Imprint_2007-05-18_v30_i02

Impr int The university of Waterloo’s official student newspaper

friday , may

Choose your own love story

18, 2007

vol

30, no 2

imprint . uwaterloo . ca

Stubbing out lenient policies

Andrew Abela arts editor

Usually, when audiences attend a theatre production, it’s well understood that there will be a consistent beginning, middle and end, regardless of which night one sees it.

However, playwrights sometimes find such confining models too much to bear and decide to create something completely different. Much like the abstract artist or postmodernist yearns for freeing unbounded creativity, some playwrights seek ethereal text on paper.

In the early ’80s, writer Alan Ayckburn did just this: he wrote a unique play named Intimate Exchanges. Throughout its performance, characters are faced with seemingly meagre decisions that ultimately decide the direction of the play.

Unlike a predictable, lame “choose your own adventure” type novel, Alan’s creation, Intimate Exchanges, is an emotional piece of British comedy. It made the most serious suit in the audience break into a laughing fit.

A production of Intimate Exchanges recently graced downtown Kitchener with its unpredictable presence at Theatre and Company. Although directed by Leah Cherniak, actors Kerry Ann Doherty and Paul Braunstein — who cover all six roles — are the true leaders of the production.

Each and every night, they decide what type of story they’d like to tell. Whether it ends in utter discontent with infidelity or strengthened bonds and missed opportunities, the decisions are all left for the performers to make.

See ONE PLAY, page 11

Kirill Levin

University of Waterloo psychology professor Geoffrey T. Fong maintains that smoking habits are perpetuated by the government’s hesitation to implement policies that are effective in changing social behaviour. Full story on page 3.

Summer gardening tips for students

Page 10

News

news@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

New Feds tackle old issues and campaign promises

Imprint, Friday, May 18, 2007

Storm brings down trees on campus

Ashley Csanady assistant editor-in-chief

Two weeks into their tenure, the Federation of Students executive sees their collective glass as half full. Despite long hours and a plethora of projects started by the previous executive, on top of their campaign promises, all four have a positive outlook on their working relationship and the various challenges currently facing the Feds.

President Kevin Royal said the new exec has achieved “a sense of unity” and that they’ve “come together very closely.”

All three excutives echoed Royal’s sentiments.

Despite suspiciously similar responses, the executive genuinely seems to have become a cohesive whole. The fact that Royal and Vice-President Education (VPED) Jonah Levine came from Team Yellow, while Vice-President Internal (VPI) Darcy Higgins and Vice-President Administration and Finance (VPAF) Del Pereira came from Team eX, hasn’t stopped them from becoming, in Levine’s words, “fast friends.”

The previous executive had a tumultuous year, and former VPI Sai Kit Lo resigned on February 7, 2007. Lo was often accused of being overly critical of people of differing viewpoints, when asked how he would avoid the same fate Higgins said, “My approach... is basically to support every student that comes to me in the same way with an open mind... I think I have the ability to support all students no matter what the issue or their background.”

On top of having a more open-minded approach than his predecessor, Higgins also plans to re-instate the diversity campaign come September.

He said that this time around, the campaign will try to branch out from posters and Livestrong-style bracelets. “We’re creating some ideas that target students in a way that’s going to get their attention and actually educate them about diversity in a stronger way... it’s going to target individuals,” he said.

Students need not fear that their VPI will resign anytime soon, as Higgins stated he will resign April 30, 2008 — the day his term in office is complete.

Former president Michelle Zakrison also received her fair share of criticism throughout her term. When asked how he would avoid the same kind of micro-managing Zakrison was criticized for, he said that he believes “all three of the candidates are extremely competent” and sees his role as a partnership.

Royal defended his extensive role in implementing the U-Pass as municipal relations are a part of his portfolio and a significant part of implementing the pass.

“I’m looking at it from a contractual perspective, I’m taking the lead on the contract,” he said.

“It’s also a support mechanism because of the scope of the project... it’s an offer of support to Del ... [because] he’s got a lot on his plate.”

The pass is still in the contractual stage so details are limited, but it is still targeted to be up and running in the fall. All undergraduate students will be charged a flat rate of $41.80 a term, with an administration fee that could be as high as $9.50.

See Feds, page 4

Michael L. Davenport

Tuesday’s severe storm brought down several trees around the city, including a 30-foot (9-metre) tall Austrian pine tree on campus near the Minota Hagey Residence. The tree was promply removed on Wednesday.

UW professor leader in tobacco research Kinga Jakab staff reporter

UW Prof. Geoffrey T. Fong hosted a lecture on May 16 welcoming Chinese health officials in their mission to confront the challenges of chronic disease related to tobacco use in China. The forum aimed to educate the audience about tobacco use and tobacco policies in Chinese countries.

The International Tobacco Control (ITC) Policy Evaluation Project, which Fong founded and is the principal investigator of, aims “to evaluate the psychosocial and behavioural effects of national-level tobacco control policies throughout the world.” To date, researchers have studied 800 smokers and 200 non-smokers in seven Chinese cities: Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Zhengzhou, Changsha, Yinchuan and Shenyang. ITC’s project is the first international cohort study of tobacco use, focusing heavily on smoke-free laws, warning labels, taxation, and advertising and promotion restrictions.

“They have a lot of work to do as there are 350 million smokers in China and close to two-thirds of adult men in China smoke,” said Fong.

Fong estimates that by 2020, there will be about 2.2 million smoking-related deaths, compared to

the roughly 100 million in the last century. The Framework Convention Alliance for Tobacco Control (FCTC) attributes 5 million deaths a year to tobacco. Fong predicts that by 2050, there will be 520 million deaths — double the deaths per year that the FCTC predicts — and strongly urges population-level interventions to prevent these kinds of deaths from happening.

Fong says that in order to flatten the climbing curve of smokers and smoking-related deaths, the FCTC must “identify these interventions quickly and implement them quickly.” The ITC is working closely with the Chinese governments to evaluate the policies of the FCTC. Fong says that various factors contribute to halting the improvement of health, including lenient national bans on smoking, unclear regulations, punishments not being severe enough, as well as ineffective warning labels.

Additionally, Fong thinks the FCTC’s use of “current and relevant scientific technologies” to effectively remove dangerous toxins from seeping into unsuspecting lungs is impossible. He criticizes the word “effectively” in the FCTC’s evidence-based treaty, claiming it hinders successful implementation of policies by its subjectivity and openness to interpretation. In fact, Fong wants to “flush out what effective means altogether,” because there

is no way to remove all traces of toxins in a room of smokers. Alternatives must therefore be considered, which is where the ITC Policy Evaluation Project comes in.

Dr. Jiang Yuang, the deputy director of The National Centre for Neurogenic Communication Disorders (NCNCD), said the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates a $550 billion loss to the Chinese economy over the next ten years, owing to heart disease, stroke and diabetes-related deaths. Consequently, Yuang says taxes on tobacco products have increased year by year, and revenue from tobacco products has gone down. The Chinese government is decreasingly dependent on tobacco sales — a step in the right direction for ITC’s project.

A common tobacco myth is that it is most prevalent in wealthier communities, but the ITC’s research affirms that most smokers come from rural, poorly educated, low-income populations which lack physical activity and may not utilize their medical services. The ITC’s collaboration now involves over 60 researchers in 14 countries inhabited by more than half of the world’s smokers. For more information, please visit http://arts.uwaterloo.ca/~itc/. kjakab@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

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News Feds: the past, the present, the future and how it will affect you

Imprint, Friday, May 18, 2007

Photos by Ashley Csanady

Kevin Royal president

Darcy Higgins vice-president internal

Jonah Levine vice-president educations

Del Pereira vice-president administration and finance

Three things he’d like to accomplish this year: 1) Implement the Bus Pass 2) Help Feds connect better with students through a branding strategy, having a greater presence on campus, and an online strategy that includes FedsPulse 3) Run a Feds Census of students

Three things he’d like to accomplish this year: 1) Serve students at a high level and to the best of his ability 2) Have a long lasting impact on increasing communication between Feds and students 3) Create a campus that has a strong and sustainble presence of the arts

Three things he’d like to accomplish this year: 1) Ameliorate the Professional Development Program and alleviate issues for students already enrolled 2) Promote student voting and CASA and OUSA policies in upcoming elections 3) Work with CECs to make the transition between co-op and school terms easier

Three things he’d like to accomplish this year: 1) Implement the Bus Pass 2) Successfully renegotiate several contracts that are up for renewal this year 3) Find a way to make the health & dental plan better and easier for students to access

continued from page 3

Zakrison also gained somewhat of a “partygirl” image, and Royal said he would try to avoid the same fate by being conscious of the fact that even when he leaves campus, he is still a representative of the Feds.

Updating the Feds website was one of Royal’s biggest campaign promises.

He wants to use money from the Feds’ fee increase that was to be allocated to expanding the lines of communication with students through technology, to hire someone to update it on at least a daily basis. He also wants to implement FedsPulse, an extension of the website which would feature discussion forums, video, photos and executive podcasts — all part of his efforts to make the Feds more visible.

FedsPulse may have been the Team Yellow campaign mantra, but Royal said that both Pereira and Higgins were supportive of the endeavour. Higgins even expressed his admiration for the concept while campaigning.

In addition to the FedsPulse, Royal would like to implement the Feds Census to poll the student body on a variety of issues from diversity to how accessible the administration is, which will help Feds better identify the needs of students.

Beyond the census, Higgins said during the campaign he would like to activate the Campus Communication Committee (CCC). When asked about it again, Higgins said, “I see it as a somewhat temporary committee... members of the committee would illicit feedback from students on how Feds is or isn’t working for them.”

