McGill Tribune Vol. 34 Issue 16

EDITORIAL

Tuesday, January 27, 2015 Volume No. 34 Issue No. 16

Balancing peer support and inclusivity essential for progress pg. 7

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Track and field p. 21

Windy City for the win in AUTS’ Chicago Student production brings professionalism, sizzle, and sexuality

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(Remi Lu / McGill Tribune)

Record-breaking weekend at McGill Team Challenge SUS retroactively runs fee referendum questions following confusion over constitution

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JENNY SHEN Editor-in-Chief

he Science Undergraduate Society (SUS) is retroactively running two referendum questions regarding student fees that were collected in the January statement for all Science and Arts & Science students. The SUS Base Fee and the newly-introduced Student Space Improvement Fee (SCSS) were collected under the impression that their referendum questions had passed when students had

voted in November during the mislabeled Fall 2014 referendum, which was run instead under online ratification guidelines.

The SUS executives initially brought the two fee questions as motions to the General Assembly (GA) held on Nov. 5, 2014.

Because the GA failed to meet quorum, the GA results were presented to the SUS General Council (GC) as a consultative body, in accordance to Article 7.1 of the SUS general assembly bylaws. The GC then approved to

send the two fee questions into a referendum to be voted on by all Science and Arts & Science students.

According to Zach Houston, Science representative to the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU), the confusion stemmed from the fact that the fee questions were sent out as “Fall referendum questions” yet operated under online ratification guidelines, which have a lower quorum requirement than referendum questions. Houston,

along with the SUS Speaker and CRO, determined that quorum had not been met for the fee questions following the Dec. 4 SSMU Council meeting when Houston was asked by Council about voter turnout at the GA. However, this occurred after SUS executives had already submitted the results to Ollivier Dyens, deputy provost (Student Life and Learning) (DPSLL).

Continued on pg. 4

CHRIS LUTES Staff Writer

art of the thrill that comes from live musical theatre is knowing that something could go wrong at any moment.

The best theatre uses this suspense to its advantage, radiating a sense of jubilant spontaneity that wriggles its way into the audience’s hearts and leaves them humming the songs on the walk home. The Arts Undergraduate Theatre Society’s (AUTS) production of the 1975 musical, Chicago , fits this description with a top-notch cast and production value to match.

Set almost entirely inside a 1920s jazz bar “where the gin is cold and the piano’s hot,” Chicago tells the story of Roxie Hart—a young, resourceful singer who is sent to prison after murdering her philandering lover. Roxie is introduced to an ensemble of murderous women and a media-savvy lawyer who takes a special interest in her case. As her murder case becomes famous, Roxie begins to angle for a place in the spotlight while faking her innocence in order to avoid the death penalty.

Continued on pg. 14

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News

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

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Tuesday, January 27, 2015

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News

School of Environment student campaigns to get seat at SSMU Council Aims to provide larger voice for Environment students with full support from MESS Council CATHERINE-LAURE JUSTE Contributor

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econd-year Environment Economics student Benjamin Ger is campaigning for the McGill School of Environment to obtain a seat on the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Council. While the McGill Environment Student Society (MESS) itself is not pushing for a seat, Rachel Gould, third-year Arts & Science student and one of the MESS’s presidents, noted that Ger’s actions were supported by the MESS. “We specifically are not [seeking a spot on SSMU Council],” Gould said. “A motivated environment student wanted to get Environment a seat on SSMU and has been taking it on. He does have Council’s full support, though.”

The School of Environment is currently represented under many different faculties, including the Faculty of Science, Arts, and Arts & Science. According to Gould, placing Environment under one banner would give the School of Environment a larger voice.

“Environment actually makes up a large portion of the student body, but not when you separate it out into all those different groups,” explained Gould. “It would be nice to have a united voice for all environment stu-

dents instead of it trying to trickle down through other facilities.”

MESS’s presence on SSMU’s legislative Council will also offer another perspective on the undergraduate student body, Ger explained.

“The social, economic, and environmental equity policies we study are exactly what is needed on our campus to create a flourishing environment for all students,” he explained. “An extra seat on SSMU [Council] also gives another student a voice to comment on, help shape, and provide constructive criticism for SSMU’s actions.”

Obtaining a seat in the Council requires a fundamental change in the established principles of the undergraduate student body. According to SSMU President, Courtney Akuyuwa, the constitution would need to be amended in order to include an additional seat. “[There can be one] councillor appointed by each faculty or school, [if] that school is not already represented by a faculty-level student association, for every 2,000 students or part thereof to a maximum of four councillors in accordance with the procedures set out by that constituency,” Article 8.2 of the SSMU constitution reads.

The student-run initiative will not change the composition of SSMU’s staff or any financial matters.

According to Ayukawa, obtaining a seat for the School of Environment would not necessarily entail eliminating another councillor’s seat at SSMU Council. “[The outcome] depends on how the referendum question is posed and how students on campus vote,” Ayukawa said.

For the referendum question to be presented to the members of SSMU, it will require 500 signatures

by January 29 for its creation. The Winter 2015 referendum period will occur in mid-March.

School of Environment is pushing for a seat in SSMU Council. (Jack Neal / McGill Tribune) Ger is in the process of fulfilling sure that the question posed respects the first step in the process of obtain- the referendum question rules, which are found in the constitution and bying a seat.

“I have collected 200 signatures laws.

In addition to MESS’s support, so far and need 300 this week,” Ger said. “People have been so amazing some members of the SSMU Council and supportive of the idea so far, so have facilitated Ger’s initiative.

“Courtney Ayukawa, Ben Fung, I’m not too worried; but if anybody sees me around campus and wants to and Claire Stewart-Kanigan [of sign but hasn’t yet, feel free to stop SSMU Council] have been fantastic to work with,” Ger said. “They were me.”

The Chief Electoral Officer open to the idea and helped me with (CEO) of Elections SSMU must ap- many steps along the way. MESS is prove the question before it is put on fantastic to work with and [has] been the ballot. The CEO’s role is to en- very supportive through everything.”

Khan and Syed v. SSMU Council case resolved through mediation

Adaptation of Robert’s Rules during GAs to be examined by J-Board

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PHILIPPE DUMAIS Staff Writer

n Jan. 17, Judicial Board (J-Board) case Khan and Syed v. Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Council and Speaker was resolved through a mediation session. Participants signed an agreement mandating the J-Board to investigate and make recommendations on whether adaptations to Robert’s Rules should be adopted in regards to motions to postpone indefinitely during General Assemblies (GAs). The motion to postpone indefinitely prescribed by Robert’s Rules currently allows participants in a meeting to not decide on a motion, while also avoiding the possibility of bringing up the motion later.

The mediation session followed a petition filed by Zain Ali Syed and Nadir Khan over the Speaker’s practices at the SSMU GA held on Oct. 22. The petition accused the Speaker of stifling discussion on a motion that called for SSMU to stand in solidarity with the people of Palestine at the

Fall GA by allowing an indefinite postponement to go through. In effect, the mediation agreement has terminated the proceedings of the suit.

The mediation agreement states that both parties have agreed to resolve their differences on the basis of the following two questions that the J-Board will be investigating.

“Does a special two-thirds majority rule instead of a simple majori-

5.2. of By-Law book 1-5. If the JBoard deems that there is an obligation, it shall elaborate on the nature and extent of the obligation therein implied,” the second question reads.

Article 5.2 of SSMU’s bylaws specifies that standing rules for GAs must be adopted by Council at least one week in advance and publicized five calendar days before the meeting. Article 5.3 adds that “the Gener-

ty for the ‘Motion to Postpone Indefinitely’ constitute a valid standing rule according to Article 5.3.3 of By-Law Book 1-5?” the first question reads, challenging whether the number of votes needed for the motion to pass can be raised. “[The J-Board will] analyze and clarify the meaning of Article

al Assembly may amend resolutions and motions in accordance with the standing rules.”

The investigation, starting immediately, will be overseen by Chief Justice of the J-Board Munavvar Tojiboeva. Tojiboeva is expected to clarify the constitution and outline the procedures to follow, although

reviewed in the past.” Tojiboeva explained. “I believe last time the ByLaw Book I-5 has been changed, but I am not aware of when it has been done.”

“I am happy that we were able to come to a common ground with the petitioners that everyone is content with,” SSMU President Courtney Ayukawa said, highlighting that the agreement is non-binding.

“What proceeds after the J-Board makes their recommendations is mostly up to how the [SSMU] Council votes.”

According to Khan, the complainants hope that the J-Board investigation will result in a change in SSMU’s procedural rules.

“We reached a com(Hayley Lim / McGill Tribune) promise that fell somebe nothing to ratify if the answer to what short of we would have liked,” Khan explained. “Still, hopefully the questions is negative.”

The agreement also specifies this will help clarify the bylaws and that if the J-Board deems that there raise awareness amongst the student is an obligation regarding question 2, body [....] We are optimistic that we the J-Board must outline the proce- can bring about changes in SSMU dures for SSMU to comply with the procedures. It’s very important that Robert’s Rules are accessible to all decision it will make.

“The rules of the GA have being students.” she did not specify the time frame in which SSMU would have to change its by-laws if requested to do so by the J-Board.

“I am [planning] on having the report ready by the end of February,” Tojiboeva said. “It all depends on whether the questions are answered [by the J-Board] in the affirmative or the negative and what the recommendations will be [....] Maybe there will

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News

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

SUS retroactively runs fee referendum questions following confusion over constitution Collected fees to be refunded should questions fail in Winter referendum JENNY SHEN Editor-in-Chief

(Continued from page 1) “Although the questions went to referendum [in the Fall], the proper procedures for a referendum were not followed,” Houston’s report to the Jan. 15 SSMU Council reads. “Instead, the procedures for online ratification of GA motions were followed [….] However, the ratification was unnecessary, as the GA motions were referred to General Council and thus did not require ratification.”

According to SUS President Shannon Herrick, the questions were originally thought to have passed with a six per cent voter turnout, which was above the SUS constitution’s five per cent online ratification requirement (Article 22.1.3) but below the 10 per cent referendum requirement (Article 20.4).

“As a CRO, I am not responsible for GA ratification questions,” SUS Chief Returning Officer (CRO) Danielle Toccalino said. “So they were not passed by me before they were posed to the entire science population for the online ratification. I am responsible for any referendum questions, and this was the step that was mistakenly missed.

The ratification results were taken as referendum results.”

According to Article 22.7 of the SUS constitution, “All resolutions passed at the General Assembly must be submitted to an online vote for ratification, overseen by the Chief Returning Officer.”

However, Toccalino stated that the SUS Computer Task Force (CTF) runs the online elections software and because the GA had not met quorum, she was not involved.

“As the ratification was of the outcome of a consultative body, it was not binding, and therefore did not need my involvement to my understanding and interpretation of our constitution and by-laws,” she said.

Both the increased Base Fee and SCSS fee were charged to students’ January statements. According to SUS executives, these fees are currently being held in a closed account and will be refunded to students should the Winter 2015 referendum questions fail to pass.

The first referendum question sought to raise the SUS Base Fee from $7.50 to $12.50 for full-time science students. The second referendum question sought to levy the newly-created opt-outable SCSS fee, which would charge $7.00 per semester for full-time Science students.

VP Internal May Yin-Liao stated during the SUS Fall GA that the SCSS fee would go towards renovating Burnside Hall.

“The renovation [...] is meant for making [Burnside Hall] conducive to student space and studying,” Yin-Liao said.

The questions were sent to students as “Fall referendum questions” and the results labeled as “Fall referendum results”, with 58.9 percent voting “Yes” to the increase in the Base Fee, and 59.3 percent voting “Yes” to the new SSCS fee.

“On Jan. 7, the SUS General Council acknowledged the error and resolved to send both questions to a Winter referendum,” Houston’s report reads.

However, an email sent out by Yin-Liao on Jan. 18 still stated that “the motions to increase the SUS base fee and to introduce a Student Space Improvement Fee were passed at [the GA] and ratified online in the Fall 2014 semester.”

“I think the confusion [...] lies in the fact that the motions that were passed at the GA were not directly asking to change the SUS base fee or introduce a new fee, but instead, were asking for permission to bring the fees to a referendum,” said Yin-Liao.

“However, it was indeed our mistake for letting the office of the [deputy provost] go forward with adding the new fees with only the GA online ratification results provided and not the referendum results.”

SUS VP Finance Eileen Bui stated that the questions being run in the Winter are not identical to the ones from the Fall. She stated that the deputy provost’s office wanted the questions to be reworded to exclude the part on index inflation based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) due to the market’s unpredictability.

“Later on, if it passes, then in the financial bylaws I would change it so that every three or five years the VP Finance would submit a motion in order to index the fee to whatever the inflation [actually] is,” Bui said.

Herrick acknowledged SUS’ error and stated that the executives

If the SCSS Fee is established, it will go towards renovating Burnside Hall.

(L-A Benoit / McGill Tribune) were making changes to prevent this type of mistake from happening again. “[I wish we] could have [caught] such a little thing earlier on,” Herrick said. “We are making a bunch of revisions to our bylaws and constitution to

make sure that in the future something like this won’t happen. Our fee hasn’t been changed in seven years. It’s an unfortunate situation and we’re trying to make the best of it.”

McGill’s late course withdrawal policy passed by Senate

Students can now withdraw from a semester with no records on transcript in certain circumstances

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MONICA ALLABY Contributor

he McGill Senate passed a motion last Wednesday to make official a late withdrawal policy that would allow students facing extreme circumstances to withdraw from all the courses they are taking in their current semester without the withdrawal being marked on their academic transcripts.

The revised University Policy on Late Withdrawals was originally brought to Senate on November 4, 2014, after the Senate Subcommittee on Student Affairs Policies assigned a working group to examine the implications of late course withdrawals documented on official transcripts in the case of serious mental health issues. Due to conflicting concerns amongst senators in December, the policy was tabled to the Jan. 21 meeting.

In its examination, the working group found that the current practice of recording a

“W” as the final grade on an official transcript has negative implications for students.

“The recording of a ‘W’ on an official transcript reportedly causes anxiety and prejudice to students, especially when applying for graduate school or professional programs,” the revised policy states. “The goal of this Policy is to set accurate, fair, and compassionate guidelines to address difficult situations students may encounter, such as mental and physical illness and personal tragedies.”

According to Senator Claire Stewart-Kanigan, SSMU VicePresident University Affairs, the working group also found that the presence of a “W” on their transcript can cause distress for students as it is often reflective of a very difficult time in students lives, when they were unable to perform at the highest academic potential.

During the previous meeting

of Senate on Dec. 4, 2014, student senators argued that the policy should be extended to individual courses. Stewart-Kanigan also advocated strongly for this extension.

“The student senators and myself voiced our concerns that we should seek to accommodate students who are able to continue with a reduced course load,” Stewart-Kanigan said. “Students experience unique situations and what might be manageable for one student may not be manageable for another.”

Professor of Linguistics and Associate Provost (Policies, Procedures, and Equity) at McGill Lydia White who presented the motion to Senate, explained that some senators voiced concerns about the integrity of the official transcript if the withdrawal policy were to be approved.

“A number of senators who are members of the academic staff spoke against such an ex-

tension on the grounds that the McGill transcript is widely recognized as providing an honest record of the student’s performance and that the proposed policy would endanger the reputation and integrity of the McGill transcript,” White said.

Dena Coffman, a third-year Environment student, explained that she believes the policy revision will aid students experiencing difficult circumstances.

“I think it’s important for the university to support students who are dealing with issues of mental health or other forms of distress,” Coffman said. “These issues are already extremely difficult to manage, especially in the context of a university institution [....] This revision is a way for McGill to make it easier for students to care for themselves during difficult times.”

