November 6, 2013

How can you follow TRU soccer at nationals? Pg. 11

The Omega Thompson Rivers University’s Independent Student Newspaper

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Editorial & Opinion

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Volume 23, Issue 10 November 6, 2013

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Life & Community

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Faculty association to finally have a new CBA? Previous agreement expired March 2012, but TRU faculty will vote on a new deal soon Mike Davies Ω Editor-in-Chief After 10 months of negotiations, TRU and its faculty association (TRUFA) have finally reached a tentative deal that will see faculty members under contract again through to March 2014. The deal will now be put before membership for ratification.

The faculty’s last collective bargaining agreement (CBA) expired March 31, 2012, and they have been working under the terms of that agreement since that time without a new agreement in place while this round of negotiations occurred.

A press release from TRU states that the agreement put forward “is consistent with the provincial cooperative gains mandate and settlements within the B.C. postsecondary and public sectors.”

Assistant VP of human resources Denis Powers said that

while he cannot comment on what the new deal entails as far as gains for the faculty, the new CBA is not merely a continuation of the old contract and it “will have retroactive aspects,” meaning the faculty will see the benefits of the

before we begin bargaining anew for the next CBA.” When asked for comment on whether he expects the current proposal will again expire before a new one is in place as the last one did, causing the faculty to work without a deal in place, Powers would only add, “One can never predict how long it will take to get a deal. We began bargaining for this deal back in January of this year and met on numerous occasions over the past 10 months.

“CBAs can be complex documents and protracted negotiations are not unusual. Both bargaining teams —Denis Powers worked diligently to arrive at this Assistant VP Human Resources, TRU settlement,” Powers said.

According to the deal that would have been in place TRU press release, if the 819 all along, if the agreement had members of the faculty association started in April 2012 at the expiry ratify the agreement, it will then of the previous CBA. be presented to the TRU board of Powers also acknowledged that governors for final approval before the new deal, once ratified, would coming into effect. expire next March, so “it will The Omega will have updates as likely not be too many months they become available.

“

Wayne Mackintosh (left), director of the New Zealand-based Open Educational Resources Foundation assists Sir John Daniel in launching the official website of the OERu on Nov. 1.

( Jessica Klymchuk/ The Omega)

CBAs can be complex

TRU a leading partner in online education initiative

documents and protracted negotiations are not unusual.”

Is TRU’s faculty about to sign on the line for a deal that will expire in less than six months?

(Image courtesy Wiertz Sébastien/Flickr Commons)

Jessica Klymchuk Ω News Editor

In the United States, tuition has increased at over five times the inf lation rate for the last 30 years, student debt has doubled since 2007, student loans have reached one trillion dollars, 53 per cent of college graduates are unemployed when they leave school and 46 per cent of U.S. college students do not graduate.

How would education change if it became freely accessible and free of cost?

Sir John Daniel provided these statistics to show the crisis higher education is facing worldwide, and the steady failing of the current model.

But a new model is on the horizon.

On Nov. 1, TRU hosted the launch of the Open Educational Resource university (OERu), the virtual collaboration of 26 universities across the world who are dedicated to open education.

The New Zealand-based Open Educational Resources Foundation is coordinating the development of the OERu. Since 2010, TRU has been one of 15 founding anchor partners of the OERu. It will provide free online courses to anyone

with access to the Internet, who can then pay reduced fees to be assessed and receive academic credit. On Oct. 31 and Nov. 1, TRU hosted representatives from most of the 26 institutions for the launch, as well as working meetings.

Members hail from universities in New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, the U.S., Canada and the U.K. “The challenge which the OERu is addressing head-on is to combine the credentialing responsibilities and capacities of the ‘old dispensation’ of higher education with the ‘new dispensation’ of open education that gives people better and cheaper routes to the knowledge required,” Daniel said.

Daniel, with his more than 40year career in open learning, also holds 31 honourary doctorates from universities in 17 countries.

Open education essentially takes learning materials and makes them available online.

TRU director of innovation Brian Lamb said this also includes making those materials licensed in a way that allows them to be re-used and customized.

See DIVERSITY, Pg.

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News

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November 6, 2013

Diversity of online offerings will come as more schools join From ONLINE, Pg.

TRU is working on developing guidelines for social media that will apply to all users associated with the university. ( Jessica Klymchuk/ The Omega)

Social media policy a work in progress Jessica Klymchuk Ω News Editor While social media has become a valuable way to create community on campus, it has also made it a very public one.

The online world might seem like a free-for-all, but TRU is working on creating a policy to outline appropriate online conduct for users associated with the university.

The social media committee, coordinated by the marketing and communications office, first met April 2013 to begin a formal discussion about social media use within the TRU community. By the end of the academic year they plan to have documented guidelines and recommendations, but not rules, for social media use.

TRU currently monitors social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Flickr and sometimes Instagram. The social media page on TRU’s website states “our goal is to provide a community where people feel encouraged to share content and ideas in a respectful environment, and we reserve the right to remove posts that we feel undermine this goal.”

Associate vice president of marketing and communications Lucille Gnanasihamany began the initiative to form a more documented social media policy when she arrived at TRU last year. She said guidelines do exist, although they might not be well publicized. They encourage users to add value rather than noise to conversation and consider general courtesy and respect.

“While we don’t have any control over personal sites, certainly with any of the channels that are affiliated with TRU we do ask people to conduct themselves in a fair manner,” she said.

Gnanasihamany said social media is very self-regulating and when conduct begins to slip there is usually some backlash from other users before formal action is required. Although the current guidelines are based on respect, the committee is looking at other university policies to help form some defined standards.

UBC’s social media guidelines state than inappropriate use on official or personal social media platforms is cause for disciplinary action. It outlines conduct for faculty use, personal use and official channel use. It says to never post anything you wouldn’t share in a classroom, avoid posting anything that could reflect poorly on your colleagues and don’t represent your personal views as those of the university.

“Codes of conduct and the expectations of respectful behavior at the university absolutely apply online,“ said TRU’s director of innovation Brian Lamb, adding that if it’s a question of inappropriate online conduct, a social media policy isn’t necessarily required to reprimand a user because it’s a behaviour issue.

“It’s all overlapping circles and a lot of this does fall under conduct, and I think conduct has many arenas,” Gnanasihamany said. “It could be an in-person conversation or an online conversation but we monitor and we reserve the right to remind people when we feel they have crossed the line.”

The social media committee includes Gnanasihamany, Brianna Senner from student recruitment, web editor at TRU open learning Lindsey Norris, marketing coordinator at TRU World Sherri King, advertising coordinator Bart Cummins and web strategist Matthew Tarzwell.

Have your say!

Should TRU have a more defined social media policy for its staff and faculty?

Go to truomega.ca and comment on this story.

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“It allows us to share what we do,” Lamb said. “We are a publiclyfunded institution. If we think that learning is a public good and it doesn’t cost us very much, or anything, working in the open can actually reduce our costs.

For example, we can incorporate resources that other people are making and do that to improve our quality and make education more international.”

Lamb said each university of the OERu is currently dedicated to providing two courses that align with a general studies degree, not unlike TRU’s general studies degree offered in open learning.

“That’s where it’s going to start,” he said. “I think over time as institutions join and as the institutions put more and more courses online you will start to see a more diverse offering of programs.”

The meetings at TRU included discussion of how to credential such courses, which Lamb said is largely a work in progress. It included nine sessions targeting strategy and operation initiatives, such as aims of the partners, assessing of prototypes, operational planning and assessing priorities.

But open education poses as many challenges as traditional education, the first being a threat to higher education in general.

Representatives from most of the 26 member universities of the OERu were at TRU on Oct.31 and Nov.1 for working meetings and the launch of the open university. ( Jessica Klymchuk/ The Omega)

“A lot of people have talked about some of the new open online environments being what Napster was to the music industry,” Lamb said.