He added that the CCC would be part of a two-pronged approach with Feds Census to increase the lines of communication and understanding between Feds and students.

In the past, Higgins has been extremely involved in promoting environmental sustainability on campus. He founded the UW Farm Market, UW Campus Greens and was a co-ordinator for the UW Sustain-

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ability Project. He explained his role right now is to provide support to student groups pursuing sustainable change. The long sought-after, but oft unrealized, Sustainability office is one green project Higgins hopes to sink his teeth into. When asked about the feasibility of this endeavour, he explained it’s a very real possibility as “a lot of student groups have worked on it for quite a while now.”

Very soon, Aussies will no longer be down under and will occupy the much larger space across from Tim Horton’s, where the Feds’ office is currently located. While campaigning, Pereira said he’d like to turn Aussies into more of a one-stop-shop for students, featuring groceries and other essentials.

“The product line was pretty much set when I came in,” he explained. “It’s not going to be as extensive at the beginning.” After Aussies has been open for a while, Pereira hopes to survey the student body to see what the students would like to see the store carry — perhaps in conjunction with the Feds Census or FedsPulse.

Increasing Bomber capacity was one of the most ambitious campaign promises presented this year, and Pereira explained that while Bomber’s square footage would allow for the increase, the university has control of the liquor licence and sets the capacity. Pereira explained that so far, he has focused his energies to improve Bomber in other ways. Hours on Fridays have been increased until 2 a.m., and Bomber is now open at 5 p.m. on Saturdays so students can have dinner before dancing the night away. He has also introduced a hostess for Bomber’s peak hours and is currently implementing a pilot project that will give servers PDAs to send orders directly to the kitchen from the table.

The Feds’ liquor licence with the university was also up for renewal April 30, so keeping Bomber and Fed Hall open has been been a top priority. He also explained that roadblocks with the administration prevented the Gazebo on the Bomber patio from being turned in to a grill, but it will instead serve as a patio bar for the summer. A new grill menu will soon appear on days when the weather permits and will feature a rotation of

approximately six different dishes.

When asked about the future of Fed Hall and addressing the ever-increasing deficit, Pereira said he plans to use Fed Hall’s catering services to supply campus coffee and doughnuts (C’n’Ds). Don’t expect to see the fresh baked good in your favourite C’n’D anytime soon, however, Pereira explained this initiative “is not something that can be rushed.

“This is a packed summer, and I don’t want to have my priorities skewed, too... I just don’t want to pack too much in,” he added.

Pereira also wants to bring in an outside consultant to review Fed Hall and find a way to make a sustainable business once again. “Fed Hall needs a new face,” he said. “Catering will be part of it, but I want to do other things as well.”

UW is known for its co-op program, and managing student concerns in that area falls to the VPED. When asked what the biggest problem currently facing students on campus, Levine said that the concerns being voiced by engineers in the Professional Development Program (PDP) are genuine. He said the program has “a lot of issues” and that with it expanding to the rest of campus, we need to make sure the issues that were faced by engineering students isn’t spread to other students.

He added that he “does see an opportunity in PDP... to improve the marketability of our students to our employers.” With every university in Southern Ontario now having some kind of co-op program, Levine said, “we need to challenge ourselves to become more marketable.”

In recent years, Feds have been greatly criticized for the way in which the services were run.

“In the past, there has been a lack of support [for the services],” said Royal.

He also explained after the clubs and services director became just the clubs director, “that resource that used to be in place for services was taken away,” and that that has contributed to the problems with the services over the past few years.

When asked about services during the campaign, Higgins suggested a new service that would be similar to the Muslim Student Association.

He clarified this statement saying it would really be “some sort of service that would look at the needs of all students from different cultures and backgrounds,” so they can go about their lives at school while keeping with their religious beliefs.

Throughout the campaign, Levine emphasized a need for the VPED to focus less on external issues. Despite this, he has become the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA) secretary, but explained it was a small roll and that the position is valuable to hold because it gives him a seat on the steering committee of OUSA. “You have to juggle priorities,” said Levine, when asked if this would affect his plan to be a more visible presence on campus. “Obviously you have to take time away from something, there’s only so many hours in a day.”

He still plans to reach out to students and be a more visible VPED than his predecessor. The first step, Levine explained, “was to create stronger ties with his counterparts in faculty societies and, in turn, have a more comprehensive understanding of students’ academic concerns.

“We’re all here for educational goals so by working together as a unified voice ... we can be more effective,” said Royal when asked why students should care about Feds.

It can be argued that apathy towards student politics is rampant at UW. For Royal, UW, as a co-op university, causes students to have a lot of constraints on their time. He wants to educate students through Feds building a greater physical presence on campus as well as through projects such as FedsPulse.

“Our student body can be engaged if you bring that information to them,” said Royal, who also wants to brings clubs days to residences so that students will be engaged at a younger age.

Levine seems to be in accordance with these endeavours to reach out to Frosh, as he said, “I offered my services as a grunt worker [for Frosh Week]” in hopes to gain some willing volunteers.

“I want foot soldiers,” he said, “and I want to reach out to first year students who are willing to do that.” acsanady@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Imprint, Friday, May 18, 2007

To soldiers, with love

Adam McGuire

Ahmed Asey hopes to send around 3,000 greeting cards to Canadian troops in Afghanistan.

Angelo Florendo staff reporter

An Afghan native and student of the University of Waterloo has begun a campaign to thank Canadian soldiers now stationed in Afghanistan.

Ahmad Asey, an honours science student in his second year, plans to send personalized thank you cards to every one of the approximately 3,000 soldiers now serving in Afghanistan.

Though Asey has invested his own time and money in order to start the campaign, community involvement is paramount to its success.

“I’ve spent about $200 of my own money thus far (buying a PO box, etc.) but I’m looking more for people who could put a few nice words into a card for an unnamed soldier, with hopes it will bring a smile to their face,” said Asey.

Students from the University

of Waterloo and residents of the Waterloo region can write individual messages and mail them to a designated PO box that he has personally arranged: P.O. box 1294, Station C, Kitchener, ON, N2G 4G8. Letters can also be sent to Asey via e-mail to thankyoutroops@gmail.com.

The mission in Afghanistan, he says, has provided many improvements to the region and it inspired Asey to begin his campaign.

“The idea started when I found myself answering the question, ‘How is it over there?’ My usual response is that it’s worse than anything you’ve ever seen, but better than what I’ve seen in the past,” he said.

The recent progress in Afghanistan has improved safety in the country enough for some of his family members to return. “My wife is leaving in a month or so to go to Afghanistan to visit,” he said. “That, to me, is huge. People are

feeling a lot more secure. If Canadian soldiers weren’t there, there would be none of that.”

Having lived in Afghanistan for the first 26 years of his life, Asey witnessed firsthand the conditions of Taliban rule. He was last in Afghanistan in November 2002, where he worked for the US embassy. “Some things happened and I had to flee the country,” explained Asey, who was unable to disclose any further information.

Though many political parties have called for a withdrawal of Canadian forces from Afghanistan, Asey believes his campaign is free of any partisanship.

“I don’t care if our soldiers withdraw from Afghanistan tomorrow,” said Asey.

“As long as they are there, I want them to know we’re thinking of them. It could really be a pacifist approach.” aflorendo@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Perrin new SJU president Adrienne Raw assistant news editor

On May 7, St. Jerome’s University Board of Governors announced the appointment of Dr. David Perrin as the next SJU President. Perrin will become president effective August 1, 2007, though he will not be installed in his office until September 15.

Perrin will succeed former SJU President Dr. Michael Higgins. Higgins served as president from 1999 to 2006. In the interim following his absence, Dr. Myroslaw Tataryn has filled in as president.

In a media release, St Jerome’s Board of Governors Chair Dorothee Retterath called Perrin a “superb fit for this university,” citing his “wideranging administrative experience, his excellence in his own academic discipline, and his understanding of and commitment to the mission of St. Jerome’s.” The board is confident that Perrin is well-suited for the specific needs of St. Jerome’s.

“The big challenge in liberal arts education,” said Perrin, “is to find a place for that critical reflection in society.” He isn’t yet ready to com-

mit to specific goals for his time as president, and says “I need to learn how St. Jerome’s contributes to that [critical reflection], and how I can enhance these reflections and make them relevant.”

At the age of two, Perrin, a native of British Columbia, moved to the Petawawa area with his family.

The family ran a small hobby farm while his father served in the military.

Perrin eventually found himself attracted to life in the religious order of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate (O.M.I). In 1987, he was ordained in the priesthood, and spent the following three years in parish ministry. From 2002 to 2003, Perrin serviced as the provincial of the St. Peter’s Province of the Oblates, where he chaired a committee that oversaw the unification of five Oblate provines.

Following his parish work, Perrin began his career in academia, earning an undergraduate degree in chemistry from the University of Western Ontario. He attended the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, where he received a Baccalaureate in Theology, then a Licentiate in Theology. He

also studied at both the University of Ottawa and Saint Paul’s University, pursuing studies in philosophy and theology and earning a doctorate of theology in 1995.

Perrin thinks he’ll settle in well at St. Jerome’s, saying “As the Dean of the faculty of theology at St. Paul’s, I had the responsibility and skill set that is transferable in terms of hiring procedures and marketing programs.

I’m comfortable at the academic level.” Perrin served as the dean of the faculty at Saint Paul University in Ottawa from 2002 to 2003. Currently, he teaches at Saint Paul’s as an associate professor of spirituality and ethics in the faculty of theology.