To address remaining concerns about the policy, White accepted an amendment from

Stewart-Kanigan that the policy be reviewed during 2018. “[The amendment] will allow us to assess the extent to which exceptional late withdrawals for a full term are requested under the policy and whether or not the aspects of the policy might need to be amended,” White explained.

Now that the policy is in place, Stewart-Kanigan notes that data will have to be gathered to ensure that the policy is effectively supporting students.

“We will have to make sure that the policy remains on the university radar and ensure that the administration is critically examining the policy to see how it’s being applied and whether students are aware of this new practice,” she said. “We also want to ensure that administration is aware that we acknowledge that this policy isn’t perfect and keep them on task in looking at peer institutions.”

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News Midnight Kitchen resumes normal operations following two months out of service

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

SSMU’s Equity Policy, McGill’s hiring practices Closures due to issues of vandalism, rodent infestation under revision under VP on premises University Affairs

SSMU Equity Committee stresses decentralized approach to allow for autonomy for student governments

T Midnight Kitchen is a student-run vegan food service that reopened on Monday. (L-A Benoit / McGill Tribune)

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SHRINKHALA DAWADI News Editor

he Midnight Kitchen reopened on Monday after being closed for nearly two months. The pay-what-youcan vegan food collective initially closed last November after an incident when the kitchen and storage area were vandalized. The kitchen was expected to resume its operations within the first two weeks of this semester, but a rodent infestation in the Brown building forced it to postpone the reopening until Monday.

“This is not the first time we’ve had issues [with] mice in the entire building,” said Diego,

a volunteer at the kitchen who declined to provide his last name. “SSMU [Students’ Society of McGill University] and Midnight Kitchen [...] have done everything to ensure that our kitchen is protected from any potential hazard [....] They’ve fumigated the kitchen [and] bought new bins that are more resistant to rodents.”

Going forward, Grace, another volunteer at the kitchen who declined to provide a last name, explained that operations should currently be running as planned, especially after the renewal of the kitchen’s Ministère de l’Agriculture, des Pêcheries et de l’Alimentation du Québec (MAPAQ) permits had been re-

newed, which allow the kitchen to store and distribute food.

“We have two new MAPAQ certified-for-life staff members,” Grace said.

SSMU Vice-President Clubs and Services Stefan Fong added that SSMU has also taken measures to counter the rodent infestation.

“We haven’t been involved in the reopening itself, but we helped [the Midnight Kitchen] clean their space and do their MAPAQ training,” Fong said.

“We now have a pest control technician who covers all the McGill buildings. We submit reports to him via a form we’ve created for tenants to document sightings.”

Management Undergraduate Society raises $45 thousand for cancer research New initiatives contribute to increased revenues

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CECE ZHANG News Editor

he Management Undergraduate Society (MUS) organized the Winter Carnival and the Cancer Auction, raising approximately $45,000 towards cancer research this year, a significant increase from last year’s events, which raised $30,000.

“The whole goal of this week is the idea of school spirit and philanthropy,” MUS VP Events Jony Tabuteau said. “We work closely with the Cancer

Auction committee, so it’s a combination of Winter Carnival and the Cancer Auction committee.”

The funds raised will be donated to the Canadian Cancer Society (CCS), Canada’s largest national cancer charity which funds cancer research. The MUS has had a partnership with the CCS since 1976.

“This was our 39th Cancer Auction [...and] around 75 to 80 per cent of the total revenue is raised by the auction, but there are also smaller initiatives throughout the year,” MUS Pres-

ident Sean Finnell said.

According to Tabuteau, this year’s fundraising has been particularly successful partially because of new projects such as selling toques.

“We’re trying to combine charity with things students want to donate to in a way they want to donate,” Tabuteau said.

“Every year builds on the competitive spirit of the last year.

There’s [a] drive to break last year’s record. Everyone in Carnival from top to bottom [was] really into the cause this year.”

ASHLEY KONG Contributor

he Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Equity Policy is currently undergoing revision by the SSMU Equity Committee to increase its accessibility and simplicity.

According to member Robin Nyamakye, the committee has been working on the definition of terms last semester, with the aim of providing a comprehensive and easily readable document for SSMU staff, clubs, and student groups to follow.

SSMU VP University Affairs Claire Stewart-Kanigan stated that the Equity Committee is trying to condense the document this semester. “[We want to make] it a more concise document, removing redundancies,” Stewart-Kanigan said. “The whole purpose of it is to be an [accessible] tool for people, so we want to make the language as clear and as accessible as possible. A 20-page document can feel intimidating.”

The SSMU Equity Policy will only be effective in SSMU, SSMU clubs, and Independent Student Groups. Other faculty equity committees should have their own equity policies and their own ways of promoting equity in respective faculties, according to Stewart-Kanigan.

“I think it’s important to leave space for [a] de-centralized approach to equity, because each faculty equity committee is going to know how to best speak to their constituents, and know what kind of language [to use, and] what kind of approaches are going to best resonate,” StewartKanigan said. “I think it is an asset to have such autonomous faculty associations.”

The Equity Committee under the Engineering Undergraduate Society (EUS) agreed that this parallel structure would work across campus.

“I think there are a lot of different issues we are trying to hit,” EUS Equity Committee member Emilie Froeliger said.

“It’s better for us [to be autonomous], just because we know our faculty and the students that are affected directly [the best].”

Despite being independent from one another, according to EUS Equity Commissioner Simrin Desai, the faculty committees interacted a lot with one another last semester.

“We recently had an ‘Equity Retreat’ [including] a lot of equity committees across campus [...] and we did different workshops and discussions,” Desai said. “You learn a lot from their challenges, and the solutions they have come up with.”

The SSMU Equity Committee is also working on other projects such as evaluating McGill’s hiring processes.

“We hired two student researchers this month,” StewartKanigan said. “They are currently doing a scan of McGill’s hiring processes. McGill does have an employment equity policy, but [its] employment equity policy only mandates them to produce a report [...] but [not] to take any action on those representations [.…] We’d like to produce a report with recommendations on the McGill side by the end of this academic year.”

SSMU equity projects that are open to student participation include Equity Conversations and the Equity Conference. According to Stewart-Kanigan, the conversations will cover a variety of subjects, such as race and gender. The series will continue throughout the semester. Additionally, the Equity Conference, themed ‘Equity in Law’, will be held in March.

Stewart-Kanigan hopes that these projects will help integrate equity deeper into McGill’s operation. “[There is] this recurring theme of poor coordination between equity and events’ organization. Often, equity [gets] added in as a last minute consideration in planning, which often leads to an antagonistic relationship between event coordinators and equity,” Stewart-Kanigan said. “In speaking with various event coordinators and people working on equity on campus—both people of course care about students [feeling] comfortable and [having] good time in these events—so logically there should be stronger coordination than there is [now].”

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News

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

McGill admin endorses international student tuition deregulation at Senate Research and innovation performance, experiental learning also discussed

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MAYAZ ALAM Managing Editor

our Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Senators moved a question on the McGill’s stance on the deregulation of international tuition fees during the first Senate meeting of 2015 last Wednesday in order to better understand the future of tuition for international students in faculties where tuition is still regulated. The Faculties of Management, Science, Engineering, and Law are currently unregulated, allowing McGill to establish a tuition supplement above required provincial fees.

Provost Anthony Masi stated that McGill is committed to deregulation. He reiterated that the administration has already gone through phases of consultation and deliberation with the broader McGill community with regards to deregulation.

“There is a question of equity to Quebec taxpayers and a question of equity in terms of cost in education, and we try to balance those things,” Masi said. “We’ve had a position [on deregulation] for a long time. We’re not going back and re-consulting on that position[....] It’s been in all of our other behaviours for at least a decade that deregulation is the right way to go.”

According to Masi, if McGill were to begin pricing deregulated tuition for all faculties, it would have to do so with regards to the price of tuition at other Canadian, U.S., and international universities.

“Our international students don’t choose just to come to Canada; they choose to come to McGill,” Masi explained. “The price points have to be set in relation to McGill’s [international standing].”

Masi also noted that the university intends to maintain both its socioeconomic and interna-

tional diversity.

“We are committed to ensuring that people have access to McGill regardless of their financial situation,” Masi said. “We would not want to do anything in setting international rates for students that would prohibit them from coming to McGill.”

Research, innovation, experiential learning

Dr. Sarah Stroud, associate vice-principal (Research and International Relations) delivered the annual report on research and innovation and progress report on Quartier de l’innovation (QI)—an innovation district in Montreal’s Griffintown neighbourhood. Although McGill ranked third in FY2013 in Canada in terms of gross funding and funding per researcher, Stroud acknowledged that McGill’s researchers have not been as successful at innovation compared to other Canadian universities in recent years.

“The last three reports on research and innovation submitted to Senate have stressed the need for McGill to work differently with [...] researchers, [...] community partners, including investors and alumni, and [industries to] deliver knowledge, ideas, and new technologies that meet societal needs,” Stroud said.

According to Stroud, McGill researchers have been struggling to move discoveries to market.

As such, McGill is attempting to create a stronger culture of innovation on campus and within the community through the QI. “Through these initiatives, we, together with many other stakeholders within the community, are trying to create a campus culture that has a very broad understanding of innovation,” Stroud explained. “We’re working hard [...] to improve coaching, experiential learning, platforms for industry engagement, and funding for innovative projects.

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editorial

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Balancing peer support and inclusivity essential for progress Queer McGill, as a part of its Rad Sex Week, will be holding a workshop on Jan. 28 entitled “Desires: A QT*POC Exploration,” an event open only to those who identify as queer or trans* people of colour (POC). The exclusion of white students in the workshop’s description incited significant backlash on social media and has prompted an examination of the broader significance of the event as it relates to the intersection between race and inclusion on campus.

While inclusion and support often operate together to achieve equality, they do not always need to go hand in hand. Queer and trans* POC face their own unique struggles, and having a workshop in which POC within the queer and trans* community can talk about shared experiences and offer each other support is indispensable. There should be defined spaces made available for queer and trans* POC to discuss their common challenges without feeling compelled to explain their distinct perspectives to people who cannot directly relate.

The workshop specifically created for queer and trans* POC is therefore a valuable means of providing mutual support for marginalized individuals.

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signed to promote

discourse within a specific group of individuals should be respected, but should not occlude the general movement toward an overall inclusive community.

Although the criticism has largely surrounded one specific event, it has also sparked a more general discussion on how to foster a community that is both inclusive and supportive.

The concurrent existence of separate spaces for support should not reach

providing opportunities for people to take part in the creation of a positive community for queer students at McGill and in Montreal.

Queer McGill has stated that its purpose is to “create [a] safe space and community for queer students.”

Since Queer McGill is seeking to create a community for queer and trans* individuals, the restriction of events to a particular group based on race could risk creating long-term divisions within the community.

This incident underscores the reality that the discourse surrounding race and sexuality on campus is complex and requires the student body’s ongoing attention. Maintaining mindfulness and respect in both allied efforts and events reserved for people to share intimate experiences is imperative. The workshops designed to promote discourse within a specific group of individuals should be respected, but should not occlude the general movement toward an overall inclusive community. Moving forward, in order to achieve the intertwined goals of inclusion and equality, the need for spaces for allies must be balanced with the need for distinct spaces for individuals with similar, shared experiences.

The folly of satirizing North Korea

TPS Board of Directors

Yael Chapman, Jacqui Galbraith, Adrien Hu, Alycia Noe, Sam Pinto, Jenny Shen, Maryse Thomas, Nicolas Tuech

Shatner University Centre

The workshops de-

a point where exclusion incites a sense of polarization on campus that impedes the movement toward acceptance and equality. If barriers are ever constructed in a way that inhibit support and empathy, there would certainly need to be a reexamination of the separate manner in which discourse is conducted.

Particularly because focusing on specific intersections of people’s identities—in this case, identification as queer or trans* and as a POC— map appear limiting, it is important to prevent these intersections from creating lasting boundaries that ignore the possibility that people might not always relate to others based on both their race and their sexuality.

Those who criticized the exclusive nature of this singular workshop may also be disregarding the variety of avenues that Queer McGill and other groups provide for queer students and allies throughout the year. Allied support is something that Queer McGill has developed in the past in an effort to build a strong community for queer and allied students across campus.

There is a plethora of different workshops, discussion groups, lecture series, and even dance parties, all held

by Queer McGill, with the goal of

Off the board

Publisher Chad Ronalds

Monica Allaby, Lauren Benson-Armer, Cordelia Cho, Cory Goldstein, Sarah Ibrahim, Nick Jasinski, Catherine-Laure Juste, Lydia Kaprelian, Ashley Kong, May Lim, Jer Lin Poh, Elizabeth McLellan, Dan Moczula, Martin Molpeceres, Hayley Mortin, Clare Murphy, Tiffany Okotako, Albert Park, Kathleen Rose Kennedy, Miina Sasaki, Josh Shapiro, Anna St. Clair, Raphael Uribe Arango, Lesly Yao

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THE Mcgill

7

Opinion

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

natalie wong Student Living Editor Satire has often been an effective form of political protest used to garner attention towards raging dictatorships around the world and to provide a common ground upon which individuals can unite to creatively point out the disfunctionalities of authoritarian systems.

The latest incident that has incited uproar on media outlets was the depiction of North Korea’s authoritarian regime in The Interview, a film featuring comedians Seth Rogen and James Franco, who embark on a quest to assassinate Kim Jong-Un, the regime’s leader. However, this film deviates from the function of satire as a political tool and works instead to belittle the tragic experiences of individuals suffering under the authoritarian regime.

The film generated mass attention when a cyber attack on Sony Pictures, the distributor of the film, occurred.

This resulted in a cyber pledge from

the North Korean hackers against Sony Pictures to incite violence in theatres that showed the film and eventually culminated in Sony’s decision to cancel the screenings of the movie in theatres.

Director Judd Apatow publicly chastised Sony for its decision to cancel the screenings, a stance supported by many others. Opinions arose claiming that the film is a defiant act against the regime of North Korea, which should be supported and not suppressed. Apparently, watching it is a testament to the United States’ and the Western world’s commitment to free speech. In fact, a screening was scheduled for this past Jan. 14 in a Montreal theatre, garnering much attention on social media.

The Interview generated widespread endorsement, which creates concern for Western societies’ endorsement of a film that plays against the sufferings within a nation.

Regardless of its political context, The Interview is tasteless; brimmed with cheap sex jokes and juvenile humour. Franco and Rogen are portrayed as idiots incapable of carrying out an assassination. Taking into account the political controversy of The Interview, though, one could make the argument that the film acts as a challenge to North Korea’s regime because it ridicules its dictator. In this case, humour would be seen as a tool for expression, and satire

as a means of shining light on a tragic circumstance. But alas, the plentiful degrading body jokes used in the film do not reflect the pains of the millions oppressed in North Korea. This is a movie made for Hollywood’s comedic purposes and the scale of the current reigning terror of Kim Jong-Un’s administration is not a joke. The Interview is not an act of bravery and it certainly does not portray North Korea’s regime, which starves its own people and sponsors concentration camps that imprison millions, in an appropriate light.

Moreover, The Interview focuses on Kim Jong-Un’s quirks as opposed to the evil he has inflicted. Yes, ridicule has a function in working against tyrannical regimes, seen through several cases in the Middle East where protesters used humour to bolster their movements for democracy. In Syria, for example, satirical anti-Assad graffiti and biting slogans are characteristic of street protests amidst the civil war that has consumed thousands of lives. While these acts had an impact for the civilians suffering under the regime, The Interview does not advocate for the free speech of a population that is isolated from the world. In order to truly grasp the effects of such a system, the irrationality of North Korea’s regime from a Western perspective must be simultaneously combined with deep acknowledgement

of the state-sponsored scheme of indoctrination created and upheld, which The Interview does not do. In fact, the film is filled with amusing delusions that can paradoxically serve Kim Jong-Un’s regime by distracting from his dictatorship.

