Vol 39 issue 11

November 26, 2012 Volume 39, Issue 11 www.mediumutm.ca

UTSU’s short-lived AGM

The U of T Students’ Union AGM ends abruptly after the motion to pass the agenda fails Larissa Ho News Editor The motion to approve the agenda at the Annual General Meeting of the U of T Students’ Union was defeated minutes after the meeting was called to order, bringing the meeting to a sudden halt.

More than 300 students and 3,000 proxy votes were in attendance on Thursday in the Meeting Room of the Medical Sciences Building at the St. George campus.

The event was scheduled to begin at 6 p.m., but was not called to order until well after 8.

Many students stood in line for several hours outside the packed room, waiting to register. Because of the large number of students in line, the keynotes—aboriginal elder Cat Criger and Adam Vaughan, the city councillor for Trinity-Spadina—proceeded without UTSU having called the meeting to order. Students were overheard commented on the lack of organization on the part of the students’ union: not only was registration slow, the

Junaid imran/The MEdium

Ashkon Hashemi, chair of the AGM, tallied votes for the motion to approve the agenda. room was not large enough to hold the number of people the union had expected to attend. People were forced to sit on the floor, on the stairs, and around the fire exits.

Shaun Shepherd, the president of UTSU, began his presidential address following the keynotes. Members of the union held up signs that read “online voting now” as Shep-

herd spoke, and laughed collectively when Shepherd referred to the “democratically elected board of directors”.

Shepherd ended the address with

a tearful personal plea, saying he and his peers had endured malicious attacks and bullying from those who “wish to smear the hard work” of himself and his peers.

“I really encourage each and every one of you who wish to participate in democracy, who choose to have your voices heard, but please, stick to the issue. This is my plea,” said Shepherd.

Some members of the union stood up as the crowd clapped for his address. The chair, Ashkon Hashemi, officially called the meeting to order at 8:19.

“If you are not respectful, if you do things that cross the threshold from civilized speech to disrespectful, I will cut you off,” said Hashemi before members of the union tried in vain to amend the agenda, then to replace Hashemi as chair.

Then Samuel Greene, the head of Trinity College, took a microphone and called for electoral reform, urging members not to approve the agenda.

AGM continued on page 2

Lighting the night against violence Matthew Butler Staff writer UTM’s Student Housing and Residence Life held their annual Light the Night event in Roy Ivor Hall. Students came together to raise awareness of power-based personal violence in the community. The event was the culmination of the fundraising campaign of the last two weeks, in which students and staff raised about $600 for Interim Place, a charity that advocates for women who have been victims of violence.

The Light the Night committee, a collection of students and Residence Life staff, organized the event and collected donations at successful tabling sessions in Oscar Peterson Hall and through a competitive changedrive with residence student communities.

The event started just after 8 p.m. in the decorated lobby of Roy Ivor, where rows of candlelit bags formed a walkway outside the building.

Getting burlesque for AIDS SEC, OUT@UTM, and UTMAC team up to hold the World AIDS Gala.

Medium News, page 3

It should be “a thing”

What would be legitimate grounds for refusing an interview?

Medium Opinion, page 4

Alberto Becerra/The MEdium

Students carried candles around campus to raise awareness of violence against women.

People crowded in the lobby for the 30-minute presentation, which featured an informational video filmed by Chris Hugglemann in which students wore ribbons of different colours to symbolize different types of violence, and had statistics written in black on parts of their bodies. Members of the committee explained U of T’s Green Dot violence prevention program.

Afterwards, Farheen Khan, a representative of Interim Place, expressed her gratitude for the donations. “One out of two women in Canada has experienced some form of violence,” she said.

The candlelit walk around campus followed. Jenna Malone and Amanda Luongo, the chief organizers, asked everyone to reflect on something meaningful to them during the silent

walk. Tamara Bernstein and William Yih led the attendees carrying their candles around the campus to “light the night” as a positive symbol of the effort to prevent violence.

When they returned to the lobby, the guests painted their hands and added their handprints to a collection of canvases, informally pledging, “These hands will not be used for violence.”

It’s sink or swim for Pi They said it couldn’t be filmed, but Life of Pi is everything it should be.

Medium A&E, page 6

If buildings were movies UTM is so easy to typecast.

Medium Features, page 8

Quit while you’re ahead?

Div 1 White takes a default when U of T Law fails to show up.

Medium Sports, page 11

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11.26.2012

“Democratic forum” cancelled AGM continued from cover “I’m going to explain why you should vote against approving this agenda, amended or unamended,” said Greene. “There is a very simple reason. You should not have confidence that this agenda is representative of students’ concerns.

The process by which this agenda was arrived at was unfair, untransparent, and undemocratic.”

Greene went on to argue that it’s not possible for students to raise concerns at a meeting where they do not understand the rules. He said that students should oppose the agenda of the meeting to send a message to the students’ union that they should not prescribe an illegitimate agenda.

“Maybe, just maybe, you should say you should have a better agenda, one that is reflective of your concerns,” concluded Greene. Applause thundered throughout the room.

Hashemi explained that the meeting would end if the agenda was not approved. The meeting then moved to the motion to approve the agenda, which was defeated by an unofficial tally of 999 votes against and 905 in favour.

Hashemi declared the meeting at an end and, amid cheering and booing, the room slowly cleared out.

Some of the attendees called out “Students win!” and congratulated each other.

Christopher Thompson, the president of UTMSU, was in attendance with other UTSMU executives.

“I was actually very disappoint-

ed that the meeting did not continue,” said Thompson. “I believe the AGM is a perfect setting to actually engage in productive and constructive discussion—which never even had the chance to occur.”

“This year has set a record for hecklers and disturbers to grandstand in front of students in what was supposed to be a time to raise concerns in front of fellow students in order to ensure accountability and transparency. And although the system in which this is done is somewhat flawed at times, cancelling the AGM altogether was simply a mistake that put an end to all debate and questions.”

—Thomas Kristan Jonathan Scott, a fifth-year undergraduate in English, said he was surprised that the motion failed.

“The UTSU executives categorically refused to allow legitimate, substantive, and constructive re-

form proposals to even be discussed,” said Scott. “The agenda was therefore undemocratic, unfair, and unaccountable. So we failed the agenda and asked the UTSU executives to come back with a fair, democratic, and student-driven agenda.”

Fifth-year political science UTM student Thomas Kristan was also surprised.

“The democratic process, flawed as it was, was voted to be ended altogether rather than to work with what was there. I’m surprised that students would actually vote to cancel one of the few democratic forums that the union has,” said Kristan. “This year has set a record for hecklers and disturbers to grandstand in front of students in what was supposed to be a time to raise concerns in front of fellow students in order to ensure accountability and transparency.

And although the system in which this is done is somewhat flawed at times, cancelling the AGM altogether was simply a mistake that put an end to all debate and questions, except for those of the few students who complained about online voting.”

Kristan said he suspects that many students voted against the agenda because they were annoyed at having to wait so long for the meeting to be called to order, and just wanted to go home.

“Students should try to realize that most students probably just wanted to go home or cause a ruckus rather than actually support them in their crusade against the union,” said Kristan.

Unauthorized posters found Police issue alert at St. George about posters Jai Sangha associate news editor The U of T Campus Police issued an alert regarding unauthorized posters advertising jobs with a tutoring service at the St. George campus on November 15.

The posters said U of T Student Life “is starting on a tutoring service” and requested résumés for a website designer to be sent to jobs@ studentsforstudents.ca. The poster contains a U of T logo that was not licensed or approved.

“We are not following up on potential trademark infringement for this specific case at this time, because there is a more comprehensive investigation currently underway by Campus Police,” said Anne Macdonald, the director of ancillary services at U of T, in an email.

In cases of trademark infringement where Campus Police is not involved, the Trademark Licensing Office contacts the organizations involved and requests them to cease and desist, which usually resolves the problem without need of legal action, according to Macdonald.

The St. George campus, which has city streets going through the campus, is more susceptible to such false advertising than the relatively isolated UTM is. At UTM, the majority of poster requests need to be approved by UTMSU, said Mark Overton, UTM’s dean of student af-

fairs.

“We’re simply a smaller community where more people know what others are doing and more people know what services are available,” said Overton. “We did share this particular message with a number of departments and services on campus so that we’re on a lookout for it. But other than that, we haven’t tweaked any [postering] procedures, because we haven’t had experience with encountering such an issue.”

The posters said U of T Student Life “is starting on a tutoring service” and requested résumés for a website designer Students can avoid being deceived by posters that falsely claim to be run by or affiliated with the university by looking for an actual @utoronto.ca email address, a legitimate address on campus, and an appropriate domain name. If a poster looks suspicious, students can contact the academic department, Campus Police, or Student Affairs to verify the ad, said Overton.

Studentsforstudents.ca did not reply to phone, voicemail, or online contact requests regarding the issue.

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11.26.2012 THE MEDIUM NEWS

AIDS awareness at UTM

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»what’s the craziest thing you’ve done to pull an all-nighter?