Perrin is excited with his new position. In a media release, Perrin says “As we look forward to St. Jerome’s 150th anniversary in 2015, my commitment as President is to exercise careful leadership that takes into consideration St. Jerome’s rich past, yet, at the same time, develop its potential to face the new challenges presented by church and society today and in the future.” araw@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

News

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Distractions

Imprint, Friday, May 18, 2007

Crossword & Sudoku Across

1. Fortune-telling card 6. United States Postal Service 10. Kill a fly 14. Female Turk, Final Fantasy VII 15. Small tide 16. Not pizzicato 17. Deputy (3 wrds) 20. Golf ball stand 21. Innard 22. Struck sharply 23. Ikea’s home 26. Health resort 27. Microwave laser 29. Judo gym 31. Notch 35. Medical specialist centre 37. Challenge 39. Canada’s crown rail company 40. Quality of being easy-going 43. To a greater extent, poetic 44. Nefarious 45. Paucity 46. German eat 48. Copycat 50. Ferrari racer Felipe 51. Actor Kilmer 53. Reciprocal cosine 55. Cotton twill-weave 59. Grass 60. Swedish shag rug 63. Spanning north and south hemispheres 66. Send out 67. Fermentations of molasses 68. Parent’s brother 69. Bringer of war 70. Tunnels underneath 71. Satisfies

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1. Diagnostic 2. Downwind 3. Times when neighbour loses job

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4. Lennon’s last wife 5. Orange variety 6. Taxi company 7. Member of second fed. house 8. Put away 9. Supported financially 10. Asian rowboat 11. Tortilla sandwich 12. Adolescent skin condition 13. Second Robin 18. Impotent 19. Geographical diagram 24. Wander 25. Lumps 27. Cremated at Lake Lebarge 28. Healing succulent plants 30. Jam container 32. Authoritarian

Enjoy the convenience of living in a great location close to many shopping amenities and the life of Uptown Waterloo. Call Perry now at 519-7461411 to set up a viewing today.

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Resurrection College HOUSING Single rooms available for Fall and Winter or Fall and Spring terms in Resurrection College residence. Five minute walk to Student Life Centre. Quiet co-ed residence, meal plan, large common areas, high speed wireless internet, local phone service, parking included.

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33. Round bronze chests 34. Buckwheat porridge 36. Charles I’s allies 38. Engorged with fluid 41. Server’s bonus 42. Indian bread 47. Goings-on 49. Post-burial gathering 52. Donkey 54. Small portable bed 55. Long narrow shaft 56. Bond villain Bunt 57. Wolf den 58. The colour of the sea 61. New Haven university 62. Heavy beers 64. Baseball official 65. Genetic transmitter

HELP WANTED Weekend counsellors and relief staff to work in homes for individuals with developmental challenges. Minimum eight-month commitment. Paid positions. Send resume to Don Mader, KW Habilitation Services, 108 Sydney Street, Kitchener, ON, N2G 3V2.

Extend-A-Family part-time positions – providing in-home and community support to individuals with developmental/physical challenges in a variety of programs. Providers will be reliable, energetic and committed. $10.40/hour to start. If interested, please contact Recruitment at 519741-0190, ext 238 or via e-mail at dlobe@eafwr.on.ca. Web site - www. eafwr.on.ca.

Imprint Publications is needing a Systems Administrator. If you have advanced knowledge of Linux-based small office networks, this will be a perfect part-time position for you with flexible hours. $11 per hour. Email resume to editor@imprint.uwaterloo.ca.

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Campus Question If you were a tree, what would it take to bring you down?

By Amanda Henhoeffer

“I’d say nothing. I’d be a big tree!”

“High explosives.”

David Parit

Antonina Metelkina

1B computer science

“A nail file and a lot of determination.”

“I’d want a bunch of hippies to go with me.”

5B statistics

UPCOMING Sunday, May 27, 2007 FREE BURGERS at Harvey’s, University Plaza from 12 noon to 5 p.m.

Come and enjoy the best tasting Canadian hamburger at 170 University Ave., Waterloo!!

Friday, June 15, 2007 Project READ’s third annual Ladies Links for Literacy, Women’s “Best Ball” Golf Tournament at Grand Valley Golf and Country Club. To register or donations e-mail jane@projectread.ca or 519-570-3054.

Tobiasz Dankiewicz

mechatronics engineering

Matthew Badali

2B chemical physics

Opinion Friday, May 18, 2007 — Vol. 30, No. 2

opinion@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Imprint, Friday, May 18, 2007

Adam McGuire is a schmuck.

My name is Adam, and no, I will not help you win $7,000 from 102.1 The Edge.

As soon as the popular Torontobased radio station announced their newest contest, the inundations began. Suddenly, your mom’s friend’s dogwalker’s sister-in-law was soliciting you for help in winning the big prize.

Welcome to Facebook Nation.

The Edge contest — wherein the biggest and best Facebook group wins — is hardly the reason behind the website’s explosion. In fact, it’s just the latest excuse for schmucks like you and I to log in and check our wall postings every seven seconds.

But the reality of Facebook is actually scary as hell. It’s The Beast; the closest incarnation of the visions of 1960’s horror writers everywhere. Registering for Facebook is like signing up to sell your soul (do I see an eBay crosspromotion there?).

The main problem with the ’book is that everyone has it. You have it, I have it, my girlfriend’s 50-year-old mother has it.

Twenty-one of the 22 people sitting in this office right now have it. And if you have it, you will be found.

Facebook allows all the people you’ve worked so hard to completely erase from your memory to pop up with a “hey, how ru!!! long time no c!!!” posting on your wall. Facebook profiles spread more efficiently than peanut butter. It is a guarantee that you will stumble across everyone you never liked and everyone you were giddy to never see again.

Student Life Centre, Room 1116 University of Waterloo Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1 P: 519.888.4048 F: 519.884.7800 imprint.uwaterloo.ca Editor-in-chief, Adam McGuire editor@imprint.uwaterloo.ca Advertising & Production Manager, Laurie Tigert-Dumas ads@imprint.uwaterloo.ca General Manager, Catherine Bolger cbolger@imprint.uwaterloo.ca Editorial Staff Assistant Editor, Ashley Csanady Cover Editor, vacant News Editor, vacant News Assistant, Adrienne Raw Opinion Editor, Mohammad Jangda Features Editor, Scott Houston Arts Editor, Andrew Abela Science Editor, Brendan Pinto Sports Editor, vacant Photo Editor, vacant Graphics Co-editor, Peter Trinh Graphics Co-editor, Christine Ogley Web Editor, vacant Systems Administrator, Dan Agar Sys. Admin. Assistant, vacant Lead Proofreader, Kinga Jakab Production Staff Amanda Henhoeffer, Emma Tarswell, Angelo Florendo, Steve R. McEvoy, Tim Foster, Cindy Ward, Peter Sutherland, Shivaun Hoad, Judy Wu, Sylvia Przychodzki, Paul Collier, Erica Ramcharitar, Rob Blom, Kirill Levin, Suzanne Gardner, Dinh Nguyen, Konrad E. Mohring, Shawn Bell, Kristen Marincic, Véronique Lecat, Phil Isard Board of Directors board@imprint.uwaterloo.ca President, Adam Gardiner president@imprint.uwaterloo.ca Vice-president, Jacqueline McKoy vp@imprint.uwaterloo.ca Treasurer, vacant Secretary, Rob Blom secretary@imprint.uwaterloo.ca Staff liaison, vacant Imprint is the official student newspaper of the University of Waterloo. It is an editorially independent newspaper published by Imprint Publications, Waterloo, a corporation without share capital. Imprint is a member of the Ontario Community Newspaper Association (OCNA). Editorial submissions may be considered for publication in any edition of Imprint.

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Next staff meeting: Tuesday, May 22, 2007 12:30 p.m.

Next board meeting: Tuesday, June 5, 2007 4:00 p.m.

10:52pm

And just because your friend requests are plentiful, don’t think you’re more popular now than you were as an awkward eleventh-grader. Because The Beast is rabid and contagious, you will likely fall victim to friend collectors. Facebook is a status thing; friend counts are the young adult equivalent of kindergarten birthday party invites.

Take, for example, a case I just encountered on my ’book recently. I indifferently added an acquaintance that I see maybe a half-dozen times a year. All of a sudden, I receive a request from her best friend — a woman I’ve met once, at a bar, for five minutes. The Beast strikes again. I proudly denied the request and then pouted over my rather modest friend count.

But the Beast can’t be defeated by stringent friend denials or ignoring the ignorant — as fun as that may be. No, even those you want on that friends list will still misuse Facebook. There are the event postings for simple trips to the pub, status updates that say no more than “Mike is sleepy,” and the biggest Facebook news-breaking tool of them all — relationship status. True story: My own brother telephoned me mere minutes after becoming engaged just so I could hear the good news from him rather than read it on his relationship status update. Kind of makes you miss the relative privacy of MySpace, doesn’t it?

So if Facebook is The Beast, then why do we do it? It’s just a bloody website, yet it makes us more of an addict than Robert Downey Jr. But for all the privacy lost and all the jerks that find you, Facebook still boils down to the fact that it’s fun.

And I’m still one of the schmucks that will sign on and check his wall four thousand times a day.

I guess my status ought to reflect that. editor@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Christine Ogley

Not so keen on the green revolution

Every magazine from Cosmo to Vogue has been jumping on the ultra-fashionable environmental bandwagon. Promoting everything from jeans washed in eco-friendly dyes to organic cotton T-shirts, they are pumping the little things that could go a long way — but how many people can afford $300 jeans washed in organic dyes?

