Daily News

November 10, 2005

Women with some heart problems are almost one-third less likely to receive invasive treatments compared to men with the same conditions, according to data from an international study of more than 12,000 people. Consequently, women are about one-sixth more likely than men to suffer additional chest pain or other recurrent heart problems. Sonia Anand, associate professor of medicine for the Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine, is the lead author of the study to be published in the Nov. 15 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

November 9, 2005

Two mathematicians, one from McMaster University's Faculty of Engineering the other from the Faculty of Science, will lead Canada's first graduate school dedicated to study in the rapidly growing field of computational engineering and science. Tam

November 9, 2005

Canada now has its first school dedicated to graduate study in the rapidly advancing area of computational engineering and science. The McMaster School of Computational Engineering and Science was officially launched in Hamilton, Ontario today. It brings together 50 faculty from engineering, science, business and health science to collaboratively conduct research and advance education involving simulation, modeling and optimization. Study in this area is helping to advance understanding of a wide range of issues and opportunities from pandemics, to weather patterns, to improving automobile safety, to the design of computer chips.

November 9, 2005

McMaster neuroscientist Margaret Fahnestock's research into Alzheimer's disease will be propelled forward thanks to a $35,000 donation from the Scottish Rite Charitable Foundation of Canada. Fahnestock, who studies proteins essential for nervous system function, focuses her research on the regulation and biosynthesis of neurotrophic factors and their role in Alzheimer's disease and epilepsy.

November 9, 2005

New automated banking machines (ABM) will be installed across campus over the next few weeks. Led by Terry Galan, director of purchasing, and Nancy Gray, director of finance, a user group of representatives from across campus, including the McMaster Students Union, selected Swytch as the successful supplier of automated banking services.

November 8, 2005

Aspiring engineering and science entrepreneurs are invited to hear Mark Chamberlain, president of Trivaris Ltd., and former CEO of Wescam, as he recounts his career as an engineering entrepreneur. Chamberlain's talk is hosted by the School for Engineering Practice on Wednesday, Nov. 9 at 5:45 p.m. in the Council Chamber, Gilmour Hall 111.

November 8, 2005

McMaster thespians will cast an Arabian spell on Hamilton beginning this Friday. In the upcoming production The Arabian Nights, seven McMaster students and employees will take to the Waterdown Village Theatre stage to present Arabian Nights - a play that involves a selection of historical tales, love stories, tragedies, comedies, poems, burlesques and Muslim religious legends.

November 8, 2005

More than 150 business, government, community and education leaders are gathering in Hamilton today (November 8) to investigate opportunities for increasing collaboration between McMaster University and Mohawk College in providing technology education. Led by McMaster's Faculty of Engineering and the Faculty of Engineering Technology at Mohawk, the Community Think Tank will focus on the potential of providing joint programs in technology and management. Participants will provide insight and advice on matters related to curriculum and desired graduate knowledge. They will also explore the capabilities needed to generate future economic and technological productivity and prosperity.

November 7, 2005

The DeGroote School of Business at McMaster University offers the highest return on investment for MBA students in Canada, according to the annual MBA Guide published by Canadian Business Magazine. DeGroote MBA students enjoy a 131 per cent return on investment according to the study, which compares students' average salaries upon entering the MBA program with their average starting salaries upon entering the workforce upon graduation.

November 7, 2005

He led IBM's efforts to advance supercomputing and now is leading the company's efforts to help businesses and governments utilize its power. She worked in industry discovering ways to optimize systems through mathematics and now is an academic leading efforts to teach and equip students to do the same. Bill Pulleyblank, vice-president, Center for Business Optimization, IBM Global Services and former director of IBM's Deep Computing Institute and the Blue Gene Project, and Margaret Wright, chair of the Department of Computer Science at New York University will be the keynote speakers at a public lecture discussing how advances in computational engineering and science are advancing our daily lives.

