Revising the bible

Margaret who?

Forget one of our nation’s most treasured literary minds, the real action on campus tonight will be happening at the University Students’ Council board room where at least half a dozen people will congregate to discuss By-Law 2.

For those not familiar — and really, why would you be? — By-Law 2 is the USC’s elections bible. It dictates how the entire process is run down to the finest detail such as this gem: “In the event of a tie, the winner shall be decided by a coin toss.” Can’t make that stuff up.

Despite being buried in the deepest corner of the USC office on the third floor of the UCC, this is in fact an open forum and anyone with concerns about the way elections are run is encouraged to attend. Of course, you would only know that if you have Twitter:

You can find more information about the meeting nowhere so just trust me that this is a thing that is happening. Show up at the USC board room at 5:30 tonight and get all those long-simmering USC elections beefs that have been eating away at your world for months off your chest.

Laptops in class

Dear Life,

Why does MIT bother having a ban on laptops in the classroom when so many people ignore it?  Surely you people can be without facebook for two hours?

Well you’re at the track anyway

While University Students’ Council President may be the ultimate cheese at the end of the maze for many a USCer, it is just one of the array of council positions up for grabs this election season.

And while the presidential contest will dominate what little discourse the USC elections create on campus, there are definitely some other races to keep an eye on.

Social science president is always a fun race to watch as candidates vie to head up the school’s largest faculty. It’s an especially enticing position for individuals who have their sights set on becoming USC President one day as it gives you a large base of voter support coming into USC elections.

Emily Rowe, last year’s USC president, used her social science support and a solid campaign to propel her to the presidency in a year that saw one of the highest voter turnouts in recent memory.

No hard feelings to the other faculties on campus but it’s tough to deny the social science effect and I imagine we’ll be talking about that base of support again at some point during this coming campaign season. Just a hunch.

Similarly, social science councilor is always a curious race, if only because there’s so damn many of them elected. Making things slightly more interesting this year is the fact that 12 social sci’ers will be joining council instead of the usual 10.

Twenty-two candidates ran for social science councilor last year, with the cut off for victory being around 500 votes. With 12 elected this year — and what will likely be a poor year for voter turnout with little competition for USC president — that number will likely drop to 475 or even 450. And in a faculty of more than 6,000 how hard can that be?

The senate is an important race, considering so many USC heavy hitters run for it. Mike Tithecott — you know, this guy — was a senator last year before being elected USC president.

In fact, most don’t remember that Tithecott was the eighth of eight senators at large elected in the 2009 election. He won by the skin of his teeth, coming a mere 167 votes from not even being on council. Today he’s president of the whole damn thing. And the list of notable senators goes on.

Stephen Lecce, 2008 USC President, was a senator at large. Current USC VP Student Events Justin Mackie was a senator. Former USC presidential candidates Ray Park and Matt Hyland were both senators. And chances are a handful of next year’s Vice-Presidents will likely come from this year’s senate, which features veteran USC’ers Carolyn Burns, Jennifer Gautier and Patrick Searle, one of the USC’s most active and accessible members.

So if this year’s presidential race doesn’t provide enough enticement for you — hard to believe, I know — there’s plenty other intrigue in this year’s ultimate race for post-secondary student political glory.

How to tell if your food is Still Tasty

Have you ever opened your fridge to make dinner only to find food that looks barely edible?

Sometimes it’s hard to decide whether to toss or eat that already opened package of cheese or that slightly bruised apple. That’s where StillTasty.com comes in — it’s the perfect website to inform you of what you should and shouldn’t eat.

Users can easily and quickly browse the shelf life of almost any food by typing in the name of a product or by browsing through the various categories. The listings are quite specific — for example, different information is provided for apples that are cut up versus whole ones.

The website will let users know how long food can last when stored in different locations such as the pantry, fridge or freezer, and also has tips on how to store your food for maximum shelf life.

StillTasty also has a handy “Your Questions Answered” page where you can find the solutions to all your cooking issues, including age-old questions like how long can you keep thawed ground beef, and is it safe to drink bottled water after the expiry date?

For more general articles and tips about how to store and prepare food, visit the Shelf Talk section to ensure you’re getting the most value out of your groceries.