I just love picking up the glossy 300-page Vanity Fair, and have it claim to be a “green issue,” while the paper it’s printed on looks like it could have killed an entire forest. I just love seeing Hummer ads next to the article

telling me to buy shampoo that costs three times more and smells like dirt.

I’m not saying that these articles are a bad thing. The fact that environmental issues are so trendy is fantastic — creating discourse in any forum only helps the cause.

However, pumping solutions that only a few can afford accomplishes little more than creating upper-middle class liberal guilt. If these “small things everyone can do” are really so great, why do they have to come at a premium?

Hydrogen technology may cost more, but the government has made little headway into making them more affordable. Everything from toilet paper made from recycled materials to eco-friendly shampoos to organic foods come at a higher cost than their less environmentally-friendly counterparts.

So, are the technologies really costing that much more, or is “corporate America”

capitalizing on a new marketing trend and squeezing those extra pennies from your environmentally conscious pockets?

In the past few years, it seems there’s been a steady increase of seemingly green products appearing on the market, such as pens made from “recycled” material, when “recycled” can mean scraps from making the much cheaper pens right beside it as opposed to the post-consumer materials the label suggests.

If the premium pricing is a result of a higher cost in production — in organic food, for example — then the government should make it a priority to make these sustainable technologies accessible.

The “little things” that everyone can do are all well and good, but only if everyone can follow them.

The fact that environmental issues are so trendy is fantastic ... however, pumping solutions that only a few can afford accomplishes little more than creating upper-middle class liberal guilt.

acsanady@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

8

Opinion

Imprint, Friday, May 18, 2007

Quote of the week

” “ I think with the right person — and I’m the right person — it’s a lot of fun to do because I don’t even notice the hours go by.

— Del Pereira

on his position as Feds VPAF

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The 100 Word rant

Complain about anything. And we mean anything. 100 words. Go. opinion@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

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Available immediately or September 2007

Features

features@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Imprint, Friday, May 18, 2007

SLC blooms to celebrate UW’s anniversary Scott Houston features editor

The SLC was in bloom on Tuesday, May 8 as the UW Blooms event brought some greenery to the multi-purpose room. The event, co-ordinated by Jason Rochon, was a chance to pick up some free gardening supplies.

It started as a “seed giveaway” as Rochon, a Campus Tech Shop employee and member of the community garden council for Kitchener-Waterloo called it, in order to get away from the stigma of the term “seed exchange.” He didn’t want people to feel they had to give something to get something in return. In other words, you didn’t have to bring seeds to get seeds. However, this year they were not only giving away seeds, but magazines, plants, flower pots and planters as well.

This year, Rochon noted, the focus changed from providing only vegetable seeds, to include flower seeds as well. Next year, any donations will be apprectiated.

Held on the same day was the first UW flower arranging competition. The arrangements were all made by faculty and staff, the competition being organized by Verna Keller. Arrangements were put into three categories: real, silk and creative. All three categories held wonderful pieces.

In the silk category, the winning piece was entitled “From Mud to Dreams,” and featured a winter boot filled with beautiful silk sunflower-like blooms and green silk fern leaves.

The creative category’s winner was entitled “Carmen” and was a simple piece composed of live tulips and carnations.

The winner in the real category was a hanging piece entitled “‘Why Not’ Mace expression” and featured yellow blooms which were encompassed by ribbons.

The people’s choice awards were voted upon by visitors to the exhibit.

Each category had one winner chosen by the people.

The real category’s winner was named “Ladder to Success” and contained beautiful pink and purple blooms protruding from a rustic basket.

SCOTT HOUSTON

The annual garden exchange and a new flower arranging competition celebrated UW’s 50th anniversary last week in the SLC’s multi-purpose room.

The winner in the silk category was the “Golden Anniversary Cake,” which was a fake cake with a happy birthday message for UW on it and flowers in the corners.

The creative winner was “Lighten Up UW” a lit-up tree with blossoms covering it, with UW buttons acting as further decoration.

Other entries included a piece named “Now and Then,” in the real category, which was an elaborate piece that had a basket filled with

flowers, with a slide rule, compasses, vacuum tubes and a slide rule connected to a hollowed out iMac monitor filled with flowers with a mouse, network card and other computer parts strewn within. A piece with a message called “Please Don’t Litter,” where the flowers were all white and coming out of a paper cup was also found in the real category. Also found in the real category was a UW mug, with yellow daffodils, called “UW Spring Morning.” The real category

also contained a piece consisting of a broom, with flowers climbing up the handle. In the silk category, another, fancier boot filled with colourful blooms. In the creative category, there was a dumptruck, filled with dirt and flowers with a couple action figures of the Incredibles in the back (Jack-Jack and Helen, if you know your Incredibles), a jar with flowers and pictures of David Johnston, our current president and John Gerald Hagey (of Hagey

Motorsports team unveils new Formula SAE car Scott Houston features editor

adam mcguire

Wall gets behind the wheel for a drive during the unveiling

John Wall, a 4B mechanical engineering student and motorsports team co-captain showed off the motorsports team’s new Formula SAE car, parked in lot C, on Monday, May 14.

The car, which is redesigned and unveiled annually at UW, runs at 82 horsepower, just under the theoretical maximum of 86 to 87 horsepower.

The team represented UW in a regional Formula SAE competition starting Wednesday, May 16 in Romeo, Michigan, alongside 130 other teams. Canada, USA, Brazil and other nations had teams competing at competition. The results were not available at press time The

competition is sponsored by the Society of Automotive Engineers, with support from DaimlerChrysler, Ford and General Motors.

The motorsports team’s main sponsor is RIM, with the faculty of Engineering, Cycle Improvement, Halling and the Waterloo Engineering Endowment fund rounding out the list of top sponsors.

All students are encouraged to get involved, as the team leaders will help train the students to help build their skills to better help the team. No engineering background is required.

If you would like to get involved you can email the team at uwfsae@ gmail.com, and you can find their website at www.uwfase.com. shouston@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Hall fame), president from 1958 to 1969. In various categories, gift bags carrying arrangements of flowers; also, a swan with beautiful red and yellow blooms.

Rochon is also the co-ordinator for the UW community garden, which is located up at north campus, and he invites all students to come out and take a look. You might even get a few ideas for your own garden. shouston@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

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10

Features

Imprint, Friday, May 18, 2007

Shake up your summer

Perhaps it’s just me, but I can’t help humming the tune of “Milkshake”

by Kelis while blending up a tall frothy glass of this delectable drink.

I may be relapsing into an off-key singing marathon, but the important thing is that I have energy for such an ear-piercing engagement.

Our spotlight is dairy and its amazing chameleon capabilities.

From cheeses to yoghurt, I find its transformation into ice cream to be one of my favourite by-products; all items provided courtesy of our black and white grass-grazers.

As a child, my rigid attitudes also underwent a bit of a transformation. As all children with idiosyncratic eating demands, I firmly held that ice cream couldn’t get any better than when scooped atop a freshly made waffle cone.

After all, everyone stares at the ice-cream eater with envy, and when you are the owner of one, in those brief moments before its disappearance, you hold it with pride and, of course, devour it with greedy

pleasure in record time. However, I eventually realized I was mistaken with my original perceptions of ice cream.

The creamy treat could be enjoyed as a thick drink as well. For me, a milkshake resonates memories of backyard antics; most vividly runs through the sprinkler on freshly mowed grass.

When coming into the house, I would be greeted by the noisy whirling of a blender. Its days were numbered and although it sounded like a horde of bees buzzing, there were no stingy repercussions.

Instead, I would be faced with a rich milkshake to help battle the summertime heat. Frothy and too thick to be sucked up by a straw, my strategy was to lap it up with a large spoon.

A little history. Conceived in 1885, the first known record of the term “milkshake” contained a shot of whisky.

Be creative. Jazz it up as you please. For instance, rather than using vanilla, start with flavoured ice cream (i.e. cookies and cream). You could also include nuts and baked goods (i.e. cashews, peanuts, Skor pieces, brownie bites, etc), or sauces (i.e. caramel, raspberry). The sky’s the limit! This recipe is for a strawberry banana shake. Have fun and happy milkshaking. tli@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Gardening for students Rob Blom

Composting

staff reporter

Not only an excellent supplement to fertilizer for your organic vegetable garden, composting will also drastically cut down your weekly garbage as the region of Waterloo has yet to implement a green bin recycling program.

Find a shady, level spot, with good water drainage, that is roughly 30cm in isolation from the rest of your backyard. Loosen the soil and place 15cm of dead plants and twigs at the bottom of the bin.

While adding compost, be sure to maintain an equal balance of “greens” (high in nitrogren) such as bread, coffee grounds and filters, flowers, fruits and vegetables and “browns” (high in carbon) such as dryer lint, dried grass clippings, wood, sawdust and straw. Always start with a layer of “brown” and add a layer of “green,” topping both layers off with soil. Avoid adding fish, meats, diary products, oils, weeds and wood that has been treated. Ensure your organic pile is damp throughout the summer, otherwise it won’t compost, and add air every few weeks by poking holes in the compost pile.

If your compost develops a conspicuous odour, you have too many greens or insufficient air. Add browns, aerate and top with soil. Bury foods under soil to avoid flies and unwelcome critters.

For those that wish to compost indoors, there is vermiculture — also known as vermicomposting. Grab a bin, follow the steps above, and add 200 grams of Red Wigglers or Brandling Worms.

Organic Vegetable Garden

Ingredients: 2 heaping scoopfuls (about 1 1/4 cups) of premium vanilla ice cream, increase ice cream by ½ cup if you want a really thick consistency half of a medium banana, cut into chunks 3/4 cup milk 1/2 cup strawberries, cut into pieces 1 tsp real vanilla extract Whipped cream and cherry as garnish Dash of cinnamon for whipped cream (optional) Directions: Put all ingredients into blender until you get a smooth consistency (2-3 minutes) Serves one, with whipped cream and a cherry on top.

