McGill Tribune Vol. 33 Issue 9

Volume No. 33 Issue No. 9

TRIBUNE THE mcgill PX

Published by the Tribune Publication Society

CURIOSITY DELIVERS

CATCHING AND RELEASING THE BITCOIN BUG p 10

@mcgilltribune ­ • www.mcgilltribune.com ­

AOKIFICATION NATION Exclusive interview with Steve Aoki p 14

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Student-run café to open Jan. 6 in SSMU cafeteria Café will be first of its kind since closure of Architecture Café in 2010

See inside for TaCEQ analysis

report P 2 EDITORIAL P 6

The new student-run café will take the place of previous SSMU tenant Lola Rosa Xpress. (Photo by Wendy Chen, graphic by Alessandra Hechanova) Jessica Fu News Editor A student-run café is set to open on Jan. 6, 2014 in the SSMU Building, according to an announcement last Friday by the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU).

The location of the student-run café will be in the second floor cafeteria of the building. The space was previously occupied by Lola Rosa Xpress, which chose not to renew their sublease this year. The location remains equipped with the utilities required to run the café.

The announcement followed the McGill administration’s recent approval of SSMU’s proposed use of the space on the morning of Friday, Oct. 25, which is a requirement for all usage of room in the SSMU Building. SSMU President Katie Larson said that the announcement had been delayed due to various factors.

“There was confusion about whether the former Deputy Provost (Student Living and Learning) had given explicit consent to the project,” Larson said. “So [we] decided that before we advertised the project publicly we would need to get a new written ap-

proval so McGill was not surprised.”

The café will be staffed by students and financially managed in a manner similar to that of other SSMU operations, such as Gerts Bar and MiniCourses. According to Larson, its dayto-day operations will be organized by a coordinator of the café, who will also work on a budget with SSMU VicePresident Finance and Operations Tyler Hofmeister. Actual financial management will be performed by SSMU’s accounting department.

“As for actually accounting, bookkeeping, all those professional services, we would have them in-house already,” Larson said. “So we are able to use them to support [the operation].”

Hofmeister said that the café is not expected to raise revenue.

“SSMU is a non-profit organization [and] as such, we attempt to run all operations at a break even basis,” he said. “To be clear, the café is aiming to make revenue it’s first year—enough to offset the associated expenses with operations in this year.”

The announcement follows nearly three years of discussion within SSMU, which began in Fall 2010 when McGill shut down the student-run Architecture

Café due to alleged financial instability. The closure prompted protests by students and led SSMU to endorse a boycott of McGill Food and Dining Services (MFDS), as well as the suggestion of establishing a similarly run café in the SSMU Building.

Former SSMU president and current manager of the café Josh Redel said that in addition to providing jobs for students, the café will serve as a building block for related student initiatives, such as projects on sustainability and catering.

“At the start, we’re looking at some very interesting plating options and compostable materials and such but we’d very much love for a group of students to look into creative ways of doing takeout [and] looking into the plating issue in the cafeteria,” Redel said. “We hope that the [café] will be like a framework for students to be able to do projects like that, so that they have real life experience.”

According to Redel, the café will be inspired by ideas brought up during the Sustainability Case Competition held in March 2012, an event where teams of students developed designs focused on economic and environmental

sustainability. Although the competition advertised that the winning team’s design would be implemented, Larson said this is no longer possible given the circumstances of the café.

“They ran the competition without having a concrete way to implement [the winning idea],” Larson said. “It was miscommunicated in that way [….] which is unfortunate, because with great ideas, you don’t want to push people away with miscommunication.”

Andrew Wu, one of the four members of the winning team and a current U3 Arts and Science student, said that the current SSMU proposal is very different from the café design his team developed.

“During the competition, the stated goal was to create a socially inclusive café that was both environmentally and financially sustainable; all participants in the competition firmly believed in this goal, which is why there was such a high level of commitment towards the project,” Wu said.

“While much is still unknown about the student-run café, it’s somewhat disheartening to see that the vision is no longer what it used to be,” he added. “That said, I am still optimistic

that the student-run café can preserve the elements of sustainability that the cafe proposal was all about.”

Redel noted that the designs would continue to serve as inspiration for the café.

“We’re using a lot of information from all the teams to start,” Redel said.

“If we use any of their research, they will be credited for it for sure.”

Leading up to the official opening, SSMU will run a campaign to raise awareness of the café, engage students in its operation, and provide feedback regarding what students envision for the café. The campaign includes a naming contest, which will be determined through a student-wide vote through social media.

Redel stressed the importance of this student initiative.

“To be able have a space like that on a campus in downtown Montreal is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and I really hope people understand the impact of that,” Redel said. “I hope people get out and get engaged. It’s not just about consultation, it’s about being deeply integrated into how the café functions.”

NEWS

By Sam Pinto IS TaCEQ RIGHT FOR SSMU? Why the student federation faces criticism from its member associations

T

his year, the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) will be spending $17,000 on its membership to the Table de Concertation Étudiante du Québec (TaCEQ). Better known as the Quebec Student Roundtable, the organization is a student federation that seeks to represent its members on issues regarding student affairs by lobbying the Quebec government.

While $17,000 may seem insignificant in comparison with the SSMU’s $1 million budget, the budget cuts that McGill continues to face have led students to question the allocation of money across the university, including in governing bodies like SSMU. In March 2013, for example, a SSMU Council discussion on TaCEQ turned into a heated debate of the organization’s relevance, transparency, and usefulness to SSMU members.

Consideration of similar factors has led other member associations to contemplate leaving TaCEQ—the graduate student assocation of the Université de Sherbrooke (REMDUS) will be holding a referendum on Dec. 3-5 where they will decide whether or not stay in the association.

This week, the Tribune takes an in-depth look at TaCEQ to examine how the organization is making use of student dollars, and whether SSMU members benefit from being part of the organization.

What is TaCEQ? According to its website, TaCEQ is “a national group of university student associations whose main objective is to promote and defend the rights and interests of students.” TaCEQ represents approximately 70,000 students, including members of SSMU, the Université Laval’s post-graduate student association (AELIÉS), the Université Laval’s undergraduate student association (CADEUL), and REMDUS. TaCEQ is headed by a secretary general and two deputy secretary-generals—one for administrative and financial affairs, and another for internal affairs and communications.

As part of the job profile, SSMU’s Vice-President External acts as SSMU’s liaison to TaCEQ. Last year, SSMU also created the position of TaCEQ delegates, who accompany the Vice-President External to TaCEQ meetings to advise the VP in decision-making.

“The idea was that these people would be any SSMU member, councillor or not, who would be elected or appointed by council to go to TaCEQ meetings with the VP External,” explained former VP External Robin Reid-Fraser, who was involved in the creation of the position.

TaCEQ meetings are hosted monthly, most often in Quebec City, where the University of Laval is located. Votes are allocated proportionally based on the number of students per member association, with SSMU currently holding four votes out of 13.

Why is TaCEQ not nationally recognized?

In order to be nationally recognized, a union must have a minimum of four student associations on four separate campuses. Since two of TaCEQ’s four members come from the Université Laval, the organization does not qualify as such.

The primary issue with not being nationally recognized is that TaCEQ does not receive government bursaries, meaning that students of the member associations are required to pay additional fees to keep TaCEQ running.

Additionally, TaCEQ does not have the same influence in campaigning the provincial government that other nationally organized student unions, such as La Fédération étudiante universitaire du Québec (FEUQ) and La Fédération étudiante collégiale du Québec (FECQ), would have.

According to Reid-Fraser, the lack of national recognition is a fundamental problem for TaCEQ. “[National recognition] allows [unions] to have more full time staff, provide more research, and do more outreach work,” she said.

“TaCEQ would like to increase its capacity and have people who are working for it who are paid and aren’t expected to be volunteering a lot of their time.”

Current VP External Sam Harris said TaCEQ has made an effort to become nationally recognized even without reaching the required number of member associations.

“TaCEQ has written a letter to the current government asking it to

re-consider the arbitrary decision of the previous government,” Harris said.

Additionally, if REMDUS chooses to leave TaCEQ this December, TaCEQ’s legitimacy could be further weakened because the union would only represent two universities.

TaCEQ vs. FEUQ SSMU has a long history as a member of FEUQ, and only joined TaCEQ when it came into existence in 2009.

As a much larger student union, FEUQ represents over 125,000 Quebec students, has a larger budget—$620,000 per year from student fees, not including government bursaries. FEUQ therefore has more money to spend on its campaigns and research. This nationally recognized student union is also i n vit-

Secretary General

General Secretariat

ed to more government-organized events and summits than TaCEQ. SSMU withdrew from FEUQ following a dispute with the student federation in 1995, when SSMU was listed in a FEUQ resolution supporting the Quebec secession referendum even though SSMU had asked to abstain.

In order to avoid future issues such as these, SSMU, along with the three other student associations, collaborated to form their own student association.

Unlike FEUQ or L’Association pour une solidarité syndicale étudiante (ASSÉ), which have a centralized governing structure, TaCEQ has a decentralized body, which means that decisions are controlled by its member associations rather than by an autonomous governing

body.

According to Harris, this means that members have more say in political decisions, official positions, and campaigns. In addition, member associations can choose to opt-out of their involvement in TaCEQ decisions if they do not support the motions.

“A decentralized association [...] is one which has far fewer execs, staff, and resources, and whose decisions and direction are based on the collaboration of the execs or representatives from each member association,” Harris said.

Member associations of TaCEQ can leave the federation by submitting a question for their student association’s referendum period. This referendum would have to pass with a majority vote.

In contrast, one advantage of centralized student associations is that there may be a more fluid decision-making process because of their larger executive committee.

Because of its larger size and government, FEUQ is also able to branch to address the needs of specific student unions. Jonathan Mooney, Secretary General of the Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS), said one reason for PGSS’s membership in FEUQ is its council on post-graduate student unions.

“PGSS undertook a comprehensive review of its external affiliations in 2009 and choose to affiliate with FEUQ,” he said. “FEUQ includes an autonomous council of Postgraduate student associations dedicated to postgraduate issues, le Conseil national des cycles supérieurs (CNCS), and dedicates 20 per cent of its budget to CNCS.”

TaCEQ’s $53,500 budget, totaling $17,002.50 this year. According to Reid-Fraser, the vice secretary general of administrative and financial affairs compiles the initial budget, which member associations vote on.

At $2.06 per student for this year, this is less than the cost of being a member of FEUQ, which requires $2.50 per student per semester. This means that being part of FEUQ would cost SSMU members over $130,000 per year.

However, SSMU has also contributed more than its required amount toward TaCEQ-related activities this year. For example, this year SSMU committed to contributing up to $10,000 towards TaCEQ’s role as an intervener in a court case challenging the law that all Quebec students are required to be a member of an accredited student association.

“All the TaCEQ associations agreed that this was an area of common interest,” Harris said. “We would be helping to defend the validity of all student associations in Quebec—including SSMU—and setting a precedent against any future challenge of that nature.”

SSMU’s contribution does not come out of their TaCEQ budget, but rather from SSMU’s legal fees budget. The decision to contribute was made by the current SSMU executives this summer.

Additionally, SSMU has had to help pay fines after TaCEQ failed to properly pay its taxes in time in 2012, totalling $975, with SSMU having to pay for $326.63 of the fine.

“That was an issue of having some confusion in terms of getting paperwork filed and paying taxes to Revenu Québec,” Reid-Fraser explained. “There were some fines that were associated with that and those were shared by all the member associations.”

The cost of TaCEQ

Achievements

While there are no per-member fees for TaCEQ members, member associations are required to provide funds for a percentage of TaCEQ’s annual budget in order to keep the organization running.

Each member association pays a proportion of the budget in relation to how many members the student association has. SSMU, which has 26,000 members and makes up 33.5 per cent of TaCEQ’s membership, pays 31.5 per cent of

The main question that councillors brought up about TaCEQ in Council last March was about what the roundtable has achieved for students during its brief existence.

Both Reid-Fraser and TaCEQ Secretary General Paul-Antoine Cardin said they believe that TaCEQ’s involvement in the 2012 student movement has improved their reputation as a student federation.

“TaCEQ was quite involved

Curiosity delivers. |

TaCEQ Projected Revenue from membership fees 2013-2014

NEWS

TaCEQ’s

budget

Total budget: $53,500 AÉLIÉS $7,176

CADEUL $19,458

Other expenses- $810.00 Telecommunications- $1,499.99 Promotions and marketing- $1,600.00 Professional fees- $1,675.00 Insurance- $3,150.00 Representation fees- $9,798.50 Secretary generals’ salaries- $21,113.44

REMDUS $4,876

SSMU $14,490

| Tuesday, October 29, 2013

3

TaCEQ Projected Expenses 2013-2014

(Maryse Thomas and Hayley Lim / McGill Tribune) in the 2012 student movement,” Cardin said. “We were and are still against the tuition hike and demanded that tuition be freezed with the prospect of instating free education in CEGEPs and universities [….] We were at the negotiations and we had good relationship with the other national associations.”

Harris also cited TaCEQ’s invitation to the provincial government’s Higher Education Summit in February. However, Allison Cooper, former SSMU Vice-President Clubs and Services who attended several TaCEQ meetings last year, questioned the purpose of attending the summit.

“The education summit was pointless [and] not very participatory at all,” Cooper said. “It was completely unclear what a supposedly non-representational body [like TaCEQ] was representing at a political representative meeting.

This wasn’t a victory in any way.”

As an indication of the organization’s engagement in the education summit, Reid-Fraser pointed to a proposal that TaCEQ presented to suggest an alternative funding source for education in Que-

bec. The proposed model would fund higher education by taxing companies relative to the number of salaries they give out.

Although this proposal was not accepted at the summit, ReidFraser said the union’s accomplishments in the last few years signify that it is on the right track.

“Just the fact that TaCEQ was able to do some organizing around the strike and did participate in the education summit and brought some ideas that were different from some of the other associations [...] has been a definite positive sign,” she said.

Goals One of the major difficulties that TaCEQ has faced in the past has been to clearly define its goals moving forward. Because of TaCEQ’s decentralized nature, it can be difficult for the association to unanimously agree on more specific goals.

In order to better organize these goals as well as reform the association as a whole, member associations planned to organize a congress this year on Oct. 5-6;

however, the initiative has been suspended indefinitely.

“The cancellation of a congress has stalled the reform process, which had been asked for to some extent by everybody last year, including SSMU, “ Harris said. “Its main goal was to have a much larger group of members from each association, and for their input to inspire the changes TaCEQ was to make.”

Guillaume Fortin, TaCEQ’s Vice Secretary General of Internal Affairs and Finance, explained that AELIÉS chose to stall the congress, claiming that it had too many accompanying problems.

The problems with the congress include its structure as well as the actual subjects for discussion.

AELIÉS decided that because these issues couldn’t be resolved before the congress was set to take place, the meeting should be postponed.

“AELIÉS thought it was impossible to fix the problems of the congress in time,” Fortin said.

“The decision was more a restart of the preparation process for the congress.”

Cardin outlined several goals

TACEQ’s voting distribution Number of votes:

4

CADEUL 42.3% 29,473 members

3

AÉLIÉS 15.6% 10,851 members

4

SSMU 31.5% 21,958 members

2

REMDUS 10.6% 7,382 members

that he hoped the association would be able to address and solve this year.

“TaCEQ proposed some ideas about the evolution of the current financial assistance system, the future Universities’ National Council, and the eventual bill on Quebec universities,” he said. “We are still in contact with the government to ensure that our opinions are respected and understood.”

Criticisms of TaCEQ Having a more decentralized approach often requires more negotiation and involvement among the member associations of TaCEQ during the decision making process. While this has its advantages, it can also result in an increased number of disputes and stalemates.

Harris said that while SSMU has a close relationship with REMDUS, this is not the case for the other two student organizations.

“It’s not really a question of disliking them, it’s just that we’ve struggled to find areas of common ground,” Harris said.

SSMU has had ongoing debates regarding reform of TaCEQ’s governing structure.