StillTasty is a great website for students — it’s hard enough finding the time and money to go out and buy groceries, but at least now it’s easy to find how to make them last.

Visit stilltasty.com, or download the handy iPhone app.

Best talks her new album and life on the road

Twenty-year-old Toronto-based singer-songwriter Lauren Best is hitting the road, making a London-stop next week.

Best is currently in the middle of an Ontario-wide tour promoting her album, and she’ll be stopping to perform in London on Jan. 20 at Brennan’s Beer Bistro.

“We’re five dates into the tour. You can’t really describe being on the road to someone who hasn’t done it – it’s really awesome and really fun and really exhausting at the same time,” she says.

“We’re currently travelling by car — it’s a very tight squeeze. We’re squished into a Volkswagen Passat with a piano and a guitar and a drum kit and three people — it’s squishy,” she jokes, listing the cities she performed in over the last 48 hours — Hamilton, St. Catharine’s and Waterloo.

Best, who grew up in Owen Sound, made the move to Toronto after high school to kick her music career into full swing.

“I started playing music at a young age. I had a piano in my living room and it was never like, ‘Lauren don’t touch the piano.’ I sang in choirs as a kid and I’d say my first solo performance was in front of 600 people when I was six-years-old — I’ve always been really into performing,” she explains.

Best’s new album Sticker Collection is a project that’s been a long time in the making — she started recording it in 2008. At the time she had anticipated the project would take about six months to complete and then assumed she’d go to university.

“Now it’s three years later and I’ve just finished,” she laughs.

When asked about her sound, Best finds it hard to explain.

“I’ve heard people tell me they think Sticker Collection is very unique and fresh sounding,” she says. “There’s also some retro vibes in terms of the horn sections. I really love Motown, soul, R&B, and even jazz and swing — I wanted to draw on those influences.”

And there’s nothing Best would rather be doing.

“It’s been full of surprises in a really good way. I’m happy with where I am,” she says.

As for university, Best doesn’t regret not going back. She notes the value of things she’s learned on the road and the hands-on experience she’s gained while building her professional career.

“I had all these songs I’d written and I resisted making a record because I was busy with all those things you’re busy with in high school. But eventually the time seemed right and I connected with a studio. If I didn’t record the album now I’m afraid I never would have,” Best says, adding she has written enough new music to release a second album soon.

Best notes the second album would be a little less pop sounding than Sticker Collection and little more funky, contemporary and alternative.

Sticker Collection is available for download on her website at www.LaurenBest.com. Brenan’s Bistro is located at 347 Clarence St. The show starts at 9 p.m.

Londoners puzzled over air quality improvements

London’s air pollution level is on the decline. The cause of the city’s cleaner air, however, remains elusive.

The two major contenders are the economic turndown, which has resulted in a decrease in industrial activity across the country, and the city’s green movement.

The Ministry of Environment released the information about London’s increased air quality after taking readings from 40 stations across Ontario. The stations were designed to measure emissions of common pollutants, such as carbon monoxide and ground-level ozone. These kinds of pollutants typically occur as a result of consumer, vehicle and industrial activity.

“Generally speaking, air quality in London is on the mend,” Iqbal Kalsi, manager of environmental health at the Middlesex-London Health Unit, said. “Looking at the data, there has a been a decrease in the concentration of pollutants [in London] since around 2001.”

This trend is not exclusive to London, either. “Many other communities in southern Ontario are experiencing decreases as well,” Jamie Skimming, manager for London’s newest air quality initiative Moving Forward Locally, said.

According to Kalsi, London’s air quality is currently within Canadian environmental standards in almost every respect. “In most areas, other than ground-level ozone, where there is a bit of concern, we’re seeing a good decrease and are within the standards.”

The stable decrease in London’s air pollutant levels comes despite the fact that pollution levels can change depending on factors outside of our control.

“Air quality is quite weather dependant,” James Voogt, associate professor of geography at Western, noted. “For example, if you have a cold, wet summer, you’re not going to get the same amount of air pollution episodes even for the same emissions.”

Voogt was hesitant to ascribe London’s cleaner air to any one source in particular. “I think it would be tricky to try and separate economic output from people’s choice of being green, seeing as they can be linked.”