The Student Life Office and Office of Alumni Affairs are currently recruiting student coordinators for the GradFest 2008 celebration.

The Job: Reporting to Heather FitzGerald, Student Life Office, and Chantel Franklin, Office of Alumni Affairs, the GradFest Coordinators will work to identify, develop and execute important elements of the GradFest celebration on behalf of the 2008 graduating class.

GradFest Coordinators will: x Identify social and academic needs of the 2008 graduating class x Develop a GradFest program proposal x Liaise with members of the graduating class and university administration x Execute approved program plans for GradFest The Requirements: Successful candidates must be full-time registered undergraduate or graduate students (including co-op) in good academic standing. Must be on campus both the Fall 07 and Winter 08 terms, and intend to graduate in Spring or Fall 08.

Candidates must have excellent oral and written communication skills.

The Benefits: Gain essential program and event management skills while helping both yourself and the class of 2008 through its final year at UW. Learn everything you need to know about “Real Life” after graduation.

Interested applicants are asked to submit their resume with accompanying cover letter to the Office of Alumni Affairs – Attention: Chantel by Monday, June 4, 2007 For further information contact: Chantel Franklin, Alumni Officer Office of Alumni Affairs, South Campus Hall 519 888 4567 ext. 36225 ckfrankl@uwaterloo.ca

Office of Alumni Affairs

As students, we’re constantly concerned with our budget and how to minimize our costs while effectively maintaining a healthy diet. When it comes to groceries, there is no better way to save money than to transform that dormant patch of grass in your backyard into an organic vegetable patch. To purchase organic seeds, Ontario Seed Company located at 16 King Street South, or alternatively their website www. oscseeds.com.

For initial seedling growth you’ll want to start indoors.

Make sure to keep the plants in optimum lighting conditions and maintain the soil at room temperature. Be sure not to overwater. Transfer to a biodegradable container once the sprouts have grown two healthy leaves and insert in the garden outdoors.

Rather than splitting up the garden in a single crop bed, read into permaculture (permanent agriculture) and natural g ardening for ageold secrets.

Growing corn, potatoes and beans together allows natural support for beans, nitrogen for corn and a supressent for weeds — without the need for fertilizer.

Remember, organic growing is not a fad but rather the oldest form of cultivation in existence. It’s inexpensive, avoids pesticide-use and benefits the environment that promotes a sustainable garden.

rblom@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Arts

arts@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Imprint, Friday, May 18, 2007

One play, tons of tales to tell Diverging life choices and surreptitious romance thrill in new British farce Continued from cover It began with an overstressed wife named Celia Teasdale asking herself “To smoke before six p.m. or not?”

But don’t be fooled by the benign nature of this question; whether or not she did smoke set the stage for everything else that may or may not happen afterwards.

On opening night, she puffed away, but was quickly interrupted by a dim, annoying and flirtatious gardener named Lionel Hepplewick.

This was the first of many directions Intimate Exchanges would take, and I would never get to know any of the other 15 possible endings.

The stage design, painted in beautifully muted greens and whites, had doors that never stopped revolving.

One character’s exeunt brought the quick introduction of someone new, leaving me to wonder where Doherty and Braunstein learned to disrobe (and dress up again) so quickly.

Even though extremely rushed, not once did they forget to put on a new face, personality and entirely novel accent each time. All awkward romance aside, each entrance was followed by pure preparedness and poise as both Lionel and Celia perched themselves on the cylindrical bushes to talk.

Much to the play’s demise, instead of serving to spice the story with unexpectedness, the spontaneous choices failed to create a cohesive whole. Instead of logically leading into each other, each act appeared to be distinctly disconnected from the previous. Normally, I’d appreciate this off-beat style, but Intimate Exchanges

didn’t really tell much of a wellflowing story.

Fortunately for my enjoyment, though, the well-scripted lines were packed with plenty of wry British humour. With all of my laughter, I was left with very little time to even ponder how poorly the tale was orchestrated. Only once did the jokes seem a tad over the top, with character Hepplewick’s occupation as “Master Baker” being misinterpreted for a certain solitary activity one too many times.

The star that night was clearly Paul Braunstein as alcoholic husband and dry personality enthusiast, Toby Teasdale.

In each scene of marital confrontation he remained entirely cool and aloof, probably fueled by his “pub down the way” and innumerable empty bottles.

The central theme of Intimate Exchanges was clear: each and every life decision, no matter how small in size, inevitably involves countless other choices that can turn out to be much greater than they seem. Centered around a tale of multifaceted romance, it put forth the point that everything we do alters our love life — and the end result is not always good.

The sheer ingenuity of Intimate Exchanges makes it worthwhile to see. As every night could be different, perhaps what I saw will be nearly wholly unrelated to what you might choose to attend. The diverging choices and hilarity can only truly be experienced first-hand.

With that in mind, the production runs until June 3, and I can only hope that you will make the right choice. aabela@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

courtesy Theatre and Company

Lionel fends off maid Sylvie’s advances in Intimate Exchanges.

Kid Gib kicks Kitchener punk scene’s ass KW punk-pop band prolonged the C.D. release party at Schwaben Club

courtesy toddwestphal.com

Andrew King staff reporter

Friday night at Kitchener’s favourite stag (not buck) and doe locale, The Schwaben Club saw quite the diverse line-up of bands assemble for the C.D. release party of popular Kitchener pop-punk outfit Kid Gib. These cats have been together for the past few years, touring

extensively around Canada and even venturing into the U.S. for extended stints behind a few released demos; however, Friday night’s show was a celebration of the band’s first, and seemingly long-awaited, full-length release. As bassist Nick Korck explained, “This album has been a long time coming.”

Local rockers Gran Casino opened the show for them, followed

by B.C.’s Glory Nights and Southern

Ontario favourite Shotgun Rules.

I realized there was an upside to my tardiness, in that my virgin ears were now solely Kid Gib’s for the taking. That metaphor creeps me out, but I’ll leave it there, if only to relay the excitement of my first experience with this reputable band (other than a few preparatory MySpace listens).

They opened their set with the infectiously-poppy “Now That This Is Over,” which gave a nice taste of what the rest of their performance would entail — a twin vocal attack that was velvety-smooth, with some impressively tight harmonies, along with big guitar melodies and a solid rhythmic foundation far beyond noteworthy.

It’s not hard to tell that these boys have been perfecting their sound on the road for so long; their rock-solid execution was evident after only a few power-chords and it was consistent through the alltoo-short set.

“The Runaround” was a great upbeat tune that I remember made me bounce around a little bit, reminiscent of Hit The Lights in its sound, while power-ballad “Broken

Kid Gib play a brand of music that really needs an audience singing and jumping around to reach its full potential...

Promises” was perhaps a little too familiar in structure, but still a nice addition to the set.

I asked Nick how it felt to play songs from the record to a hometown crowd, to which he replied, “It was great! A lot of kids who have seen us before have heard these songs, but this show was a lot more fun because we had so many friends and family members in there helping us celebrate this long-awaited release.”

Actually, I was surprised at how subdued the crowd seemed. Kid Gib play a brand of music that really needs an audience singing and jumping around to reach its full potential, which I felt was lacking. It only made me long to see what these guys could do in this element sometime in the future.

This band is surely poised to grow in popularity.

Fans of what Nick describes as “edgy pop-punk [that’s] not too poppy, nor too aggressive” should quickly climb aboard the great, big gravy train with me.

Their C.D. release tour, which is extending to Western Canada over the next short while, will only bring them more of the fans they deserve, as this band is just another testament to how solid the music scene is around our area. aking@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Surreal beauty Christine Ogley staff reporter

Finally, after many colourful, enticing flyers and pledges to attend en masse, I was able to make it to Mike Judge and Don Hertzfeldt’s The Animation Show 3.

It’s a collection of animated shorts from all over the globe, gathered together for the sake of audiences that would otherwise never get to see them.

As a whole, it was surreal and entertaining, effecting a wide range of emotions. The artwork featured CGIs, distorted live action, hand-drawn animation, and stop-motion animation using common objects.

Don Hertzfeldt’s piece was thoughtprovoking at times, and then funny at others. His blend of normal and bizarre leaves you with the idea that odd is beautiful, or at least common. I took it as a commentary on the human condition.

There were stories without a conceivable plot, or a plot so vague and contestable as to challenge you to contribute your ideas to finish the story.

For example, Eaux Fortes, directed by French filmmaker Remi Chaye, follows the story of a man hit by a tidal wave after he buys cigarettes at the store. I saw him surf cars and play in flooded houses, ultimately surviving. I imagined a narrative on the current global ‘climate change,’ whereas friends merely saw animators finding a cool opportunity to draw water and floaty clothes. There were no words, and no clear guide to who is right. Another short called Collision completely lost me on its political relevance because the colours were so hypnotic and blinding, I thought this must be more about making things look trippy than anything else. Once you pay attention though, the patterns used are clearly drawn from American and Islamic flags and icons. Is it an indepth commentary if it is one? No. If you’re looking for something to explain complex political issues in a catchy, brief way, watch The Daily Show, because in classic art fashion, Collision gives you more questions than answers.

Overall, the The Animation Show 3 is more than enough inspiration to fill a sketchbook. Another good reason to like the collection? Beavis and Butthead, Office Space, and the Rejected cartoon shorts also come from these brilliant, irreverent presenters. Unfortunately, by publication you will have missed your chance, but see the show next year, and check out their websites. cogley@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

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12

Arts

Imprint, Friday, May 18, 2007

Iraq in Fragments blows global conscience into 655,000 pieces

“The Americans pass by, the tanks pass by, the helicopters pass over our heads; the world is so scary. The world is so scary now.”