As citizens coming from free nations, Canadians can perceive the absurdity of Kim Jong-Un’s regime as cause for mocking it. However, Canadians must be mindful that such an act of government critique can cost a North Korean citizen his or her life and the lives of his or her families. If North Koreans are finally liberated one day from Kim Jong-Un’s administration, they will see that citizens of free nations sat idly by and laughed at their source of horror through derogatory jokes such as those in The Interview, tasteless costumes at Golden Globe Awards (like the one worn by Margaret Cho), and Buzzfeed articles titled “Who did it: Beyonce or Kim Jong-Un,” while they suffered in a constant state of repression.

The main problem concerning The Interview is the mass attention the film received and the widespread endorsement regarding the viewing of such an insensitive film. Through this debacle, one thing became clear—North Korea’s reign of terror became a source of our amusement.

8

Opinion

COMMENTARY

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Insensitivity towards blackface fuels cultural tensions

Kathleen Rose kennedy Contributor If you have ever lived in Montreal, you have almost certainly experienced or heard of on-going disputes between francophones and anglophones about language, tuition fees, or even religion. The most recent source of tension between the two groups emerged when an actor used blackface to mimic Montreal Canadiens superstar P.K. Subban at the Théâtre du Rideau Vert (TRV), an action which has been interpreted very differently by the francophone and anglophone media.

Some claim the profound divide in their reactions is the result of two divergent cultures. However, ignorance of the history of blackface and

its offensive overtones is no defence for its practice. As a bicultural and bilingual Quebecer, I feel that the TRV displayed insensitivity in its use of blackface. The Francophone media, too, were callous their subsequent defence of blackface.

Blackface was used in minstrel shows in the U.S. until the early 1900s and was used to portray black men as ignorant, idle, and silly. The New Oxford Dictionary defines blackface as “the make-up used by a nonblack performer playing a black role. The role is typically comedic or musical, and is usually is considered offensive.”

While the practice of using blackface is historically common in French-language theatres in Quebec, the controversy reached a boiling point with the publication of Pat Donnelly’s article in the Montreal Gazette.

Donnelly was enraged at the fact that the use of blackface is still prevalent in today’s society, and argued that Denise Filiatrault, the show’s artistic director, should have known better.

Filiatrault responded with outrage to the negative reviews. She argued that it would have cost much more money to hire a black actor be-

cause there wouldn’t have been any other roles for him to play afterwards. Her response clearly highlights the underlying problem that she would not hire a black actor to play any other roles.

Nevertheless, Filiatrault denied accusations of racism by reminding the public she has hired many people of colour throughout her career as a director. Because of all the controversy, Filiatrault claimed that she will never have another black character on stage again. This of course did nothing to calm the maelstrom, but only renders a visible minority invisible in her theatre. One can only hope that other theatres will not follow suit.

The francophone media, too, has denied accusations of racism by arguing that anglophones are misunderstanding French culture. Normand Brathwaite, a francophone comedian and actor said in a radio interview, “They don’t know our culture, they don’t understand.”

Using the time-old ‘culture card’

“ (Hayley Mortin / McGill Tribune) that “anglophones don’t understand” is not justifiable in instances of blatant racism, especially considering the discriminatory history of blackface.

What is interesting in this case is that Brathwaite is, himself, black. This emphasizes the entrenched belief among many francophones, regardless of their race, that blackface is innocuous.

It is possible that since anglophones tend to be more exposed to

U.S. media than French Canadians.

Yet Donnelly argues that blackface has been a part of Quebec’s society for nearly 30 years. Given the ready access to historical information about the culturally offensive background of blackface, francophones have no excuse not to be informed and sensitive to the fact that blackface is highly discriminatory and has no place in their theatres.

The true problem is that many English speakers feel that they are losing power, and that their prospects in Quebec seem rather bleak.

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Anglophone-francophone relations in Quebec have not been off to a good start in 2015 as the tension and unrest within anglophone communities is reaching a climax. Graham Fraser, the official language commissioner of Canada, recently made a call for the Quebec government to create an Office of Anglophone Affairs, a request that was promptly shut down by the governing Quebec Liberals. The government’s prompt refusal has worsened the worry of the anglophone population that it is being marginalized, and has only amplified tensions with the Francophone majority.

Why does the government reject the decision to give the anglophones what they want? For the same reason that Bill 10— which was met with opposition from English speakers because it would merge English health-

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albert park Contributor

care agencies into a governmental mega-board—was conceived: It saves money. By replacing local health agencies with one big system, Bill 10 would drastically reduce bureaucracy costs, saving the government nearly $220 million a year. Needless to say, Quebec has not been doing well economically, and the government has made many moves to reduce spending. It seems rather counterproductive that they should create another office at this time, introducing heavy bureaucracy costs which they are constantly trying to reduce.

Realizing this, it is easy to see that anglophones’ consistent demands for increased power and accessibility are not reasonable and will only increase their hostility with many French-speaking Quebecers.

Many people will argue that because Ontario, for example, has an Office of Francophone Affairs, Quebec should have one for anglophones since Quebec’s percentage of anglophones (7.7 per cent) is much higher than the percentage of French-speakers in other provinces (3.9 per cent for Ontario). However, those making this argument should understand the limitations of the role and influence of these francophone offices. For example, in Ontario, the primary goal is to

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Diffusing anglophone tension in Quebec

provide government services in French to 25 designated areas that have a significant Frenchspeaking population (over 10 per cent of inhabitants). In theory, an anglophone variant of such a

department would be a constructive introduction to Quebec if the main problems faced by the English-speakers were based around government services.

However, this is simply not the case, as a survey conducted

by CBC last year revealed that only 28 per cent of anglophone Quebecers felt that they did not have access to government services in English. Essentially, an Office of Anglophone Affairs would waste resources to enforce systems that were already in place in a desperate attempt to assuage the English speakers who feel they are underrepresented.

The true problem is that many English speakers feel that they are losing power, and that their prospects in Quebec seem rather bleak. This is especially a big concern for students who will be graduating from anglophone institutions such as McGill. A study done at Université du Québec à Montréal (UQÀM) revealed that the majority of anglophone students (two-thirds of them from McGill) felt that they would not be able to have successful careers in this province.

A large portion of them expressed that they have felt discriminated in various public places and in the workplace, primarily due to their linguistic differences.

However, the more surprising result gathered from the study was that anglophones were not the only group to feel threatened. In fact, plenty of young francophones expressed worry that the English speaking community could harm their own survival as French-speakers in Quebec. As students who are a few years away from graduating and possibly diving into the workforce and community of Quebec, it is important for McGill students to think critically about this proposed measure.

Would the creation of an anglophone office—which would add costs to the government and use up taxpayer’s money—really benefit English speakers in the long run? Without a doubt, it would worsen the feelings of division and hostility between the two groups, which would only further hurt the career prospects of anglophones. While the demands of the English speakers in Quebec seem reasonable on the surface, the establishment of an Office of Anglophone Affairs would not fix any of their concerns and would only aggravate the distrust between the English and French speakers in the province.

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

9

Student Living

Student of the Week

By Laura Plamondon

To say that Juan Estalella is committed and engaged in McGill’s community is an understatement. Along with being a full-time U1 student in Management, Estalella is on the executive team of four different clubs. He is currently the marketing coordinator for the SLASummit 2015, VP Media for the International Management Association (IMA), VP Sponsorship for the Junior Hong Kong Canada Business Association, and part of the second-year team for Right to Play.

Estalella believes education, social equality, and sustainable development are the key elements to a successful future for the world.

According to Estalella, the 2015 SLASummit and Right to Play enables him to combine these elements.

“The SLASummit [2015] is a social conference and case competition that will gather 150 students from South and North America to find sustainable solutions to certain problems in communities in Latin America,” Estalella explained.

Moreover, Estalella said that the hands-on experience offered at SLASummit is what he finds most appealing.

“The cool thing about this project is that the winning team will actually get the funds to go and implement the project in the community,” he said. “This event will help educate the students about the problems in Latin American communities, while creating a social project that will be sustainable in the future.”

Last summer, Estalella spent a month volunteering in India teaching in a hospital with 40 children who were HIV positive. He stated that his trip to India made a strong impact on his perception of our society’s current state and inspired him to work to change its future. “[Through my trip to India] I learned to

Juan Estalella U1 Management (Photo courtesy of Jana Sauma)

value every single thing that I have,” Estalella said. “A family, good health, food, clean water, a home, and clothes are things that we usually take for granted but are unfortunately not present in everyone’s lives.”

Estalella finds his role models in the late Nelson Mandela and Spanish professional basketball player Pau Gasol.

“Mandela proved to us that we all have the power to change those rules and laws that we are not happy with,” he said. “Anyone can make a significant change in their lives and in this world. All they have to do is believe in themselves.”

“I am also a great basketball fan, and Pau Gasol is a Spanish basketball player that I have always followed and was lucky enough to meet in person,” Estelella continued. “He is a great player and also a world ambassador for UNICEF.” Estalella’s determination to get involved in alleviating societal problems as well as his drive to create a positive change in the world is largely a result of inspiration from his grandmother, who he credits as having an immense positive change in his life.

“She passed away two years [ago],” he said. “It was the first time that I faced a family tragedy, and it was hard to keep my positive and energetic attitude in inevitable sad times. I am proud of how I managed my anger towards cancer, and how I kept a positive view on things despite this.”

For the future, Estalella hopes to see a world where there is more collaboration and where people are more conscious of their actions.

“I want people to care more about each other instead of simply satisfying their personal needs,” he said.

What do you think is the best place on earth?

Wherever family is.

Which celebrity would you like to meet?

Bill Gates. He has a different mindset from any other successful businessman, and gives a great amount of his earnings to charities and NPO’s worldwide to improve worldwide education.

What TV series would you like to star in if given the opportunity?

I feel that I could be an interesting character in Modern Family.

Favourite food?

Eggs over easy with rice, tomato sauce, and jamón Serrano (a typical Spanish dish). Every time I have that dish it reminds me of home.

Hidden talent?

I can speak four languages fluently: Spanish, English, French, and German.

nominate a

student of the week!

Email us at studentliving@ mcgilltribune.com

Love146 Task Force hosts benefit concert Human trafficking is a serious problem that often does not take precedence amongst many others. Montréal Love146 Task Force, a group of local activists that works with international anti-human trafficking organization Love146, held its first benefit concert on Wednesday.

Titled Sound of Love, the concert was held at La Vitrola and featured local bands Secret Sun, What If Elephants, and CTZNSHP. The Task Force—which currently has five members—meets once every one or two weeks to study human trafficking in Montreal.

They work to raise awareness about human trafficking and to protect the vulnerable youth of Montreal from getting involved with the sex trade.

“It’s a double mission,” said Margot Mollat, a Task Force member and U2 Management student.

“On one hand, [we’re] preventing anyone from entering the sex [trafficking] industry, and on the other hand [we’re] raising awareness in

general to people who have no clue what is going on in Montreal.”

According to Task Force director Beth Gowing, the streets of Montréal are lined with countless bars and strip clubs, and these venues create many opportunities for sex trafficking.

“A lot of people don’t realize that there is sex trafficking going on in the strip clubs that they might go to on a party weekend, [or] at massage parlors,” Gowing explained.

“Bringing awareness to the fact that this is happening is an important way to decrease demand and [to] prevent it from happening.”

Jesse LeGallais, lead vocalist and bassist of CTZNSHP, echoed Gowing’s sentiment.

“Sex slavery and child trafficking are far more prominent in our societies [than] people might think,” LeGallais said.

Gowing also stressed the importance of looking beyond the

numbers and statistics, and recognizing each survivor of human trafficking as an individual.

“It’s easy to get caught up in the num-

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“[People] always throw around jokes about pornography or prostitution or pimps, but there is a true problem beneath that, [and] we need to question what [...] we need to do as citizens, and what [...] the government needs to do as an institution to make sure that trafficking ends one day,” said Mollat.

The concert was a small gathering, with powerful music and a friendly audience comprised mostly of McGill students.

The show opened up with an intimate performance by pop duo Secret Sun, who set the stage for the rest of the night. The concert picked up steam with an energetic soundtrack delivered by What If Elephants, a four-piece indie pop-rock band, and came to a close with a number of hazy, echo-like anthems performed by new wave trio CTZNSHP. Concert attendee Michael Gong, U1 Science student, com-

It’s cool to see how the music industry in Montreal [comes] together to support good causes.

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Miina Sasaki Contributor

bers,” she said. “But it’s important to think about the personal stories of survivors [...] and remember that each human being has worth and dignity.”

mented on the engaging performances.

“What If Elephants [were] flat out amazing,” Gong said. “They brought a good deal of energy to the stage, [and] made a point of engaging the audience, which was a lot of fun.”

Joey Langlois, lead vocalist and guitarist of What If Elephants commented on his support for the cause behind the benefit concert.

“It’s cool to see how the music industry in Montreal [comes] together to support good causes,” he said.

“I thought it was really successful [for] a first event.”

Task Force member Brittany Davis, U3 Arts, expressed her gratitude towards her teammates and the audience for engaging in the fight against human trafficking.

The Montréal Love146 Task Force’s benefit concert took the Montreal community one step closer to recognizing the depth of human trafficking while listening to crowdpleasing music from local musicians.

Sound Of Love could not have been named more appropriately.

Student Living Tuesday, January 27, 2015 Experience the art of tea infusion

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Ming Tao Xuan in Old Port provides a cultural experience

Adrien Hu Copy Editor The scent of steeped jasmine flowers has enchanted artists, scholars, and travellers for centuries.

In East Asia, enjoying the drink is dressed with ritual. Through centuries of cultivation, the custom associated with serving tea developed through generations of tea houses, some as aged as the traditions themselves.

This rich craft is often fractured by urban cafés, where often abbreviated techniques often dilute down this complex art. Luckily, in Montreal, an invitation to lose oneself in antiquity has been tucked away in Ming Tao Xuan, a small teahouse located in Old Port.

Stepping into Ming Tao Xuan is to leave one world for another. To the left, shelves of tea cased in intricately carved jars sit waiting behind a modest counter. On the right, an extravagant museum of tea sets, ranging from Yixing clay to crystalline glass, are stationed between artfully carved tables and seats embellished

by tapestry dyed in ruby and gold.

The atmosphere offered by this particular tea house is one of reserved tradition. The menu lists an impressive repertoire of green tea, oolong, flowering teas, and herbal infusions. In a way, the booklet is a map of Asia—Gyokuro of Japan; Darjeeling, from India, Teguanyin for China. As an accompaniment to the drink, the teahouse also carries petits fours.

In Ming Tao Xuan, the tea service elaborates upon East Asia’s ritual of preparation. First and foremost, each order of tea commands its own unique set of equipment. Some are porcelain, others clay; the list goes on, depending on the steeping time, desired temperature, and aesthetics of the ingredients. Served on a bamboo filter tray, the tea is steeped under the instruction and demonstration of the wait staff. The tea leaves and aroma.

The scent is light and barely noticeable; but after only a brief second’s wash in boiling water, its fragrance blossoms. This blanching is used to rinse, or ‘season’ the teacup, and is discarded before a second steeping.

The art of pouring tea. (themainmtl.com) After this seasoning, the infusion is poured into the teacup, before finally offered for drinking.

In this way, Ming Tao Xuan endeavours to guide each and every one of its clients through the timerefined art of tea tasting. For the frugal student, this experience charges six to nine dollars, the price of which includes a kettle of water for refill.

Another perk unique to the shop’s collection is that every item displayed, from teas to extravagant sets, is available for purchase. When in doubt, the shopkeepers are always on site to answer any questions, no matter what the length or complexity, and the service was conducted courteously.

To some, the idea of linking

tea with ritual is perhaps something of a platitude. To others, it is a bid to understand thousands of years of history and culture in its purest form.

