Canadians Who Innovate


Book Description

Profiles of some of the most inventive and creative Canadians and the ideas that are making Canada a leading nation in innovation. From saving lives to saving harvests... From discovering ancient diamonds to identifying the first exo-planet... From driverless cars to quantum computers... From Nobel laureates to your next-door neighbor... This book offers uplifting stories of innovative Canadians. Canadians Who Innovate includes two Nobel laureates, an astronaut, extraordinary business leaders, the godfathers of artificial intelligence, and top quantum experts, including the inventor of what may be the next quantum computer. It features profiles of the first director of engineering at Google, who is now working on nuclear fusion; a medical researcher who communicates on TikTok about the efficacy and potential for RNA vaccine technology; and a PhD in nuclear physics who has twice won the Scotiabank Giller Prize. Meet the linguist who works with Indigenous people to make online dictionaries, an internationally consulted specialist on migration, an agri-tech investor, a world specialist on permafrost, and the expert in systems and number theory who has a way to fix health care. And don’t forget the engineer who grew human cells on apples, a feat that is leading to the creation of replacement organs that do not require donors—not to be confused with the aerospace technology developer who created a tethering system to clean up space debris and a 3-D printer that prints biological tissue. Featuring brilliant thinkers from coast to coast to coast, and others from around the world who now call Canada home, Canadians Who Innovate paints a promising picture of a cleaner, healthier, more innovative future for us all.




Innovation Nation


Book Description

This young readers edition of Ingenious focuses on 50 kid-friendly Canadian innovations that changed the world, from canoes to whoopie cushions, chocolate bars to Pablum. Co-written by Canada's Governor General and accompanied by contemporary illustrations, this adaptation offers young Canadians a way to celebrate our history and world contributions on Canada's 150th birthday. Successful innovation is always inspired by at least one of three forces -- insight, necessity and simple luck. Innovation Nation moves through history to explore what circumstances, incidents, coincidences and collaborations motivated each great Canadian idea, and what twist of fate then brought that idea into public acceptance. From the marvels of aboriginal inventions such as the canoe, igloo and lifejacket to the latest pioneering advances in medicine, education, science, engineering and the arts, Canadians have improvised and worked together to make the world a better place. With striking, vibrant illustrations throughout, Innovation Nation is a gorgeous companion to the adult edition that will surprise, enlighten and entertain young readers, and will be a valuable resource for teachers and librarians.




Canadian Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy


Book Description

Canadian Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy presents new critical analysis about related developments in the field such as significantly changed concepts of peer review, merit review, the emergence of big data in the digital age, and the rise of an economy and society dominated by the internet and information. The authors scrutinize the different ways in which federal and provincial policies have impacted both levels of government, including how such policies impact on Canada’s natural resources. They also study key government departments and agencies involved with science, technology, and innovation to show how these organizations function increasingly in networks and partnerships, as Canada seeks to keep up and lead in a highly competitive global system. The book also looks at numerous realms of technology across Canada in universities, business, and government and various efforts to analyze biotechnology, genomics, and the Internet, as well as earlier technologies such as nuclear reactors, and satellite technology. The authors assess whether a science-and-technology-centred innovation economy and society has been established in Canada – one that achieves a balance between commercial and social objectives, including the delivery of public goods and supporting values related to redistribution, fairness, and community and citizen empowerment. Probing the nature of science advice across prime ministerial eras, including recent concerns over the Harper government’s claimed muzzling of scientists in an age of attack politics, Canadian Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy provides essential information for academics and practitioners in business and government in this crucial and complex field.




Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Western Canada


Book Description

A collection of articles by Canadian scholars that examines the nature of the entrepreneurial process at the national and regional levels. The book presents emerging research and scholarly perspectives on the roles of innovation, entrepreneurship, and family business in western Canadian economic development. Includes conceptual pieces, theory-building exercises based on field research, literature reviews, large-scale empirical studies, and presentations of new methodological advancements that further research in the field of business.




Growing Urban Economies


Book Description

A rich and nuanced analysis of the interplay of social, political, and economic factors in thirteen Canadian city-regions, large and small, this collection integrates research focusing on innovation, creativity and talent-retention, and governance in order to understand the distinctive experience of each region.