“I was personally shocked the first time I attended a TaCEQ meeting by how truly disconnected I saw that SSMU was from the organization,” Cooper said. “There appeared to be many translational issues that were taking place, in addition to just really frustrating representatives from other member associations who would, for example, roll their eyes and make inconsiderate and anti-constructive remarks when the idea of producing bilingual materials for our primarily anglophone membership came up.”

TaCEQ’s website and executive documents are currently exclusively in French, although Cardin said the website will be translated by January 2014. According to Cooper, issues such as these point to a more fundamental problem with transparency within

TaCEQ. “It scares me that the only real public information about the TaCEQ-SSMU relationship last year came from SSMU Council and the VP External’s reports,” she said. “[These] say astonishingly little considering the behind-the-scenes conversations and shed zero light on what TaCEQ is actually doing with the thousands of dollars of SSMU members’ money.”

REMDUS has expressed similar frustrations, which will be addressed in its upcoming referendum on leaving TaCEQ. According to Harris, the referendum was prompted by frustration with the lack of progress on projects such as English translation and the congress.

In response, SSMU will assign its political attaché Julien Benoît to conduct research on SSMU’s student association membership history. SSMU aims to use this report to strategize its membership future following REMDUS’ referendum results.

“Our political attaché is preparing some research on what it would mean if they left and on our implication at the provincial level generally, as well as SSMU’s past affiliations and the reason for their demise,” Harris said. “The legitimacy of TaCEQ as a whole would be further questioned if it represents students from only two universities.”

Only having two universities in the association could further affect TaCEQ’s ability to actively promote the interests of its members. According to Cooper, her experience with the other member associations leaves her doubtful that representatives would be willing to cooperate with each other.

“Whether the failure of this relationship was on SSMU or TaCEQ’s end is certainly not 100 per cent clear,” Cooper said. “However, I think there were communication and engagement issues on both ends, and that speaks to the worth of having the affiliation at all.”

4

Tuesday, October 29, 2013 |

NEWS

| Curiosity delivers.

CITY

Montreal mayoral candidates face off in debate at McGill Four front-runners in Nov. 3 municipal election speak on corruption, economic growth, and public transit Harry McAlevey Contributor On Oct. 22, the four main candidates of the upcoming Montreal mayoral election participated in an English-language debate co-sponsored by McGill University and CBC Montreal. Hosted at McGill’s Tanna Schulich Hall, the debate was attended by over 150 members of both the McGill and Montreal community.

The event featured Marcel Côté, Richard Bergeron, Denis Coderre, and Mélanie Joly, who sought to clarify their platforms for the Nov. 3 election. Topics of debate included their plans to address corruption, revitalize the economy, and improve the transit system.

All four candidates stressed in their opening statements that their administration would be free from corruption—an issue that has caused two mayors to resign in the past year. Joly, who won 24 per cent of votes in an Oct. 15 online CROP poll of 1,001 people, said that her recent entrance into politics would aid her ability to restore integrity and bring accountability to city hall.

“All the information the city has [will] become public, and not only that, within the first hundred days of my administration I’ll make sure to name a Chief Digital Officer that will provide all the information to citizens,” she said.

Côté focused on his experience in management to show that he has solid plans to restructure the city’s political system.

“We need checks and balances in the executive committee which

Denis Coderre, pictured with team members, is considered the front-runner of the race. (Emma Windfeld / McGill Tribune) we don’t have now,” Côté said. “We need open government.”

Coderre, who is considered the front-runner of the race with 41 per cent support in the poll, said he and his allies would change the management of city hall. However, Coderre faced questions from the other candidates about ties to the corruption of the past administration.

Bergeron alluded to the fact that Coderre’s team includes 25 individuals from Union Montréal— the governing party of the city from 2001 until November 2012, when it collapsed after extensive corruption charges.

“Can you hope that you will change the situation with the same people that created the real mess we are in right now?” Bergeron asked.

Coderre defended his team, saying that their past associations do not affect their performance now.

“The reality right now is that I

refuse to have a society defined by guilt by association,” Coderre said.

“Those people are honest; those people are people of integrity.”

Joly also took aim at Coderre by expressing doubt that his proposed creation of an Inspector General position would be sufficient to root out corruption. Citing the example of former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg’s administration as a model, Joly argued that ensuring every Montrealer easy access to city information and discussions would result in greater accountability.

Coderre said his proposed appointment of an inspector general, who would oversee the investigation of and punishment of public officials involved in corruption, would entail more than just one person monitoring the city.

“It’s not just one person, it’s a department,” Coderre said. “It’s a change of culture, where you have

that individual who has the power and who will depoliticize all the process of procurement.”

Each candidate also outlined different goals they would pursue to spur economic growth. Coderre cited his experience with the federal government—as a member of parliament, then as a cabinet minister—as critical to Montreal’s economic hopes, saying that as mayor he could bring in the necessary people to make the city more efficient and to take care of lingering problems, such as demolishing abandoned silos.

While Côté criticized taxes as unnecessarily high, he also said he will not lower them, which drew criticism from other candidates.

“It’s great you’ve made the analysis that taxes are too high but we need solutions, not analysis,” Joly said.

Côté repeatedly emphasized his management experience and

what he could do to spur economic development. Naming Montreal the “orange cone capital of the world,” he declared that as mayor he would ensure construction sites would not be left vacant over weekends.

The candidates unanimously expressed dislike of Montreal’s transit system and traffic congestion, but had different visions for potential solutions.

Bergeron argued that the transit system needs to be rapidly improved and expanded before congestion could be reduced. When asked whether a metro to the West Island was a possibility, Joly said a rapid bus system could solve the problem quickly and far more cheaply.

“We came up with a vision of a surface metro, like they do in Bogota and Mexico and Cleveland, which is eight times less [expensive] than a tramway […], forty times less than a Metro, and it has the same impact,” Joly said.

The Charter of Values proposed by the current Parti Québécois government was also a key part of the debate. While every candidate openly opposed the bill, they fell short of challenging it aggressively.

“This is a very divisive fight, Côté said. “I will fight. People know where I stand. But let’s not stoke the fire.”

The other candidates said they will wait to see what the final bill includes and whether or not it would be passed, before taking action.

The next mayor of Montreal will be announced following the election on Sunday, Nov. 3.

campus

Post-doctoral fellows to vote on mandatory services fee

PGSS referendum question concerns semesterly $136.44 fee to allow access to CaPS, mental health, other services Sam Pinto News Editor Post-doctoral fellows will vote on the creation of a $136.44 per semester student services fee during the upcoming referendum period for the Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS), which runs from Nov. 4 to Nov. 8.

If passed, the question mandates a non-optoutable fee for all post-doctoral fellows, which would allow them to access a full range of student services, including Mental Health Services, Chaplaincy Services, Career Planning Service (CaPS), and others. Currently, post-doctoral fellows have the option of paying a $136.44 fee if they wish to use the services.

Post-doctoral fellows are in-

dividuals who have completed their doctoral studies and are continuing to work in their field of interest by conducting research under a supervisor or principal investigator prior to applying for job as a faculty member. While the Quebec Government classifies post-doctoral fellows as students, the university considers them to be staff.

“We’re in this limbo between staff and students where we don’t actually get the benefits of either, which is a problem because you don’t get things like access to health care, counselling, mental health, [and the office for students with] disabilities,” explained Emma Vincent, president of the Association of Post-doctoral Fel-

lows of McGill University.

The need to access student services can be vital for many postdoctoral fellows, whose salaries range from $30,000-$40,000, according to Dr. Min Liu, a postdoctoral fellow currently working at the Montreal Neurological Institute. As individuals who do not currently pay a student services fee, postdoctoral fellows must often spend more on a variety of services.

“To have access to the gym [….] we are actually treated as staff,” Liu said. “So in order for me to enroll in the gym for a year, it’s about $525. A student per semester only pays $37.”

Despite the current option for post-doctoral fellows to opt-

in on the fee, Vincent said very few post-doctoral fellows actually know that access to student services is available to them for this price, and that the Association of Post-doctoral Fellows only found out about it recently. Furthermore, for those who do choose to opt-in, many of the services are not tailored to suit their requirements because many of the student service staff are not familiar with postdoctoral fellows’ needs.

“The advantage of having everyone opt-in would be improved services for post-docs because they would be tailored and specific to us, whereas right now those that opt in just get what’s sawed off for grad students,” Vincent said.

Vincent also said she hopes

that having all postdoctoral fellows obligated to pay the student services fee will help increase the sense of community among them in order to use it as a tool for lobbying the McGill administration.

“Right now […] we’re just a community adrift with no bargaining power,” she said. “If we paid an amount of money, we could sit down with the people that run the services and say ‘we’d really like this for the post-docs,’ and actually work on achieving that.”

Full disclosure: the Tribune Publication Society (TPS) is also running a fee levy question in this referendum period. Adrien Hu, Steven Lampert, and Carolina Millán Ronchetti are on the TPS ‘Yes’ committee.

Curiosity delivers. |

NEWS

| Tuesday, October 29, 2013

student government

5

Motion to ban “Blurred Lines“ fails at Council Popular song criticized for controversial lyrics sparks debate on censorship by SSMU Cece Zhang Contributor On Oct. 24, the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU)’s Legislative Council debated a motion to ban “Blurred Lines” from being played in the SSMU Building, specifically at SSMU’s annual Halloween party “4Floors.”

Banning “Blurred Lines” from SSMU Building After much debate, a motion to ban playing the song “Blurred Lines” by Robin Thicke in the SSMU Building failed, with seven votes in favour of the ban, eight against, and 11 abstentions.

Science Representative Sarah Southey, a mover of the motion, explained that the song, which is frequently played at SSMU’s studentrun bar Gerts, had caused students to complain that its lyrics are “triggering.” The song has been widely criticized for promoting rape culture by trivializing consent to sexual activities.

“A triggering song is when someone who has experienced sexual assault or harassment directly feels a psychological response to that song,” Southey said. “This motion was written with the equity

committee, and corresponds to the zero tolerance policy we have at McGill.”

Councillors in support of the motion said that the SSMU Building could not be a true safe space if others were feeling threatened or uncomfortable within the area.

Joey Shea, SSMU Vice-President University Affairs, said that banning the song would determine a clear stance by which SSMU would stand if such cases arose in the future.

“This song has symbolic weight which surrounds it,” Shea said in support of the motion. “I feel like symbolically banning the song would do a lot [....] It shows where we draw a line.”

Other councillors opposed the motion. SSMU Vice-President Internal Brian Farnan said that the ban would set a precedent of censorship.

“This is one of the scariest things I’ve seen in this Council,” Farnan said. “This will set a frightening precedent, when we start to ban artistic content in a student building in a university.”

Farnan added that a unilateral ban on the basis that the song is triggering would necessitate banning a number of other songs based on their lyrics, too.

“Outside of “Blurred Lines,” there are many songs that have equally or more so offensive and triggering lyrics,” Farnan said. “I believe that if you try to do this you have to understand the gravity of what you’re doing, banning a song for its content, and […] you need to ban all songs that have this exact same content.”

Law Representative John Simpson suggested alternative solutions to officially banning the song.

“Others have come up with other solutions that could achieve the same result without the consequences that we’ve been discussing,” he said. “For example, we could ask the Gerts management to just stop playing the song.”

Council did not make an official decision to speak with Gerts management.

McGill Vision 2020 SSMU Sustainability Coordinator David Gray-Donald presented a report on Vision 2020—a project aimed at promoting sustainable initiatives on campus.

Gray-Donald’s presentation was meant to further Council’s understanding of Vision 2020 and to help councillors reach a consensus in the future when choosing which

SSMU Council met last Thursday. (Alexandra Allaire / McGill Tribune) environmental goals to pursue.

He explained that the second phase of Vision 2020, which encompasses the visions and goals for McGill’s sustainability, will include research, education, connectivity, operations, as well as administration and governance. outlined some of the ideas Vision 2020 is aiming for in each of those categories, including hosting student workshops on sustainability, embedding sustainability into course content, and

creating networking events to foster collaborative research.

“There is tremendous power in student government and what resources you provide to students,” Gray-Donald said. “I don’t know if SSMU does all in its power to help students and support sustainability. That’s the sort of question that spawned my position three years ago, and that is the sort of question that we should continue discussing.”

Speaker on campus

UN Special Rapporteur criticizes government’s response to Maple Spring Maina Kiai defends right to peaceful protest, calls on Canadians to implement his sanctions Eman Jeddy Contributor Last Wednesday, United Nations Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai spoke on the challenges facing Canada and other civil societies in protecting the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.

Hosted by the McGill Centre for Human Rights and Legal Pluralism, the lecture was attended by approximately 50 members of the McGill and Montreal community.

In 2012, Kiai and several other specialists publically condemned the Canadian government’s reaction to the 2012 student protests against tuition increases. He pointed specifically to police reaction to the protests, as well as Bill 78—an emergency bill passed in 2012 that required protestors to give police at least eight hours’ notice of demonstrations.

“What surprises me was the reaction of the government of Canada,” he said. “It reacted very much the same way as governments that are generally known as repressive would react. I thought the Canadian [government] would be open to criti-

cisms, open to constructive ideas, and to engage in a dialogue rather than go on the attack.”

Kiai said that, in civil societies—where individuals and nongovernmental institutions seek to improve the welfare of citizens—associations and protests should be able to form without registration with, or authorization from, the government.

“You don’t need to get authorization from the government in order to have peaceful protest,” he said.

“Notification rather than authorization is what is important.’’

As a Special Rapporteur for the UN, Kiai cannot impose laws upon Canada or any country he inspects.

However, Kiai emphasized the importance of countries creating laws that uphold the international sanctions on the rights to freedom of assembly and association that he recommends.

“All we can do is put [the sanctions] out and hope that people will pick it up in their daily work,” Kiai said. “I can condemn the city of Montreal, but beyond that it is up to you guys [.…] The sanctions need to be done in Canada, by Canadians

through Canadian mechanisms; we can only support them.”

Kiai added that government relations within civil societies have to be both transparent and expressive.

“Any state that wants to know how its people are feeling should give them the space to express that,” Kiai said. “A state that really cares for its people should be able to allow as much space for protest and for speaking out as it can.”

Pearl Eliadis, a professor at McGill’s Faculty of Law and coorganizer of the event, said that the purpose of hosting the event was to raise awareness of the importance of freedom of assembly and association, and to enable students to protect themselves through knowledge of their human rights.

According to Eliadis, these topics are particularly important in light of the Maple Spring student protests.

“Freedom of association and assembly are obviously of great issue to Quebec given the Maple Spring, but also we’re starting to see the connection with the international and global issues on the repression on civil societies,” Eliadis said. “Students need

Kiai calls Canadian government “repressive.” (Wendy Chen / McGill Tribune) to be engaged, but at the same time, they need to be able to protect themselves. [It’s] an issue around making sure they’re safe and that they understand their rights and responsibilities.’’

Eric Moses Gashirabake, a First Year law student who attended the event, praised Kiai’s promotion of awareness of the barriers faced by civil societies around the world.

Gashirabake pointed to Kiai’s experience in Kenya, where he worked as the chairman of Kenya’s National Human Rights Commission. “[Kiai] is in a minority of activists in Kenya doing amazing things

to promote democracy,” Gashirabake said. “From someone who is going on the ground not just in Kenya but internationally to look at the similarities and points of convergence [in different civil societies], it’s a nice opportunity for us students—regardless of what we’re studying—to know that this is a civic duty that we can all be engaged in.”

The speech was one of two public lectures preceding Kiai’s presentation of the first full report of his findings from his time assessing freedom of assembly and association in various countries to the UN in New York on Oct. 29.

opinion editorialS

TaCEQ a waste of SSMU funds

One of the lesser-known expenses of the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) is the portion our association devotes to membership in the Table de concertation étudiante du Québec (TaCEQ).

Established in 2009, TaCEQ is a federation of student associations that seeks to advocate for broader student interests at the national and provincial level. However, given TaCEQ’s dubious leadership structure and lack of tangible achievements in the past five years, SSMU should seriously reconsider its membership in the organization.

