Wednesday, November 14, 2012

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thegazette Needing sleep since 1906

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Western crosscountry teams put on impressve show at Canadian Interuniversity Sport. >> pg. 7 today high 3 low -2

tomorrow high 5 low -2

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Volume 106, Issue 40

Western breaks through vegetative state Brain and mind researchers communicate with unresponsive patient Megan Devlin Gazette Staff Western researchers are making history by discovering a way to communicate with patients in vegetative states. Recently, a patient at London’s Parkwood Hospital was among the first in Canada to communicate with researchers.

The research, headed by Adrian Owen of Western’s Brain and Mind Institute, was made into a documentary by the BBC, released last night.

While comatose patients appear to be asleep, patients in a vegetative state may open their eyes, sit up in bed and appear to be awake. However, they appear to be unaware of their environment because they fail to respond to external stimuli.

But just because a patient isn’t physically able to respond to stimuli doesn’t necessarily mean they are completely unaware, Owen’s research suggests.

“What we’ve been doing in the last few years is using brain imaging techniques to find out if there’s anything these patients can do which you can’t detect from their external behavior,” Damian Cruse, a post-doctoral fellow with Western’s Brain and Mind Institute, said.

The researchers put vegetative state patients in an fMRI scanner, and first asked them to imagine themselves playing tennis. In the vegetative state patients, they ob-

served the pre-mortal cortex activate, just as it did with healthy controls.

Next, they asked patients to envision themselves walking around their home. A completely different region of the brain lit up with this question—one associated with spacial navigation. Again, the pattern of activation was the same as that of healthy control subjects asked to imagine walking around their home.

“Patients in the vegetative state are actually able to activate these regions of the brain when we ask them to. They’re basically showing us that they understand our instructions, that they understand the question, they understand what they need to do and they’re doing it. They’re aware of us,” Cruse said.

The researchers then decided to take the concept further and try to turn it into a communication tool.

“We ask a patient a yes or no question and say, ‘If you want to answer yes, imagine that you’re playing tennis, and if you want to answer no, imagine that you’re walking around your home,” Cruse explained. “What we’ve been able to show recently is that there is a small number of patients who are actually able to communicate using this device.”

Cruse said up to 20 per cent of patients previously thought to be vegetative are actually aware of what is going on around them, though it is unknown what per-

Courtesy of Western News

BREAKING NEW GROUND. World-renowned Western neuroscientist Adrian Owen and his team of researchers are innovating new ways to communicate with patients in vegetative states.

centage are able to communicate using this device.

With the yes and no system, the researchers began by asking patients simple questions they already knew the answer to, like whether they had siblings, to check they were able to use the communication tool properly.

However, with the Parkwood patient, researchers decided to ask a question they didn’t know the answer to.

“We asked him whether he was in pain or not,” Cruse explained.

“He showed us with his fMRI activity that he imagined walking around his home to show us he was answering no to that question.”

In another groundbreaking discovery using the communication tool, the researchers discovered patients in vegetative states are able to form new memories since their injury.

“To another patient we asked if

he knew whether his sister had a daughter or not. His sister had had a daughter since he’d had is injury.

He was able to answer the question that yes, he was aware he had a niece, which is quite exciting,” Cruse explained.

Cruse hopes these discoveries can be translated into a tool that can be used at the bedside.

“To be able to provide communication to these patients is really very profound,” Cruse said.

Concordia sued for bumping A- to B+ Cam Smith News Editor A B+ just really isn’t the same as an A-, but few students have taken this philosophy quite as seriously as Concordia University student William Groombridge. After his political science mark was dropped due to a policy Groombridge alleges will not allow more than 25 per cent of students to receive an A grade, he is suing the department.

“They changed my grade on it, according to an email from my professor. The students that were the closest to [having a B] had their marks switched,” Groombridge said. “It was arbitrary. It wasn’t based on merit. It was crazy.”

In fact, according to Groombridge, Csaba Nikolenyi, political science department chair at Concordia, refused to admit to a grade reduction policy.

“I never really got an answer from the department chair on why the mark was changed,” Groombridge said. “When I went to see the department chair, he denied it even existed.”

For what he sees as academic injustice, Groombridge is taking the school, and the political science department, to court. “[I’m taking the department to] small claims court. I’m claiming that this is a product, or service, and that they have not fulfilled mandatory expectations,” he explained.

In most [MIT] courses it’s impossible to argue that you deserve either extremely low or extremely high marks, since your work couldn’t be infinitely worse or better.

—Elizabeth Sarjeant

Vice-president academic for FIMS Students’ Council

According to Groombridge, his professor was discontent with the need to reduce the grade, and the university is attempting to make reparations to him while leaving students affected without academic recourse.

“The professor was unhappy about it. [He said in his email] ‘A little piece of me died in this,’” Groombridge said. “Now they want to actually fix it, but if they hadn’t wanted the bad press, they really should have fixed this months ago.”