But he insists universities can’t avoid technology, and that no university in North America is ignoring what is going on. Open education offers universities the opportunity to take advantage of technology as well as direct the future of higher education.

OERu joins TRU in partnerships and alignment along with other universities that are taking a leading role in accessible learning.

Lamb said open universities will have a hard time replacing the on-campus university experience, which will in turn challenge universities to define what those qualities are.

“It’s a very exciting time to be in higher education,” he said.

Sexual Health Week begins Nov. 12 Karla Karcioglu Ω Roving Editor Sexual Health Week at TRU will run Nov. 12 to 14. It is designed to help students get informed on how to be safe with sex and to provide them positive support on sexual issues. “[Sex] is just a part of our lives,” wellness coordinator Chelsea Corsi said. “It’s how we all get here.”

According to Corsi, it’s a common misconception that university students are constantly “hooking-up,” and the data from the National College Health Assessment (NCHA) showed that within the 12 months prior, 31 per cent of respondents had zero sexual partners, 45 per cent had one and nine per cent had two.

The survey also showed that 35 per cent of respondents said they received information on the topic of pregnancy prevention from their college or university, and 46 per cent said they received information on sexually transmitted diseases/ infection prevention.

The B.C. Centre for Disease Control’s 2011 annual report on STIs states that genital chlamydia is highest in young women age 20 to 24, with a total of 651 cases in the Thompson Cariboo Shuswap health service area. Genital gonorrhea is most common among males age 20 to 24, with a total of 64 cases in the same area.

Tuesday, Nov. 12 there will be a booth in Old Main Student Street from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. for

general sex health information.

Students will get information on preventing pregnancy and STIs, what a pap test is, how to find a clinic, and getting to know their body. Corsi said there will be a fun, interactive sexual cranium game, and information for students with questions, even those who are not engaging in sexual activities.

Cory Keith is a TRU masters student and the owner of Spectra Wellness Coaching and Consulting. He’ll be hosting two workshops for Sexual Health Week, the first, entitled “Understanding Sexual and Gender Diversity,” will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 12 and will explore what it means to be LGBT2SQ, with discussion on prevalent issues for those who identify within that community.

Corsi said this event was held last year and received positive feedback.

The second workshop, entitled “Reaching Bliss: Heightening Sexual Experience Through the use of Communication and Self Awareness,” will take place on Thursday, Nov. 14 and will explore techniques for creating connections in a sexual relationship. Corsi said she thinks students often have an easier time engaging in sexual activities than they do in talking about them, and that talking about them is fundamental to a healthy and happy sexual relationship.

Both events will be in room OM 1472 from 4:45 to 5:45 p.m.

There will also be a table for the “Don’t Be That Guy” campaign on Wednesday, Nov.

13 in Student Street, which will focus on safe partying tips.

Corsi said she doesn’t want to place blame, but instead wishes to teach students ways they can keep themselves safe while out drinking. Commenting on the recent sexual assaults on the UBC campus, Corsi said there is fear and panic on campuses, and she wants to help students better understand issues of consent.

The “Don’t be that Guy” campaign started in Edmonton and it is aimed at men aged 18 to 25, attempting to “demonstrate their role in ending alcoholfacilitated sexual assaults,” according to their website.

By the numbers

651

Number of cases of chlamydia in the Thompson/ N. Shuswap in 2011

64

Number of cases of genital gonorrhea in the Thompson/ N. Shuswap in 2011

The Omega · Volume 23, Issue 10

www.truomega.ca

November 6, 2013 Volume 23, Issue 10

Published since November 27, 1991

The high cost of textbooks… again A letter to the editor regarding the ever-present issue of textbook expense

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Mike Davies

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Jessica Klymchuk news@truomega.ca @jjklym

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

Courtney Dickson arts@truomega.ca @dicksoncourtney SPORTS EDITOR

Adam Williams

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Karla Karcioglu

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publishingboard EDITOR-IN-CHIEF * Mike Davies INDUSTRY REP* Sylvie Paillard FACULTY REP* Charles Hays STUDENT REP* Sadie Cox STUDENT REP* Adam Williams

letterspolicy

Literary and visual submissions are welcomed. All submissions are subject to editing for brevity, taste and legality. The Omega will attempt to publish each letter received, barring time and space constraints. The editor will take care not to change the intention or tone of submissions, but will not publish material deemed to exhibit sexism, racism or homophobia. Letters for publication must include the writer’s name (for publication) and contact details (not for publication). The Omega reserves the right not to publish any letter or submitted material. Opinions expressed in any section with an “Opinion” label do not represent those of The Omega, the Cariboo Student Newspaper Society, its Board of Directors or its staff. Opinions belong only to those who have signed them.

Editor’s Note Mike Davies Ω Editor-in-Chief I got an interesting and valuable letter not long ago that I thought I would share with you fine folks in place of my column this week. I’ll be adding comments along the way, so it serves the same purpose.

“I am writing to draw your attention to an issue that I think is important and I shall be grateful if you publish this letter in the column of your widely read newspaper,” the author begins. “This issue has to do with the high cost of textbooks in the higher citadel of learning. I want the Ministry of Advanced Education and school authorities to look into this issue.

“The high cost of textbooks has indeed become a common issue in today’s universities. This has been a serious problem for parents and

copyright

(Correspondence not intended for publication should be labelled as such.)

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Do it.

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students. Many [issues are] responsible for this unpleasant phenomenon. First of all, the most significant factor can be traced to the fact that students lack choice for the purchase of books. In other words, students are left with no other option other than to buy the textbooks irrespective of the cost.”

The author highlights the situation they encountered this semester with a $153 textbook being tested on, and said, “In this scenario, students are left with no other choice than to buy the textbooks because no student will be happy to get an F on their transcript.”

The author then goes on to talk about the publishing industry itself (the monopoly that a few publishers have over textbook production and distribution) as well as the increasing desire on booksellers to make profit off the backs of students, and cites these as more causes of the final prices being unreasonable.

I agree with all of this.

“The effect of this experience towards the educational sector cannot be overemphasized,” they continue.

“This will lead to a drastic fall in the performance of most students due to their inability to purchase the required materials needed for them to study.

Consequently, most students will want to consider the option of academic dishonesty, which could be in the form of cheating in examinations.”

I found this to be an interesting dimension of the typical “textbooks are too expensive” discussion. It is

a very real possibility that textbook expense could be a contributing factor in cases of academic dishonesty. After all, if you don’t have the textbooks, cheating is one of a few options available to you – or at least it can be seen that way.

The author suggests that students take advantage of reselling their textbooks once they’re done with them, as many suggest, but I personally don’t think this will help the situation much, as the major complaint about this approach is the little amount garnered upon resale. After all, there’s probably a new edition of that book coming out any day that will be required reading for the next class through the program.

It doesn’t help with the overall cost if that $153 textbook they were talking about earlier earns them $25 upon returning it for the next person to purchase for $110.

Their suggestion of sharing textbooks amongst classmates is better, but what about for courses where students need to reference directly, during class time, the content of the book? It’s just not feasible for five or six students to crowd around one book during a lecture.

I like the author’s suggestion that “school authorities should provide at least twenty five per cent of the textbooks for each course in the library,” (though I would personally like to see a higher number than that – somewhere in the 100 per cent neighbourhood) and that, “the school

should encourage all instructors to use Moodle resources in all courses.” The more resources faculty make easily accessible at little or no cost, the more students will have the opportunity to engage with that material, and isn’t that the goal?

“In conclusion,” the letter’s author said, “the government should formulate policies and put stringent measures in place aimed at controlling the prices of the publishing companies and ensures that the policies are strictly followed.”

While I agree that it would be good for government to have some role in the policy discussion, I think it’s more in the hands of the instructors themselves.

