The Sheaf

Are lectures losing it? Irrelevant and unengaging talks are sapping my productivity.

2012-02-06T20:36:22Z

SOL KAUFFMAN
The Martlet (University of Victoria)

Fact: student newspapers make excellent drool protectors.

VICTORIA (CUP) — It’s 3 p.m. on a Monday and I’m sitting in my afternoon writing lecture. The professor has been reviewing Powerpoint slides for the past half-hour and my attention has inevitably slipped away from the content of the class. In one open window of my laptop, I’m brewing ideas for the paper due at the end of this week; in another, I’m editing photos for a commercial photo shoot I did over the weekend. In my busy life, this is the perfect opportunity to get some work done. I half-listen to the lecture, perking up when a question is asked.

Lots of the chairs in front of me are empty, despite the couple of waitlisted students at the beginning of the term who couldn’t get in. Obviously the usual number of people are skipping class today. Maybe they’re sick, maybe they’re working a part-time job or doing something important; hell, maybe they just slept in. In front of me, I see a student on Facebook, another writing in her journal, another texting on his phone. The class is only about twenty-five people, and I’ve had courses with many of them before; they’re all strong writers, and I’m confident they’ll all pass this course with at least a B+. It’s not that the assignments are too easy; on the contrary, we’ll all spend some sleepless nights grinding away at them. So why aren’t so many of us here, physically or otherwise?

Facebook vs. the faculty

From the ivory towers of university to elementary school, technology is exploding in classrooms, and the way people learn in the information age is turning out to be much different than in years past. In my three years as an arts student at the University of Victoria, I’ve watched the university try hard to adapt to the changing needs of students, and they should be commended for their efforts: high-speed Internet, power plugs near desks, printing labs and computer stations in the library among the steps they’ve taken. But in light of some of the issues brought up by technology use and the change in learning styles, UVic and many other schools have begun to institute laptop bans and strict attendance policies.

“The use of cell phones, laptops … except for the purpose of note-taking … is considered disruptive and may lead to discipline from the instructor or the Department Chair,” reads a portion of the UVic department of writing policies. “Laptop users should sit in the front of the room for lectures and may be required to refrain from computer use during workshops.”

This is just not the way to deal with the problem.

In the fourth grade, I was diagnosed with Written Output Disorder, a condition that made it extremely frustrating for me to hand-write assignments and tests in classes. I would often become irritable or lose my composure when I had to produce written work, despite my oral skills and ability to comprehend the subject. My parents got a written recommendation from a child psychiatrist that I take typing lessons and be allowed to use a laptop in school, and since then I’ve taken a laptop to class every day for my 12 consecutive years as a student. Though I’ve mostly overcome my output frustrations as I’ve grown, laptops have always been an integral part of my learning experience. Laptops are such a good tool for recording information, communicating, working and editing that it’s practically unheard of for a student to not own one, particularly one in the writing department.

Of course, many professors will tell you that they hate having laptops in their classes, that laptops are disruptive, that students are always on Facebook or surfing the web and that the downsides outweigh the potential benefits. Many times at UVic (and back in high school as well) I’ve had professors ask me to close my laptop, or to sit in the front of the class, which I find embarrassing and unnecessary. If I sit in the front row, isn’t my screen more distracting to others than if I sit in the back? Though a lot of professors have relaxed their rules on laptops after I speak with them in office hours, and the departmental policy doesn’t always stand, it reflects a position on behalf of the faculty.

I have to be be honest, though. If it’s a lecture course, a lot of the time I am on Facebook, or I’m working or doing something else productive. And a lot of the other people in my courses do the same. It’s part of how we’re used to using computers: we take in information from several different sources at once and multi-task constantly. We are habituated to the practice of using a computer for several different things at once, and often the content of a lecture course can take a backseat as we run triage on our time.

“Young people increasingly live and work in their technology. Like it or not, they are embedded in it,” says Stephen Hume, one of the writing professors at UVic and a columnist for the Vancouver Sun. “Their artistic entertainment, their work, their research information, their social networking, their classroom work, their communications all reside in the electronic matrix.”

There have been many studies showing a link between the use of laptops in class and students’ reduced capacity to intake information and memorize it, and this has lead to support from faculties and profs for forbidding the use of computers in classes. Last year, for example, a McGill political science professor named Arash Abizadeh took advantage of a new academic policy and banned all laptops and mobile communication devices from courses he taught. But this is a short-sighted attempt to address the issue.

For one thing, it’s ridiculous to outlaw a tool that most students are going to spend their entire lives engaging with. As Hume puts it, “telling students they can’t open the laptop on which they’ve received their assignment, stored their research and written the essay seems about as wise as telling students then can bring textbooks to class but aren’t permitted to open them.”

Banning laptops also runs into the issue of how much universities should be policing their paying student customers. If I want to use class time to work on other things or even just not to pay attention, who cares, as long as I’m not disrupting anyone else? If I sit in the back and don’t make too much noise, I’m the only person missing out.

In second year, I took a music class that focused on computing in music and how digital recording worked. It was very intensive; grasping the key concepts meant asking a lot of questions in class and taking exhaustive notes: and if I had tried to pass by simply cramming before the exams, I would have almost certainly failed. There was a surprising amount of math and physics involved that I had to practise, and as it was, I scraped by with a B. It was a demonstration of a lecture course that really required me to use my laptop to take notes in order to keep up, and one in which I simply didn’t have time to tab over to my web browser during class.

Many people in other faculties, such as Engineering or Science, find that many of their classes are similar; note-taking is critical and the material being memorized is directly relevant to being able to work in the field. That said, I didn’t retain much of what I laboured to memorize for the exams, and I got a lot more value from the hands-on recording techniques class that the lecture class was a prerequisite for; but I’ll get back to that. The point is that in a class where my laptop was truly necessary, I wouldn’t have been able to get by without it.

And the flip side of that is the only other time I really use my laptop is when I’m not engaging with the lecture at all. If the course material isn’t interesting, isn’t relevant to my GPA, and isn’t capturing me, then I’m getting a pretty poor return on my tuition investment. And of course I’m going to keep going to class and signing up for these lectures, just like everyone else; we all know you pretty much need a bachelor’s degree to find work anywhere in the white-collar world. But doesn’t the university have a greater responsibility than that?

Aimless attendance

In second year, I registered for an Economics class as an elective for my Creative Writing program. The description in the course calendar sounded really great; game theory, policy intervention, social choice … I was really looking forward to it as I walked into the 200-person lecture hall and found a seat with a plug for my laptop. I’d gotten lucky: the professor was a pretty good lecturer, not a boring voice at all, and the content was actually pretty interesting.

On the other hand, it was on Tuesday nights. That year, I was spending Tuesday evenings running around shooting last-minute photos for the newspaper and my first-year-out-of-res shoestring food budget meant that Tuesday night free Church Dinner at Emmanuel Baptist was a near must. The reality of it was that I missed nearly all of the classes that semester. With a huge class size and no attendance policy, nobody noticed me gone, and the times I did sit in I heard no discussion or real reason to stay. After all, the notes were all posted online.

Come midterms and the final exam, I would cram the night before by printing out old versions of the exams and rewriting all the Powerpoint notes by hand to burn them in my memory. I walked into each exam feeling like I had them cold, and I did — I passed the course with an A average. And I wasn’t the only one, either; lots of my classmates did the same thing.

I wouldn’t say the class was easy. My math skills have always been weak, and memorizing the specific terminology and logical processes for each test was quite difficult. I ended up answering over 250 review questions before I’d even taken the final exam. But as I’ve gone through more time in university, this class and my bizarre experience have stayed with me. How was I able to skip nearly every lecture and not only pass, but get an A? How can the university justify making some poor professor stand up there and be ignored for four whole months? What does that say about lecture courses in general?

Absenteeism is almost the same deal as laptops. It’s fair to say that skipping class is disrespectful to professors, just like not paying attention is, but from my experience, most people only cut class if they have a fairly legitimate reason. A lot of us have busy lives, and there are lots of resources for us to catch up on missed notes. Cracking down on absenteeism only punishes students for those times when their bus is late, or their partner dumps them, or they have an important final for another course.

According to the UVic Department of Writing policies, “Students may miss up to two classes in a single term, including 200-level workshops. A subsequent absence necessitates course withdrawal, or in the event that it is too late to withdraw, the student can expect a failing grade. This is a change from previous years, where students could miss a certain percentage of classes without consequence.”

“Attendance is prescribed by the writing department,” says Hume. “Students know the rules. As adults, I expect students to abide by them. I don’t take formal attendance because I think it’s demeaning. This isn’t elementary school. I’m not your authoritarian Dad. I know my students by name and I know who’s there and who’s not and how often they are away. Everybody has missed an occasional day for illness, or because real life has intruded into their schedule.”

One of the issues is that students don’t bother coming to class if they feel like nobody cares whether they do. In my time at UVic, I’ve skipped countless lecture courses, but very, very few workshops or tutorials.

“The smaller the class, the less I skipped,” says Bryce Bladon, a recent graduate of UVic’s writing department. “I found that I placed substantially more value on classes where my attendance affected the learning of others or where my absence would be noticeable to the professor or lecturer. When my presence was valued, I valued my attendance.”

At the end of the day, banning laptops and making penalties higher for skipping class is a band-aid on the problem of people not giving a shit about their courses. I can’t imagine a professor preferring people be forced to pay attention than genuinely want to learn in a class. Students are paying consumers of the university’s product, and moreover, finishing high school and entering university is an important transition in responsibility. Enforcing rules on students takes responsibility away from them and infantilizes them, and that in turn encourages them to care even less.

“I take the view that my task is to lead students to water, not force them to drink it,” says Hume. “If they choose not to pay attention or participate actively in the class, then they are robbing themselves, not me or the university. So after 19 years of teaching these workshops, I’m now firmly of the ‘less is more’ school of thought when it comes to the instructor’s control of the process.”

Hume also reports “a consistently higher performance standard” from his students. “The output is better and the quality of work is much better and their sense of communal obligation to one another is much higher.” I feel as though every hands-on course I’ve taken was worth at least twice as much as any other lecture I attended. Of course, it’s not possible for every class to have that element, but it’s important for professors to keep in mind that the more they engage students the less they have to deal with problems like disrespect, absenteeism and lack of attention.

So what’s a university to do, confronted by this problem? You can’t force students to listen up, and they’re so bored in some lectures that they’re actively doing other work. It’s a waste of students’ time and a waste of professors’ time teaching to a silent room.

How do we fix this?

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Photo: rofltosh/Flickr

Medical students to put on art show for charity

2012-02-06T22:10:22Z

On Feb. 8, the first-year class of the college of medicine will put on their annual art show, the Med 1 Art Show and Silent Auction.

The show is a popular event at the College of Medicine, attracting faculty, alumni and members of the public. All artwork is produced by first-year medical students, who also provide silent auction items and entertainment. Each student contributes a piece of art, including painting, photography, sculpture and performance. Many local businesses and individuals have also made donations.

Every year, the students choose a theme for their artwork and a nonprofit organization to receive the proceeds from the event. In 2011, the show raised nearly $10,000 for Casa de Espera, an organization in Massinga, Mozambique that provides life-saving care to infants and pregnant women.

The theme of this year’s show is “nature” and the proceeds will go to Child Hunger and Education Program. CHEP provides a variety of community-based food services, such as child nutrition programs, community gardening and Good Food Boxes. Currently, CHEP is fundraising to build a grocery store at Station 20 West in downtown Saskatoon. The goal of the project is to provide affordable, healthy food to a neighborhood that has been missing a grocery store for over 10 years.

Some residents of Saskatoon’s core neighborhoods must choose less healthy food options from gas stations, convenience stores and fast food restaurants because there is no grocery store in the area. For a variety of reasons, people living in these neighborhoods are more likely to develop chronic illnesses like diabetes that are linked to poor nutrition.

U of S medical students hope that improving food security in downtown Saskatoon will contribute to the long-term health of the entire community. CHEP’s grocery store, called the Good Food Junction Co-op, will be locally organized and staffed by community members. Construction is already underway and the store is set to open in the summer.

The Med 1 Art Show occurs on Feb. 8 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. on the fourth floor of the Health Sciences Building, B-Wing. The show is free to attend, and coffee, tea and refreshments are provided.

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Image: Supplied

Once upon a time in Nazi Germany

2012-02-06T22:10:19Z

Gretchen (Anna Seibel) and Friederike (Jackie Block).

“Once upon a time” and “Happily ever after” — these phrases are not typically associated with the Holocaust. Yet so unfolds the storybook opening to All Through the Night.

The dark yet strangely whimsical drama is the latest offering from the Greystone Theatre, sporting an all female cast and a striking atmosphere.

“Once upon a time, a long, long time ago, there lived, on top of the mountain there – a mean old man.” These are the words of Ludmilla as she begins to recount the events of the dark cloud that spread over Germany before and during the Second World War. This jarringly childlike account of the Holocaust is responded to shortly afterward by a scene of the principal characters as girls in German public school already having the ideals of the Nazi regime instilled in them by seemingly innocuous shows of patriotism.

Already they show divergent personalities, with some interested in resisting the authority and others following it with unwavering determination. As the story unfolds, the women veer off in drastically different directions as they come to terms with how to endure in Hitler’s Germany.

“It’s about survival,” said director Natasha Martina. All Through the Night is a lesser-known Holocaust story; as Martina says, some people are unaware of how Hitler “sought the demise of his own people if they didn’t fit” — women in particular. Thus, the characters find themselves confined in this new regime that demands of them loyalty, child-rearing and nothing else.

