Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/609048
18 simon FALL 2015 90 90 (TERRY FOX) TERRY FOX FOUNDATION 88 WHEN ENGINEER Tim Collings joined SFU in 1989, the young innovator probably wouldn't have predicted that he would impact millions of families with an invention the size of a ngernail: the V-Chip. Collings gured out a way to encode a rating system into TV signals, and the practical invention gave parents "viewer control"—the power to decide how much violence or sexual content was appropriate for their children to watch on TV. Years later, Collings won a number of accolades for his early 1990s invention. He also demonstrated the V-Chip to U.S. President Bill Clinton and Vice President Al Gore at a press conference. Soon, his invention became a household word: Clinton signed the Telecommunications Act of 1996 and required V-Chips to be included in all future TVs sold in the U.S. V Is for Viewer Control 1985 1994 1987 TOP TECHS Apple, IBM and SFU, along with the CRB Foundation, fund SFU's Exemplary Centre for Interactive Technologies in Education (ExCITE). Established by Gerri Sinclair, it is Canada's fi rst "new media" lab. BEE SPEAK SFU researchers, including Mark Winston, a bee biol- ogist, and Keith Slessor, a chemist, discover the key chemical components of the pheromones honeybee queens use to communicate. In 1997, the pair creates two commercial pheromones-based products. The Ted and Nora Sterling Prize in Support of Controversy is estab- lished to recognize work in any discipline that contributes to the understanding of controversy. REMAKING HISTORY Faculty and students mark SFU's 25th anni- versary by re-enacting an ambitious endeav- our: Simon Fraser's voyage down the Fraser River. Over a two-week period in September, members of the group paddled canoes down stretches of the river, led by actor Kevin Conway, decked out in Simon Fraser attire. INTERPRETIVE DANCE SFU researcher Tom Calvert invents a 3-D human animation software called Life Forms, which is recognized globally as a ground- breaking tool for choreographers. SFU's third decade is characterized by an exploration of the human condition through technology. Parents reclaim power over TV programs, dance moves are animated, and complacency is challenged with an award for controversy SFU engineering students win gold prize and "Best in Show" for improved MacroDog project at BEAM Robot Olympics. On May 5, SFU's downtown Vancouver campus opens at Harbour Centre. (Read more about the campus on page 59.) 89 93 94 88 BEE SPEAK SFU researchers, including Mark Winston, a bee biol-