Alberto Becerra/The Medium

Performers at the World Aids Gala held by SEC, OUT@UTM, and UTMAC please the crowd.

Lily bowman On Thursday, red boas curled around the lights of the Blind Duck Pub for SEC, OUT@UTM, and UTMAC’s 19th-century Moulin Rouge burlesque-themed World AIDS Gala.

The main attraction was the Coco Framboise Burlesque Dance Troupe, complete with satin feathers and sequins.

“SEC is faced with addressing students who don’t feel attached or impacted by HIV/AIDS, although in reality one fourth of all new infections are occurring among youth,” said Alexsandra Petkovska, the advertising director of SEC. “We worked to make this event as accessible and fun and sexy as we could.”

Senka Zahirovic, a fifth-year psychology student, came up with the idea of Moulin Rouge as a theme for

this year’s gala. There seemed to be no intent to reinforce the stereotypical link between promiscuity and AIDS; the main concern was to raise awareness and grab students’ attention to participate in the fundraiser.

All the revenue from ticket sales and donations will go to charities that partner with the Peel HIV/AIDS Network. The SEC team will vote this week on the top two charities that will receive all the funds raised. Donations are still open; their goal is to raise $1,500, which will be matched by the SEC team if reached.

Since 1992, the Peel HIV/AIDS Network has provided community education and outreach programs.

They also provide counselling, case management, health promotion for people living with HIV/AIDS, and other programs.

Petkovska addressed the stigma-

tization of AIDS as “a gay, black, or junkie disease, although in reality, it is a universal syndrome that impacts people across all demographic groups and is far from over in Canada”. The gala sought to take down these stereotypes and convey that AIDS is a real issue.

In a message to the UTM community, lead burlesque dancer Coco Framboise expressed her excitement at spreading awareness and raising funds for the Peel HIV/AIDS Network. “AIDS is an obvious issue,” she said. “It’s deadly, but there are waves of awareness—sometimes public attention and buzz waver.”

Framboise invited UTM to think about monthly giving in small ways to make a change towards how we want the world to be different. “I’d like to create and live in a culture of giving,” she said.

Abdulah Ishaque 5th-year, life sciences

Shafa Obaid 3rd-year, biology

I drank, like, five cups of coffee.

I have this Turkish espresso coffee that I drink.

Iqbal Hessan 1st-year, psychology

Gary Yang 1st-year, chemistry

I drank like two Red Bulls.

I listened to music.

Get swabbed, save lives Over 140 UTM students took a few minutes to save lives last Tuesday at the Get Swabbed event, hosted

by Lifeline in collaboration with OneMatch Stem Cell and Marrow Network.

One of the participants commented that it was painless and easy, and since he had a few minutes, there was no reason not to participate.

Getting swabbed was a simple procedure, consisting of running four cotton swabs along the inside of the cheeks—one for each quadrant of the mouth. The most timeconsuming and painful part was filling out the forms.

Swabbing samples are added to the OneMatch databank in the hope that suitable matches for patients in need of stem cell treatment can

be found. These patients are those who have been diagnosed with life-threatening diseases like lymphoma, leukemia, aplastic anemia, and more. The stem cells are immature cells that mature into other types of cells, such as red and white blood cells, which cancer patients are short of.

There are three methods of collecting stem cells when it actually comes time to donate: from blood (called “peripheral” stem cells), from blood, from bone marrow, and from umbilical cords donated by mothers after birth.

Jennifer Ward, a volunteer at Lifeline, donated her son’s umbilical cord.

“Everybody knows someone who needs help—it could be your mom, best friend, or child,” said Ward.

“It’s important to give, not just for those that you know, but also for ev-

eryone else. Everyone is someone’s child, so we should donate as much as possible.”

Only 25% of patients are able to find a compatible stem cell donor in their family. The rest must turn to organizations like OneMatch and rely on the kindness of strangers— of which there are over 19 million generous registrants worldwide and 330,000 in Canada. However, there are still 949 Canadians unable to find matches.

This makes donation essential, especially for ethnically diverse males between the ages of 17–35.

Unfortunately, the male turnout at the event was low.

One explanation about the low turnout was from one Shumayel Khan, who attributed it to the “cultural consciousness of guys”. Other students attributed it to a lack of advertisement.

U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether to rule on gay marriage

Wartime code found on pigeon bone still a mystery

Florida offers women gift cards for filling out sex survey

Arafat’s body to be exhumed on Tuesday in murder inquiry

“Gangnam style” beats “Baby” to become most-watched video

The U.S. Supreme Court will decide this week whether now is the right time to rule on whether gay people have a constitutional right to marry. The court has been faulted in the past for waiting too long or moving too quickly to recognize constitutional rights. The court will also look through appeals to decide whether married gay couples have a right to equal benefits under federal law.

A coded World War II message found strapped to a pigeon skeleton leg in Surrey, England has yet to be decoded. The message, written on flimsy cigarette paper, records the sender’s signature as Sjt W Stot and the destination as X02. The British intelligence-gathering organization GCHQ said nothing is known about either. David Martin, 74, found the message while clearing out his chimney.

The state of Florida is asking thousands of young women intimate questions about their sex lives and giving them $10 gift cards in return. The 46-question survey was sent out in September and October; it asked how many men they had sex with in the last year, whether a man had ever poked holes in a condom to get them pregnant, and how they felt emotionally the last time they had unprotected sex.

The body of the Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat will be exhumed on Tuesday, eight years after his death, in an investigation to establish if he was murdered, a Palestinian official said on Saturday. The exhumation and renewed allegations of Israeli involvement could worsen the tension between Palestine and Israel, who are observing a truce after a week of fierce fighting in Gaza.

“Gangnam Style” by South Korean pop star PSY has passed Justin Bieber’s “Baby” to become the most-watched video of all time on YouTube, with more than 803 million views. Non-Beliebers rejoiced in memes, Facebook statuses, and tweets. PSY’s video, featuring his horse-riding dance, was posted on YouTube this July; “Baby” was uploaded in February 2010.

Source: The LA Times

Source: The Toronto Star

Source: News 4 Jax

Source: Reuters

Source: Montreal Gazette

Amy Pryhoda

Write for

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11.26.2012

Editor-in-Chief » Stefanie Marotta

There’s Obama, and then there’s UTMSU An elected executive from the UTM Students’ Union attempted to refuse an interview on his portfolio I was denied an interview with a UTM Students’ Union executive for the first time in my four years working at The Medium. Everyone should question why a representative elected by the students to work for the students would attempt to refuse an interview with another student organization, especially media that could spread the word on the issues UTMSU focusses on.

Here’s how it went down. I emailed the executive the week before I wanted to hold the interview. Three days later, I finally heard back with confirmation.

The interview was set for Wednesday.

On Tuesday, the executive requested interview questions. With one night left before the interview was to take place, I didn’t get around to sending

questions.

This is standard practice. Many public figures will ask reporters to provide samples of interview questions to better prepare to speak on the topic at hand. Prominent figures like President Barack Obama and Mayor Hazel McCallion require interview questions ahead of time. Journalists are not required to share notes or to stick to set questions. And interviewees are not required to answer, but I think it calls for concern when they refuse.

In the past, UTMSU executives have requested questions ahead of time. Sometimes I’ve obliged, and sometimes I haven’t. But I was never refused an interview—until Wednesday.

Fifteen minutes before the interview, I waved to the executive in the UTMSU office before heading upstairs. He acknowledged me. Twenty minutes later, the executive hadn’t come up to the office yet. I headed downstairs to see if everything was still on track for our interview.

The executive saw me, came out, and informed he would not proceed with the interview since he had not received any questions ahead of time.

I was wondering why I had been informed about this after the interview was already supposed to have begun, so a 10-minute discussion ensued in front of the info booth.

He made the argument that “it’s a thing” that journalists send questions.

I went as far as to say that I would let

him read over my notes—something no journalist would ever reveal—to reassure him that the questions would not cover anything that he is not required to be informed about under his elected position. Still, he refused.

After much debate, he finally agreed to conduct the interview since he could see it was going to be a “thing”.

It most definitely should be a “thing”. We pay taxes to the provincial government. The premier and his ministers decide how to use that money for services like education and healthcare. If elected public officials refused interviews with media or consultation with tax-paying citizens, wouldn’t you question that decision?

Why wouldn’t the politicians—politicians whose salaries you and your

family pay through taxes—want to communicate to the public what they’re doing with your money?

On a smaller scale, why wouldn’t UTMSU, the student group that collected nearly a million dollars from student tuition this year and whose executives earn considerably high wages, want to be featured in an article in the student newspaper, where students receive information through an impartial and unbiased forum?

It should most definitely be a “thing”. I, for one, will never take no for an answer without heavy questioning.

Yours, Stefanie marotta

Toronto Maple Leafs, the video game, and the corporate trap Dear editor, I am a Toronto Maple Leafs fan. I am not proud of it.

