potential of a novel collagen/hydroxyapatite composite bone graft substitute. David holds a CIHR industry sponsored fellowship and his main areas of research include the use of calcium phosphate cements as drug delivery vehicles and the use of infra-red fluorescent dyes to track stem cells in-vivo. He teaches and lectures in Anatomy for Dental Students and contributes to a graduate course on Bone Implants. His interests include playing and teaching guitar, rollerblading, biking, and learning how to skate like a Canadian.

David is currently a master’s student at the University of Toronto. His current research deals with the brain, a topic he is very passionate about. He has gained significant practical experience working in various industrial sectors, including wireless technology and steel manufacturing. David has also worked in numerous research labs at U of T, including Professor N.P. Kherani’s Advanced Photovoltaics and Devices group, where he did his undergraduate thesis on quantum dot solar cells. His interest in photovoltaics stems from an affinity to semiconductor physics, and also from his belief in the importance of sustainable development. He also has a keen interested in teaching and would like to eventually pursue a career in academia. His hobbies include guitar, rock climbing, snowboarding, aikido, camping, and canoeing.

Deepthi completed her degree in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Toronto and is now pursuing her Master’s of Applied Science in Biomedical Engineering at the Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering (IBBME) in the University of Toronto. Her thesis project focuses on the development of a biological therapy for degenerative disease of the spine. She has developed expertise in various areas including biomechanical engineering, MRI image analysis and quantification and molecular biology. During her years at U of T, Deepthi has received several awards including the IBBME summer student award as well as the University of Toronto Graduate Fellowship. Besides her academic pursuits, Deepthi is also actively involved in squash and other racquet sports, running and recently, SCUBA diving.

Flora Wan has worked as a software developer and consultant at IBM for the past 7 years. Flora is presently taking a full-time leave of absence to pursue a master’s degree within the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at the University of Toronto, with a focus on human factors research. Her experience at IBM includes the design and implementation of software products for various clients, as well as teaching and coaching new IBM software consultants in both Toronto and overseas. Flora enjoys teaching and is looking forward to sharing her vast industry knowledge with her DEEP students.

Jeff Harris is a master’s student in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Toronto. His graduate work focuses on developing materials and processing for the manufacture of fuel cells. Jeff obtained his undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering at U of T. During his undergrad, he completed a 15-month internship with Magna International. Throughout his time at U of T, Jeff has been heavily involved with extra curricular activities, including intramural sports, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and the Engineering Society.

Josh is currently a master’s candidate in the Biomedical Group of the Electrical and Computer Engineering department at the University of Toronto. He completed a bachelor’s degree in the Division of Engineering Science (Biomed Option) at U of T in 2007. His research interests focus on neural modelling and hardware implementation of these models as an interface for seizure control in biological systems. He founded The Mechatronics Design Association in the Fall of 2004 and subsequently led the team to a best new entry award at the Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Competition. He has previously taught in computer hardware summer camps and thoroughly enjoys teaching.

Junho is currently completing his studies in Engineering Science in the Physics Option. Junho has spent this past academic year studying abroad at the University College London (UCL) in London, England. He has travelled to UCL to study not only physics, but also to expand his knowledge by taking a variety of courses such as the philosophy of physics and semiconductor physics. His main area of interest is in photovoltaics, and during the summer of 2007 he worked at the Advanced Photovoltaics and Devices lab. Junho enjoys exploring new things and meeting new people. His hobbies include photography, watching musicals, rugby, and basketball.

Ken completed his undergraduate engineering degree at the University of Toronto, specializing in Aerospace studies within the Engineering Science program. He is currently researching Aerospace Magnetohydrodynamics at the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies (UTIAS) while pursuing his master’s degree. In his spare time, Ken has worked as the chair of the annual Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute Rocket Competition, giving him the perfect experience to teach the DEEP Design: Rocketships course!
Ken taught Computer Programming for Scientists and Engineers in Summer 2003 and Rocketships in Summer 2004, 2006, and 2007.

Krystal is currently a Ph.D. candidate at King’s College London, University of London in biomedical and health sciences. Her research interests include assessing the capacity of ambient particulate matter to cause negative health effects in the lung. She completed her engineering degree in chemical engineering at the University of Toronto in 2005 and went on to receive her Masters of Applied Science from the same department in 2007. Her Master’s work was conducted at the Southern Ontario Centre for Atmospheric Aerosol Research where she studied the temporal fluctuations in urban aerosols. She is a member of the Women in Engineering Advisory Committee for the Ontario Society of Professional Engineers (OSPE). Her interests include designing and constructing battlebots and skiing.

Lucian is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies (UTIAS) with interests in the area of computational fluid dynamics applied to turbulent combustion. He holds a bachelor degree and masters degree in Aerospace Engineering from Polytechnic University of Bucharest, with a specialty in aerospace propulsion systems. He has four years of practical experience as a Design Engineer in the aerospace industry and is currently working on high-performance scientific computing. His teaching experience includes university teaching assistantship in the Aerospace Department at U of T and instructing an aerospace propulsion course for the DEEP program in 2003.
This is the 3rd year that Lucian has taught this course.