Not unlike the kind of gradecapping Groombridge experienced, Western’s faculty of information and media studies implements a similar stance on

grades.

“FIMS uses a grade cap policy to prevent grade inflation, and to eliminate some of the subjectivity inevitable in the marking process,” Elizabeth Sarjeant, vice-president academic of the FIMS Students’ Council, explained. “In the mandatory courses, which are now the only ones subject to the grade cap, assignments are marked by different TAs who will all have slightly different standards.”

According to Sarjeant, the nature of media courses necessitates the policy that states required courses must have a pre-determined average, falling between 67 >> see capping pg.3

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thegazette • Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Caught on Camera

Andrei Calinescu GAZETTE

NEW RECORD! Students battle it out in the Mustang Lounge as part of the PlayStation Varsity Challenge. If their skills are mad enough, Western students could advance to the Ontario championships to compete for $10,000.

Follow us on Twitter! @uwogazette

Solution to puzzle on page 8

Crossword By Eugene Sheffer

News Briefs

BlackBerry to release riper product Research In Motion has announced they will be releasing the much-anticipated BlackBerry 10 on January 30.

RIM is trying to overcome two years of losses with the release of the new line of BlackBerrys, but Vincent Manzerolle, a mobile media professor with the faculty of information and media studies at Western, believes that in the North American market the BB10 will be competing for third place against Nokia and Microsoft devices, rather than first place alongside the much more popular Apple and Google products.

“Both Apple and Google have entire ecosystems that reinforce

consumer lock-in,” Manzerolle said.

With a new operating system and a touch-screen interface, RIM is looking to, once again, find its place in a competitive mobile device market.

“The new BB10 will offer a unique user experience that will distinguish it from competitors, and if it has comparable specs under the hood, they will have a real shot at winning over consumers,” Manzerolle stated.

Manzerolle further explained that while the hardware and software of the BB10 is comparable to Apple and Google products, the real drawback is RIM’s limited application system.

Manzerolle believes RIM’s future is uncertain, and even if they are able to re-establish a place in the North American smartphone industry, a larger company will soon buy them out.

“RIM needs to accept that Apple and Google will be the Coke and Pepsi of the smartphone market for the foreseeable future,” he concluded.

—Jaclyn Carbone

USC pushes for ethnocultural awareness on campus The University Students’ Council is hosting Ethnocultural Awareness week until November 15.

The week aims to foster dialogue between Western’s many ethnicities, and find ways to bring cultural groups together in order to promote student equality and cultural diversity, as well as deal with issues of discrimination.

The event is being held by Western’s Ethnocultural Support Service, which invites all students to participate and learn about different ethnicities, while also giving them the opportunity to celebrate their own cultures.

Myuri Komaragiri, vice-president campus issues for the USC, discussed the goals of the event, and what she hopes students will take away from this week.

“This is such a perfect opportunity to learn about different ways of life. I hope that students take advantage of that, talk about it and share with us issues of discrimination they have either experienced or witnessed,” Komaragiri said. “If we can perfectly identify what discrimination looks like on this campus, then we can properly address it.”

—Jasleen Sembhi

The Cryptoquip is a substitution cipher in which one letter stands for another. If you think that X equals O, it will equal O throughout the puzzle. Single letters, short words and words using an apostrophe give you clues to locating vowels. Solution is by trial and error. © 2002 by Kings Features Syndicate, Inc.

Feeling a little under the weather?

Look in your Westernizer in the London Guide for a list of doctors, pharmacies, and walk-in clinics who are there to help you feel better.

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thegazette • Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Political science student alleges grade-capping >> continued from pg.1

Andrei Calinescu GAZETTE

and 77 per cent depending on the course level.

“In most [media, information and technoculture] courses it’s impossible to argue that you deserve either extremely low or extremely high marks, since your work couldn’t be infinitely worse or better,” she explained. “The grade cap policy works well given the subjectivity of our school work.”

Some MIT students feel similarly frustrated to Groombridge in regards to capping grades because they perceive it as detrimental to their postundergraduate ambitions—particularly the pursuit of graduate school, which relies on grade point averages. Yet, Sarjeant asserted these concerns are baseless.

“Most concerns seem to arise when FIMS students are competing for grades with students from other

faculties, in the event that they’re trying to get into Ivey and need good grades in first and second year,” Sarjeant explained. “Since almost all the upper-year MIT courses are exempt from the grade cap, it doesn’t directly inhibit those applying to graduate programs.”

I’m claiming that this is a product, or service, and that [the university has] not fulfilled mandatory expectations.

—William Groombridge

Student at Concordia University

It should be noted, however, the faculty only recently changed their policy on course averages, erasing the average requirement for elective courses.

Western grads top 150 in employability Aaron Zaltzman News Editor While the stated goal of many universities may be to impart higher learning onto young minds, for many students these institutions double as vocational training schools. The good news for students at Western who are seeking employment after graduation is Western’s graduates are looking attractive to employers.