By “fan”, I don’t mean the guy at the bar barely talking about the club, and ultimately criticizing it. I mean the guy on the Toronto Maple Leafs Facebook page arguing daily with other Leafs fans over mundane subjects to pass the time until the next Leafs game.

This whole ordeal with the NHL lockout got me thinking. This entire issue has me depressed. Coming home after a long day at school and watching Boston spank the Leafs 7– or 8–nothing, believe it or not, makes my day that much better.

When the NHL lockout started, I needed to find a way to resist the slavery of consumption, the greedy millionaires and billionaires who earn more money than they could ever spend. Instead of wasting their brains and lives with me playing a common shooting video game, my friends waste their brains and lives playing

EA Sports’ NHL 13 with each other.

But I refused to purchase that game. It was my only way to resist the corporate cogs that put more emphasis on the money than on the love of the game.

The past three years, my stress from life, school, and work has been met by 82 Leafs games between October and April. I consider it my reward for actually being a dutiful citizen. I never wanted to do these things, but hockey made it easier to accept. Many little boys put up with their teachers’ crap at school, knowing that soon they’ll be outside playing foot hockey or mini-sticks.

In October, I stood at the cash register at Shoppers Drug Mart where I used to work. I clung to the receipt for NHL 13. I asked myself: what did I just do?

I have never felt more disgusted.

Where is the power to the people?

Why aren’t people protesting the NHL lockout? Where is our voice?

Instead, I’m paying some rich team owner and a bunch of jocks 60 bucks

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Stefanie Marotta editor@mediumutm.ca NEWS EDITOR Larissa Ho news@mediumutm.ca ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR Jai Sangha A&E EDITOR Colleen Munro arts@mediumutm.ca MEDIUM II PUBLICATIONS 3359 Mississauga Road, Room 200, Student Centre, Mississauga, ON, L5L 1C6 Phone: 905.828.5260

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for a game that’ll do me more harm than good.

This got me thinking about the big picture. Why do we put our faith in rich politicians who pretend to work with our best interests in mind? In reality, their only function is to further their own status in the political paradigm.

But I refused to purchase that game. It was my only way to resist the corporate cogs that put more emphasis on the money than on the love of the game.

I got a speeding ticket the other day. My first speeding ticket ever. Fifty dollars. The government says I got to pay 50 bucks because of some guy they say is the cop and who operates

in the “name of the law” (whatever that means). The government says it’s a rule that every citizen must obey because they say so and that’s that, and if we have anything else to say on the matter it’s “bye bye”: we get fined, we get a criminal record, we got no way to get a job, or we go to prison.

I don’t agree with that. I don’t agree that someone gets to tell me what to do. I’m sick and tired of people whose faces I don’t even see telling me what’s allowed and what’s not.

I recently watched a documentary called Taxi to the Dark Side, about a taxi driver in the Middle East. When the U.S. invaded Afghanistan, a taxi driver took off for work and never came back home. U.S. forces took him into custody. He was found dead five days later. U.S. soldiers had hung the taxi driver by his arms and legs.

He stood upright for five days until he died.

When the filmmakers investigated further, they did not find evidence on the American side to justify the torture and murder.

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How many others are treated like this under the radar: killed, leaving their families and loved ones forever, in the name of the “War on Terror”— or any conflict, for that matter?

At what point do the other human beings on this planet get a say in what’s happening? When do I get to attend an NHL and NHLPA meeting?

When do I get to talk to the Prime Minister about the low speed limit on Winston Churchill? When do the taxi driver’s wife and kids get closure regarding his torture and murder by the United States government?

The people in charge aren’t getting it right. We need some social justice in the world. And me standing with NHL 13 in my hand, my wallet 60 dollars lighter, doesn’t make me too optimistic that we’ll ever get any.

Regina Spektor—one of my favorite musicians—puts it best: “Power to the people? We don’t want it. We want pleasure.”

Sami Karaman Fourth-year, English

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters to the editor will be edited for spelling, grammar, style and coherence. Letters will not exceed 700 words in print. Letters that incite hatred, violence or letters that are racist, homophobic, sexist or libelous will not be published. Anonymous letters will not be published.

11.26.2012

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Editor » Colleen Munro

A night of poetry, music, and coffee The English and Drama Student Society coffeehouse gives students a platform for their performances MARIA CRUZ The UTM English and Drama Student Society held a coffeehouse filled with music, poetry, and laughter to warm students’ hearts on a chilly Friday evening. The event took place in the Faculty Club in the Davis Building, and was nothing short of spectacular.

Stephanie Vega, a multitasker and the president of EDSS, performed several songs and poems throughout the evening. To get the ball rolling, Vega opened with a poem of hers that was published in last year’s EDSS poetry anthology.

Kicking off the musical side of things was Edna Bovas. Bovas graced the audience with two songs: “3 Libras” by A Perfect Circle and “Samson” by Regina Spektor. UTM has been lucky enough to hear this first-year student perform several times already. Bovas sang at both UMC’s open mic night and their charity dinner. “I haven’t really had a lot of chances to sing because I’ve been so busy with schoolwork,” she says, but she’s making waves on campus.

“I’m always nervous performing,” she adds. “I will have mini panic attacks. It all depends on the audience.”

Bovas, an aspiring English specialist, says she’s conflicted over whether to

ALBERTO BECERRA/THE MEDIUM

Musical performances and poetry reigned at EDSS’s coffeehouse. write music or focus on her academics.

Meanwhile, Stephanie Hayward sang “Tennessee” by the Wreckers, and Mackenzie Roy added a wonderful acoustic twist to Britney Spears’s “I Wanna Go”, which ended with the audience clapping along to his guitar.

There was also Sophia Bustos, who delivered two songs, one in English and one in Spanish, in her beautiful and powerful voice.

Bustos’ Spanish song was only the beginning of the cultural diversity at the coffeehouse. One poet, Shu Jing Liu, the oldest of the performers, recited a verse of poetry in Mandarin and then kindly translated it into English.

There was no shortage of poets at the coffeehouse. Alexander Tkachuk got up behind the mic as well, reciting his work with gusto, matching his voice and expression to his

words. Tkachuk performed his poem “An Essay of Abstract Expressions”, which consisted of exactly that.

His odd noises elicited appreciative laughter from the crowd and a grand round of applause.

In a faux English accent, Christopher Laliberte, EDSS’s workshop coordinator, read a poem of his that was also published in last year’s anthology. His piece, “That Damn Raven”, was a response to Edgar Allen

Poe’s famous poem “The Raven”.

Several other poets were also brave enough to read their work. Christine Odunlami, EDSS’s treasurer, read some of her work and told the audience that she had completed just shy of 50 pieces. Another poet, Anisa Khalifa, shied away from the mellow in her darker poetry.

Katherine Nader, EDSS’s events coordinator, is a second-year student who published a book when she was only 17. Her novel, The Deadly Mark, is about a war-torn kingdom in the 1800s. Nader read several passages of her book. She plans to hold a workshop on how to get published.

The event closed with all the executives gathering to sing fun.’s “We Are Young”.

After the event, Vega said they had waited until the end of the semester to hold the event because students tend to have “a larger repertoire of writing collected by the end of the term”. Vega also mentioned that because of the popularity of the anthology last year, EDSS will continue to publish an anthology every year.

EDSS holds events throughout the year to showcase UTM students’ work and to give them a chance to mingle with each other. Students from all programs are always welcome to join in.

Rihanna keeps the conversation alive Unapologetic, the seventh album from pop’s queen of controversy, lives up to its title ARISTOTLE ELIOPOULOS ASSOCIATE A&E EDITOR Looking at the various headlines and PR for Rihanna’s new album, Unapologetic, I see several facts many writers can’t help but throw around when talking about the record.

The most commonly cited facts include that Unapologetic is Rihanna’s seventh album in seven years, that it features her ex-boyfriend and ex-abuser Chris Brown alongside her—and that, naturally, every song on the album must therefore be “about him”. Add this to her decision to promote the album with a sevenday-long tour around the world—a tour for which she dragged along every journalist, fan, and companion she could onto a jumbo jet to experience jet lag, insomnia, and the hell of flying seven times in a row—and you get a talking point almost as big as RiRi’s new hieroglyphic chest tattoo.

Behind all that, the music seems like a minor detail. For Rihanna, that might be just the point.

With the lead single, “Diamonds”—a glittering anthem that has the ability to empower or ir-

Rihanna made a pit stop in Toronto during her whirlwind seven-day world tour. ritate depending on who you’re talking to—Rihanna shows growth from her last album. She reaches out to a demographic that not only bought Adele’s 21, but also forwarded their friends her “Someone Like You” performance from the 2011 Brit Awards with the subject line “If this doesn’t

make you cry…”

For most of the record, this direction is effective; the best songs have the icy Rihanna doing her best wounded puppy. The track “Loveeeeeee Song” feels like it moves in slow motion, its featured artist Future setting the right mood for ra-

DOSE.CA/PHOTO

dio-ready heartbreak. “No Love Allowed”, featuring the Island, showcases Rihanna’s Caribbean roots and gets its audience grooving—but not without the intention of having a few tears fall on the dance floor.