If a book’s new edition doesn’t contain significantly more information in it, why not continue to use the older edition – and place one in the library that people can use there?

Why not find selected articles and readings that are free to put on the class’ Moodle page whenever possible rather than relying on expensive books that students need to purchase?

What are your solutions? What do you think the major contributing factors are here, and what have you found works in terms of saving on textbook expense?

Thanks to Mercy Williams, the author of the above letter, for keeping the discussion going. Now it’s up to the rest of us to continue it. editor@truomega.ca

Hot fuzz: Movember is underway

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Wellness Matters Courtney Dickson Ω Wellness Columnist Welcome to Movember! While some shudder at the thought of the imminent batch of awkward facial hair, we need to remember what it stands for.

I’m apparently out of the loop on this, and maybe that’s because I’ve never been directly involved in Movember. This month isn’t just meant to raise awareness for prostate and testicular cancers.

Men’s health, as a whole, benefits from this time of year – whether that means mental, emotional or physical wellbeing. The Movember Canada website does, however, say their primary targets are male cancers and men’s mental health. Money goes into research, but also into prevention and education.

According to Movember Canada, one out of seven men will develop prostate cancer.

That said, it’s also the most commonly reported type of cancer in men of all ages. For

men between the ages of 15 and 29 the most common form of cancer is testicular cancer. The good news is that there is a 96 per cent long-term survival rate, because treatments for testicular cancer are so effective.

But effective treatments or not, a cancer diagnosis can weigh heavily on some people and that’s why mental health is a concern, too.

A really staggering number is this: 80 per cent of suicides among young people are committed by males. That is huge.

With all the discussion about women and the distress caused by trying to look a certain way, it’s probably pretty shocking to hear males suffer from such severe mental health issues they are more likely to take their own life.

Depression is different in men and women. While many women experience sadness and anxiety, males tend to become more irritable and mad, which can sometimes result in abuse of loved ones. As I’m sure many of us know, some men don’t want to discuss their problems, whereas women generally have less trouble confiding in others.

This is why men dealing with depression often have a very difficult time.

Movember started in 2003 in Australia. It has since caught on globally and has become an internationally recognized campaign.

New Zealand joined their Aussie neighbours in 2006 and Canada joined the cause in 2007 along with several other countries.

That year, Movember raised $20.5 million.

Last year, the movement raised more than $146 million. Charitable organizations often try to beat their previous goals, so if you have some spare cash, maybe you could help them out.

If you don’t have someone in mind whose majestic moustache you’d like to donate to, our editor-in-chief is raising money, and you can find his page here: http://ca.movember. com/mospace/3515405.

Happy Movember, everyone! arts@truomega.ca

(Image courtesy Movember.com)

The Omega

Editorial & Opinion

Science & Technology

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November 6, 2013

TRU’s antibiotic superteam A trio of professors has undertaken research into antibiotics and methods to combat superbugs Mark Hendricks Ω Science & Tech Editor Antibiotic-resistant superbugs are a growing fear in today’s pharmaceutical-reliant society. The temptation to take medication, even when it’s not really needed, is causing bacteria to evolve right before our eyes and develop resistances to many modern medicines.

Three TRU professors, Heidi Huttunen-Hennelly, Kingsley Donkor and Naowarat “Ann” Cheeptham, are working to combat superbugs by pioneering new antibiotic research with the help of a handful of dedicated science students.

“We all have expertise in different areas, so we work well together,” said Huttunen-Hennelly, associate professor of chemistry and the team’s expert in peptide synthesis. “I know a lot about protein and peptide structure,

Kingsley is great on the analytical side and Ann is great on the microbiology side.”

Huttunen-Hennelly’s specialty is in designing antimicrobial peptides.

Peptides are short chains of amino acids that, when designed in certain ways, will help combat pathogenic bacteria.

see whether they produce certain things that I want, that they don’t necessarily normally produce when they live in the caves.”

Cheeptham has had great success with this, finding a relatively large number of bacteria that have antimicrobial properties. In an underwater cave that Cheeptham examined, nine of the 266 microbes had antimicrobial properties.

Donkor’s focus is on lantibiotics, a relatively new type of antibiotic that differs from regular antibiotics in terms of chemical structures.

Despite the work Cheeptham is doing searching for antimicrobial bacteria to combat superbugs, she doesn’t want to paint the picture of bacteria as the enemy.

“I feel bad for —Naowarat “Ann” Cheeptham bacteria, because when we look at bacteria, the TRU biology professor press often calls them germs and bugs and stuff,” Cheeptham said.

“We’ve made maybe two dozen “Not many people know that less than peptides now that have shown quite one per cent of bacteria causes us to be good activity,” Huttunen-Hennelly said. sick, more than 99 per cent of bacteria “Even against the superbugs you hear actually helps us.” about.”

“The primary use right now is in Despite the success so far, it’s the dairy industry and the agriculture uncertain whether or not any of these industry,” Donkor said. “It’s just fairly will ever see commercial use. recently that it’s been recognized “Are we actually ever going to go to that lantibiotics can be effective at the point of trying to patent and produce combating pathogenic bacteria.” some of these peptides?” HuttunenLantibiotics are used in milk, as a Hennelly pondered. chemical-free method of spraying crops “It’s just such a costly market, you’d and for treating diseases in livestock. almost want some biotech company to They are considered safe by the Food buy your patent off of you.” and Drug Administration, which is why Huttunen-Hennelly’s research they’re used in food production. instead focuses on achieving a better Despite this, there’s no clear understanding of how antimicrobial understanding of the way they peptides work, something Huttunen- work. The prevailing theory is that Hennelly said is merely acknowledged lantibiotics work by attaching to a in the majority of papers, instead of structure on the outside of the cell, examined. called lipid two, and then they create Cheeptham studies bacteria found holes in the cell, leaking out vital in caves to look for those which exhibit nutrients and starving it. antimicrobial properties. Because many “That’s the main theory, but I believe caves are more difficult to access, the that’s not the whole story,” Donkor said. bacteria in them, which are classified “I believe it also attacks other parts of as extremophile bacteria because of the the cell.” harsh conditions they live in, are not as Donkor’s research aims to better often studied. understand the way in which lantibiotics “We want to find something totally work to improve their effectiveness new, we don’t want to find another in their applications, both in the food penicillin again,” Cheeptham said. “If industry and in human patients. you keep going to a place that has been Donkor, Cheeptham and Huttunenextensively studied, you’ll find a known Hennelly don’t work alone though. compound. We want something totally They all work with undergraduate and new.” graduate students in their labs. These Cheeptham takes these bacteria students help with the research and gain found in caves and cultures them valuable hands-on experience in the lab. under ideal conditions in the hopes of Donkor calls the students an invaluable producing a usable antimicrobial agent. part of the research process.

“Basically I am a farmer, but I am “Whatever I do, I want to make sure a microbial farmer,” Cheeptham said. I share the credit with my students,” “I grow them in the lab and then try to Donkor said.

“

If you keep going to a place that has been extensively

studied, you’ll find a known compound. We want

something totally new.”

Erika Dufour is a first-year graduate student in the masters of environmental science program and is working with Donkor to help with lantibiotic research.

(Mark Hendricks/ The Omega)

This week in science A seemingly-impossible lava planet, a transistor that fires like a synapse, and bats create questions about source and transmission of SARS Mark Hendricks Ω Science & Tech Editor

SARS may have formed in bats A study published on Oct. 30 in the journal Nature has determined that the SARS epidemic may have originated in horseshoe bats in China.

Although bats were long-considered suspects for originating the SARS epidemic, it was believed that the disease needed a palm civet to act as an intermediary, changing the virus into a form that could be contracted by humans.

This changed when scientists were recently able to isolate a live virus from the fecal matter of the horseshoe bat, and with it were able to infect kidney cells in bats and pigs and lung cells in a human.