Out-Innovate


Book Description

The new playbook for innovation and startup success is emerging from beyond Silicon Valley--at the "frontier." Startups have changed the world. In the United States, many startups, such as Tesla, Apple, and Amazon, have become household names. The economic value of startups has doubled since 1992 and is projected to double again in the next fifteen years. For decades, the hot center of this phenomenon has been Silicon Valley. This is changing fast. Thanks to technology, startups are now taking root everywhere, from Delhi to Detroit to Nairobi to Sao Paulo. Yet despite this globalization of startup activity, our knowledge of how to build successful startups is still drawn primarily from Silicon Valley. As venture capitalist Alexandre Lazarow shows in this insightful and instructive book, this Silicon Valley "gospel" is due for a refresh--and it comes from what he calls the "frontier," the growing constellation of startup ecosystems, outside of the Valley and other major economic centers, that now stretches across the globe. The frontier is a truly different world where startups often must cope with political or economic instability and lack of infrastructure, and where there might be little or no access to angel investors, venture capitalists, or experienced employee pools. Under such conditions, entrepreneurs must be creators who build industries rather than disruptors who change them because there are few existing businesses to disrupt. The companies they create must be global from birth because local markets are too small. They focus on resiliency and sustainability rather than unicorn-style growth at any cost. With rich and wide-ranging stories of frontier innovators from around the world, Out-Innovate is the new playbook for innovation--wherever it has the potential to happen.




Canada's Regional Innovation System


Book Description

Regional innovation systems, Jorge Niosi shows, are evolutionary complex systems in which each group of agents reacts to the behaviour of others as well as to public policy incentives. Canada's Regional Innovation System finds that Canada's biotechnology capabilities are widely distributed but solidly planted in Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver, with smaller centres in Calgary and Edmonton. However, the specific institutional structures (innovative firms, research universities, and public laboratories) of regional systems vary from one industry to another and evolve through time. While aerospace and aircraft form two poles in Montreal and Toronto, Ottawa is Canada's centre for semiconductor and telecommunication innovation. Niosi explores how these regional configurations are shaped by national and provincial public policy incentives. The study is based on patent and company information as well as aggregate figures from Statistics Canada and other sources.




Alexander Graham Bell


Book Description

In 1876, at only 29 years old, Alexander Graham Bell completed the invention that would turn him into a household name: the telephone. What began as a tool for his deaf students, the device would ultimately change the way people communicate forever. Driven by a keen scientific mind and a desire to find new ways to assist people, Bell produced groundbreaking inventions in an astonishing range of fields, including aviation and medicine. Jennifer Groundwater tells the story of his most important discoveries, and his passionate, lifelong quest to improve the way things work. This new illustrated edition offers 50+ visuals including blueprints, artifacts, and behind-the-scenes photos of Bell developing inventions.




Innovation Nation


Book Description

From developing Java and the Blackberry to defining the specifications for XML, Canadians have blazed trails in the world's most innovative companies. Canadians have also risen to the top of the largest technology firms, providing a CEO for Yahoo!, Jeff Mallet, and eBay's first president, Jeff Skoll. This sets the stage for Innovation Nation, a new book designed to cut through traditional Canadian modesty and provide a window into the fibre, minds and makeup of over thirty Canadians whom the world needs to know. Demonstrating innovative thinking and entrepreneurial drive, these Canadians show themselves to be the leaders of today and tomorrow. Through these profiles, readers will also come to understand how Canada as a nation helped shaped the thinking of these businesses. With strong qualities, Canada has the infrastructure necessary to continue fostering such leadership and emerge as the world's Innovation Nation.




The Little Black Book of Innovation


Book Description

Innovation may be the hottest discipline around today, in business circles and beyond. And for good reason. Innovation transforms companies and markets. It is the key to solving vexing social problems. And it makes or breaks professional careers. For all the enthusiasm the topic inspires, however, the practice of innovation remains stubbornly impenetrable. No longer. In this book the author draws on stories from his research and field work with companies like Procter & Gamble to demystify innovation. He presents a simple definition of innovation, breaks down the essential differences between types of innovation, and illuminates innovation's vital role in organizational success and personal growth. This unique hybrid of professional memoir and business guidebook also provides a powerful 28-day program for mastering innovation's key steps: (1) Finding insight, (2) Generating ideas, (3) Building businesses, and (4) Strengthening innovation prowess in workforces and organizations. Using several illustrative case studies and vignettes from a range of companies around the globe, this playbook teaches people how to turn themselves or their companies into true innovation powerhouses.