Daily News

November 29, 2004

While Ontario faces increasing demands on its dwindling electricity capabilities, McMaster University's Institute for Energy Studies will assemble a forum of experts today to recommend ways of encouraging people to reduce their energy consumption. "The window is closing on Ontario's ability to meet the growing demand for electricity," says Dean Mountain, the institute's director, and professor of finance and business economics. "We have 10 to 15 years left before the situation becomes dire. It's time to get creative, and get customers motivated to change their habits."

November 26, 2004

Career Services in partnership with Volunteer Hamilton is launching a volunteering program at McMaster. The service kicks off Monday, Nov. 29 in conjunction with a Volunteer Fair taking place from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the McMaster University Student Centre Marketplace.

November 26, 2004

McMaster running back Jesse Lumsden has been named the 2004 CIS football player of the year. It is the third time in five years that a Marauder football player has been selected as the Nation's top player (he succeeds former teammates Ben Chapdelaine (2001) and Kojo Aidoo (2000)). Lumsden, a third-year geography student from Burlington, Ont. who rewrote the CIS and OUA record books in his fourth season with McMaster, received the Hec Crighton Trophy presented annually to the most outstanding player. The 6-foot-2, 226-pound running back set new CIS single-season marks with 1,816 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns, a new CIS career record with 47 touchdowns, and an OUA record with 4,328 rushing yards.

November 26, 2004

A discussion document for the implementation of Refining Directions, McMaster's strategic plan, is now online. Project co-ordinator and engineering professor Andy Hrymak says, "Our goal was to develop an implementation plan that would clearly link planning in faculties and other areas of campus with the goals, targets and critical success factors in Refining Directions. We also wanted to identify recommendations to the University Planning Committee on how to move the University closer to its strategic objectives."

November 25, 2004

The McMaster University School of Social Work Student Association (MUSSWSA) is about to wrap up a successful project in support of the United Way. At their Nov. 8 meeting, the decision was made to join the on-campus "mitten campaign" by selling paper mittens throughout the department from Nov. 17 to Dec. 1. To date, $275 has been raised toward the goal of $1,000.

November 25, 2004

Humanities researchers at McMaster have released the first version of their text analysis portal for researchers (TAPoR). The alpha version of the portal was announced at a text symposium held at and sponsored by McMaster University Nov. 19-21.

November 25, 2004

Imagine being able to see or taste sounds, as well as hearing them. Sound like science fiction? For some people, it's reality. This blending of the senses occurs in a rare condition called "synesthesia." In this condition, a stimulus, such as sound, creates a reaction in another sense, as well as the expected sense.

November 24, 2004

Shucui Jiang, 40, a research fellow in the Department of Medicine at McMaster University, has just returned from China where she was invited to present her work at the Third China Overseas Personnel Exchange and Economic Trade Cooperation Fair in Jinang, Shandong.

November 24, 2004

McMaster University's Chirif Matta has been recognized for his pioneering research in theoretical chemistry with a John Charles Polanyi Prize. The Province of Ontario established the prestigious awards to support outstanding researchers in the early stages of their careers.

November 23, 2004

A new Joint Health and Safety Committee (JHSC) structure has been implemented at McMaster. The JHSCs have been reorganized to ensure all staff are represented on these committees and all buildings and facilities are routinely inspected. In addition to the Central JHSC, which deals mainly with campus wide issues, there are now 15 McMaster University JHSCs that focus on distinct areas. These include: Physical Plant; Science; Engineering; Arts Quad; Administration; Hospitality; Libraries and Museum; Ivor Wynn Centre; Business; Downtown Centre; McIARS; Commons; Health Sciences; Frid Street and Henderson Research.

November 23, 2004

In a remote village in southwestern Italy, Kostalena Michelaki stands over an open flame firing pots as would have been done more than seven thousand years ago. By looking even deeper into the clay shards, the McMaster archaeologist will begin to understand the way Neolithic people lived, and in the process will dispel the myths and stereotypes surrounding ancient societies.

November 22, 2004

Kirsten Burgomaster hopes that the work she does each day in her lab at McMaster University will one day help promote health and underscore the importance of physical activity as a means of counteracting health problems associated with sedentary lifestyles.

November 18, 2004

The Right Honorable Ellen Fairclough, Canada's first female federal cabinet minister, made significant contributions to Canadian political life and to women's equality of opportunity. Fairclough, who passed away Nov. 14, will be remembered at McMaster University with the establishment of The Ellen Louks Fairclough Memorial Scholarship in Political Science.

November 18, 2004

McMaster has submitted its report to the Bob Rae Postsecondary Education Review. Provost Ken Norrie led the creation of the McMaster submission which was developed following discussions with Senate, the University Planning Committee, the Board of Governors and others across campus. "What we heard from people throughout the University was remarkably consistent," says Norrie. "We heard loud and clear that funding shortfalls are putting at risk our ability to maintain quality programs, services and facilities for students. The particular needs of a research-intensive university like McMaster were also a major consideration."

November 18, 2004

The Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC) and Scotiabank awarded McMaster with a Scotiabank-AUCC Award for Excellence in Internationalization today. McMaster is being applauded for its Institute on Globalization and the Human Condition (IGHC) which spans the three university functions of teaching, research and community service, reaching out into the community through partnerships with NGOs.

November 18, 2004

McMaster students are not just studying history -- they're making it. Myra Valley, Tenyia Miller and Kate Young are among 10 selected for the British Council's British Studies Essay Contest for Canadian undergraduate students, a feat almost unprecedented in the history of this prize, says their professor Jim Alsop. "It is highly praiseworthy that three of the 10 awards go this year to McMaster students, all in history," he says. "It is a great personal pleasure that all three were awarded the prize for the research essays which they wrote in one course, History 4AA6 in 2003-04."

November 17, 2004

Flu season is on its way to homes across Canada. But the question of why influenza epidemics take place in the few cold months of winter remains unanswered. Is it the change in the weather? The return to school? Or increased viral production under winter conditions?

November 16, 2004

Two McMaster authors have been shortlisted for the Harold Adams Innis Prize, from the Canadian Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences. McMaster historians Nancy Bouchier and John Weaver were selected for their books, For the Love of the Game, Amateur Sport in Small-Town Ontario, 1838-1895 and The Great Land Rush and the Making of the Modern World, 1650-1900, respectively.

November 15, 2004

A toothbrush, a stuffed toy, a hairbrush  sometimes taken for granted, these small donations can make a big difference to those in need. This week, students from various faith groups across campus are collecting toiletries, toys and money for battered women's and children's shelters during the second annual Bathtub Project, launching today (Monday, Nov. 15) in the McMaster University Student Centre.

November 15, 2004

Hopes for a five-time Yates Cup celebration were dashed Saturday when the McMaster Marauders were defeated 31-19 by the Laurier Golden Hawks. Laurier will advance to face the Laval Rouge et Or in the Uteck Bowl next Saturday, after the Quebec University defeated Montreal 30-12.