Markus is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies (UTIAS) in the area of computational aerodynamics. He holds a masters degree in Physics from the Humboldt-University Berlin with a minor in Mathematics and Education. He is currently a teaching assistant in the Aerospace Department at U of T. Beyond this, he has many years of teaching experience from private tutoring, lecturing courses for undergraduate students and internships in high schools. In his spare time, Markus enjoys table tennis, soccer, and reading books.
This is the 3rd year that Markus has taught this course.

Maygan received her bachelor’s degree in materials engineering from McMaster University in 2003. Following graduation, she worked as a Forensics Engineer performing failure analyses on gas turbine components. After working in industry for more than three years and gaining valuable professional experience, she decided to turn her passion for the environment into a career and returned to school to pursue graduate studies in environmental engineering. Maygan is currently working on her Ph.D. thesis in the Southern Ontario Centre for Atmospheric Aerosol Research, specifically on determining the sources of air pollution in Southern Ontario. In addition to closely following current environmental issues, she enjoys teaching students interested in science and engineering. She stays fit by running regularly as well as occasionally competing in mountain bike races.

After graduating with her master’s degree as part of the combustion research group at the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies (UTIAS) in the Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering, Natalie is now pursuing a doctoral degree at the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering department at Cornell University, with a focus on biomechanics. Prior to her graduate work, Natalie completed a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering at McGill University, and an Arts minor in Economics and Sociology. Natalie has been involved in inspiring high school and elementary students towards science and mathematics for several years, including volunteer math tutoring, and teaching previous DEEP sessions. In her spare time, Natalie enjoys salsa dancing, books, and martial arts.

Nazlee is currently a master’s candidate within the Faculty of Dentistry and an honours Engineering Science graduate (Biomed Option) from the University of Toronto. Nazlee is the recipient of numerous prestigious awards such as the Millennium and Merit Scholarships and the University of Toronto’s Arbour Scholarship and Life Sciences Award. Nazlee is a committed and experienced teacher. She has been a teaching assistant at U of T for the past two years, is an instructor for the Princeton Review and privately tutors physics and mathematics. Her love of teaching has led her to volunteer for the Ontario Science Centre and U of T Saturday program. Her main interests include writing, dancing, swimming, rollerblading, and relaxing on the beach.

Omar completed his engineering degree in Chemical Engineering at the University of Toronto and is currently a Ph.D. candidate in U of T’s Chemical Engineering/Institute of Biomaterial and Biomedical Engineering collaborative program. Some of his achievements include the Society of Chemical Industry’s Merit Award, the G.W. Dowkes Memorial Prize, the Praxair Plant Design Award and a McAllister Research Fellowship. Omar has working experience in various fields including Pulp and Paper, Petrochemical and Biomedical. His hobbies are astronomy, motorcycling and gardening.
Omar taught Regenerative Medicine in the Summer 2005, 2006 and 2007 DEEP Programs.

Payam received his undergraduate and masters degrees from the University of Toronto in 2004 and 2006, respectively. Currently, he is a Ph.D. candidate in the Faculty of Pharmacy at U of T. His research is focused on polymeric micelle drug delivery of anti-cancer agents. In 2005 and 2006, Payam was a teaching assistant and lecturer for the physical chemistry class offered by U of T’s Faculty of Pharmacy. He is also a 2005 recipient of the Ontario Young Volunteers Award, presented by the Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration. In his spare time, Payam enjoys volunteering, playing soccer and volleyball.
Payam taught in the Summer 2006 and 2007 DEEP Programs.

Rachel Chan is a graduate of the Engineering Science program from the University of Toronto, where she specialized in Biomedical Engineering. She is currently doing medical imaging research as a graduate student at the University of Toronto. Science has never ceased to fascinate her and she wishes to share her knowledge and passion for science and engineering with students. Rachel enjoys teaching and has experience tutoring high school mathematics and teaching piano. As a DEEP instructor, she hopes to make learning exciting and demonstrate to participants that science is a worthwhile pursuit. This is Rachel’s fourth time teaching this DEEP course.

Raquel is currently pursuing graduate studies at the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at U of T, where she is involved in the study of new drug delivery strategies in the treatment of cancer. She recently completed her undergraduate degree in genetics and biotechnology at U of T. She has had extensive exposure to the laboratory environment not only as a graduate student, but also as an undergraduate through participation in summer student programs and research project courses. The application of scientific knowledge is what sparks Raquel’s interests, and she believes that a solid scientific background is fundamental for any successful career in engineering, which is, in short, the application of science in the real world. Raquel has had many positive experiences with science, and she is excited to share these with high school students as an instructor for DEEP.