Martina came away from her production of The Odyssey last spring with an eye to do something very different. She was interested in an all-female cast, because one had not been done in at least six years. She was drawn to Shirley Lauro’s award-winning script for its striking political subject matter and the challenge it presented to both cast and director.

The script draws from the testimony of actual women in Nazi Germany, and the actresses needed to do extensive research to develop their characters. Anna Seibel plays Gretchen, a young woman who becomes a staunch supporter of the regime and does terrible things as a result. Seibel took inspiration from an actual female Nazi prison guard who was executed at the end of the war when she was just 23 years old.

“As dark and as terrible as it is, it shows something about human nature,” said Seibel. “Gretchen takes opportunities presented to her.”

The action plays out within a minimalistic set, formed in the manner of a crumbling building, devoid of comfort and washed in despair. The lack of props enables a fluid movement of action as the lives of the women unfold in a non-linear fashion — what Anna Seibel describes as a “hopscotch through time.” She says the minimalist set design forces audiences to use their mind’s eyes, and “allows the images to come to life.”

The mixture of the bleak subject matter with what Martina very tentatively calls the “fairy tale fashion” of the narrative style creates an arresting and unsettling image. All Through the Night is much more than simply a depressing march through the Holocaust, but the audience will have to decide how much triumph they find in the story.

At its core, it is the tale of four innocent girls put in a bad situation, and the ways in which they branch out to try to make it through the rough years they face. The audience may or may not choose to sympathize with them, but will have to understand them. Martina said the underlying question the drama poses is, “Have we learned something?”

The title All Through the Night evokes many ideas, from the terrifying to the romantic, and many of these ideas sneak their way into the play. In one sense, it refers to how “the atrocities of war stop for no one,” said Seibel, but it also speaks to the women’s need to survive long enough to see the dawn of a new Germany.

The play is unlikely to cheer you up, but it will make you stop and think, which is something we all need to do from time to time.

All Through the Night plays at the Emrys Jones Theatre in the John Mitchell Building until Feb. 11. Shows are 8 p.m. nightly except for Sundays. Tickets are $14 for students.

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Photo: Raisa Pezderic/The Sheaf

Tablets vs. textbooks: e-textbooks are not necessarily as cost-effective as expected

2012-02-05T23:54:10Z

KATIE FLOOD
The Cord (Wilfrid Laurier University)

Textbooks make the best iPad stands.

WATERLOO (CUP) — “I’m really just looking at it to read books and share pictures, I guess — and maybe textbooks, hopefully textbooks,” said Klara Raic, justifying her purchase of an expensive, but increasingly popular piece of technology: the tablet.

The Wilfrid Laurier University second-year business student bought the Lenovo a1 tablet during boxing week sales for $200. While she hopes to use her new tablet for storing photographs and portable internet access, like many other students who have purchased tablets and e-readers, Raic was motivated by hopes of saving money on textbooks.

“This semester, I don’t have any more textbooks that I can buy online … but in the future, I would definitely continue using it and putting my books on here,” explained Raic.

While tablets and e-readers undoubtedly offer an advantage for avoiding the lines on campus to buy new and second-hand books — typically ranging from $200-$500 — are they worth the investment?

Raic thinks so.

“I’m thinking of just getting the online code and using this as my textbook and not spending the extra $120 dollars on the textbook itself … which is half of the price of this [tablet],” she said.

The second-year student explained her theory that after buying one or two e-textbooks online instead of in print, the cost of the tablet is likely made up in money saved.

While e-textbooks save money in the short term, Laurier’s Bookstore manager of academic material Mika Zybala pointed out that e-textbooks are usually a rental service, through which students miss out on resale value of the book.

“We’re seeing that bit of divide because general book reading is definitely moving in the e-book direction, where the traditional textbook is more in that access code, so it’s a short term access … you do not own that e-book,” said Zybala, explaining that students do not save as much money with e-textbooks as they would expect.

Coursesmart.com offers a first-year cultural anthropology textbook for $44.98 compared to the Bookstore’s price of $108.75, but the e-textbook can only be rented for 180 days.

“You’re not able to sell that material back to the store at the end of the semester, so that’s really where the biggest difference is,” he said.

When asked which she would buy from if books from a second-hand book fair and an e-textbook resource were priced the same, second-year student Vanessa Frey agreed that there is an advantage to buying print books. “[Second-hand] resale value, you can still sell it back for thirty bucks.”

But with the iPad 3 rumoured to be released in upcoming months, tablet popularity is increasing despite the fact that e-textbooks do not save as much money as students expect.

“We’ve definitely seen some strong sales through the tablet … there’s definitely a lot more interest in a tablet than the traditional desktop,” said Zybala, referring to the bookstore’s technology sales.

“On a personal level, yeah I wouldn’t mind a tablet for convenience of everything, for Internet access, for being able to access email … I think they’re becoming a bit more of a useful tool that can be used in multiple aspects,” said Zybala, who bought the Kobo e-reader last year.

Despite the trouble with tablets saving students money on textbooks, Zybala predicts that like Raic, students will continue to use the multipurpose e-textbooks because of convenience and the Bookstore will need to adapt in order to survive.

“It will definitely have an impact on our business,” Zybala said.

“I think [the tablet] has its place and I still think that the printed book will have its place as well. I think, in general, it’s all about choice.”

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Photo: samweber/Flickr

Top virology scientists temporarily halt research on highly transmissible avian flu

2012-02-05T23:54:04Z

TOM INGRAM
The Manitoban (University of Manitoba)

WINNIPEG (CUP) — The leaders of several top virology labs have agreed to a 60-day halt on research involving new strains of avian influenza that are more transmissible in mammals. The agreement was spearheaded by Ron Fouchier, a Dutch virologist and the lead author of a controversial study on bird flu, currently in press at Science.

Fouchier’s work at the Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam created a new strain of H5N1 influenza, which allows for the airborne spread of the virus between ferrets. Ferrets catch the flu in a similar manner to humans, and are thought to be good models of flu infection in humans.

The United States National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity (NSABB), to which Fouchier sent his paper for review before publishing, advised that certain details be left out of the published article for security reasons.

After the story broke, Fouchier saw growing public unease about his research and began talking to other flu scientists. They came to the conclusion that some time was needed to allow governments and health organizations to think about the issues raised by the work. A statement was published on Jan. 20 in the journals Science and Nature announcing the pause, which affects work on “highly pathogenic” bird flu strains. Research on naturally occurring influenza will continue.

During this period, Fouchier hopes to organize a meeting with the U.S. government and the World Health Organization (WHO) in attendance. “People need to talk, and infectious diseases specialists need to take the microphone and explain why this research is important and how you can do it safely,” he said in an interview with Science.

Some are worried about the harsh response to research that could have major benefits to public health. “I have concerns that people understandably concerned about security may put restrictions on important research that might go a little bit too far,” said Anthony Fauci, from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in Maryland.

Fouchier himself believes that the fears about his research are overblown. “Bioterrorists can’t make this virus, it’s too complex, you need a lot of expertise,” he said. “And rogue nations that do have the capacity to do this don’t need our information. So I don’t think they will benefit from this information at all.”

Meanwhile, the WHO worries that restrictions on publishing flu research will jeopardize a painstakingly negotiated international data-sharing agreement intended to “increase and expedite access to essential vaccines, antivirals and diagnostic kits, especially for outbreak areas.”

Critics of the safety of Fouchier’s research were unwavering. John Steinbruner, an international security expert at the University of Maryland, questioned the ability of governments to do anything meaningful within 60 days. Richard Ebright, a biologist from Rutgers University in New Jersey, called Fouchier’s statement “strictly symbolic.”

“The letter rejects, out of hand, the need for enhanced biosafety, biosecurity, and dual-use oversight, and, instead, maintains that all that is needed is an opportunity for researchers ‘to assure the public’ and ‘to clearly explain the benefits of this important research and the measures taken to minimize its possible risk,’” said Ebright.

Thomas Inglesby, a biosecurity expert who criticized Fouchier’s research when it was first announced, compared bird flu to the Spanish flu, a disease that was widespread and deadly in 1918. “H5N1 avian influenza has sickened 571 people, killing 59 per cent of them,” he wrote. “To give some perspective, the fatality rate of the virus that caused the 1918 Great Pandemic was 2 per cent, and that pandemic killed on the order of 50 million people.” A more transmissible H5N1 virus, he believes, “could cause billions of illnesses and deaths around the world.”

Fouchier plans to keep to the NSABB’s recommendations as well as he can, but warns that it would be “very unwise” not to share information with his close collaborators in Indonesia, a major centre of H5N1 infection. A mechanism for sharing sensitive data with legitimate scientists is in the works and expected to be solidified in late February.

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Graphic: Kara Passey/The Manitoban

The grad school journey: professors and students offer insight into taking the big jump at the end of your degree

2012-02-06T22:10:36Z

KRISTYN FILIP
The Fulcrum (University of Ottawa)

OTTAWA (CUP) — The light at the end of the tunnel appears for many undergraduate students in their fourth year of study.

As the month of April approaches, graduating students dream of donning gowns and tossing caps in the air in before heading off into the proverbial “real world.” For others, receiving an undergraduate degree is just the tip of the iceberg. How do professors and students — those working toward obtaining a graduate degree and those in the midst of the application process — perceive the jump to grad school?

Make up your mind

While there is no universally accepted “right” time to start thinking about pursuing a graduate degree, many professors suggest students begin considering their options in their third year of undergraduate study.

Professors Victoria Burke of the University of Ottawa English department and Magdi Mohareb of the faculty of engineering both mentioned the ability to apply for scholarships in a timely manner as a reason why students should think about graduate studies before their fourth year.

“I think it’s ideal to have made a decision by the end of your third year because there are external grants you can apply to in the fall,” said Burke, noting that the Ontario Graduate Studies Fellowships and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada fellowship are due by early October.

“It is best for a student to consider graduate studies one year before graduation, particularly if he or she is seeking financial support,” said Mohareb. “You can start the process later on, but your chances of getting financial assistance will [decrease].”

U of O history student Laura Gurnham had been thinking about grad school since she began university, but found her third- and fourth-year courses gave her the final push necessary to make up her mind about pursuing a master’s degree.

“By exploring school through more challenging courses in third and fourth year, my determination [to go to grad school] has become a bit more solid,” she said. “I feel I can handle the work and I have started to narrow down specifically what type of program I want to apply to.”

Students in their fourth year of university who are just beginning to consider grad school need not panic. Krissy Coulas, who is working toward a master’s of library science degree at University College Dublin, didn’t know what she wanted to do until her fourth year of study at the U of O.

“It wasn’t until the summer before fourth year that I decided [a master’s] was something I wanted to do,” she said in an email. “Even then, I had to decide if I wanted to pursue a master’s in English, which was my undergrad major, or a master’s of library science. I ended up choosing a master’s of library science after getting some work experience in the Morisset Library.

The golden ticket: The reference letter

Perhaps the thing students worry about most when applying to graduate school is getting glowing recommendation letters from professors.

U of O English professor Thomas Allen reminded students that professors are accustomed to requests for reference letters.

“I don’t think there’s any reason to be shy about [approaching a professor for a letter of recommendation] because it’s part of our jobs,” he said. “We all write plenty of letters every year, so you’re not the only person who has asked us to do so.”

Nathan Young, a U of O sociology professor, encouraged students to research their professors before approaching them.

“Profs who are full time are the ones who expect to write letters,” he said. “Part-time profs often will hesitate [to write letters] because they know they don’t carry as much weight. You should also choose a prof who is recognized by other universities.”

Burke recommended potential applicants ask for reference letters from professors whose classes they excelled in.

“The first thing is to approach professors who gave you the best marks,” she said. “Even if you’re not entirely sure the professor remembers you, as long as you have the written material you produced for that professor, he or she will be able to look at your work and speak in really concrete terms about what your skills are.”

Gurnham expressed concern that large class sizes may have hindered her ability to get to know professors on a more personal level, which is often an important factor in an instructor’s decision to write a recommendation.

“I know professors are really open and friendly, but I have a hard time getting over that student-professor relationship enough to make a connection to a professor in a large classroom,” she said. “I obviously have talked to some, but I am worried they don’t know me well enough to provide a letter of recommendation.”

Fortunately for nervous students everywhere, Madeleine Sourisseau, a U of O student working toward her master’s in public and international affairs, said getting reference letters was not as scary or tough as she anticipated it would be. “It wasn’t difficult to get the letters because the professors I approached were more than glad to write them for me,” said Sourisseau.

What was the most trying part? “Working up the nerve to ask them!” she said.

In order to give the professors a broad view of her as a student, Sourisseau was sure to provide them with her statement of interest, an unofficial transcript of her grades and an academic resumé.

One of Sourisseau’s professors even let her help with the letter-writing process.

“He gave me a reference letter template,” she said. “I could tell him what I thought were my strengths so that he could write me an even better reference letter.”

Applying and the aftermath

After obtaining reference letters, the grad school applicant must move on to the next step of the process: Preparing all necessary documents and actually applying to his or her program of choice.

Admission processes differ according to school and faculty, but both Sourisseau and Coulas emphasized the importance of asking for help when necessary.

“The process of applying was a bit daunting, but it just comes down to reading the requirements for the schools you’re interested in, following directions, and calling or emailing their application representative if you need help,” said Coulas.

Sourisseau turned to her professors for guidance.