Currently, the other members of TaCEQ include the undergraduate and postgraduate student unions of the Université Laval—CADEUL and ÆLIÉS, respectively—and the post-graduate student union of the Université de Sherbrooke, REMDUS. The numerous issues with SSMU’s membership in TaCEQ start right here. The minimum membership for a federation to be nationally recognized is four student associations on four different campuses, a mark which TaCEQ has yet to meet.

The lack of national recognition prevents the union from receiving

certain government subsides, which means TaCEQ’s constituent student unions shoulder the entire cost of keeping it afloat; SSMU pays for just under a third of TaCEQ’s budget—this year that totaled about $17,000.

“TaCEQ’s lack of major

achievements, balky decisionmaking apparatus, and cumbersome annual budget are all critical shortcomings with the organization.

”

The lack of national recognition substantially reduces TaCEQ’s influence in political advocacy, especially compared to that of the much larger Fédération étudiante universitaire du Québec (FEUQ) and Association pour une solidarité syndicale étudiante (ASSÉ).

In light of SSMU’s tumultuous past experiences with FEUQ, TaCEQ’s highly decentralized structure—each student association directs decisions on campaigns, spending, and political positions, while also holding an unconditional

opt-out—has been advertised as an asset. However, this decentralized structure also leads to internal disputes. SSMU’s relations with both of the Laval student associations in TaCEQ have been distant at best.

Additionally, a congress planned to address structural reform this October was singlehandedly blocked by ÆLIÉS. The suspension of the congress points to another problem with TaCEQ—a paucity of accomplishments to date. In its five years, TaCEQ has failed to achieve tangible results, most recently on the tuition debate in 2012. One of the organization’s few accomplishments was attending the provincial government’s Higher Education Summit this past year, an event of dubious success.

Even worse, TaCEQ is hardly a transparent organization. Five years into its existence, the association has yet to produce English versions of even basic online documents, an issue TaCEQ claims will be rectified early next year. It has also been noted that official reports, such as meeting minutes, shed astonishingly little information on the operations

THE Mcgill

Editor-in-Chief Carolina Millán Ronchetti editor@mcgilltribune.com Managing Editors Ben Carter-Whitney bcarterwhitney@mcgilltribune.com Erica Friesen efriesen@mcgilltribune.com Jacqueline Galbraith jgalbraith@mcgilltribune.com

of the organization.

Is any of this worth $17,000 a year? While there might be some value for SSMU to be a part of a larger federation of student associations, it is clear that the interests of many of its members are not quite served by what has largely been a stagnant, ineffective organization.

TaCEQ’s lack of major achievements, balky decision-making apparatus, and cumbersome annual budget—$53,500 this year—are all critical shortcomings with the organization. The money SSMU spends on TaCEQ could be put towards funding for clubs, the forthcoming student cafe, or any number of initiatives more relevant to McGill students.

Recent news that REMDUS is holding a referendum this December to leave TaCEQ provides the perfect opportunity to demand changes.

SSMU needs to put serious pressure on TaCEQ to make tangible, quantifiable improvements to its management structure. Insufficient progress within a clearly defined and short timetable should trigger a SSMU referendum question to withdraw from the organization.

Dentistry student fee unfairly stiffs future students

Last week it was announced that in order to help fund the Faculty of Dentistry’s $18 million move into new facilities on the corner of McGill College Avenue and Sherbrooke, the Dental Students’ Society (DSS) has voted to impose a $2,500-per-semester annual fee on all future members. Although wellintentioned, this fee is seriously problematic—by applying the fee only to students starting the program in the 2014-15 academic year or later, the DSS ensured that no current voting member would have to pay the fee. This is a decidedly undemocratic decision, Whether or not it is the role of the students to voluntarily pitch in

towards funding university initiatives beyond what’s paid through tuition is a worthwhile discussion— this is the second time in recent memory that this has taken place.

Last spring, the Engineering Undergraduate Society (EUS) voted to enact a two-year “emergency fund” of $40 per semester, which hopes to maintain the faculty’s quality of education amid McGill’s burdened financial situation.

The new dentistry fee differs from the latter scenario in nearly every way—the indefinite timeframe and astronomical cost for students are cause for concern. Most troubling, however, is the decision to exempt current students from paying

the fee. While future students were naturally given no voice into this fee which they alone will pay, they will also face an uphill battle if they later attempt to reverse it—it will be two years before even half of the DSS’ membership is paying the fee, making a successful fee reversal by referendum unlikely before then.

With a projected completion date of June 2014 for the faculty’s move, students not currently in their last year will benefit from the new facilities, while deferring financial responsibility to incoming students.

A more reasonable approach might have been a graduated fee, decreasing by year. This would ensure that current students do contribute while,

still making an effort to minimize any re-budgeting necessary for them to accommodate the fee.

While there is an argument to be made that the fee is relatively insignificant when compared with the earning projections for a dentist, the real issue at play here, however, is one of democratic responsibility. This is no less an imposition on future students than if the McGill administration had opted to unilaterally raise fees. Student associations exist to serve the interests of their membership—in this decision however, the DSS has spectacularly failed its posterity.

Society (PGSS) take for granted, including the McGill Health Clinic, Mental Health Services, Counseling, and Career Planning Services, just to name a few.

A PGSS referendum for postdoctoral students to opt into paying the Student Services Fee, $138.46 a semester will be open for voting between Nov. 4 and Nov 8, inclusive. While individuals can already opt into the fee individually in person, proponents of a “Yes” vote say

that post-doctoral fellows being in the system as a bloc will allow them to negotiate for services tailored to their highly unique needs.

The Tribune endorses a “Yes” vote on this question. Post-doctoral students make substantial contributons to McGill, especially through their work on research projects, yet are in a seeming gap in the system, recognized as neither students nor employees, despite performing the roles of both. This fee, which would

News Editors Jessica Fu, Emma Windfeld, and Samuel Pinto news@mcgilltribune.com Opinion Editor Abraham Moussako opinion@mcgilltribune.com Science & Technology Editor Caity Hui scitech@mcgilltribune.com Student Living Editor Marlee Vinegar studentliving@mcgilltribune.com Features Editor Jenny Shen features@mcgilltribune.com Arts & Entertainment Editors Max Berger and William Burgess arts@mcgilltribune.com Sports Editors Mayaz Alam and Remi Lu sports@mcgilltribune.com Photo Editors Alexandra Allaire and Wendy Chen photo@mcgilltribune.com Creative Director Alessandra Hechanova ahechanova@mcgilltribune.com Design Editors Yael Chapman and Maryse Thomas design@mcgilltribune.com Online Editor Brontë Martin online@mcgilltribune.com Copy Editor Adrien Hu copy@mcgilltribune.com Advertising Executives Spoon Jung and Daniel Kang ads@mcgilltribune.com Publisher Chad Ronalds

TPS Board of Directors

Shadi Afana, Anand Bery, Jonathan Fielding, Abhishek Gupta, Adrien Hu, Steven Lampert, Chris Liu, Carolina Millán Ronchetti, Elisa Muyl, and Simon Poitrimolt

Contributors

Tho-Alfakar Al-Aubodah, Rebecca Babcock, LaurieAnne Benoit, Max Bledstein, James Chapman, Wyatt Fine-Gagné, Ramsey Franklyn, Osama Haque, Eman Jeddy, Nivit Kochar, Harry McAlevey, Sara Hashemi Nasab, Jack Neal, Alycia Noë, Luke Orlando, Whitney Pang, Kia Pouliot, Cassandra Rogers, Aaron Rose, Haisam Shah, Rosalie Teed, Julie Vanderperre, Elie Waitzer, Lauren Wildgoose, Diana Wright, Dorothy Yang, Cece Zhang, and Ruidi Zhu

Tribune Office Shatner University Centre Suite 110, 3480 McTavish Montreal, QC H3A 0E7 T: 514.398.6789 The McGill Tribune is an editorially autonomous newspaper published by the Société de Publication de la Tribune, a student society of McGill University. The content of this publication is the sole responsibility of The McGill Tribune and the Société de Publication de la Tribune, and does not necessarily represent the views of McGill University.

ENDORSEMENT—Providing services for Post-doctoral fellows

Currently, Post-doctoral fellows, students who have completed PhD programs and are now directly contributing to academic research, exist in a precarious limbo here at McGill. Classified as students by the Quebec government, they don’t receive the benefits of staff members.

However, they are also not entitled to a package of student services that most members of the Students Society of McGill University (SSMU) and the Post-Graduate Students’

Production Manager Steven Lampert slampert@mcgilltribune.com

be non-opt outable in the event of a “Yes” vote, gives access to a vast array of services that will improve the lives of the post-doctoral students on our campus.

Full disclosure: the Tribune Publication Society (TPS) is also running a fee levy question in this referendum period. Adrien Hu, Steven Lampert, and Carolina Millán Ronchetti are on the TPS ‘Yes’ committee.

Letters to the editor may be sent to editor@mcgilltribune.com and must include the contributor’s name, program and year and contact information. Letters should be kept under 300 words and submitted only to the Tribune. Submissions judged by the Tribune Publication Society to be libellous, sexist, racist, homophobic or solely promotional in nature will not be published. The Tribune reserves the right to edit all contributions. Editorials are decided upon and written by the editorial board. All other opinions are strictly those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the McGill Tribune, its editors or its staff. Please recycle this newspaper.

7

columnists Nostalgia, commodified

Whitney Pang Commentary

On Oct. 12, Nintendo released Pokémon X and Y for its newest portable platform, the 3DS. The game, the Pokémon franchise’s first foray into a platform with completely 3D polygonal graphics, sold four million copies worldwide in two days since its release.

Pokémon X and Y is a big break for Nintendo—sales of its portable gaming devices, such as the DS lite, DSi, have slumped significantly

Fracking, but no peace

Julie Vanderperre Commentary Tensions flared last week in New Brunswick as First Nations protesters set police cars ablaze, and threw rocks at RCMP officers in a violent anti-fracking demonstration.

Université d’Ottawa

|

since 2008. This was due to competition brought by games and applications on the plethora of new smart phones in the market. The company that brought us the classic Gameboy color is trying to keep up in the new digital age by playing to an old card—nostalgia. Many critics have attributed this to Pokémon X and Y’s success.

Media theorist Henry Jenkins discusses the concept of “affective economics”—a new configuration of marketing theory which seeks to understand the emotional underpinnings of consumers as a driving force behind viewing and purchasing decisions. Media producers attempt to commodify consumer desires to create products that arouse emotional attachment. Jenkins sees this commodification as a form of exploitation; in his view, consum-

ers given unique childhoods and experiences. Rather, the symbols and memories that you personally associated with your childhood are actually meticulously calculated by marketers.

After all, this is the same company that conceived the original series, creating the characters and games that we fell in love with as children. Nintendo’s products—lovable characters such as Pikachu and Jigglypuff, have successfully found a safe place in the hearts and minds of consumers as remnants of childhood. If we decide to apply Darwinism to the video game market, the Pokémon brand has survived and found its place in the ecosystem.

Nintendo is more than entitled to reap the fruits of its past branding success.

I personally enjoy battling with

other Pokémon using my childhood favorite critter on a fancy three-dimensional gaming device. I don’t mind marketers plucking my heartstrings so long as I am fully entertained by their products. Media products, such as video games, movies, and television shows, are distinct from other commodities in the free market in that they “mediate” between audiences and other realities, fictional or otherwise. The exchange value of the media product (i.e. its retail price), will never fully reflect the product’s psychological or nostalgic value. I am sure that a one dollar VHS copy of Back to the Future at the Salvation Army would have signifigant nostalgic value to anyone from our parents’ generation.

No commercial media product is produced without a careful calculation of what consumers like and

do not like. If producers are not sure if their product will appeal to consumers or not, there is no incentive to invest vast capital in creating new gaming platforms, and hiring artists to design breath-taking digital worlds and compelling story-lines.

Quantifying consumer wants is a pervasive practice that defines the media industry. To call it ‘immoral’ would deem all media products as extremely problematic, rather than benign forms of entertainment.

Despite Pokémon X and Y’s nostalgic value, its target market is the new generation of young gamers. Will the reputation of Pokémon and Nintendo’s gaming devices last another generation of children, or become only a fond memory of the past? Only time will tell.

An attempt by the federal government to begin fracking on lands of the Elsipogtog First Nation has reopened questions about the legality of federally funded development on indigenius lands without their consent. Enduring concerns about the dangers associated with fracking make the potential venture even more contentious.

Hydraulic fracturing, or ‘fracking,’ is a process through which pressurized mixtures of water, sand, and chemicals are pumped into the ground. The pressure creates fissures in shale rocks found below

the surface, releasing natural gas, and allowing it to be extracted. Although researchers have detected dangerously high levels of methane, ethane, and propane in wells in close proximity to fracking sites, studies on the threat fracking poses to the environment and residential health have reached varying conclusions.

Proponents of fracking have denied the dangers that have been associated with it, such as groundwater contamination and increased seismic activity. The head of the EPA, Lisa Jackson, even stated that she was, “not aware of any proven case

where the fracking process itself” had affected water quality.

There seems to be a strong enough correlation between fracking and the contamination of drinking water that its practice should be discontinued in populated areas until further research is able to prove its safety. Despite the potential dangers, New Brunswick Premier David Alward fully supports shale gas exports, calling it critical to the province’s economy. Part of Alward’s willingness to overlook the risks associated with fracking stems from its economic benefits.

Fracking is relatively cheap compared to most other forms of energy. Making use of the abundance of shale reserves in North America would also decrease reliance on foreign countries for oil, and would create job opportunities in New Brunswick. Alward has promised the Elsipogtog First Nation community that they would also profit from the establishment of a fracking site on their traditional land. But are the economic benefits of fracking enough to outweigh its environmental and health risks? Who gets to decide?

Canadian law requires the government to consult and accommodate First Nations communities in situations of resource development on their land. The principle of aboriginal title, established in the precedent of Delgamuukw v. British Columbia, grants First Nations sov-

ereignty over their traditional lands.

The failure of the government to appeal to the communities before exploring opportunities for fracking in Elsipogtog justifies their indignation. The spiritual and cultural relationship of First Nations with their traditional land further underlines their anger at the government’s unwarranted and illegal attempts at exploiting it.

Premier Alward’s disregard for the wishes and health of the Elsipogtog First Nation justifies their anger.

The government will most likely not succeed in gaining the right to frack on the Elsipogtog First Nation land given the principle of aboriginal title, and previous failed attempts by the government to secure resources on aboriginal land.

Regardless of the intentions of the government or the anger that they may have roused, the unnecessary use of violence by the Elsipogtog First Nations only aggravated an already tense situation and delegitimized their cause. The two sides are now locked in a conflict in which both have acted irrationally, and the likelihood of a peaceful settlement has diminished. We can only hope that the provincial government will concede with the wishes of the Elsipogtog First Nations, and that their welfare may be secured without any further violence.

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ERRATUM: A story in the Oct. 22 issue (Free trade agreement announced between Canada and the EU) incorrectly identified José Manuel Barroso as the European Union (EU) President.

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In fact, no such position exists—Mr. Barroso is the President of the European Commission. The Tribune regrets the error.

Science & technology Research briefs Technology and medicine join forces through an in-home HIV test Despite approximately 2.5 million new cases of HIV each year worldwide, six out of 10 go undiagnosed. Dr. Nitika Pant Pai and her team at the Royal Victoria Hospital of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) hope to address this global health issue with the development and release of an in-home HIV self-testing program.

Pant Pai and her team received the 2013 Accelerating Science Award (ASAP) in Washington D.C. on Oct. 21, for their work in creating a self-diagnosis program.

The program involves an oral, overthe-counter self-test that detects the presence of HIV antibodies using oral fluid samples from the gum lining of the mouth. The presence of antibodies indicates that the body has recognized the human immunodeficiency virus and produced proteins in response to counteract it.

This test is coupled with an interac-

tive website and mobile phone app called HIVSmart to assist patients in the testing process.

“The key barriers to not showing up to testing in health facilities are stigma, discrimination, social visibility associated with an HIV diagnosis, [and] long waiting times,” explained Pant Pai in the finalist video HIV Self-Test Empowers Patients for the ASAP award. The purpose of this self-test is to empower patients by providing them with the resources to perform the diagnosis confidentially and at their own convenience.