Ming Tao Xuan offers a small peek.

It is a kaleidoscope, offering a colourful juxtaposition into the world of the fragrant, flavourful, and truly fascinating treatise on tea.

chill thrills: Mount Royal Park Fun and frugal winter activities available near McGill Arden Li Contributor

rectly calling the park. The ski trails are open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. from Sunday to Thursday, and 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Ski rentals are $12 per hour or $18 for three hours.

The freezing cold that marks the end of January is also prime time to bundle up and head outdoors for fun in the snow. Luckily, the perfect triad of winter activities is located in Mount Royal Park, a mere twenty minute walk from Roddick Gates. Besides being a haven for nature-lovers in an otherwise urban landscape, the park offers skating, cross-country skiing, and tubing. These activities start at the Beaver Lake Pavilion, at 2000 Chemin Remembrance, and provide great winter entertainment for the adventurous student.

Tubing

Skating

Located right outside the pavilion, Beaver Lake is a natural and picturesque ice rink comprised of several adjacent skating surfaces. One of the surfaces includes a snowy island in the middle, complete with several ornament-laced trees. Multiple benches line the outer rim, facing outwards toward the ice, providing convenient seating for tired skaters. In the daytime, the rink is bustling with a vibrant energy.

Transitioning into the evening, the rink is aglow with lights, emanating a cozier mood. Since the lake is outside, it is not as well maintained as other skat-

Cross-country skiing on Mount Royal. (Lesly Yao / McGill Tribune) ing rinks, as evidenced by clumps of snow throughout the rink. The wind chill factor may also be difficult to bear on colder days. However, Beaver Lake creates an overall comfortable environment for novice and experienced skaters alike. The rink is open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. from Sunday to Thursday, and 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. There is no entry fee, and skate rentals are only $9 for two hours.

Skate sharpening is also available for $7.

Cross-country skiing

For an easy-to-learn activity combined with a total-body workout, crosscountry skiing is available in Mount Royal Park, which includes 22 kilometres of groomed trails. Cross-country skiing allows friends to share conversations while exploring serene trails at a more laid-back pace. The park contains five trails for classic skiing and two for skate skiing, a newer method of cross-country skiing that involves lateral movements similar to those of

ice skating. The variety of trails, ranging from relatively level stretches to sharper inclines, accommodates skiers of all skill levels. Since the trails are not lit at night, beginners who are unfamiliar with the terrain are advised to avoid going after dark. Trail maps are available at the Smith House—which is at the park entrance—the rental booth in the Beaver Lake Pavilion, as well as on the park’s website. Check trail and weather conditions prior to heading to Mount Royal, either online or by di-

Tubing is the perfect activity for a clear day—preferably right after a fresh snowfall—to engage in some friendly competition on the slopes.

A short walk away from the Beaver Lake Pavilion, the snow tubing hill consists of four lanes, each of which have been uniquely worn down by preceding participants, creating varying speeds. Although the ride down only lasts about half a minute, the thrill of the rush lingers for many hours to come. The snow tubing lanes are open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. from Monday to Friday, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Inner tubes can be rented at the Beaver Lake Pavilion or, for more convenience, at the cabin located at the bottom of the tubing hill, which only takes cash. Rentals are $9 for the entire day, with an added bonus that tubers can leave and return to the slope as many times as they wish during that time. For students who have their own sleds, the other half of the hill is open for tobogganing and is free to the public.

Campus Spotlight: Working out for the benefit of the community Tiffany Le Staff Writer It is often easy to become de-motivated in working out during the cold, dreary winter semester. Having an incentive to work out is integral to keeping healthy during the school year. Fit For A Cause (FFAC) McGill is a student organization that offers fitness classes run by volunteers. The classes are by donation and the proceeds go towards the Sun Youth Organization’s (SYO) Sports and Recreation program. These affordable programs, with a minimum $2 donation per class, are great for a student on the budget. Moreover, a growing variety of activities are becoming available, including aerobics, circuit, yoga, and more.

“My mission is to share my knowledge and passion for fitness with others, and give back to the community,” said FFAC executive Clark Wiebe. “I believe that everyone should have the opportunity to live a healthy and active lifestyle, regardless of socioeconomic status and background.”

“The idea honestly came from my mom,” Wiebe continued. “I told her in conversation last year that I loved teaching fitness classes so much that I would do it for free. Then she said ‘Well why don’t you raise money for charity?’”

As of May 2014, the club is spe-

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Student Living

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

cifically committed to the SYO’s After School Nutrition program. Located on St. Urbain, SYO opened the second food bank in Canada in 1981. Today, it is a multi-service centre for the community. They provide highly personalized programs and services through education, awareness, and material assistance.

The aim of the After School Nutrition program is to help the disadvantaged youth participate in sports activities. Before practices, SYO provides nutritious foods so that the kids have more energy to participate.

“At McGill, it is admittedly easy to become preoccupied with academics above all, which unfortunately sometimes comes at the expense of personal health,” said FFAC member Nickoo Merati. “Finding a balance […] has proven to be difficult; however, FFAC’s supportive and sympathetic environment has helped me stay motivated.”

Although it is quite new, the club has managed to reach over 600 McGill students and staff. For most, it is difficult to find inexpensive fitness classes close to campus. The health and fitness environment can also appear intimidating, especially without prior experience.

Furthermore, the problem of scheduling regular classes is not an easy one to overcome. The FFAC hosts numerous events throughout the year. Usually located at the McGill gym, students have

Fit for a Cause (FFAC)

a chance to pick and choose which class they would like to participate in with no pressure. The FFAC likes to attach themes to the sessions—it’s quite hard to turn down a ’90s themed workout that promises to play Justin Timberlake. Often, the workshops are also cleverly timed; the FFAC hosted a welcome Halloween detox to cleanse everyone after a full night of candyeating.

“It’s difficult for me to motivate myself to go to fitness classes,” said U1 Arts student Anis Farid. “But, if on top of the exercise it is also for a good cause, there is definitely incentive for me to go and check it out.”

The FFAC also partners with other organizations on campus to organize fitness-based charity events.

Back in October, they collaborated with McGill Students for Partners in Health (PIH) and Exercise is Medicine McGill to present Strides for Solidarity, a fundraising walkathon fitness circuit.

This event promoted the PIH Community Health Workers who walk great distances to serve patients.

“I am so thankful for the opportunities that FFAC has brought me,” said member Courtney Fitzpatrick, a U2 psychology student. “This club has introduced me to an outlet for my passions of spreading health and fitness, an amazing group of people to share this enthusi-

Getting fit for a cause. (Photo courtesy of Fit for a Cause) asm with, and a wonderful organization to raise money and support for.”

Recently, the FFAC has reached a new milestone. They were able to reach their goal of raising $2000, donating their first cheque to the SYO. At the moment, their next goal is $20,000. The plan is to expand the classes available by introducing spinning, swimming, weight lifting, healthy bake sales, and even a donation tab on their iphone app.

According to Wiebe, his experi-

ence in the development of FFAC has taught him many things.

“My biggest takeaway from this whole experience so far is that the work of improving people’s health and quality of life is extremely rewarding and something I want to be doing for the rest of my life,” he said. “I believe the true purpose of life is to enjoy it, and help others enjoy theirs as much as possible. This is what I am trying to do through FFAC, one event at a time.”

Crossword Corner Find the answer key at: www.mcgilltribune.com

Pudding Chomeur Pudding chomeur, or poor man’s pudding, is a classic Quebecois dessert that was created during the Great Depression. For a fun twist, this syrupy cake may be baked in an empty maple syrup can.

Ingredients: For the cake: 1.5 cups all-purpose flour 1 tsp baking powder 1 egg 1 cup granulated white sugar ¼ cup margarine (55g) 1 cup milk For the syrup: 1 cup water 2/3 cup brown sugar 1/3 cup white sugar ¼ cup margarine (55g) ¼ tsp vanilla extract

By: Jer Lin Poh

Instructions: 1. Preheat an oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).

Grease a 7x7-inch baking dish.

2. Sift the flour and baking powder together in a small bowl.

3. Using a mixer, beat the egg, sugar, and 1/4 cup margarine together in a large bowl.

4. Add the flour mixture alternately with the milk to the egg mixture, stirring to combine.

5. Beat the mixture on low speed until there are no lumps (20 seconds). 6. Pour the batter into the prepared dish.

7. Combine the syrup ingredients and bring the mixture to a boil for two minutes. Cool for one minute, then pour the sauce over the batter.

8. Bake in the preheated oven until the centre is set, about 40 minutes. 9. Serve warm, with ice cream or whipped cream if desired.

For a maple syrup-based version, replace brown and white sugars with 1 cup of maple syrup. Reduce the amount of water to ½ cup.

By Cory Goldstein

Across

Down

1. Mutiny 6. James Cook’s preferred method of transport 10. “When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie” 11. Initial big 12. Promised 14. The game of visual perception 15. How Socrates won arguments 22. A two-toed sloth native to South America 23. British slang for a young, upper class snob 24. Johnny ______, animated television series 25. Daily afternoon prayer in Islam 26. An uninhabited volcanic island in the Barlavento archipelago of Cape Verde 27. “The cake ___ __ lie” 28. A person who operates a computer or network service 29. Standard measure of lifeguard performance, abbr.

30. Brooklyn’s basketball team 31. How Canadians end their sentences

1. Cloth 2. Largest bird native to Australia 3. Snake, e.g.

4. “To _______ is human; to forgive, divine” 5. Tether 6. Past participle of the French verb batter 7. Single 8. Consumed 9. “Ideas worth sharing” 13. Alias of Thomas Anderson 15. Sega arcade game released in 1986 16. Anxiety 17. Upper leg plate armour 18. Educators 19. Small, hard, dry seeds 20. Inconvenience 21. Subgenre of heavy metal music

Behind the legacy: A look into Montreal’s most famous crime family Wyatt Fine-GagnÊ

Photo courtesy of Journal de Montreal

THE RIZZUTO LINE

A

t the corner of Rue Jarry and Rue des Forges, in the northend of Montreal, there is a small plaza. At first glance, it appears fairly ordinary–there are several independent shops, a karaoke bar, a couple of cafés, and a Uniprix. The area is close to the highway, but quiet enough so that there are only a few intersections with traffic lights nearby. Despite its unremarkable appearance, the plaza was once home to the Consenza Social Club, the former headquarters of the Rizzuto crime family and a known

Infographic by Hayley Lim hangout for Montreal mobsters.

For decades, the Rizzutos have been Canada’s most prominent crime family, but a number of deaths and arrests over the past several years has led to a decline in the family’s power. A number of reporters and members of the public have labelled this decline the end of an era and the beginning of a new one. With this shift, the Rizzutos have left a legacy as perhaps the most famous crime family in Canadian history.

Much like the plaza, there is nothing about Montreal that makes it look

or feel distinctly like a city with deep ties to organized crime. It is difficult to say why Montreal became such a hub for these activities; however, its roots stem from the mid-20th century, when Montreal was growing rapidly, making it a natural landing spot for recent immigrants from Europe. Its close proximity to New York, where the mafia was already established, and its shipping port—which provides easy access to international markets—may have also been factors, but it’s impossible to point to one as the sole cause.

Perhaps part of the reason that Montreal does not seem like a natural fit for organized crime is that our vision of that world is partially shaped by films and other entertainment. The death of the former head of the Rizzuto family, Vito Rizzuto, in 2013 was quiet, with Rizzuto passing away in Montreal’s Sacré-Coeur Hospital a day after being admitted with pulmonary problems.

There has been no shortage of violent ends in Montreal’s underworld, but those deaths seem discreet and clean when propped up against the type of murder taking place in Scarface. In contrast to the actors of the film, Vito Rizzuto was known for keeping a low profile, dealing primarily with close, trusted associates as head of the family. He was also an impressive negotiator, creating strategic partnerships with other criminal organizations such as the Hell’s Angels. His death came just a few years after the assassinations of both his father and son, and left many asking what would become of the Rizzuto dynasty.

“You’re not only burying an individual, you’re burying a Mafia leader, but also, in many ways, you’re putting to bed a dynasty,” Julian Sher, a senior producer of the investigative television program The Fifth Estate, told the CBC in 2013. “The big question everyone inside the Mafia, the public, and the police are asking themselves is, ‘Who comes next and will there ever be someone of that power and stature in the future?’”

When Nicolo Rizzuto Sr. and his family arrived in Halifax from Sicily in 1954 aboard the MS Vulcania, the Montreal mafia was already operating. After immigrating with his family to Montreal from Calabria, Italy, Vincenzo Cotroni established Montreal’s first syndicate in the 1940s. By the 1950s, the operation had developed into an important branch of the Bonanno family–a powerful New York City mafia with Sicilian ties.

Rizzuto Sr. began his career in the mafia as an associate of the Cotroni family, forming a crew by way of his roots, and getting help from relatives and associates with ties to Sicily. Rizzuto Sr. was often closely linked to the Sicilian Mafia and did not care for the traditional system of command within the Calabrian Cotroni family. This became a source of tension, and before long, a war broke out between the Calabrian and Sicilian factions of the Montreal mafia.

“He is going from one side to the other, here and there, he says nothing to nobody, he is doing business and nobody knows anything,” Paolo Violi said in 1976, which was documented in the Commission du police du Quebec report, “Enquête sur le crime organisé,” Montreal 1976. Violi succeeded Vic Cotroni as the family boss of the Cotroni family in the 1970s, and was clearly un-

happy with the independence of Rizzuto Sr.’s Sicilian faction. The Bonanno family sent representatives to Montreal to try to settle the issue, but nothing could be resolved. Thanks in part to its Sicilian background, the Bonanno family ultimately sided with Rizzuto Sr., giving him approval to try to end the dispute.

War between the Sicilian and Calabrian factions broke out in 1976 with the Rizzuto family orchestrating the murder of one of Violi’s advisors, Pietro Sciara. A year later, two Rizzuto gunmen shot and killed one of Violi’s brothers, Francesco. Violi clearly had a target on his back as well, but a brief

“

You’re not only burying an individual, you’re burying a Mafia leader, but also, in many ways, you’re putting to bed a dynasty

”

stint in jail granted him a bit of safety. In 1978, shortly after his release, however, Violi was murdered. He was shot in the head at close range while playing cards in a café owned by Sicilians. Rizzuto Sr. was alleged to have participated in some form.

In 1980, Calabrians were destroyed. Rocco Violi, Paolo’s last brother, was shot by a sniper rifle while sitting down to dinner with his family, effectively ending the war. The Rizzutos were now Montreal’s foremost crime family, overseeing drug trafficking, illegal gambling, money laundering, contract killings, and more. It was around this time that Rizzuto Sr. handed over the family business to his son Vito.

Until his death, Vito oversaw an empire worth hundreds of millions of dollars. But the family’s foundation had been shaken even in the years prior to Vito’s passing. In 2009, Vito’s son Nick Rizzuto Jr. was gunned down in Montreal’s Notre-Dame-de-Grace neighbourhood. Agostino Cuntrera, widely seen as Vito’s successor, was murdered in broad daylight less than a year after Rizzuto Jr.’s death. Finally, five months after Cuntrera was killed, Nicolo Rizzuto Sr. was assassinated while eating dinner with his daughter and wife.

In a span of less than two years, the Rizzuto family’s past and future were dealt serious blows. The decade leading up to these murders, however, had been far from easy for the family thanks to a series of Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) investigations and legal battles.

In 1981, Vito Rizzuto took a trip to New York City, which police believe represented his formal induction into the Bonanno crime organization.

The purpose of the trip was to allegedly aid the Bonannos with the murder of three of the family’s captains who were suspected of being disloyal. Rizzuto was charged with conspiracy to commit murder in 2004 following a police crackdown on the mafia in New York.