Michael Jackson is sampled in “Nobody’s Business”, the album’s

standout, in which Chris Brown and Rihanna sing over a production that sounds like it came from an ’80s runway show. But with Brown on the track, the production will be the last thing people talk about.

In between these songs, Rihanna manages to fit in a few dubstep-tinged David Guetta tracks that sound like they got the Skrillex stamp of approval before being shipped to record stores across the country. It’s all very relevant, current, and new—so new that you’re not going to realize the trend until the dubstep beats and AutoTuned ballads start infiltrating the radio early next year, many probably coming from Rihanna herself.

With Rihanna releasing an album every year—especially as the singles from the last album are still getting repeated play on top 40 radio—one can’t help but feel that being the topic of conversation in every medium is exactly the intention of the Bajan queen. Unapologetic will continue to let her do just that.

All hail Rihanna—the new Britney, Queen RiRi, the Illuminati Princess, whatever you want to call her—as long as you keep the conversation going. MMM½

6

«ARTS THE MEDIUM 11.26.2012

Pi’s journey to the silver screen Will Ang Lee’s adaptation of the celebrated Canadian novel make a splash?

FLICKR.COM/PHOTO

Pi (Suraj Sarma) and the ferocious Richard Parker navigate the seas together in Life of Pi. ALEXANDRA BALAJ As one of many who’ve read and been captivated by Yann Martel’s 2001 novel Life of Pi, I was ecstatic when I saw the trailer for the movie.

The book, widely considered to be “unfilmable”, was published in 2001; over a decade later, it has finally met its cinematic match. Directed by the Oscar-winning Ang Lee—who also made Brokeback Mountain, Hulk, and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon—Life of Pi is the story of a 16-year-old boy who ends up stranded, floating through the Pacific on a lifeboat

with a tiger.

The film features veteran actors Irrfan Khan (who had minor roles in The Amazing SpiderMan and Slumdog Millionaire) and Rafe Spall (Prometheus and Anonymous) alongside Suraj Sarma, who stars in his first film role as the hearty and spiritual protagonist, Pi Patel.

Pi’s story begins with a mesmerizing opening credits scene.

A tranquil Indian melody paired with artistic shots of lively exotic animals creates a paradisiacal atmosphere that lends its colours to the rest of the film.

In brief present-day segments,

an adult Pi tells his story to a curious writer, beginning with the origin of his peculiar name. We see Pi as a child raised in Pondicherry, India, where his father owns a magnificent zoo in the local botanical gardens. As Pi grows, he develops a fascination with religion after being dared by his brother to enter a Christian church. Eventually, he practises three religions (Hinduism, Christianity, and Islam) simultaneously, much to the exasperation of his father, who tends to think scientifically. After taking stock of their growing financial problems, Pi’s family suddenly

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decides to sell their animals and move to Canada. Pi begrudgingly leaves his precious homeland as the family prepares to cross the Pacific in a second-rate freighter.

One night, Pi is awakened by a tremendous storm that floods the ship and releases half the zoo on deck. The crew force Pi into a lifejacket and shove him on a lifeboat, and Pi watches helplessly as he becomes the sole human survivor of the shipwreck. Sharing the lifeboat with him are an injured zebra, a hyena, an orangutan, and an adult Bengal tiger named Richard Parker.

The decision to film it in 3D shows that Lee knows how to make a piece of art out of a movie. For those who’ve read the book and feared facing boredom during the long lifeboat survival parts, where nearly all the dialogue is internal, lay your worries to rest. We’re dealing with a professional here. Ang Lee captures your attention in the first few seconds and doesn’t let go even after the ending credits.

The visual effects are stunning.

The mostly computer-generated animals look realistic (à la Planet of the Apes), and you really feel immersed in the chaos and terror during the storm scenes. Lee is an expert at building and breaking tension; he times each shot precisely to shock or amuse you at the perfect moments.

As if being stranded in the middle of the Pacific on a lifeboat with limited provisions isn’t hardship enough, throw in a ferocious 450-pound carnivore and you’re left contemplating your options: death by ocean or death by tiger. This isn’t just a pretty 3D flick. Pi’s physical and mental capacities are challenged beyond their limits in an extraordinary show of faith, risk-taking, and gratitude found in the unlikeliest of situations.

The relationship between Pi and the tiger is never predictable. Whenever they interacted, I found myself leaning forward, hypnotized by the imminent dan-

ger and uncertainty. The fact that a tiger is a wild animal is definitely emphasized. Like Pi, you don’t know how Richard Parker will react, so you are constantly vigilant. Richard Parker nearly steals the show in some scenes.

Even as an animal, his personality can be identified with, and at one point it shares a lot with Pi’s own as they share their suffering.

Some parts were a little overacted, like during the storm, when Pi reacts to the animals attacking each other and when the crew members get washed overboard. Sarma sticks his arm out and melodramatically yells “NO!” This reaction is understandable the first time, but after he’s done it three times, you start to wonder why he didn’t try to do something instead of just watching and yelling uselessly.

Also, the brief attempt at a romance segment (which was emphasized in the trailer) was cute but relatively unnecessary. The on-screen interaction, which never appears in the book, lasts for about five minutes and the girl is never mentioned again.

The storytelling scene at the end is a bit of a visual letdown: after all this exposure to brilliant and bright scenery, Pi’s face fills the screen for what feels like a long time as he sits on a hospital bed and explains his debacle to a couple of inspectors.

But although the pace slows down considerably, the final message hits you like a mental time bomb. The entire story leads up to this simple and quick exchange between Pi and the writer, and if you don’t catch it, you almost miss the very point of the story.

Life of Pi is riveting in its plot, artistic in its imagery, and superb in its characterization. It’s an inspirational tale that leaves you with a little more faith than you had coming in. A real treat for the eyes and ears, this spiritual wonder is magical in its power to drag you in and totally absorb you. MMMM

11.26.2012 THE MEDIUM A&E

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7

Blurring the lines between cultures The Art Gallery of Mississauga’s new exhibition explores the consequences of globalization COLLEEN MUNRO A&E EDITOR The concept of globalization is studied in several disciplines.

Likewise, issues of globalism are represented through many different artistic media at the Art Gallery of Mississauga’s latest exhibition, “(Da bao)(Takeout)”.

The show, which aims to “locate a cross-cultural and social dynamic between China and the West”, includes paintings, videos, sculptures, photography, and more from a variety of diverse artists.

The works in “(Da bao)(Takeout)” explore many different aspects of globalism. One of the most direct examples of the “China meets the West” premise comes in a series of photographs titled “Your Morning is My Night”.

When collaborators Sara Angelucci and Han Xu found that they were each living in the other’s native city (Angelucci in Shanghai and Han in Toronto), they decided to each take two photographs a day to document their new surroundings. The photos are presented in pairs, one from each photographer.

It’s interesting to see the similarities and differences between life in Shanghai and life in Toronto when the two photos are contrasted so directly. In some pairs, the cities seem almost indistinguishable.

From mundane urban necessities like garbage bins and traffic lights to the eye-popping architecture in both urban centres, the pairing

ART GALLERY OF MISSISSAUGA/PHOTO

Xiaojing Yan’s arresting “Bridge” uses 1,364 Chinese soup spoons suspended from the ceiling. of photographs emphasizes how small the so-called global village may actually be. Yet the photographers don’t seem to be making any critical statement. They simply capture the world around them, and as a viewer it’s a treat to see it neatly laid out on a wall of vibrant photographs.

Far more critical of the American influence is Nan Hao, who contributes a fascinating photograph titled “SONG Type Study One”. The image depicts a Starbucks in Beijing’s Forbidden City.

Transplanted into a traditional Chinese hutong building, it would be barely recognizable as a Starbucks were it not for the familiar green Starbucks logo hanging out front. Many Chinese citizens saw the introduction of American consumerism in the Forbidden City as a direct attack on the culture of ancient China. Hao evokes this resentment through two young men in the photograph holding a banner. The banner says “Fuck your mother”, but uses two uncommon Chinese characters, which is

meant to criticize China’s embracing of Western culture.

One of the exhibition’s largest pieces is Xiaojing Yan’s “Bridge”.

This installation incorporates a staggering 1,364 Chinese soup spoons suspended from the ceiling on wires. Arranged which impressive precision, the spoons form a wavelike pattern of rise-and-fall motion, manipulated by the wire.

Yan, who moved to Canada recently, uses this arresting approach to depict “the experience of transmigration and the sense of being sus-

pended between two worlds”. Even without reading the exhibition notes, though, the viewer should have no trouble interpreting the artist’s message. The soup spoons make a formation remarkably similar to that of a flock of birds, and the eerie illusion of levitation creates a sense of unease.