“The application process was straightforward and pretty easy once I’d made the decision to do it,” she said. “I asked the professors who had agreed to be my references for tips on how to write a statement of intent.”

At the U of O, the general requirements for master’s of science students are a B average in an honours bachelor degree and good letters of reference.

“If the student meets [the faculty’s] requirements, his or her file is circulated in the department,” said Mohareb, who is the graduate program coordinator of the Ottawa-Carleton Institute for Civil Engineering. “Files for master’s students, if admissible, are circulated among professors the candidate identified as possible supervisors for his or her thesis. If the professors are prepared to accept the candidate as a student, he or she is admitted in the program.”

Although the faculties of arts and sciences are very different, their admission processes are similar.

“[In the English department] the members of the graduate committee — who are usually four or five professors from the department — read all the files and make comments about them,” said Allen. “Some applicants are obvious ‘yes’es, while some are ambiguous, and there are obvious ‘no’s, unfortunately. For the ones who are ambiguous, there will be a meeting to discuss whether or not to admit them.”

The application process is not easy, but for some students, it’s a small difficulty that pales in comparison to the payoff of having a master’s degree.

“The application process is more intensive than for an undergrad degree, but if you’re committed to the program you’re applying for, it isn’t difficult,” said Sourisseau.

Concerns, worries, and self-doubt

After making the difficult decision to actually apply to grad school, some students report feelings of self-doubt begin to surface. They become uncertain they “have what it takes” to succeed in a master’s program, despite having achieved high grades throughout their undergrad.

Gurnham, who will be applying to graduate school in the near future, admitted to feeling nervous about starting a master’s degree.

“I am concerned that I am not smart enough,” she said. “I get good grades, but I’m still worried that the level of original thought required from grad students is a bit beyond me still.”

Coulas had similar concerns.

“I was terrified that grad school was only for smart people, and though I’ve always gotten good grades, I’ve never considered myself smart enough for that sort of thing,” she said.

Studying at a master’s level is certainly more demanding than the undergraduate level, but Coulas mentioned that students shouldn’t feel graduate school is only for the elite.

“What you have to remember is that while grad school is challenging, it’s not reserved for the kids that get 90 per cent and upwards,” she said. “It’s just another level of education, like university was after high school.”

Professors tell all

How can a student guarantee his or her application will dazzle the graduate school committee? While there is no magic formula for success, professors are more than willing to offer general advice to any student applying to grad school.

Mohareb believes the biggest mistake applicants make is “not talking to potential supervisors before submitting their application.”

“Sometimes professors cannot accept students because students have specified they need funding while the university is unable to provide it,” he said. “In other cases, the department may already have a large number of students to supervise or may find your interests do not match their present research activities.”

In regards to statements of interest or research plans, which many programs require applicants to submit, both Burke and Young urged students to avoid including generic declarations of passion for their chosen field.

“When students are too general — for example, expressing a general love of literature — it’s just not specific enough,” said Burke. “If there’s a little too much non-specific enthusiasm, that’s harder to evaluate. Maybe there’s a fantastic student in there, but we want to have their skills demonstrated to us.”

“Sometimes the research plan is written like a life story and that’s a thing to avoid,” said Young. “It ought to be about what you intend to do as opposed to how you got here. A research plan should not be about why you’re interested in sociology — we assume you’re here because you want to be here. It should be about what you plan to do in the two years.”

Not only should statements of interest and research plans be specific, but they should also demonstrate the applicants’ ability to write coherently.

“[Some submissions] are not very well written and that tends to disqualify people,” said Allen. “People can really knock themselves out by being a bit sloppy with their statements of purpose.”

Is it worth it?

Given the somewhat dismal state of the current job market, many students decide to apply for graduate school simply to avoid facing the real world. Others consider this to be a mistake, believing a master’s degree to be unnecessary and little more than another massive debt to pay off in the future.

Allen noted students with high grade point averages could have their master’s degrees funded.

“[The English department’s] course work program here is only one year long and if you have an 8.0 grade point average, you’ll be funded. Given what the job market is like, why not get an MA?” he said.

Although Allen believes a master’s in English will “pay off down the road,” he cautions students against “getting a [master’s degree] just because they think, ‘Oh, I need to beef up my resumé.’”

“Nobody’s going to hire you for a specific job just because you have an MA in English,” he said. “But on the other hand, if you’re going into teaching or if you’re applying to law school later, it looks good. The intellectual challenge is good.”

Burke mentioned the transferability of skills acquired at the master’s level as a valid reason why a student might want to pursue grad work.

“I often hear [graduate] students say, ‘This year has blown my mind. This is difficult and exciting and I understand how to work at a high level now,’” she said. “We think of that as concretely useful for future work. We really think that the in-depth training you get from doing grad-level courses gives you additional skills that are transferable to a countless number of different jobs.”

Young believes a master’s of social science degree to be a “practical thing.”

“The majority of our graduates go into the workforce using their degrees,” he said. “A master’s degree can also clearly be a stepping stone for getting a PhD or for personal fulfilment, but it does carry a lot of weight in the job market. We track our grads pretty carefully.”

Perhaps Sourisseau summarizes the validity of grad school most succinctly.

“Yes, it’s a lot of work. Yes, it’s challenging. But it’s also rewarding, interesting, and filled with great professors and new friends,” she said. “If you like what you’re doing — if you feel as though you’re benefiting from it personally, academically, professionally — then it’s worth it.”

–
Graphics: Julia Pankova/The Fulcrum)

I suck at video games: a personal reflection on an acceptable flaw

2012-02-03T20:30:13Z

What is this I don't even.

I’m 24 years old, and when you get to a certain age you start to come into yourself. For some this happens earlier, while for others it happens much too late.

Fortunately, I seem to be coming along nicely (thank you very much), but certain aspects of my identity are also coming into focus that are starting to cause dreadful anxiety and constant self-doubt. No, I’m not referring to my marks or getting a job or wondering why the heck I’m writing this article instead of the essay due tomorrow. No, it’s something far less relevant, but it stings just the same.

After 24 years, I’m starting to accept the fact that, despite my fervent love of the medium, I really suck at video games.

It’s not something any man wants to admit, particularly one from a generation raised on Donkey Kong and Super Mario, but it’s true. I’ve denied it so long that I’ve become laughable. How many times have I been reduced to just running around in GoldenEye trying not to get shot because killing me meant breaking a tie between two much better players?

“It’s Oddjob’s shortness!” I would declare.

Surely there was no way I sucked so much that I had lost all my lives within the space of two minutes. There was also no way I could have lost against my friend’s Klobb when I was packing a Cougar Magnum!

My stupid controller must have been off.

“Halo is impossible to learn!” I would say after being beaten down a mere second after re-spawning for about the ninth time.

“The game is so unbalanced against new players.”

I still have no idea what it’s like to actually drive a vehicle or fire a weapon in that game.

Looking back at all the games I loved, I realize I suck at every one of them. I can’t manage my healing and defense in World of Warcraft. I still don’t know how to use smash attacks in Smash Bros. and don’t ask me how you get out of a corner in Mario Kart.

I’ve used excuse after excuse to explain my terrible skill in these games and they never made me feel any better. But yet I kept making them, because as a young male I refused to believe that I could possibly be bad at video games.

Should I blame society for making me this way? By putting pressure on my gender to be good at video games, did they force me to lie to myself all these years? Is that why I’ve been stuck in the Water Temple in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for the last five years? Nope, that’s just another excuse.

The fact is I love video games. I truly do. But I suck at them, plain and simple.

And you know what? That’s OK. It’s good to understand a little bit more about my identity as a person. It doesn’t matter that I can’t seem to stay on the level in Super Mario 3D Land, a game so easy my girlfriend’s 10-year-old cousin is further along in it than I am.

The more you understand your appreciation of the arts, the more you get to know yourself.

A few months ago I looked up a list I made eight years ago of my favourite movies. I found so much joy in crossing off the ones I no longer care about and replacing them with new favourites. And the ones I kept on that list I was able to watch again with a newfound appreciation.

It’s the same now with video games since I’ve come to accept my absolute zero skill in the medium. I’m enjoying them more. My skills have even increased. Not by much, mind you. I’ve been stuck in the same part of Dark Souls for about a month and a half. But it doesn’t matter. I’m having more fun than I ever had when I was trying to be good at video games.

It’s part of growing up. You realize you have a few things you’re great at, a few you suck at and a million things you haven’t tried yet.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve been lost in a castle in Skyrim for the last few hours. Anyone have a walkthrough?

Dear Mr. Harper: thanks for making Canada a Kyoto drop-out

2012-02-03T20:01:47Z

KEETON WILCOCK
The Fulcrum (University of Ottawa)

OTTAWA (CUP) — Dear Mr. Harper, I’ve always been a big fan of your policies, and I can’t tell you how excited I was on May 2 when I watched the final numbers roll in and you gained a majority government. But it was on Dec. 11, 2011, that you won a very special place in my heart. It was on this day that your minister of the environment, Peter Kent, officially announced Canada would be the first country in the world to withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol. A decision like that is just pure Stephen Harper gold.

“The Kyoto Protocol has been holding back Canada’s economic growth for far too long,” I thought. “It’s about time the Conservative government dropped that ancient piece of emissions legislation like an arts student with a chemistry elective.”

Now, to educated folks like you and me, dropping the restrictive Kyoto Protocol is only logical. You can imagine my surprise, then, when a few of my friends didn’t view Kent’s announcement favourably. Fortunately, I took a civics class in grade 10, so I have a thorough understanding of international environmental legislation and was able to explain your decision to my confused friends.

First, I explained that the federal government has saved $14 billion by dropping out of the Kyoto Protocol, and in these times of economic austerity, breaking our country’s promise to the rest of the world is totally legit. If our federal government paid this ridiculous fine, that would mean an increase of almost 2.5 per cent to our country’s $563-billion national debt!

“I know that I’m certainly not willing to give up 2.5 per cent of my hard-earned cash to make good on a longstanding promise to the rest of the planet, and neither should Harper and our federal government,” I said.

Next, I argued that this whole Kyoto business always smelled a little too much of communism for my taste, and if there’s one thing Canadians ain’t, it’s a country of tree-hugging commies. Wealthy first-world countries cutting their emissions while poor, third-world countries are allowed to increase theirs? Sounds like some class warfare Marxist junk to me, and I’m certainly not having any of it. Capitalism for the win, am I right?

Oh yeah, I’m right.

I also noted the world’s largest emitters — China and the United States — never ratified the Kyoto Protocol. Everyone knows that until those countries ratify a climate change agreement, taking action in any way to limit Canada’s annual 540 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions is basically useless.

Lastly, I was able to recall that the federal government’s Kyoto decision came just two days after the end of an international summit on climate change in Durban, South Africa — a summit Kent attended. This obviously allowed Kent to gain all the relevant facts about climate change necessary to make his educated decision to ignore it.

After I finished my tirade, one of my friends told me that Canada has been mocked internationally for the decision to drop Kyoto, and that Ban Ki-moon, Secretary General of the United Nations, stated on Dec. 14 that we are at a turning point in history due to worldwide political protests and climate change.

I mostly didn’t know how to reply to that, so I just yelled, “Yeah, tar sands!” and said the discussion was henceforth prorogued for three months or so while I focused on more important things. That worked pretty well, I think.

Anyway, I want to personally thank you for the federal government’s decision to drop the Kyoto Protocol, and I encourage you to never let facts get in the way of your opinion — and never let a promise get in the way of your wallet.

–
Graphic: Devin Beauregard/The Fulcrum

Bob Rae eggs on young voters: “I would like to see you guys angry”

2012-02-03T19:36:41Z

SARAH DESHAIES
CUP Quebec Bureau Chief

Liberal leader Bob Rae shows off his own angry face at Concordia.

MONTREAL (CUP) — If you’re a young person, Bob Rae wants to hear what you have to say — but you need to step up and say it. And no, he won’t reveal whether he’ll be running to be the next leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, a question that has dogged the interim leader in the last few weeks.

Rallying the youth vote was Rae’s goal as he capped off a five-day tour of Quebec on the cusp of the opening of Parliament with a stopover at Concordia University on Jan. 27. More than 50 students and supporters packed the room to hear Rae.

One student asked Rae how he planned to recruit students, despite the low voter turnout rate among youth.

“How long is it going to take for you guys to tell us what your vision is?” responded Rae. “Why are you waiting for me to tell you why you should participate in politics?”

Rae added: “I think a lot of it has to do with how the baby boom generation takes up a lot of space. This is not a generation that is uninvolved; this is a generation that says, ‘I don’t hear you talking about the things that matter to me.’ ”

But if the turnout at the last Liberal convention is any indication, young Liberals are trying to make their presence felt in the former “natural governing party” that was devastated in the last federal election.

The biennial convention, which took place in Toronto Jan. 13–15, was attended by over 3,000 delegates, about a third of whom were under 25. Three out of five candidates for the job of national policy chair fit into that age bracket: Braeden Caley, Ryerson student Daniel Lovell and the youngest of the bunch, Zach Paikin, 20. But the winning candidate was Maryanne Kampouris, who was born in 1956.

At the convention, party delegates decided to support the legalization and regulation of marijuana, as well as instituting a preferential ballot system for party elections.

But it’s clear the Liberals still have some soul-searching to do.

When one student asked if it was time for the party to adopt a new manifesto of ideals, Rae responded, “Probably, it is.”

While admitting that the party needs to go back to the drawing board on its policies and ideas, Rae emphasized that they are not “really lost” but are instead refining their position to not be simply based on opposition to Stephen Harper or on legacies left by other politicians.