November 7, 2005

A gigantic ape, measuring about 10 feet tall and weighing up to 1,200 pounds, co-existed alongside humans, a geochronologist has discovered. Using a high-precision absolute-dating method (techniques involving electron spin resonance and uranium series), Jack Rink, associate professor of geography and earth sciences, at McMaster University, has determined that Gigantopithecus blackii, the largest primate that ever lived, roamed southeast Asia for nearly 700,000 years. Rink has confirmed the time range for Gigantopithecus as being from one million years ago to 300,000 years ago. This occurred during the Pleistocene period, which lasted from 1.8 million to 10,000 years ago.

November 7, 2005

For the second year in a row, McMaster University has been named the most innovative university in Canada. Maclean's magazine's annual rankings measures and compares universities in three peer groupings. McMaster is ranked in the intensively competitive medical doctoral category, a category of those universities that offer a broad range of PhD programs and research in addition to having a medical school. In the reputational survey section of the rankings, McMaster University was listed in the top five in Leaders of Tomorrow, and Best Overall.

November 7, 2005

In front of more than 3,000 rain-soaked fans, the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks ended the McMaster Marauders' season for the second consecutive year with a dominating 43-21 victory. With the win, Laurier now hosts the Western Mustangs in next week's Yates Cup, as the 'Stangs defeated Ottawa 18-10 in Saturday's other OUA semi-final.

November 4, 2005

Six-hundred and fifty new members were inducted into the McMaster Chapter of the Golden Key International Society today (Nov. 4). Accompanied with family and friends, the ceremony took place in the new MDCL building with notable keynote guest speaker Alex Perwich, CEO of Golden Key International. Founded in 1977, the Golden Key Society recognizes and honours undergraduates whose academic performance ranks within the top 15 per cent of the University in their respected faculties.

November 4, 2005

An academic seminar on water governance, hosted by McMaster and the Royal Society of Canada, will take place today (Friday, Nov. 4) at the University. The topic is a timely and important one across Canada, with complex issues facing all levels of government. Some of those issues include bulk water exports, drinking water contamination, pharmaceuticals discarded into rivers and lakes, municipal sewage, and massive irrigation by factory farms. These problems are exacerbated by the fact that water flows freely between a multitude of borders: municipal, provincial, national, and Aboriginal.

November 4, 2005

Waist-to-hip ratio, not body mass index (BMI), is the best obesity measure for assessing a person's risk of heart attack, concludes a global study by McMaster University researchers published in this week's issue of The Lancet. If obesity is redefined using waist-to-hip ratio instead of BMI the proportion of people at risk of heart attack increases by threefold, calculate the authors.

November 4, 2005

For part-time students juggling work, home and courses can be an overwhelming load. Imagine the challenge part-time students with all of the above responsibilities and a disability face. The Centre for Continuing Education is dedicated to helping part-time students with disabilities meet their academic and professional goals.

November 3, 2005

Research Infosource Inc. released its 2005 report ranking Canada's top 50 research universities and McMaster, once again, placed among the country's best. McMaster placed third in the Research University of the Year category based on its ability to attract and capitalize on its research income. McMaster is the only Ontario university to have placed in this category every year since the ranking's inception in 2003. The rating, based on Statistics Canada data, reflects total sponsored research income, faculty and graduate student research intensity, and the number of publications in leading journals.

November 3, 2005

The inaugural National Pain Awareness Week will be launched in Hamilton on Sunday with an afternoon forum on understanding and coping with chronic pain. The forum will take place from 1-6 p.m. at the Royal Botanical Gardens on Plains Road West in Burlington, with three keynote speakers, as well as information displays. The speaker presentations will start at 3 p.m.

November 3, 2005

More than 100 Grade nine students visited McMaster on November 2 as part of the 11th annual Take Our Kids to Work program. The students were welcomed by Mark Haley from Human Resources and then they enjoyed a variety of activities including a demonstration of rare insects by Marvin Gunderman ("the Bugman") from the Department of Biology. Students also participated in a variety of tours hosted by the Faculty of Health Sciences, the Nuclear Reactor, the Department of Psychology and the Planetarium. These activities were followed by campus tours conducted by volunteers from the Office of Student Liaison.