U.S. officials pushed hard for Rizzuto to be extradited, but his team of lawyers claimed the statute of limitations for the alleged crimes had expired. Despite an appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada, Rizzuto was eventually extradited and sentenced to 10 years in prison. His arrest was a major hit to the family business, and it forced Rizzuto Sr. to acquire a bigger role in the operation.

Around the same time, the RCMP was beginning to make arrests and lay charges using evidence gathered in “Operation Colisée,” a four-year investigation consisting of millions of hours of taped conversations between highranking Mafia members. Authorities laid hundreds of charges against Rizzuto family members and their associates, but Rizzuto Sr. managed to escape without serving any jail time. With millions in assets seized, however, there was clearly significant damage done, made all the worse by Vito’s absence due to his own legal troubles.

Perhaps the most famous thing to emerge from “Operation Colisée” was the Charbonneau Commission.

The Commission revealed significant corruption in Quebec’s construction industry and led to the resignation of both Montreal mayor Gérald Tremblay and his successor Michael Applebaum.

It also offered a glimpse of how far the Rizzutos’ reach extended. The heads of nearly every major construction company in the province were connected to the family, with many spending ample time at the Consenza Social Club. For example, Nicolo Milioto—former President of Mivela Construction—was seen at the café 236 times during “Operation Colisée,” often exchanging money with Rizzuto family members or associates.

Vito Rizzuto’s death did not mean that the Mafia enterprise simply stopped. Despite Montreal’s Mafia lacking a true ‘Godfather,’ most operations have continued unchanged. What is clear, however, is that the power structure in the Montreal underworld is currently in flux.

“To have [Vito] now permanently removed from the underworld, the crime landscape, it’ll just open up the floodgates to everyone jockeying for positions,” Adrian Humphreys, author of The Sixth Family, which describes the rise of Vito Rizzuto, told the CBC. When Vito was freed from jail in 2012, he returned to a drastically different landscape than the one he’d left behind. Though there are remaining Rizzuto family supporters, Vito’s death marked the end of an era. What comes next is unclear. particularly because this is the point in mafia films when the screen goes dark and the credits roll.

Whatever does happen, this much is apparent: It is going to take a lot to replace the Rizzutos as Canada’s ‘First Criminal Family.’

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Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Morgan alexander Arts & Entertainment Editor

A Night at the Opera

Opéra de Montréal begins 2015 with production of Samson and Delilah Morgan alexander Arts & Entertainment Editor As part of their 2014-2015 season, l’Opéra de Montréal produced Camille Saint-Saëns’ Samson and Delilah, a biblical tale of lovers’ deceit and the might of God. Sung entirely in French, Samson and Delilah tells the story of the Hebrew Samson (Endrik Wottrich), who used his God-given strength to free the Hebrew people from capture by the Philistines, only to be taken hostage yet again—both figuratively and literally— by the beautiful Philistine princess, Delilah (Marie-Nicole Lemieux).

The plot, as one could guess, is weak, if not simply boring. An operatic adaptation of a biblical story does not provide much in the way of excitement, and while each song sounds incredible

to Saint-Saëans’ credit, little is gained by following the translation provided on a screen located above the stage.

That advice goes for double in terms of the negative effect of taking your eyes away from the set for even a moment.

Truly, the credit for what made this performance so incredible should be awarded to set designers Anick La Bissonnière and Eric-Olivier Lacroix, whose ingenuity in using multiple pillars with moving projections made for a simplistic yet awe-inspiring experience.

In terms of this production’s flaws, one does not have to look farther than Act I, which dragged along in spite of the skill of both the orchestra, conducted

by Jean-Marie Zeitouni, and the chorus.

Admittedly, Delilah’s entrance towards the end of the act provided a much-

welcomed change of pace, since her costume for Act I finally ushered in the opulence one would expect in dealing with the rulers of Israel. The chorus, however, deserves particular amounts of praise, providing the best songs throughout, particularly in Act III when Samson is mocked. This is not to detract from the main cast; the skill of Wottrich and Lemieux hits its prime in Act II with the lovers’ duet—Samson on his knees crooning “Dalila, je t’aime!” as Delilah rebuts with claims of cowardice.

This scene too succeeded in displaying director Alain Gauthier’s skill in making the most of the minimalist set design. In this particular scene, always having Samson either positioned lower than Delilah—a feat given Wottrich’s menacing size, accomplished in part by the tilted stage—or left in her shadow

Endrik Wottrich laments as Samson. (Photos courtesy of Yves Renaud) of colour emitted from the projectors added to the drama of the whole affair.

Despite the clear talent of the created a cinematic experience, as if main cast, chorus, and orchestra, it we had been moved from the biblical was ultimately the beauty of the set retelling into a modern ballet.

As a whole, Samson and Delilah in combination with the contrasting elegance of the costumes that stole the was beautiful in its production, using show from beginning to end, making light imagery and a re-imaging of an all-encompassing performance even simple themes to create a visual in scenes where the plot was noticeably experience as bold as the performers’ lacking. voices, bringing a relatively flat plot to This was particularly embodied in life.

Act III, when, in the Philistine temple, the chorus seated themselves facing the Samson and Delilah will be pillars upon which was projected a scene playing to a sold-out crowd at the of a man and woman dancing masked Opéra de Montréal’s Wilfird Pelletier in black and white. The scene itself was Hall Jan. 27, 29, and 31. Visit www. odd in its abrupt entrance and exit, but operademontreal.com to see the the soft lighting splayed across the cast, schedule for future events. picking up the glow of the gold jewels in which they were adorned, as blasts

Windy City for the win in AUTS’ Chicago

Student production brings professionalism, sizzle, and sexuality Chris Lutes Staff Writer

(Continued from page 1) The acting is top-to-bottom impressive and impeccably cast.

Vanessa Drunsnitzer plays Roxie with the right amount of ingenuity and malice to keep the audience constantly guessing what her true intentions are.

Velma Kelly (Natalie Aspinall) serves as a mirror to Roxie, simultaneously more experienced and vulnerable, doing a spot-on version of the brassy sexuality that typifies the 1920s. Rounding out the main players are Kenny Wong as the aforementioned lawyer, who manages to shine despite being plagued with microphone problems during the entire performance; Nour Malek as the de facto mother hen to the female prisoners who displays just the right amount of authority; and Olivier Bishop-Mercier as Roxie’s feckless husband—nervous, and woefully unable to navigate the world that his wife has thrown him into.

The ensemble cast is— remarkably—equally well-rounded.

Due to the high number of ancillary roles in the production, each member gets a chance to display his or her talents solo, and each one delivers—especially

Roxie Hart (Vanessa Drunsnitzer) celebrates her new fame. (Photo courtesy of Ashram Media) the women in “Cell Block Tango” and Jessica Eckstadt as Mary Sunshine, whose song “A Little Bit of Good” is the most technically impressive vocal performance in the entire production.

The choreography doesn’t stray too much from original writer and choreographer Bob Fosse’s playbook, much to its benefit. Director and

choreographer Debora Friedmann must have spent countless hours with the entire cast, nailing the acrobatic sexuality of Fosse’s original moves. As a result, the cast clicks as a single unit, with each of the 17 performers seeming to know the exact placement of every other cast member and prop on the stage, working at a level of professionalism that you

don’t typically see in student theatre.

The lighting might be the most striking aspect of the entire play, adding an extra layer of nuance and dressing up the stage to alternate between a prison, law office, courtroom, and nightclub.

Crisp spotlights of the jazz bar fade to striking reds and blues of the prison.

Little flourishes like flashing red during

a murder and a spotlight that comically avoids a character who sings about being invisible make it stand out without taking too much focus away from the cast.

Props are largely utilitarian, mainly serving the masterful blocking outlined in original productions. Friedmann adds to the whole jazz bar aesthetic by keeping the orchestra on the stage for the entire show, which gives the non-bar scenes a feeling of dreamy musicality.

The orchestra itself is also wonderful, full of brass and catchy piano that manages to shine even outside of the original songs.

Really, the only flaws that exist beyond the aforementioned microphone problems are those that come from the source material itself. The first act is a little thin on plot, which makes the second act feel rushed. However, the plot, like that of most musicals, mainly serves as a vessel for the songs and doesn’t drag the production level down.

All in all, Chicago is one hell of a ride.

Chicago will be performed from Thursday, Jan. 22 to Saturday, Jan. 24 and from Thursday, Jan. 29 to Saturday, Jan. 31 at 7:30 p.m. at Moyse Hall.

Visit www.autsmcgill.com for ticket information.

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Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Uneven script limits Players’ production’s promising potential Manages to manufacture some memorable moments out of middling Miller play Dan Moczula Contributor

The Creation of the World and Other Business is a deep cut of Arthur Miller’s work. The selfserious American playwright tried his hand at comedy, and what followed was nothing if not memorable and confusing. In fact, director Kirsten Kephalas admits that the play is “one of the worst comedies [she had] ever read.” Despite the ineptitude of the source material, this Players’ Theatre production still results in a brave, and at times, compelling staging of Arthur Miller’s idiosyncratic rendition of the world’s creation in Judeo-Christian mythology and mankind’s fall from innocence.

The play begins in the mystical Garden of Eden, with God (Frederic Rosenthal) and Adam (Alec MacMillan) struggling to name fruits and animals. Early on, Miller’s humour would be comfortable in a Sunday school; however, with the entrance of Lucifer (Lucas Amato), the play shifts gears, becoming more adult in its humour and weighty in its concerns.

Amato’s Lucifer is a highlight of the production. Miller writes him as the most human character, and Amato embodies Lucifer’s pettiness and idealism incredibly well. He knows how to commit and deliver a joke

no matter how clumsily written—or obscene, in the case of one joke about ‘holes.’

Throughout the play, Miller’s heavy-handed treatment of ‘important questions’ is often antithetical to comedy. Conversations between God and Lucifer alternate between discussing the relationship of innocence and knowledge to corny jokes—“If it weren’t for the law of Conservation of Energy, I’d destroy you!” bellows a megalomaniac God to Lucifer more than once. In these exchanges with Lucifer, Rosenthal’s bearded, white-robed God is played a little more disinterestedly and aloofly than needed in the pursuit of gravitas.

The dialogue can be clunky—Miller alternates between using a natural modern speech pattern and faux biblical language such as the repeated use of “thee.”

The play never decides to commit to being a comedy or a drama, and its uncertain genre status pulls the play in two different directions. The relationship between Adam and Eve (Anna Queen) is distant and forced.

During Eve’s late pregnancy there are several pregnancy, jokes which come off—through no fault of the director or cast—as misogynistic and cruel. The character of Eve is dealt a poor hand and Queen makes the most of her role dealing with the misfortunes caused

by a vengeful God and clumsy playwright with a grace that is befitting of her character.

In the last act, the plot grows convoluted as God wants to kill Eve’s youngest son so that humanity b e c o m e s dependent on God. Lucifer wants to stop God’s plan to prove that there does not need to be any duality between good and evil. This reversal of roles is fascinating and intriguing for those versed in Judeo-Christian mythology, and fits comfortably in a long tradition of painting Lucifer as an anti-hero.

Due to God’s influence, Eve’s sons tie her up and are about to assault her when God comes down and causes a chain of events which result in the death of Eve’s youngest son, Abel (Adam Almeida). The ending has the emotional intensity and high volume of Miller’s dramas and is reminiscent

Cast members pray to a megalomaniac of a god. (Photo courtesy of Jessica Banner) Despite inconsistencies in the the climax of The Crucible. However, the staging of the last act is cluttered, scripts, The Creation of the World with God, Lucifer, Adam, Eve, and and Other Business is still fascinating their children vying for stage space. and unique because of its flaws. Fans The death of Abel at the hand of his of Arthur Miller or for those who brother Cain (Clay Walsh) is not want to have a distinct semi-comedic an emotional moment with Abel experience should watch it for entering and exiting the play briefly, themselves.

The Creation of the World and and the writing does not establish his relationships with other characters Other Business runs from Wednesday, before his murder. However Walsh Jan. 28 to Saturday, Jan. 31 at 8 p.m. gives Cain depth during his brief at Players’ Theatre. Student tickets are stage time and showcases murderous $6. Trigger warning for subject matter rage and immense regret in one of the pertaining to sexual and emotional abuse. play’s strongest dramatic moments.

Still Alice avoids tropes, commits to stark realism Julianne Moore shines through heartbreak Morgan alexander Arts & Entertainment Editor At its most basic level, Still Alice is a film about a woman with a disease.

Look deeper and you’ll find a story about a woman not only fighting against a disease, but fighting to find who she really is. Deeper still, and it’s a story about love reframing itself against opposition beyond human forces. All these descriptions, however meaningful and correct, still fail to capture the true essence of Still Alice. This is not a film that resonates because of its plot or because of its take on a genre; this is a film that matters precisely because of what it is not—it is unidentifiable, uncategorical. This is not a comedy— any humour found could be derived only through off-color phrases. Nor is it a romance; any relationships known at the beginning of the movie completely fall apart, left frayed and unclear at the end. But it would be trite and untrue to call it a drama, to muddy the script and poignancy of the directing with evocations of lost lovers who rekindle in the final sunset.

Still Alice is the ultimate representation of what the art of filmmaking is meant to do—it suspends you in a scenario so far beyond yourself but so painfully real in its emotion and imagery that you cannot help but feel connected to the characters on a level

deeper than cinema seemingly allows.

Dr. Alice Howland, expertly played

by Julianne Moore, is diagnosed with an extremely rare form of early-onset Alzheimer’s disease. For a brief 101 minutes, we watch as the vibrant Columbia University professor is overtaken by her disease and we find ourselves grieving along with a family that is not ours for the life of a woman we can never know.

Unsurprisingly, Moore remains central to every scene, with the supporting characters doing just that— supporting Moore’s superb acting and adding little intrigue of their own.

Alec Baldwin is lackluster as the ‘grieving husband,’ acting more as a point of irritation for the audience in his constant denial and static reception to his wife’s illness. Kristen Stewart manages to shine as Alice’s rebellious daughter, who serves as the only one of Howland’s children worth acknowledging throughout the entirety of the film. The great irony of Stewart is her ability to evoke such strong emotion without displaying any herself, creating scenes that would leave even the hardest heart on the verge of tears while Stewart as an individual entity does little beyond following the director’s instructions.

The only failure of Still Alice is how it wastes opportunities to show character development, particularly in

Julianne Moore stars as Alice, a professor whose life unravels when she is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. (Variety.com) the eldest daughter, portrayed by Kate Bosworth. Based on the dialogue, Bosworth’s character should have been far more impacted by the discovery of her mother’s disease, yet she remained little more than a plot accessory and a minor foil to Stewart. Yet, even with this glaring flaw, Still Alice soars in its ability to hone in on one aspect— Alice’s disease—without becoming boring or repetitive. Watching Alice become consumed by her losses is heart-wrenching—the film is stark in

its portrayal of Alzheimer’s progression and unrelenting in its examination of the toll this disease can have on caretakers and loved ones. The film does possess moments of beauty, but ultimately not enough to provide the movie with even the idea of hope, dedicating itself instead to the dark realism that accompanies the disease.

Sad from beginning to end and fully lacking in climax or development beyond that of the disease, Still Alice is a film so raw in its execution that

to watch it is to become part of it. Codirectors Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland excel in creating universal nuances from minimalist moments. If you are looking to be truly engulfed by a character and an experience in its purest form, look no further than the non-idealized tragedy of Still Alice.

Still Alice will be shown at various times every day at Cinema du Parc (3575 Parc). Tickets are $10 for people 13-25.

