the inside
the news
Portrait of the artist
page 5
He said, he said Read candidates’ Q&A on
page 3
the newspaper University of Toronto’s Independent Weekly
March 18, 2010
Vol. XXXIII N0. 2
Opposition could rehaul GC Code
Fundamentals of Fundamentalism
MNRUPE VIRK & TEJAS PARASHER
VEENAY SEHDEV
Since the Governing Council Townhall on March 1st, U of T’s controversial Student Code of Conduct has become one of the most divisive topics on campus. On March 11th, the newspaper published an article in which GC Candidate Joeita Gupta criticized the administration for using the Code exclusively to stifle on-campus dissent. Gupta says the Code of Conduct is a “political tool” imposed on students without their consent, redundant because the university already has so many other behaviour laws and policies in place. This week, the newspaper’s Mnrupe Virk sat down with Jill Matus, U of T’s Vice Provost of Students, to shed some light on this controversy. the newspaper: At a recent Governing Council meeting, you suggested the possibility of abolishing the Code if opposition to it became widespread. Jill Matus: What I said was that broad consultations would be undertaken as part of the updating process, and that if it became apparent that views such as those expressed by the members were widely held, they would be taken under advisement. If there were sufficient expressions of interest in a full review of the Code, that could be an outcome. tn: The Student Code of Conduct was established in 1992. Why was there a sudden need for a Code at this time? Did any particular events spark its implementation? JM: This is a complex issue. However, the sixth paragraph in the preamble of the Code summarizes its need in the current climate: “The University must define standards of student behaviour and make provisions for student discipline with respect to conduct that jeopardizes the good order and proper functioning of the academic and nonacademic programs and activities of the University or its divisions, that endangers the health, safety, rights or property of its members or visitors, or that adversely affects the property of the University or bodies related to it, where such conduct is not, for the University’s defined
Fundamentalism is a term that has been misused into ambiguity. It is no surprise then that the questions What is fundamentalism and Who is a fundamentalist were the primary issues discussed at “The Raj of Religious Fundamentalism.” Misha Munim, founder and president of U of T’s South Asian Development Council, said “fundamentalism is a contentious issue right now.” Munim founded the club because she wanted students to become more aware of South Asian Continued on page 4
‘Harassing’ videos could mean 25 demerit points for Change campaign Masse publicly disassociates from Mongeau; Mongeau refuses to take down videos HELENE GODERIS As the elections for next year’s UTSU executives draw to a close, the number of demerits handed out by Chief Returning Officer David Blocker are piling up for the Change slate. Candidates can accrue a total of 35 demerits before being disqualified from the elections. On March 17, CRO David Blocker handed Change U of T presidential candidate Steve Masse 25 demerit points for videos shot and posted to YouTube by Antonin Mongeau that were deemed harassing to the Stronger Together campaign. The controversy is nothing new: Mongeau was a cause of demerits to the Change slate in the 2009 election. These demerits could prove detrimental to Masse, who only had 3 demerit points previously, while Stronger Together presidential candidate Adam Awad only has 5 demerits as at press time. Mongeau, Alumni Chair of EFUT, posted a video last week shot with his blackberry. In it, he alleges that RSU President-elect Toby Whitfield, while campaigning for the Stronger Together slate, tore down EFUT’s posters at Sid
Smith. While the video does not actually show Whitfield tearing down EFUT’s posters, Whitfield has not denied these charges. The second video is shot outside a meeting called by Stronger Together supporters; in it, the supporters continually state they feel harassed being filmed by Mongeau. Masse shows up outside the meeting, later stating he believed it was an open meeting held by the MSA, where Masse had planned to clarify misconceptions about his campaign. The CRO is penalizing Masse for interrupting the Stronger Together meeting, deeming it ‘general sabotage.’ CRO Ruling 18, found on UTSU’s website, concluded that “Mr. Mongeau is acting as a non-arms length third party campaigner for the Change U of T team.” CRO Ruling 21 goes on to address complaints by Stronger Together supporters who felt “intimidated, harassed, and badgered when being followed and filmed by Mr. Mongeau...that the harassment and filming was witnessed and condoned by Change U of T candidates and volunteers, and Varsity reporters.” Continued on page 5
Delia Massa chops her locks at U of T Cuts for Cancer which took place March 15-16. Donations were delivered to Angel Hair for Kids, Locks of Love and the Pantene Beautiful Lengths campaign.
