Energy, science and technology minister Jim Wilson was on campus this morning to announce a $21-million research investment at McMaster.

The money comes through three provincial programs:

Ontario Research and Development Challenge Fund: $3.3 million to establish the Centre for Masonry, Effective Design and Remediation of Structure headed by professor of civil engineering Bob Drysdale. The provincial contribution makes up one third of the total $9.9-million centre. The remaining money comes from industry and the University.

Premier's Research Excellence Awards (PREA): The researchers will receive $100,000 each from the province and $50,000 from the University: Round four recipients are: Albert Berghuis (biochemisty), David Earn (mathematics & statistics), Luke Janssen (medicine), James Quinn (biology) and An-Chang Shi (physics & astronomy) To date, 22 McMaster researchers have received PREA awards.

Ontario Innovation Trust: Six projects will receive a total of $17.8 million funding centres and equipment:

* Centre for Molecular Medicine and Health (Jack Gauldie): $9.6 million

* Biomolecular Interactive Initiative (Brian McCarry): $5.2 million

*Communication Technology Research Centre (Max Wong): $2.6 million

* Broadband Multimedia Server for the Humanities (Geoffrey Rockwell): $224,000

* Regional Brain Neurochemistry, Psychostimulant-induced Behaviour and Mental Disorders (Henry Szechtman): $102,000

* Membrane Test and Evaluation Equipment(Ron Childs):$88,000

For more information about these programs and announcements, see the links below.

Editor's note: The OIT release was not available electronically; this information is being made available by posting the hard-copy version on the Daily News page.