The documentary Iraq in Fragments begins with this depressing description of post war Iraq from a young Iraqi boy. It’s easy to ignore the countless war articles that fill our North American newspapers every day when all of it happens thousands of kilometers away. In October 2006, a BBC News article entitled ‘Huge rise’ in Iraqi death tolls estimated the human loss count at 655,000 people “who might still be alive but for the U.S.-led invasion, according to a survey by a U.S. university.”

Although these numbers are too utterly depressing to overlook, when staring into the tear-filled eyes of a young child as he describes how terrible the Long War has made his life, it’s entirely impossible to ignore.

Throughout the film, we are shown clips of Iraqi citizens recounting their sad lives before the fall of Saddam Hussein’s rule in comparison to after the U.S. invasion. It came as a great shock to me to learn, that, despite Saddam’s cruelty, he took better care of his people than the U.S. appointed interim government and the U.S. army ever could. In the struggle to rebuild political structure in the much-dilapidated landscape, the people are worried that the U.S. doesn’t have their best interests in mind. To them, this is a great worry as American politicians have taken it upon themselves to build an Iraqi democracy.

While under the control of a hastefully pasted together government, the Iraqi people are fighting hard to have their interests heard. After hearing true political aficionados contemplate the future political system of Iraq, I was surprised to learn that North American interests are not among the main things blocking political progress. Instead, from the heated debates shown — presumably fueled by frustration, the desert heat and the distant sound of warfare all around — the main roadblock to democracy appears to be its incongruence with contemporary Islamic actions.

According to a man named Sheik Aws, evidently well-respected in political circles, “the meeting between Islamic and Democratic movements may be impossible in the future.”

Filmmaker James Longley spent over two years in Iraq filming this most sobering and poetic portrayal of the war. The scenes were sometimes too much to bear.

But before I cowered or shielded my eyes, I quickly reminded myself that there are r eal human beings living there.

The conflicted lives the Iraqi citizens know all too well Phil Isard were but a series of stunning images

flashing safely on the movie screen in front of me.

Innumerable innocent people are either living dangerously sub-standard lives or are dying casually at the hands of angered strangers in dirty, unkempt streets. With a film of this gravity, in times such as these, I find it very hard to believe that this movie lost out to a seemingly less time-sensitive documentary about the heating of the planet at the Academy Awards.

The part that was the most intense for me was watching the masked and armed “police” beat strangers in the street, taking some of them into their weird, twisted version of custody.

According to the authorities, a man providing food for his family by selling auto scraps on the streets is the equivalent of bootleggers illegally

peddling alcohol to the public.

While their wives argued for their sake outside, the blindfolded, kneeling “criminals” were all bound with scarves and jailed inside.

Begging for peace, completely immobile on the floor, instead of fighting for their freedom they cry out heart-breaking truths like: “When Saddam fell I was relieved, but once again I’m being blindfolded! Saddam uprooted my family — now I’m alone! How can it be I’m bound up again?”

The reasons for the war in Iraq, whether they be true worries of terrorism or more business-like in nature, all seem insignificant when compared to the very real atrocities being committed. Should an entire population pay for the grossly destructive doings of a select few? James Longley does not think so.

There shouldn’t be any excuses for someone who refuses to see this movie, as it is one of our few vivid views into the extremely sad reality faced by an entire nation.

Unfortunately, I know, we’re all not perfect. As youth in our generation and the future of our nation, we must at least consider taking it upon ourselves to investigate contemporary historical mistakes and utterly inhumane injustices.

Iraq in Fragments is playing at the Original Princess cinema from May 15 to the 29.

As a responsible citizen of your ever-darkening world, I strongly suggest that you go see this discerning documentary. aabela@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

What’s He Building In There?

Self titled

Dedication Belief

Year of the Sun

Worker B Records

It’s taken me some time to really ‘get’ this album. While the music is certainly initially engaging, the record is comprised of far too many components to be digested in only a few sittings.

First, the songwriting on this is brilliant.

There is a lack of convention that really enhances the album’s staying power. The melodies here are extremely intricate, and yet never lose sight of the importance of dynamics. A variety of rhythmic structures are also ambitiously and successfully explored, thanks in large part to a solid rhythm section. “(Holy Shit!) The Droid is Missing” is two minutes of orchestrated frenzy, while “I, Xolot!” is a progressive musical journey that ends with some ferocious guest growls from Jaime Schoch of Of the First Born Son. The album’s highlight could be “Citizen of the City,” as it embodies the band’s sound quite nicely by incorporating most of the album’s prominent ingredients.

Chris Schroeder’s vocals are also a key aspect of this album. This guy uses his voice to its full potential, capturing every type of scream and growl a shirtless hooligan with camo-shorts could ask for, and foiling them with haunting yet fragile sung melodies in the vein of oft-referenced Mike Patton. Based on an underlying sci-fi concept that tells a rather extensive story, Schroeder’s lyrics are also quite impressive and add some depth to their recent release.

This is a metal album that, thankfully, isn’t afraid to scout new territory — yet it never loses sight of the genre from which it was spawned.

I’ve never heard of Belief. Sorry dude, but I haven’t heard of Vordul Mega, or Murs, or CRayz Walz either. I’ve heard of Wordsworth, but it may have been by accident. I don’t think I’m hip enough for the underground scene just yet anyway.

Lucky for listeners, all the artists are talented, and Belief ’s debut CD, Dedication, is a very chilling listen. With harder, more effective beats than what popular rap music has to offer, Dedication is one of those promotional CD’s you feel lucky to own — like getting a free Talib Kweli promo CD in a club, you just feel cooler having it around.

Belief is not only a DJ but also a beatsmith, his talents highlighted by his solo tracks on the album — especially “Dedication” and “Passion Aggressive,” which are without lyrics but are very telling of Belief ’s journey to be the flawless DJ he is on this album.

The vocals of the contributing rappers are hard-hitting and sincere, and utilize the resources in real hip-hop culture — highly poetic social commentary influenced by real life situations, offering incredible insight (and puffing their chests out just a little bit).

Belief ’s website, www.beliefmusic.com, boasts his production credits to over 19 albums, including his own, under his own imprint, Worker B Records. See track six on the album for an ode to his record label and an intense mixing session. Dedication is indicative of both Belief ’s flawless technique and of the air-tight rap music that the underground scene offers.

— Andrew King

— Kinga Jakab

Arts

Imprint, Friday, May 18, 2007

13

Are you sure it’s anime?

Paulo Coelho’s most recent work, The Witch of Portobello, is enticing for two very different reasons. Part of what draws the reader in is the story itself, but equally compelling is the unique way in which it is written. Rather than a straightforward narrative, or even a dialogue, this is an entirely unique narrative technique. It is written as a series of first person accounts of individuals’ interactions with our unusual heroine Athena (also known as the Witch of Portobello).

The stories, taped interviews and letters, have been compiled by an incognito narrator whose identity we do not learn until the end of the story. He has decided to let Athena’s story be told as other’s tell it, through their own words, and with all of their emotions, anger, support, respect or disgust. From these accounts we learn that Athena is a bit of an enigma, as if almost every person that encountered her knew a different Athena.

This biographical style allows us to draw our own conclusions, unlike a traditionally researched biography that is coloured by the lenses that cloud the vision of the biographer — much like we see the world through our own personal lenses of experience and cultural bias.

Athena is a young woman who tries to fill the spaces and silences in her life. The more she tries, the more dissatisfied she becomes — until she learns that it is the silences that make the music so strong. When she learns to embrace the silence, she discovers a powerful energy. She becomes a spiritual leader, but some see her as a saint and some see her as a sinner. She is both revered and feared — being both saint and demon — and the compiled documents help us to see both sides of who Athena was.

This book is better than some of Coelho’s more recent offerings, and the narrative tool will draw you in and keep you turning the pages.

I was misled. The title Paris: The Secret History made me believe that I would be getting just that, the secret history of Paris, or at the very least, little-known information about the city. Unfortunately Andrew Hussey did not deliver.

For some strange reason, when I picked up this book I imagined all kinds of interesting stories and seedy back-alley tales of a city that is known for having a rather colourful past. In reality, all I got was a brief overview of the entire history of the city. Eventually, I was able to accept this fact and was able to somewhat enjoy the history of the city that I already knew so much about.

Hussey begins his book with the Roman occupation and continues on up to the present day, covering every part of Paris from the Seine river to each of the quartiers. Throughout the book he sprinkles in quotes from prominent authors, thinkers, politicians and everyday people living in and outside of the city. He also interviews present day Parisians and gets their take on the city and its past.

Hussey’s main area of interest seems to be the sex trade. The majority of the biography of the city visits every time period and district where prostitutes and pornography have been prominent. At first this was interesting and, at least to me, seemed to be the reasoning for the title. This, however, got quite tiresome as the same general information was just being restated over and over again.

The most interesting aspect of Hussey’s book was the parts about the many revolutions and wars that Paris has faced since 987 A.D. From Hussey’s writings it appears that all the revolutions had some kind of link. Reading about these links and seeing how 2000 years of a city are interconnected was quite fascinating.

Although Paris has some problems and didn’t really do what was promised in the title, it did turn into an interesting read. Really, it seems to be a jumping off point; by reading this you’ll get a general history of the city and be able to decide whether you want to take a closer look at certain parts of it.