HELENE GODERIS
Continued on page 4
The Lady Godiva band marches to Sid Smith to join the Change U of T rally. Two slates - Stronger Together and Change U of T - are vying for executive positions at UTSU. Elections run until 7pm on March 18.
HELENE GODERIS
Interview with viceprovost Jill Matus
U of T South Asian seminar explores religion’s role
the guest editorial
2
March 18, 2010
Why CCRI should stop moralizing and rationalize its rents think rationally about the market conditions in order to set rental rates appropriately. To an extent, the problem of decay of CCRI houses century homes is inevitable. Previous large scale investments into the houses were only made possible due to government programs which effectively subsidized large structural repairs (i.e. CMHC’s grant of $370,000 to CCRI in 1985). However, specific irrational actions by CCRI have greatly exaggerated its own problems over the last decade. To understand why, it must be grasped that CCRI sells two products: school year rental housing, and summer rental housing. During the school year CCRI membership is restricted to current students, and during the summer the housing is open to anyone willing to pay rent. These are two different products because they sell to different markets, they have different elasticities (in a highly elastic market, demand reacts quickly to changes in pricing - vice versa for inelastic), and they respond to different sets of competing goods. However, despite this obvious economic reality, CCRI has for time ever-
lasting held to the dogma that its school year rental prices should be the same as its summer rental prices. The fact that CCRI reports projected earnings and actual income to the membership with a single yearly figure, rather than by term, serves to conceals the absurdity of this dogma from the membership. When one looks at the month to month data more carefully, the problem is clear: for the last several years, the increased rent at CCRI has been reflected in actual increases in revenue during the periods from September to April. However, in the summer, the actual earnings have steadily declined despite (or rather, due to) these higher rents. This can easily be explained if one recognizes that summer and winter rents are different products, and thus have a different price at which their demand and supply curves intersect (i.e. the point of profit maximization). It is a simple truth for classical economics that if one sets the price too high, every further increase in price will reduce profit. Modifications in the price of a good will only increase profit if that modification moves it closer to the ideal price point.
CCRI provides affordable housing, such as this theme house, Toad Lane.
TRISTAN LAING
Campus Co-op Residence Inc. is a co-operative in financial straights. “Rejuvenation,” its former plan to build new properties to support its aging houses, was abandoned and not replaced. It is unclear at present how it will raise the necessary revenue to keep its houses from degrading to slum condition. CCRI’s financial position is currently crippled by losses from high summer vacancies (i.e. rents not collected on rooms not rented). These losses have increased from $80,000 a year in the 90s and early 2000s to a current budgeted level of $250,000. For CCRI residents, this has meant coping with large increases to their rent, to the point when it can no longer be said that CCRI is a cheaper, better alternative to the private rental market. These rent increases have largely been justified as the duty of current members to support the co-op for the benefit of future generations. However, when the rent increases come to mean raising rents to above market-level, (and CCRI experiences the corresponding and foreseeable decline in revenue) the moral argument breaks down and it’s morally required to
It is not obvious that CCRI’s summer rental prices were significantly below market, even as far back as 2002. This hypothesis is supported by the data which shows demand (i.e. the number of summer renters) strongly dropping off as summer prices increased. Price is not the only issue here: at the same time, U of T had recently built a glut of new student housing, which greatly increased the supply of cleaner summer student housing downtown. CCRI did not respond to this increase in market supply for summer hous-
the newspaper Editor-in-Chief Helene Goderis
Arts Editor
News Editor
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Science Editor
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Cara Sabatini Cailin Smart Mnrupe Virk
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ing with either a significant effort to increase the cleanliness of its housing (i.e. by hiring housekeepers), or by lowering rents. To make matters worse, CCRI began charging non-students extra surcharges to live in CCRI during summer months only. This lack of attention paid to the elasticity of summer demand reached its high point in 2009 when summer vacancy losses topped $350,000. To understand CCRI’s logic in this irrational price setting it is necessary to recognize that when one sets the price of a good or service below the optimal price point, every increase in price will in fact produce an increase in revenue. So, if a co-operative is under the market price, (as a cooperative which claims to be affordable in downtown Toronto rightly should