The mobile app and website form a package that guides people through the testing process. The app provides a 24-hour help line, links to counseling, and instructional videos.

“The development of this innovative application represents a major advancement in our ability to deal with the evolving HIV epidemic that affects people worldwide,” said Dr. Vassilios Papadopoulos, ex-

By Caity Hui Science & Technology Editor ecutive director and chief scientific officer of the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Care (RI-MUHC), to McGill’s Medical online newsletter Med e-News.

The app is currently designed for Android devices, and could be released to the public within the next few months. Researchers hope to develop the app for other mobile devices and in more languages in order to make the self-test more accessible to people worldwide.

While we sleep, our brains take out the trash Scientists have long been perplexed by the function of sleep. For animals at risk of predation, sleep seems evolutionarily disadvantageous. And, even though we consider sleep to be a period of rest, the sleeping brain uses up almost as much energy as the awake brain.

All of these complexities were addressed in a recent study led by author and University of Rochester neurosurgeon Maiken Nedergaard

ASK SCITECH

that proposes a new biological explanation for the purpose of sleep.

The study, published this past Thursday in Science, revealed findings that the brain’s clean-up system—known as the glymphatic system, which is responsible for flushing out toxic waste products released by cells during the day— rapidly increases in mice that are asleep.

“Brain cells shrink when we sleep, allowing fluid to enter and flush out the brain,” Nedergaard told the Washington Post. “It’s like opening and closing a faucet.”

This action makes it easier to clean the spaces around the cells.

Essentially, the system works by circulating cerebrospinal fluid throughout the brain tissue to flush any residual waste into the bloodstream. The by-products are then carried to the liver for detoxification.

One protein of particular interest that is flushed out during this process is beta-amyloid—the pro-

tein responsible for forming plaques in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients.

Using a technique known as two-photon microscopy, scientists observed the movement of cerebrospinal fluid in a live mouse brain in real time. They discovered that while the mouse was asleep, the fluid rushed through the brain quickly. In contrast, when the mouse was woken up, the flow was highly constrained. The study noted that beta-amyloid protein cleared out of the brain twice as fast in a sleeping rodent as in an alert mouse.

This study provides new insights into potential treatment for neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease which are associated with an accumulation of cell waste in the brain.

Nedergaard and her colleagues are currently developing an MRI diagnostic test for glymphatic clearance.

In the future, Nedergaard believes a drug could be developed to force a cleanup of the brain if necessary.

By Caity Hui

What’s the science behind WEREWOLVES and zombies?

The legend of a howling man who shape-shifts by the light of the full moon strikes a particular chord come Halloween, as do the sunken eyes of flesh-hungry zombies that populate contemporary horror fiction. Both of these creatures stem from a long line of folklore, but like most myths, these stories are rooted in some degree of truth.

For centuries, civilizations have used legend to provide an explanation for phenomena for which they otherwise have no rational explanation.

Today, scientists have tried to provide clinical explanation for these so-called mythological creatures that would have prompted people to develop stories about them. Though we can only speculate, the science behind these monsters provides an interesting take on some of Halloween’s most popular creatures.

Werewolves The werewolf is a mythological creature common in European folklore.

Though the legend of werewolves differs between cultures, the main characteristics remain consistent. Usually, the werewolf is associated with a man who is metamorphosed—or shape-shifted— into a wolf-like form. The transformation is attributed to various sources, such as putting on a belt made of wolf

skin, full moons, or witchcraft. Recently, the werewolf has seen a return to pop culture through the Harry Potter and Twilight series.

While the werewolf dominates myth, some scientists have speculated clinical disorders that may have contributed to the development of such folklore. One explanation is the rare condition known as “congenital hypertrichosis universalis.” According to a study conducted by Robert Suskin and Nancy B. Esterly in 1971, patients of this disease are born with excessive body hair that increases with age. By age two, the person’s face, trunk, and limbs are covered with long hair—a state that could have contributed to the development of the werewolf myth. However, while symptoms of the disease seem to resemble the mythological creature, its rarity—fewer than 100 cases are documented worldwide—suggests that this medical condition alone could not have contributed to the widespread myth of the werewolf.

In his novel The Werewolf Delusion Ian Woodward points to rabies as a more likely cause for werewolf myths.

Rabies is a viral disease that affects the central nervous system, ultimately resulting in disease of the brain, and death. It falls into the category of

zoonotic diseases, meaning it can be transmitted from other species to humans. Some of the early-stage symptoms of the infection include violent movements and uncontrolled excitement.

According to Woodward, latestage rabies and its accompanying dementia and aggression may have caused communities to associate victims of rabies infections with becoming “bestial.”

In many cases, the infected animals are exceptionally aggressive and may attack other animals without provocation. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that transmission of the rabies virus is due to the spread of infected saliva of a host to an uninfected animal. This aggressive behaviour ultimately facilitates transmission of the virus to other hosts through bites.

Woodward speculates that if a person contracted rabies from a wolf bite, the people around them could have assumed that the wolf passed some of its animal qualities to the victim of the disease. Although this theory is only speculation, it helps to provide an explanation for how the myth of the werewolf arose in ancient cultures.

Zombies Zombies made their most recent appearance on screen this year with the release of Warm Bodies and World War Z, but the walking dead have long starred in West African voodoo and Haitian folklore.

Costas J. Efthimiou, a physicist at the University of Central Florida, describes the case of the alleged “zombified” Wilfrid Doricent in the magazine The Skeptical Inquirer.

Doricent, an adolescent boy from a small village in Haiti, is known in myth for returning to life as a zombie. According to the story, Doricent experienced dramatic convulsions, swelling of the body, and eight days later appeared to have died. Yet a short period after he was buried, the villagers were shocked to see a person walking through the village in the exact likeness of Doricent. As legend goes, Doricent was incoherent and unable to speak—some might say he had returned from the dead.

Efthimiou speculates that this case of supernatural magic was actually a result of poisoning. Tetrodotoxin (TTX) is a highly potent neurotoxin that is found in several organisms, including a species of puffer fish that lives in the waters of Haiti. The toxin

blocks sodium channels in nerve cell membranes, preventing normal transmission of signals between the brain and body. Consequently, symptoms of TTX poisoning include paralysis of voluntary muscles and loss of sensation. The liver of the puffer fish can be made into a powder, which Efthimiou concluded could have been used to poison Doricent.

Based on Efthimiou’s explanation, the effects of TTX paralysis mimicked a coma, which would have caused the villagers to assume Doricent’s death. If, however, the symptoms of the poisoning were to subside shortly after his burial, it is possible that his survival instincts kicked in and he was able to dig himself out of the grave. The oxygen deprivation caused by the live burial would have led to brain damage, providing an explanation for Doricent’s subsequent incoherency.

That being said, this theory is just one explanation behind the scientific reasoning of the legend of zombies. Until more scientific evidence can be provided, Efthimiou’s idea will remain, like the werewolf proposition, simply speculation.

Curiosity delivers. |

science & technology

POSTGRADUATE CERTIFICATE

TECHNOLOGY

BBM for smartphones receives unexpected hype Will Blackberry’s new release make it a competitor in the mobile market?

Tho-Alfakar Al-Aubodah and Haisam Shah Contributors After firing 4,500 employees due to sales losses and signing an agreement to sell the company to FairFax Financial for $4.7 billion USD, what could BlackBerry Ltd. possibly do to regain its momentum in the smartphone industry? Perhaps releasing its BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) service for free to Android and iPhone users will do the trick.

On Oct. 21, BlackBerry Ltd. launched BBM for Android’s Google Play Store and Apple’s App store. According to the Blackberry blog, over 10 million people downloaded the service worldwide in the first 24 hours of its release.

The company stated that, “[it was] one of the best single-day openings for a mobile app to date.”

Andrew Bocking, the executive vice president of BBM for BlackBerry, reported in the Blackberry blog that the app quickly rose to being the number one downloaded app that day in over 75 countries including Canada, UK, U.S., Indonesia, and most of the Middle East.

“We intend to be the leading private social network for everyone who needs the immediate communication and collaboration of instant messaging combined with the privacy, control, and reliability delivered through BBM,” Bocking wrote in a press release.

The app was originally due to be released late in September; however, this was postponed until October after a version for Android devices was leaked online.

To date, the BBM app is available for Android users running Android 4.0x and iPhone users running iOS6 and iOS7. Users can download BBM from their app stores or by visiting BBM.com. Those who signed up online or had pre-existing

| Tuesday, October 29, 2013

accounts for BBM can immediately begin using the service. Otherwise, BBM has set up a simple line-up system to deal with the demand.

“If you didn’t sign up in advance, don’t worry—we are focused on moving millions of customers through the line as fast as possible,” Bocking wrote.

BBM was one of the first instant-messaging apps for smart phones that allowed for calling, texting, video chatting, and the ability to share screens with other BlackBerry users. It rose in popularity during the late 2000s, but faced a user decline with the emergence of Apple and Android smartphones.

As of now, BBM for Android and iPhones allows for instant messaging, and an update feed for contact activity while using BBM’s unique PIN and barcode system for adding contacts. The company hopes to bring BBM Video, BBM Voice, and BBM Channels to Android and iOS. Despite the hype, BBM is still up against some serious competition. The multi-platform service WhatsApp has already established approximately 200 million customers worldwide. This app allows for instant messaging, voice messaging, and group chats like BBM. The service also allows users to send multiple file types through chats, which BBM cannot do as easily.

Unlike WhatsApp, BBM gives the user complete control in adding contacts through the PIN and barcode system. WhatsApp lacks this control; anyone set up as a contact on a smartphone is automatically set up as a contact on WhatsApp. It’s difficult to determine whether BBM will surpass its competition. Each excels in some areas and lack in others. The clash of these two titans is inevitable, and only with time will we know which prevails and dominates.

FROM ARBITRATION TO COMMUNITY OUTREACH, THIS PROGRAM OFFERS THE UNIQUE SKILLS YOU WILL NEED TO LAUNCH YOUR CAREER AS AN ARBITRATOR, CONCILIATOR, EMPLOYEE RELATIONS OFFICER, MEDIATOR AND MANY OTHER EXCITING CAREER OPTIONS.

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9

10 | FEATURES

By Will Burgess

If the virtual currency Bitcoin is still in its infancy today, it was merely an embryo when I first heard of it. After spending last year obsessively researching how Bitcoin worked, periodically watching its price rise and fall, and deliberating over its future, I bought 20 Bitcoins for about 11 dollars each. At the time, people had asked me why I would exchange my hardearned Canadian money for an intangible, untested currency that could hardly buy anything.

The question bothered me enough that I eventually cashed out at around 13 dollars apiece, spending my pleasantly crisp $20 bills during my frosh week at McGill. Unfortunately for me, had I kept my money in Bitcoin form instead of spending it on beer, it would have been enough to pay for a full semester of university at its current market value.

Bitcoin Price, in USD 2012-2013

What is a Bitcoin?

Bitcoin has been touted by its proponents as an alternative to traditional ‘fiat’—government-declared legal tender—currency, like the Bank of Canadabacked Canadian dollar that we use in our everyday lives. Unlike traditional legal tender, Bitcoin is supported by a cryptographic peer-topeer network of computers that verify transactions by separately confirming each one in a list of exchanges between any two parties.

Bitcoin uses ‘public key encryption’ in order to guarantee security. These keys come in mathematicallyrelated pairs—one public and one private—and are made up of unique strings of letters and numbers. Each coin is associated with its owner’s public key. When sending

the coin to another party, the transaction is marked by the original owner’s private key as well as the new owner’s public key. This securely and anonymously associates both parties with the transaction and prevents others from changing the transaction once it has been made. Confirmed transactions are added to an encrypted ‘block,’ and when a block is complete, the series of transactions it contains is added to the ‘blockchain’—a public ledger of all transactions. In this way, blocks are analogous to pages in a ledger.

New blocks are verified by miners—computational hardware—that track Bitcoin transactions.

The miners seek to generate a string of characters called a ‘hash value’ out of the transaction information within a block that meets a target determined by the network. The lower the target, the higher the difficulty of generating a hash value that both meets the target and reflects this information.

Once a satisfactory value is found, the owner (or owners) of the miners then receives a Bitcoin bounty, currently 25 Bitcoins per block. The whole process gets increasingly difficult as more computers are added to the network, which increases the security of the blockchain and decreases the rate of Bitcoins generated. The amount of virtual coins will eventually cap out at 21 million.

This brings us back to the question of value: if money can be generated by a computer,

what makes it hold value?

The answer is simply that the people who own it collectively believe it does—which in fact echoes the green paper of conventional currency. Despite the fact that fewer goods and services are available for their Bitcoins, advocates of the system believe in its long-term viability due to its anonymity, security, and negligible fees for both local and international transactions. This is why, at the time of publication, a single Bitcoin in a pool of nearly 12 million is worth $195 CDN.

The Bitcoin Embassy While some Bitcoin owners are looking to make a profit by buying in at the right time, others take an almost evangelical stance on it, believing it to be a currency of the future in which widespread adoption could have revolutionary implications. The largest real world embodiment of this dream in Montreal—and perhaps on earth—is the Bitcoin Embassy (Ambassade Bitcoin), a three-floor building at 3485 Blvd. St. Laurent that is still in development. It will consist of a retail space and welcome area, a lounge that serves as a conference and meeting space, and administrative offices.

The biggest realization of the Embassy’s stated goal of public outreach and education about Bitcoin has been its use as a space for monthly meetups and free events that gather investors, entrepreneurs,

Bitcoin beginners, and other interested parties. A meet-up held earlier this month attracted various Bitcoin enthusiasts, mostly from Montreal and Toronto. Several of those in attendance own companies that enable Bitcoins to be spent, whether through online payment processors similar to PayPal, like Alexandre Bourget’s “BitCredit” system, Eric Spano’s online bill payment system “Bylls,” or Andrew D’Allesandro’s gift card platform “Bitcarder.” Companies like these attempt to solve one of the current problems with Bitcoin: the fact that a majority of businesses don’t accept it.

“Ideally, the best thing would be for stores to adopt Bitcoin, but I personally don’t see that happening any time soon, just because for it to be used in stores it would have to be bigger than PayPal,” said D’Allesandro, a fourth-year Concordia civil engineering student. “In between then, there needs to be some sort of a bridge, and I find the best way for now would be to use Bitcoins to buy gift cards.”

On the first floor of the embassy, “the idea is to attract pedestrians that walk by, people [who] are just interested in what a Bitcoin is,” said Bitcoin Embassy Founder and Chairman Jean-Marc Jacobson. “A lot of people have a lot of cool items in the Bitcoin world, and they have to have a place to sell it, so we will present [them] in the shop.

We will have some information about the legals, the history

11 | FEATURES of Bitcoin, [and] paraphernalia [....] We are also looking […] to rally other merchants [...] to start accepting Bitcoins.”

Meanwhile, the openconcept, 3,800 square feet second floor, plays host to the aforementioned monthly Bitcoin meet-ups as well as workshops and lectures.

“Usually we try to attract personalities in the Bitcoin industry,” Jacobson said.

“They explain their specialty, and anybody can participate and ask questions.”

Finally, the third floor offices, besides containing offices for Bitcoin Embassy employees, will support “those that have good ideas [for businesses] or projects. If we believe in them, we will help them get started, provide them with an office, provide them with all the necessary financing to start working, [...] and try to make sure the businesses there are more than the sum of [their] parts.”

Who wants coins?

While the Bitcoin Embassy promotes Bitcoin by accelerating projects like D’Allesandro’s, the organization also hopes that their presence encourages local businesses to accept Bitcoin.

“We believe that the Embassy will really convince most businesses around to accept Bitcoin, and therefore will become one of the prime tourist locations for Bitcoiners,” Jacobson said.

Perhaps the largest—and most notorious—business to accept Bitcoin was Silk Road, an online marketplace for buying and selling narcotics—among other products—anonymously.

Described as “a sort of eBay for drugs” by The Economist, the site was shut down by the FBI earlier this month, but not before conducting “somewhere

between $30 million and $45 million” in annual transaction volume, according to an estimate by Carnegie Mellon computer security professor Nicolas Christin in an interview with The Daily Dot. Immediately after Silk Road was closed—and founder Ross Ulbricht arrested—the price of a Bitcoin lost a fifth of its value, only to rise to a six-month high two weeks later.