This doesn’t mean that bats are guaranteed to be the source of SARS, but it does mean that the palm civet

may not have been necessary as an intermediary.

Find out more: www.iflscience.com

A transistor that functions in the same manner as a synapse Material scientists at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences have developed a transistor that functions in the same manner as a brain synapse.

The transistor has infinite variable states, unlike standard transistors which only have an on and off setting.

“The transistor we’ve demonstrated is really an analog to the synapse in our brains,” said co-lead author Jian Shi in a press release. “Each time a neuron initiates an action and another neuron reacts, the synapse between them increases the strength of its connection. And the faster the neurons spike each time, the stronger

Kepler-78b is a new planet that was discovered composed of lava with a similar density to Earth and an impossibly close orbit.

(Image courtesy Har vard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)

the synaptic connection. Essentially, it memorizes the action between the neurons.”

This means that the transistors will undergo actual physical change in response to the flow of information. This mimics the process based learning that happens in the human brain and could be used in extremely powerful and efficient computer systems in the future.

Find out more: http://www.seas.harvard.edu/news

A lava-based planet that shouldn’t exist Astronomers have discovered a planet that is made of lava and has a similar density to Earth.

“This planet is a complete mystery,” David Latham, an astronomer at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics said in a press release . “We don’t know how it formed or how it got to where it is today. What we do know is that it’s not going to last forever.”

The planet contradicts current theories. The discovery, Kepler78b, orbits its star every eight and a half hours, and is less than one million miles from its star. This is one of the tightest orbits ever observed.

Current scientific theory says that the planet could not have formed this close to the star, nor could it have moved there.

Despite this, Kepler-78b isn’t going to be around for very long, cosmologically speaking. It’s gradually drifting closer to its star and will be ripped apart by the gravity of the star in roughly three billion years, according to current theories.

Find out more: www.sciencedaily.com

This peptide synthesizer is the key component in Huttunen-Hennelly’s research and is what lets her artificially create peptides.

(Mark Hendricks/ The Omega)

The Omega · Volume 23, Issue 10

Life & Community

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You are what you tweet Campus club sparks privacy discussion, calls for advocates Jessica Klymchuk Ω News Editor The advantage of growing up 30 years ago might be that all the ridiculous stuff you did in your 20s predated the Internet. The generation that grew up online knows no such time, and for many the excitement of using digital social interaction hit at their most vulnerable age. Others were more skeptical.

But just how much your digital footprint says about you would surprise even the most careful online user.

Everything you’ve ever clicked on, watched, liked, searched and deleted is documented, and it doesn’t go away.

So, is privacy dead?

The TRUSU Human Rights Club showed Terms and Conditions May Apply on Oct. 31 to stimulate a discussion on privacy issues. In its review of the film, the Globe and Mail said it’s “not just a documentary about Internet privacy, but a non-fiction horror flick for anyone who blindly agrees to user licensing agreements online (a.k.a. everyone).”

The film documents the current digital environment in which your cell service provider records every swipe, Google tracks every search, Facebook defaults are entirely public, people are being searched in airports for benign tweets and high school students are being questioned by the Secret Service over innocent status updates.

It outlines the relationships law enforcement has with these companies, one that has allowed them to stop protests before they’ve

even happened, sometimes based on instant messaging.

When Google first released its terms and conditions, they insisted people’s Internet activity was just attributed to a number. Since then, they’ve discovered that anonymity isn’t profitable, according to director Cullen Hoback, and that’s where the terms and conditions come into play.

TRU privacy law professor David Hughes led a discussion including about 30 students, beginning with the question: is privacy dead?

these techniques could threaten that.

Presumption of innocence begins to wane.

“Canada is often looked at being a leader in privacy, but I’m skeptical of that,” he said.

It also poses the question: what else can such data be used for? It was discussed whether or not it will be used to take down drug lords next.

In that case, privacy could become less defined and less protected when safety is at stake.

“The primary motive is to stop terrorism, but there are, in large part, commercial interests driving it,” Hughes said.

This “happy coincidence” is a result of companies like Facebook creating something that wasn’t intended to be used to spy on citizens, but citizens —David Hughes willingly putting forth information has given Privacy Law professor, TRU it other advantages.

Hughes said the same analytics that target advertising could tell the government that “It’s easy to say it’s dead because perhaps you are a terrorist. it’s always been a relative term,” he Hughes questioned whether or said, adding that privacy isn’t spelled not people will adapt to Facebook out in the Charter of Rights and founder Mark Zuckerberg’s idea of Freedoms, so how can we go about an open world. Will people continue protecting it? to be concerned about what’s online, Students suggested that privacy is or eventually move on and adapt? thought of in a more tangible way.

“From my point of view I think When someone looks through your there is opportunity to create new window, you feel like your privacy and better laws to regulate this,” he is being invaded. When someone is said. mining your online data, you don’t Hughes encouraged all the know the difference. students to share what they saw Hughes said Canadian law is in Terms and Conditions May based on the idea that it’s better for Apply and that everyone should be 99 guilty people to go free than one advocating for legislation that will innocent person be charged, but promote online privacy.

“

Canada is often looked at

as being a leader in privacy, but I’m skeptical of that.”

A TRU privacy law professor led a discussion on whether or not privacy is dead following a showing of Terms and Conditions May Apply by the TRUSU Human Rights Club on Oct.31. It prompted a lot of questions but not many answers. (Image courtesy Hyrax Films)

TRU vaccinates staff and students against the flu Karla Karcioglu Ω Roving Editor On Oct. 24, 2013, the B.C. government upheld a ruling that all B.C. health care workers must either receive a f lu shot or wear a mask during f lu season, despite objections from the health care workers union. The ruling was upheld because the jobs of health care workers put them in direct contact with people who may be high-risk of serious illness caused by the f lu.

As such, TRU health services got some help from the WalMart pharmacy to provide TRU staff and students with f lu vaccinations on campus for five days between Oct. 22 and Nov. 1.

In total, 410 staff and students received the f lu shot. The majority of students on campus are not in high-risk groups, for which f lu shots are recommended and free.

The vaccinations are brought to campus for the convenience of staff and students. Those not eligible for a free vaccination paid $20.

Health and safety office assistant Lee-Gaye Hicketts said approximately the same number of vaccines are administered each year at TRU.

Hicketts said she appreciates the help of the Wal-Mart pharmacists. Without them, they wouldn’t have time to administer the vaccinations themselves.

Specific days were scheduled to vaccinate those in various programs and facilities on campus that are considered high-risk, including the day care, nursing students, early childhood education students and respiratory therapy students.

Another high-risk group is those living in group facilities, such as on-campus housing, where germs easily spread through close contact.

Though Immunize BC’s website states that vaccinations are the best method to avoid the f lu, it also recommends masks for students.

The website reads “masks in conjunction with hand hygiene has been shown to have reduced rates of inf luenza like illness in residents of college dormitories and households.”

In 2011, a report from the B.C. and Quebec lung associations showed that B.C. has an inf luenza vaccination rate of 53 per cent, the highest in Canada.

B.C. also had the secondlowest f lu rate, at 10 per cent, just two per cent higher than Alberta.

What you had to say Did you get the flu shot this year? Why or why not?

Robbie Stainton

Victoria Ramgren

Adul Maurya

First year business

First year bachelor of arts

First year business

“No. I didn’t feel it was necessary to get it. I didn’t feel I would get sick this year.”

“No. I just haven’t gotten around to it yet.”

“No. Because I take ginseng and I eat a healthy diet and take electrolytes every morning.”

Arts & Entertainment

6

November 6, 2013

Sixth annual record fair for CFBX Stock up on music while supporting the campus radio station Ω Contributor The campus radio station has been busy preparing for their sixth-annual fundraiser. CFBX’s (The X) Record Fair will be held Sunday, Nov. 10 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Sahali Mall.