be!) any increase in price will correspond to an increase in revenue. In this situation, it may be considered appropriate to moralize a rent increase, i.e. ‘we’ve been irresponsible, so we need to raise rents’. However, when current rents are level with the market price, one should not straightforwardly assume that further increasing rents will result in increased revenue. Thus, when rents are level with the private market, it makes no sense to moralize about the need for higher rental costs - since higher costs will likely result in lower revenues anyway. In 2010, it is not obvious that CCRI’s winter rents are any longer below market, and it should assume that further drastic increases in rent may very well result in lower winter rental revenues. The defeat of the proposed 4% rent increase as of May 1st 2010, and its replacement with a 2% rent increase as of September 1st 2010 is the first step forward to thinking rationally about CCRI rental revenues. The second step is to separate winter from summer rent such that they must be raised separately, and that projected earnings and actual revenue for summer must be reported to members as a separate item in the CCRI budget. - Tristan Laing
the news
March 18, 2010
3
UTSU presidential profile Q&A Steve Masse
Adam Awad Our platform is focused on addressing the barriers that we face, as students, to getting an education, both inside and out of the classroom. We want to deal with the issues that have a real impact on students’ lives like transit and tuition fees. It is based on solid experience and demonstrated commitment to the issues in a way that is lacking from the opposition’s platform.
Our team is really committed to improving the student experience and working for effective, results-based advocacy. We are a team of unpaid, passionate student leaders from across campus that are committed to making your time here at UofT the best that it can be. We promise to build the Student Commons, work towards OSAP reform while creating meaningful employment, and create a vibrant, equitable, and spirited community!
What is your campaign in a nutshell?
The biggest difference between our campaign is that we are explicit in our support for an improved student experience, an equitable campus, and effective advocacy. Our opponent’s have unfortunately forgotten that a significant part of the Union’s role is to foster relationships between students and create a campus that is about more than just academics. Our team understands that the Union must fulfill many roles, one of which is to improve your experience at UofT. Our campaign’s edge comes from the fact that our team is composed entirely of current UofT students. Unlike Stronger Together, we see no need to reach out to other universities for support in our elections - UofT students are our only priority!
What sets your campaign apart from your opponent’s? What gives you an edge over your opponent?
When elected, our team will be working very closely with student stakeholders to help eliminate Flat Fees, build the Student Commons, and create a more inclusive community. In order to be successful in these endeavours, it is imperative that you elect members that are well-connected with student groups on campus. We count most of the college council and some professional faculty council presidents and executives amongst our vast network of supporters. These relationships will be integral to achieving success as it relates to all of the initiatives I’ve just mentioned.
What do you see as the most important issues to tackle in 2010-11? What will be your priority?
As it stands, our priorities include saving students money with transit discounts and putting textbooks on Blackboard as well as building a safer community by addressing issues of systematic discrimination. Our final list of priorities will, of course, be determined by our membership and the issues they bring to us.
As an active member of the Union who has strongly opposed the implementation of the Towards 2030 plan, I feel that my team and I have the ability to engage students in a way that will make university administration reevaluate their goals. We must engage students in creative and innovative ways, educate community leaders about the negative impact of this document, and then mobilize students, faculty, and even administration in opposing this regressive visioning document. We can only be successful in opposing the Towards 2030 proposal if we are able to engage a wide breadth of students from across UofT.
What is your action plan regarding Towards 2030?
We will continue the work that we have done this year opposing the corporatisation and privatisation of the university. We will also continue to push for student-friendly policies that support our ability to engage on campus.
The UTSU and CFS are valuable resources within the student community. Unfortunately, students are often left wondering what purposes the UTSU and CFS serve. This is a very important problem that needs immediate attention. Our team wants to ensure that students have access to all Union documents and that communication between UTSU and students is as seamless as possible. It is important to us that we are as transparent and accessible as we would expect from the administration and government.
UTSU and CFS have been criticized for lack of transparency and engagement. How do you plan to address this concern?