“I think what drove the market back up is a lot of people on the fence,” said Bitcoin Embassy meet-up attendee Alexander Izak, a Bitcoin investor who works at a bank in Montreal specializing in mutual funds and currency-based work. “They didn’t like the fact that [Bitcoin] was attached to Silk Road, which is such a big single entity. I think that the idea is with Bitcoin, the more decentralized the markets, the more small businesses [there are, the] more valuable it is.” As if to demonstrate

the arbitrariness of the value currency, Izak brought an impressive collection of paper money from around the world, much of which would no longer be accepted today.

Around the same time Silk Road was shut down, another more legitimate player introduced itself to the Bitcoin market. Chinese web services company Baidu, often described as ‘China’s Google,’ now accepts Bitcoin through its security division, Jiasule. In an announcement released on Oct. 14, the company stated that “Jiasule, as the innovator of the internet, has become the first cloud services vendor to support Bitcoin, giving us [more] payment methods and experience.”

At the moment, Bitcoin seems to attract a motley crew of investors looking to get rich, idealists who think the currency will revolutionize commerce, and entrepreneurs who want to take advantage of a growing

business opportunity. Only time will tell if Bitcoin will ever become ‘grandma-friendly,’ the goal of Jordan Kelley, CEO of RoboCoin, a manufacturer of ‘Bitcoin ATMs.’ As it happens, one RoboCoin ATM is scheduled to be installed at the Bitcoin Embassy soon, and the first machine in Canada goes live in Vancouver today.

Without a central organization to promote its use, Bitcoin relies on fans who have caught the ‘Bitcoin bug’ to spread the word about the new currency. Judging from the passion of those involved, a day where McGill University e-bills can be paid with e-money may not be far off.

Photos by Alexandra Allaire and Mathieu Gagnon Graph courtesy of bitcoin.org Illustrations by Alessandra Hechanova

The Bitcoin Embassy: A centre for a decentralized currency Clockwise from top: tracking market prices and volume, buzzing about Bitcoin, a Bitcoin 101 session, entrepreneurial networking

Student living student

PER KRAUT U3 Honours Environment ( Alexandra Allaire / McGill Tribune)

By his fourth year at McGill, Per Kraut never imagined he would be involved in so many diverse communities at McGill.

“I came to McGill thinking I wouldn’t get involved in that much,” Kraut explained. “But suddenly here I am in fourth year. I guess I just like to try new things.”

Kraut’s role as Vice-President External of McConnel Hall in his first year kick started his involvement in the Rez Life office for the following two years. With Rez Life, Kraut planned programming and events for first-year students, as well as working with the firstyear councils.

In addition to Rez Life, Kraut has maintained his involvement in McGill’s Best Buddies program for the past four years. Best Buddies is a campus club that sets up friendships between students and adults in the community with intellectual or developmental disabilities. “[My buddy] will come over and we’ll make Kraft Dinner or we’ll go get pizza—that sort of thing,” Kraut said. “I’ve been with the same buddy actually for four

by Caity Hui

years since I started, and I’ve been on the executive for three. Last year, I was VP Outreach and this year, I manage the website. It’s a great group that I am glad I’ve been involved with.”

Kraut noted that spending time with his buddy gave him an opportunity to explore Montreal with someone else who was equally excited to see the city.

“We went to the Biodome together, we’ve walked around Old Montreal, and we’ve been talking about going to see the new planetarium,” he said.

However, Kraut’s favourite university experience by far was the opportunity to participate in McGill’s Panama Field Studies Semester. This semester-long research program allows students to take classes for McGill while living in Panama City and taking field trips across the country.

“Instead of going to class we had [biology] in the rainforest,” Kraut explained. “And the professor would say, ‘this tree is this’ or ‘this species is that.’ ” The students also received

the opportunity to visit coffee and banana plantations for their environment management classes, and most of their history course was spent studying at historical sites and with Indigenous communities.

“I am realizing how unique this experience was—it was a whole semester of classes outside the classroom,” Kraut added. “We were in the classroom [only] once or twice to discuss what we were learning [….] It was like the Suite Life on Deck.”

Now in his final year, Kraut reflects on how rewarding it has been to become involved in so many different communities.

“My roommate goes, ‘I hate walking through campus with you because you say hi to so many people and I don’t know who they are,’” laughed Kraut. “All of these different things connect me to all these different people.”

nominate a student of the week!

Email us at studentliving@ mcgilltribune.com

What is your favourite pizza topping?

I actually just went a few weeks ago to Il Focolaio, just by the Bay. They have tons of toppings and I got a pizza that has Portobello mushrooms, eggplant, and feta, and it was so good. I wouldn’t say those are my favourite toppings […] but it was just different.

What do you like to do on a rainy day?

Working in the library. No, I don’t like to, but that’s what I end up doing. I like movies. I know everyone likes movies, but I’m really into cinema. My family and I used to play board games too.

What was your best Halloween costume?

This year, my costumes weren’t super creative. I was a giraffe [last Saturday]— I [wore] a onesie. Last year—I’m very tall [six foot six] if you haven’t noticed—and I dressed up as a normal sized person in stilts. So I had boxes up to my knees, which were the stilts, and I bought cheap shoes and cut holes in them so they could go up to my knees. So I pulled pants up [high on my waist] and I felt very creative. And I got over 100 likes on Facebook.

One less lonely grad student

PGSS’s speed-friending intiative tackles issue of student isolation Marlee Vinegar Student Living Editor Coming into a new university can be intimidating, however some students face more challenges making friends than others. While undergraduates often find themselves in frequent contact with other students—in classes and in residence—graduate students sometimes have limited opportunities to socialize due to the high level of independence in their studies.

Recognizing this problem the Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS) has taken it upon themselves to facilitate friendship through an event called ‘speed-friending.’

It follows the same format as speed dating. Participants go one by one, meeting each attendee of the event through short ‘dates’ to identify people with similar interests. Afterwards, attendees can let their new friendships blossom while playing board games like Settlers of Catan, Apples to Apples, and Mousetrap.

According to Elizabeth Cawley, PGSS member services officer, the idea for ‘speed-friending’ came about last year as the result of a survey by PGSS’s Health and Wellness committee. When attendees at one of their events were

asked questions like “Do you feel isolated?” and “Do you feel alone in your graduate experience?” 25 per cent of the people who responded said ‘yes.’

“There are lots of issues with people not necessarily knowing how to meet people: where to go when they’re in trouble, how to find information, how to be integrated into the McGill community—it’s a huge problem that we face,” Cawley said.

Cawley attributes the struggle for graduate students to establish relationships in part to the lack of opportunities for them to interact with one another.

Graduate students have neither an orientation analogous to Frosh nor consistent chances to meet new people, as they spend most of their time in labs or offices.

“Some weeks you can go without seeing anybody else—even your supervisor,” PGSS Financial Affairs Officer Erik Larson explained, speaking from his personal experience as a grad student. “You might see him once or twice in the hallway without even seeing the outside world. Especially in the winter, it can get depressing sometimes.”

Cawley highlighted the poignancy of this issue for students who are on placement at one of the hospitals, like the Douglas Institute or the Montreal

General Hospital, and who choose to live near their workplace for convenience.

“You don’t even feel like you’re a part of McGill,” she said. “You’re far, it’s not downtown, and it’s even harder to run into people.”

Additionally, PGSS members are at very different stages in their lives: a masters student in his or her early twenties may be more interested in partying, whereas a post-doctorate fellow may have a family to go home to after their work day is done.

Cawley said that Internal Affairs Officer Michael Krause has been try-

ing to diversify their events in order to better serve the needs of the community.

Just this past month, PGSS has hosted a diverse range of events, including apple picking, a Halloween party, and trivia nights.

Larson mentioned that another way to bring students together is through departmental groups, which were instrumental in his own experience. Individual departments set up events to help foster a sense of community.

“I met some people on my first day here and then once you start building on a small group [...] it just snow balled,” he said.

Speed-friending helps graduate students find friends fast. (Hayley Lim / McGill Tribune )

Whether it’s through academic interests, or through speed friending, Larson and Cawley agree that becoming engaged in the McGill student body can provide students with a unique support network that cannot necessarily be attained elsewhere.

“It’s super important to have a McGill community because there’s something about the McGill experience that I find is completely different. I know students at other universities [.…] They can relate, but […] you need that sort of commonality,” Cawley said.

The ultimate aim of speed-friending is to help get past the initial hurtle of creating these fundamental bonds.

The first event last year had an impressive turn out, with people hanging around playing games all night.

“To have 40 people come to an event like that was super shocking,” Cawley said. “It’s just the simplest idea, but people want the opportunity to meet other people.”

Due to last year’s success, PGSS is bringing back speed-friending this semester. Looking for some more grad student friends? Head to Thomson House basement at 7 p.m. on Nov. 21.

Curiosity delivers. |

STUDENT LIVING

| Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Homemade

13

Tribune Trick-or-Treats What better way to celebrate Halloween then by making your own candy? Get creative in crafting your own creepy candy concoctions. Make your candy and eat it too!

Ghost Marshmallows Makes 32 ghost-shaped marshmallows

Ingredients

8. In another bowl, beat egg whites until they form stiff peaks.

9. Gently fold in egg whites to gelatin mixture until just combined.

10. Pour completed mixture into baking pan and sift about ¼ cup confectioners’ sugar over the top.

11. Put marshmallows in refrigerator and allow mixture to firm for four hours to one day.

12. After chilling mixture, go around the edges of the pan with a knife and gently remove marshmallows onto cutting board.

13. Cut into desired shapes, such as ghosts.

14. Cover marshmallows with remaining confectioners’ sugar.

15. Store marshmallows in a cool and dry location.

Homemade Twix Bars

3 tbsp unflavoured gelatin powder ½ cup cold water 2 cups granulated sugar ½ cup corn syrup ½ cup cold water 1 tbsp vanilla extract 2 egg whites 1 cup confectioners’ sugar Cooking spray

1. Preheat oven to 350oF. 2. Mix all ingredients for the cookie base together until clumpy.

3. Press mixture onto cookie sheet and bake for about 20 minutes until golden brown.

4. Combine all butter, brown sugar, corn syrup, and condensed milk for the caramel in a saucepan.

5. Heat caramel mixture over medium heat until boiling, stirring continuously.

6. Reduce heat to low and allow caramel to simmer for 5-10 minutes—keep stirring!

7. Remove the caramel from the heat and add vanilla extract.

8. Pour caramel over the baked cookie base.

9. Cool in refrigerator until caramel has hardened.

10. Melt chocolate chips in the microwave with butter (to prevent your chocolate from burning).

11. Pour melted chocolate over cookie and caramel, refrigerate to cool.

12. Cut into candy bar sized pieces.

Candy Eyeballs

Instructions

1. Spray metal baking pan with a thick layer of cooking spray (or oil).

2. Shake gelatin powder into a bowl of cold water and let stand.

3. In a saucepan over low heat, combine sugar, corn syrup, and cold water. Cook and stir with a wooden spoon until sugar is dissolved.

4. Once sugar is dissolved, increase the heat and bring mixture to a boil—do not stir the mixture during this step!

5. Remove heated sugar mixture from stovetop and pour over gelatin in bowl.

Stir vigorously.

6. Using a whisk or hand mixer, beat mixture until thickened and white. The mixture’s volume should appear to increase 7. Add vanilla extract to the gelatin mixture.

Instructions

clever costumes

proximately half an hour).

6. Melt white chocolate chips in microwave.

7. Dip cooled peanut butter balls into melted chocolate and place on cookie sheet.

8. While the chocolate coating is still warm, add an M&M on the top of the ball.

9. Let eyeballs harden in fridge.

10. Use red frosting to draw on blood vessels.

11. Wait for icing harden.

—Alycia Noë

Can’t think of a costume that won’t get you kicked out of 4Floors? Try one of these punny ideas Cereal killer Fantasy football Sandwich or a sand witch Internet troll

Want to write for us?

Send your story ideas to Student Living! studentliving@mcgilltribune.com Photos courtesy of, bittersweetblog.com, fanpop.com, tasteofhome.com

Tuesday 4 p.m. Shatner 110

Ingredients

½ cup peanut butter 3 tbsp butter 1¼ cups confectioners’ sugar 2 tsp vanilla extract 1 bag white chocolate chips M&Ms Red frosting

Ingredients

Cookie base: 1¾ cups all-purpose flour 1 cup cold butter ½ cup dark brown sugar Caramel filling: ¾ cup butter ½ cup dark brown sugar 3 tbsp corn syrup 1 can sweetened condensed milk 2 tsp vanilla extract Chocolate coating: 1 package chocolate chips 1 tbsp butter

Instructions

1. In a bowl, cream peanut butter and softened butter together.

2. Add confectioners’ sugar and vanilla extract, mixing together until smooth.

3. Cover a cookie sheet with wax paper, aluminum foil, or saran wrap.

4. Roll peanut butter mixture into balls and place on lined cookie sheet.

5. Refrigerate balls until hardened (ap-

(Sara Hashemi Nasab / McGill Tribune)

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds Instructions

1) Rinse seeds until you’ve got rid of pumpkin fibres.

2) Dry them with paper towel or a tea towel and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Sprinkle with some salt and olive oil, and other seasonings if desired—be creative.

3) Cook at 325 oF for 10 minutes then flip seeds over. Place back in oven for another 10 minutes, but watch carefully to prevent burning.

4) Take the seeds out when they are a light golden colour. Let cool before eating.

—Rebecca Babcock

Other seasoning ideas: — garlic powder — cajun spice — jalapeno — barbecue spice mix — cinnamon and sugar — parmesan cheese and pepper

9.c om )

Take part in the autumn festivities by saving your seeds from your pumpkin for a Halloween treat!

95 (lite

arts & Entertainment MUSIC

Overshadowed, but not overmatched Shad belongs in an elite class—of rappers and students Max Berger A&E Editor When I bring up Shad in conversation, I find that the number of people familiar with him is still frustratingly low. Many will shake their heads to indicate they have no idea who I’m talking about, but when someone is familiar with the emcee from London, ON, I can expect a wide grin to emerge onto their face— because they know. They know about the commanding flow, the exceedingly clever rhymes, and the endearing style that make Shad arguably the best Canadian rapper in the game.

Drake is the headline-grabbing icon in Canadian hip-hop, but it was Shad’s TSOL and not Drake’s Thank Me Later that took home the 2011 Juno Award for Rap Recording of the Year. Not long after that upset, Shad was honoured for another momentous achievement: a Master’s degree in Liberal Studies from Simon Fraser University (SFU).

“Basically, we’d do the canon of western literature and then take a range of classes from there,” Shad explains. “I kind of kept it as broad

as possible. That was really my intention in going back—learning for its own sake.”

With the complexities of the English language at his disposal, rapping is a way for the self-proclaimed “nerdy jock” to take pleasure in his linguistic gift.

“I think the first thing I gravitated towards with rapping was just the fun aspect of it. It was fun to entertain, fun to make my friends laugh, and just kind of the joy of playing with language,” Shad explains.

Rap is a bona fide form of poetry, but Shad has gotten feedback from fans who are only interested in his music for its poetic elements. On “Stylin,” a single from his Oct. 15 release Flying Colours, Shad takes a bit of a shot at those who say things like “Oh hey Shad, I hate rap but I like you.”

“It’s not a big issue,” says Shad when I reference that line. “I think I address it in a bit of a playful way [....] but it is something that fans might not be aware of: how they’re heard, how they’re understood when they make that kind of remark, which is quite prominent for myself and an artist of my vein [....] I do think it’s

worth pointing out.” experience like that one, that really For Shad, the canon of rap car- takes time to put into words and to ries the same weight as the canon of put into music.” western literature. Take “Fam Jam” Flying Colours’ “Progress (Part for example, a Flying Colours track 1: American Pie, Part 2: The Future that borrows the line “Not bad, huh, is Here)” shows off the flip side of for some immigrants?” from the Shad’s creative process. He starts Kanye West and Jay-Z collabora- off with a vague vision that leads to tion “Otis,” and makes it the chorus a seven-minute dystopian critique of hook. He tells me about completing ‘American’ identity and culture.

