OCAD University

On April 2nd 2019, four OCAD U Graduate students presented their research in three minutes or less, competing for the top prize in this year’s Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition. After long and thoughtful deliberation, our panel of guest judges declared the winners:

1st Place $750 Winner: Uttara Ghodke
Inclusive Design

The Cross-Sensory Globe: Co-designing a 3D Audio-Tactile Globe Prototype for Blind and Low-Vision Users to Learn Geography

2nd Place $300 Winner: Alana Boltwood
Strategic Foresight and Innovation

Making and using large models of complex systems: The Poverty Reduction Model

People’s Choice: $100 Winer: Uttara Ghodke

Uttara Ghodke will go on to represent OCAD U at the 2019 Provincial Finals 3MT Competition at McMaster University on Wednesday, April 17th, 2019. Uttara will receive $850 and travel support to attend the provincial finals.

Honourable mentions to all of the OCAD U 3MT competitors:

Jad Rabbaa
Digital Futures

MRsive: Enhancing Navigation and Engagement in Museums

Yiyi Shao
Digital Futures

RABBOT - Exploring Shared Awareness in Virtual Reality

Many thanks to our panel of judges:

Richard Fung
David McIntosh
Suzanne Morrissette

And many thanks to Dean Ashok Mathur and David Bateman

Congratulations to Afrooz Samaei, the winner of the OCAD U 3MT competition, who represented OCAD U at the 2018 Provincial Finals 3MT Competition at York University on Thursday, April 19th, 2018. 20 PhD and Master's students from across Ontario had 3 minutes to present their #3MTOntario innovative research ideas.

Afrooz's presented her project entitled, "Parabolas and the Town: Learning Abstract Symbolic Mathematics through Digital Games" in 3 minutes or less to a large audience and panel of judges consisting of:

Rob Baker

Rob Baker is best known as the guitarist for the rock band The Tragically Hip.

Christopher Hilkene

Christopher Hilkene is an environment and sustainable development professional who has provided public policy and communications advice to public, private and not-for-profit sector clients over 20 years.

Karen Kraft Sloan

With forty years in government and the private sector, Karen Kraft Sloan served Canada as the Canadian Ambassador for the Environment and as a federal member of parliament.

Natasha Ramsahai

Natasha Ramsahai is a Meteorologist at 680 All News Radio, CityNews and Breakfast Television. Prior to 680/CityNews/Breakfast Television, Natasha was a Senior Meteorologist at the CBC and key to the creation of the CBC National Weather Centre.

Afrooz holds a B.Sc. degree in Geomatics Engineering and will graduate this June from the Master of Design, Digital Futures program. Afrooz has professional experience in data and visual analytics and tutoring mathematics. Her passion for empowering younger generations with STEM skills motivated her to develop a series of math education video games for her master’s thesis, which focuses on learning abstract symbolic mathematics through video games.

Parabolas and the Town is a math educational video game that targets high school students. The goal is to help players better understand an abstract mathematical concept by connecting it to a concrete situation. The problems embedded in the game illustrate how certain abstract concepts gain meaning within a game world and provide a scenario where students are required to dig into their knowledge of algebra and put it into practice in order to be able to solve the game’s challenges.

For more information about this year's Provincial 3MT competition, visit:

http://3mt-ontario.gradstudies.yorku.ca/presenters/