I think that much of this comes from ignorance, so we plan to communicate both the role and the activities of both the U.T.S.U. as well as other members of the Federation to students on campus. I think that it would also be useful for each of the College and Faculty councils to have presentations on the two organisations. I think that people would be more engaged if they knew more of the issues with which the Union deals.
Over the past few years, UTSU has been largely ineffective in advocating for students when it comes to reducing tuition fees at UofT. Throughout the tenure of Mr. Awad (Presidential candidate for Stronger Together), student tuition fees have risen dramatically. Last year marked the arrival of a very regressive policy known as Flat Fees. The flat fees framework will be reviewed in 2011 and we need a strong team of student advocates working towards eliminating this policy. Our team’s position as it relates to the student experience is far superior. Every member of our team has been incredibly effective at creating communities within their respective colleges, professional faculties, and clubs. We have the experience at building bridges and uniting UofT. We will build the Student Commons, host huge collaborative events, and create opportunities for students to find a community within the university!
Rock.
What do you see as UTSU’s role in advocacy? In the student experience?
Experience; hands down. Also, our platform addresses many of the causes of students’ disconnect on campus and our less-than-stellar student experience. It is not a lack of events, but rather that students work too much, have too many expenses, feel unsafe on campus, or commute from far away that keeps people from being engaged in campus life.
The Union has the responsibility to advocate on behalf of students, regardless of how popular an issue may be. As a third party, it plays a unique roll in being able to defend students while preventing reprisal by maintaining anonymity of the students. We also have the responsibility to support and collaborate with those engaged in improving the student experience. Clubs, for example, play an essential role in the community and must be supported. They are, arguably, the lifeblood of campus life.
Rock, paper, or scissors? Candidates were asked to keep their responses under 70 words.
Paper (it’s symbolic). HELENE GODERIS
4
the inside
Biggest lover or loser?
GC interview
Why U of T students can’t get enough of the library CARA SABITINI Do you enjoy the academically stimulating atmosphere of Robarts? How about the historic appeal of Gerstein? Maybe the automatic glass doors at Pratt? What is your favorite part about U of T’s plethora of repositories? Following Harvard, Yale, and Berkely, U of T offers the fourth largest university library system in North America. So, what is the best part about it? Well, last month students entered a contest, producing videos to answer just this: Why I Love the Library. Now it’s our job – as fellow library enthusiasts or perhaps simply as dilettantes of the amateur film – to decide whose answer is best. The “I Love the Library,” contest is modeled after a similar one that was put on by the University of Waterloo two years ago in order to discover students’ priorities when it came to their study spaces. This contest’s films include a variety of answers ranging from the libraries’ smell to their infinite sleeping possibilities. Some contributors even gave their answers in the form of an animated
short. The finalists were judged based on three criteria: 1) Creativity – is the narrative compelling and original? 2) Content – is the contest theme and personal engagement with the library efficiently demonstrated? And 3) Cinematography – is the film visually stimulating and artistically appealing? The first and second place prizes are ipod touches and all runners up will receive a $25 Amarak gift card to be cashed in at any favorite library eatery (or other cafeteria on campus, provided the individual can tear himself away from the alluring atmosphere of Robarts’ Reading Room). Reference Librarian and contest coordinator, Margaret Wall, said a lot of positive feedback was received and that there is potential for more library-themed contests in the future. The polls are now open until March 25 and the winner will be announced the next day. It’s now our turn to judge: library lover or just another U of T student in need of a life outside “the Stacks.” Watch the films and make your decision at www.library.utoronto.ca/ ilovethelibrary/vote.