“We’re saying, think for yourselves, and if you want somebody else to think for you, you have two other parties you can go to,” he said. “Our party is different.”

One Concordia professor wanted to know how Rae felt about the differing quality and budget for education across the provinces.

Rae took the opportunity to commit to students’ needs. In that vein, he had strong words for the Canada student loans program and national apprenticeship programs. The federal student loan program is “not particularly good” and can be inaccessible, according to Rae.

And while Rae acknowledged that the federal government does not dictate tuition rates, he said he is open to advice: “I want us to be talking to university and college campuses and apprenticeship programs and everywhere that people are involved in learning experiences, and say, ‘How can we help?’ ”

Rae left after an hour, leaving Montreal members of Parliament Justin Trudeau, Francis Scarpaleggia and Marc Garneau to take up the question period and address whether the “Bob Rae” bounce — the Liberals’ bump in support in recent polls — will last.

“I think a tremendous amount of credit needs to go to Bob,” said Trudeau. “He’s been a very strong leader.”

But while there has been a small upturn in support, all three agreed more work needs to be done.

“I like to compare the Liberal Party to a body [that] was wheeled on a gurney into an ER, and they had to put the paddles to us,” said Garneau. “I would say today that the Liberal party has a heartbeat. It’s not ready to get up out of bed, we’re still intravenous. We’ve got a heck of a long way to go, and we know it.”

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Photo: Navneet Pall/The Concordian

Stop fuelling the madness: Saskatoon Police plane is a waste of money

2012-02-05T23:19:42Z

I wouldn’t normally say local police waste our money on grossly incompetent staff or services. It’s not like they ever had sex on duty or threw people outside the city in lethally cold weather.

But this plane they’ve been joyriding since 2005 is a ridiculous money pit.

The local police website proudly boasts that their Cessna 182 plane was “directly responsible” for 53 arrests during its initial three-month evaluation. As of 2008, the plane’s operating costs were about $500,000 annually. Now I’m no math-whiz but spending a half-million dollars every year for something that makes a couple arrests a week is obviously a waste of tax dollars.

Responding to critics like me, the police sporadically post an “activity log” of the plane on their website. It’s a feeble attempt to prove this machine offers Saskatoon more than just noise and air pollution.

The latest entry shows that, between Jan. 1 and 6 this year, the plane spent a whopping 32 minutes handling incidents of a supposedly criminal nature. The log labels these incidents under cryptic names like “suspicious person,” “unknown problem” and “assist major crimes.”

A more detailed perusal of these logs reveals the Air Support Unit mainly does two things: It witnesses bad driving and reports any unusual behavior as “suspicious” — things police on the ground already do. The difference is that cops on the ground confront real danger, whereas the ASU floats hundreds of feet above, sheltered from Saskatoon’s notoriously violent streets.

During a ride-along, StarPhoenix reporter Lori Coolican said the only action the plane saw was “a possible drunk driver in a residential neighbourhood, kids goofing around on the roof of a school and a speeding motorcycle.”

Clearly, the ASU is uncovering some serious shit. And I’m so glad our city has a plane to hunt and prosecute such heinous crimes as kids playing on a roof. Maybe the police service’s next purchase should be a bazooka to kill flies with.

Financially speaking, this plane is a total waste. But as we all know, when a show of force proves ineffective, the most prudent solution is to throw more money at it. The police seem to agree.

In 2009 a thermal imaging camera was purchased for the plane for the meagre price of $300,000. Police say SGI footed the bill, meaning that we drivers footed the bill. According to 600 Action News, police use the camera “to track criminals, find missing persons and locate drug grow-operations in the city.” It all sounds impressive on paper but the plane’s activity log, and a thorough look back at local news, reveals no cases where the camera located missing persons or grow-ops.

The camera is useful however at peeking inside the privacy of our homes. So beware: if you and a friend are making hot, sweaty thermal energy tonight, the police could be watching. And if the plane’s binoculars are as good as they say, you should probably reconsider skinny-dipping in your backyard pool.

Taxpayers have already dumped millions into this monstrosity of a plane. In return we get a more invasive and costly police force. But this money could do so much more for a humanitarian project like Station 20 West. These millions of dollars could even start curbing Saskatoon’s AIDS epidemic, by building a safe injection clinic for example.

Either way, putting this money toward the needy — instead of plane maintenance — would lead to greater crime reduction and higher standards of living than we’ll achieve flying a piece of metal in circles every day.

And if we must give this money to police, they could at least reallocate it to more police units on the ground.

I’m led to believe this plane does not fly for the protection and service of Saskatoon. It seems to function more as a way of making our police feel important. But they need to realize that Saskatoon is not a big city. We are not a terrorist threat, nor are we in a state of emergency.

Police, your play time is over. If you really want to fly you should either: join the air force and face real danger, or buy toy planes — they cost less and are about as useful for fighting crime.

And we citizens must remember it’s our civic duty to police the police. When they do something as criminally stupid as buying this plane, we really ought to protest their actions. At the very least, next time you see the plane, feel free to flip it the bird.

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Graphic: Brianna Whitmore/Graphics Editor

Spending My Week with Marilyn

2012-02-03T05:33:31Z

rating: ★★★★

When the words “true story” are associated with any film, particularly one with the name of a historical figure in the title, I tend to be overcome with weariness. The fear with biopics of this nature is that they are going to be completely dry and run on for an excessive amount of time. Sometimes watching a biopic feels more like reading a textbook than experiencing actual entertainment.

Luckily, Simon Curtis’s My Week with Marilyn does not fall into this nasty trap that similar movies often find themselves in.

Colin Clark (Eddie Redmayne) and Marilyn Monroe (Michelle Williams).

Largely due to Michelle Williams’ captivating performance as Marilyn Monroe, the film does not falter. It is no easy task to play Monroe. The entire film depends upon the dramatic switches in Monroe’s personality bouncing seamlessly back and forth between fallen angel in need of rescue and manipulative man trap.

This is what Colin Clark (Eddie Redmayne) discovers during his time on the set of Monroe’s movie, The Prince and the Showgirl. Clark has a dream of working in film and lands a job as a third assistant director, which essentially makes him a glorified errand boy.

The script is based on Clark’s diary of his time on set and the secret, week-long romance he shared with Monroe. The Prince and the Showgirl is directed by and also stars Sir Laurence Olivier (Kenneth Branagh), whom Clark has a family connection to. Olivier spends the majority of the film bewildered and frustrated by the nervousness and fragility of Monroe on set. She takes a liking to Clark and of course he cannot help but fall deeply in love with her. This is where Monroe’s intent becomes shrouded. She is seemingly unhappy in her marriage, but there is no way of knowing if she loves Clark back or is just taking advantage of his innocence.

On the set, Monroe is completely vulnerable, teetering on the edge of a complete meltdown at any moment. She pops anti-depressants like candy and just drifts by, confused by everything that surrounds her. Nevertheless, it is goddamn impossible for the viewer to not be absolutely smitten by Williams’ charms and looks. She perfectly channels Monroe, a woman whose mere wink could make men weak in the knees. This is no exaggeration. This was always how she was perceived and Williams nails it, almost to a frightening degree. At her happiest, Williams’ Monroe could seduce any man with ease.

The whole film is undeniably delightful. It would take a large amount of heartlessness to not be moved by it. In its entirety, the film has a feel-good vibe to it that often comes from typical Hollywood fluff movies, the kind of movies Monroe would make back in the ’50s. It’s all so light. The highs are always so high and the lows are never too low and don’t last long enough to bring down the tone of the movie. Williams carries the film and its cast on her shoulders: it all revolves around her. When she is off screen, you sit in hot anticipation of the next moment you can get a glimpse of her, understand what her intentions are with Clark or just what emotional state she is in.

It is tough to say whether Monroe believed in love and romance or just simple manipulation of the men around her. All I know is that I enjoyed this film, and this cinematic week with her.

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Photo: Supplied

Puppy Bowl VIII: the biggest little game of the year

2012-02-03T05:29:28Z

Chihuahua-terrier mix Fumble receives a warning from the ref.

This Sunday marks another year of high stakes collision on the gridiron with two staunch rivals leaving it all on the field. In the grand tradition of organized football, the two best teams in the league will take the field, and play their hearts out to prove once and for all who is top dog.

The eighth annual Puppy Bowl kicks off Sunday Feb. 5 on Animal Planet and it promises to be just as heated, intense and confusing as the previous years. There aren’t many rules to the Puppy Bowl, but it involves 10 adorable puppies at a time taking to a miniature football field with the hopes of dragging a chew-toy across the goal line — or falling asleep.

The scoring may be arbitrary, the players devoid of any sort of team spirit — or for that matter, a team — and the strategy completely inscrutable, but one can’t argue with the sheer pluck and heart exhibited by the athletes.

Fans of the sport are familiar with the event’s usual components and this year’s broadcast will revisit all of the fan favourites of years past. The hamster blimp crew will be back, providing a bird’s eye view of the action from high above puppy stadium, while the customary kitten half-time show will return in a blaze of confusion and bewilderment.

New features to the broadcast have also been introduced, including a piglet cheer crew that will root the players on from the sidelines. And, not to be left behind by new media, the network has employed a bird named Meep to live-tweet the event. Meep’s involvement finally brings this archaic sport screaming into the modern era.

While the NFL is abuzz with talk of the rematch between rival quarterbacks Tom Brady and Eli Manning, the Puppy Bowl has its own share of heated conflict.

Augusta (right) hangs back in the safety position.

Take for example Aberdeen and Abilene, two Australian shepherd mix breeds who both hail from the SPCA of Sullivan County, NY. These two came up together in Rock Hill, NY, both striving to one-up the other from the time they were born 10 weeks ago. Their rivalry has been bitter and fans can expect the same level of competition on the field that has become so commonplace in the kennel. Neither of these two are above playing a little dirty and, in the absence of an attentive referee, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect some ear biting or after-the-whistle tackles.

The big news on the field, however, is the two rookie players who are making their Puppy Bowl debuts. Fumble, a Chihuahua-terrier mix and Hunter, a boxer pup, both only nine weeks old, will take to the field and try to prove their worth in an arena full of players that, in some cases, have over six-and-a-half weeks of experience on them. Only game day will tell how these two untested rookies will fare on the field; will they rise to the occasion and give their older competitors a run for their money, or give in to the pressure and totally shit the field?

The trend this year is toward smaller, quicker players, which could mean that this will be the most fast-paced year in the event’s history: Chihuahua-terrier mixes facing off against dachshunds in a high-tempo frenzy. While some analysts defend the league’s move to smaller, faster breeds, purists in the fanbase have already begun vocally pining for the good old days, such as in Puppy Bowl VI when Kiva, an 11-week-old Alaskan malamute held the entire offensive line and led his team to a decisive victory.

This year’s halftime show will be just as scandalous as ever.

Of course, as in the human sports organizations, there has also been a recent controversy surrounding the health and well-being of the players in the canine league, which could explain the shift away from violent clashes of large players. New discoveries in the link between trauma suffered by pro-athletes and health problems later in life have hit the puppy league just as hard as the NFL and NHL.

Forced to retire by a medical advisory at the young age of two and a half, the now three-year-old Kiva’s feelings are understandably complex. A source close to the former puppy explained that though he has fond memories of the way the game used to be played, he sympathizes with the toll that puppy football can take on a player and realizes the need for change.

Puppy Bowl VIII airs at 5 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 5 on Animal Planet.

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Photos: Animal Planet

To Greek, or not to Greek: our university needs frats and sororities

2012-02-06T22:10:40Z

EMMANUEL OJUKWU, BRAYDEN FOX & ANDREW ROWAN

Prestige, philantrophy and the ocassional party. What more could you want?

Every year thousands of students flock to universities all over Canada in pursuit of undergraduate goals. Some are on their way to careers in medicine, law and even government. However, the college experience involves much more than academics. It is a life-changing time filled with growth and social development. This is where the Greek system comes into play.

For those not familiar with the Greek system, it consists of fraternities and sororities, which mean brotherhood and sisterhood, respectively. These organizations have been a part of campus life in North America since 1776, when a group of men in Virginia gathered at a tavern and decided to create a different culture on campus — a culture of community and philanthropy. This attitude spread to Canada in 1879 at the University of Toronto.

Saskatchewan is one of only two provinces in Canada that does not have a Greek system on a university campus and every major university in Canada has some form of the Greek sSystem being practiced on their campus. So why does our university continue to lag behind on enhancing the social and developmental experiences of its students?

The Greek system encompasses all that university is really about. It is a model for creating better men and women to go out and become leaders in society. Students are involved in self-government, philanthropy, higher academic standards and social opportunities that would otherwise be unavailable. In North America, at universities where a Greek system is in place, “Greeks” statistically give back more financially to their alma maters than non-Greeks. Their marks are higher than average students and, perhaps most importantly, their rate of graduation is higher than students not involved in Greek life.

Of North America’s 50 largest corporations, 43 are headed by Greek men and women. Also, 30 per cent of all Fortune 500 companies are run by former Greeks. Prime Ministers Mackenzie King, Lester B. Pearson and Paul Martin were all fraternity men. Those who participate in Greek societies are very clearly more successful than those who do not. They build within themselves a network of leaders intent on making a difference in our world today.

With all the good that comes from Greek life, there is still lingering criticism. Too many people still assume fraternities and sororities are about pretentious young adults drinking to excess and slacking through school. This is simply untrue.

