March 7, 2005

The conference "Over the Waves: Music In/And Broadcasting" drew together scholars from Canada, the U.S. South America, and Europe this past weekend at McMaster's Downtown Centre to share their research on music and radio, television, film and the internet.

March 4, 2005

Specialists from various broadcast media will gather at McMaster's Downtown Centre this weekend to examine the political, bureaucratic, corporate and commercial structures that inform and regulate the nature of music in broadcasting. Participants will examine the ways in which music broadcasting expresses and creates "imagined communities" based on class, region, gender, etc.; the manner in which listeners in "body and spirit" experience music on the radio, in television and on the internet; how the dispersal of musical sound through broadcast media shapes notions of space; and the phenomenality of music in broadcasting.

March 4, 2005

Grade 8 students across the city have been working hard and preparing to write the Gauss mathematics competition, which will be held later this spring. For several months McMaster University students have been volunteering as tutors at 10 local public schools during after school sessions, helping prepare the students for the competition.

March 4, 2005

One of Canada's oldest campus radio stations -- McMaster's CFMU -- will raise its voice this weekend for its annual fundraising campaign. With a goal to raise $21,000, the on-air appeal, called "Raise Your Voice" will run March 5-11. The fundraiser will continue throughout the spring.

March 4, 2005

McMaster has strengthened a student exchange program with one of Latin America's leading post-secondary institutions. Dean of business Paul Bates, dean of engineering Mo Elbestawi and associate vice-president, International Affairs, Luke Chan recently visited Instituto Tecnologico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM) in Monterrey Mixico, to renew and expand an international student exchange agreement.

March 4, 2005

Students at McMaster University will launch a $75,000 fundraising campaign today (Friday) to send the school's solar car team to compete in their first ever North American Solar Challenge this July 17 to 27. This year's race is a special edition of the biannual American Solar Car Challenge that will see competitors race on a highway route that starts in Austin, Texas, crosses the Canadian border into Manitoba and finishes in Calgary, Alberta. Cars will reach speeds of over 100 km/h while using the equivalent electrical output of a toaster.

March 3, 2005

McMaster students are hoping to bridge the gap between Hamilton and developing nations during today's Engineers Without Borders (EWB) Day. Students with the McMaster chapter of EWB will construct a bridge in front of the John Hodgins Engineering Building. They also will showcase a treadle pump used in water-deprived areas of Ghana and Mali in front of The Barn in University Plaza, Dundas, and have a display set up in the McMaster University Student Centre (MUSC).

March 3, 2005

Both the University and the Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 3906 are pleased to announce that a new collective agreement has been reached for the bargaining unit representing teaching assistants. In a vote held Tuesday, March 1 and Wednesday, March 2, 2005, CUPE members ratified the terms of the agreement by a clear majority.

March 3, 2005

Two grants totaling $3.5-million were awarded today to McMaster University researchers: one to explore how Canada's aging population will affect the labour force and the economy; the other to find solutions to the devastating and pervasive problem of bullying.

March 2, 2005

A world leader in dynamical systems theory and mathematical biology will deliver next week's Britton Lectures. David Rand, chair of the Department of Mathematics at the University of Warwick, uses mathematical modeling to study evolutionary and ecological systems, to improve our understanding of the processes of biological change, and to develop new theories about the behaviour of ecological systems. Much of his work is driven by questions arising in experimental biology and in medicine, to which he applies deep mathematical theories and his own creative insights.

March 2, 2005

McMaster University and General Motors of Canada have partnered to establish two new automotive engineering centres -- the GM of Canada Centre for Engineering Design and the GM of Canada Centre for Corrosion Engineering Research. "GM Canada sees McMaster as a key educational partner as we work together to enhance automotive innovation and commercializable R&D in Canada," said Al Green, vice-president personnel and operations for General Motors of Canada.

March 2, 2005

Peter George, president and vice-chancellor of McMaster University, was named this morning recipient of the 2005 Spirit of the Community Award. The award is given to a member of the Hamilton community who best exemplifies leadership and volunteer involvement. The award is given by Hamilton Safe Communities, a not-for-profit organization committed to improving the quality of life in Hamilton.

March 2, 2005

Depressed people die prematurely, and it's not just suicide. Depression is a very common illness that frequently is recurrent and leads to significant disability. It is less recognized that people with depression are at twice the risk of dying prematurely from a host of physical illnesses such as cerebrovascular and cardiovascular disease.

March 1, 2005

McMaster English professor James King will discuss his trials and tribulations in writing the biographies of Margaret Laurence, Farley Mowat and Jack McClelland, a trilogy that chronicles the emergence of modernism in Canadian literature at this Thursday's McKay-Thode Lecture. Entitled "Reinventing Canadian Literature", the lecture takes place at 8 p.m. in the Ewart Angus Centre, Rm. 1A1.

February 28, 2005

They reflected, then renovated and now are rejuvenated  that is, the 250 McMaster employees who participated in the third annual "Inspiring from Within" conference. Last Thursday and Friday, employees gathered at the historic Old Mill in Ancaster to be inspired by inspirational and informative keynote speakers, session leaders and facilitators speaking on various topics.

February 28, 2005

Almost 300 McMaster employees and their families attended two showings of The Wiz over the weekend. Produced by the McMaster Musical Theatre Group, the show had the crowds laughing and cheering as Dorothy valiantly tried to make her way home to Kansas.

February 25, 2005

It's 12 p.m. and McMaster's aptly named fitness centre is thriving. A group of cyclists spin to loud, energetic music aside the vigorous movement of feet landing rhythmically upon rows of treadmills. In front of mirrors, weightlifters pump iron, and bodies stretch atop maroon mats marking the beginning or end of a workout. This is a typical snapshot of The Pulse - one of McMaster's most popular destinations.

February 23, 2005

This year was a successful year for the McMaster chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB). Founded in 2000, the international charitable organization is dedicated to providing access to technologies to developing countries around the world to break economic, social and judicial barriers. EWB's national membership has grown exponentially over the past five years to include 6,000 members nationwide with chapters in 22 Canadian universities. But growth hasn't stopped there as this past year McMaster was one of the first Canadian universities to extend the scope of first-year engineering design to incorporate international development activities.

February 23, 2005

A journey through war-torn Rwanda with Canadian Lt-General Romeo Dallaire; a walk through Tibetian monasteries; a visit to the 'Ground Zeros' of the planet -- these are just some of the expeditions taken in the five films to be screened at McMaster's first annual Peace Film Festival March 2-6.

February 23, 2005

Making Canada more competitive was one theme in Wednesday's federal budget that recognized the important role of university research in developing economic prosperity and social benefits for Canadians. Ralph Goodale, the Minister of Finance, announced the government's budget in Ottawa today, which included indirect support for research, and increased funding to research granting councils of $375-million over five years. For McMaster, this would amount to a potential increase in funding of about $3.5-million over that period.