the fashion
Cont’d from page 1 purposes, adequately regulated by civil and criminal law.” Generally speaking, the Code cases that come to the attention of our office focus on conduct that endangers the health and safety of others. We consider the Code to be a tool to protect students and other University members from other students. tn: Critics point to the existence of University policies/codes already in place that address the issues covered by the Code of Conduct. Why the need for a separate Student Code of Conduct? JM: There are indeed other University policies that deal with student conduct, but there is no overlap with the Code of Student Conduct. The first few paragraphs of section B of the Code clearly outline the jurisdiction of the Code and several specific examples of conduct which are handled by other procedures. For example, sexual harassment is handled by the Policy & Procedures: Sexual Harassment, not the Code of Student Conduct. Residences also have their own procedures and the Code cannot apply when a matter has been dealt with under such disciplinary provisions. tn: Does the University need its own legal framework when there are already provincial/federal laws in place? JM: The Code assists our community in several ways. First, it provides reasonable options for dealing with specific types of offences which may not be handled in a way which meets the University’s needs. I would also note that it may not always be in the best interests of either the complainants or the respondents of Code complaints for a
March 18, 2010 matter to be handled by the courts. In some cases, simple restitution is the only outcome being sought. In addition, resolution of criminal matters may take many years. A Code complaint can be resolved relatively quickly. In principle, the Code is a policy rooted very deeply in the educational mission of the University. Our hope is that educational outcomes, rather than punitive measures, are sought when a Code complaint is being handled. Dealing with matters within the University, instead of referring them only to the criminal justice system, provides in our view a better opportunity for learning. tn: How do you feel the Code has been used in the past? JM: My understanding is that historically there have been extremely few cases which actually proceed to a hearing under the Code (probably less than five or six a year). Instead, the Code is used as a frame of reference to define acceptable behavior in a university setting. It is probably true that some people see this as a punitive tool. It is my hope that an updated code will emphasize rights as well as responsibilities and better convey a sense of balance between them. Indeed, a number of individuals including students have supported this concept. tn: How do you think students should voice their dissatisfaction with the code if, as many critics claim, the very act of doing so is criminalized under its provisions? JM: Voicing dissent, including criticism of the University, in a manner which does not interfere with the rights of others is protected by a number of University policies. While there is an offense dealing with obstruction of University activities or the rights of others to carry out legitimate activities, my understanding is that this provision is rarely used.
Forays into fundamentalism
CAILIN SMART
Cont’d from page 1
Daniel Bob Kaell, Media Commons My fashion focus? A fusion of fabulous and frugal. I get my clothes from lost and founds and used clothing stores. My perfect outfit is a colorful collage of odds and odds that make people think, “SEX!”. My current favorite wardrobe piece is my red scarf. Being a fashion visionary is difficult but I must follow the voices in my head.
Mike Evans, 1 Spadina Cresecent I always go for natural fibers that feel interesting, and I like things to fit properly. I also have a moral hesitancy towards clothing with labels or symbols on them, and haven’t bought anything like that since I took SOC101. I get a lot of my clothes from second hand shops, and remove the tags from staple items like pants that you need to buy at normal stores.
political issues from a more objective academic perspective rather than the mainstream media’s lens. The event, hosted by the South Asian Development Council on March 16 in Seeley Hall, featured a panel discussion and Q + A period. The two panelists - Haroon Siddiqui, a member of the Order of Canada, recipient of the World Press Freedom Award, and Toronto Star journalist, and Eric Margolis, an award-winning, internationally syndicated Toronto Sun journalist engaged the audience in a pertinent and insightful discussion. Siddiqui started by quoting Karen Armstrong’s definition of fundamentalism: a reaction against and a rejection of modern Western society. Siddiqui then outlined a diverse group of people who can be considered religious fundamentalists, from observers of Islam to American Presidents to Hindutva followers. Margolis added to the list by pointing to small Christian com-
munities in Alberta who are antiIslamic. “No one likes to talk about them, but they’re there.” The panelists also touched on other issues in the region. Margolis’ moniker for Pakistan - ‘Rent-i-stan’ - elicited chuckles from the crowd. Margolis explained that “the only thing not bought were the mountains.” He went on to conclude that “Pakistan was supposed to be an Islamic banner for good government, now it’s one hell of a disappointing mess.” Siddiqui lightened the mood when he joked that Pakistan “used to have a good cricket team.” This knowledgeable, complementary duo had us laughing and lamenting at the intricacies of South Asian political landscape. They also enlightened us with the problem behind this rampant fundamentalism in South Asia. Rather than pointing the finger at “crazy mullahs” or “turbaned Mujahedeen” for fundamentalism, both panelists agreed that Pakistan’s
woes and the fundamentalism in Islam was in large part due to the meddling of the west and fundamentalism in the USA. Siddiqui was quick to remind the audience that George W. Bush felt ordained by God to wage this war; Margolis added that 79% of Born Again Christians supported W.’s ‘divinelyinspired’ move. For information on future events hosted by the South Asian Development Council, visit southasiandc. sa.utoronto.ca.