Admission to the fair will be $2.

For the last five years, TRU’s campus radio station has held the fair that has provided Kamloops with classic vinyl records, tapes, CDs, instruments, memorabilia and a mix of music-related collectibles.

Organizers are happy to be putting on the event again this year, and they’re expecting it to be bigger and better than ever.

The record fair is The X’s biggest fundraiser of the year.

It took about six months of planning and 30 to 40 volunteers to get things moving.

Last year, the sale brought in a record amount of over $2,000 with over 200 people attending.

This will be the fair’s second year at Sahali Mall. It was moved off-campus last year due to growing attendance.

According to CFBX programming coordinator Steve Marlow, that’s a record they’re hoping to break this year. More than 40 vendors have already been confirmed, which is how many attended in total last year.

Marlow said that anyone who shows up and pays their admission can expect to win at least one door prize. The station has received donations of new vinyl records, music download cards, stickers, posters, guitar picks and other assorted memorabilia.

“We don’t have a record store, per se, in Kamloops anymore, so this is the only place you’re going to be able to buy quality used music,” Marlow said. “Plus, it’s a lot of fun.”

Money raised through admission and sales from the station’s table will be used for the daily operations, equipment and maintenance of the station.

Music-related donations are also appreciated and should be dropped off at House 8 on the TRU campus behind the Campus Activity Centre. For more information, visit the station’s website at www.thex.ca.

Brant Zwicker, station manager for CFBX, takes a break from volunteering to browse some merchandise at a previous Record Fair which which saw more than 200 customers browse through 35 tables of records, CDs, tapes, posters, stereo equipment and more.

(Omega File Photo)

Album review: Reflektor Sean Brady Ω Copy/Web Editor The latest offering from Arcade Fire is the pulsing double-album Ref lektor.

It might be seen as somewhat of a departure in style for the Montreal band, but if that’s the case, they have left their roots for something great.

The album is a product of six core band members, including frontman Win Butler, his wife Régine Chassagne, brother Will Butler and multi-instrumentalist Richard Reed Parry. But the sounds on the album are more than that – a lot more. As many as 20 musicians count towards the album’s finished sound, including David Bowie. While you’d be hard-pressed to hear the back-up lyrics he provided, his inf luence-by-presence is obvious.

The album carries a notable rhythm – some tracks feature multiple percussionists, bongos and even Caribbean-style steel drums in the haunting song “Porno.”

The fifth track, “Normal Person,” is the thematic f lagship for the album and probably bestdefines the band’s current state.

It opens with a mock stage scene with Win Butler posing a question he probably considered himself prior to recording this track.

“Do you like rock and roll music? ‘Cause I don’t know if I do.”

If this is rock and roll music to the frontman, I like it. I’d advise first-time listeners to enjoy this one in private – it’s unlikely you’ll be able to resist playing air guitar during the peaked-out riffs in the chorus. The song builds and fades four or five times and finishes big. By the time you’ve finished listening you’ll have tapped your foot so hard it’ll feel like you’ve just done work.

The band’s live performances of this track have been notably weird. During their Oct. 21 performance on The Colbert Report, a band of fakeheaded puppets (also seen in the “Ref lektor” music video) introduced the song before throwing to what was at least an octet, rocking out in full-swing.

Seeing “Normal Person” played to a U.S. audience, especially after the bizarre intro to the song, was a reassuring nod

by Win Butler that he’s made no concessions to the mainstream, even if he is on prime time American television.

You won’t find the typical orchestral string sounds the band made heavy use of in its previous album, The Suburbs. While the band’s long-time string arranger Owen Pallett contributes to the record, his inf luence seems less

(Image courtesy Merge Records)

obvious. The violin highlights and f lourishes previously heard in tracks like “No Cars Go” are absent.

There’s a 10-minute hidden track, though because it seems to be a collection of left-overs and experiments of no consequence, you’re probably safe to let it remain hidden.

Ref lektor is a worthy addition to the band’s discography, and it’s one that might serve as a marker between old Arcade Fire and new Arcade Fire.

Interested in reviewing films, albums, books, theatre productions and the like?

Contact Courtney at arts@truomega.ca for information on how you can do that!

@TRU_Omega on Twitter

Alexis Stockford

The Omega · Volume 23, Issue 10

Arts & Entertainment

7

Finding the beauty in war How the Second World War positively affected the life of a modern Canadian musician Courtney Dickson Ω Arts & Entertainment Editor “I’m a musician and I wrote a song about my grandfather. His life was saved by your grandfather.”

Menno Versteeg, Canadian band Hollerado’s frontman, called up a man he knew very little about in order to give his fans a greater understanding of a song he wrote that is very close to his heart.

This journey all started in 2011 when Menno and the band were working on their new album in New York. While working, Menno learned that his grandfather Karl Versteeg had passed away. As an artist, Menno was compelled to write about his grandfather to honour his life and the relationship they shared.

“He was definitely one of my closest friends,” Menno said.

Most of the memories Menno has of his grandfather involve Karl telling him stories about his life.

One story in particular stood out: a story of friendship and war.

“It was one story [my grandfather] really stood for,” Menno said.

From that story came the nowpopular song “So It Goes.”

Germany invaded Holland in May 1940. Karl was living there at that time. In less than a week, Holland surrendered their country to Germany and the Germans took over. Rotterdam, in South Holland, had been destroyed. The Dutch resistance formed, and Karl was eager to join. He posed as a veterinarian so he could move around the country with ease.

However, he had no experience with veterinary medicine and the Germans eventually caught on.

Karl was captured and meant to be executed. Instead, he was handed over to a German officer. They spoke about Karl’s situation, and by putting himself in another’s shoes,

the German officer’s emotion led him to cancel the execution. Karl was put into solitary confinement for two years.

After the war, the German officer was on trial, with his life at stake.

Karl went to the trial and testified.

That testimony, made by a person who by many would have been considered to be the enemy, saved the officer’s life.

Though the lyrics of “So It Goes” provide listeners with an upbeat account of what times were like for Karl, Menno felt fans still didn’t understand the weight of the story he was trying to tell. He had to make a music video, and it had to be powerful.

“He was difficult to track down,” Menno said, “I didn’t even know his name.”

Hollerado flew out to Holland to track down a relative of the German officer that saved Karl Versteeg’s life.

In order to find who they would later learn was the officer’s grandson, Menno had to share the detailed story of what had happened to his grandfather with an official from the Dutch government archives. She was able to help him find exactly who he was looking for.

Menno described the experience as “fascinating.”

“It made me feel grateful and emotional, in a good way.”

The German officer’s grandson (whose name has been withheld at Menno’s request) had also been told the story of how Karl and this German officer saved each other’s lives.

In the music video, the German grandson expressed his thanks to Menno and his late grandfather for what had happened.

The two grandchildren eventually met up and shared a drink, continuing a friendship that was started by their grandfathers many years ago.

Catch Hollerado at the Blue Grotto on Nov. 12.

Remembrance Day means something a little different for everyone, but for all of us, it’s a time to recognize those who have put themselves in dangerous situations to defend their country.

Both of Menno’s sets of grandparents lived through the Second World War. “I think of what they went through and just how lucky we are.”

Though Menno appreciates Remembrance Day, he doesn’t think there should be just one day devoted to giving thanks to veterans and current soldiers.

“Every holiday has its purpose, but I try to be grateful and think

about them every day,” he said.

On Nov. 11 this year, Menno said Hollerado will sit down together and enjoy a nice meal.

“We’ll put our phones away and be with each other, have a glass of wine and be thankful,” he said.

Since releasing the music video on July 31, 2013, fans have been approaching Hollerado with stories of what their relatives went through.

“I appreciate it when people I don’t know come to me with similar stories,” Menno said.