First, a student who is a part of a large family wherein success isn’t a goal but rather an expectation is likely to be confident. This confidence may be misinterpreted as pretentiousness. Greek students are part of a culture of success. It is not about thinking oneself better than any other person; it is about holding oneself to a higher standard and demanding more of oneself.

Second, the stigma that fraternity gentlemen are party animals is a misconception. Partying occurs all over the world with young people, and once of age it is more than permissible that students be allowed to drink socially. But the Greek system’s emphasis on high academic and philantrophic commitment make fraternity men stand for much more than simply having a good time.

Hazing is another stigma associated with Greek societies, but it is hardly limited to them. The recent hazing incident involving the Neepawa Natives hockey club in Manitoba shows that hazing exists in many other social organizations. It is quite ignorant to assume that a Greek system would involve more hazing than already exists in society. Indeed, in most fraternities hazing is discouraged and in many cases punishable. Movies like American Pie, Animal House and Old School spread these misconceptions even further by turning Greek life into a caricature.

Why the University of Saskatchewan and the University of Regina do not open themselves up to this potential community is a perplexing question. The potential for this Greek community — among the diverse communities already existing on campus — is huge. Even if you are not a member of these Greek systems, many put on events that all students may attend and be a part of. At a university that is trying to establish itself as one of the best in Canada — socially, culturally and academically — the U of S is leaving out one huge piece of the puzzle, a piece that could potentially bring more students to our campus and entice existing students to prolong their studies.

We spoke to many undergraduate students in September, students between their first and fourth years of undergraduate studies. It was quite clear that the U of S lacks a sense of community. Many students were not pleased with the “Welcome Week” experience. It did nothing to make students feel like they were a part of the something bigger than themselves. A free day planner and a hamburger does not say welcome.

Where were all the active student clubs? Where were all of the opportunities available to students to get involved or meet their peers and create new bonds? Where were all the people walking around excited to meet you, sit down and genuinely get to know you as a person and include you in their lives? The answer is obvious for those who know life outside Saskatchewan.

All of these people and opportunities were present at other universities across Canada — universities that have adopted a Greek system such as the universities of British Columbia, Alberta, Waterloo or Toronto. These schools had fraternities and sororities taking it upon themselves during Welcome Week and the whole year to foster an atmosphere of community.

When asked why the U of S does not have any of these Greek systems on campus back in September, the USSU answer was that they have never been a part of our history and no one has ever attempted to start one.

History has passed. It is time for present and future. It is time to enhance the experiences of university students here in Saskatchewan. The benefits of such a system far outweigh the disadvantages, at least enough to give the idea some consideration and exploration.

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Photo: Otzberg/Flickr

Saskatoon’s crisis hotline supports students

2012-02-06T01:10:21Z

Students in crisis can call the Mobile Crisis Service for help.

Being a college student is fucking stressful. Risking thousands of dollars on late-night cram sessions and last-minute essays can leave students feeling powerless and result in alcohol and drug addiction and, occasionally, suicidal thoughts. But as bad as it feels to bomb an exam or blow an assignment, there are services for students that can provide support.

Located just across the University Bridge, the Saskatoon Crisis Intervention Service, or SCIS, has been in operation for 32 years, providing round-the-clock advice to people of all ages, races and genders. There, intervention workers take phone calls and help guide anyone struggling, from day-to-day issues to long-term mental, physical and emotional stress.

“As long as people feel it’s a crisis, we are there to provide support,” said the SCIS executive director Rita Field.

The service is completely confidential and though they encourage people to use their real names to build trust between the workers and callers, it is not required. Each of the crisis interventionists is trained to handle a wide variety of troubled situations.

The Mobile Crisis Service department at the SCIS deals with daily over-the-phone matters as well as occasional house calls. The Crisis Management Service department, on the other hand, is concerned with callers who are high-risk or in a constant state of crisis. A person is classified as high-risk if they are in danger of causing harm to themselves or others.

Aside from calls pertaining to personal issues, Field says they also provide support and information to university students who are concerned about their peers. The SCIS’s interventionists can provide help for nearly every situation, and if they are unable to provide the necessary services they have the ability to refer the caller to someone who can.

For example, the SCIS often refers callers who are victims of sexual abuse to the Saskatoon Sexual Assault and Information Centre, which is located in the same building. The SSAIC runs a sexual assault hotline that is similar to the Mobile Crisis Service, but focused specifically on “dealing with sexual assault issues… survivors of a [recent] rape, or survivors of a past assault who just need support,” said Megan Sawyer, a councillor for the SSAIC.

The SSAIC also offers group sessions and one-on-one therapy that helps victims cope with the long-term trauma of assault.

The sexual assault hotline relies solely on volunteers who are trained for a minimum of 30 hours in legal and criminal procedures, the importance of assault kits and what type of dialect to use when speaking to callers.

The Mobile Crisis Service hotline employs interventionists with a bachelor’s degree in social work or a similar program.

The largest demographic of callers to both services is females, aged 18 to 35.

“32 years ago, we had maybe 500 calls,” Field said. “In 2011 alone, we have had 20,000 calls… We are constantly trying to make it easy for people to converse with us.”

Mobile Crisis Service — 933-6200

Crisis Management — 933-8234
saskatooncrisis.ca

Sexual Assault Hotline — 244-2224
saskatoonsexualassaultcenter.com

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Photo: Raisa Pezderic/The Sheaf

Kai Chan captures the small beauties of life

2012-02-03T18:10:59Z

Wine bottles. Toothpicks. Silk thread. Using such small, simple components, Kai Chan captures the small, simple moments in life.

A woman ponders the meaning of “Mirage” by Kai Chan.

Over a dozen works spanning 35 years of Chan’s career are currently on display at the Mendel Art Gallery. His installations and sculptures are often misleadingly simple to look at. What may look like loose heaps of branches entangled in each other is, upon closer inspection, meticulously assembled, with each joint strategically connected to other components in a towering work that makes one marvel at the patience required to create this illusion.

The layered and detailed aspects of Chan’s work still exist within minimalist pieces that impress as much with their minute intricacy as they do with their overall simplicity.

The exhibition is appropriately titled A Spider’s Logic.

In “Aurora,” he collects layers and layers of red cotton and nylon thread and drapes them over a wooden beam to create a thick curtain that is both solid and fluid. In “Mirage,” hundreds of nails in a wall allow him to suspend red silk threads in a variety of flowing lines and shapes. The effect is both ephemeral and timeless.

Born in China in 1940 and raised mostly in Hong Kong, Chan moved to Toronto in his mid-20s and hoped to create entirely modern, Western art. However, he soon learned that his art still had strong Chinese influences that he could not entirely eliminate.

Canada, in the 1960s and ’70s was a lot less multicultural than it is today, and Chan was adrift between two worlds: one he had left but could not escape, and one he was in but could not fully integrate with.

“People would ask me about being Chinese,” he said. “So I went to libraries and museums to find out.”

Ultimately, Chan came to straddle the Chinese and Western parts of himself, and it shows in his art. “Mountains and Water” resembles the Chinese characters associated with those concepts. “Moon in Water” is named from an old Chinese proverb. Chan also uses materials like bamboo and sticks of incense that are commonly used in China.

Chan’s award-winning art has gained international exposure, with exhibitions in Canada, the United States, Japan and numerous European countries. A Spider’s Logic, a career retrospective, is curated by Sarah Quinton and was on display at the Textile Museum of Canada from November 2010 to May 2011 and is currently on tour across Canada. The only flaw in the exhibition, after looking at the artist’s website, is that it doesn’t include more of Chan’s stunning work.

A Spider’s Logic is at the Mendel Art Gallery until March 18.

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Photo: Matthew Stefanson/The Sheaf

BRIEF: Huskies men’s volleyball victorious, women remain winless

2012-02-02T05:52:01Z

File photo by Raisa Pezderic/The Sheaf

The University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s volleyball squad recorded its first sweep of the season Jan. 27 and 28 in Kamloops, B.C.

The Dogs downed the hosting Thompson Rivers University Wolfpack 3-2 (25-21, 20-25, 19-25, 25-22, 15-8) and 3-0 (25-17, 25-18, 25-2) on consecutive nights to mark only their second and third wins of the 2011-12 campaign.

Led by middle blocker Geoff Zerr, the Huskies were able to come back from a two-sets-to-one deficit in the weekend’s first match and win it 15-8 in the fifth and final set.

Zerr, who recorded 11 kills in the first game, was hot in the second match as well. His nine kills, seven digs and three blocks allowed Saskatchewan to take the game in just three sets, which included a dominant 25-2 win in the final set.

The Saskatchewan men move to 3-13 on the year while TRU falls to 3-15.

The Dogs women’s team, who also faced TRU, were on the opposite end of the broom as the Wolfpack swept them 3-1 (20-25, 25-12, 34-32, 21-25) and 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25-20).

They now sit with a 0-16 record on the year while the Wolfpack are 8-10.

The Huskies men’s and women’s teams will host the University of British Columbia Okanagan Heat at home Feb. 3 and 4.

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Photo: Raisa Pezderic/The Sheaf

Escaping the past and finding yourself East of Berlin

2012-02-02T05:49:31Z

Heather Morrison, Chris Hapke (centre) and James Aaron.

“This show is edgy. It’s gripping. It’s also surprisingly funny.”

That is how University of Saskatchewan alum Heather Morrison describes the Canadian play East of Berlin, which she stars in. The play runs at the Refinery on Dufferin Ave. starting Feb. 3.

Put on by Live Five and written by the young playwright Hannah Moscovitch, East of Berlin is the story of a young man, Rudi, who discovers his businessman father was an SS doctor in the Nazi death camps and his subsequent attempt to reconcile himself with his inherited past.

The show consists of a compact cast of three: Heather Morrison, James Aaron and Chris Hapke. All three actors attended the U of S drama department, along with their director Brian Cochrane, set and lighting designer Byron Hnatuk and stage manager Liz King.

Morrison plays Sarah, a Jewish woman from New York who travels to Berlin hoping to learn more about her mother’s past. When Rudi meets Sarah, his plans for resolving his past are challenged by this new relationship. In a recent CBC interview, Moscovitch said that the play was inspired by real-life stories and some books on families of Nazi war criminals, specifically Born Guilty by Peter Sichrovsky and Legacy of Silence Dan Bar-Oh.

These real-life influences bring grit and truth to the story, and make Rudi’s story relatable.

Morrison believes the play “is great for students, especially because at its core it’s about being haunted by your parents. There’s that adage that we all turn into our parents, but what if your parent is a Nazi war criminal?”

While the latter may be an extreme case of the fears an average young adult may face, the underlying sentiment is relevant. The play also confronts a commonality not only felt by young adults, but people of all ages, “the feeling that if anyone truly got to know you, they wouldn’t like you.”

“These characters spend so much time and energy covering up their pasts that when they do come to the surface, it’s explosive,” Morrison said.

Morrison hopes that the play will pose some difficult, thought-provoking questions to the audience, giving people something to ponder on the way home.

While we may not have a past that matches that of Rudi’s, as citizens of the modern world we can appreciate the idea that our own history continues to play a part in our future, and unless we come to terms with where we came from, we’ll have no control over where we are going.

“East of Berlin is a drama, but there is humor,” Morrison said. “This isn’t a play about being bogged down by the past; it’s a play about escaping it. And that makes it thrilling.”

East of Berlin plays at 7 p.m. at the Refinery from Feb. 3-5 and Feb. 9-12. Tickets for the Feb. 5 performance are two-for-one for students.

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Photo: Brad Proudlove

More action needed following Crown-First Nations summit

2012-02-02T05:46:48Z

While we have a linear view of time, many cultures view time as a circle.

“Why can’t they just get over the past and move on?”

This comment, more than any other, enrages me when people discuss issues affecting First Nations in Canada.

I have heard it more times than I ever wanted to. Unfortunately, it usually has nothing to do with the speaker hoping that aboriginal people can move beyond the oppression, but is another way of admitting that they would rather not deal with centuries-old injustices.

We can’t move forward if we are stuck in the past, but can we move forward if we don’t acknowledge the past? Many of us who have grown up in Canada and are not First Nations have a linear view of time, going from the past to the present and continuing on to the future. Many First Nations and other cultures see time as a circle. Life starts in the middle and continues around and around in an ever-growing outward spiral, the past and future always connecting. The past is an indispensable part of where we are, for better or worse, and must be faced if we are to avoid repeating mistakes.

Of course, when talking about First Nations issues we are not just talking about the past, but also about people that are still here. Yes, the sad story of colonialism may have started 400 years ago, but it did not end 400 years ago. It’s ongoing, just like that circle.

Take for example the Indian Act, and the question of self-governance for First Nations. This was one of the key points of discussion at the Crown-First Nations meetings that took place on Jan. 24.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper had “creative” words about the Indian Act — about working within and around it — but definitely did not suggest getting rid of it. First Nations leaders, however, see the abolition of the Indian Act as the direction that things need to be moving toward to ensure progress. The act was described as “a boulder that blocks the path of collaboration,” by Shawn Atleo, the national chief of the Assembly of First Nations.

AFN B.C. Regional Chief Jody Wilson-Raybould called recent approaches “tinker[ing] around the edges of the Indian Act in a piecemeal way,” and the “attempt to legislate aspects of self-governance for us… an exercise in neo-colonialism.” As former AFN national chief Ovide Mercredi put it, “The Indian Act is in the way. It stands in the way of economic progress; it stands in the way of our own self-determination as a people. It stands in the way of even defining who we are as a people and who can belong to our nations.”

The Indian Act is not an archaic document from 1876; it is a living reality in the lives of First Nations people.