“Fam Jam,” a groovy tribute to the “I think I am talking about immigrant family and friends America more in the sense of an he grew up with idea,” he says. “It’s a big song—it’s in London almost bigger than what I can put after relocating into words.” from Kenya at a He explains that the catalyst young age. for the song was a parallel he drew “That was a between the premature special one for sure deaths of Ritchie Va[....] a song like “Fam lens and Buddy Jam” is one of Holly, which are those [songs] discussed in Don where I’m McLean’s trying to be “American a little more Pie,” and pointed and those of rappers literally 2Pac and Bigtrying to gie Smalls. describe a “And then specific experithat got my ence or situaimagination tion; in particugoing and it (thewalleye.ca) lar a nuanced started spin-

MUSIC

ning off into these cascading images [....] I think really it describes some underlying anxiety around some subconscious feelings about a new age that we’re entering. I think that’s kind of the centre of it.”

Despite occasionally rapping about America, Shad’s current tour takes him almost exclusively through Canada. He’s a fan of the domestic touring experience, especially some of the lesser-known stops.

“There’s little places that people might not know; cities like Guelph or Nelson or Victoria, that are very cool music cities, people are very interested in music and really down for an experience when they come to shows [....] People might not know these kinds of things unless they tour.”

Next week, Shad will be performing in St. Henri, a small district of its own within the greater Montreal city, before heading west and covering the rest of Canada. Not bad, huh, for an immigrant?

Shad performs at the Corona Theatre (2490 Notre-Dame West) at 8 p.m. on Nov. 6. Tickets are $30.65 online.

AOKIFICATION NATION Steve Aoki’s Aokify America circuit is no cake-walk Diana Wright Contributor What does Steve Aoki—notorious cake thrower and DJ extraordinaire—do when he’s not performing for hundreds of university students? He drinks green juice.

“It sounds like we’re partying every night, but we’re usually healthy [....] I’m drinking the craziest drink right now, it’s pure green and kind of tastes like grass.”

Later in our interview, Aoki describes it as the “gnarliest juice,” but maintains that it’s important to stay healthy and fit on the road.

“These bus tours are really good because I can bring my whole team on the road. I have a trainer on the road with me. I have to see a physical therapist because I’ve actually thrown my shoulder out [by] throwing cakes.”

After over 17 years in the music business and an average of 250 shows per year, it’s no wonder Aoki takes the time now to keep well and take care of himself. His “Aokify America Tour” features the talents of Waka Flocka Flame and Borgore, among others, and is making stops all over North America—including one in Montreal on Oct. 30.

A sceptical reader might question Steve Aoki’s enthusiasm for putting

out music and touring after so many years, but there’s no doubt about it—he loves what he does, and loves watching music evolve, both as an artist and the head of a successful record label, Dim Mak. “The sound of music keeps changing, not just on a linear level— it’s exponential,” he says. It’s an exciting time. I wanna hear how people are changing music and creating their own [stuff]...I love being part of a culture that embraces new [things].”

However, it is unsurprisingly difficult to live a life that’s mostly on the road, never staying in one place for more than a couple days.

“I accepted this life a long time ago, but it’s hard for people that are new to it, because it’s fast-paced,” Aoki adds. “You have to be able to pick yourself up and go, and be flexible. It’s good for your brain, to rewire [it] and not get stuck in one place.”

Although he’s now unquestionably one of the most successful men in EDM—DJing and producing are only two of his numerous projects—Aoki maintains that he never could have imagined his career reaching such a wide scope when he founded Dim Mak records in 1996.

“You can’t really foretell [that] something like this [will] happen. It’s all about embracing your small vic-

tories and building on them. You can have your big goal [at the beginning], but at the end of the day you might not reach that goal—you might reach a different goal.”

For Steve Aoki, at the moment, one of those goals includes the Steve Aoki Charitable Fund, which he founded last year. The fund donates one dollar from every ticket sold on the Aokify America Tour to charities supporting brain research—a cause that is very important to him.

“Everything comes from our brains, we should be spending more money, and funding and research on our brains because there’s so much we don’t know about them [....] We can learn how to live healthier, better, longer lives.”

Short of solving the mysteries of the human brain, Aoki has been focusing on making music in his downtime.

“Right now I’m finishing my album on the bus, so hopefully it’ll probably come out in May or June,” he says.

Eventually, he’ll get some welldeserved time off from work at the end of the year—but not too much.

“I always have eight days at the end of the year for proper days off [...] to take out my mom and hang out with my family. Then I go back into the studio.”

Steve Aoki performs at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 30 at Metropolis (59 Ste. Catherine St. E). Tickets are $42.50$54.55. Opening acts are Waka Flocka Flame, Borgore, Dirtyphonics, and Kryoman.

)

.com (mtv

Curiosity delivers. |

arts & entertainment

| Tuesday, October 29, 2013

15

television

Adam Devine’s prime time Workaholics alum gives you a reason to celebrate with latest project James Chapman Contributor

“turn it down” have no bearing whatsoever. In his own words, the three adjectives which best describe him are “bodacious, radical, and gnar.” I struggle to think of someone more perfectly suited to the show than the ridiculous character Devine plays so well.

“It’s just sort of who I am,” he says. “I’ve got a weird, big dumb face, I can move in all sorts of different directions, so that helps me out.”

Adam Devine’s House Party is a really funny show, simple as that, and even if you don’t enjoy it­— as some undoubtedly won’t—you’d be doing yourself a disservice by not checking out at least the premiere. In all likelihood, you’ll soon be waiting eagerly for more.

To end with some parting wisdom from Devine himself: “Spread the gospel and don’t do meth.”

with seeing so many new comedians get passed on by audiences due to a lack of time to express their personalities.

“When a comic’s doing a set, and it’s only, you know, 15-20 minutes, the audience doesn’t really get a chance to know them the way they might if they got, like, an hour on stage,” he says.

Devine approaches the show with the mentality that the sketches interspersed with the stand-up are meant to give the audience a good look at each comic’s personality off-stage in a way that other shows really can’t. This concept really works in practice; by the end of each episode, I went from “Who the hell is this guy” to “Wow, I think I might actually have to see some more of this dude.”

It’s certainly an uncommon format, but Devine hopes that the show “is the tightest of buttholes, but I don’t know; it might be a weird butthole.”

What really ties the whole thing together, however, is Devine’s talent as a host. He plays a similar character to his Workaholics counterpart, acting as a narcissistic, overly emotional frat boy, upon whom the words

Adam Devine’s House Party i s airing every Friday morning at 12:30 a.m. on Comedy Central.

(comedynetwork.com)

If you’re into raucous laughter and slacking off when you should be doing something productive, you’re probably familiar with a little show called Workaholics . The crew of lazy, hilarious telemarketers (played by Blake Anderson, Anders Holm, and last—but definitely not least­— Adam Devine) have been making waves with their uniquely ridiculous antics on Comedy Central since 2011.

As of Thursday last week, a new program has emerged as a contender for the title of ‘funniest go-to party show.’ Adam Devine is its creator, writer, and star, and he has some help from Workaholics alumnus Kyle Newachek, in the director’s chair Adam Devine’s House Party is in some ways exactly what it sounds like—the world’s craziest party, hosted by Adam Devine in his extravagant LA Mansion. In other ways, it delivers a lot of unexpected laughs; the show’s primary purpose is to showcase up-and-coming stand-up comics.

Between bouts of Devine and his friends getting into mis-

chief at his multi-million dollar frat party, three comics perform stand-up sets. The first episode showcases Ahmed Bharoocha, Andrew Santino, and Barry Rothbart, who talk about topics ranging from baby God to gay skydiving. In addition to performing live, each of the comics also appear in a scripted scene involving them at the titular house party—Santino, for example, shows up with Devine’s ‘ex-girlfriend’ on his arm, and Rothbart discusses defecating on Devine’s floor over a large glass of wine.

The second episode highlights comedians Liza Treyger, Josh Rabinowitz, and Sean Donnelly, all of whom deliver fantastic sets—the only downside that starts to emerge as you watch is that each comic looks like they could do with more time on stage. Devine himself, on the phone with The Tribune, comments that “We had to cut each of their sets a little shorter than we’d have liked,” due largely to the format and length of each episode.

The reason for the show’s format stems from Devine’s love of stand-up, and a dissatisfaction

Theatre

Great vengeance and furious anger

Omari Newton provokes and entertains in his new play Sal Capone: The Lamentable Tragedy of and friend Sam is shot nine times by the police, they find them-

“It’s a credit to Newton’s

versatility that the musical numbers are compelling enough to not feel like mere plot devices.

”

)

The history of racial relations in North America has certainly been a topic of interest among filmmakers and playwrights in recent years—one which audiences have been happy to engage in. One need look no further than the recent successes of Django Unchained , Fruitvale Station , or the buzz around 12 Years a Slave to see the fascination the issue has provoked. It’s no small feat then that Omari Newton’s play Sal Capone: The Lamentable Tragedy of showcases a powerful new perspective on the subject, giving consideration to multiple viewpoints without concealing the vehement anger underneath.

As the audience enters the theatre to the sound of gunshots, sirens, and Pusha T’s “Numbers on the Boards,” it’s easy to miss the title character (played by Tristan D. Lalla) sitting with his head enveloped by a hoodie on one of the benches that compose most of the sparse set. It’s a pow-

erful decision by director Diane Roberts that indicts the audience of ignoring black youth without feeling didactic.

Once the lights go down and the play actually begins, Lalla is far from inconspicuous.

He brings a righteous fury to Sal—also referred to by his birth name, Freddy—that matches the ire in Newton’s script. He’s particularly strong in the slam poetry-esque soliloquies which serve the multiple functions of developing his character, promoting a political agenda, and comprising a good deal of the play’s diegetic music. It’s a credit to Newton’s versatility that the musical numbers are compelling enough to not feel like mere plot devices.

This isn’t to imply that the music is all that’s interesting about Sal Capone . The story, narrated by First Nations drag queen Shaneney (played by Billy Merasty) concerns Freddy and the hip-hop group he has with his two friends Jewel and Chase (played by Kim Villigante and Jordan Waunch). When their DJ

ze tte .com

Max Bledstein Contributor

ga eal r t n (mo selves in a quandary—do they go through with their album release party or put it off in Sam’s honor?

At this point, the play splinters off into conversations be-

tween various groupings of the characters, which shed light on different reactions by minorities to oppression. Freddy responds to the violence by isolating himself in his room and composing reactionary lyrics which shock and offend his sister Naomi (played by Letitia Brooks). With her character, however, Newton’s writing falls short of the depth which he affords the rest of the cast—his portrayal of Naomi verges on caricature throughout the play. Though Naomi’s resistance to protest forms an interesting contrast with Freddie’s rebelliousness, her plucky obstinance doesn’t quite yield a fully believable character.

However, Naomi’s onedimensional nature is more than made up for by Jewel’s multivalent vibrancy. Villagante herself is an up-and-coming rapper, and her skill and energy could easily make her a future star. She brings an exuberance to Jewel, who subsequently steals many of the scenes she’s in.

Sal Capone is an angry play,

though Newton’s rage—for the most part—doesn’t get in the way of his intelligence. It’s hard to gauge how large of an audience will be drawn to a play that reaches conclusions as grim as this one does about North American racial relations. Though there has been a vogue for works on race recently, most of them either don’t come from a black perspective or don’t have the fury lurking beneath them that Sal Capone does. However, Spike Lee proved with Do the Right Thing that a black artist can turn his indignation into something that will resonate with a large audience, so hopefully Sal Capone can find similar success.

Sal Capone: The Lamentable Tragedy of is being shown until Nov. 10 at MAI (3680 JeanneMance). Performances will be held at 8 p.m. Wed.-Sat. and at 3 p.m. on Sunday matinees. Student tickets are $20.

16

Tuesday, October 29, 2013 |

arts & entertainment

| Curiosity delivers.

could be good BOOK LAUNCH Not Your Ordinary Wolf Girl

VISUAL art

Rallumons le Red Light reclaims Montreal’s Red-Light District Lauren Wildgoose Contributor Whatever its faults, Montreal’s entertainment district cannot be described as poorly lit. On the evening of Oct. 24, a new artistic illumination joined the gaudy lights at the intersection of St. Laurent and Ste. Catherine. An excited crowd came to witness the unveiling of Rallumons le Red Light, an installation gracing the face of the 2-22 building.

The project’s name is a nod to its situation in Montreal’s former Red Light District. It aims to reclaim the ‘red light’ by re-illuminating the area and paying homage to a somewhat shady chapter of the city’s history— gambling, prostitution, and illicit drinking were activities typical to the area.

The installation, referred to as an “illumination” by its creators, is the product of a collaboration be-

tween La Vitrine, the cultural centre that occupies the 2-22 building, and Moment Factory, a Montreal-based studio that creates multimedia installations in public spaces. Moment Factory’s multimedia approach combined several types of performance art at the unveiling in an impressive display of Montreal talent.

As the audience assembled in the middle of the notorious intersection for the unveiling, 2-22 stood dark and quiet, lit only by a few dim red spotlights. The building’s face is made of glass crisscrossed by steel beams and three interior runways on which the red light screens are mounted. Actor Maude Guerin appeared behind glass above the building’s entrance and paid tribute to ‘The Main,’ as St. Laurent is affectionately called, with a dramatic monologue from Chante de Sainte Carmen de la Main. As the final line—“on rallume le red light”—rang out, the red lights sprang to life on the runways

around her and began undulating in time to slow ambient music. They then picked up speed, flashing and spinning in time to upbeat electronic music in an impressive display of digital engineering.

The lights served as backdrop and accompaniment to each of the acts that followed: first a performance by the O’Vertigo dance group, then an opera excerpt performed by singers from l’Atelier lyrique de l’Opera de Montréal, and finally a breathtaking circus act by Les 7 doigts de la main—all of their homegrown talent, and all performing from the precariously high runways. The lights’ infinitely changeable nature complemented the performance, and will ensure that the installation captivates passersby in the months to come.

The event’s only pitfall was the interactive game played via smartphone that the announcers tried desperately to organize, in accordance with Moment Factory’s mission of

creating interactive art experiences for the audience. In this case, however, the interactive aspect did not enhance the installation whatsoever.

It was fraught with technical difficulties that created a major anticlimax; one audience member remarked that the game had turned them into “a thousand confused people.”

La Vitrine’s decision to mount the Red Light installation in public view on the façade of 2-22 is not a surprising one for an organization that works to make art and performance accessible to all Montrealers.

The display can be appreciated by any and all passersby, which reflects La Vitrine’s mission of promoting culture to the public rather than reserving it for the elite, and also celebrates Montreal’s checkered past. All in all, definitely worth a look.

The Rallumons le Red Light installation can be seen on the face of the 2-22 building, 2 Ste. Catherine E.

Emily Pohl-Weary, Canadian author and granddaughter of science fiction writers Judith Merril and Frederik Pohl, launches her new novel centred around an indie bass player and her run-in with a wild dog in Central Park.

Wednesday, Oct. 30, 7 p.m., Drawn & Quarterly Bookstore (211 Bernard W).

Admission is free.

NIGHTLIFE Rocky Horror Picture Show Halloween Ball Cult British comedy/musical classic The Rocky Horror Picture Show is shown for three nights to celebrate Halloween. The screening includes a live cast and interactive experience.

Thursday, Oct. 31 to Saturday, Nov. 2, 8 p.m. and 11 p.m., Cinéma Impérial (1432 Bleury). Tickets are $17.95 in advance and $19.95 at the door, with a $5 discount for students on Halloween.

NIGHTLIFE POP Montreal’s Halloween Massacre POP Montreal throws a Halloween party that features WZaaRD, Filthy Haanz, Beatles and Rage Against the Machine cover bands, and DJs Raf Stabbybak and Annie Q.

dance

Friday, Nov. 1, 9 p.m., NOMAD (129 Van Horne, 2nd Floor). Tickets $7 with costume, $10 without.