The university recently ranked 85th on the Global Employability Survey, a list of the top 150 schools for employability compiled by the French consulting company Emerging, and the German polling institute Trendence.

According to Emerging, the study interviewed 2,500 hiring managers

in 20 different countries to “ascertain what expectations they have of young graduates, and to rank the top universities in their country and worldwide.” Western was one of seven Canadian schools to appear on the list, all of which were either Ontario or Quebec schools.

The ordering of the Canadian schools had some marked differences from the 2012 Maclean’s and Globe and Mail rankings.

“It goes to show that different surveys have different criteria, and ultimately different results,” Keith Marnoch, director of media and community relations for Western, said. “I think our message is that […] depending on what each individual’s criteria are in regard to choosing universities, there’s lots of ways to make the decision.

No sense in fighting Woodworth speech Verbal Azalt

Aaron Zaltzman News Editor Several weeks ago, the University Students’ Council received a failing grade for their protection of free speech. The timing of this seems fitting—for the last couple of weeks many people, including my colleague Cam Smith, have called for the USC to cancel a talk by Kitchener MP Stephen Woodworth. Woodworth, who was hosted by the pro-life club Western LifeLine, ended up speaking at Western last night about Motion 312, his proposal to reopen the debate on abortion. I’m 100 per cent pro-choice, but I’m pretty thankful he did.

The question of freedom of expression is more complicated here than it is in Canadian law. Under the Criminal Code, non-violent freedom of speech is guaranteed unless it either incites or promotes hatred. This doesn’t mean the same parameters exist at Western.

Despite some claims to the contrary, nothing said on West-

ern’s campus has constituted hate speech. This seems fairly obvious, considering an arrest on that charge would certainly have made headlines. However, the USC has no obligation to allow students to speak freely if they do so while using USC resources. Western LifeLine is a USC-ratified club and is subject to whatever conditions the USC imposes upon them.

Unfortunately, the USC gets to choose where it wants to draw the line. If their claim were they are champions of free expression, then it would be nothing short of hypocrisy to prevent any sort of nonviolent, non-hate speech from occurring. This is not the case, nor should anyone delude his or herself that it is.

It appears, rather, the USC’s mandate is to promote their perception of social harmony and justice. The Community Standards Policy doesn’t ban hate speech— it specifically bans “objectionable” speech, subject to the USC’s interpretation.

Unfortunately for fans of free speech, they have every right to pick and choose what expression is allowed based on their own view of right and wrong. If you don’t like it, don’t get involved. You’ll have to get your free expression elsewhere, because you won’t find it here.

However, being put on the same list as Yale and Oxford is no doubt helpful to Western, which has been trying to improve its international portfolio for years.

“Being seen as doing well in areas like this that are important to students is something that we’re striving for all the time,” Marnoch said. “Having services like [the Student Success Centre] on campus is a positive thing, and very well may be able to improve the potential for employability for students.”

The SSC is a service at Western where students can go to for all things career-orientated. Jordanna Szalkai, the employer relationship developer for the centre, said career counsellors at the SSC help students with the daunting task of sorting out their post-graduation options.

“They help guide the student to what is ultimately their end goal,” Szalkai said. “There’s a lot of explanation involved in the process because job hunting is an overwhelming process.”

Katrina McIntosh, resource coordinator for the SSC, said it’s the university’s duty to provide students with the career tools they need.

“I think it’s part of the deal. Students are here to attend school and get an education, but […] they also want to have jobs that they’re good at and enjoy,” McIntosh explained.

“Education at Western can help students get an amazing job, but sometimes students need a little bit of polishing or guidance, and we offer that.”

Global Employability Survey 2012

#24) University of Toronto #29) McGill University #30) University of Montreal #53) McMaster University #56) Queen’s University #85) Western University #108) University of Waterloo Source: Emerging/Trendence

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thegazette • Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Arts&Life

word of the day Pusillanimous Adjective. Lacking courage and determination.

Theatre Western stands tall with Jerome Bradley Metlin Gazette Staff Spectacle, eye opening, unique and different are all words used by the cast and crew to describe Theatre Western’s most recent effort, Jerome: The Historical Spectacle.

The play, written by Canadian journalist Ami McKay, centres around a true story of the mysterious Jerome, a young man who was found on the shores of Nova Scotia mute and missing both his legs. No one, to this day, quite knows how he ended up on the shores, or who he is. The play focuses on Jerome’s trials and tribulations, including his time as a sideshow attraction, and how each person with whom he interacts twists his story.

Director Alene Degian notes how easy it is to form untrue opinions of someone.

“We all do it—we are subjectively judgmental,” Degian says.

“We judge others and we know that we’re constantly being judged.

I think this play brings into focus how easy it is to judge others and how we’re doing it without really knowing.”

