Daily News

Posted on Sept. 12: Cognitive intervention could transform lives

For some children with a brain injury, remembering the rules to a game or following simple instructions is not easy. Researchers at CanChild are hoping to prove that a recently developed cognitive intervention will help children with a traumatic brain injury (TBI) handle the social and academic problems they encounter when they return to school. A one-year pilot study will examine the effectiveness of a strategy-based occupational therapy intervention with children who are 7 to 14 years and experiencing difficulties at home and school. The Ontario Neurotrauma Foundation (ONF) is awarding CanChild Centre for Childhood Disability Research at McMaster, $79,078 for the Cognitive Intervention for Children with Traumatic Brain Injury study.

Posted on Sept. 11: Muralist returns to McMaster

Mexican muralist Daniel Manrique returns to McMaster this week to begin work on a new painting to hang in the McMaster University Student Centre. Manrique has been commissioned to create a diptych - two canvases sized 10 feet by seven feet each - that will hang above the lower west entrance that links MUSC with Gilmour Hall, in close proximity to the University's council chambers. The theme of the painting will be the human race and our responsibility for the planet. "We're delighted that Mr. Manrique accepted our invitation to come to McMaster and create a painting that will be exhibited in our new student centre," said Karen Belaire, vice-president administration. "This is a terrific opportunity for our students to see a muralist at work in a studio, benefit from his expertise and be exposed to his creativity." The University invited Manrique to return to campus to create a new painting when it was determined a mural he painted on a Togo Salmon Hall wall in 1981 would be too costly to move and could not be incorporated into the renovations for the new student pub, Quarters. Manrique understood the predicament and agreed to come back to campus to create a new work. The University is paying Manrique an honorarium for his work and covering his expenses while here. Once he arrives Sept. 12 and art supplies are purchased, he will begin work on the painting in the art studio in Togo Salmon Hall Room 116. When completed, the work will become part of McMaster University's permanent art collection, under the care of the McMaster Museum of Art. In conjunction with Manrique's visit, there will be a viewing of a video titled Walls of Mexico that focuses on Mexican mural painting on Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. in TSH-114 (the New Space). Manrique, who speaks Spanish only, will participate with the aid of an interpreter in a question and answer session that will follow the viewing. As well, there is a reception planned for Oct. 4 at 3 p.m. in the Council Chambers to celebrate the completion of the painting and allow Manrique to meet members of the McMaster and local artistic communities.

Posted on Sept. 11: McMaster remembers Sept. 11

As the world reflects today on the terrorist attacks on the United States, so will McMaster. A commemorative service, called "Roses Among the Stones" brought together faculty, staff and students on the steps of Gilmour Hall today. The service, which celebrates non-violence, is a garden ceremony held annually for Anti-Violence Month. This year, McMaster's Anti-Violence Network (AVN) chose to hold the event on the anniversary of Sept. 11, says Carol Wood, ecumenical chaplain in McMaster's Chaplaincy Centre. "The non-violence service has been happening for a number of years but this year we wanted to do something special for Sept. 11, but also remember that non-violence is an issue that people face every year," she says. "Following Sept. 11, the media bombarded us with images and many of them were quite shocking. We need a place where we can acknowledge that collective grief." The fifth annual garden ceremony began on the steps of Gilmour Hall at 12:30 p.m. and moved to the garden in front of University Hall. Speakers included McMaster President Peter George, Evan Mackintosh, president of McMaster's students union, and Priscilla de Villiers, the mother of murdered McMaster student Nina de Villiers.

Posted on Sept. 10: McMaster gets a taste of Spain

'Toledan Exchange', an international exhibition now on in the completely refurbished New Space (Togo Salmon Hall 114) brings a taste of Spain to Hamilton, featuring work by School of the Arts professors Judy Major-Girardin and Graham Todd, fellow Canadian Lorraine Samuel, and Spanish artisits Pablo Sanguino and Ma Deva Sufi. Spain's important ceramic tradition is at the heart of the show. The artists have introduced new shapes, outside influences (like Japanase raku), and the latest technology to create a vibrant visual experience. "Commercial ceramic factories in Spain have a long history of allowing artists to use their facilities," says Todd, who created many of his own pieces in one such factory just outside Toledo. His work, along with that of Samuel, Sanguino and Sufi, was the basis of the original exhibition which showed at major ceramic museums in Toledo and Talavera de la Reina late last year. At McMaster, they are joined by Judy Major-Girardin, who travelled to Spain this spring and found inspiration for her exhilarating mixed media works in the geometric patterns of the Arab mosaics of Cordoba, Toledo, and Malaga. Toledan Exchange' can seen at the New Space (TSH 114), Tuesday to Friday, 12 to 4 p.m. Photo caption: Graham Todd and Judy Major-Girardin with their ceramic work.

Posted on Sept. 10: McMaster

Members of the Bay Area Leadership will be hosted at McMaster today (Sept. 10) for a day-long workshop designed to focus on Positioning the Community'. The Bay Area Leadership program involves approximately 30 representatives of private and public sector organizations from Burlington and Hamilton. It's an innovative initiative to inform, motivate and mentor its participants in developing leadership skills. A number of community organizations have helped host monthly workshop to discuss issues and share various areas of expertise in an effort to develop and encourage leadership and a stronger community. This month it's McMaster's turn.