For example, Voogt explained how a green initiative to reduce consumer use of electricity would also reduce industrial emissions from the coal-fire generating stations that produce that electricity.

On the green side of things, Skimming highlighted three macroscopic changes in energy consumption. He believed that more energy efficient cars, replacement of coal-fire power plants with cleaner energy sources and the promotion of summertime electricity conservation have had a major impact on air quality in Ontario.

These eco-friendly initiatives, while not proven to be the major cause of the current increase in air quality, pre-date the current industrial slowdown as well. “What we’re seeing now [in terms of emission reductions] are the fruits of these labors, some of which go back even to the late ‘80s and early ‘90s.” Skimming said.

“People have to remember though, we’re not out the woods yet,” Skimming concluded. “We’re making progress, but there’s still a way to go. We still need continue efforts to get people to drive less often, conserve energy and to invest in cleaner and more efficient new technologies.”

Blue Monday? Big whoop

So Monday was Blue Monday. Or maybe that’s next Monday. Those who were polluting my Facebook news feed couldn’t seem to make up their minds one way or another. Whatever day it is, it’s supposed to be the most depressing day of the year.

Of course, as the Globe & Mail pointed out on Sunday, the “scientific” basis for such claim is a bunch of hooey — Blue Monday is an invention of a British travel company as a way to stimulate business in an otherwise slow month. The scientist responsible for the equation explaining why January’s Mondays lead to depression is also responsible for explaining why the happiest day of the year falls somewhere in June.

But aside from a shooting in Tucson, growing rumbles of a spring election emanating from the Prime Minister’s office and national turmoil in Tunisia, is there really all that much depressing stuff happening in our lives these days?

Sure, we’re all back in school. Assignments and readings are starting to crop up, even after everyone blew off the first weekend of the new year to stand in line at The Ceeps. Those unfortunate enough to have an exam scheduled on the last possible day are cursing their all too brief break.

On the other hand, we’re at the beginning of the new year. It may be arbitrary, but the change in mindset shouldn’t be underestimated. We may end up breaking all of our resolutions later this week, but we can hold our heads high for at least setting some goals with our own betterment in mind.

We’re also less than a month away from Reading Week — a sunny oasis where we can safely forget how terribly alone we were on Valentine’s Day.

The next month will also mean the endless entertainment of a University Students’ Council election period, where students will be able to watch their peers make fools out of themselves in the vain hope somebody will remember their name at the ballot box.

There are plenty of reasons to be down at this time of year. Crappy weather and virtually perpetual gloom makes the time outside of the classroom more unbearable than it should be.

But we shouldn’t give in to the urge to enshrine Blue Monday as yet another Hallmark Holiday. Beyond the fact that being perpetually happy would grow old incredibly fast, arbitrarily citing a Monday in January as being a depressing day does a great disservice to those around us who suffer from tangible depression on any given day.

Let’s face it, folks — the days are getting longer, we have a week off coming up and there’s a few months between now and the next uncomfortable family holiday.  Time to let January off the hook and rescue it from slanderous accusations of being blue and depressing.

Green Hornet brings new kind of superhero to the screen

The Green Hornet

Director: Michel Gondry

Starring: Seth Rogen, Jay Chou and Cameron Diaz

Traditional superheroes wear capes and tights and fight evil villains.

But in Michel Gondry’s latest film, The Green Hornet, so-called hero Britt Reid opts for a suit and mask and often decides to run away from his enemies instead of confronting them.

The Green Hornet hit theatres last Friday, showing audiences a new, lazy and incompetent breed of superhero. The Green Hornet, based on the radio series from the ‘30s, stars comedian Seth Rogen as Britt Reid, a spoiled rich-kid who inherits a newspaper empire after his father’s death.

After realizing his newspaper, The Daily Sentinel, has drastically declined in quality reporting, Britt decides to take it upon himself to create some controversial news and creates an alter ego for himself — the Green Hornet. Along with his trusty mechanic and coffee brewer Kato (Jay Chou) and his new secretary Lenore Case (Cameron Diaz), Britt creates his own news by breaking the law to protect the law.