This theme of prejudice seems to strike a chord with every cast member. Jonas Trottier, who plays the title character notes, “Though people who are handicapped face challenges, I don’t think those challenges define them.”

Of course, there are inherent challenges facing someone who must play a mute, largely immobile character. Trottier adds many of the issues he has to deal with in playing this role involve physicality.

“I’m trying to think, whenever I’m on stage, how I would look if I actually had the lower part of my legs missing.”

Acting opposite such a charac-

ter would also be a challenge, but Waylon Skinner, who plays Henry and the Giant Man, notes it’s not too tricky.

“Jonas does a great job. He gives a very strong performance using grunts, his movements and his limited mobility that he has to incorporate into the character,” Skinner says.

New blood is always welcome and encouraged at Theatre Western.

“Working with new people is always fun. It brings a new element to the show,” Skinner notes. “Getting to interact with different people—it makes doing theatre worth it.”

This sentiment holds true for first-year Caity Austin, who plays Madeline. When it comes to the nerve-wracking audition process, as a first-year, Austin describes it as a stressful time. Nerves aside, Austin says she went in with no expectations after putting her name on the audition emailing list during clubs week.

We judge others and we know that we’re constantly being judged.

I think this play brings into focus how easy it is to judge others.

—Alene Degian

Director of Jerome: The Historical Spectacle

“I went out of it thinking, ‘Okay, you never know after an audition, but what’s done is done.’”

This play is unique due to its many different layers, and Jerome: The Historical Spectacle is not merely a character study about Je-

Emma Pipes GAZETTE

THE SPECTACULAR SPECTACLE. The cast of Theatre Western’s newest show prepares for the upcoming premiere.

rome’s life.

“There’s the whole story and the very real world of Jerome, but because there is the circus sideshow element, it gives it a fantastical spin,” Skinner says.

As opening night draws near, excitement is revving up for the cast.

“I’m finding that I get more and more enjoyment,” Trottier says.

“Your rehearsals flow a lot more.

It’s just really cool to start to see the pay off of working so hard.”

Austin agrees there is definitely a sense of excitement. When asked how she felt about opening night’s approaching date, Austin replied, “Nervous, but excited nervous.”

Even the directors get a little nervous, and Degian envisions how opening night will go for her.

“I may not watch the play as closely as I want to,” Degian says.

“I will be so nervous and watching everything—I won’t watch the play as an audience member. I’ll be saying to myself, ‘Is that guy laughing?

Are they crying? Is this supposed to be happening?’”

Despite this being her first time directing, Degian notes her priority was character development.

“As much as you can block a scene and direct someone to do something, without that being part of their internal character, they really have no reason to do it. They don’t know why they’re doing it and the audience will pick up on that.”

The show is full of interesting and serious elements, but the cast always maintains a good sense of

humour. When asked about the function of ‘the Giant Man’ character, Skinner says his job is mostly picking people up and carrying them around—not a hard job for him.

“The stage isn’t that big so there’s not really a long way to carry anyone,” he notes.

Jerome: The Historical Spectacle, by all appearances, seems to be on its way to creating a unique and inventive experience for the audience come opening night. At the very least, the show is sure to be a spectacle.

Jerome: The Historical Spectacle runs from November 22 until the 24 at McManus Studio at the Grand Theatre. Tickets are $15 for students, $20 for non-students.

Editor’s Picks > The essentials for your week

On DVD

On Disc

In Theatres

On TV

On The Charts

The Amazing Spider-Man

Take Me Home—One Direction

The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2

Malibu Country

“Twenty Eight”—The Weeknd

The onset of winter brings with it the release of some of this summer’s biggest blockbusters on DVD, with the standout title hitting the shelves this week being Marc Webb’s thrilling superhero reboot, The Amazing Spider-Man. Andrew Garfield is the man donning the red spandex as Peter Parker this time around, and he is joined here by a new love interest in Gwen Stacy, played by the lovely Emma Stone.

Add in a menacing villain in the shape of Rhys Ifans’ Lizard, and you have one of the most enjoyable Hollywood movies this year.

Love them or loathe them, British boy band One Direction is a sensation, and this week sees the release of their hotly anticipated sophomore album Take Me Home.

Promising a jubilant celebration of youth and good times, and featuring favourites like Ed Sheeran, it already looks like it will be one of the biggest selling records of the year, and will no doubt satisfy the legions of One Direction fans out there. Look forward to hearing these thirteen songs well into the new year.

After four films full of human/ vampire/werewolf romance, the hugely successful Twilight film series draws to a close this week, with the release of Breaking Dawn Part 2. Picking up where Part 1 left off, cinemagoers can finally learn the fate of Bella (Kristen Stewart), Edward (Robert Pattinson) and Jacob (Taylor Lautner), as they face off against the dreaded Volturi in what promises to be an epic finale to the supernatural drama.