— Steven R. McEvoy

— Emma Tarswell

As a second-year arts student here on campus, I’m a good fan of the comic and animation scene. I’m not the most knowledgeable of cartoon fanatics, but that doesn’t mean I don’t know anything at all about the cartoon media. I was lucky to study drawing, painting, art history and animation courses during my time in high school with great joy — as well as gaining high respect for what a few like to call the “alternative comic scene.”

Now, many of you readers may have caught the Asian influence I have in some of my comics in Imprint — of course, this is besides the fact that I actually am Oriental. But because of a personal tradition, I always cringe when someone dubs my work as “anime.” Like Fred Gallagher of the popular webcomic, Megatokyo, I don’t imagine my work to be of that animation genre.

There are some reasons for my belief, though.

For one, in a technical sense, most of my work is not anime; I draw pictures more than I create animation. Of course, you could argue that us Westerners call both animation and comics “cartoons,” making my argument a little pointless.

But still, the idea of semantics is there.

Physically, my illustration style is an amalgamation of both Eastern and Western influences.

To those anime geeks out there, think Charlie Brown meets Love Hina, and hopefully you can, without gagging at the thought. I’m a very casual, somewhat ’90s-era fan of Japanese animation.

When looking at the Imprint comics I’ve done, I honestly see more of a Western influence in my work. My mostly North American-esque style is largely due to the way I attempt to portray personality within my drawings.

Of course, I’m not the only one to follow this trend of “global artistic fusion.” Perhaps the best known example of this is the moment

of ultimate irony: Dr. Tezuka Osamu, the creator of Astro Boy, who is often known as the Father of Anime. His work, if you didn’t know, was very much influenced by early Disney animations like “Steamboat Willie,” as well as character designs from Walt Disney, and Max and Dave Fleischer (Betty Boop, Popeye). It’s quite the paradox how the world of anime as we know it today was, in a broad sense, an unofficial creation of Disney Studios.

This trend of East-plus-West still exists. John Lasseter, the current CCO of Disney Studios, has been continually pushing Disney for the last several years to ship the works of Hayao Miyazaki overseas under their name. They’ve succeeded in getting their name on such works like Princess Mononoke and Howl’s Moving Castle in Canada and the U.S., but for what? DVD production quality and clean English voiceover work from personalities such as Mark Hamill, Allison Lohman and Christian Bale. Lasseter’s entry on Wikipedia references a quote explaining how Miyazaki’s work helped to influence the creation of Toy Story.

There’s so much in the mix-up that I’m often left confused. I’m especially puzzled when Canadians I meet usually associate the Eastern influence in these works more than they do with the national scene that Canadians grew up with in Peanuts and Calvin and Hobbes.

Japanese cartooning is not technically a new thing, so is it just because people here like to notice more things that are usually stereotyped here in North America?

With that in mind, I hope this gives you an idea about how one should label cartoon work.

Some complain that anime should not be called “cartoons.” And technically, they are cartoons, in my honest opinion. But to me, calling my work simply “anime” reminds me of the episode of King of the Hill, where Hank asks Khan if he’s “Chinese or Japanese,” even after he says many times that he’s Laotian. And (with some sarcasm included) you don’t want to be compared to a stereotypical bumpkin Texan, do you? ptrinh@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Science

science@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Imprint, Friday, May 18, 2007

Engineering a healthy body David Yip

UW prof named innovator of the year Chris Miller staff reporter

reporter

Sports. You may break a bone, tear a muscle, or tear a ligament. If you’re especially unlucky, you might injure a knee ligament and if that’s the case, it’s probably your anterior cruciate ligament (ACL).

The knee joint is supported by four ligaments — bands of tissue that connect bones. There are two on the side, known as collateral ligaments, and two running front and back, forming an X shape — these are the cruciate ligaments, and it is the one running front to back that is the ACL. It prevents your shin from sliding forwards relative to your thighs. Tearing the ACL is extremely painful, and usually occurs when the knee is twisted or forced out of position during awkward landings in jumps (such as in basketball), from direct contact (such as in football or soccer tackles), or during a rapid change in direction where the upper leg moves but the lower leg is still planted.

While there is restorative surgery to replace the ACL, the method is imperfect, and those who have the surgery usually develop arthritis in that knee in their 30s. While work is being done on the treatment, it is similarly important to research the cause of ACL tears.

So which body positions and muscles increase the chance of an ACL injury, and which decrease that chance? This is the question that Dr. Naveen Chandrashekar, a professor at Waterloo’s Department of mechanical and mechatronics engineering, has set out to answer.

Finding this answer is not as easy as it might seem. It is not possible to determine muscle forces present in an injury for two main reasons.

The first is that the measurement technology does not exist — sensors cannot be implanted in athletes to measure muscle forces in the same way you can stick sensors on a bridge to measure structural tension. The second is a question of ethics — even if it were possible to fully instrument a living athlete, in order to fully understand the forces involved in an ACL tear, that athlete’s ACL would have to be forcibly torn which would only provide one sample.

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David Yip

Dr. Naveen Chandrasekar shows off a model of a knee joint Fortunately there is always a better way. Dr Chandrashekar has designed an electromechanical system that performs tests on cadaver knees. A computer coordinates and controls a set of actuators that emulate the action of human muscles on the knee. Using this system, the cadaver knee can be manipulated to the point of ligament breakage in different ways.

This combination of biology and engineering — specifically mechanical engineering — has resulted in a rapidly growing field known as biomechanics. The field is still young, and Dr. Chandrashekar was trained purely in mechanical engineering; all the biological aspects of his work were learned through self-study, which is true of many of his contemporaries. However, universities are now starting to offer

bioengineering and biomechanics programs both at the undergraduate and graduate level.

“My goal is a create a risk factor model,” Dr. Chandrashekar says.

This would enable doctors to assign a risk factor score to any particular body position and arrangement of muscle forces. This allows him to evaluate which muscles help prevent ACL injuries, and which muscles increase the likelihood of ACL injuries.

With this knowledge, sports scientists can design training programs that strengthen the appropriate muscles, ultimately reducing the incidence of ACL injuries in athletes.

His current system only has two actuators, but in the past two terms several fourth year engineering students across several disciplines have designed a new system using six actuators as their fourth year

design projects. This six-actuator system will provide a more realistic arrangement of forces on the cadaver knee. The system can also be used to validate existing post-injury rehabilitation training programs. To ensure that they are effective, and it can also be used to examine the effectiveness of knee braces in sports.

This is the last of Dr. Chandrashekar’s knee projects, having spent previous years characterizing and performing research on the material properties of ligaments. “I need to move onto something new,” he says, and is currently designing a system to manipulate cadaver wrists and hands, with the goal of designing ergonomic keyboards for both computers and handheld devices.

While the idea of dead hands typing is a bit strange he notes, “I’ve already made a knee play basketball!”

Monica Harvey

easily pass through the skin. However, other, larger molecules do not absorb as easily into the skin. Foldvari and her team developed a way to carry large proteins with a molecular weight greater than 1000 g/mol through the skin with Biphasix technology.

Biphasix uses biphasic vesicles to delivery drugs to the body. Biphasic vesicles act as tiny transporters and containers that can trap the desired therapeutic molecule. When applied to the skin, they create a pathway to help penetrate through the skin’s deeper layers.

“The key is to enhance permeation,” Foldvari explained. There are essentially two ways to achieve this. The first and easiest way is to compromise the skins top layer by stripping it off with tape. While this is effective, it is not feasible with medicine that requires multiple doses.

The second way — and the mechanism behind Biphasix — is to influence the lipid layer. The application of Biphasix to the skin results in several processes that allow penetration of the biphasic vesicle. It makes the skin more permeable by increasing the amount of fluid between skin cells and disorganizing them. The biphasic vesicle then passes through the influenced skin into the deeper layers or even the blood stream.

Biphasix has already shown to be effective in the administration of interferon to treat genital warts. In two weeks of treatment, genital warts were shown to decrease in size by up to 90 per cent with no irritation or adverse reactions.

“I’m a pharmacist by training and I wanted to make something that would help patients, [and] that would make drugs more specific and less evasive.” Foldvari commented when

Waterloo technology leader Dr. En-Hui Yang, co-founder of SlipStream Data Inc., took home a top honour at last month’s Premier’s Catalyst, Discovery and Summit Awards ceremony held in Toronto’s MaRS Discovery District.

The UW electrical and computer engineering professor and Tier 2 Canada Research Chair, whose Waterloo-based company specializes in accelerated data transmission, received the Innovator of the Year Award for his work in compression, coding and information theory. SlipStream has, in just ten years, expanded from theoretical concepts to dominate the data acceleration industry.

“This award is a validation of this team’s achievements so far and the opportunities ahead for SlipStream and RIM,” said Yang, whose win is intended to help move creative ideas into the national and international marketplaces.

On top of his work with SlipStream, Yang develops new compression techniques. Eschewing the traditional lossy versus lossless debate, which does not take into account the needs of digital rights management, he has created “watermarking” compression, which allows the embedding of copyright information along with compression, whereby a user cannot remove the copyright information without rendering the compressed image useless.

Two other Waterloo Region tech leaders also received recognition for their research activities. Dr. Savvas Chamberlain, of DALSA Corporation, accepted a Lifetime Achievement Award for his pioneering of digital imaging technologies, while Research In Motion was named Company with the Best Innovation. “There’s a particular brand of entrepreneurial spirit and innovation that thrives here,” said Iain Klugman, president and CEO of Communitech. “SlipStream, DALSA and RIM embody that entrepreneurial spirit.”

