October 24, 2000

Redman lecturer Brian Greene drew large crowds to McMaster last week for two lectures he gave on Oct. 18 and 19. Redman lecture committee chair . . .

October 23, 2000

Among professor Graeme MacQueen's memories, one stands out. It was 1995 and he was in Herat, a province in the west of Afghanistan, talking to . . .

October 20, 2000

The Board of Governors of McMaster University has endorsed a proposal that furthers a process to unlock surplus in the McMaster University Pension Plan for Salaried Employees (the "Plan"). The proposal is supported by all representatives of stakeholders in the Plan including the McMaster University Staff Association (MUSA), the McMaster University Faculty Association (MUFA), the McMaster Clinical Faculty Association, the McMaster Retirees Association (MURA) and The Management Group (TMG) of the University.

October 20, 2000

Children of members of the University's salaried pension plan are eligible for four new scholarships created by the McMaster University Futures Fund (MUFF) Committee. Three . . .

October 20, 2000

September 2001 will begin an academic year very different from any previous year on campus. The University Centre, the long-awaited spiritual centre and unifying force on campus, will be open. Student services will be centrally located and easy to find. Study spaces, meeting rooms and lounges will be available and accessible to the McMaster community. A new, tree-lined food court, and a new bar and restaurant will provide dining and entertainment to students, staff and faculty. But before then, the University Centre will need a name. The University Centre Naming Committee has been established to help gather and recommend possible names for the new facility to the Student Representative Assembly (SRA). Once selected, the name will be put before the Board of Governors for approval.

October 20, 2000

McMaster will be home to a new national sport training centre, developed to coincide with a world road racing event to be held in Hamilton . . .

October 19, 2000

Just over a year after the official launch of McMaster University's Changing Tomorrow Today campaign, the campaign has surpassed its $100-million private-sector target. The breakthrough of $100.5 million is more than eight months ahead of schedule. "It's an incredible accomplishment," says President Peter George. "The outstanding support we have received from individuals, corporations, foundations, the campus and the community reaffirms McMaster's place as one of Canada's premier universities. Our supporters have demonstrated in a very tangible way that they share our vision of a University that will lead Hamilton and Canada well into the new century."

October 19, 2000

Russell Joffe, dean and vice-president, Faculty of Health Sciences, is leaving McMaster University to pursue another opportunity. His Dec. 31 departure was announced this morning by President Peter George. "When Dr. Joffe assumed his role as dean and vice-president in 1997 he tackled three key challenges: development of a planning process so the Faculty's priorities could be identified and met; improved integration of the Faculty with both the University and the teaching hospitals; creation of an effective program for fundraising. He has achieved great success in all of these areas," said George in an e-mail to the internal University community. Joffe says the decision to leave is entirely a personal one and taken for his own and family reasons. "Though it is never the right time for a change in leadership, we are emerging from three particularly difficult years and I am optimistic that the future holds considerable promise for the Faculty of Health Sciences and McMaster University. It seems a reasonable juncture to begin new leadership of the Faculty as we face the enormous challenges and opportunities that the next few years hold." Joffe has not publicly announced what other opportunities he plans to pursue.

October 19, 2000

McMaster's quiz masters are off to Oxford. Four Level IV students who make up the University's Quiz Bowl Club will compete in the Oxford University . . .

October 16, 2000

Physicians are often asked to be "gatekeeper," determining their patients' access to medical technologies. At the same time, most physicians have been taught they should act as patient advocates, pursuing patients' best interests regardless of cost, according to Peter A. Ubel, associate professor of medicine, and director of the program on medical decision-making at the University of Michigan. Ubel will give the annual Labelle Lecture, titled "The Unbearable Rightness of Bedside Rationing," on Wednesday, Oct. 18 at 1 p.m. in Room 1A1, Health Sciences Centre.

October 16, 2000

The School of Rehabilitation Science, established at McMaster in 1990, is celebrating a decade of unique programming and important research activities. “We were the first . . .

October 16, 2000

Jean Vanier, well-known Canadian philosopher and founder of the L'Arche community living experience for those with disabilities, is visiting McMaster on Saturday, Oct. 28 to . . .

October 16, 2000

For hundreds of years, physicists have been searching for a unified theory or "master equation" that would provide a framework for describing nature's forces and all matter. In his talk, "The Quest for the Unified Theory," Brian Greene, professor of physics and mathematics at Columbia University, will follow the history of that search since the time of Isaac Newton to the present. Greene, this year's Redman lecturer, will be speaking on campus in the evenings of Oct. 18 and 19. His second talk, "Space and Time Since Einstein," will provide insights into the nature of both, from the development of the theory of relativity to the present-day string theory. Both lectures are at 8 p.m. in HSC-1A1.

October 12, 2000

"Now that the Olympics are over in Australia, we want a crack at it," enthuses Bob Loree, director of Level I engineering. Vying for McMaster entrance awards, a coveted trophy and bragging rights, more than 400 students from over 26 high schools from across Ontario will compete in a "mental track meet" as they race against the clock in battles of logic, strategy and mental endurance. Throughout the day tomorrow (Friday, Oct. 13) participants will engage in a smorgasbord of events at McMaster which are designed to whet their appetite for engineering.

October 12, 2000

The first United Way cookbook arrived as the Gilmour Hall Cookbook in 1996 and completely sold out that year at the Marketplace fundraiser. This year, . . .

October 12, 2000

Friday the 13th will prove to be a lucky day for the more than 150 certificate and diploma students who will celebrate their graduation at Convocation Hall this evening during the 1999-2000 Certificate & Diploma Graduation and Awards Ceremony. A wonderful mix of tradition and spontaneous celebration, the ceremony will host family and friends of the students, cheering them on as they graduate from programs they have completed, often in addition to full-time employment demands and family commitments. This year will mark the third year that the Centre for Continuing Education and the McMaster Association of Part-time Students (MAPS) have held a traditional graduation ceremony, minus the caps and gowns.

October 11, 2000

October is Health Sciences Library month and members of the University community are invited to vist the Library virtually. The Library now provides full access . . .

October 11, 2000

Each year, more than 40 per cent of McMaster graduates in many programs continue their education beyond a first degree. The Career Planning and Employment . . .

October 11, 2000

Noted music critic Tamara Bernstein is bringing her expertise and experience to McMaster, to assist MA students in the School of Art, Drama & Music's . . .

October 11, 2000

You can't blame the internet for everything. An article published in the Globe and Mail this summer says the internet has imposed a predominately anglo-centric format upon the wired world and, as a result, the study of foreign languages is in decline. However Gabriele Erasmi, chair of the modern languages department, notes that English has become the accepted language in international relations, trade and finance. "It's not surprising that the internet is English-based," he says. Daniel Woolf, dean of humanities, would agree. "I don't think that the predominance of English on the internet is the cause of a decline in the study of foreign languages. But I do believe it will accelerate that decline."