Now airing on ABC, new sitcom Malibu County sees country star Reba McEntire as Reba Gallagher move her family from Nashville to California after her husband cheats on her. Humorous culture clashes abound as Reba and family deal with settling into their new home and meeting the locals, including an overly affectionate neighbour.

Producer Kevin Abbott has a solid track record from working on My Name Is Earl and Reba, so this could be one to watch.

Brilliant Canadian R&B artist Abel Tesfaye, better known as The Weeknd, is warming up for the release of Trilogy, an album collecting all three of his excellent 2011 mix tapes with new single “Twenty Eight.” The song is everything you’d expect from The Weeknd, with Tesfaye’s crooning backed by a luscious, distorted electronic beat—and it’s encouraging to see some new material after a long wait. “Twenty Eight” is also this week’s iTunes single of the week, so you can download it for free right now.

•5

thegazette • Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Rivalling bands rock out

On the web

Young Rival headlines show at London Music Hall

file photo

Danielle Bozinoff Contributor Performance Openers Setlist Crowd Worth the $$

GGGFF GGGGG GGGFF GGGGF GGGHF

Young Rival’s concert at London Music Hall Friday night began with the cool sounds of London band Comet, warming up the smaller crowd. Afterwards came the booming sound of Charlottetown rock ‘n’ rollers North Lakes.

They had a good sound—however, the volume of their bass drum distracted from the rest of their arrangement.

Things evened out though when Ontario-based indie pop

band The Elwins took the stage.

Decked in their typical hipster apparel of boot cut jeans and colourful dress shirts, The Elwins looked like they were ready for a good time. Feurd Moore, the band’s keyboardist and guitar player, was sporting his trademark unique moustache, and lead vocalist and guitarist Matthew Sweeney succeeded in revving up the crowd.

The highlight of The Elwins’ performance was when they played their YouTube famous cover of Beyonće’s “Countdown.”

The crowd was roaring, singing along and chanting the countdown “10-9-8-7…” at every verse.

The band also played the upbeat and always catchy songs off their latest album And I Thank You, including “Stuck in the Middle” and

Always a bridesmaid, never just funny Seven minutes in Kevin Kevin Hurren Arts & Life Editor It seems that even a year and a half after its release, people still can’t forget about Bridesmaids. The comedy, written by Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo, centres on the misfortunes of a woman after being asked to serve as her best friend’s maid of honour.

The film was a success, so much so that Bridesmaids has become a reference point when it comes to female comedies. Whether it’s Lena Dunham’s television series Girls, or the recently released female ensemble film Pitch Perfect, it seems whenever a group of female actors get together to make a comedy, a comparison to Bridesmaids is made. Though there is nothing inherently wrong with audiences still discussing Bridesmaids, it’s not the seminal moment of female comedic performances.

For instance, in 2004 comedian Tina Fey wrote and acted in Mean Girls, a film that showcases the comedic abilities of a largely female cast, and as such has collected quite a large following of fans.

Even before that, during a part of the 1990s actor Whoopi Goldberg was the highest paid female actor of all time, with a portfolio filled with comedic roles and

media appearances.

Such examples can reach all the way back to early stages of cinema and television broadcasting. If there is any big shift in female comedic potential, it is not because women are getting funnier, but because there are more opportunities for a female actor to land a funny role.

Patricia Marx, a humourist and the first female writer for The Harvard Lampoon, argued women weren’t funny because there was no reason for them to make people laugh in the movies. There were romantic roles, characters that were meant to seduce and incite sexual desire. The task female actors had was simple—cause men to feel aroused, not make milk come out of their nose. Now, however, women are allowed to deviate from this constraining, and objectifying, mold. There are still some boundaries to overcome, and voices to drown out, but the reception is much better overall.

In this way, it’s not as though Bridesmaids triggered something within women, or awoke a hidden desire to release suppressed inner standup. Rather, mainstream film, television and related media are just doing a better job at showcasing them. So, the next time you engage with a media text that has a group of hilarious women, don’t bring up Bridesmaids. In fact, don’t even bring up the fact that they’re women. Just laugh because, ultimately, that’s what these laughable ladies are working towards.

“Forgetful Assistance.” The charisma and infectious happy mood these boys emanated never failed to disappoint.

It would be a hard act for Hamilton indie rock band Young Rival to follow. They mostly played songs off their second album, Stay Young, released last month.

Even after following such a tough act, the group managed to hold their own with their classic rock ‘n’ roll enthused songs like “Two Reasons.”

During their performance, the other bands mingled within the crowd, grooving to the Young Rival’s tunes. The crowd was lively and content. It was a captivating, and all in all, fun night with a unique blend of rock genres.

Though there have been recent gay rights victories in Maine, Maryland, Washington and Minnesota, there are still a number of states doing their best to keep gay rights—especially same-sex marriage—suppressed.

In an effort to persuade such states, College Humor has made an ultimatum in a comedic video entitled Gay Men Will Marry Your Girlfriends—allow gays to get married or they’ll marry your women.