There were many other pressing concerns that First Nations chiefs brought to the table, some that require more immediate attention like housing, child welfare and education. But if there were hopes for commitment from the government on any of these issues, they were not met. They did agree to release a progress report on Jan 24. 2013.

A progress report is not going to do a lot for the communities that need help now. For those people in Attawapiskat who don’t have a house tonight, we are not talking about the past, no matter what your worldview is. For the people of the Nishnawbe Aski Nation, who have been in a state of emergency since 2009, because of prescription drug abuse among 70 per cent of their population, these are not issues of the past. For the people in Kasabonika Lake who have had sewage leaking into their lake for the last decade, and have been going round and round with the government and doing what they can, it is not the past — especially when it means using an outhouse at -45 C temperatures.

The meetings were supposed to be “historic,” but the general consensus seems to be that they were more like a very small step. Hopefully they are the beginning of progress, but only time will tell how committed the government is to working with First Nations. I mean, the Prime Minister did change his plans to leave early and actually stayed for the whole day.

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Photo: Smulan77/flickr

USSU sits out national lobbying campaign

2012-02-03T18:11:04Z

On Feb. 1, dozens of rallies took place at Canadian universities as part of a National Day of Action to reduce the costs of post-secondary education. The event was sponsored by the Canadian Federation of Students, a national student lobbying group, and organized by individual student unions affiliated with CFS.

The University of Saskatchewan Students’ Union, however, did not take part.

“We are being left out, but we’re OK with being left out of this particular day of action because of who the organizers of it are,” said USSU president Scott Hitchings.

The USSU has a long and tangled history with CFS. Once a prospective member, the students’ union severed its relationship with the lobbying group — a move that was not viewed favourably by CFS given that students had voted in a referendum to join as full members. But the results of that referendum were disputed by the then-USSU executive. A legal battle ensued that eventually made its way to the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal, which decided in favour of the USSU.

On the CFS website, the USSU is still listed as a member.

“We’ve asked them numerous times to take us off their website and stop telling people that we’re part of them,” said Hitchings.

But given that CFS is one of two main student lobby groups in Canada — the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations is the other — the USSU is effectively cut off from any national efforts to affect the debate on post-secondary education.

Hitchings points out that education is a provincial responsibility and says that lobbying the federal government on the issue of education costs makes little sense, but others disagree.

“It is a common misconception that the federal government has nothing to do with post-secondary education,” said Kent Peterson, president of the University of Regina Students’ Union and Saskatchewan representative on the CFS national executive.

He points to federal student loans as well as programs like the Post-Secondary Student Support Program, which supports First Nations and Inuit students’ educations, as being directly under the federal government’s purview.

The Feb. 1 day of action, Peterson added, also had regional goals and lobbying aimed at provincial governments. In Saskatchewan, the CFS favours a tuition freeze and increased government funding to universities. (At the U of S, 22 per cent of the school’s budget comes from tuition fees while 70 per cent comes through provincial funding.)

Peterson, whose Regina students’ union is an active CFS member, said that U of S students could gain from active participation in national efforts and that despite the USSU’s reluctance, “there is an appetite for these things at the undergraduate level at the University of Saskatchewan.”

He added, “I hope there will be a willingness on the part of the executive there to actually participate and do something to benefit their members.”

The question U of S students face is whether the USSU’s lack of involvement in national student groups hurts them in lowering education costs and achieving other goals, or if the poisoned relationship with CFS keeps their voices out of the national debate on education.

“From what we can tell, the CFS doesn’t have much sway anyway with the government,” Hitchings explained, but if national lobbying efforts do succeed, “the government is going to give those benefits to all universities across Canada.”

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Graphic: Brianna Whitmore/The Sheaf

The CBC is under ideological attack: if the Conservatives cut funding, Canadian identity will suffer

2012-02-01T20:36:06Z

DAVE SWANSON
The Link (B.C. Institute of Technology)

BURNABY, B.C. (CUP) — When you ask what defines Canada, what iconic symbols come to mind? You may picture Granville Street during the Vancouver 2010 Olympics — a sea of polite folks dressed as red-maple-leaf-caped crusaders. Maybe you see a bearded hockey player raising Lord Stanley’s Cup (unfortunately not Roberto Luongo). You might even conjure up the image of a resourceful beaver perched on his dam. Yes, these are all prevalent Canadian images; however, there is one marquee symbol that is as Canadian as it gets: the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s logo.

The CBC is Canada’s national public radio and television broadcaster and a major player in producing Canadian culture. It uses the majority of its funding, received in the form of government subsidies, to produce original Canadian programming like David Suzuki’s The Nature of Things, Q with Jian Ghomeshi and Hockey Night in Canada.

Currently, the CBC has an annual budget of $1.1 billion. This may seem like a substantial sum, but when compared to 18 other major western countries, Canada only places 16th in support for public broadcasters, with $34 per capita — 60 per cent less than the $87 average. This figure is expected to decrease in the near future due to impending Conservative government budget cuts. This is a serious problem.

The Harper Tories seem to be hiding behind the classic guise of right-wing politics — a “these are tough times and we need to reduce our national debt” mentality. But on Oct. 19, 2011, the government announced Irving Shipbuilding Inc. in Halifax would receive $25 billion to build 21 large combat naval vessels. Could a portion of this money not be used to reduce the debt?

It’s far more likely that the suggested five to 10 per cent cut in CBC funding has little to do with reducing debt and is only being framed in such a way to gain public support. I believe that the real reason for the proposed cuts is ideological.

Historically, the CBC has been viewed as left-leaning media. The socially conscious programming they produce and the liberal scope with which they present local and international politics is inherently dangerous to Conservative dogma. Harper knows the media can shape public opinion, and in order to remain in power, he needs voters to share his ideals.

When speaking to the Canadian Association of Broadcasters in 2004, Harper said the Conservatives would “seek to reduce the CBC’s dependence on advertising revenue and its competition with the private sector.” However, in 2008, when the House of Commons Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage released a major study on the future of the CBC that suggested annual funding be increased to $40 per capita over the next seven years, the Conservative committee members voted against it.

If the Conservatives take this anti-CBC stance one step further and cut the CBC’s funding, lower quality programming will be produced. The Canadian public will recognize this decline and lose interest in public programming, devaluing the CBC. If this occurs, it will justify further funding cuts.

This could then force the CBC to seek funding from the private sector in the form of advertising revenues, hindering its creative autonomy. The airing of commercial and mainstream content will become inevitable and give proponents of funding reductions a reason to eliminate all CBC government subsidies, effectively privatizing the CBC.

As of right now, the CBC receives a third of its total revenue from advertisers. If the CBC is forced to obtain the majority or all of its funding from advertisers, Canadian cultural identity will suffer.

The CBC is a wounded soldier wheeling a single pistol. It is up against the heavily armed cavalry that is the American media. If we do not provide it with adequate defence, it will be killed. Canada will then be in danger of succumbing to a Conservative agenda that seems more concerned with protecting its own ideology than the Canadian public.

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Graphic: Ion Oprea/BCIT Link

Finding resources just got easier: Usask library launches new and improved search engine

2012-02-03T00:13:18Z

New search tool at library displays relevant listings first.

After a year-long planning process, the University of Saskatchewan Library has launched a new search feature called USearch.

Anyone who has visited the library’s home page since Jan. 9 will know that USearch has been given prime real estate. It is now the first tool at your disposal in searching the library for academic resources.

Head of USearch Implementation Charlene Sorensen has received some encouraging feedback so far. One email sent by an enthusiastic student said, “I absolutely love this tool. Three key words and I’ve got 815 papers at my disposal. I recommend this to everyone I know who needs to look up references for a paper.”

This happy user concluded the email by giving USearch five out of five high-fives — a very favourable rating indeed.

So what exactly is USearch, and what can it offer to the library’s clientele?

Basically, USeach is a tool that simultaneously searches the catalogue and most of the library’s databases. In effect, a single search produces results from books, journal articles and audio/visual material all at once.

“We often talk about it being more like Google,” explained Sorensen, “but it’s more academic. It brings things that the system thinks is more relevant to the top.”

The user can refine his or her results by selecting more specific categories from the sidebar.

USearch responds to the difficulty many have encountered when looking for resources in the past.

“The library can be an obstacle course for a lot of people,” said Sorensen. “You’re looking for articles and books and databases, and it’s confusing for all of us… not even just for a first-year student.”

Besides being a more comprehensive tool, USearch also boasts some neat new features.

One is the recently-digitized Special Collections. Users now have online access to images of some of the library’s rarest materials. The Sorokin Collection and the A.W. Purdy Digital Archive are two examples.

USearch also has an optional personalization feature. By signing in with an NSID, a user can save past searches or request updates as materials for a certain subject are added to the database.

USearch can be thought of as the best general tool that will serve the greatest number of people in most cases.

Even so, Sorensen is careful to note that it’s not quite a one-stop shop:

“When a person is getting down to really specific research — a grad student, faculty — they will probably want to go right to the MLA database or PubMed, something that’s doing more in-depth, more specific searching.

“We’re still learning a little bit,” added Sorensen, “In what cases might one of these other tools be better? But that’s, again, that obstacle course.”

Sorensen notes that USearch was implemented in response to a recent survey that assessed the satisfaction of students, faculty and others with the library’s former services.

Liaison librarians, who interact with students and faculty directly, were also consulted, and USearch was launched after usability testing with students.

She noted that the U of S library’s move to USearch follows a trend among university libraries in Canada, which have been creating online search tools that search both online and physical resources at the same time.

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Photo: Raisa Pezderic/The Sheaf

Huskies basketball sweeps Bobcats

2012-02-01T20:25:07Z

Fourth quarter explosion helps Huskies men clinch playoff spot

Jamelle Barrett beats a Brandon defender.

The Huskies men’s basketball team held on to top spot in the Canada West’s Prairie division and became the first team in the conference to clinch a playoff spot last weekend after a two-game sweep over the Brandon Bobcats Jan. 27 and 28.

A 23-point Saskatchewan lead after the first quarter of action put the weekend’s first game out of reach for the Bobcats almost immediately. Though Brandon actually outscored Saskatchewan by one point in the remainder of the game, the Dogs easily won 92-70.

The Huskies did a nice job of spreading the ball around with four players achieving double-digit points. They also outshot Brandon by 12 per cent and battled around the basket to gain possession on 20 rebounds more than their opponents.

Brandon, however, came more prepared for the match-up the following night. Bobcats forwards Ali Mounir and Kyle Vince led the charge to help the team gain a 22-15 lead after the first quarter.

Along with the offensive upgrade, Brandon mounted a stronger zone defensive plan — meaning their defenders covered specific areas of the court as opposed to specific Huskie players — which forced Saskatchewan to adjust and shoot from farther away.

“They came out with that zone, and it felt like we got into a rut where we were stuck on the perimeter,” said Huskies head coach Barry Rawlyk. “They really out-hustled us in the first quarter and we didn’t respond well to that.”

The Dogs slowly began to chip away at the lead, and tied the game in the second quarter with a long three-point basket from Jamelle Barrett. Barrett brought the ball back down the court on the next offensive rush and lobbed the ball perfectly into the hands of Michael Lieffers, who was in mid-flight at the side of the net and slammed the ball down for the two-point alley-oop.

Lieffers put up 23 points and 13 rebounds in the match. The effort was enough for him to eclipse the 1,000 career rebounds mark, which he had done in points a week earlier. Lieffers joins an elite group of Huskies, becoming only the fifth player in team history to accomplish both 1,000 points and rebounds.

The Bobcats found themselves in foul trouble in the second half, including a technical team foul charged to Brandon’s head coach. It seemed enough to swing momentum in favor of the Huskies, who then managed to score more consistently.

By the final quarter the Huskies hit full stride. Peter Lomuro sank a three-point shot two minutes into the frame to make the score 73-60. They followed up that score with five more unanswered baskets set up by crafty passing from Barrett.

The Dogs didn’t relinquish the lead and won the game 89-70, outscoring Brandon by 16 points in the fourth quarter.

“The game became fun in the fourth quarter, and when we’re having fun that is when we are at our best,” said fifth-year Duncan Jones, who finished with 21 points and three steals on the evening.

“If we can play that way for 40 minutes I think we will be tough to stop.”

Huskies women silence Bobcat scorers

The Huskies women’s basketball team nearly doubled the points of their opponents Friday, Jan. 27 at the PAC, as they dominated the league’s worst team, the Brandon University Bobcats.

Saskatchewan downed the visitors 81-42.

The Huskies came out firing, putting up 16 points on the board before Brandon realized they needed to score baskets of their own. The strong effort from younger Dogs like Dalyce Emmerson and Kelsey Trulsrud was exactly what the team needed with the absence of the team’s leading scorer Katie Miyazaki, who was resting a sprained finger.

Brandon showed signs of life in the second quarter, scoring more than twice their first quarter points in the first six minutes of the second frame. The momentum was short-lived, however, as the Huskies took control soon after and maintained it for the rest of the game.

The teams met again the following night, and Huskies head coach Lisa Thomaidis felt her squad didn’t start the match as strong as it should have.

“I was disappointed with the intensity we brought into this game,” she said. “Yesterday we came out on fire and dictated the tempo, but the beginning of this game we didn’t show up with the kind of intensity that is required at this level.”

At the end of the first quarter Brandon was within five points, and even managed to tie the game momentarily in the second quarter. However, the Huskies responded with a 17-4 point run, controlling the game the rest of the way and eventually winning 77-47.