Winners were chosen by the Premier based on recommendations from business and technology leaders and the Ontario Research Fund Advisory Board, with particular attention given to innovations to Ontario’s economy, society, development and recognition. cmiller@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Innovation for drug delivery systems staff reporter

Professor Marianna Foldvari, from the University of Waterloo’s School of Pharmacy, is currently developing a new drug delivery system that administers medicine through the skin. This is good news for patients who can’t swallow pills, or people who must receive numerous needle injections, such as those suffering from diabetes.

The technology developed by Foldvari differs from seemingly similar technology because it is able to deliver a dose of compounds that would otherwise be unable to penetrate the skin’s hydrophobic (repulsive to water) protective layer. Compounds like nicotine and estrogen, which already have patch systems, are small (molecular weight less than 1000 g/mol), hydrophobic compounds and will

asked what lead to the development of this technology. A skin applied treatment means that drugs can be taken in a more user-friendly manner, and applying medicine to the specific area of interest can limit the possibility of side effects.

Foldvari joined Waterloo’s School of Pharmacy in 2006 and is excited about the newly emerging school.

“It is an exciting prospect. This is the first new school of pharmacy in Canada in 50 years. It opens the door to new frontiers and exciting discipline combinations like pharmacy and engineering, optometry, physics[… ] it is significant because it is modern and will provide a practical, hands-on experience with the co-op program.”

Foldvari and her exciting innovative ideas are a promising addition to the new School of Pharmacy. mharvey@imrpint.uwaterloo.ca

Science

Imprint, Friday, May 18, 2007

15

Tech companies enter phone market iDunno iPhone

Blackberry Curve

Artemis HTC P3300

Screen size

3.5 inches

2.5 inches

2.8 inches

Screen resolution

320 by 480 at 160 ppi

320 by 480 at 160 ppi

TFT touchscreen, 65K colors Size 240 x 320 pixels

Input method

Multi-touch

Trackball

stylus/touchscreen

Operating system

OS X

Blackberry 4.2.1

Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0 PocketPC

Storage

4GB or 8GB

MicroSD

MicroSD

GSM

Quad-band (MHz: 850, 900, 1800, 1900)

Quad-band (MHz: 850, 900, 1800, 1900)

GSM 850 / GSM 900 / GSM 1800 / GSM 1900

Wireless data

Wi-Fi (802.11b/g) + EDGE + Bluetooth 2.0

EDGE + Bluetooth 2.0

GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps HSCSD No EDGE Class 10, 236.8 kbps WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11b/g Bluetooth v2.0

Camera

2.0 megapixels

2.0 megapixels

2.0 megapixels

Battery

Up to 5 hours Talk / Video / Browsing

Standby time - 408 hours (17days), Talk time - 240 minutes (4 hours)**

Stand-by Up to 200 h Talk time Up to 4 h

Audio/video playback

Up to 16 hours Audio playback

Video format support: MPEG4 Part 2 Simple Profile, H.263, WMV

Windows Media Player playback capabilities

Audio format support: MP3, MIDI, AMR-NB, AAC/AAC+/eAAC+, WMA, WAV

konrad mohring

Yolanie Hettiarachchi staff reporter

Fetus’ sex revealed through new “pink and blue” test

British company DNA Worldwide has launched a new test that claims to tell parents the sex of their fetus six weeks into the pregnancy.

The test, called the Pink and Blue Test, analyzes fetus DNA that is present in the mother’s bloodstream. If the male-specific Y-chromosome is not found, the fetus is a girl.

“The earlier in pregnancy that you do these tests, the less fetal DNA there will be around,” according to Dr. Patrick O’Brien, a consultant obstetrician and spokesperson for the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

The 98 per cent accuracy of the test, put forth by the test’s creators, is thus debated.

The test presents ethical concerns — parents could abort their fetus if the test indicates a sex different to their preference.

Since the test went on sale last April, DNA Worldwide has had to refund only one customer out of the hundreds that have purchased the test.

Tiny mites shown to cause toxicity in frogs

Scientists have found that frogs in both the Panama and Costa Rican lowlands obtain most of their toxic compounds from tiny oribatid mites. The compounds, known as alkaloids, protect the frogs from predators and prevent infections.

Analysis of the mites — which feed on decaying plant materials and are abundant in soil and leaf litter — showed that more than 80 alkaloid varieties were present.

The find is surprising, according to Christopher Raxworthy of the American Museum of Natural History in New York; it was believed that ants, who also possess alkaloids, were the major source of the poisonous compounds in frogs.

According to study co-author John Daly, the frogs are not harmed by the toxic compounds because the chemicals are consumed in small amounts and become concentrated in the frogs’ bodies over time.

Researchers discover role of vitamins in prostate cancer development

A recent study suggests that multivitamins taken in high doses may be harmful to the prostate gland.

The diet and health of nearly 300,000 men was observed — a third of the subjects reported taking a multivitamin daily, five per cent of whom took the pills more than seven times a week.

Within five years of the start of the study, more than 10,000 men had been diagnosed with prostate cancer and 179 died.

The study revealed that heavy multivitamin users were almost twice as likely to acquire fatal prostate cancer as men who did not use the pills.

Even with all the evidence, researchers have found no link between multivitamin use and early-stage prostate cancer. It is speculated that high-dose vitamins presumably have little effect on the likelihood of prostate cancer until the appearance of a tumour. At this point the vitamins could spur the tumour’s growth.

The study is published in the May 16 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

— With files from the New York Times, National Geographic and the Examiner

Dimensions

4.5 x 2.4 x 0.46 inches / 115 x 61 x 11.6mm

4.2 x 2.4 x 0.6 inches (107mm x 60 mm x 15.5 mm)

108 x 58 x 16.8 mm

Weight

4.8 ounces / 135 grams

111g

127 g

Sports

sports@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Imprint, Friday, May 18, 2007

Dance reality away, Latin style “As a girl, the guy leads, so you can just follow and be whisked away.”

— Jessica Ashley, local dancer

Shawn Bell

Two students follow instructions on how to salsa in a class on Wednesday held in the PAC. Shawn Bell staff reporter

“You have to get involved,” Mr. Brown said, as we discussed writing a story on salsa dancing. And, being one of those long winded people, he went on: “experience the story for yourself, get involved, kiss the girls and slap all the palms you can. That’s the only way to do things.”

This attitude is often expressed around the paper. It comes from reading too much into Thompson

or Capote or some other gonzo, “new-journalist” type. It is that old, yet uncertain belief that the world is a book of stories waiting to be told.

I agreed with Mr. Brown at the time.

Of course, I thought, to cover a salsa dance class, one should dance.

Like many ideals, experience-theevent journalism falters when it comes into contact with the real world. In the world of campus newspapers, money is of no interest. Any story can be covered. But there are still restrictions.

Volunteers are scarce. Photographs are

hard to come by. So I took a camera along. And I didn’t dance.

In the PAC’s Studio 2, two instructors introduced salsa dance with a demonstration. The 40 students — mostly beginners — split in half, with guys lined on one side looking across at the girls. In the middle the instructors glided and spun, counting all the while — one, two, three, pause.

Salsa is danced in two measures of four.

You step for three beats and hold for one. They started stepping forward and back. I wanted to join them. The girls

looked so nice. Then the instructor had them pair up. “Go get a partner,” he said to the guys. “Remember, this is macho. Swagger over there and take her by the hand. No matter how much sweat’s on your brow.”

It felt like the first time I’d ever looked across the gymnasium at the girls huddled together when “Stairway To Heaven” sounded over the speakers. The guys made their way over and they paired off. There were three extra girls and my heart was pumping but I hid behind “my job” and held the camera out to the world.

All of these nice looking people dancing together in a circle, switching partners, meeting each other and smiling, while I stood along the way sweating and pretending to be a photographer. But once begun it is easy just to move along. And the life of a photographer has its own intrigue. You are on the outside but you have access to the centre.

The hour-long class was the first of a 10-week beginner salsa course.

“If a person has some ear for music,” instructor Looey said, “I can have them on the dance floor by week three.”

After the class the students echoed his optimism. “I did not dance before,” one guy said. “But I think I learned something tonight.”

The campus rec program’s been around for four years. Looey, who also teaches Friday night salsa lessons at The Club in uptown Waterloo, has been teaching at UW for two and a half years. In that time he’s seen the program grow from one course a term to five or six. “People see Dancing with the Stars, they say, ‘that looks good,’ and they want to learn,” he said.

In Waterloo there are two Latin nights a week. The city is also home

to Addicted to Dancing, a dance organization that rents space to host lessons and events around the city.

Jeff Benoit, co-coordinator, said that business is picking up. “It’s something that has fluctuated over the years. With Flying Dog running a salsa night on Thursday, and Ali Baba having salsa night on Friday, it’s certainly becoming more prevalent in Waterloo.”

There were certainly many smiles as the people were leaving. Everyone seemed to agree the night had been a lot of fun and that they would be back for more next week.

“The appeal for going [to these Latin dance nights] is that the people who go there go there to dance,” said Jessica Ashley, a local dancer. “You can go there with a group of girls and a guy will ask you to dance. It will be for one dance and there is no expectation for something more, like there is when you go to a place like Ceasars or Phils.”

“If they ask you to dance,” she went on, “they know how to dance. As a girl, the guy leads, so you can just follow and be whisked away.”

The popularity of the classes should be self-evident. “Someone with no experience,” Benoit said, “ends up walking out after six weeks with a few moves they can take to the club. Then they take a follow up course and hone those skills.”

And while they’re learning those skills, they’ll be making their way around the circle, getting 15 or 20 seconds with each partner, back and forth, then on again to someone new.

It is enough to make you want to jump in.

Perhaps the gonzos were onto something. sbell@imprint.uwaterloo.ca