Other pieces, such as Laurens Tan’s large fibreglass and steel structures, are a more literal depiction of China’s culture. His sculptural rendering of Beijing’s beng bengs (illegal three-wheeled taxis) are eye-catching for both their size and their bright colours.

Each artist brings a unique perspective to their work, and each piece in “(Da bao)(Takeout)” offers a different stance on the relationship between China and North America. The cultures are now inextricably linked, and whether the artist sees this amalgamation as natural, discordant, or somewhere in between, each piece’s perspective is unique and fascinating.

In the end, this exhibition does not seem to flat-out condemn globalization. The unavoidable crossing of cultures may be problematic in some ways, but it gives artists new social and artistic inspirations to tap into. And “(Da bao) (Takeout)” is all about exploring that in artistically interesting, sometimes something provocative ways. “(Da bao)(Takeout)” runs until January 5 at the Art Gallery of Mississauga. Admission is free.

Review: Silver Linings Playbook

From trade shows to weddings to cultural festivals, this program offers the unique

Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper square off in Silver Linings Playbook.

MARLO YOUNG Jennifer Lawrence (Hunger Games) and Bradley Cooper (The Hangover) co-star in Silver Linings Playbook as two mentally ill outcasts. They are thrown together by their friends, who can’t quite understand them, and are forced to deal with each other’s shortcomings.

Silver Linings Playbook gives the audience a glimpse of the complex issues mental illness brings to a family and a life in the form of a fun romantic comedy. It’s the perfect movie for anyone who enjoyed 2010’s It’s Kind of a Funny Story. The mix of comedy and drama has the audience laughing, then tearing up, then crying from laughter.

This is no shock with an actor like Academy Award winner Robert De Niro in the cast. He can seem like a gentle, loving father yet hint at a mysterious undercurrent of mental

instability, and simultaneously play the traditional “man’s man” for the other characters. His performance brought a depth and honesty to his character that was touching to watch.

Lawrence and Cooper also gave great performances. They were volatile and shocking one moment and vulnerable and surprisingly human the next. Their complicated chemistry captivated the audience with its peculiarity and imperfection. The pair also had many comedic moments that had the audience shaking with laughter.

The soundtrack, cinematography, and storyline all came together very organically. The soundtrack fit the dispositions of the characters, and it seemed as though the audience was getting glimpses of their favourite playlists rather than hearing someone else’s preferred music.

Some of the great songs included Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash’s “Girl

THEARTSDESK.COM/PHOTO

from the North Country” and less well-known tracks, like Jessie J’s appropriately named “Silver Linings”.

The cinematography gave the impression not of watching a movie but of sitting or running with the characters, of being thrown to the ground with them. The movie was not filmed to be fantastical or otherworldly, as movies so often are; it was presented as a real and honest account. This gave the movie a much greater impact, because it felt like it wasn’t just a fantasy, but the struggles of actual people.

The storyline was beautifully complex. In the rom-com genre, it’s common to simply follow the interaction of the two main characters, with little or no information about the rest of their lives. This story looks at the complexities of the lives of two people—and how weaving two lives together is much more difficult than it appears. MMMM

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« 11.26.2012

Editor » Carine Abouseif

If UTM buildings were film genres We paired UTM’s buildings with the types of movies that suited them all too well

LISLEHURST: GOTHIC HORROR

CCT: EARLY ‘90S SCI-FI

IB: THE SO-SO SEQUEL

HS COMPLEX: BIO TERROR

Exams are coming around. If you’re like us, that means you’re doing everything in your power to stop thinking about exams. That might be why our laptops are so chock-full of illegally downloaded movies (we’re pretty sure if we paid for them we’d rebalance the nation’s GDP).

Well, no more of that. It’s time to roll up our sleeves and get some journalism done. Actually, that sounds lame. Instead, we matched UTM buildings with the movie genres we’ve been watching.

What was that? Was it a squirrel? A deer? Or an axe-wielding maniac hiding behind the trees? Darkness, seclusion, and an ancient building make Lislehurst and the surrounding forests the perfect horror movie setting. It’s not the best place to go wandering around at night.

With every step you take your audience will be yelling, “Don’t go in there!” But your curiosity will pull you forward. What’s that burneddown cottage with the chimney?

What are all these boxes doing nailed to the trees? Oh Lord—that branch just moved!

Somehow you ended up inside a spaceship. Not a cool spaceship, but one built circa 1987. Nearly every wall is a reflective surface.

All the furniture is sharp and looks uncomfortable. Everything is a weird shade of grey or green, and you half-expect some sort of flying car to come crashing through the giant glass windows.

(We were promised flying cars!

Where are they?) Your parents really enjoyed seeing it, but after four years you find there’s not that much substance to it.

Well, CCT was so successful, the obvious next step was to do the same thing again. Except something is off.

Like every remake, IB failed to make the original’s good points better, and just made the bad parts worse. You get all the pointless empty space of CCT, and as a bonus, you can’t sit in the useful classroom spaces unless you have authorization signed in triplicate. In fact, this sequel might capture the sci-fi utopia-turned-dystopia element even better than we thought, especially with all those security cameras watching our every move.

When the zombie apocalypse breaks out, it will break out here, in the maze of shiny science and anonymous lab-coat-wearing extras. Everything about the Terrance Donnelly Health Sciences Complex suggests science gone wrong, from the aluminum siding plating it to the claustrophobic, green-lit equipment rooms inside. We’re certain that Subject Zero will tear out of there any day now, leaving the lab geeks crying, “What hath science wrought?!”

STUDENT CENTRE: DANCE MOVIE

RAWC: INSPIRING SPORTS MOVIE

KANEFF CENTRE: POLITICAL THRILLER

NORTH: HIGH SCHOOL DRAMA

DAVIS: THE ONE YOU SLEPT THROUGH

You were a little taken aback by what you saw here. You thought it was some sort of politcal thriller. I mean, the poster had the word “revolution” on it. But a few minutes in and suddenly someone broke into a dance routine. The longer you were there, the more people burst into dance. Perhaps there’s some kind of dance showdown they’re practising for? Afterall, you noticed more than one group. Still, when it was over you left in a daze—a little impressed, and a little confused.

We entered as stick-thin dweebs and jiggling fatties, but came out as bronzed, rippling gods and goddesses. Or maybe that’s just the Argos. If there’s ever going to be an underdog sports movie filmed at UTM, the RAWC is where it’s going to happen: not only do you have the endless rows of exercise equipment and the parade of scantily clad coeds to drive your determination, they even have that extralong staircase for you to run up and perfect your Rocky impersonation.

Okay, we’ll be honest. We’ve never actually been in this one. You’ve only ventured a few steps past the entrance to take shelter from the cold outside. Oh, sure, people say it’s interesting and intelligent; every time you’re about to enter, all you see is people in business suits, talking about stuff you don’t understand. You think you may need to prepare yourself mentally before you head in, but honestly, you’re a little too lazy. We’ll get around to visiting Kaneff one of these days.

“She said what? That skank!”

Lockers everywhere. Tiny classrooms. Herds of people who love drama (get it?). You wouldn’t be surprised if you spotted Regina George and her minions here, nor the entire cast of One Tree Hill. A tragic indie rock song would complete the atmosphere. Yes, the halls of North were meant for devious girl plots, underhanded comments, and a dose of angst about some blonde chick with too much eye makeup.

Everyone’s been to this one, and you’re pretty sure you were there too—for a long time, in fact. You even remember that you had a lot of food going in and it was so packed in there that you actually had to shove people to get to your seat. You suspect the poster might have advertised a range of topics from politics to science.

Despite that, you can’t remember much of the actual movie, except that you got a neck-ache from the uncomfortable plastic chairs.

AMIR AHMED & CARINE ABOUSEIF FEATURES EDITOR

Images by Cameron Pinegar, Dmitriy Lagunov, Kari Gaynor, Jardson Arujo, Murat Yalcin, Ines Delicioso, and Joris Hoogendoorn at The Noun Project.

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11.26.2012 THE MEDIUM FEATURES

9

UTM’s tastiest chocolate chip cookie Crunchy, crispy, chewy, chocolaty—delicious. A tasty review of UTM’s cookies.

JUNAID IMRAN/THE MEDIUM

The Circuit Break Café’s “just out of the oven”cookies won for best smell, best appearance and best overall.

MADELEINE BROWN As a child nothing made up for a rough day at school like coming home to a glass of milk and freshly baked chocolate chip cookies.

Fast forward 10 years or so and nothing’s really changed. Replace the glass of milk with a skinny, no-foam, no-water, chai tea latte and my childhood kitchen with a university campus, and I’m still craving chocolate chip cookies.

But with the variety of cafés on campus pumping out the classic cookie, it’s hard to choose. Which is the freshest cookie? The cheapest? The one with the most chocolate chips?

I’ve taken on the rather sweet task of finding the answer to these questions.