Turkish dance troupe brings electrifying dance performance to Canada for the first time

MUSIC Lucius

Fire of Anatolia: sure to set the stage ablaze Kia Pouliot Contributor Since its establishment in 1999, Fire of Anatolia (originally titled Sultans of the Dance) has been continuously dazzling audiences around the globe with its impressive spectacle of dance and percussion. Conceived and produced by Mustafa Erdoğan, a native of Turkey, this unique performance draws inspiration from the ancient mythological and cultural history of Anatolia. The overarching themes of the show; love, culture, history, and the peace of Anatolia; are told through an artistic representation of some of the region’s most important myths and histories. This renowned dance group is acclaimed worldwide—they have performed in 87 countries and 275 cities, selling out each of the 35,800 live performances—however, they have not yet graced Canadian stages. This will soon to change as Fire of Annatolia make their Canadian debut at the beginning of November, with performances in Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal.

As CEO at Sorite Entertain-

ment in Toronto and a key organizer of the Fire of Anatolia Canadian tour, Basri Yilmazer has given some insight into the expectations for the Canadian premiere of this eastern gem. Yilmazer discussed the fact that it is a real synthesis of East and West, combining music and dance styles from all over the world while maintaining an overarching focus on Turkish culture and history. “[It is a] very good representation of the country,” he said, and with great excitement added, “I have never seen such a show!”

Although Fire of Anatolia has been on the stage for more than 10 years and performed for a range of diverse audiences, its has remained essentially unchanged—a testament to its success. Yilmazer, playing off the idea of dance as the universal language, said that the show is “targeting everyone—that is why it doesn’t need to change.” The original form of the performance is able to deliver its message effectively to any viewer who sees it, and Yilmazer attested to its strengths.

“[The dancers] are going to be amazing, [the audience is] going to be impressed for sure […] with this pre-

In Fire of Anatolia, even the smiles are synchonized. (tourxperts.com)

sentation of ‘traditional East’ meets ‘contemporary West,’” he said.

Aside from winning multiple

awards around the world, Fire of Anatolia also holds two Guinness world records. The first record is for the fastest dance performance— reaching an amazing 241 steps per minute—and the other for the largest audience to a dance performance, reaching 400,000 people in Ereğli, Turkey. This remarkable troupe, made up of more than 50 dancers and featuring more than 3,000 dance figures, many of which date back more than 1,000 years, will surely be a worthwhile extravaganza. Yilmazer has even announced that the Prime Minister will be in attendance at the Ottawa performance. If you’re looking for a unique, exciting and aesthetically beautiful experience, Fire of Anatolia promises to be a performance to remember.

Fire of Anatolia will be in Montreal at 8 p.m. on Nov. 4 at the Théâtre St-Denis (1594 St. Denis).

Tickets are available at ticketpro.ca from $52-$92.

Indie pop rockers Lucius, fresh from the release of their LP Wildewoman, are set to return to Montreal once more. The group has been praised for their “luscious, luminous, lilting lullabies” by The New York Times.

Saturday, Nov. 2, 9 p.m., Divan Orange (4234 St. Laurent). Tickets are $15 in advance.

MUSIC Ranee Lee Montrealer and veteran jazz vocalist Ranee Lee returns to the venue where she recorded 2009’s Juno-award-winning Ranee Lee Lives Upstairs.

Saturday, Nov. 2, 7:30 p.m. and 10 p.m., Upstairs Jazz Bar and Grill (1254 Mackay). Admission is $25.

19

SPORTS

Tournament Preview

Lacrosse National Championships come to McGill Redmen strive to win back-to-back Baggataway Cups Remi Lu Sports Editor The Redmen have been the best team in the CUFLA this year. Following their Baggataway Cup victory last season, McGill has gone 10-0 against league opponents, winning games by an average margin of 10 points.

The Tribune has prepared an overview of the Redmen lacrosse team in anticipation of this weekend’s National Championships, hosted here at McGill from Nov. 1 to Nov. 3.

Offence

The Redmen have an incredibly strong offensive line, led by playercoach Kevin Donovan. Donovan currently sits in fifth place overall on the scoring leaderboard, with 28 goals and 37 points in eight games played. Other scoring standouts for McGill include third-year Connor Goodwin with 18 goals, co-captain Alex Rohrbach with 15 goals, and with 10 goals apiece, Richie Klares III, Leland de Langley, and Tayler Sipperly.

However, the biggest offensive

strength for the Redmen lies in their balanced scoring attack, with no single player required to shoulder the scoring load. As a result, opposing defences cannot focus on stopping any one player and must be wary of numerous offensive threats.

Defence

McGill has a top-notch defence led by goalies Riley McGillis and William Waesche. McGillis has logged 497 minutes in the regular season, and has a Goals Against Average (GAA) statistic of 7.24; Waesche has logged 200 minutes with a GAA of 3.60. Both goalies have been outstanding for the Redmen.

Along with the goaltending, McGill boasts a stout defensive line led by co-captain Ossie Long. Long and second-year defenceman Quinton Bradley were named to the allconference team in 2012.

Strengths

According to Head Coach Tim Murdoch, the strength of the squad lies not with one or two facets of the game, but rather with the mentality that the entire team has adopted. “[The captains] have been the heart

#2 Ossie Long Position: MIdfielder Height: 6’0” Weight: 180 lb Class: Fifth Year Hometown: Sarnia, ON Major: Physical and Health Education

#27 Nolan Prinzen Position: Midfielder Height: 6’0” Weight: 190 lb Class: Fourth Year Hometown: Summit, NJ (US) Major: Economics

McGill Tribune: How long have you been playing lacrosse?

Nolan Prinzen: I’ve been playing since I was in grade six.

MT: What’s the biggest challenge you’ve overcome?

NP: I think it was getting that National Championship off our back.

Because we’ve had a good team for a while now, and we finally came together as one unit last year [....] [In

#5 Alex Rohrbach Position: Attackman Height: 5’11” Weight: 160 lb Class: Third Year Hometown: West Windsor, NJ (US) Major: Finance

and soul of this team,” he noted. “We have [Long], [Rohrbach], Brandon McLean, and Nolan Prinzen. We’re really lucky to have these four guys.

In addition to their roles as captain, they do a lot of things off the field [….] It’s a top-to-bottom thing— captains down to the last man on the roster.”

McGill’s midfield line is also a source of pride for the team, as they boast arguably the most skilled midfield in the CUFLA, in addition to one of the deepest rosters overall.

McGill has a balanced lineup, with no player in the league top 10 for minutes played. The squad boasts talented players at every position, allowing Coach Murdoch to minimize injuries and keep his team fresh.

gaged. The team’s youth belies its composure on the field.

McGill’s only challenge lies in battling complacency, as the Redmen have dominated their opponents so far. “It’s a fine balance [in regards to] complacency,” Long said. “We’ve kind of battled with that.” ”We don’t want to forget that we want to stay mentally and physically ready to go,” Murdoch added.

Teams to watch

One key point to look out for are occasional lapses on the defensive end. This was most recently demonstrated in the Oct. 19 game against the NCAA Plattsburgh Hornets, in which the team played sloppy defence in the second stanza. However, the Redmen have the capability to rout their CUFLA opponents when the players stay en-

There are a number of teams that could make a surprise run for the Baggataway Cup this weekend. Brock University will pose the toughest challenge for the Redmen, as the Badgers finished atop their conference. While McGill has swept through its schedule undefeated, Brock’s lone loss came at the hands of the Western Mustangs, the team with the no. 2 position behind the Badgers. The Guelph Regals also have the ability to challenge for a spot in the championship, as they finished with a third seed in the tough Western Conference.

The Bishop’s Gaiters, led by Alex Henderson, pose the biggest

McGill Tribune: What was your favourite sport growing up?

Ossie Long: Box lacrosse.

MT: How long have you been playing lacrosse?

OL: I started playing when I was eight, so about 16 years.

MT: What made you come to McGill?

OL: It was just the last school that accepted me. I was psyched. I applied to some dusty schools, and I got into McGill so I was just like I’m

jumping on this for sure. It was kind of spur of the moment [....] Didn’t know anybody [who] was coming here; just went for it. No regrets whatsoever. Five years, baby.

MT: What has been your proudest moment on the field?

OL: Probably just coming back from a two-goal deficit with a minute-and-a-half last year in the [semifinals] against Guelph. That was definitely triumphant. I liked that a lot.

MT: Who is your role model?

the] semifinals, we were down and we came back. And the finals went to overtime and we had to try and trust each other that we were still going to pull off the win. With our backs against the wall, we came through.

MT: What’s your favourite sports team?

NP: The Toronto Maple Leafs.

MT: Who is your role model?

NP: My dad. He was a really competitive athlete in his younger years.

He played professional football. I always wanted to work my hardest, because I knew he did.

MT: What are your plans for the future?

NP: I’m looking to go [into] finance.

I’m an econ major. This summer I interned in wealth management with RBC in Toronto.

McGill Tribune: How long have you been playing lacrosse?

Alex Rohrbach: Since I was eight years old. My neighbour played lacrosse—lacrosse is very popular in New Jersey. I remember just having a catch with my neighbour, and thinking, ‘Oh, this is cool,’ and wanting to check it out. That was right before going into the third grade.

MT: What made you come to McGill?

AR: I was attracted to McGill for a number of reasons, lacrosse probably being the least important. So definitely the high academics, the [city], the international aspect of McGill and living in Montreal— [those were] big factors [....] And lacrosse was my last factor.

MT: What’s your favourite sports team?

AR: I’ll probably go with the Philadelphia Eagles. [In] New Jersey, it’s weird. You’ve got the Giants,

Weaknesses

CUFLA ChampionshipS Molson Stadium

Nov. 1: Quarter-finals

6:00 P.M.

8:30 P.M. Nov. 2: Semifinals

2:00 P.M. (McGill)

4:30 P.M. Nov. 3: Baggataway Cup

12:30 P.M. obstacle for the Redmen in the East.

McGill’s two games against the Gaiters in the regular season yielded narrow victories, in contrast to their clear dominance over other opponents.

While the rest of the CUFLA has made strides to take down McGill, no Canadian team has been able to defeat the Redmen in over a year. Expect the squad to win another Baggataway Cup, further advancing what is rapidly becoming a lacrosse dynasty.

Tickets are $5 for students and $10 for guests. A tournament pass is $10 for students and $20 for guests.

OL: My younger brother always pushes me because he’s got an unreal work ethic, and I’m really competitive with him. So we always push each other in that way.

MT: What are your plans for the future?

OL: I’m studying phys. ed., but I don’t know if I’ll teach right off the hop. I think I’m going to start a carpentry apprenticeship and just get some practical hands-on skills.

the Eagles, and the Jets. I chose the Eagles.

MT: What are your plans for the future?

AR: Career-wise, exploring the world of finance and getting into central banking in the public sector.

Possibly doing something with the Federal Reserve in the United States.

That’s really intriguing to me.

season CONTrIBUTORS: Max Berger, Osama Haque, Aaron Rose, Ramsey Franklin, Elie Waitzer, Wyatt Fine-Gagné

PREVIEW

ATLANtic division Brooklyn Nets

The league’s newest big market franchise is looking scarier than ever. The Nets have acquired essential pieces in building their championship team this season with the additions of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Andrea Kirieinko. Deron Williams can now relax and simply focus on distributing the ball. The only variable in the equation is new Head Coach Jason Kidd. It is too early to say if Kidd will be able to manage the minutes and personalities of this deep roster.

The Nets should finish near the top of the Eastern Conference and make some real noise in the playoffs.

New York Knicks

The Knicks have been dethroned by the Nets for the title of best team in New York. This may be a surprise to many, but the Knicks do not have a roster that can contend for an NBA championship.

Carmelo Anthony, Amare Stoudemire, and Tyson Chandler give the squad recognizable names, but this team must still figure out how to play cohesively. New York’s weaknesses will be exposed by a superior team in the playoffs. The Knicks have added a little bit more depth with Andrea Bargnani and Metta World Peace, but this won’t stop New York from finishing below the top spots in the East.

central division Chicago Bulls

Derrick Rose is back! NBA fans spent the entire 2012-2013 season wondering when the former MVP would return to the basketball court, and the time has finally arrived. With a starting lineup featuring the elite defensive play of Joakim Noah and Luol Deng, this team is a defensive juggernaut. Jimmy Butler is the x-factor and needs to take the next step in his game and relieve some of the offensive pressure off of Rose. If Carlos Boozer is dealt away and the team receives adequate compensation, Chicago will be in the conversation to win an NBA Championship.

Indiana Pacers

Last season NBA fans saw Paul George mature into a legitmate NBA All-Star and lead the Indiana Pacers to within one game of the NBA Finals. This time around, the Pacers regain the scoring abilities of Danny Granger, who will complement the imposing defence of Roy Hibbert. The team struggled with awful benchplay all season, forcing rehired General Manager Larry Bird to bring in the veteran role players C.J. Watson and Luis Scola to help anchor the back-end of the rotation. With added depth and the return of Granger, this team is set to compete with the top of the East.

Toronto Raptors

Boston Celtics

Philadelphia 76ers

Detroit Pistons

Cleveland Cavaliers

Milwaukee Bucks

Washington Wizards

Orlando Magic

Charlotte Bobcats

The Raptors have made some big moves this year. They acquired Tyler Hansborough, Steve Novak, and even added Drake as a global ambassador in the off-season. Canada’s team is really starting to find its way after Bryan Colangelo’s resignation and the hiring of Masai Ujiri. The new nucleus for Toronto consists of Demar Derozan, Terrence Ross, and Jonas Valanciunas after trading Andrea Bargnani to the Knicks. Look for the Raps to finish around ninth or 10th in the East as the growing pains continue for the Raptors.

If the Pistons are clicking on all cylinders, Motor City might be getting revved up to make some noise in this year’s NBA playoffs. Unfortunately, this won’t be the case. The Pistons had a video game-like off-season, bringing in the talents of Brandon Jennings and Josh Smith, but these skill sets come with glaring flaws.

Both love to take ill-advised jump shots, and with only one ball to go around, it will be tough to see these players meshing. Detroit will easily make the playoffs as the sixth seed in an Eastern Conference that lacks depth.

The reset button has been pushed for one of the greatest franchises in NBA history. In the off-season, the Celtics traded away Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce, two of the most important players to ever don Celtic green. This year, Boston is going to rely on mainly unproven talent while waiting for All-Star Rajon Rondo to recover from injury. Also, the Celtics introduced the precocious Brad Stevens as their new head coach. the Celtics will just miss out on the playoffs.

The Cavaliers shocked the world this off-season by taking Anthony Bennett with the first pick in the 2013 NBA draft. They followed this up by adding sixth man of the year candidate Jarrett Jack along with the carcass of Andrew Bynum. The team will depend on the elite scoring and playmaking abilities of point guard Kyrie Irving and the development of Dion Waiters and Tristan Thompson to find success this year. If Bynum can’t make it onto the court this year, it could be another lottery-pick season for the Cavs in the post-LeBron era.

It is safe to say that the 76ers will be the worst team in the NBA this year after falling victim to the promise that Andrew Bynum once had. Their first round draft picks—Nerlens Noel and Michael Carter-Williams— have multiple flaws. Noel is recovering from a knee injury and may not play this season while Carter-Williams can’t shoot, or play defense. Expect to see the Sixers at the top of every mock draft from now until Andrew Wiggins stands on stage to shake Adam Silver’s hand.

The Milwaukee Bucks gave up on the inefficient and overrated offensive duo of Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis and recplaced them with Brandon Knight and O.J. Mayo. The Bucks are built around a solid group of young role players, a plan that does not lead to success in the NBA. Look for them to try to acquire an All-Star calibre small forward to complement the defensive prowess of Larry Sanders.

Unfortunately, the Bucks seem bound for another season stuck in middling purgatory. Milwaukee isn’t good enough to win a playoff series and isn’t bad enough to get a top five draft pick.

southeast division Miami Heat

The Miami Heat enter the 2013-2014 campaign with no shortage of confidence, and why shouldn’t they? They have retained the core of their previous championships squads, led by the Big 3. After amnestying Mike Miller, the Heat took a considerable risk in signing the perpetually injured former no. 1 overall pick, Greg Oden. If he can withstand the demanding regular season and playoff schedule, he will provide a vital inside threat offensively and defensively. The Heat are heavily favoured to become the newest NBA dynasty with a third consecutive championship.