Some said they were inspired to research more of their own family histories and create relationships

(Image courtesy Christian Jaggi)

with grandparents to try to understand what their lives were like. As Menno pointed out, that generation is aging, and they won’t be around forever to share these first-hand accounts of their lives.

In December, Hollerado will be returning to Europe as part of their tour. Menno plans to visit his new friend in Germany, who’s also been invited to their show in Berlin.

Their current tour is titled the “So It Goes” tour, and they will be playing at the Blue Grotto on Nov. 12, the day after Remembrance Day. Tickets are still available, and can be purchased online for $15.

Album review: Prism Sophie Isbister The Other Press (Douglas College)

Parking helps sustainability initiatives: Letter Dear Editor: Re. your Oct. 30 story about the two TRU artists who created a parking meter poll box (pg. 7), I think it’s worth noting that there is a silver lining to paying more for parking: the increased fees are funding the TRU Sustainability Grant Fund! This brand new fund will be giving out $100,000 every year in two allotments of $50,000 each (Fall and Spring) to great project proposals from any students, staff or faculty that need money to realize an idea that “advances environmental sustainability at TRU.” Details at www.tru.ca/sustain James Gordon, TRU Environmental Programs and Research Coordinator (above)

NEW WESTMINISTER (CUP) — Prism, the fourth studio album from former Christian pop singer Katy Perry, shows the mature, spiritual side of the woman who got famous for gimmicky songs like “I Kissed a Girl.”

Perry began recording the album during her highly publicized split with actor Russell Brand. This event is firmly represented in many tracks on the album, including the rousing first single and opening track, “Roar,” a song about Perry finding her voice after the trauma of her divorce.

Full of ‘90s nostalgia beats, Prism shows off its solid production and commitment to the legacy of pop music. Even throwaway tracks like “Birthday” and “This Is How We Do” had me dancing in my seat.

But pure cheese doesn’t fill the whole album; Prism primarily contains songs that deal with selfempowerment, epic love, and growing up. On “Love Me,” she sings about honesty, self-love, and saying goodbye to insecurities—good advice that is a far cry from Teenage Dream’s obsession with ménage-a-trois and drunken Friday nights.

Prism is firmly an album for the late-20s set. Perry, who was 27 during the writing of this album, references her age on the haunting and beautiful track, “By the Grace of God.” Spirituality combines with the angst of approaching the age of 30, as Perry gently sings about picking herself up off the floor with the help of family and faith. This is just one of the songs on Prism that references Perry’s religious background: she is the daughter of Pentecostal pastors, and had an early career as a gospel singer.

But despite this, Perry’s new effort does not come off as overtly religious.

Rather, Perry’s spirituality is held up as an incidental factor that helped her realize the true strength of herself as an individual.

Of course, deep thoughts aren’t exactly the reason that most people will pick up a Perry album, and for that crowd, Prism doesn’t disappoint.

She teams up with rapper Juicy J on “Dark Horse,” a trap-tinged track with an infectious beat that was inspired by the 1996 film The Craft.

The genuinely gleeful “International Smile” is the cherry on top of this well-rounded effort that cements Perry’s position as reigning pop princess.

Life & Community

8

November 6, 2013

New report disputes Vanier College condemns grim job prospects for Quebec Charter of Values youth Jane Lytvynenko CUP Ottawa Bureau Chief OTTAWA (CUP) — The notion of today’s youth being the “lost generation” is being challenged by a new report from TD Economics.

Published Oct. 22, the study focused on the skill mismatch and labour shortages in the market over the last 10 years. It found the picture is not as grim as it has been painted.

“The notion of a severe labour market skills mismatch has topped the headlines,” reads the report.

“With data in hand, we debunk the notion that Canada is facing an imminent skills crisis. At the same time, there is some evidence of mismatch across certain occupations and provinces, but the sparse, non-time series data prevent us from saying whether the situation today is worse than in years past.”

The report looked at three key areas: the Canadian labour market over the past 10 years, whether there’s a skills mismatch and what should be done about it. It honed in on areas where there are commonly perceived skills shortages or surpluses, including the trades and arts degrees.

“Some have been labelling the current youth generation as the lost generation,” said Sonya Gulati, senior economist at the TD Bank Group who co-authored the report.

“For us, while we determined the unemployment rate is higher, part of the reason for that is where we are in the economic cycle.”

According to StatsCan, in 2012 the youth unemployment rate was 14.5 per cent compared to 6 per cent for workers aged 25 and up.

However, the rate is historically low for those aged 15 to 24 not only in Canada but across the globe.

“Occupations widely thought to be in shortage have recorded considerably lower unemployment rates than their counterparts in the surplus camp,” reads the TD Economics report. “Still, vacancy rates outside of some pockets (e.g., trades) are not significantly higher than the national average. They also have not accelerated over the past few years.”

Gulati explained one of such examples is graduates with arts degrees.

“What we found in terms of the arts degrees is typically people graduated with a lower labour market outcome in terms of salary and it usually takes them a longer time to get a position, but overtime that difference between specific fields begins to narrow,” she said.

The TD Economics report gives a number of recommendations for governments, employers and potential employees. It says job training is not happening at the same rate as it used to be. While the Conservative government’s newly introduced Canada Jobs Grant is a step in the right according to Gulati, more can be done to improve Canada’s job market. “[Employers can] provide incentive to a worker for taking on the job training,” she says. “For instance you may get a tax break if you seek training above and beyond what you already have.

You can give employers incentives to make sure the skills workers have are aligned with what the needs of the general labor market are.”

Students need to look for prospects before they enter a field of study to make sure they can get employment after graduation.

Despite prospects not being as bleak as predicted, both Canada and its citizens should take steps to safeguard their employment.

Kalina Laframboise CUP Quebec Bureau Chief MONTREAL (CUP) — Opposition continues to mount against the highly-contentious Charter of Values, with Vanier College the most recent post-secondary school to take an official stance against the provincial government’s proposal.

Vanier released a statement on Oct. 22 condemning the Parti Québécois’s latest project that aims to promote a secular state. The CÉGEP’s board of directors passed a resolution on Oct. 15 to denounce certain sections of the charter, emphasizing that the proposal will result in “stigmatization and job discrimination,” and will as well be problematic for students during stages.

“With such a varied student body, Vanier is especially mindful of providing a safe and respectful learning environment, a space where tolerance and dialogue are prized above all, and where support measures are in place to ensure all its students succeed in their studies,” said Director General Gilbert Héroux in the statement.

Vanier is the most recent educational institution to voice its opposition, alongside McGill University and Dawson College. Concordia University, according to spokesperson Cléa Desjardins, will not release a statement until the proposed charter is decided upon in the National Assembly in Quebec City, while the university’s undergraduate and graduate student unions have taken stances opposing the project.

“Concordia has power to do so much,” said Amrit Kaur, the president of the Concordia Sikh Students’ Association. “Hopefully they will when the time is right.”

French universities and colleges have largely remained silent on the issue since it was introduced in September.

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Religious symbols like this one may soon be banned from workplaces in Quebec by the Charter of Values legislation.

(Photo courtesy clpo13/Flickr Commons)

so students can explore the proposed charter from different sides. This includes a student panel on Nov. 7 hosted by the CBC’s Nancy Wood so that college students can debate the advantages and disadvantages of the PQ’s proposal.

The opposition follows weeks of protests in the downtown core of Montreal. Several hundred gathered last Sunday to oppose the provincial government’s project to promote secularism by prohibiting civil servants from wearing “ostentatious” religious symbols, limiting time off for religious holidays and amending the Quebec Charter of Rights and Freedoms to clarify reasonable accommodations.

Claire Cormier, who recently moved to Montreal from New Brunswick, said she has been attending several marches to criticize the charter and said Premier Pauline Marois was trying to “divide and conquer” the people of Quebec.

“This is pure racism,” said Cormier.