SECOND CUP

TIM HORTONS $1.00 inc. tax

STARBUCKS

CIRCUIT BREAK

$2.10 inc. tax

Second Cup’s chocolate chip cookie looks very neat: it’s uniformly round, with an even creamy colour. It’s sturdy, yet soft. It has the smallest chip to cookie ratio, but these chips pack a punch. The semisweet, rich chocolate makes these chips the standout feature of Second Cup’s cookies. The taste is reminiscent of President’s Choice “The Decadent” chocolate chip cookies. UTM chocoholics, this cookie’s for you.

When you think about chocolate chip cookies, it always comes down to one fundamental question: crispy or chewy? If you’re a lover of the crispy kind, get in line at Tim Hortons. Thin and crunchy, this cookie has that pitch-perfect snap when you break it in half. Even though it’s a chocolate chip cookie, the dough is the star component. The deep doughy flavour distinguishes it from all the others. Also, at $1.00, it’s a bargain.

Don’t get distracted by the decadent drinks at Starbucks. They also have the biggest and richest chocolate chip cookie on campus. The chips and the dough share the spotlight. Being chewy and soft, it’s an interesting contrast to the Timmy’s version. But despite its delicate texture, the cookie holds its shape. The Starbucks cookie is ideal for when you’re really down or looking to treat yourself after a long day of library labour. I warn you, though: it’s hard to put down.

You can’t walk into CCT without getting a waft of the Circuit Break Café’s freshly baked cookies. This cookie’s chocolate chips are more like chocolate chunks. But the main attraction of the Circuit Break’s cookies is their “just out of the oven” smell. Also, its light colour and irregular shape give it a homemade appearance. The chocolate chunks are gooey, melty, and soft.

If you’re looking for a chocolate chip cookie just like Mom’s, the Circuit Break Café is the best place to find it.

$1.94 inc. tax

$1.63 inc. tax

x + y = perfect marriage Mathematicians find formula for perfect relationship CARINE ABOUSEIF FEATURES EDITOR Math says my boyfriend and I are incompatible. Actually, it probably says you and your significant other are incompatible, too.

In fact, according to one study, if you’re a UTM student right now, it’s highly unlikely that your perfect match is a student here, too. If you’re a heterosexual male, the perfect woman for you might walk the halls of this campus five years from now.

(She’ll also go on to earn a higher level of education than you.)

That example might sound a little weird, but it’s based on results from a statistical study that claims to have found the formula for the perfect marriage. Researchers from the Geneva School of Business studied 1,534 couples in Switzerland between the ages of 18 and 75. Some test subjects were Swiss and some were not. The team looked at the couples in 1999, and then caught up with them again in 2006 to check how many of them were divorced, separated, broken up, or simply unhappy in their relationships. They took the data they gathered and used some fancy math to match hypothetical men and women based on four criteria: age, education, cultural background, and previous marriages. Their calculations produced a best-case couple and a worstcase couple.

The best-case couple had similar cultural backgrounds and no previous divorces, but not much else in common. The woman was at least five years younger than the man. She also had a higher degree of education than him.

On the other hand, in the worstcase couple, each partner came from a different cultural background and both had little education. The man was two to three years older than the woman and a divorcé.

The model seems a little difficult to emulate, at least in our circumstances, and examples are hard to find. In an article on the topic in The Telegraph, a writer jokes that the only couple he can think of that follows this formula is the Queen and her husband.

Still, the researchers make an interesting argument. They say we should use the results to “optimize romantic matches”. Yes, the phrase sounds like something Sheldon Cooper would say—it seems a little too sterile for a discussion about romance and “living happily ever after”. But in the conclusion of their report, the mathematicians remind us that, until recently, family and community set up marriages. The idea of choosing your own romantic partner is still relatively new.

But, the researchers say, even now things are changing again. There are new restrictions. You can’t have a romantic relationship with someone

you work with. Or you might live in a small community and want to search for a partner outside that community.

And life is getting more complicated. It’s becoming harder and harder to meet someone in your daily life, so we built online dating sites. The mathematicians propose that online dating sites use the formula from this study as part of their matching process.

And why not? An interesting publication called Psychological Science in the Public Interest just published an article this year explaining how the current algorithms for online dating sites are questionable. The researchers of the online dating problem point to a fundamental problem with online dating services: they ask users to describe their ideal match. Actually, the researchers say, we don’t often know what we want. And studies on speed dating prove that. Apparently, when test subjects were asked to describe their ideal matches and then set loose to speed-date, they ended up being attracted to people that did not fit their initial description for an ideal match.

So scientists and mathematicians are basically telling us that not only do we not know what we want, we also don’t know what’s good for us.

Guys, I wouldn’t suggest seeking out 17-year-olds, but if you’re looking for the “optimal romantic match”, the age, education, and cultural background criteria are definitely something to think about.

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10 THE MEDIUM

«FEATURES 11.26.2012

VOL 2 EP 10: Not sure if meme... or new language LUKE SAWCZAK COPY EDITOR Hello, hello! So, American Thanksgiving happened, and the world is now officially ready to immerse itself in Christmas for the next month. It used to annoy me, but nowadays I find I appreciate being reminded how close it is to the end of the semester.

Today’s topic is Internet memes as linguistic innovations. (Caught your attention?)

One way to look at them is as “signs”. We’ll use Ferdinand de Saussure’s definition of the sign. He was a Swiss born in the 19th century, and is sometimes regarded as “the father of modern linguistics” (according to Wikipedia, anyway). Many modern linguists consider Saussure outdated, like how modern psychologists consider Freud outdated—except Saussure still makes a lot of sense to me.

Here’s a quick and simplified definition of Saussure’s “signs”, about as detailed as you’d get in an intro to linguistics. A sign consists of a signifier—say, the word “cat”—and the thing signified—say, an actual cat (Saussure would say this goes first to the mental concept of a cat). Three things are essential to a sign: that the link between the signifier and signified is arbitrary (so a picture of a cat is not a sign), that a person can’t spontaneously change what it refers to, and that the person using it is conscious that they’re using it. If you don’t have this last one, it’s just an “indice”—a clue that gives away

something about the speaker. For example, a foreign accent.

Let’s look at Internet memes in this framework. First, for those of us who don’t know, what is a meme? It’s kind of hard to define, because it can be so many things: words, images, videos, anything. But it has to be recognizable; the whole value of a meme is that you can deploy it and people will know what you’re trying to get across. They spread like wildfire, entering the “vocabulary” of Internet users after they’ve seen just one or two uses of them.

Twitter hashtags are one of the most recent ones. On Twitter, you can add a # symbol with a brief string to categorize your tweet (“Psych prof still hasn’t posted the midterm marks #whatdoipayyoufor”). The # is always required; the rest is variable. The rigidity of this formula has allowed the # to reliably signify the categorization itself, and because of that, the hashtag is now a meme. People put it on their Facebook statuses, even though Facebook doesn’t have a hashtag feature.

But it doesn’t need to. The message gets through. The # has become a sign.

One of the most popular types of meme is called “advice animals”.

Each of these memes is an invariable picture—usually an animal or a face from pop culture—accompanied by variable text, usually a set-up and a punchline.

The first instances of these memes don’t typically start off with text, or they begin with text that literally

describes the content of the picture.

This is not a true sign. But over time, the picture comes to represent something, and the captions come to match what it represents.

Take Philosoraptor. Some clever person noticed that “philosopher” and “velociraptor” are phonetically similar, so they made an image of a velociraptor with its claw thoughtfully scratching its chin and captioned it “Philosoraptor”. It kind of looks stupefied by the depth of whatever it’s pondering. All well and good.

As my friend said when she learned about memes, “So it’s like a language all unto itself, with symbols for different thought associations.

Then someone finds it funny, and recaptions it, “If actions are stronger than words… why is the pen mightier than the sword?” Then the next person chooses to recaption it ironically: “How can being up for something… be the same as being down for something?” And someone else takes up the joke that Philosoraptor’s question is not very deep, and recaptions it, “What happens… if you spill stain remover?”

Now imagine someone totally new sees only this last image without con-

text. If they’ve never seen Philosoraptor before, it’s puzzling. Why is this question being asked? Why is a dinosaur asking it? Can a velociraptor’s claw even reach to its chin?

Philosoraptor is a very well established meme; it too has become a sign. The image itself means something—it communicates something about the situation—and it imposes certain constraints, or at least expectations, on the captions.

How do we describe this second element, the caption, in terms of the Saussurean sign? It might be better to classify it by form and content. Each advice animal eventually becomes a form, like a musical genre, imposing a certain “shape” on the content.

The content itself also takes on some linguistic properties inherited from the larger form “advice animal”.

The rules are bent, but systematically.

The perplexed, squinting Futurama Fry must say “Not sure if ____ … or ____”, as in “Not sure if high beams … or just bright headlights.” That’s not good English, but I can tell the maker speaks fluent Futurama Fry. I wonder if any meme has already become so unconscious that it’s no longer a sign but an indice. In “ragecomic” memes, which consist of arrangements of stock faces with text to describe what’s happening, people often pick faces extremely predictably. They also use linguistic habits peculiar to the text, like adding “le” to the beginning of sentences (“le walking down the street” to say the character is walking down a street).

