Research and Creative Activity

By Kate Hargreaves 

From social media to the Golden Globes, the spicy new TV show Heated Rivalry seems to be everywhere.   

The Canadian-made romance, directed by Jacob Tierney and based on the book series by Rachel Reid, centres around fictional gay and bisexual professional hockey players navigating their on-ice careers and personal lives.  

By Sara Elliott 

As water levels in the Detroit River rise and fall, so do concentrations of toxic legacy pollutants. 

New research by University of Windsor environmental science PhD candidate Mona Farhani shows that higher water levels are associated with increased concentrations of bioavailable polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) at some locations — a long-lasting toxic chemical linked to human and ecosystem health risks.

By Sara Elliott 

With respiratory viruses surfacing this cold and flu season, University of Windsor researchers are asking ill members of the campus community to voluntarily provide saliva samples for viral research. 

The Saliva Screening Lab, which is part of a research project led by Dr.Kenneth Ng and supported by the New Frontiers in Research Fund, is appealing campus-wide to those feeling under the weather to help advance virus surveillance.  

By Sara Elliott

The key to designing future brain cancer therapies could lie with a mighty protein called Spy1, which is found in neural stem cells in the adult brain. 

Neural stem cells play a critical role in memory, learning and brain repair. 

By Lindsay Charlton

Described as one of the “founding figures” of the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Windsor, Dr. Dan Watt is continuing his legacy through a scholarship for materials engineers pursuing research.

The inaugural Dr. Daniel Frank Watt Scholarship in Materials Engineering was awarded Dec. 17 to its first recipient, graduate student Amirmasoud Khodadadibehtash, during a celebration attended by Watt, his wife Linda Menard-Watt, faculty members and friends and family.

The University of Windsor is seeking an internationally renowned scholar and scientist for nomination to the federal Canada Impact+ Research Chairs Program. 

This national initiative is designed to attract world-class research leaders whose work aligns with Canada’s strategic priorities. 

By Kate Hargreaves 

Shantelle Browning-Morgan describes her passion for Black Canadian history as “rooted in blood memory, fuelled by a duty to honour the past, present and future.”  

A descendant of Underground Railroad freedom seekers, Browning-Morgan has long worked to share that history through her work as a high school teacher and curriculum developer. 

By Lindsay Charlton 

Researchers at the University of Windsor, including two first-year engineering students, have developed custom artificial intelligence models to help detect diabetic retinopathy — a leading cause of adult blindness — at earlier stages of the disease. 

Their work compared four machine learning models, known as convolutional neural networks (CNNs), designed to analyze retinal images and identify patterns associated with the condition. 

By Sara Elliott

Here is your chance to create art through a scientific lens. 

Canada’s annual scientific research image contest 2026 edition is open for submissions. 

By Lindsay Charlton

Blending history with hands-on problem solving, students at this year’s Windsor Engineering Competition put their creativity and technical skills to the test by reimagining medieval-era structures through a modern engineering lens. 

Held under the theme “Medieval Innovation: Re-engineering the future,” the annual competition challenged students to collaborate in teams, apply engineering principles and think creatively under tight time constraints.