Throughout the film, Britt and his sidekick Kato avoid police arrest while at the same time attempting to dethrone Benjamin Chudnofsky (Christoph Waltz) from his evil reign over Los Angeles.

The Green Hornet impresses with its special effects, fight scenes and witty dialogue, but ultimately these are just used as tools used for covering up the film’s lack of a coherent and interesting plotline. While many of the scenes are amusing, there are an equal amount that are tedious and unnecessary.

The film relieves heavily on Britt and Kato’s comedic banter and in scenes where both Rogen and Chou aren’t present, the film seems to lack energy and plot movement. Chou is particularly memorable, coming close to stealing scenes from Rogen.

Fans of the series will be satisfied with this big-screen adaptation, but after watching Michel Gondry’s latest film viewers will be left wondering if Seth Rogen was the appropriate choice to play newspaper heir and masked vigilante Britt Reid.

The film does feature some cleaver dialogue, but overall the film is forgettable. The Green Hornet is definitely a one-time watch.

Campus Rec opens doors to varsity teams

(Corey Stanford/Gazette)

Varsity athletes could soon apply to have their own corner of the Western Student Recreation Centre to practice in.

After previously preventing varsity teams from using the WSRC, Campus Recreation has lifted restrictions and is allowing official Western teams limited access.

For a year after the facility opened, Campus Recreation blocked varsity access to monitor usage patterns and determine when outside groups could have access without affecting students. An agreement between the University Students’ Council and Western also stated the centre must be used solely for student recreation after 4 p.m. and mostly for student use before that time.

Now, with usage patterns known and interest from varsity teams continuing, an application process is in place to give varsity groups access to the gym.

“It’s all on a case-by-case basis,” Gareth Cunningham, manager of Campus Recreation, explained of the application process.

Varsity teams could get use of the space by making a request to the reservations department. The Recreation Centre Advisory Committee then evaluates the impact on students and either grants or denies use of the space.

“We would consult as a committee and it would need a reason for it to be approved or disapproved,” said Susan Grindrod, associate vice-president of housing and ancillary services, and a member of the committee. She noted the group only met when it was necessary.

Mike Tithecott, president of the USC, also sits on the committee and said they measure how students will be affected if outside groups are granted space.

“They always look to me to see if this is appropriate for the students,” Tithecott said of the decision-making process. “We really want to make sure students aren’t dispositioned.”

Cunningham noted he would recommend admitting varsity teams if they were interested in a time when the WSRC was not busy. He also emphasized the entire facility strives to be used to its full potential, which fits with varsity teams interested in practicing during off hours.

Portions of the WSRC are currently allotted to Western’s varsity swim team, provided the space is shared with student programming. Squash and volleyball tournaments have also been approved in the past along with the Special Olympics last July.

Cunningham explained he currently did not have any varsity teams using the recreation space, but he has been approached.

Prof studies math dyslexia

Students who dreaded their math homework may find an explanation in new research by a Western professor. It might have been math dyslexia.

Daniel Ansari, a psychology professor, is studying the condition known as developmental dyscalculia. The neurological disorder is like dyslexia with numbers, making it difficult to process numerical values and acquire basic math skills.

The disorder affects five per cent of the population and can hinder the development of fundamental math skills in children. According to Ansari, unattended cases of dyscalculia can drive students away from math-related subjects and potentially limit their future careers and education options.

“A consequence of being bad at math is you develop math anxiety,” Ansari said.

“People learn to avoid math because math leads to negative experiences – it leads to the experience of failure. You start to avoid math and you may exclude yourself from certain career paths that involve math because they feel they won’t be able to pass the math components of their degree program,” he continued.

Since 2007, Ansari has been working with graduate student Stephanie Bugden to examine how young students perform in mathematics.

Starting with first and second grade students, Bugden gave behavioural tests to examine their comparison and math skills. A year later, she gave the test to the same children again along with brain imaging. In the spring she’ll invite them back for another round of tests and an MRI scan to examine changes over time.

Ansari noted his research intends to help diagnose children with dyscalculia early on, in order to properly teach them fundamental math skills.

The development of basic math skills can have long-term effects on a child’s personal growth, according to math specialist Immaculate Namukasa from the faculty of education at Western.