Raquel Lopes has a Chemical Engineering degree with a focus in Biomechanics from the University of Waterloo. She is now completing her master’s degree in Biomedical Engineering with a focus on Clinical Engineering. Raquel has had two clinical internships at the University Health Network and has also been a volunteer Biomedical Engineer with the Engineering World Health-Duke University Summer Institute, where she travelled to Central America to teach clinicians the principles and operating instructions for medical devices. Raquel encourages young students to strongly consider studies in engineering and all the possibilities that it can provide. In October 2006, she spoke at the Toronto Go Eng Girl event to do just that!

Robin is a Masters student of Aerospace Engineering, researching in the Space Mechatronics Laboratory at the University of Toronto, Canada. He received his Bachelors Degree in Aerospace Engineering at the Sharif University of Technology, Iran. His bachelors thesis was on designing and implementing a fuzzy controller on the pitch angle of tail-sitter. Now he is developing a design methodology for designing multidisciplinary systems and trying to implement that to design a reconfigurable robot utilizing hardware-in-the-loop simulation.
He is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Toronto and he is going to start his research in the next semester. Robin enjoys traveling, playing the piano and swimming in his leisure time.

Rohini is in her 3rd year of her PhD in Chemical Engineering joint with Biomedical Engineering and has a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Waterloo. Her research focus is on creating pancreatic tissue construct for treatment of Type 1 diabetes. Recently, she completed an international internship with Bayer-Schering Pharmaceuticals in Germany where she developed a unique cancer drug. In her undergraduate co-op program, Rohini worked in diverse engineering industries including petroleum (ExxonMobil Inc.), pharmaceutical (Apotex Inc.) and automotive (General Motors). As a teaching assistant, she has supervised and instructed 1st year students through chemical engineering laboratory experiments and taught 3rd year students engineering biology concepts. Rohini encourages students to think outside the box and is excited about doing just that with the DEEP course.

Ryan graduated from the Physics Option of Engineering Science at the University of Toronto in 2008. Ryan has a deep interest in mathematics that has driven him to take several extra math courses during his studies as an engineering student. His future educational plans are to complete a master’s degree in mathematics at the University of Toronto. In the past, Ryan has undertaken summer research projects with professors in the Department of Mathematics at U of T, and he is currently doing his undergraduate thesis in the field of Complex Variables and Loewner Theory. In his time at the University of Toronto, Ryan has been very active in teaching other students in various settings, including private tutoring, running extra help tutorials and being a teaching assistant for a first year course in Matrix and Vector Algebra for engineering students. His extra curricular interests include music and baseball.

Shayan received his bachelor’s degree in the Electrical Engineering with honour standing at the University of Toronto in 2008. He will be starting his masters in high speed chip-to-chip communication in September of 2008. Focusing in the area of analog and digital electronics, Shayan started working at the university after his first year. He has worked for professors under the NSERC scholarships including building and designing circuits with discrete components and state of the art Integrated circuit design kits. He is extremely familiar with lab equipment and computer simulators used in analog and digital circuits experiments. In his spare time, he enjoys biking, playing squash and tennis.

Sinisa received his Bachelor’s of Applied Science degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Windsor. He is currently a U of T graduate student specializing in the area of Electrical and Computer Engineering in the Biomedical group. His research thesis involves using Machine Learning techniques to classify and predict the onset of seizures. Sinisa is very passionate about teaching. He hopes to one day fully devote his time to teaching. His leisure activities include skiing, soccer, camping, and simply enjoying life.

Siraj Sabihuddin is currently a master’s student in Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Toronto, where his research relates to biologically motivated computer models for motion perception and stereo vision. He completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Ottawa, where he took part in several initiatives focusing on the design of underwater, terrestrial and aerial robotics. He has been the recipient of numerous awards, including the undergraduate and graduate Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Awards (NSERC). In his spare time Siraj studies psychology, practices martial arts, plays soccer, and dabbles in song and dance.

Stephen received his undergraduate and masters degrees from the University of Toronto and is now pursuing a Ph.D. degree in the Department of Medical Biophysics at U of T. His thesis project focuses on examining the molecular mechanisms underlying vascular development as well as elucidating the functional role of a novel protein in tumor progression via recruiting blood vessels. He has received several scholarships and awards including the Canada Graduate Scholarship from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Ontario Graduate Scholarship, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council summer fellowship and the U of T T-Holders’ Academic Excellence award. In his spare time, Stephen enjoys volunteering and playing sports such as tennis and rowing.

Zain Aleem graduated from the Department of Materials Science and Engineering in 2008. He has a keen interest and vast knowledge of material engineering fundamentals and design gained through his experience in two research labs in the MSE department as a student researcher. His hobbies include reading, photography, and working out at the gym. He has a keen interest in foreign languages and cultures, and enjoys travelling. His teaching experience includes teaching Principle Centered Leadership and English courses at a college in Pakistan with students from the ages of 18 and up. Zain is very much looking forward to sharing his knowledge, experience in teaching, leadership abilities and management skills with his DEEP students.