the inside
March 18, 2010
Videos for Change? Cont’d from page 1 Unless Change publicly disassociates from Mongeau and the videos are removed, these demerit points could hurt Masse’s chances of finishing the election. Both Masse and Mongeau deny Mongeau’s agency with the Change campaign. “I emailed [the CRO] to state that Antonin is not a part of our campaign,” said Masse. “We are planning on appealing tomorrow. This is definitely something that needs to be addressed.” While Mongeau admits his stance against Stronger Together, he says, “I have never supported Change at U of T. Not this year, not last year. I have never campaigned for Change. I have never been to a meeting for Change. I have never put up a poster for Change. I have never handed out a flyer for Change. Not this year, not last year.” While publicly disassociating from Mongeau may protect Masse, Mongeau’s refusal to remove the videos could still be problematic for Change’s demerit tally. “Today I sent an email to [CRO] David Blocker stating that I’m an independent journalist, that I’m protected under the laws of Canada,” Mongeau said. “The videos are not coming down under any circumstances whatsoever.”
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5
Fin? I am not through with you
Artist profile: Rebecca Fin Simonetti
SAARAH D’ANGELO Last night while trying to gather the remnants of an interview over Facebook chat, Skype and Hotmail I was beginning to get a flavor for Rebecca Fin Simonetti’s multidimensional work as an artist. Recently graduated from OCAD this past spring with a BFA in painting and drawing, Fin launched a solo show last Saturday at The Music Gallery. (179 John Street) Along side moments of eerie emotional intensity captured within her paintings, ‘When I go deaf’ also exhibits her recent musical endeavors. And, prior to all this, Rebecca Fin also attended York for
film production, but says she finds painting a better medium to communicate through. Key to her work is the connection between sound and images. In 2008 she released a full length solo album and has since then been an active musician in Toronto. As one half of Wet Nurse and a member of Blues, Fin explains that creating both images and sounds is a symbiotic relationship. While visually conveying the, “transformed and falsified realities” of our own psyche, her sounds attempt to evoke these captured feelings upon the listener. From an anthropological perspective, the aim is to draw out a subjects’ inner monologue, to capture saturated moments of intense euphoria or depression. I ask, “Why do you paint only girls?” “ I am a girl,” she replies. Immersed in the culture she studies, Rebecca Fin describes her work as, “ethnographic.” Considered observational and experiential, she is both subject and observer in her own work. The subheadings, “People sleeping,” and “What is it?” can be found under her website - rebeccasimonetti.
com - displaying how she methodically observes, and reshapes her surroundings according to her own understanding of what these experiences mean. Particularly intrigued by trance like states, Fin draws parallels between sleep and death, trauma and ecstasy, as moments of conjured fantasy. Her paintings bring to life a world unseen but felt, attempting to excavate the psychological makebelieve out of reality. Fin says this is one of the reasons she switched into painting and drawing from film at York. “Painting allows a certain level of freedom to bend reality,” she Explains. “Film is entirely located in the physical world so it is harder to escape its confines.” If ever you find yourself meandering through Kensington, you might be able to catch her latest work in progress at The White House Studio. But, perhaps if this is too invasive I would encourage you to visit The Music Gallery. ‘When I go deaf,’ runs from March 1st until April 30th during concert hours. Rebecca Fin thinks reality is really psychedelic, let her persuade you.