Guised in the pretense of a comedy

video, the clip makes some compelling arguments. Why wouldn’t any girl want to marry the ripped, well-dressed, Broadway-loving, shoulder to cry on?

Though the video has some good lines, it points out how samesex marriages don’t affect the average straight relationship. If anything, withholding the right to marry only incites the gay community to interfere and, as the video warns, the gay community “will take one for the team and marry the crap out of your girlfriends.”

The video may not change enough minds to enact any big changes in the U.S., but it’s another voice speaking out for equal marriage rights. Check out the video for yourself, and if you’re a boyfriend who’s unsure whether your girlfriend would leave you for their gay best friend, ask yourself if you know the difference between hummus and baba ganoush. Exactly.

—Kevin Hurren

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6•

thegazette • Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Opinions

Civility costs nothing and buys everything.

—Mary Wortley Montagu, English writer

Grade quotas an Punishing politeness a unfortunate reality perplexing prescription William Groombridge, a 41-year-old part-time political science student at Concordia University, is suing the school for a faulty grade he received in his energy policy course. He’s taking Concordia to small claims court, where he intends to sue them for $342—the amount he paid to take the course in the fall of 2011. He says the school arbitrarily downgraded his final mark from an A- to a B+ in order to meet an unofficial grade quota imposed by the chair of political science. After complaining and inquiring numerous times, both the school and his professor left Groombridge without an answer.

Even though Groombridge, a business owner, won’t gain much if he wins his case, it’d be nice to see him successfully prove his point. It’s important for schools to be called out when they take unfair actions, but Groombridge might not achieve much by taking his frustrations to court.

The case does, however, surface concerns about bell curves—a system commonly used in universities to keep class averages within a certain grade range.

It’s understandable faculties want to maintain an academic standard in their courses and departments, but from a student perspective, bell curves and grade quotas seem unfair. They make it difficult for students—especially those applying to professional and graduate schools—to achieve the marks they need.

Not all programs and courses enforce the bell curve. It mostly occurs in essay-based programs like media, information and technoculture at Western.

It’s already difficult to achieve high grades in such programs, and adding the bell curve just makes students feel robbed of the marks they deserve.

Students should receive the grades they earn.

Putting in A+ work only to get a B is frustrating.

However, the bell curve system is difficult to mitigate.

While bell curves are enforced to prevent grade inflation and to level the playing field amongst all faculties, the system doesn’t seem to be achieving its purpose. Students pay to learn, improve and excel professionally as a result of attending university.

By potentially preventing this from happening, universities aren’t doing their jobs.

Though Groombridge’s small lawsuit seems like a lot of effort for little gain, his point may be one that needs to be made.

—The Gazette Editorial Board

thegazette

Volume 106, Issue 40 www.westerngazette.ca

Gloria Dickie Editor-In-Chief Nicole Gibillini Deputy Editor Cam Parkes Managing Editor

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Wrath of McGrath

Kaitlyn McGrath Associate Editor Before learning to write lab reports and essays, before learning to solve exponential and logarithmic functions, and even before learning the theories of Bentham, Marx and Foucault, we learn, perhaps, the most important lesson of all. We learn the rules of conduct, manners if you will, and those are the skills that carry us through life.

Yet, it’s become increasingly common these days to see people—whether it’s a student or any individual—conduct themselves in an impolite and callous manner. Nothing irks me more when I see an individual treating another individual disrespectfully, no matter what the situation.

Recently, I encountered a story in the National Post about a psychology professor at Queen’s University who instituted a “civility clause” in the course syllabus that stated, “Discriminatory, rude, threatening, harassing, disruptive, distracting and inappropriate behaviour and language will not be tolerated. The first offence will result in a 10 per cent reduction in your final mark.”

Now there are two parts to this clause. The first section, I like. The second section might be a bit much.

I have no problem with declaring that, while in the classroom, teachers, TAs and fellow peers should be treated with respect, and behaviour in the classroom should remain appropriate and tactful. In fact, it seems almost ludicrous this even needs to be said.

Shouldn’t these qualities be innate in

our demeanour? Do we, as functioning and mature adults, need to be reminded we should remember our manners?

I can’t recall ever having a specific clause in one of my syllabi, but Western does have a student code of conduct, as well as individual faculties enforcing similar codes of conduct. For example, the faculty of information and media studies has a code of conduct outlining the basic behaviours that should be followed by students and employees of the faculty.

Bringing me to another point— should these types of policies exist in our syllabi? The most startling aspect of the “civility code” is the docking of 10 per cent of a student’s grade if the student misbehaves. That’s a huge reduction considering handing in a term paper late might only dock you one or two per cent per day. And although I completely agree with the validity behind the code, I can see why students may feel it’s not in a professor or TAs mandate to deduct grades based on behaviour.