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Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Stemple Pass: A discomforting, compelling exposition Filmmaker James Benning makes innovative art project out of a disturbing subject Elizabeth Mclellan Contributor

The VOX gallery, also known as “Centre de L’image Contemporaine,” is known for its self-reflexive art, experimenting with colour, shape, form, and technology to facilitate public discourse on the nature of image in today’s society. As a nonprofit organization, entrance to the gallery leaves your pockets untouched, making the exhibit accessible to students and contemporary art connoisseurs alike. The subject of James Benning’s Stemple Pass exhibit, however, is somewhat less easily reached in its simplicity and rejection of the traditional narrative style that delights and entertains the modern subject.

The visually stunning, vibrant, and complex aesthetics of the video is accompanied

by little movement, sound, or diversion. While this produces a powerful piece of art, it can alienate its audience—which I could see in the restlessness of my fellow audience members. The piece consists of a single shot of a forested valley, with a lone log cabin billowing smoke in the cold months, with mountains dipped in fog emerging from behind.

The cabin, a replica of the selfbuilt cabin of Ted Kaczynski— known as the Unabomber— peaks out from behind the thick cover of foliage, characterizing the aesthetic makeup of the rest of the screen. The voice-over narration of the Unabomber’s private notebooks offer the viewer a peek into the comically disturbing world of the mind of a serial killer.

Stemple Pass is a game of concentration. The work itself plays against the viewer, challenging us to achieve a

meditative state of focus with the screen. Inevitably, it wins, staying still and silent for longer than comfortable and forcing the viewer over the cusp into distraction and fidgeting.

Benning is perhaps utilizing this stillness to succinctly reflect upon duration, time, and the very human condition of restlessness.

The calm of the image is in stark contrast to the pulsating and almost throbbing energy of the disturbing mind of Kaczynski. It is thrilling—by far the best horror film I’ve ever seen. There is comedy in the monotonous, apathetic, and deep voice delivering strange plots to kill people. The resentful anger Kaczynski emanates towards modern society—with its technology, progress, and capitalist culture—is made clear through his simplistic prose. Benning’s fascination with political contrarianism

explains in part his choice of the Unabomber’s manifesto for his work, yet to distill the messy and complicated narrative to this would indeed be reductive.

The audience’s interaction with the screen and its subject is guided by the stools situated centrally in the relatively large black room. Much like in a theatre, viewers sit in suspense, watching the screen, bound by a code of conduct. When the theatre space became empty, I felt myself freed from the laws of viewership and possibilities of interaction with the screen and surrounding space entered my mind. Although I only acted on one: Sprawling out in the vast space between the stools and the screen to get a different angled look at the screen. This change, however, only made me realize the true fixed nature of the image, and it devolved from a video into an abstract painting. The image

lost any cohesion, and was no longer a valley with mountains and a log cabin, but a series of colours, shapes, and disjointed sounds.

A good painting can depict the reality of inhabiting a time and space, whether it be abstract or realist, but this video did just the opposite. In a true Italian Neorealist tradition, it captures the very essence of time and place through an unfiltered, unedited, and very real image, while resisting change for so long as to destroy any concept of setting and devolve into an abstract array, like splotches of paint on a canvas. Benning’s Stemple Pass exhibit is a must-see—even if only to view it in passing.

Stemple Pass will be screened until Saturday, Feb. 21 at various times at VOX Centre de L’image Contemporaine (2 St. Catherine E).

Oscar backlash misses the mark max joseph Staff Writer The 2015 Oscar nominations were announced recently, and with them came the inevitable handwringing that always accompanies news regarding the awards. Many critics cried racism, and the news was generally treated by denizens of the internet as symptomatic of the gross racial inequalities that continue to plague North America and the rest of the world. In one particularly hyperbolic headline, the popular news website Vox declared, “Selma was snubbed because the average Oscar voter is a 63-year-old white man.”

Here’s what actually happened: Selma, a biopic about Martin Luther King, Jr., was nominated for two awards (Best Picture and Best Original Song). While this would be great news for most films, many pundits were expecting additional nominations for director, Ava DuVernay, and lead actor, David Oyelwo. In their places in both categories were groups of entirely white nominees. These facts, combined with the statistics that Academy voters are 94 per cent white, 77 per cent male, and have an average age of 63, were all the evidence Vox cited when it proclaimed its inference.

While such a conclusion would be sensible if one were to look at the situation in a vacuum, such a reading seems incredibly reductive in the context of the rest of this year’s nominations. A film considered by many to have one of the year’s best scripts and widely seen as a frontrunner for the Best Adapted

Screenplay category, Gone Girl, wasn’t recognized for its writing.

Another film considered by many to be one of the best recent animated films, The Lego Movie, wasn’t nominated in the Best Animated Feature category.

My personal choice for the best film of 2014, Guardians of the Galaxy, had to be content with nominations in technical categories.

None of this is to suggest that any of these films should or shouldn’t have been nominated, but rather to show the subjectivity involved in deciding whether one work of art is “better” than another. I was very impressed by the work writer Gillian Flynn produced in adapting her novel Gone Girl for the screen, but I don’t see how one could fairly compare its unique brand of lurid camp to any of the films that did get nominated for their screenplays. Similarly, The Lego Movie’s idiosyncratic combination of self-aware humour aimed at adults and surprisingly moving moments differentiates it entirely from the Best Animated Feature nominees, making it challenging to assess the film in relation to them. As for Guardians, well, I’ve suspected for a while now

that I’d just have to learn how to live in a world that wouldn’t grant it Oscar glory.

These examples also prove the inherent absurdity in trying to affix a narrative to a process that’s anything but exact. Yes, many members of the Academy are old white men, which means that they bring a certain perspective to their viewing and assessment, but that still doesn’t explain why they’d snub the script of a film that was seen by many—unfairly, in my opinion, but the point remains valid—as a misogynistic fantasy or a hilarious comedy about plastic toys.

Furthermore, it’s not like Academy

members form a cabal in which they discuss the best ways they can think of to prevent gender and racial equality: the group consists of a disparate mix of industry professionals who vote based on what they think about what they’ve seen.

The controversy over what recognition Selma did or did not receive distracts from the more pressing issue of Hollywood’s lack of diversity. Sure, it would be nice if the one film nominated for Best Picture with a majority black cast had also received recognition for its black star and black director, but wouldn’t it be even nicer if we didn’t

(Eleanor Milman / McGill Tribune) have to place our hopes for equality in the entertainment industry on the shoulders of one film? Between Selma and last year’s Best Picture winner, 12 Years A Slave, the last few years have been an improvement for representations of people of colour in critically acclaimed films, but the still conspicuous lack of diverse casts shows how much work is left to be done. Let’s worry more about doing it than about whether or not films that try to ameliorate the situation are properly recognized for their efforts.

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Time Warp: Songs that sound out of time

ALBUM REVIEWS Dan Mangan + blacksmith - Club Meds Arts & crafts

Anna St. clair Contributor

My Same

Artist: Adele Album: 19 Released: January 28, 2008 Adele has made a name for herself with her soulful and powerful voice, bringing new beauty to pop ballads. In “My Same” Adele’s vocal muscles were not flexed as far as on other tracks, but the cool vintage piece highlights her distinct, old-­ fashioned voice. Adele blends deep, luxurious vocals with catchy jazz guitar melodies, and a swung rhythm to compose a classy romantic number. Lyrically, she moves away from her usual subject — breakups. Instead, “My Same” is about the fun romance of an unlikely pair. Enjoy with a martini, heavy-winged eyeliner, and ’60s bouffant.

Well, You Can Do It Without Me

Club Meds constitutes the fourth studio album for Canadian musician Dan Mangan—the first with Blacksmith as his

Artist: Tame Impala Album: Lonerism Released: October 5, 2012 Tame Impala is known for the influence of psychedelic rock in its music on tracks like “Feels Like We Only Go Backwards.” But the group really radiates the euphoric sounds of the late ’60s on “Apocalypse Dreams.” It features lead singer Kevin Parker channelling the voice of John Lennon as well as drippy keyboard chords and fuzzy synth effects. Bursts of blissed-out guitar riffs and detached and dreamy lyrics give the song a dizzying and indulgent feel. Like the psychedelic rock of the ’60s and ’70s, you’ll feel a little bit high after just one hit.

George Ezra makes his way across the pond this month—physically and digitally—first through his performance last week in Montreal opening for “Stay With Me” singer, Sam Smith; and then by the release of his debut album, Wanted

The welcome exception to all this is the album’s excellent second single “Mouthpiece,” in which Mangan reverts back to his more traditional folk-rock style, making the album briefly come alive with energetic guitar strums and seemingly more attentive vocals. However, this only serves to highlight the failings of the rest of the album. Ultimately, where other musicians like Ryan Hemsworth and The Weeknd succeed in toning down their music to complement a great atmosphere, Mangan fails, coming off as boring and generic.

-Martin Molpeceres

on Voyage, to the North American market. The album was previously released on May 19, 2014 with great success featuring hits such as “Budapest” and will now be attempting to make its way into the hearts of Americans with its secondary release on Jan. 27.

Travelling suits the 21-year-old singer, as the majority of the album was written while he was backpacking across Europe, as displayed through such songs as “Barcelona” and “Blind Man in Amsterdam.” Ezra conveys powerful and complex emotional ideas through his simple and real songs, which have a transcendent nature. His music encapsulates a wide spectrum, from the youthful upbeat tunes of “Cassy O’” and “Blame it On Me,” the latter of which calls for one to seize the day, asking “what you waiting for” with

the fear and pressure of passing time, to the protective slow embrace of “Coat of Armour” and the darker haunting sound of “Did You Hear the Rain?” Produced by Cameron Blackwood. The album has effectively updated old techniques yet kept the integrity of its spirit, which contributes to make the youthful Ezra’s music feel eternal.

Ezra can already count a fan in Ian McKellen—better known as Gandalf— who was featured in his music video for “Listen to the Man.” This great new artist will be returning to Montreal and opening for Hozier on March 3 at the Metropolis.

-Clare Murphy

BJORK - VULNICURA ONE LITTLE indian INDIAN

In Case of Fire

Artist: Mark Ronson Album: Uptown Special Released: January 13, 2015 Mark Ronson has blown up the radio recently, with Bruno Mars lending his voice to Ronson’s charttopping single, “Uptown Funk.” Uptown Special features the vocals of artists with a wide range of styles. Most noteworthy is his collab with Jeff Bhasker, “In Case of Fire.” The jam starts off with heavy guitar riffs circa 1982 before sliding into a smooth bass line, organ groove, and breathy falsetto vocals. If there is one thing that tells us that this song wasn’t released in the ‘80s, it’s the reference to the drug of choice of the 2010s: Adderall.

backing band—and takes a departure from the songwriter’s folky style into more abstract musical genres. Attempting to convey a darker, atmospheric flair through eclectic melodies and slow vocals, the album falls spectacularly flat, coming off as lazy and unenergetic as Mangan meanders from one track to the next.

Every song sounds gratingly similar to the last, beginning and ending with non-musical beats and sound bites, which feel like an attempt to sound innovative or challenging, but instead, bleed together into an indistinct mess. This of course isn’t helped by lackluster lyrics, which are marred by pretentious quotations that carry less depth than probably intented.

george ezra - wanted on voyage columbia records

Artist: Father John Misty Album: Fear Fun Released: April 30, 2012 The former Fleet Foxes drummer Joshua Tillman is now producing music as Father John Misty. On “Well You Can Do It Without Me,” he returns to quality roots of rock ‘n’ roll with steady blues guitar rhythms and conventional lyrics holding together the laid-back jam. The gruff but strong vocals complete the song’s sound: It’s both new and retro; it returns to the blues rock sounds of the late ’70s, but isn’t a copy of other current acts like The Black Keys or Jack White.

Apocalypse Dreams

17

Björk’s Vulnicura manages to pull off an admirable feat by balancing intricate production with emotive rawness. The album offers a brutally comprehensive forensic analysis of Björk’s failed relationship with famed visual artist Matthew Barney. The tracks thematically capture the slow death of a long-term relationship and gradual acceptance of loss.

“Stone Milker” captures Björk’s futile

yet hopeful attempts to restore her relationship over sweeping strings. In “Lion Song” she conveys her insecurity with a clarity and courage despite heartbreak. “Maybe he will call my name,” Björk sings over and over, trying to convince herself that her relationship is not yet over. “History of Touches” brings the listener to Björk’s bedroom as she looks at her sleeping lover and struggles to feel emotional closeness despite physical proximity.

The album builds to the 10-minute long “Black Lake,” which combines plaintive strings and exposed vocals to finally capture Barney’s departure from Björk’s life. Björk cycles from depression (“I am one wound”) to anger (“You betrayed your own heart”) and finally to a gradual acceptance (“As I enter the atmosphere/ I burn off layer after layer”).

Sometimes the lyrics can be a little too direct: “I’m tuning my soul to the universal wavelength,” croons Björk in “Atom Dance.” However, the masterful production

makes up for it, and “Atom Dance” showcases Björk’s excellent curation of collaborators with Anthony Hegary’s electronically manipulated vocals blending perfectly with Arca’s cataclysmic bass. Arca, who has worked with Kanye West and FKA twigs, makes his presence known throughout the album—the syncopated bass on “Mouth Mantra” is almost as good as Björk’s singing.

The album ends on “Quicksand,” where Björk accepts that the loss of her partner will be part of her forever: “When I’m broken I am whole/ And when I’m whole I’m broken.” This acceptance is no longer tinged with the anger earlier in the album. Björk creates an album out of emotional devastation that is personal, powerful, and highly recommended by this reviewer.

-Dan Moczula

18

Tuesday, January 27, 2015 Science & Technology Research project engages undergraduates in research MIMM 212 has real-life applications Clare Lyle Staff Writer Unlike traditional courses, where students perform predictable experiments to learn laboratory techniques, MIMM 212’s (Laboratory in Microbiology) students are on the front lines of scientific research.

The course is part of the Small World Initiative (SWI), a project based out of Yale University that seeks to engage undergraduates in scientific research tackling the real-world problem of antibiotic resistance. Students in the lab are challenged to learn standard laboratory procedures and apply them to their own research projects. The SWI has partners in over 50 academic institutions, with McGill as the first Canadian university to join the initiative and as one of the first international partners.

MIMM 212 was revamped for Fall 2014 to align with the SWI’s objectives by having students analyze local soil samples and search for antibiotic-producing microorganisms. Student response has been overwhelmingly positive. Among the reasons for this support is the way that the course

allows students to experience conducting research.

“I appreciated that our labs built on previous weeks,” Jessica Yudcovitch, U1 Science, explained. “I think it made it a more realistic experience in regards to actual laboratory research.”

According to Daniel Huang, U1 Science, the potential ramifications of the results of the lab’s experiments in the real world were also a highlight of the course.

“The course focuses on a real issue [antibiotic resistance] that’s affecting thousands of people, so it provides more than just learning standard lab techniques like growing bacteria or doing PCRs,” Huang said. “Everything was geared towards finding new bacterial species that could produce novel antibiotics to tackle the rise of bacterial superbugs, which makes doing well on all the experiments and focusing on all the pre-lab lectures easier, more important, and much more meaningful.”

Despite the course’s success, the process of designing a course in which the results of experiments are not known ahead of time can be difficult.

“One challenge was reacting to

MIMM students working in the lab. (Photo courtesy of Samantha Gruenheid) the results [that] the students were getting in real time,” said course professor Samantha Gruenheid. “The major goal of the course is to identify and characterize antibiotic-producing bacterial strains from the soil. At the beginning of the term, I didn’t know how many of the students’ bacterial isolates would have this activity. What if there were very few? What would we do for the rest of the term?”

The shift in the course’s focus from rote memorization and master-

ing routine tasks to a more open-ended project means that the course is continuously evolving.

“At first, I think it was an adjustment for them to be given the freedom and some of them took some time to build up their confidence to make their own decisions about their projects,” Gruenheid said. “Maybe a few of them were thinking ‘Just tell me what I need to memorize to do well in this class.’