Locate that thing and pin it down by Rebecca Fin Simonetti
the science
6
March 18, 2010
Curing AIDS one banana at a time New research suggests protein from bananas capable of preventing HIV infection
THIRU SHATHASIVAM A new compound has been identified as a potent inhibitor of HIV infection. BanLec is a naturally occurring lectin protein found in one of the most popular fruits around the world: the banana! In general lectin proteins have the capacity to bind carbohydrate structures, and BanLec was previously studied for its strong affinity to mannose-carbohydrates. Considering that, scientists at the University of Michigan Medical Centre, headed by Dr. David Markovitz, investigated whether BanLec was capable of binding the mannose-carbohydrate structures present in the HIV1 envelope, and inadvertently blocking infection. Their findings were just published in the March 19th issue of The Journal of Biological Chemistry. According to their research, when cells (including blood cells obtained from human donors) were pretreated with BanLec proteins (purified from ripened bananas) before expo-
Master
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sure to HIV-1 viruses, infection was prevented. More impressively, similar results were observed with monocyte-derived macrophages, which are cells of the immune system known to swallow harmful foreign particles by entrapping
them in membrane vesicles. Further analysis revealed BanLec blocked infection by binding the mannose structures of the virus envelop and preventing attachment (and thus entry) into potential host cells. To assess the relative potency of BanLec, its efficiency was compared to two anti-HIV lectin-based drugs currently in clinical use. It fared so well that the authors anticipate BanLec is a real contender for use in a future anti-HIV vaginal microbicide (and a possibly cheaper one given its natural source). Considering development of an efficacious HIV vaccine is unlikely in the near future,
new drugs and techniques are desperately needed to stopping the spread of HIV. The rate of new infections is so high, it is outpacing the number of individuals receiving anti-retroviral drugs by 2.5 fold. The strongest disconnect can be seen in developing countries due to human suffering and cost of treatment. Dr. Markovitz believes development of a long-lasting, self-applied microbicide is very pressing, especially for developing countries where women have little control over sexual encounters. Such a product could effectively inhibit HIV transmission by blocking the virus from integrating into its target cell. Research is already underway to molecularly alter BanLec to enhance its potential clinical performance. It is estimated that a microbicide that is only 60% effective with a 20% coverage could prevent up to 2.5 million infections in three years. Even a modest success could save millions of lives.
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PubMed, PubDread Tim Ryan complains again TIM RYAN In Science World, PubMed represents the information highway by which scientists communicate and share their data. Like (most) highways, it is free to use and provided by the government, America’s National Library of Medicine at the National Institute of Health (NIH). But riding the PubMed informational highway is like driving anywhere in Quebec. Instead of whiplash, searching PubMed often leaves one with a headache, and perpetually lost. How does the NIH monopolize access to scientific journals? In 2007, former President George W. Bush signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act, included in which, was a provision requiring that any peer reviewed scientific journal article produced using NIH funding, be electronically submitted to PubMed Central within one year of its publication date. It isn’t that scientists’ arms are being twisted to submit their works, however. As a collective group, an information pool like PubMed is something that is absolutely essential in order to stay in touch, to see what colleagues and the competition are doing. But the problem lies in that the NIH dominates access to scientific journals, and runs the service free of charge. Because the service isn’t a business with a bottom line, and no one else can distribute the 19.5 million articles on PubMed, there is absolutely no motivation for the NIH to con-
cern itself with user satisfaction. Anna Kushnir writes a blog for the Nature Publishing Group and said it better than I ever could, “I have spent an absurd amount of time on PubMed recently and can say in no uncertain terms that it is making my dissertation writing way more painful than it needs to be. I can hold a paper in my hands, search for two authors’ last names and have PubMed come up with nothing.” Librarians see it the other way; Dean Giustini, a UBC biomedical librarian, argues that it isn’t PubMed, but the user who is broken. Well, Dean, with all due respect, you’re a fucking librarian. Your entire career as a biomedical librarian revolves around the mastering of PubMed. As a researcher, who wants to focus his time on experiments and acquiring data, building an intimate relationship with PubMed isn’t high on my priority list. I don’t want to take one of the many classes offered at U of T libraries to learn the intricacies of PubMed. I just want it to work like Google. Don’t picture me throwing a temper tantrum after another unsuccessful PubMed search because it doesn’t happen (alright, maybe once, but I was on a tight deadline and listening to a lot of Coldplay). All scientists are (or should be) PubMed competent. But the extra minutes lost here and there because of a slightly flawed search database add up over the course of a 5-year PhD program.