“Where I come from we function in French, English, a multicultural

background. The only thing I can see here is that Marois wants to divide and conquer — she is giving a license to hate.”

The Charter of Values is expected to be presented in the National Assembly in the next few weeks. Rumours have suggested that the project might be a ballot question in what may be an upcoming fall election while more protests are planned in the coming weeks.

Editor’s Note A panel discussion is happening at TRU entitled “How would you feel if the Parti Quebecois’ Charter of Values was proposed in British Columbia?” on Nov. 7 in the TRUSU hall of the Campus Activity Centre from noon to 1:15 for anyone who would like to further discuss the concept.

The Omega will have coverage of this event next week.

Feature

The Omega · Volume 23, Issue 10

9

Confessions of a scattered mind How and why to stay focused in class, even though you think you already are ...

Kelsey Puddister The Muse (Memorial) ST. JOHN’S (CUP) — We’ve all been there. You go to class, intending to listen to every word.

You sit down, stare straight ahead and prepare your mind to absorb a new topic. You take out your laptop, lay your phone on the desk and get settled. 20 minutes in, you check your phone for texts.

You look back up. Wait…what is the professor talking about again?

You stare blankly ahead for a few minutes and decide to check Facebook. You look back up.

Wait…when did you start a new chapter?

For those of us who have trouble focusing, it seems impossible to sit through an entire lecture alert and attentive. With large class sizes, huge lecture theatres, and a world of technology within arm’s reach, there is no shortage of distractions to break focus and put us behind before we even begin.

Kathleen Hourihan, assistant professor with the Department of Psychology, studies memory and cognition at Memorial University and her current focus in on metamemory—what we know about our own memory and whether we can predict what we will remember.

Sometimes just getting to class feels like an accomplishment when trying to find balance in a new semester.

“Some people may think they are learning very well by going to class but maybe are not learning all they think they are,” explains Hourihan, going on to talk about metacognitive judgment.

“There can be a difference in how it feels that you’re learning at the time of learning and how well you feel you’ve learned something upon reassessing that information later on.”

This is how people get in trouble around exam time.

“You understand as the prof is talking but then when you try to work out something on your own you realize the comprehension isn’t quite at the same level that

you thought it had been,” she explains. In most cases, truly understanding the material being taught requires more work than just listening in class. Hourihan also notes that it’s very easy to trick ourselves into thinking we can multitask better than we really can.

In an age of technology, there are distractions everywhere. It is easy to aim to quickly check Facebook or texts but not so easy getting back on track.

“If you can, resist the temptation to try to switch tasks,” Hourihan advises. “There are costs in your attention when switching tasks.”

Students who think they can multitask well while in lecture may be fooling themselves into a false sense that they are learning.

“We have an echoic memory that allows us to keep in mind the last thing we are hearing even though we’re not really paying attention to it,” said Hourihan.

So, even though you can physically hear what the professor is saying, you may not actually be absorbing the information you think you are.

Staying on track may be as easy as learning to take good notes.

The act of writing down or typing and analyzing the information you’re being taught involves a lot of processing.

When taking notes, most people

studying for a test at a later date.

Taking notes on your computer or tablet is only beneficial if it’s not also a distraction; if you can’t resist the urge to update your status or to re-tweet something during class, then disconnecting your Internet access or taking hand-written notes may be the best option.

So, if you aren’t paying attention as well as you could during class, you must be making up for it while studying, right? Most people in university have figured out the best studying options for them and that reading the textbook really is beneficial.

However, those who say they can watch television or listen to —Kathleen Hourihan music while studying may not be reaping the Assistant professor (psychology), MUN full benefits of what they’re working so hard can’t type or write as fast as the to absorb. professor talks so instead your Hourihan recommends having brain is listening, analyzing what a quiet room with no distractions is being said and writing down for optimal results. the key points. Extracting the Another common misconception meaning and translating it into is that the inevitable university something you understand is the ‘cram’ before an exam is a useful key to not only fully grasping the and quick way to do well. Studying information at the time, but to for hours and hours on the same

“

There can be a difference in how it feels that

you’re learning...and upon reassessing that

information later on.”

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subject the night before a test is as bad for your memory as it is for your sanity.

“You can get fatigued by studying the same subject for too long in a row,” Hourihan warns.

“Cramming for an exam is never a good idea.” It is almost impossible to stuff all of that information into your mind in one night. Research in memory and information retention has shown that you gain the most from studying you stretch out over a longer period of time. So it turns out when your professor reminds you not to not leave it until the night before, they are actually be right.

Of course, with busy school schedules, extra-curricular activities, part-time jobs, and a social life, most students struggle with the ability to stay on task and focus their time both in and out of class effectively.

Keeping up with the text book readings and taking notes on what you’ve read is important to staying on top of a particular course. If in-class assignments, tests, and readings seem to be piling up, create a list of things you need to complete and include a deadline of when they need to be accomplished.

A key factor in getting the most out of studying is testing yourself on the information you’ve just read.

“If the textbook or online companion has questions, it’s always a good idea to do them,” suggests Hourihan.

Retaining information becomes easier if you have to retrieve it before the test.

Even if you don’t remember it right away, the act of searching for the information will actually make the material more memorable when you look it up. Making up your own questions will help if there are none provided.

This stimulates your brain to think about the applications and implications of the topic.

For longer classes, professors should ideally break up the material to keep things interesting.

If not, there are some things you can do to stay on track.

“Try to stay focused on taking notes,” said Hourihan.

This enables you to focus on the material at hand. If you feel yourself starting to drift, take a quick bathroom break and come back refreshed and ready to focus again.

Figuring out what works best for you is the best way to start to focus your attention.

Staying attentive in class is a skill that not all of us are born with. Avoiding distractions like the internet and texting during class as well as taking notes is the key to developing this skill.

Coffee Break

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Puzzle of the week Puzzle of the Week #9 – Dice The sum of two six-sided dice rolled together is used in many games for moves. Some games use other die roll combinations for various purposes.

For many of these, it is fairly easy to figure out their distributions and averages. Some are a bit more difficult. Like this puzzle’s.

What is the average of best three out of four six-sided dice rolled together?

(Roll four six-sided dice and take the sum of the three highest dice. If there is a tie for lowest value, just disregard only one of the dice.)

This contest is sponsored by the Mathematics and Statistics department. The full-time student with the best score at the end of the year will win a prize. Please submit your solution (not just the answer but also why) by noon the second-tonext Wednesday to Gene Wirchenko <genew@telus.net>. Submissions by others are also welcome. The solution will be posted the Wednesday after that in my blog (http://genew.ca/) and in the Math Centre (HL210A). Come visit: we are friendly.

1. Middle ___ 5. Federal org.

9. June honorees 13. Pull partner 14. ___ Boothe Luce 15. Clickable image 16. “Someone ___” (2006 movie) 17. Attack 18. Swiss painter Hans 19. Site of illicit bar for the leisure class?

22. Jam 23. Deodorant brand 24. Second sight 27. Unburdened 29. Out of style 32. Taiwanese girl group 33. Chesterfield, e.g.

36. Sparsely populated North Dakota city 37. Simply relax?

42. Contemptible one 43. “The Open Window” writer 44. Factor XI (abbr.)

45. OK, in a way 47. Undertake, with “out” 49. Az ___, R&B group from Philly 50. Bypass 52. Journal

54. A soft touch brings relief?

62. Mythological ferryman 63. Cunning 64. Popular Serbian folk singer 65. Gunks 66. Broke off 67. Experienced 68. Brickbat 69. Check 70. Reno calculation Down 1. Primatologist’s study 2. Mouthful 3. Cigarette brand 4. Bundle 5. Long bone 6. Back talk 7. Hunts 8. Establishes 9. Diacritical marks 10. Israeli port city 11. Fully cooked 12. Agitated state 14. Live peacefully together 20. White wine aperitif 21. Start of a refrain 24. Jolting therapy, for short 25. Wrap 26. Black tea 28. Buck passers?