But now that it’s the norm, do people really know why they do that? Or is it an almost unconscious indice that tells the reader they’re reading a ragecomic?

As my friend said when she learned about memes, “So it’s like a language all unto itself, with symbols for different thought associations.”

That’s probably the most succinct and elegant way of putting it. Like real languages, memes have their own grammar and vocabulary; they have blending, borrowing, etymology, and lots of other good things; you form utterances by combining elements; and they are very much actively growing and changing with their “speakers”, capable of generating new signs to refer to things they need to describe.

There are even dialects. After all, there’s a Facebook page for “UTM Memes”.

Not plausible? Maybe you’re right.

But let’s conclude by reading a famous and fantastic quote by Saussure: “Language is no longer regarded as peripheral to our grasp of the world we live in, but as central to it.

Words are not mere vocal labels or communicational adjuncts superimposed upon an already given order of things. They are collective products of social interaction, essential instruments through which human beings constitute and articulate their world.”

A pretty bold statement. And if it was suspicious a century ago, this century has so far borne it out.

Success breeds stress

If you expect to fail, doing well can make you anxious CARINE ABOUSEIF FEATURES EDITOR

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You know that feeling when you do really well on a midterm and suddenly you’re even more stressed about the final exam? You feel like now that you’ve succeeded, you can’t risk failure the next time. In a way, it doesn’t make much sense. If you’re doing well, shouldn’t your self-confidence peak?

It turns out that stress has a lot to do with expectations. Last year, psychologists from U of T and the University of Washington teamed up to gather evidence from a number of studies that link expectations and stress.

It’s worth mentioning that while stress is linked to expectations, the relationship may not be what you’d expect. The typical scenario involves you being stressed when your expectations aren’t met. Say you decide to lose 10 pounds before Christmas. You begin to fantasize about how great you’ll look going into the new year, but when you realize it’s already only 10 days to Christmas and you haven’t lost any weight—or maybe you’ve even put some on—you start to feel anxious. We’ve all experienced the “time is running out” stress, especially since we know that the less time we have left, the harder it will be to meet our own expectations.

So it’s obvious that when you expect to achieve something, and you don’t, you can get stressed. But what about when you do better than you expect-

ed? Why is that stressful?

Psychologists found that people tend to have one of two theories about the fixedness or malleability of personality attributes (like moral character or intelligence). Some people, termed “entity theorists”, believe that attributes are fixed. “Everyone has a certain amount of intelligence,” they would say, “and that amount can’t be changed.” Incremental theorists believe the opposite—that no matter who you are, you can become more intelligent.

So what does this have to do with stress? Well, entity and incremental theorist have been used in studies about stress-related behaviour, like self-sabotage. In the study mentioned above, entity and incremental theorists had widely different results when it came to expectations and stress.

The research team told the test participants the story of Brad, a fictional math geek. For some cruel reason, Brad’s university decides that he must remedy his underdeveloped creative abilities by taking a course in expository writing. After finishing the course, Brad takes a GRE practice test.

The team gave the participants two different endings to the story. In one ending, Brad scores a high mark on the verbal section of the exam. In the other, Brad scores poorly on it.

The entity theorists became anxious when they learned that Brad scored well on the verbal exam. This would mean that there was a change

in his abilities: they were no longer confined to math.

In the same vein, the incremental theorists became stressed when they learned that Brad did poorly on the verbal exam.

What happens when we think of ourselves in these terms? The research team wondered what would happen if the test subjects imagined they were in Brad’s place; they predicted that stress levels would go up for both groups.

What entity and incremental theorists have in common is that they both think they can predict the outcome of Brad’s verbal exam and the outcomes of their own endeavours. This tends to give them a false sense of control.

When their predictions don’t come true, people become anxious.

And most of the time, their predictions don’t come true. Ray Williams, who writes “Wired for Success”, a column in Psychology Today, explains that our perception of ourselves and our abilities is often “out of alignment” with the world around us. That probably doesn’t come as a surprise.

So sometimes when you do better on an exam, or you get promoted, you may feel like you didn’t earn it and can’t repeat it, which may cause you stress. Psychology bloggers say that the most effective way to battle this sort of stress is by developing your emotional intelligence and managing your emotions. But perhaps it has more to do with how we perceive the world—and what we are capable of.

11.26.2012

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Editor » Isaac Owusu

Seizing the semifinal Women’s strong defence trumps the visiting UTSC

Women’s victory at home Women’s volleyball defeats UTSC at the RAWC

JASMEEN VIRK/THE MEDIUM

An all-around team effort pushed UTM to their win.

JASON COELHO ASSOCIATE SPORTS EDITOR

JUNAID IMRAN/THE MEDIUM

UTM’s interior and perimeter defence was the spark in their 33–13 blowout.

EBI AGBEYEGBE ASSOCIATE SPORTS EDITOR After going 4–1 in the regular season, the UTM Eagles women’s basketball team went into their semifinal expecting to seal their spot in the final. They dominated the UTSC team from the first whistle.

UTM guards Anna Bediones and Ashley Nguyen played extremely well in this game. Bediones got her hands in the passing lanes every time UTSC attacked.

She stopped UTSC from getting the ball down low and from penetrating UTM’s defence. Nguyen was UTM’s main point of the attack for the first half; she picked up the steals from Bediones and pushed the ball up the court for some easy layups.

Both teams shot the ball poorly throughout the game, with UTSC missing their first 15 jump shots and UTM missing their first eight.

The fast break points and layups allowed UTM to get an early 11–0 lead.

After a timeout by the UTSC coach, UTM’s coach Essam

Nadeem put in some subs, who played the same hard defence and carried the team to a 15–3 lead by halftime.

UTM guards Anna Bediones and Ashley Nguyen played extremely well in this game. Bediones got her hands in the passing lanes every time UTSC attacked.

She stopped UTSC from getting the ball down low and from penetrating UTM’s defence.

The strong defensive play from the Eagles carried into the second half. UTM’s starting guards and bench guards controlled this game. Bediones, Nguyen, and Napta Elsadig dominated UTSC’s guards. They held on to the ball and stopped UTSC from driving

to the rim.

UTSC went on a 5–0 run with 1:20 left in the game, but by that time the game had already been won. The Eagles held UTSC to just 13 points in 40 minutes to end the game at 33–13.

“This was a fun game to watch,” said Farrah Gabriel, a third-year CCIT and political science major.

“I had to come out and support the girls, seeing as this is their one and only home game of the season.”

Essam Nadeem and Juan Arido, the UTM coaches, also commented on the team’s great effort and defensive playing. “We are looking forward to playing in the final,” they said. “We really want to win it this year, and hopefully we can.”

The UTM Eagles showed off their exceptional defence in this game. Their style of offence works for getting steals and points on the fast break, which is very exciting to watch. It’s hard to imagine any team defeating them in the final. Their fans can look forward to them bringing home the trophy next week.

Thursday’s women’s tri-campus volleyball game between the UTM Eagles and the UTSC Maroons brought many fans to the RAWC to root for their teams.

As the Eagles delivered the first serve of the game, it became apparent that the teams were of equal skill. It was close throughout; the first set saw UTM charge forward as the Maroons nipped at their heels, and UTM succumbed, tying the score. UTM struggled to maintain a one-point lead, but luckily UTM got both the break and set points and won the first set.

Despite fierce competition from UTSC, the Eagles held their lead for the beginning of the second set, which looked like it would turn out like the first. Surprisingly, the Maroons surged past the Eagles and continued to increase their margin as UTM players suffered a series of small slipups. They struggled with handling the bounces and spikes from their opponents.

Despite their poor performance during the set, the Eagles showed

composure and poise, encouraging their teammates not to be affected by the mistakes. They ultimately lost the second set to the Maroons.

As the third set began, both teams fought bravely to take command of the game. UTM achieved a large lead right out of the gate with an 8–1 surge, which helped to make up for the second set.

As the game progressed, UTM managed to get a lead of eight points, the widest gap in the game, wavering slightly in the final minutes, when UTSC came within five points. UTSC eventually lost to the home team by a score of 25–20.

UTM’s Kayla Colling elicited the most cheering from the home crowd during the night for her clutch acrobatic feat that returned a spike and saved the play (although the Maroons later won the point from the rally).

“We’ve improved so much from the beginning of the season, and it’s finally starting to all come together,” said Colling. “We’re starting to find our rhythm as a team. Hopefully we can keep that going through the rest of the season and continue to crush our competition.”

Call me, maybe?

Law’s Absence awards UTM a flawless victory EBI AGBEYEGBE ASSOCIATE SPORTS EDITOR After having lost last week’s game against Team Blue, the UTM Division 1 Team White wanted to get back to their winning ways against U of T Law. The Eagles came out on the court early in their white uniforms. They wamred up with a shootaround 15 minutes before the game.