March 18, 2010
the arts
No rage against the Hot Tub Time Machine ALAN JONES
ter than it needs to be, and the chemistry of the four leads, Not since Snakes on a Plane which is essential for a movie has a movie garnered so much like this. The four leads are sent attention for the simplicity of back in time to 1986 via a ski its title. Hot Tub Time Machine. resort hot tub. Once there, they It’s genius, realattempt to ly, in its simplicretrace their ity. It’s about a as not “any film in which steps hot tub that also to create a John Cusack ingests butterfly efhappens to be a time machine. It that a cocktail of alcohol, fect also happens to could change marijuana, cocaine, their lives in be a really funny comedy about present and psilocybin mush- the three friends while Clark rooms is OK with me” Duke, who who realize that their lives did is considernot proceed in ably younger the manner in than his cowhich they had stars, comes hoped and have along for the chance to the ride with change it all. But a mission seriously, it’s of his own. about a hot tub Themes of that also hapfriendship pens to be a time and growing machine. up together What makes are explored, this movie but they nevworthwhile er grow to be isn’t the premso manipulaise, but rather tive that they the screenplay, take over the which is bethumour of
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The Breast has sagged since the ‘70s Old books, new reviews JOELE WALINGA
the premise. Really, any film in which John Cusack ingests a cocktail of alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, and psilocybin mushrooms is OK with me. Rob Corddry steals many of the scenes; as Craig Robinson points out early in the film “he’s like your friend who’s an asshole, but he’s our asshole.” And to top it all off, Crispin Glover delivers an inspired cameo as a soon-to-be armless bellhop. Unlike any number of RRated comedies, the screenplay goes to lengths to make sure that not too many clichés of the genre are utilized. Random events are referenced without being explained, certain plot threads that could have easily been exploited for sentimental manipulation are solved in unexpected ways (Clark Duke ensuring he is conceived) while other seemingly inconsequential plot threads take on meaning (Rob Corddry’s show down with some Red Dawn obsessed ski patrollers); all of which makes the movie a rather enjoyable throwback to the 1980’s. Despite an illogical (and somewhat chauvinistic) finale, Hot Tub Time Machine is worth seeing.
If you were worried that you would not be able to find something face-numbingly boring to do with yourself today, Philip Roth’s The Breast, could put you at ease. With the starch blend of weak minded dialogue, redundancy, and lack of plot, The Breast builds and promptly crushes your hopes with the flip of each page. The story begins with David Kepesh, a recurring character in Roth’s novels. Kepesh is a hypochondriac who has ironically undergone a “hermaphroditic explosion of chromosomes,” rendering him a 155lb female mammary. Written retrospectively, Kepesh gives the initial impression of being more interested in his novel sexual cravings than surprised by his acknowledged Kafkaesque state of grotesquery. In this way the story continues for a 78 page lifetime: visitors come, go, he is bathed and takes pleasure, and he and his doctor discuss the will to live. Throughout these banalities, Kepesh maintains a relationship with his girlfriend from before the metamorphosis, who, similar to Grete Samsa of Kafka’s The Metamorphosis, is
portrayed with the sympathetic harbouring of a burden. It is not until the latter pages of the novella that Kepesh succumbs to denial, figuring it more likely to be a crazy man than a female breast. Shortly after introducing this notion, however, Roth seems to exhaust it, and Kepesh assumes his original mindset. The novella then concludes with Rainer Maria Rilke’s Archaic Torso of Apollo. While Roth uses many interesting concepts in The Breast, it would appear that they are not only of prior, classic literary origin, but that they are not creatively utilized, simply inserted. Instead of arriving at a plot justifying conclusion, Roth uses Rilke’s poem which, with its own strength and precision, leaves the reader momentarily content, merely suspending their disappointment. After beginning The Breast, it is likely that you will find yourself unable to put it down. With each page you will hope to discover some kind of meaning; any kind of meaning. Then upon the concluding Rilke poem you will learn that some things, however meaningless and despite all reason, simply exist.
the backpage
8
March 18, 2010
“ the campus comment ” the newspaper asks: What, if anything, is the most annoying thing about UTSU elections?
“Someone stuck a poster to my back while I was sleeping.” - Liisa
“What bugs me the most is when candidates come into classes at the start to do speeches. I once had a prof cut someone off.” - Ron
“Being woken up by marching bands outside my window.” - Rachel
“The constant bickering and the lack of cat-based initiatives.” - Latvia
“No idea, I have no clue what you’re talking about.” - Eliza
ALEX NURSALL
“I feel like when it comes to campus politics, the way to get people to vote isn’t through harassing them constantly, as it just ends up being an invasion of personal space.” - Sahar