Huskies point guard Kelsey Trulsrud nabbed player of the game status and finished the weekend with 21 points, four steals and nine rebounds. She attributes her first-year success largely to the guidance of the veterans on the team.

“The three fifth-year players help out by teaching us [rookies] where to go in practices, warm-ups and games. They are leading us on the right path,” said Trulsrud.

Following the weekend rout of the Bobcats, the Huskies move to 11-4 on the season and keep up in the tight battle for a home playoff spot. The club has five games remaining in the regular season, including a provincial rivalry match against the undefeated Regina Cougars before playoffs.

Brandon, on the other hand, doesn’t have a single win to boast about this season and their record falls to 0-16.

The Huskies men’s and women’s basketball teams will be on the road Feb. 3 and 4 to face the University of Winnipeg Wesmen.

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Photo: Raisa Pezderic/The Sheaf

Persephone Theatre’s spy comedy The 39 Steps, based on the Hitchcock film, is a laugh riot

2012-02-03T00:13:22Z

Two gents (James O’Shea and Carson Nattrass) harass Richard Hannay (Matthew Edison).

Some people find it impossible to take spy thrillers from the ’30s seriously. Apparently playwright Patrick Barlow is one such person.

Barlow’s latest play The 39 Steps is a comedic take on the 1915 spy novel by John Buchan, Lord Tweedsmuir, who was the 15th Governor General of Canada. His novel was adapted into the popular movie by Alfred Hitchcock in 1935. The novel and film were thrillers, meant to captivate the reader or viewer with their classic wrong-man plot and devious German villains.

Barlow’s play may keep the exact plot of the film, but his goal isn’t to thrill the audience. It’s to make them laugh.

While slight, Persephone Theatre’s production of The 39 Steps directed by Robert Metcalfe is a successful farce of a 1930s spy thriller. The humour can occasionally come across a little too broadly, but for the most part the play has plenty of laughs and a brisk running time — both rarities for many stage plays.

The play’s hero is Richard Hannay, a Canadian spending some time in his original home of London, England. While at the theatre, Hannay witnesses some shots fired and becomes entangled in a spy plot in which a group of nefarious foreign spies try to smuggle top secret information out of the country. When a beautiful woman ends up dead in his arms, Hannay is suspected in the murder, and so in an effort to clear his name and stop the information from leaving England, Hannay sets out to catch the villains in the act.

The biggest draw of The 39 Steps is its four-person cast. Matthew Edison plays Richard Hannay and does a capable job, all pencil moustache and smarmy charm. His performance anchors the play and without its success, none of the entertainment would work. Naomi Wright plays the three women who become romantically involved with Hannay throughout the show. While she emits the proper kind of sultry seduction for her femme fatale-type characters, her accents leave something to be desired.

And then there are the clowns. James O’Shea and Carson Nattrass play every other character in the play — old women, Scottish farmers, policemen, train passengers, jugglers and even inanimate objects — and sometimes all in the course of one scene. Nattrass in particular steals the show. He throws himself so thoroughly into every character and gives so vivid a performance in every part that he brings down the house at almost every turn.

The play’s set is sparse, nicely utilizing the open stage and the vibrancy of the performances to transform the stage into everything from the Scottish highlands to the theatre of the London Palladium. In particular, a chase set on a train shows just how effective and funny a blank stage can be when utilized properly.

The lighting is especially impressive. One scene utilizes shadow puppets to portray a chase through the Highlands and is hilarious for how low-tech it is. However, the impressive lighting shouldn’t come as a surprise, as the play won two Tony Awards, one for lighting and the other for sound design. The 39 Steps is technically marvelous.

Unfortunately, my time at the theatre watching The 39 Steps reminded me of one thing that can ruin a play regardless of the talent of the performers onstage: the audience. Not to say the audience at Jan. 27’s opening night performance of The 39 Steps ruined the play, but one audience member with perhaps the most obnoxious laugh that I’ve ever heard, one that sounded like a person trying to imitate a raygun while forcing up mucus from her throat, or Elmer Fudd sitting on a juicer, as Jerry Seinfeld would say, overshadowed much of the play’s humour.

It’s always a risk going to the theatre since your daring can be rewarded with interruptions by pesky, oblivious audience members who infringe upon your goodwill. Both the beauty and the danger of live theatre is that it’s live. Being in the physical proximity of other individuals opens you up to their charms, be they good or ill, and the reaction of the audience will always influence how well a play, especially a comedy, performs.

Luckily, the audience of The 39 Steps loved the play, and you will too. It’s the kind of breezy, light entertainment that emanates enough wit to charm you through two pleasant hours of farcical espionage entertainment.

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Photo: Catherine Francis

“Everyone is watching Saskatchewan:” province’s HIV infections a cause for concern

2012-02-01T19:47:45Z

Since 2002, the number of new HIV infections in Saskatchewan per year has risen steadily, from 26 to 200. And while there was a slight drop in 2010, AIDS Saskatoon expects the 2011 numbers will almost certainly show another increase once they are available.

While these numbers pale in comparison to the new cases in Ontario or B.C. each year — there were 1,618 new cases in Ontario in 2008 — they do not reflect the fact that Ontario has 10 times the population of Saskatchewan.

For a province that houses just under three per cent of the Canadian population, Saskatchewan has a disproportionately large HIV problem that is getting worse with each passing year.

The provincial government reports in its 2010-14 HIV Strategy that Saskatchewan had the highest rate of new infections in 2008 at 20.8 per 100,000 people. That is more than double the next highest provincial rate, which was Ontario’s 10.3 new infections per 100,000 people.

“Saskatchewan has 2.5 times the national average per capita,” said AIDS Saskatoon Executive Director Nicole White. “And Saskatoon has the highest [per capita] rates in the country…. Everyone is watching Saskatchewan and how we’re dealing with our HIV epidemic.”

The HIV/AIDS problem in Saskatchewan is notable for many reasons, White says. Among these are the way in which people are getting infected, the ethnic distribution of the disease and the rapid progression of the disease.

While the most common cause for new infections in most areas of Canada is male homosexual sex, Saskatchewan’s increase in infections is caused largely by intravenous drug use. Nationally, 41 per cent of new cases are due to men having sex with other men, while heterosexual sex causes 30.8 per cent of new cases and injection drug use comes in third, causing 19.1 per cent of cases.

By contrast, 75 per cent of Saskatchewan’s new HIV cases in 2009 were a result of injection drug use, and this has gone up from 50 per cent in 1997.

AIDS Saskatoon’s White says the prevalence of injection drug use in Saskatchewan has contributed to the dramatic numbers of HIV infections.

“It’s the fastest way to spread HIV,” she said.

Because HIV is spread through blood-to-blood contact, sharing needles and other paraphernalia that comes into contact with blood is an almost surefire way to spread the disease.

“You’ve heard the message that you don’t share [equipment] with somebody you don’t know,” White said. “But you might share with your partner, cousin, friend, brother, sister.”

Such clustering may be partially to blame for another trend in Saskatchewan HIV cases, that of the inordinately high number of aboriginal people contracting the disease.

Government figures show that aboriginal people comprise eight per cent of all prevalent HIV infections in Canada, while 12.5 per cent of new cases in 2008 were among the aboriginal population. Meanwhile, aboriginal people made up just 3.8 per cent of the total Canadian population according to most recent census figures.

Yet again, though, the numbers in Saskatchewan are exponentially higher. Aboriginal people make up about 16 per cent of the provincial population, but fully 79 per cent of newly HIV-positive people in the province in 2009 were aboriginal, according to the provincial government. And among the injection drug users who tested positive that year, 84 per cent were aboriginal.

“One of the most concerning things [in the province] is that the people who are affected most are those who are most vulnerable,” White said, referring to the fact that the aboriginal population experiences a disproportionately high level of poverty and attendant issues such as substance abuse, violence and, importantly, limited access to health care.

“People are progressing from HIV to AIDS in three years” in Saskatchewan, White said, “and that’s not happening anywhere else in the country. That’s unheard of, and it’s something that is deeply disturbing.”

Indeed, studies on HIV across the country reflect increased longevity for people with the disease. “The increase [in the number of HIV-positive people] is due to decreased mortality related to more effective drug therapy and continued new HIV infections in specific populations,” reads a report from the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care.

In stark contrast, the Saskatchewan government’s 2010-14 HIV Strategy says, “Clinicians in Saskatchewan have reported that patients are either presenting late in the disease process, or that they are presenting for diagnosis soon after exposure/infection but are showing rapid progression of HIV.”

The provincial government has publicly recognized this as a major health issue, and its HIV Strategy is meant to combat the problem. The focus is on “expanded access to needle exchange programs” and awareness campaigns as well as close co-operation with aboriginal elders, but White worries whether it will be enough.

Citing the fact that different health regions across the province do not necessarily record data in the same way, which is just one way in which processes can be hampered or slowed down, White expressed some concern about whether the political will to change things would translate to concrete changes.

“Unfortunately I think a lot of those dollars are being lost in organizational structure.”

Correction 01/02/2012: In this article in the Feb. 2 issue of the Sheaf, as well as online, we had incorrectly stated that eight per cent of aboriginal people in Canada were HIV positive. We had intended to report the statistic that eight percent of all persistent HIV infections in Canada consist of aboriginal people.

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Graphic: Brianna Whitmore/The Sheaf

Calling cell phone users on their addiction

2012-01-29T21:13:30Z

Having trouble putting down your cell phone?

Addiction. That’s right; I’m calling all phone users on it. You’re addicted.

I know you’re probably raising your eyebrows at me right now. I’m sure I would be too if I hadn’t given this subject some thought. But this isn’t a lecture to all you texters about how phone use is bad for you or how you have lost all ability to directly communicate with real people.

I can remember getting a gold watch for my sweet 16. It had its fair share of praise from all of the adults around me and I tried sporting it for maybe all of two days. Now that gold watch sits in its box, ticking furiously because it is being ignored.

Watches and watch wearers are a dying breed. A recent study showed that the average phone user checks their phone 34 times per day. That’s once every 18 minutes. So, if all you phone users are checking your phones every 18 minutes, you don’t need to wear a watch because you always have the time.

This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It just means that our society has advanced, once again, to another way of telling time. After all, we are always improving our technologies. We have a consistent need to make everything better, greater and bigger. But as more and more parts of our lives get shrunk and loaded onto our phones, we become ever more reliant on them.

Picking up your smartphone is an addiction because of the rush you get. Think back to the last time you checked your phone and there wasn’t a message on it. If you’re anything like me, you felt a small twinge of disappointment that a fellow phone user didn’t take the time to send you a quick “howdy-do.”

Now, what about that time that you checked your phone and saw that magical number on top of your message box stating that someone had texted you? Did you maybe do a small happy-dance inside your head? Well, I can almost guarantee you at least rushed to read that message.

Or how about that time when you absentmindedly set your phone down on the table, went to reach for it in your pocket and realized it wasn’t there? Your heart started beating faster, you started furiously patting your body and basically did a tiny freak-out because you just lost your entire world.

My phone, for example contains everything: all my contacts (whose numbers I don’t have memorized because they are only a click away), my way to secretly stalk people without them knowing (Facebook and Twitter make it easy), my calendar of my life’s events and all those other little doodads that make my already easy university life even easier.

When my phone recently went in for servicing, I felt like I lost a part of myself. Yes, I had a loner phone — a CrackBerry, of all things. Oh the horror! It wasn’t the same. I genuinely missed my phone. Yes, I told people that. And yes, I did get “WTF?” looks.

Looking at myself and the people around me, it’s clear that “addiction” is the only appropriate word for how we use our phones.

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Photo: LexnGer/flickr

Dear Nickleback: an open letter to the third-best band to ever come out of Hanna, Alberta

2012-01-27T00:09:44Z

Brendan Kergin
The Omega (Thompson Rivers University)

Chad Kroeger still celebrating his appointment as No. 5 on Spike TV’s ugliest Rock frontmen.

I’ve been able to bottle it up until now. It has been boiling in the background, but I put a lid on it and let it be.

But now — now you’ve done it. You have, once again, ended up nearly at the top of U.S. record sales. Sure, other Canadians have joined you in the Top 10 album sales spotlight — Bublé, Drake and Bieber to be specific.

Buble: Great guy, sap music; he’s a wash to me.

Drake: Don’t know him, and that’s enough.

Bieber? Inauthentic bubble-gum crap, but at least we know it.

But you, sirs, of the “our name is the grammatically incorrect way to give change to a customer” tribe, I take issue with. It’s not just that I dislike the music. It’s that the music is essentially wholesale copyright infringement. It’s all so similar, the only reason it’s not plagiarism is that you’re not willing to sue yourselves. It has all the sonic creativity of a muffler.

Okay, so you don’t intend to revolutionize the way music is played. No one is comparing you to, well, any worthwhile musician.

Your lyrics I find more offensive. They’re the WWE of poetry. Half are sappiness repackaged for testosterone-based life forms. The other half seem to be based on a half-dozen KISS songs. Playing Scrabble against you would be a joy, but would likely lack the mental stimulation of washing dishes.

But the thing that bothers me the most is that you exist. You are proof that marketing is more powerful than culture or taste. You project an idea of masculinity that is not only unhealthy for the individual, but also for society. You’re practically creating an army of unthinking clones who look at your lifestyle and agree that, “Sure, getting drunk off cheap corporate beer and watching guys fight on TV is probably what I want to achieve in my life.” You are seemingly run by marketing executives so morally bankrupt I bet tobacco lobbyists meet up with them to hear tales of the dark side.