30. Mawkish 31. A-list 34. J.F.K. overseer 35. Says “When?”

38. Poisoning from tainted grain 39. Mosque officials 40. Gave way 41. Bother, with at 46. Feudal sovereigns 48. Excessively 51. Jeer 53. Ptychozoon 54. Musical pieces 55. Carbon compound 56. Ancient colonnade 57. Fries, maybe 58. Posited Big Bang substance 59. E-mail, e.g.

60. ___ coffee 61. Hebrew letters M A R T B L I B I S D E C A T U T H R O E D R O M A H A D A V I T D R I V E R S E D A A N D F O L I O O V E R A C C A T C H E P A R G O S L Y O N

A A E D I L L E R I L L S I A G D R A C H A L F E D U C R U M E A N L A M T O R I N T I L E I P O O F

I N C H A T T A C H

RANDOM JOKE! A horse walks into a bar.

The bartender asks, “why the long face?”

The horse responds, “I’ve just realized I’m a metaphysical concept residing within a fictional narrative and will cease to exist at the end of this sentence.”

Got a better joke? Got a comic? Send ‘em in and we might run ‘em.

editor@truomega.ca

B A N T A M

O B O E S

F L I R T

F E S S E

B R O T I O N I D A L E E N Y T E A K

E R S E

T Y E P S E S

LAST ISSUE’S ANSWERS

3

“It’s a Snap!”

8

MYLES MELLOR AND SALLY YORK

sudokueasy

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November 6, 2013

crossword

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Sports

The Omega · Volume 23, Issue 10

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WolfPack women bounce back Contrary to ranking, women’s basketball shows up big Adam Williams Ω Sports Editor The WolfPack women’s basketball team proved that it can run with any competition Canada West has to offer this past weekend, stunning the University of Alberta Pandas 67-58 in a Nov. 2 game at the Tournament Capital Centre.

TRU, which had lost to the University of Saskatchewan Huskies 76-54 on Nov. 1, was thought to be the heavy underdog heading into its match against the Pandas. The University of Alberta squad was ranked No. 1 in Canada West by the league’s coaches in the annual poll conducted prior to the start of the season. In that same poll, TRU was ranked ninth.

The victory is the WolfPack’s second against the Pandas in the last six games between the squads.

TRU also defeated the Pandas last season, though with a much stronger team, 72-69 in overtime.

“I liked our defense,” said WolfPack head coach Scott Reeves in a press release. “That is a pretty good team. Holding them to 58 points is pretty outstanding. I think when they were using their size and doubling us up inside we were pretty quick. That gave us an opportunity to get a jump ball or an extra possession.”

The WolfPack was outscored in the first half, 35-26, with the U of A shooting 44 per cent from the floor to the WolfPack’s 25 per cent.

But TRU bounced back in the third quarter, outscoring the Pandas 2113, closing the gap to just one in

a 48-47 game. With the game on the line and victory in sight, TRU continued to dominate in the fourth quarter and outscored the Pandas 20-12, securing the 67-58 victory.

Kassie Colonna led the ‘Pack with 18 points and six rebounds in 34 minutes of play. Sydney Williams also had a strong night, after a sound defensive effort in her first match with TRU on Friday, scoring 15.

Fourth-year guard Jorri Duxbury bounced back from a zero-point performance against the Huskies – a match in which she racked up four fouls in the first quarter and a half and spent most of the second and third quarters on the bench – to score 15.

“Jorri is definitely a leader,” Reeves said. “Not only in her composure, but getting the ball up the floor and getting us into offence.

When she can score points, she is a stabilizing factor for us.”

The Pandas had only one player, Saskia Van Ginhoven, reach double digits in points on Saturday, with 20. The Pandas’ inability to score may have been more of a testament to the strength of the WolfPack’s defensive play than anything else.

After giving up 76 points to the Huskies the night before, Saturday’s game was more indicative of the type of play Reeves will expect from his squad this season.

The women, now 1-1, are tied for second with three other teams in Canada West’s Pacific division.

They will now turn their focus to the UNBC Timberwolves, who they will face in Prince George on Nov. 8 and 9.

Interested in helping cover WolfPack sports?

Contact Sports Edtior Adam Williams by email at sports@truomega.ca or on Twitter @AdamWilliams87 Taiysa Worsfold muscles her way by Desarae Hogberg (1) in the WolfPack’s 76-54 loss to the UofS Huskies on Saturday. Worsfold led the ‘Pack with 28 points and seven rebounds.

(Andrew Snucins/TRU Athletics)

WolfPack Nov. 1 to 4 Bites This coming week, The Omega’s sports editor Adam Williams will be running a series of updates from the CCAA National Championships in Surrey, in which both the TRU men’s and women’s teams are competing.

Check truomega.ca nightly during the competition to find out how our teams are doing are doing in the tournament.

Full tournament summary right here next issue.

The Wolf Pack men’s hockey team started November off on the right foot, defeating the University of Victoria Vikes 4-3 at Memorial Arena on Nov. 1.

TRU struck first in the Friday game, getting a powerplay goal from the BCIHL’s scoring leader Joshua MacDonald, but gave up three goals to the Vikes over the first and second periods.

In the third, with the Vikes still leading 3-1, Tyler Berkholtz picked up his first point of the game with a goal, before assisting on a Duncan Schulz marker just 27 seconds later; MacDonald also had an assist.

With 38 seconds remaining in the game, Anthony Delong scored the game winner and Berkholtz picked up his second assist and third point of the period.

The Wolf Pack is now 4-4-0-0 and sits fourth in the BCIHL. The Wolf Pack will next face the Eastern Washington University Eagles, in back-toback home games, on Nov. 8 at 8:30 p.m. and Nov. 9 at 8 p.m.

The season hasn’t started as well as head coach Scott Clark and the Wolf Pack men’s basketball team might have

hoped. The Wolf Pack lost backto-back games on home-opening weekend, falling to Canada West opponents from Alberta and Saskatchewan.

The Wolf Pack first lost in a tight game on Nov. 1, falling 98-95 to the University of Saskatchewan Huskies. The team had an even tougher time against the University of Alberta Golden Bears on Nov. 2, losing 78-63.

The ’Pack was led by Ta’Quan Zimmerman in both of its weekend games. Zimmerman had 33 points against the Huskies and 31 points against the Golden Bears.

TRU will look to rebound on Nov. 8 and 9 when the team travels to Prince George to face the University of Northern British Columbia Timberwolves.

The weekend was a little more up and down than head coach Pat Hennelly and the Wolf Pack men’s volleyball team might have hoped. The team split a pair of games against the University of Calgary, winning Friday’s five set match before falling in another marathon match on Saturday.

On Friday, TRU rebounded from being down a two set to one deficit, winning the fourth and fifth sets 25-14 and 15-6, respectively.

Unfortunately, the ’Pack was on the other end of things Saturday, losing 3-2 in the rematch with the Dinos. TRU led 2-1 before losing a marathon fourth set 33-31, which would have given the Wolf Pack the victory. Reeling from the loss, the Wolf Pack was unable to recover and fell in the fifth set, 15-8.

Brad Gunter led the Wolf Pack both nights, with 31 kills on Friday and 26 kills, six digs and three block assists on Saturday.

The Wolf Pack will face off against the UBC Thunderbirds in Vancouver Nov. 9 and 10.

Chalk up two more losses for the Wolf Pack women’s volleyball team, who suffered a pair of 3-0 defeats at the hands of the University of Calgary Dinos on Nov. 1 and 2.

TRU is now 0-4 after two weekends of Canada West play.

Things won’t get any easier for the Wolf Pack in its third week of play. The team will travel to Vancouver on Saturday to face the 4-0 University of British Columbia Thunderbirds.

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November 6, 2013

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