The thing is, especially in a classroom setting, most other punishments wouldn’t hold much value. You’re not going to give a disruptive student a timeout, and even if you kick them out of the classroom, they’ll likely be more thankful than remorseful about that punishment. The possibility of losing grades might be an effective way to deter some from acting out inappropriately.

Realistically, we’re all adults here— regardless of whether or not 10 per cent is on the line, students shouldn’t be unruly in the classroom. You can’t conduct yourself inappropriately in a workplace or else you would be severely reprimanded, or even fired. Maybe students should have to learn that harsh lesson in university first.

#win It’s always nice when the Google doodle gives your country a shoutout, and Canada got that yesterday.

Google’s home page featured the Canadarm in a photo celebrating the 31st anniversary of the robot’s first use in space.

The rendition of the arm featured the famous emblazoning of ‘Canada’ on the arm, representing the scientific efforts of our country.

Editorials are decided by a majority of the editorial board and are written by a member of the editorial board but are not necessarily the expressed opinion of each editorial board member. All other opinions are strictly those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the USC, The Gazette, its editors or staff.

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Gazette Staff 2012-2013

Iain Boekhoff, Greg Colgan, David Czosniak, Megan Devlin, Ross Hamilton, Elton Hobson, Sarah Mai Chitty, Megan McPhaden, Bradley Metlin, Kaitlyn Oh, John Petrella, Sarah Prince, Chen Rao, Nathan Robbins-Kanter, Lily Robinson, Pat Robinson, Katie Roseman, Nathan TeBokkel, Kate Wilkinson, Kartikeya Vishal, Usman Zahid, Mason Zimmer

Dear Life

Your anonymous letters to life.

Dear Life, I have very bad things to say about people who take a whole table to themselves at the library.

Dear Life, Why do people choose to have conversations in the middle of high-traffic areas— in front of doors, middle of stair cases, et cetera?

Dear Life, Why does lacrosse remind me of Quidditch?

Submit your letters to life at www.westerngazette.ca /dearlife.

Letter to the Edtior

A warm thanks To the Editor: I would just like to send out my greatest thanks to two very selfless girls in the UCC on the evening of November 12.

I left my computer bag in the UCC washroom and mindlessly went about my evening for an hour until my brain turned back on and I realized I was computer-less. Whoever you are, you have saved me countless hours trying to beg for notes. You could have just left my bag there, but you didn’t. You took it over to campus police and I cannot thank you enough. I have learned my lesson and will always backup my notes. Thank you for making this an easy lesson to learn.

—Rebecca Phillips Bio IV

#fail Even the greatest of tickles won’t get Kevin Clash, the voice and puppeteer of Elmo, laughing, as he has been forced to take a leave of absence after allegations of a relationship with a 16-year-old boy.

Sesame Street Workshop cited these allegations as “unsubstantiated,” and granted Clash his leave while the manner is settled. Clash denied the allegations.

News Alex Carmona Jesica Hurst Cam Smith Aaron Zaltzman Arts & Life Sumedha Arya Brent Holmes Kevin Hurren Sports Richard Raycraft Jason Sinukoff Ryan Stern Opinions Ryan Hurlbut Associate Kaitlyn McGrath

Photography Andrei Calinescu Ritchie Sham Cameron Wilson Graphics Naira Ahmed Mike Laine Illustrations Christopher Miszczak Liwei Zhou Online Julian Uzielli Web Cameron Wilson Video Chris Kay

• Please recycle this newspaper •

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thegazette • Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Sports

saywhat?

“Without your support, I would not be standing here today,”

>> Hockey Hall of Fame inductee Mats Sundin thanking his parents for where he is today.

Rundown >> The Mustangs women’s hockey team fell to the Guelph Gryphons on Saturday by a score of 4–3 > Guelph’s win ended Western’s four-game winning streak > The Mustangs bounced back on Sunday when they defeated the Brock Badgers by a score of 6–1.

Mustangs put up impressive finish at CIS Women place third, and men place ninth in championships Scott Leitch Gazette Staff

The Mustangs hosted the Canadian Interuniversity Sport crosscountry championships over the weekend at Thames Valley Golf Course, where the women’s team grabbed a third-place finish—their first podium finish since 2000.

The Mustangs’ top finisher was Amanda Truelove, a graduate student who completed her undergraduate tenure at Duke. Truelove finished in 11th place with a time of 17:53 over the five-kilometre course. Truelove moved up two in the second half of the course—a move representative of the entire women’s squad, who ousted the University of Victoria for the last podium spot.

Her run on Saturday gives Truelove second-team All-Canadian status, along with teammate Emma Tallman, who crossed the line in 14th place to grab the last All-Canadian certificate.

The Mustangs’ 107-point total bested Victoria’s 161 score by 54 places, a margin which was much narrower at the 2.5-kilometre split.

In the second half of the race, the Mustang women moved up 44 points to clinch the bronze.