And that’s where my anger lies. Not with the man-children up on stage, reliving fantasies of junior high. It’s the Nickelback that exists in the boardroom.

Adding insult to injury, you just booked a massive, 39-city North American tour for this spring and summer. You are still apparently relevant, what, 10 years after your only real hit? Since then it’s been a constant Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V on album after album.

So where does that leave us? I’m not sure about you, but I’m going to go listen to a three-year-old bang on a pot. Sure, it may not be produced to someone’s idea of sonic perfection, but at least it’s authentic.

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Photo: Rock and Racehorses/flickr

DC’s new superhero franchise The Ray beams light into a gritty comic world

2012-01-27T00:07:11Z

rating: ★★★

Along with the DC Comics “New 52” marketing relaunch, in the last few months there have also been miniseries that have introduced more faces to this new version of the universe of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. One such miniseries is The Ray, written by the team of Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti, and with artwork by Jamal Igle (pencils), Rich Perrotta (inks) and Guy Major (colours). Currently on issue two out of six, the miniseries is worth a read.

The Ray follows the origin and exploits of Lucien Gates, an everyday California teen with a lifeguard job and new-age parents who gets hit with a blast from an experimental particle cannon. Being a comic book, instead of such an accident killing him, Lucien instead gains superpowers and is able to move at light speed, fire energy rays and disguise himself by manipulating light waves.

While Lucien deals with both his new abilities and the mutated sea life that is now attacking California, the reader is introduced to the villain of the story: Thaddeus Filmore. A sadistic documentary filmmaker who gained power from mystical forces, Thaddeus is determined to make the world into his latest snuff film, and Lucien has been cast as the tragic hero.

Art-wise, the comic is good but nothing special, and there are times when the artwork can feel stiff for a main character that travels at the speed of light, but the art team does a good job capturing the various expressions and ethnicities in the first two issues. This is helped by Guy Major on colours, who ties things together nicely with solid palettes and some clever use of a glow effect, reminding you that this is a character who fights with actual light as a weapon.

Gray and Palmiotti, on the other hand, work on bringing the personalities of these characters through to the reader, and they pull it off well. In the few appearances Thaddeus has had so far he comes across as a dark, powerful man who you do not want to cross paths with, and Lucien is a good-hearted hero despite some flaws and insecurities. The relationship with his parents is enjoyable and refreshing, where they not only know about and accept his new superhero role, but also give him advice on how to control his powers. The plot can seem rushed for some readers, and that can be a turnoff, but when there are only six issues to introduce this character, give him conflict and (hopefully) ensure a happy ending, this fault can be forgiven.

The Ray is currently a third of the way through its storyline, and while the story isn’t terribly groundbreaking, it’s a fun and refreshing read most people would enjoy. If you liked Gray and Palmiotti’s other work like Jonah Hex and Power Girl, you’ll probably like this series. If you’re new to comics, but would be interested in a story where there are no big-name heroes and the main character turns into light and fights mutant flying stingrays, The Ray is a great place to start.

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Image: Supplied

Seeing father crumble, sledge hockey player Kevin Rempel vows not to do the same

2012-01-27T00:03:17Z

FRASER CALDWELL
The Silhouette (McMaster University)

HAMILTON (CUP) — These days, Kevin Rempel is best known for his exploits on a sled. But in 2006, it was another vehicle that changed his life unalterably.

The Dundas, Ont. native lived to ride his dirt bike. What he wanted most was to bask in the pure, adrenaline-fuelled freedom of the motocross jump.

Kevin Rempel has become a dominant member of Team Canada.

Four and a half years ago, Rempel realized this dream, only to see it quite literally crash down around him. Losing control of his bike in the midst of a jump, he found himself plunging to the ground. Lying in the dirt, Rempel knew that his life would never be the same.

“I remember staring up at the sky and thinking, ‘Oh crap, I’m paralyzed,’ ” the 29-year-old said of his fateful crash. “In that moment, everything just froze.”

Rempel had dealt with paralysis since 2002, when his father Gerald suffered an accident while hunting and became a paraplegic. Four years later, it was the younger Rempel’s turn to experience a life-changing injury.

“I recall that when I saw my dad fall out of the tree, my life was going to be little bit different forever in dealing with his injury,” said Rempel. “When I crashed, I knew once again that my life was again going to change.”

Rempel’s previous experience with the harsh reality of paralysis prepared him for the aftermath of his own injury.

That’s because in the wake of his 2002 accident, Gerald Rempel had struggled and ultimately failed to cope with his disability. He spiralled into depression, developed a gambling addiction and ended his own life.

When it came time for the younger Rempel to cope with his disability, he chose to pursue a different path.

“My dad was a great person, and I have nothing negative to say about him as a father,” said Rempel. “But unfortunately, he let his accident defeat him and he became a victim of his disability rather than seeing the bright side in that he still had a lot to live for.

“I took that experience and decided that I didn’t want to live like that. In my recovery, I wanted to do the opposite and live a prosperous life, regardless of what the outcome was going to be from my injuries.”

Two years after his accident, Rempel discovered the sport that would come to dominate and redefine his new life. He had played hockey as an able-bodied individual before the crash, but had never experienced the sled variety. When a friend introduced him to the sport, it took only moments before he was hooked.

“As soon as someone told me about it I wanted to try it, and as soon as I got on the ice, I knew that this was something I wanted to do for a long time.”

Rempel began to play with the Niagara Thunderblades team out of St. Catherines in 2008, and very quickly took to the game, ordering his own custom sled and gaining the attention of coaches at Sledge Ontario, the organizing body for sledge hockey in Ontario.

Battling through a prescription medication addiction to make the provincial squad, the Dundas native continued his climb to the very top of the national sledge hockey ranks. Within two years, a man who had known nothing of the sport saw his name on the roster of Team Canada.

Not only is Rempel donning the red and white these days, he’s thriving as part of the successful team. Most recently, the Canadians won the World Sledge Hockey Challenge in December, and look poised to be at the top of the heap when the World Championships roll around this year.

Despite the fact that the majority of his teammates are similarly paralyzed, Rempel says the atmosphere in the locker room is never one of commiseration. Rather, the athletes enjoy making light of their shared situation.

“We’re all troopers,” said Rempel of his teammates. “We’re all so strong in getting to this point. To be on Team Canada and to reach this level with a disability means that we’re pretty strong as it is. If anything, we poke fun at each other and joke about our disabilities.

“You’ve got to have that attitude, not just in the locker room but in life as well. You can’t take these things too seriously.”

In his continued search for improvement, Rempel works with the training staff at McMaster University’s Pulse Fitness Centre, being led in his routines by experienced trainer Jeremy Steinbach.

Steinbach indicates that the sledge standout’s success derives from his competitive attitude, a determination that sees him persevere despite his physical challenges.

“He is motivated to get better, that’s the main thing,” said the trainer of his charge’s mentality. “He works his tail off and comes in here with a good attitude, and is never afraid to try new things. We’ve tried things before and they haven’t worked because of his disability, but we troubleshoot things as we go.”

New things have come in droves for Rempel since his accident, and he has discovered a talent outside of sport that he never knew he possessed. Since the crash, the Dundas native has begun motivational speaking, through no design of his own.

“It was a total fluke that I got into it,” said Rempel of his public speaking engagements.

“Just by talking to people, they told me that I had a powerful story and that I should be a public speaker. It was through my college co-op program — where someone knew me and my story — that I was asked to do my first event.

“I did my five-minute speech and suddenly I was getting a standing ovation. Someone noticed me, got me my next gig, and I thought, ‘Wow, I guess I’ve got something here and people like hearing it.’”

Editor’s Note: On Jan. 22, Kevin Rempel and the Canadian men’s sledge hockey team won gold at the Four Nations tournament in Nagano, Japan. They defeated Norway 5-1 in the final. Their next action is a three-game series against the United States from Feb. 24 to 26 in Buffalo, N.Y. They will travel to Hamar, Norway in April for the 2012 International Paralympic Committee’s Sledge Hockey World Championship.

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Photo: Hockey Hall of Fame and Hockey Canada

Soderbergh’s Haywire is not what audiences expect

2012-01-26T23:57:55Z

rating: ★★★

Mallory Kane (Gina Carano) unleashes lead in the streets of Barcelona.

There seem to be two different versions of director Steven Soderbergh.

One version is the director of the Ocean’s movies, Out of Sight and Contagion who seems to be able to make standard Hollywood fare better than most other directors. The other is the indie wunderkind who broke onto the scene with Sex, Lies, and Videotape and has continued experimenting with the cinematic form through movies like The Limey, Full Frontal and The Girlfriend Experience.

Surprisingly, Haywire, a female-centric action movie starring mixed-martial arts fighter Gina Carano as a double-crossed black ops freelancer, is a product of the experimental Soderbergh.

Although an action film, Haywire is not going to please the typical action audience whose cinematic diet consists of the kind of mind-numbing, viscerally bombastic films by the Michael Bay generation. At a crisp 93 minutes long, Haywire takes its time and doesn’t jam every scene full of shootouts and foot races, although there are a few of those.

The film revolves around Mallory Kane (Carano), a black ops freelancer with a knack for upsetting the expectations her attractive appearance projects. After a job in Barcelona and a double-cross in Dublin, she finds herself pitted against a series of ex-coworkers and bosses played by a veritable cast of Hollywood A-listers: Ewan McGregor, Michael Fassbender, Antonio Banderas and Channing Tatum.

Of course, you don’t really need to know or care about any of this plot. Haywire’s plot is perfunctory, merely acting as a foundation upon which Soderbergh can play with genre tropes. The idea for the movie was apparently spawned after Soderbergh caught an MMA fight with Carano on television in a hotel room one night. He was taken with her athleticism and decided to fashion an entire action film around her.

As a result, the action in Haywire is impressive, if unconventional. Soderbergh stages his action scenes from a distance, allowing the camera free movement and an unobstructed view to witness Carano’s bone-crunching fighting skills. He doesn’t manipulate the pacing or the editing to make the fights assault you on a visceral level. He lets the strength of the fight choreography and the unfettered skill of the fighters speak for themselves. The fight between Carano and Fassbender, in particular, impresses. The fight’s brutality set in a ritzy hotel room really hits the audience in the gut. As well, the peculiarity of seeing a beautiful woman beat the snot out of the guy who plays Magneto is more than intriguing.

Part of Haywire’s appeal is that it features a female protagonist who upsets typical action movie expectations. She is definitely no damsel in distress, and her strengths aren’t the typical movie character traits given to underwritten female characters in action movies. Most intriguingly, she physically dominates the men of the film. Thus, the novelty of the whole exercise makes it worth a look.

When Angelina Jolie or Kate Beckinsale throw a punch in Tomb Raider or Underworld, you feel like they’d break a bone from the impact due to their waif-like body-types. With Carano, on the other hand, it takes no imagination to believe the beatings she inflicts on the various men of the film. When she punches and kicks, you know it hurts.

As for her acting ability, Carano is pretty good considering this is her first time taking a stab at the whole profession. She is cool and attractive and holds her own opposite some impressive actors. She is a more than adequate heroine for a film of this sort.

Just like its strengths, most of Haywire’s problems come from its novelty. Soderbergh, being a natural experimenter, plays with pacing and narrative, and the result is occasionally a little tiring. The film bears more than a passing similarity to Soderbergh’s previous film The Limey, also written by Lem Dobbs, which isn’t a plus.

As well, because the plot is so basic and only an excuse for Carano’s fight scenes, the film can seem inconsequential. This gives the film a fun feel, but also makes you ponder the results if Soderbergh had really thrown himself into the whole endeavour.

Haywire is an intriguing, unconventional action film that will likely bore the occasional viewer. It’s the product of a technical genius who uses film as a means of experimentation. Steven Soderbergh is like a brilliant kid playing with Lego. With Haywire he introduces action figures into the mix.

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Photo: Supplied

Quebec students to strike March 22

2012-01-26T23:52:56Z

SARAH DESHAIES
Quebec Bureau Chief

FECQ president Léo Bureau-Blouin (left) and FEUQ president Martine Desjardins reaffirmed the intent to strike on March 22.

MONTREAL (CUP) — After a day-long meeting Jan. 21 in Quebec City, the Fédération étudiante universitaire du Québec and the Fédération étudiante collégiale du Québec have reaffirmed the intention to strike on March 22 to protest rising university tuition fees in the province.

But first, the individual members groups need to seek approval from their constituents.

“We have the mandate to ask our associations to go on strike, but first they need to ask their members if they want to, and then we will be able to say the FEUQ is on strike,” said president Martine Desjardins, who made the announcement with FECQ President Léo Bureau-Blouin in Montreal on Jan. 23.

The date was chosen earlier in December to coincide with the timing of the release of the finance minister’s budget.

Desjardins said that FEUQ, the student lobby group that is often a government negotiator, has not been invited to sit in on the pre-budget consultation meetings that are now taking place.

After walking out of the same meetings in December 2010, she said their calls have not been answered by the finance department: “We asked them to talk with us. But they won’t do it.”

Quebec Premier Jean Charest has said the government will go through with gradual tuition hikes, beginning in fall 2012, to culminate in a total rise of $1,625.

Quebec permanent residents currently pay the lowest tuition fees in Canada, but FEUQ and FECQ, which represent about 200,000 students in universities and general and vocational colleges, or CEGEPs, across the province, assert that further tuition hikes could harm students’ finances.

The education ministry could not be reached for comment.

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Photo: Navneet Pall/The Concordian