However, when I saw the presentations at the end of the year, I was really im-

pressed. In addition to learning the lab skills, I think they learned a lot more about thinking, researching, and communicating like a scientist.”

Students currently enrolled in the course have praised its unconventional structure.

“I would absolutely recommend this course to other students,” said Jessica Harvey, U1 Science. “The grading is fair, the people are great, and the work is meaningful.”

Coding 4 dummies Programming

by Matt Smith

There are several ways to learn programming and plenty of languages to choose from. The good news is that even though they are not the same, they are often analogous; once you learn one programming language, most others follow easily. Codecademy.com provides practical knowledge and lets you program interactively as you’re learning. It’s ideal for the basics, but will not take you too far down any path. If you’re interested in web development, and want to get started right away, take a look at Codeacademy’s HMTL/CSS track, as well as the one on Javascript. If you want to take programming more formally and more seriously, try Python or Ruby.

Another good resource for learning programming is udacity.com, which allows you to access courses— introductory through advanced—for free. For those interested in classical programming, I recommend starting with its Java or Intro to Computer Science classes; for web development, I recommend HTML/CSS. Modern development requires much more than just programming skills. For those learning how to program, this is sometimes the hardest step. While your efforts may seem far from any real software, it’s essential to keep working. If you’ve made it this far, you have the building blocks from which all software is made.

Level Up After learning basic programming, it’s important to understand some of the theory behind software development. At this stage, it may still be difficult to understand everything you’re reading or doing, but that’s okay. Take it slow and use Google and Wikipedia often, but keep moving and, don’t get stuck on any one topic .

For Javascript/web developers, take a look at eloquentjavascript.net, which may contain some duplicate information, but will certainly improve your skills as a programmer. Udacity’s web development course teaches web fundamentals, and will get you ready to program your first web app. Try making a chrome extension using the knowledge that you have gained so far, or develop your own personal website.

For the Python/Ruby programmers, check out the free eBook “Think Python,” or the last few pages of learnpythonthehardway.org/book or learnrubythehardway.org/ book, especially the “next steps” section, for more advanced topics in your language of choice. Udacity’s “Intro to Algorithms” provides a broad overview of commonly used algorithms in computing. The Django Tutorial (for Python) or the Rails Tutorial (for Ruby) will teach you about useful frameworks for developing web applications.

Both groups should also learn to use the command line at this point. It is a different way of interacting with the computer through text rather than through the mouse, and teaches a lot about how programs interact with the computer. cli.learncodethehardway.org/book is a good resource for this.

Join the Club

(Cordelia Cho / McGill Tribune)

Finally, it is time to put your skills to the test by getting involved in the programming community. Github.com is a great site for finding new tools, sharing code, and contributing to open source. The name comes from git, a version control system that is incredibly useful for programmers. atlassian.com/git/ contains everything needed to become a git master.

Hack McGill hosts hack nights and other meet-ups throughout the year. , which are great ways to meet other programmersAttend a ‘hackathon,’ a 24+ hour coding marathon where teams build working software from scratch in a friendly competition.

Mastering programming is in no way simple, but hopefully this guide will help provide you with a foundation that you can build on as you move forward in your programming career.

19

Science & Technology Do you want fries with that?

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

McGill researchers prove you’ll say yes

lydia kaprelian Contributor

Is being bilingual better?

MRI scan of brain areas activated when perceiving high caloric foods. (Photo courtesy of Deborah Tang) chloe Nevitt Science & Technology Editor Next time you think you’re deciding between a salad and fries, your brain may have already subconsciously made the decision for you. A research team from the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital of McGill University and the McGill University Health Centre has shown that food choices are largely governed by past experiences.

“In our study, we were interested in learning about how people make decisions in regards to food,” explained Deborah Tang, lead author of the study. “We took 29 people and put them in an MRI scanner. We showed them pictures of food and asked how much they’d be willing to pay for each picture.”

This method, known as the Becker-DeGroot-Marshak auction, has participants bidding between $0 and $5 in $0.50 increments for each item. The best strategy is to bid what one is willing to pay for the item, which then enables the research team to determine how much a person is willing to pay.

The team concluded that the participants’ choices and willing-

ness to pay were based on the caloric density—the amount of calories per gram—of the food. Initially, the team believed that the participants would choose the healthier food items that were lower in calories; however, they quickly realized that this wasn’t the case.

It doesn’t matter how many calories a person believes is in the food, explained Tang.

“The brain creates this response to food based on previous exposure to it in terms of calories.”

The participant will want to go for the food item that in the past has provided them with the largest amount of calories. These feeding patterns are signalled by an area of the brain known as the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC).

The vmPFC reacts to stimuli and is responsible for decision-making.

Brain scans of the participants from Tang’s study showed high activity in these regions during their bidding session.

The study also had participants accurately try to estimate the caloric contents of the food items they were bidding on. Surprisingly, the participants did a poor job determining the calories pres-

ent in the foods; however, they still consistently chose the higher calorie option. This indicates that despite not being able to identify the higher calorie food, people will still choose it.

“While this is showing that subconsciously you don’t have a lot of control on this, [maybe] certain drugs can alter your brains response to food,” Tang said.

According to the latest Canada census, one in four people are obese and the ability to cut back on food by managing cravings could mean great things for those trying to lose weight. These urges involves another aspect that the team is investigating: The hunger hormone ghrelin. “[Ghrelin] goes up before feeding, and down after,” explained Tang. “High levels of ghrelin leads you to eat more.”

Understanding the signaling pathways responsible for hunger urges can provide help to those suffering from type II diabetes and cardiovascular problems.

So, don’t feel bad the next time you’re reaching for the brownie you shouldn’t be having—your brain’s already decided for you.

A 2011 census of Canada revealed Montreal to have the highest rate of bilinguals in the country. While this figure may not come as a surprise to many, it does make Montreal the ideal candidate for demonstrating the ‘bilingual advantage.’

Evidence has shown that raising a child in a multilingual environment endows the developing brain with distinct advantages in executive function—that is, the ability to manage higher-level cognition including problem solving, task switching, planning, and execution.

Dr. Angela de Bruin, raised speaking Dutch and English, attended the University of Edinburgh to find out more about the relationship between bilingualism and cognition. She began her first study fully expecting to document the ways bilingualism confers success.

“I had the impression that there’s a really strong effect of bilingualism on executive function,” de Bruin predicted.

However, the data showed no difference between monolingual and bilingual performance on three out of four of the cognitive tests she conducted.

She decided to investigate the claims further. She examined abstracts from 169 conferences, looking for those involving bilingualism and executive control. De Bruin wanted to look for publication bias; maybe there was a preference toward publishing positive results­—ones that showed an advantage of bilingualism.

Sure enough, about half of the findings presented at conferences showed complete or partial support, while the other half provided complete or partial opposition for the bilingual advantage. Yet, of the studies that were subsequently published, 68 per cent of the studies demonstrating a bilingual edge were published while only 29 per cent of the studies showing no difference or a monolingual advantage found their way into publication. De Bruin published her findings in Psychological Science last month under the title “Cognitive Advantage in Bilingualism: An Example of Publication Bias?”

“I’m definitely not saying there’s no bilingual advantage,” de Bruin ex-

Write for sci-Tech

email: scitech@mcgilltribune.com

plained.

De Bruin thinks we may be looking in the wrong places. Instead of conferring an advantage during the developmental stage of life, de Bruin believes that the data is more compelling when showing a bilingual advantage toward the end of life. Data has shown that bilinguals are, on average, diagnosed with Alzheimer’s 4.3 years later than monolinguals. She posits that bilingualism may help protect against cognitive decline. For this reason, de Bruin argues, the bilingual advantage may still ring true.

Music knows no bounds Hauke Egermann and Stephen McAdams from McGill’s Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Music Media and Technology are learning that the language of music is universal. In a recently published article in Frontiers of Psychology, Egermann et al. studied psychophysiological responses to music between two groups—Montrealers and Menbenzé Congolese pygmies—who had no previous knowledge of the other groups’ music.

Both experimental groups listened to 19 musical clips—11 Western and eight Pygmy pieces. They were then asked to choose between emoticons to explain their moods by asking whether they felt calm (closed-eyes emoticon) or excited (open-eyes). The researchers also monitored the participants’ heart rate, breathing rate, and other psychophysiological indicators.

As it turns out, emotional responses to music are remarkably similar across cultural lines. The main difference, the study notes, is that Canadian listeners felt a wider array of emotions than Pygmy listeners.

The explanation is most likely cultural.

“In general, music is used in this culture to evacuate all negative emotions,” said Nathalie Fernado, a contributing researcher from the Université de Montreal.

“People have been trying to figure out […] whether the way we react to music is based on the culture that we come from or on some universal features of the music itself,” McAdams explained. “Now we know that it is actually a bit of both.”

Sports

20

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Know your McGill Athlete

Carolann Cloutier martlet basketball - guard Graduate Student (Photo courtesy of Maxime Riendeau)

The Martlet basketball team has not lost a game this season and is the only undefeated team remaining in the CIS. McGill currently sits atop the RSEQ Conference with a record of 8-0, and have a lot to be proud about. With a wonderful coach and amazing teammates, it is no wonder that senior guard Carolann Cloutier will be sad to leave this all behind.

The Quebec born, South Shore-raised student-athlete has been playing at the university level for almost five years—her experience both on and off the court in those years has been quite eventful.

Despite her smooth handle and natural shot, many will be surprised to learn that Cloutier’s athletic career did not begin with a basketball in her hands. Growing up, she played soccer—basketball was reserved for gym class. When she was eight, her gym teacher noticed that she had a talent for the sport and encouraged her parents to sign her up for a weekend league. When she was 15, Cloutier was faced with a tough decision–soccer or basketball. She chose the latter because she felt that she had “more of a future in basketball.” She was right.

Cloutier would go on to play for Dawson College. In her last year, she was discovered by an NCAA scout and moved to the U.S. where her athletic career took off.

“You’re busy all the time but then you become organized and disciplined,” Cloutier said, reflecting on the shock of transitioning into the U.S. sports atmosphere. “At first, you miss home; the first semester was really hard, but then you get used to it— you have your routine.”

For her first year in the NCAA, she played at Old Dominion University in Virginia.

Unsatisfied with the way things were progressing, but unwilling to come home, she decided to transfer to the University of Massachusetts, where she played two more years in the NCAA and obtained her bachelor’s degree in psychology.

After graduating, Cloutier still wanted

to continue playing while also furthering her education. Enter the Martlets—she applied to McGill for a master’s degree to continue playing. In Canada, student-athletes are allowed to play for a maximum of five years. Having spent three years in the NCAA, Cloutier had only two more years to obtain her M.Ed in Educational Psychology.

Looking back on her years at UMass, Cloutier noted that the main difference between playing in the U.S. and in Canada is that the NCAA is more demanding.

“You kind of owe it to them because they pay for everything including housing, food, books, and electricity […] so when they tell you to come in and do an extra workout you can’t really say no,” Cloutier explained.

Her parents have also been a crucial part of her journey. Being an only child, they were able to come and watch her play quite often, and when they visited, they would never come empty-handed. “[My mom would] prepare me meals and put them in the freezer […] so then it was so much easier and I didn’t have to cook as much,” Cloutier reminisced fondly.

In the two years that Cloutier has played for the Martlets, she says that her greatest focus has been on defence.

“I think that is definitely our strength because most teams [don’t] score as much on us as they do when they play other teams,” Cloutier said. “Before Christmas, when we played Laval, they averaged 70 points [per] game and we held them down to about 46. I think with [Head Coach] Ryan [Thorne], it always starts with defence, and if we can stop people, then I’m not worried about offence.”

If she had the chance to do it all over again, she would have taken the same route.

“I like that I’m ending [at] home [in Montreal],” Cloutier said. “I don’t think I would have left if I had started here [at McGill].”

By Tiffany Okotako McGill Tribune (MT): Who is your favourite player in the NBA? Carolann Cloutier (CC): My favorite player is Kobe Bryant. My mom bought tickets for me for Christmas to go watch Kobe in Brooklyn [...] and I [got] a message on my phone [prior to this interview] that Kobe is out for the season.

MT: What is your idea of the perfect day?

CC: The beach. I love it—I actually went to Cuba for Christmas. I just like to lie there or go on a walk the beach.

The sound of the water is so relaxing.

MT: If you won the lottery what would you do with the money?

CC: Honestly, I would have to sit down and not start spending money like crazy. I really like shoes. I would definitely travel. I would see if I could keep playing basketball, and then the salary would not matter because I would already be rich.

MT: Most played song on your iPod? CC: You know that movie Pitch Perfect? They played that song Titanium

by David Guetta and it’s definitely my most listened-to song in my car.

MT: Favourite Montreal restaurant?

CC: Lately I’ve been going a lot to Le Vieux Duluth. I just love food in general. But I definitely missed Tim Horton’s when I was gone; Dunkin’ Donuts is not the same.

MARTLET HOCKEY With a 3-2 overtime win over Concordia on Sunday, the Martlets put the final nail into the Stingers’ coffin, effectively turning the RSEQ title into a two-horse race between McGill and Université de Montréal. After being held scoreless for the first two periods, the Martlets came back from a 1-0 and then a 2-1 deficit in the third on goals from Katia Clement-Heydra and Gabrielle Davidson to force an overtime period. With under a minute left, speedy forward Leslie Oles sliced through the Stinger defence and snapped in the game-winner. The Martlets have six games left on their schedule, and will take on the first-place Montreal Carabins on Friday in what should be an exciting showdown.

MARTLET VOLLEYBALL The Martlet volleyball team dug deep and came away with perhaps their biggest victory of the season thus far, defeating the CIS No. 3 ranked Université de Montréal 3-2 on the road. The match featured gruelling points and marathon sets, but after two hours and five minutes, the Martlets emerged with an upset win by set scores of 25-20, 21-25, 25-21, 20-25, and 17-15. This marked only the sixth win McGill has managed against the Carabins in their last 45 meetings. Juniors Ashley Norfleet and Catherine Amyot led the way on offence, scoring 14.5 and 14 points, respectively. Also notable was rookie middle Myriam Robitaille, who contributed 12 digs, seven kills, and an ace in the win. After this weekend, a mere one and a half games is all that separates last place from first in the tightly packed RSEQ.

Can’t Beat Us? Join Us. Write for sports Email sports@mcgilltribune.com for more information

Sports

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

21

Martlets, ninth; redmen, sixth

Record-breaking weekend at McGill Team Challenge McGill athletes collect five medals in total, including one gold Nick Jaskinski Contributor Ten records were broken at the 20th McGill Team Challenge at the Richard Tomlinson Fieldhouse on Friday and Saturday. The indoor track meet lasted two days and is the largest indoor meet in Canada with 749 athletes representing the 21 universities in attendance. The York Lions claimed the men’s title for the fourth time since the meet’s inception, while the Toronto Varsity Blues won their first women’s title. Guelph had the highest total combined score, with 16 medals between their men’s and women’s teams.

Overall, McGill collected one gold, two silver, and two bronze medals between the Redmen and Martlets, good enough for sixth- and ninth-place finishes respectively. Third-year Assistant Coach Jim McDannald stated that he was happy with his teams’ performances.

“I thought the McGill women and men had a good showing in front of the home crowd,” he said. “A lot of tough competition from around Canada comes to the McGill Team Challenge, so the meet is a great way to see how we stack up as we head towards the championship portion of our season.”

McGill’s lone gold medal came in the men’s 4x400m relay, with freshman Ryan McClelland running first leg, followed by juniors Steven Murray from Burlington, Ontario; Vincent Parent-Pichette from St. Paul de Joliette, Quebec; and finally Javier Montalvo from Closter, NJ in the anchor leg.

