Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/609048
FALL 2015 simon 15 SFU.CA 09 KEEPING PACE SFU biomedical physiolo- gist Andy Hoffer develops Lungpacer, a device that helps activate the diaphragm (through a process called pacing) in critically ill patients who require a mechanical ventilator to survive. The breakthrough technol- ogy helps curtail muscle atrophy, a side effect of mechanical ventilation, and speeds patient recov- ery. Spinoff company Lungpacer Medical Inc. has expanded to a new location in Burnaby and in 2016 plans to pilot human clinical trials. COASTAL CONNECTIONS SFU researchers manage resources on B.C.'s Central Coast though the Hakai Network for Coastal People, Ecosystem and Management. The institute's work is possible thanks to $8 million in funding from a private, B.C.- based charitable foundation run by Eric Peterson and his wife, Christina Munck. REDUCING RISK Robert McMahon, an internationally renowned clinical child psychologist, is appointed B.C. Leadership Chair in Proactive Approaches to Reducing Risk for Violence Among Children and Youth. Funding of $4.5 million will support research to improve understanding of the origin and evolution of violent behaviour in children and youth, and develop more effective prevention and treatment strategies. SFU builds partnerships with India, including Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) Ltd. and the Bombay Stock Exchange Institute (BSEI). 2008 20 10 SPECTRUM SCIENCE Our world view of mental illness could change thanks to a theory developed by SFU biologist Bernard Crespi and London School of Economics sociologist Christopher Badcock. The pair suggests that parents' genes "compete," thus tipping brain development toward a particular spec- trum (autism from the father and schizophrenia from the mother). Their hypothesis was described by The New York Times as perhaps psychiatry's "grandest working theory" since Freud. A SOUND DEAL Created by SFU busi- ness student Milun Tesovic, MetroLeap Media Inc. (a music and entertainment content provider that includes MetroLyrics, the world's most popular lyrics website) is acquired by CBS Interactive Music Group. SFU Business grad Ryan Beedie and his father, Keith Beedie, donate an unparalleled $22 million to estab- lish SFU's Beedie School of Business. (Turn to page 30 for a profi le of Ryan Beedie.) 2014 2011 11 PAIN PROJECT The Pain Studies Lab at SFU's Surrey campus is founded in 2007 by professor Diane Gromala, PhD, a Canada Research Chair. The lab engages chronic pain patients in its research and designs tech- nology to help sufferers cope. In 2012, undergraduate research fellow Cheryl Yu, along with graduate students Xin Tong and Amber Choo, create a virtual reality game called Mobius Floe, intended for burn patients and people suffering from chronic illness. 07 SFU.CA 09 based charitable foundation run by Eric Peterson and his wife, Christina Munck. 2014 2014