“Many students who are weak at a subject would need much encouragement and support not to shy away from it. For younger children, especially where they get messages that mathematics is difficult, and it is OK to be bad at math, they increasingly lose interest and spend less time doing mathematics,” Namukasa said.

“There is a math poster that says, ‘Mathematics multiplies your chances.’ Unfortunately for many whose math anxiety is not altered before the end of elementary school, this multiplication might be by an amount less than one — a fraction, negative number or decimal,” she said.

“Many students that fear mathematics usually do not take mathematics courses before Grade 10 and you can see how that means a reduction in choices at colleges and universities.”

Ansari also pointed out that dyscalculia and math-related disorders are given far less attention than dyslexia and other reading disorders and further research in this field will significantly improve the ability for future youth to excel in math.

“We know so much more about reading than math and the existence of a disorder called dyscalculia is unknown to many people. That’s a reflection of how little awareness there is and one of the key goals is to raise awareness, to avoid this notion that people who are bad at math aren’t very bright,” Ansari commented.

Opponents no match for Western rookies

They may have been competing in their first tournament since late November, but the Mustang wrestling squad did not show any rust as they grabbed two gold medals and an array of other accolades at the Brock Open Wrestling Tournament.

“It was a little bit uncertain how we would do because we hadn’t competed in a month before, so I just wanted to see how we stood against the other universities and I think we came out pretty good,” Mustangs head coach Ray Takahashi said.

Leading the crew were highly-touted rookies Steven Takahashi and Ilya Abelev, who took home the gold in the 54 kg and 68 kg weight classes respectively.

Coach Takahashi, who is the proud father of Steven, oozed with enthusiasm when asked about the prospects of these two rising stars.

“[Steven] beat some good wrestlers [including] a past Junior Nationals champ and last year’s Canadian Interuniversity Sport champ,” he said.

“They both had strong backgrounds before they came in as they were both national champions in the under-18 category, so we knew they could do well.”

Along with his gold medal, Steven was awarded the Outstanding Wrestler Award in recognition of his strong performance.

Earning silver for the Mustangs in the 61 kg division was Tim Bartja. He was knocked off in the final by London-Western Wrestling Club member and future Mustang Richard Balfour, proving the future is bright for the men’s team.

“[Richard] will really add to our lighter weight class. He’s really explosively talented,” Takahashi said.

As for the female side of the mat, a shorthanded Mustangs team brought home a silver and bronze on the back of performances by Larissa D’Alleva and Liz Sera, who wrestled in the 63 kg and 55 kg weight classes respectively.

Western did not send its full complement of athletes with star sophomore Brianne Barry heading the list of absent names.

“The whole focus is to peak at the [Ontario University Athletics championship] and CIS […] she is on the Junior Nationals team so there is summer programming. Sometimes you bypass some of the tournaments, so I thought that she didn’t need to go to this tournament,” he said.

Takahashi assured Barry would participate in upcoming tournaments leading to the OUA championships.

Over the course of the next few weekends the Mustangs will use the Guelph Open, the Provincial Junior Championships and the Western Open here in London to prepare for the OUA championships.

“That’s what we want to key in on. We have to train right through the next couple of weeks and hopefully stay healthy, improve our conditioning and work on a few tactical things. If we can do that, we are going to have a strong squad for OUAs,” Takahashi said.

Western docs ranked number one

Last year’s graduating class from Western’s Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry was the top ranked school in the Medical Council of Canada Qualifying Examination. This exam is mandatory for medical students and must be passed to become a practicing doctor.

“To be ranked number one is quite unusual,” Maggie Rebel, Schulich’s associate dean of undergraduate medicine, said.

Although Schulich students continuously perform well in this examination, ranking above the Canadian mean for the last four years, it has been over a decade since the school took the top spot.

“Not since 1997 has Schulich been ranked number one,” Rebel said.

This performance has been partially attributed to a “significant curriculum realignment” put in place six years ago to ensure top performance from the medical students. “We’ve spent a lot of time on quality assurance processes to promote a rich, educational environment,” she said.

This ranking serves as a mark of pride for Schulich and, according to Rebel, “an external validation that we are doing a good job.”