The team ran a blistering 3:17.99, the fastest university 4x400m in Canada this year, and just 0.16 seconds away from setting an all-time McGill team record. Parent-Pichette and Montalvo were both members of last year’s silver medal 4x400m squad at the CIS Championship, and are looking for even more this year.

“We are really proud of the men’s 4x400,” McDannald said. “With Steven [Murray] healthy and Ryan [McClelland] making an immediate impact, [the team is] hungry for the top spot on the podium.”

Strong performers from McGill included fourth-year neuroscience major Dylan Golow from Barrie, Ontario, finishing second in the pentathlon with 3,597 points and setting a new McGill record. The previous record was set by Golow in Quebec City last February. Fourth-year electrical engineering major Riley van Ryswyk of Surrey, British Columbia

The Redmen collectd a gold medal in the men’s 4x400 relay on Saturday. (Remi Lu / McGill Tribune) cleared 4.83m in the pole vault, setting a personal best and qualifying for the CIS Championships this March. His attempt was good enough for second place overall, and nearly bested the McGill record of 4.85m.

On the Martlets side, geography major Helena Reinfels from Puslinch, Ontario and accounting major Caila Kucheravy from Winnipeg both earned podium finishes. Reinfels took bronze in the pentathlon with 3,146 points in what was only her second ever university pentathlon competition. Kucheravy also came in third in the long jump

with a distance of 5.63m, a personal best.

Other records broken over the weekend included six by Laval’s Charles Philibert-Thiboutot from Quebec City, three in the 1000m and three in the 1500m. He won the 1000m with a sizzling 2:21.02, good enough to shatter Quebec, McGill Team Challenge, and Tomlinson Fieldhouse records, all by at least a full second. His 3:43.21 in the 1500m was good enough to again set records in the same three categories but by even larger margins. The Western Mustangs women’s 4x200m

relay also set a record of 1:40.48, winning the race and qualifying for the CIS Championships.

“It’s always great to see members of the team raising their game and running personal bests,” McDannald said.

“This team, the athletes, coaches and support staff work hard to help everyone reach their potential. So whether it’s a podium finish or somebody taking five seconds off their 3k time in 47th place, we are excited.”

McGill’s last home meet is on Feb 14, followed by the championship portion of the season.

10 THINGS:

cheats n’ hacks

By Mayaz Alam

(Photo courtesy of National Baseball Library) The Chicago Black Sox–Gambling and sports have an intricate, interwoven history, and, to this day, game-fixing is severely restricted in many parts of North America. You can fault the 1919 Chicago White Sox for that, as eight members from the team intentionally lost games to the Cincinnati Reds during the 1919 World Series in exchange for money. Cheating attempts are usually associated with trying to win, but arguably the most infamous one was all about losing.

The whack heard around the world–In January of 1994, figure skater Tonya Harding’s ex-husband and another co-conspirator attacked rival Nancy Kerrigan during the U.S. Figure Skating Championships. Harding and Kerrigan had a spirited rivalry after numerous competitions. Harding was not responsible, but she was punished for conspiring to hinder prosecution of the attackers.

SpyGate–Although DeflateGate was sneaky, Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots’ are no strangers to cheating, having videotaped the New York Jets’ defensive signals during a regular season game. The punishment was stiff—Belichick was fined $500,000, the largest possible amount for coaches, and the Patriots were stripped of their first round draft pick the following year.

Steroids in baseball–Roger Clemens, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Barry Bonds, and Alex Rodriguez were all generational talents. They have all also been linked to steroid use to enhance their natural abilities. Steroid use was rampant in baseball during the past two decades, but America’s pastime is finally starting to move past a ‘roided era in its history.

The hand of God–Diego Maradona is famous for many reasons—he won two World Cups, was a successful coach, and is widely regarded as one of the best soccer players of all time. His infamy, however, derives mostly from ‘the hand of God’ incident, in which he used his left hand to score the decisive goal in a 2-1 victory against England in the 1986 World Cup semifinal.

9.79–The 100-metre dash during the 1988 Summer Olympics was one of the most enthralling 10 seconds in the history of track and field. Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson stole the show with a world record breaking time of 9.79 seconds. One day later, Johnson tested positive for Stanozolol, an anabolic steroid, and was subsequently stripped of his gold medal.

Marathon faking–In the 1980 Boston Marathon, Rosie Ruiz was the first female competitor to cross the finish line after emerging as a spectator from the crowd in the last few miles. This was not Ruiz’s first cheating attempt–she finished 23rd in the New York Marathon just months earlier after hopping on the Subway for a portion of the race.

Kid Danny–Every year, hundreds of 12-year-old baseball players across the world travel to Williamsport, PA to play in the Little League World Series (LLWS). In 2001, Danny Almonte took the tournament by storm. Almonte struck out 62 of the 72 batters he faced and had a fastball that touched 76 miles per hour, an unfathomable number at the LLWS. Almonte also happened to be 14-years-old.

Lance Armstrong–Despite all the positive work he has done for cancer through Livestrong, Armstrong’s legacy will forever be tarnished after he was retroactively stripped of his seven straight Tour de France titles because of multiple doping offences. Armstrong had repeatedly denied using performance-enhancing drugs before admitting his indiscretions in a tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey.

Spanish Paralympians–In the 2000 Paralympic Games, the Spanish basketball team won gold in the ‘intellectual disability’ category. After the Games, however, an undercover journalist unearthed that the players had not undergone the testing needed to prove intellectual disability and 10 of the 12 were fraudulently participating. Needless to say, the Spaniards were stripped of their medals.

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In this battle of league titans, it’s going to come down to momentum and cohesion. After pulling a miraculous comeback victory over the Packers out of a hat in the NFC Championship game, the Seahawks have no shortage of energy and, besides the obvious raw talent, will rely on their chemistry and a veteran core to defend their title in the Super Bowl.

Yes, there are questions surrounding Russell Wilson’s composure after his ugly outing against Green Bay. Yes, Tom Brady is probably a better quarterback at the end of the day. But Wilson and the Seahawks have always found a way to get it done, and unlike the Patriots, they’ve had to fight and claw their way to Arizona.

An overtime squeaker is still a win–especially against Aaron Rodgers and the Packers, and it has only cement-

ed the Seahawks’ confidence. If they’re down by two touchdowns with Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick lining up ineligible receivers left and right, the Seahawks will undoubtedly be prepared and won’t be deflated. In fact, Pete Carroll is no stranger to New England trickery—he served as the Patriots’ head coach immediately before Belichick’s reign began.

With Marshawn Lynch looking menacing in the backfield, a receiving corps that includes Doug Baldwin and the emergent Jermaine Kearse, and a secondary that is largely unchanged from last year’s Super Bowl winning ‘Legion of Boom,’ the Seahawks will find a way to take down the Patriots on Sunday.

–Elie Waitzer, Sports Editor

Jessica Fu

Managing director 1: I’m sending all my love and prayers to the Hawks in Arizona.

2: Lately, the Hawks have seemed to only grow into themselves in the second halves of games. I would love for them to come out swinging next weekend, as it would save me the heavy-breathing-curled-up-in-aball-in-a-corner-for-three-hours anxiety that last week’s game induced. On the other hand, I’ve been weirdly maternal these days, so I’m just really happy that they’ve made it as far as they have.

3: Doug Baldwin Jr. is more breathtaking than all of the Pats players combined. He’s got a smile that can light up the whole town—not that Arizona needs it. (But I do.)

The Patriots will win their fourth Super Bowl this Sunday because they have balance—something the Seahawks, despite all their strengths, do not possess.

On offence, Tom Brady has been looking like his usual self, and has a track record of consistently elevating players around him. Expect Brady to come out firing on all cylinders and to shred the Seahawks’ defence mercilessly. Rob Gronkowski is currently untouchable, and not even the ‘Legion of Boom’ will be able to stop him in the red zone. Julian Edelman, Brandon LeFell, and Danny Amendola are a severely underrated receiving corps that will cause nightmares for the Seahawks’ secondary. Furthermore, with a bulldozer like LeGarrette Blount, the Patriots have a strong running game to complement their reliable passing game. The hobbled

Q1: Who do you want to win?

Q2: Why do you think they will win?

Q3: Who is your favourite player?

Kareem Ibahim

Mark Brawley

1: The losing team. They definitely need some serious lovin’.

2: Because a moral victory is all that matters, AM I RIGHT LADIES? 3: Beyonce, hands-down. Did you see her in the Super Bowl two years ago? Exactly.

1. I’m picking the Patriots.

2: Belichick’ s a genius at coaching, though he may be a bit too competitive for his own good. He’s a great leader because he surrounds himself with smart people (aka Josh McDaniels), who get the most out of the talent they have on the field.

U2 Arts Senator

Political Science

Seahawks’ defence will not be able to keep up.

On the defensive side, the Patriots have significantly upgraded from where they stood last year. With the addition of Darelle Revis, the Patriots can shut down any opposing receiver one-on-one. The Patriots’ offensive and defensive lines contain Pro-Bowl-calibre players who can tame Marshawn Lynch, the only true weapon Seattle possesses on offence. After Russell Wilson’s catastrophic, five-interception performance against the Packers, the Patriots will look to exploit his shaken confidence. The Patriots are solid on both sides of the ball, and that is what will lead them to victory against the Seahawks.

–Raphael Uribe Arango, Contributor

Hayley Lim

creative director 1: Pats.

2: The Pats will win because of the relentless, passionate, and merciless spirit of New England backing them. The impending blizzard will give them strength equal to that of Paul Revere on his midnight ride, the travellers of the Freedom Trail, or when I finish a huge bowl of Legal Seafoods clam chowdah.

3: My favourite player–the ‘Masshole’ wearing a Bruins hat in Gillette stadium.

Melodie Daoust

2014 Olympic gold medalist 1: I want the Patriots to win.

2: They will win because they have a very well balanced team from offence to defence.

3: Tom Brady is my favourite player!

Dallon Kuprowski

Redmen Starting quaterback 1: I am cheering for the Seahawks. Russell Wilson is too much fun to watch to not cheer for them.

Add personalities like Marshawn Lynch and Richard Sherman and it makes for exciting football.

2: I think they’ll be in tough against the consistency of the Pats. But if they can ride the wave of momentum created by their 12th man, they can pull it out on a few big plays.

3: I’d have to go with Russell Wilson. It seems like every week he manages to get away with doing things you don’t see in today’s NFL. He’s also one of the few guys who is constantly in the spotlight and has always handled himself like a true professional.

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

SeaHawks

Patriots

27

It’s almost too tight to call, but the Patriots will be crowned Super Bowl XLIX Champions on Sunday. Fortunately for New England, they won’t be facing Eli Manning and the Giants.

Drew Love

Athletics and recreation Executive Director 1: I am a huge Patriots fan. Very excited that they are in the Super Bowl once again.

2: The Pats will win the game. They have the best quarterback in football (well I am a fan so what else can I say), a great tight end, all-purpose receiver/returner, a good running game, and a wellorganized and thought-out game plan from their coaching staff.

The positive difference in shot total between the Martlet ice hockey team and the Concordia Stingers in McGill’s 3-2 overtime victory.

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Sports

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Athletes of the Week Points scored by the Martlet volleyball team in their 3-2 victory over the Montreal Carabins.

The new McGill record in the pentathlon set

by Dylan Golow, a senior neuroscience major from Barrie, ON, during the annual McGill Team Challenge.

Leslie Oles

Samuel Labrecque

Hockey, Forward Senior - Education

Hockey, Defenceman Freshman - Arts

Oles capped off the Martlets’ wild come-from-behind win over Concordia on Sunday night, scoring the overtime winner with 44 seconds remaining. She also added an assist for good measure. Oles has been her usual dominant self over the past five games, tallying 10 points on five goals and five assists. The Martlets have gone 4-1 over that span. Oles last earned Athlete-of-the-Week honours back in September, when she single-handedly willed the Martlets past Wilfrid Laurier 7-6, scoring a hat trick and dishing six assists.

Labrecque led the Redmen over the Queen’s Gaels this past weekend with a spectacular three-goal night, becoming the first McGill defenceman to score a hat trick in 19 years. In his first year with the Redmen, Labrecque has had an immediate impact, leading all CIS blueliners with nine goals in 22 games, all while playing All-Star-calibre defence. He should provide stability to McGill’s defence over the next few years as he matures and develops on both ends of the ice.

Photos courtesy of McGill Athletics

Hockey — Redmen 4, Gaels 1

Labrecque leads Redmen past Gaels Record hat trick for defenceman keeps McGill rolling Aaron Rose Staff Writer Freshman defenceman Samuel Labrecque came out of the Redmen locker room after Friday night’s game and addressed the media outside in short, quiet sentences.

“I was pretty lucky on all the goals,” Labrecque said, after ending a 22 game hat trick drought for McGill and becoming the first Redmen blueliner in 19 years to accomplish the impressive feat.

Modesty aside, Labrecque’s heroics helped McGill top Queen’s 4-1, stretching its streak to 27-consecutive games without a loss to the Golden Gaels (9-12-1). With the win, the CIS No. 8 ranked Redmen improve to 17-5-0 on the year, tied for second place in the OUA East division with Carleton. Despite the victory, McGill came out slow, with only four shots in the first frame.

“In the first [period,] I just didn’t think we were skating,” Head Coach Kelly Nobes said. “We weren’t getting pucks behind [their defence] nor to the net.”

After their poor showing in the first period, the Redmen opened the scoring early in the second. Just 30 seconds into the stanza, Queen’s backstop Kevin Bailie misplayed a puck behind the net, leading to

an easy one-timer for senior centre Marc-Olivier Vachon. Halfway through the frame, the floodgates finally opened for McGill. With the help of third-year defenceman JeanPhilippe Mathieu, who was playing in his first game of the season after fracturing his eye in a freak golfing accident, Labrecque found the back of the net three times in an eightminute span. A one-timer from the point made the score 2-0 before he added another two in quick succession—a tip-in in front of the net and a pinpoint shot to the top corner.

“The guys made great plays on my second one,” Labrecque said. “I just put a lot of pucks on net, and it ended up working for me.”

The final frame saw the Gaels switch to sophomore netminder Chris Clarke after Bailie had given up four goals on just 16 shots in the second.

Clarke stopped all 11 Redmen shots in the final period, but Queen’s could not crack McGill’s sophomore netminder Jacob Gervais-Chouinard, who added another spectacular performance to his resumé after registering a shutout in his last start.

As the Redmen sticks cooled off in the third, tempers began to flare.

Five roughing minors had both boxes packed tight before McGill’s bruising winger Neal Prokop was called for unsportsmanlike conduct to put

Labrecque loads up for a one-timer. (Photo courtesy of Derek Drummond / McGill Athletics) the Redmen down a man.

The Redmen, however, are no strangers to the art of playing shorthanded. They continued to dominate on the penalty kill, blanking the Gaels on all eight of their power plays and upping their penalty kill rate to a conference-best 90.3 per cent.

“Our penalty kill has been real good for us all year,” Nobes said.

“There are a lot of things that go into a good penalty kill […] certainly the

goalie stopping the puck is a big part of that, and [Gervais-Chouinard] was real solid out there tonight.”

Gervais-Chouinard stopped 30 of the 31 shots he faced, conceding a rebound goal late in the third after 116 straight minutes of shutout hockey.

On Wednesday, the Redmen head out to Trois-Rivieres to take on the division-leading UQTR Patriotes [17-3-2]. The McGill squad will have revenge on their minds after the

Patriotes defeated them 3-1 at McConnell Arena earlier this month.

If the Redmen can come away with a victory against a tough UQTR squad, they’ll be in a good position to run the table and finish the atop the OUA East standings for the first time since the 2011-2012 season.

“It’s a big game,” Nobes said.

“If we win our next four games, we finish first and we’d like to finish ahead of Trois-Rivières, so it’s a must-win game for us.”