Amid much fanfare, Canada's Big 3 telecom companies introduced fifth-generation networks in major cities earlier this year and a few smartphones with 5G capabilities are now available for sale. Yet after years of promises about next-generation wireless powering self-driving cars and robotic surgery, it's still unclear exactly what the newly launched networks are currently able to do. The short answer, experts say, is that it will take years to understand the true potential of 5G. Catherine Rosenberg, who holds the Canada Research Chair in the Future Internet and the Cisco Research Chair in 5G Systems at the University of Waterloo, says there are a lot of misconceptions. "Everybody's positioning themselves for marketing reasons, trying to say they are occupying the space of 5G, but full-fledged 5G is not for tomorrow," Rosenberg says.

Brainstorm guest contributor Paul Fraumeni speaks with four York U researchers who are applying artificial intelligence to their research ventures in ways that, ultimately, could lead to profound and positive impacts on health care in this country. Meet four York University researchers: Lauren Sergio and Doug Crawford have academic backgrounds in physiology; Shayna Rosenbaum has a PhD in psychology; Joel Zylberberg has a doctorate in physics. They share two things in common: They focus on neuroscience – the study of the brain and its functions – and they leverage advanced computing technology using artificial intelligence (AI) in their research ventures, the application of which could have a profound and positive impact on health care. In a nondescript room in the Sherman Health Sciences Research Centre, Lauren Sergio sits down and places her right arm in a sleeve on an armrest. It's an odd-looking contraption; the lower part looks like a sling attached to a video game joystick.

Professor Mark Girolami will study how engineering can use big data to improve practice, including the development of'digital twins'. Professor Girolami, from the Department of Mathematics at Imperial, has been appointed the Lloyd's Register Foundation / Royal Academy of Engineering Research Chair in Data-Centric Engineering. He will lead a five-year project to explore how big data can be incorporated into engineering practice, including the development of new data-centric techniques to monitor the safety of physical structures that will be trialled on the world's first 3D printed stainless steel pedestrian bridge. As part of this, Professor Girolami will develop novel methods and software to create virtual copies of physical structures, also known as digital twins, in order to model what might happen in real life. He is currently Chair of Statistics at Imperial and Strategic Programme Director for the Turing-Lloyd's Register Foundation Data-Centric Engineering Programme at The Alan Turing Institute.