Atlanta Hawks

The Hawks attempted to plug the sizable void left by losing franchise cornerstone Josh Smith with the talented and under-appreciated Paul Millsap.

Although he may lack Smith’s athleticism, Millsap is a jack-ofall-trades forward who will contribute consistently while bringing a blue collar mindset. In the backcourt, Jeff Teague will have his hands full for the time being, while Lou Williams recovers from a torn ACL. The lack of perimeter options will limit Atlanta’s progress this season and may keep them out of the post-season for the first time in seven years.

The Washington Wizards have a lot to be excited about this season, which has not been the case since the departure of Gilbert Arenas. John Wall is poised to break out as a bona fide superstar, while Bradley Beal looks to build on his impressive rookie season. In recent trade activity, the Wizards acquired Marcin Gortat, who is one of the better defensive centres in the game.

It’s been a long time coming for Washington, but the team appears to be ready for their first playoff berth since 2008.

Ever since Dwight Howard’s departure, the Magic have been without an all-star calibre player. If his summer league and pre-season success are any indication, rookie Victor Oladipo may be that player somewhere down the road. Look for the athletic guard to contend for Rookieof-the-Year honours. Third-year centre Nikola Vucevic gobbles up rebounds at a rate that has made fans forget about his predecessor, while Arron Afflalo and Jameer Nelson provide scoring support.

The Magic are taking steps in the right direction but are not quite ready to be in the playoff mix.

It feels as if the Bobcats have been in the rebuilding stage for years now. Bringing in Al Jefferson will provide Charlotte with a proven scorer for whom opposing defences will have to account on a nightly basis. The team’s best future assets are also their greatest current liabilities, as second-year small forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and rookie Cody Zeller are being thrust into the spotlight with very high expectations. A time will surely come when the potential talent of the Bobcats will come to fruition, but that time is not in the near future.

Illustration by: Dorothy Yang

Pacific division LA Clippers

After winning the Pacific Division for the first time in franchise history last season, the Los Angeles Clippers were knocked out of the playoffs in the first round. This year’s team will be much improved after a busy offseason that saw the departure of Eric Bledsoe and Caron Butler, and the addition of Darren Collison, Jared Dudley and JJ Redick.

However, the most important offseason change for the Clips has undoubtedly been hiring of Doc Rivers as their head coach. With a strong core and deep bench, the Clippers will compete again for first place in the division this season.

Golden State Warriors

There was no team more captivating in the NBA last season. Stephen Curry electrified the league with a breakout year that included topping Ray Allen’s record for three-pointers in a season. With no significant losses aside from reliable bench pieces Jarrett Jack and Carl Landry, the Warriors are a rising force and will look to make the Finals for the first time since their 1975 championship team. The acquisition of All-Star defensive menace Andre Iguodala will help the squad’s young nucleus grow.

Golden State will now have the capability to fully embrace the role of a dark horse contender.

LA Lakers

Hollywood’s team is in for a long season. Nobody knows how many games Kobe Bryant will play after suffering a serious injury to his Achilles tendon last season. Steve Nash is nowhere near his prime, and Pau Gasol is at the centre of constant trade rumours. The starting five includes the likes of small forward Wesley Johnson and power forward Jordan Hill. Coach Mike D’Antoni has little to work with, as the only significant newcomers are Nick Young and Chris Kaman. It would be a surprise if D’Antoni makes it through the season before getting a pink slip.

Northwest division Oklahoma City Thunder

Even though the Thunder are clearly the class of the Northwest division, there are glaring flaws with the roster as it is currently built. Superstar forward Kevin Durant will have to shoulder a larger scoring load until Russell Westbrook returns. There are several question marks on this roster aside from the dynamic duo.

Once known for its trio of young stars, the Thunder had to let go of All-Star guard James Harden to stay under the luxury tax—with minimal returns from the trade. If they are to succeed next May, the team will need consistent bench production from either Jeremy Lamb or Reggie Jackson.

Minnesota Timberwolves

For the past few seasons, the Wolves have been fighting the injury bug and the ineptitude of recently jettisoned General Manager David Kahn. If healthy, this year’s pack is a good bet to return the franchise to the playoffs for the first time since 2004. Presently, the team arguably possesses the league’s best power forward, Kevin Love. Look for him to lead a dominant offence with Ricky Rubio, and the newly acquired Kevin Martin. Defence will be a glaring liability at times, but if coach Rick Adelman can squeeze some passable defence out of his team, be prepared to pencil them in for a low playoff seed.

Denver Nuggets

It’s hard to be optimistic about the 2013-2014 Nuggets. Ty Lawson will put together dazzling fast breaks, Kenneth “The Manimal” Faried will hustle his way to rebounds he has no business snagging, and Nate Robinson will probably get hot off the bench and go for 50 points one night—but it’s fool’s gold to think that any of it will be enough to make the squad a lock for an 11th straight post-season appearance. This year’s group could be a pleasant surprise, but don’t expect the Nuggets to emerge out of a loaded Western Conference.

Sacramento Kings

Phoenix Suns

Portland Trail Blazers

Utah Jazz

Dallas Mavericks

New Orleans Pelicans

The Kings are rolling the dice on the enigmatic DeMarcus Cousins, giving the talented but troubled big man a max level extension. The move was probably co-owner Shaquille O’Neal’s idea, and although the genie’s wisdom can’t be doubted (see: Kazaam), this move is not going to push Sacramento above mediocrity. Neither is the signing of breakout guard Greivis Vazquez or the play of rookie shooting guard Ben McLemore. However, this is a promising young team that will definitely build on last season with the promises of a new era following a new owner, general manager, and head coach.

Rip City spent the first half of last season in the thick of the playoff race thanks to another impressive year from LaMarcus Aldridge and the outstanding play of Rookie-of-the-Year Damian Lillard. Portland has a nice collection of pieces moving forward with C.J. McCollum, Thomas Robinson, and Meyers Leonard playing behind solid starters Nicholas Batum and Robin Lopez. While they brought in more young talent and addressed their once-laughable bench, the Trail Blazers are still a long shot to leapfrog fringe playoff teams in a deep Northwest Division.

This will be an interesting season in Phoenix as we watch how the Eric Bledsoe trade works out. The team has impressive salary flexibility due to the departure of numerous veterans.

Under first-year Head Coach Jeff Hornacek, the revamped Suns’ biggest obstacle will be finding cohesion among a group of fresh players. Phoenix has shown a willingness to create a long term plan that involves mortgaging the present, and such intent will land them at the top of the lottery come draft time.

By letting go of two established big men who helped them compete for the eighth seed the past two years, Utah cleared the front court for two developing big men who may play integral roles on a Jazz contender one day. Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter will fill the void left by Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson in the starting lineup, Gordon Hayward will log heavy minutes on the wing, and the young backcourt of Trey Burke and Alec Burks will aim to provi de perimeter support. If anyone in the Northwest is ‘Riggin for Wiggins,’ it’s Utah.

Southwest division San Antonio Spurs

The Spurs came within one play of hoisting the Larry O’Brien trophy last season. Despite an aging core, San Antonio remains the favourite to win the division.

While playoffs and a high seed are essentially a guarantee, there will be questions as to whether the team has the energy to make another deep playoff run. Coach Greg Popovich will likely employ the same tactic of limiting minutes for his ancient Big 3 during the season, in order to have enough in the tank come playoff time. With another year of experience under his belt, Kawhi Leonard’s role should also grow.

Memphis Grizzlies

This off-season featured a number of odd coaching changes.

Former Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins is among a number of coaches who were fired despite leading their team to success. Former assistant Dave Joerger will replace him, taking over a team that is hoping to improve on a 20122013 campaign that saw them make the conference finals before being swept by San Antonio. With very few changes in the roster, the Grizzlies are hoping that a change in tempo will lead to improvements.

Houston Rockets

The Rockets made the biggest splash this off-season, signing Dwight Howard to a four-year max level deal. The chemistry between Howard and superstar guard James Harden makes sense on paper, but is unproven on the court. Elsewhere, Houston must figure out whether Jeremy Lin is the answer at the point guard spot and whether center Omer Asik can capably mesh with Howard. The move to acquire Howard makes the Rockets a serious contender in a tough Western Conference, but the team lacks the depth that is needed for a long playoff run.

It wasn’t all that long ago that the Mavericks were crowned NBA champions, but it certainly feels that way. Since that season, Dallas has endured two seasons of mediocrity. The team added guards Monta Ellis, Devin Harris, and Jose Calderon in the off-season for slight improvements. The Mavs are in a difficult position: they aren’t close to being a contender, but are too good to bottom out. With very little salary on the books for 2014-2015, it seems that the Mavs could slide into a low playoff seed before what should be a very busy off-season.

The Pelicans (formerly the Hornets) are often overlooked.

In perhaps the toughest division in basketball, the Pelicans are sitting at the bottom looking up. The centrepiece of the ongoing rebuild is Anthony Davis. The ‘Brow is a special talent, but the Pelicans gave him little to work with last season. This off-season they traded for young guards Tyreke Evans and Jrue Holiday. The two of them join Eric Gordon in a backcourt that should fill up the stat sheet.

The Pelicans have young talent on its roster but the team will need more experience before it can get back to the playoffs.

SPORTS Swimming­­—Redmen 2nd, Martlets 2nd

McGill makes a splash at Coupe de Quebec Renaud earns male Swimmer-of-the-Meet; Caldwell claims three medals Mayaz Alam Sports Editor McGill’s swimmers took to the Memorial Pool this past weekend in the second leg of the Coupe de Quebec. The Redmen and Martlets placed second overall, behind the juggernaut program from Université de Montreal.

Senior Pierre-Alexandre Renaud, a captain for the Redmen, garnered male Swimmer-of-the-Meet honours to follow up on the two gold medals he won at the first leg in Trois-Rivieres. In addition to this, Rhys Johnson and Sami Eid won silver and bronze in the 200m backstroke with times of (2:10.03) and (2:10.70) respectively.

Renaud has been pleased with his campaign so far but realizes that there will be challenges ahead. “[It’s a] good start for my last year at McGill. It will be a tough year this year because of Université de Montreal and Laval, [as] they both have good teams,” he explained.

The Redmen are navigating a tough season following the loss of last year’s McGill Athlete-of-theYear and CIS All-Canadian Steven Bielby. Consequently, Renaud has had to assume a new role in and out of the pool.

“Because it’s my last year, I feel a little bit more pressure,” Renaud said. “I feel like I need to set a good example for the rookies so that’s why I’m trying to do my best every race.”

Despite Bielby’s departure, coach Peter Carpenter says that the team is performing very well and has been buoyed by a strong group of freshmen.

“We have a lot of very good rookies in, we’re replacing him by committee,” explained Carpenter.

“Ultimately we’re doing just as well provincially without Steven as we did with him last year.”

The Martlet squad is being led once again by reigning RSEQ Swimmer-of-the-Year, Katie Caldwell. The sophomore won two silver medals in the 400m individual

medley (4:53.18) and the 800 freestyle (9:02.84,) while also winning gold in the 4x100m Individual Medley relay. Caldwell said she believes that she cannot rest on those laurels and must continue to strive for excellence while highlighting team goals.

“Last year was a good year, and I would like to redo that in some way, [with] either times getting faster or positions getting better […] but there is still a lot of work left to do,” Caldwell said. “I just love being here as a teammate and cheering everyone on […] so as a team if we can improve either at provincials or at the CIS level I think that would be the better accomplishment.”

Caldwell is also dealing an increased role out of the pool, similar to Renaud, and has experienced new expectations as a leader on the team.

“It’s definitely changed this year,” she said. “I didn’t really know anyone on the team last year, [so I’m trying] to get a really good group of rookies [to be] part of the family [early on]. I love being a leader

McGill swims to a second place finish. (Jack Neal / McGill Tribune) and taking that [role] and getting the team [ready] for every meet.”

In addition to Caldwell, Valerie DeBroux won silver in the 100m Breastroke (1:13.79). DeBroux, a junior, also worked with Caldwell to earn gold in the team relay. Like the Redmen, the Martlets have been energized by a strong group of firstyears who have shown progress in the season so far. “[Our squad has] a lot of good rookies. Simone Cseplo stepped up today and progressed from the last

meet, [and] Fanny Gervais-Cartier also did a really good job today,” Carpenter said. “Our veterans are still getting the job done and I’m really happy [of] where the team is right now.”

Both squads have a busy season ahead, in which they will be doing all they can to get swimmers qualified for the CIS championships.

They begin this journey by traveling across town to Université de Montréal for the third leg of the Coupe de Quebec on Nov. 9.

ICe Hockey— McGill 5, Carleton 0

Martlets maul Ravens to open RSEQ season Davidson, Clement-Heydra lead the way as McGill seeks no. 1 CIS ranking Mayaz Alam Sports Editor Another game, another blowout victory for the McGill Martlet ice hockey team. The most consistently successful varsity team at McGill is back to its winning ways following a disappointing finish to last year’s season.

McGill (2-0) thoroughly outplayed Carleton (1-3) in every facet of the game in the contest, winning 5-0. Pick a statistic and it further confirms the ease with which the Martlets were able to rack up goals.

The shot total was an astounding 52-9. The penalty battle was won convincingly by a margin of 9-4.

The team was also coming off a 5-2 loss against Harvard University and used a strong week of practice to re-group and prepare for the regular season. Head Coach Peter Smith attributes the turnaround to the squad’s work ethic.

“This team practices hard […] under any circumstance and this past week was no different,” Smith explained. “Our defensive zone coverage wasn’t great against Harvard; we worked on that this week and it showed.”

This was most evident in the shot total, but McGill also employed a very aggressive forecheck that suffocated the Ravens. Carleton strug-

Adrienne Crampton winds up. (Luke Orlando / McGill Tribune) gled to get the puck out of their own zone in the first and third period, the two stanzas in which McGill found the net. The second period, however, showed that although the team is a force to be reckoned with, they still have work to do if they want to reclaim lost glory. The Ravens turned the tables and were able to force the Martlets into uncharacteristic mistakes. When McGill did get shots on net, they were generally poorly placed as the opposing goaltender, Eri Kiribuchi, rarely had to move to stop the puck. Smith attributed the lapse to a deviation from the game plan.

“Our signature is that we want to play with tempo on the ice and a sense of structure,” Smith said. “We wanted to make sure we keep our shifts short [after the second and] we did a much better job moving the puck in the offensive zone in the third period.”

Sophomore forward Gabrielle Davidson was named the first star of the game following a two goal night.

She recoded her first goal near the end of the period. Only seconds before the goal line scramble that led to her goal, Davidson sent a wrist shot to the right of a wide open net.

Her second goal came on an assist

from forward Katia Clement-Heydra who went end to end with the puck past multiple opposing players before calmly laying it off for Davidson to finish the job.

Clement-Hydra also notched a goal of her own, while Stefanie Pohlod and Adrienne Crampton rounded out the scoring for the night. Pohlod’s goal also came from skating as she shielded the puck from Carleton defencemen on a spin move before finding the back of the net. Davidson believes that the matchup was the perfect opportunity to start the season off on the right note.

“As a team we wanted to send a message […] that we’re going to be a threat the rest of the season and also start strong so we can build on top of it,” said Davidson.

Davidson is also having to adjust to a new role this season following the sabbatical of the reigning CIS Player-of-the-Year Melodie Daoust, who is currently playing with the Canadian national team as it prepares for the 2014 Winter Olympics.

“I think if I step up, other people will be willing to step up, and if everyone steps up we can make up for not having [Daoust],” said Davidson.

McGill was able to cement its status as the best team in Montreal

—and in the country— as they defeated Montreal 5-3. The no. 1 ranking in the CIS should soon follow as the squad looks to once again mount an undefeated regular season and return to its winning ways at the national championships. The Martlets travel to the nation’s capital next weekend for games against Ottawa and Carleton on Nov. 2 and Nov. 3.