Five minutes before the game was to start, it seemed that U of T Law might not show up. Law had beaten UTM White earlier in the season by a score of 72–58.

At 8 p.m., the referees allowed five minutes for Law to show up, and another five after that. When

it was apparent that U of T Law wasn’t going to show up, the referees called the game and it was officially registered as a forfeit.

Coach Nunez called the Eagles into a huddle after the call to give the team a short pep talk.

“I was really looking forward to watching this game,” said Maro Efemuaye, a third-year CCIT student.

UTM White was hoping this game would be their revenge for last week’s game. Instead, they ended up shooting individual trick shots and playing a bit of five-onfive.

Maybe next week they’ll get a chance to even the score, but for now I’m sure they’ll take the default.

12

«SPORTS THE MEDIUM

11.26.2012

Clean sheet finale What you need to know Samba beats Troll in the coed soccer final KAREEM RAMADAN Mike Sosnowski earned a clean sheet and Natasha Butzow scored two goals, including the gamewinner, when team Samba defeated rival Troll Football 2–0 in the coed indoor soccer final.

The game started off slowly, with the teams carefully assessing one another. It was not until late in the first half that Samba’s Natasha Butzow attempted the first plausible goal of the game, but was stopped

by Troll’s keeper, Adam Ali. Shortly afterwards, Danich Boyce of Troll Football threatened Samba with a sly shot that narrowly missed the target.

The action picked up in the second half, with each side directing eight shots on goal. A couple of quick strike attacks by Troll forward Saif El Aboudi highlighted the second half of the game. The first hit the goal post, and the second was brilliantly stopped by Samba’s keeper, Mike Sosnowski. These misses proved costly, as Samba’s Butzow took centre stage afterwards.

With a deft fake, Butzow managed to open up enough space to get a shot off. The shot appeared to redirect off a defender before getting past Ali. The second goal was a nodoubter; Butzow unleashed a heavy shot from the wing that found the bottom left corner of the net.

“The shot was perfectly placed.

Sometimes you have to tip your cap to the goal scorer; that was one of those instances,” Ali later remarked.

Both of Butzow’s goals came in the final 10 minutes of the game

and made the difference.

She said afterwards that she’d had her eyes set on a personal milestone: “Any time you score two goals, a hat trick is obviously on your mind, especially in the final game of the season.” She was visibly overjoyed by the outcome.

Samba also benefitted from a strong performance from Sosnowski. He earned a clean sheet by making 10 saves, three of which he could hardly have been expected to save.

“Mike was fantastic in net for us.

On at least two occasions I stopped running back because I thought Troll Football was going to score, but that’s what Mike does,” said Darryl Nu Nam Young, Samba’s captain and star player. “It comes as no surprise that he came up big when it meant the most for our team.”

When asked to comment on his performance, Sosnowski remarked, “I just guessed right.” Modesty notwithstanding, he more than deserved the player of the game honour that he shared with Butzow.

Sheri Veibl, Steven King, and Bryan Escobar also figured in the scoring, with an assist each.

Showing true sportsmanship, Troll Football’s captain, Fazle Rabee, gave full credit to his opponents following the match. “Both teams were very good, and ultimately it came down to a mistake here and a missed opportunity there,” he said.

“At the end of the day we gave it our best, but came up short. That just goes to show how good Samba is.”

Athletic town hall gives students a chance to have their voices heard GRACE ROCHA UTMAC and UTMSU representatives, varsity athletes, students, and athletics programs representatives from all three U of T campuses came together to discuss U of T’s sport model review on Tuesday.

Beth Ali, U of T’s director of intercollegiate and high-performance sport, presented the sport model review. It was made up of three components: intercollegiate, high-performance, and club sport.

It was explained that the athletic departments at UTM and Scarborough have one of the largest co‐curricular sport models currently in place, but the campuses are seemingly underused.

The current U of T sport model seems to be stagnant, and currently can’t compare with those of other universities.

Ali explained that the funding for varsity sports at U of T is significantly lower than at other universities, making it difficult to recruit top athletes. Without such funding, varsity athletes have to fundraise and pay out of their pockets for expenses like accommodation, transportation, and meals. And without many such athletes, it’s difficult to attract students who are academically and athletically competitive.

There’s also less revenue, and therefore an athletics community that isn’t as strong as

U of T’s academic reputation.

The new sport model is designed to provide more funding to the core teams at the club sport level and to increase participation.

It wa s ex pl a i ned t ha t t he a t hl et i c depa r t m ent s a t UTM a nd Sc a r bor ough have on e of t he l a r ges t co-c urr i c ul a r s por t model s c urr ent l y i n pl a c e, but t he c a m pus es a r e s eem i ngl y underus ed. The curr ent U of T s por t mo del s eem s t o be s t a gna nt , a nd c urr ent l y c a n’t com pa r e w i t h t hos e of ot her uni ver s i t i es .

“Having a variety of sports offered at all three campuses not only could increase access, opportunity, and school spirit,” said Chris Thompson, the president of the UTM Students’ Union, “but [could] allow U of T to lead the way in rallying several communities around branding the Varsity

Blues and possible spark new life to varsity sport in the GTA.” In the new sport model, both UTM and UTSC would be home to two varsity sports that practise and compete at the two campuses.

The other teams, such as lacrosse and tennis, would be relocated to the suburban campuses.

“Athletics are a huge part of a university experience that most UTM students don’t get exposed to during their studies,” said Brent Page, the co-captain of the Varsity Blues baseball team and a UTM PhD student. “Intercollegiate athletics are awesome from a fan perspective and a player perspective. It brings students together, creates school spirit, and gives students a sense of pride in their school.”

But first, the demand for varsity teams at UTM and UTSC needs to be assessed.

“UTM is capable of fostering varsity sports as the necessary adjustments (such as marketing) are increasingly being made to teach that goal,” said Adam Niaz, the president of UTMAC. He added that UTMAC will promote varsity sports and “try to provide as many resources as possible to the varsity teams that would call UTM home”.

Students and athletes can provide feedback on the proposed sport model until December 3 by attending the consultations. They can also respond online and or by sending an email to Beth Ali at beth.ali@utoronto.ca.

Better luck next time Women’s soccer falls short of championship, losing 3-1 to UTSC INGRID MELDRUM

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After having lost only one game this season, the UTM women’s Division 1 soccer team went downtown on Saturday to play for the championship title.

This game marked the first faceoff between UTM and Scarborough this season, as the regular season matchup between the two teams was cancelled due to poor weather and field conditions.

Saturday’s weather was chilly and the girls were glad to be playing safely away from the wind in the dome of Varsity Stadium, a substantial change from playing on a regular field. Nonetheless, the girls were prepared for the conditions, warmed up and pumped to play by the time the referee blew the whistle.

UTM coach Robert Brown’s pregame speech was very encouraging; he let the girls know he had confidence in them. “Take a deep breath.

Now calm your nerves,” he said. “Go out there and play the game you know.”

The Eagles exploded into the first half like they had been shot out of a cannon; the girls were quick with the ball and aggressive on defence.

But their nerves showed as they made a few technical errors, resulting in a goal from Scarborough early in the game. The girls didn’t let that

first goal get them down, and came back a few minutes later to score a goal from Diane Fric’s corner kick.

Jen Soehner headed the ball and it hit the post, but then Dee Dee Spagnuolo rebounded Soehner’s ball into the net. The goal was met by cheers from the small crowd of the UTM players’ friends and family members who had come downtown to watch the game.

UTM held control of the ball and had a number of opportunities for the rest of the half, but was unable to score a second goal.

UTM controlled the game for the remainder of the half and stopped Scarborough from netting another goal. UTM’s goalie, Christy Simbeya, played very well, stopping a number of shots from Scarborough players, and even coming out of the net to get the ball from Scarborough’s forwards, who were trying to advance. The first half ended with a 1–1 tie, and the girls were greeted with high-fives from their beloved mascot, the Eagle, as they came off the field.

In the second half, it was Scar-

borough’s turn to start off strong, and they came out hungry for another goal. They were rewarded for their efforts in the middle of the half when the ball bounced over Simbeya and into UTM’s net. The Eagles were frustrated at not having stopped the ball, and also with the calls the referee was making. Scarborough took advantage of the Eagles’ distraction and scored another goal, making the score 3–1. UTM held control of the ball and had a number of opportunities for the rest of the half, but was unable to score a second goal. When the referee blew the whistle at the end of the game, the Scarborough players and coaches ran onto the field, while the UTM players trudged off before going to shake hands.

The Eagles were disappointed, but during the postgame huddle, Brown told the girls they needed to put the game behind them and look forward to the indoor soccer season.

“Our girls played with heart, but I guess it just wasn’t enough to take the win,” said Sheri Veibl, a secondyear UTM centre midfielder, after the game. “We still have the chance to beat them in indoor.”

There will be tryouts for the girls’ indoor soccer team in January. More information on this team and others can be found on the RAWC website or by stopping by the program office at the gym.