“I didn’t feel my best today, but I knew my teammates had a good day, so that kind of kept me going throughout the race and just made me push harder,” Alicia Knox, fourth-year Mustangs captain, said.

“The season went really well for me and the team. We had a great group of girls this year and it was really exciting. We’re going to get ready for track and have another great season as a team,” she continued.

Andrea Seccafien of the University of Guelph Gryphons won the

Courtesy of Geoff Robins

women’s individual title, and led her team to an impressive 21 point scoring to win the team championship as well. The Gryphons, who packed six runners in the top nine, continued their dominance at the event with this title—which marks their eighth consecutive team title.

“About a kilometre and a half to go, I knew I had second, but I was still looking up to first, and then this last straight has been so good to me—and I’ve raced here twice already—so I just let it go and hoped that I could catch [teammate Geneviève Lalonde],” Sec-

cafien said. “It was sort of a good little team rivalry at the end.”

The Gryphon men also won their seventh consecutive team title, and Kelly Wiebe of the University of Regina won the men’s individual 10-kilometre title in a course record-shattering 30:21—a full 44 seconds ahead of Guelph’s Ross Proudfoot, the second-place finisher. The record before Saturday’s race was held by Mustangs associate head coach Guy Schultz, who set it at the 1997 championship on the same course.

“I went out pretty hard and

Geoff Robins Gazette

was expecting some of the guys to come with me, but about a kilometre into the race I looked back and no one had come with me,” Wiebe said. “I knew from there it was going to be kind of a solo effort and I was going to have to lead from the gun.”

The Mustangs men’s team also had a fantastic day on the course as ninth-place finishers, with captain Ryan Armstrong as their top runner on the day. Armstrong finished 18th overall in a time of 32:25, a 45-second personal best on the Thames Valley Course.

“Overall, I’m proud of everyone. I think a lot of guys were holding back at OUAs and didn’t quite have their best race,” Armstrong—who was an All-Canadian in 2011—said. “For most of them, that was their first 10k two weeks ago, so this was their second. Most of them improved. Not everyone, but most. It was a good outing.”

CIS may be done, but the athletic season is not over for many of the Mustangs, as members of the squad will go on to compete in track and field in the new year.

Naira Ahmed Gazette

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thegazette • Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Gaels exact revenge on defending champions Mustangs lose to rival Queen’s 29–18 in OUA finals Richard Raycraft Sports Editor Facing the Queen’s Gaels in the Ontario University Athletics final for the second year in a row, the Mustangs men’s rugby team fell 29–18 to their rivals from eastern Ontario. Though the Mustangs bested the Gaels in last year’s final and were determined to do so again, some crucial errors and missed opportunities cost them the match.

“I thought we were well matched, but we made some mistakes and unfortunately paid the penalty,” Stephen Thomas, Mustangs head coach, said. “They were obviously at home in front of their home crowd which is huge, as we witnessed last year. It was just not our day.”

The rivalry between the two teams has a long history that has heated up in the past few years.

Western and Queen’s have faced off in seven of the last 16 OUA rugby finals. The Mustangs had bested the Gaels in their regular season showdown in a 22–20 nail-biter.

Western beat the Guelph Gryphons 21–15 in their previous match to reach the final. The Gaels stomped the Brock Badgers 46–3 in their last match.

The Gaels were led by fly half Liam Underwood, who posted 14 points. Angus MacPhail, Dan Moor and Brendan McGovern provided the rest of the offence

with a try apiece.

Mike Turnbull put up eight points for the Mustangs on a conversion and two penalty goals. Jeremy McCarty and James Ojo also had a try each.

Turnbull and Ojo were honoured with spots on the OUA allstar team after the contest. Other Mustangs selected were John Humphries, Courtney Mendez and Geoff Wharburton.

The Mustangs were down early, as Gaels captain Dan Moor scored a try in only the second minute of play. The Mustangs would respond with Turnbull kicking a penalty goal to make the score 7–3.

Things would quickly start to fall apart for the Mustangs, as they made a crucial passing error the Gaels’ Jeff MacDonald would intercept, later turning into a try.

Underwood would successfully kick a conversion and would later add a penalty goal. Western would respond with a penalty goal by Mike Turnbull, but at the end of the first half they were down 17–6.

The Gaels would storm out of the gate at the start of the second half, scoring a try in the 43rd minute to add to their lead with the score at 22–6.

“We made two basic errors early on, maybe because of nerves, and at this level it means you chase the game and give the opposition a huge boost,” Thomas said. “Mistakes happen and no individual is to blame.”

“At halftime I believed we could

Piotr Angiel Gazette

turn the deficit around, but they scored right away and then we were certainly up against it,” he continued.

Western would stay in the contest when Jeremy McCarty capitalized on a Gaels penalty with a try to make it 22–11. Unfortunately for the Mustangs, Underwood would strike again for the Gaels, scoring a try just eight minutes

later to put the game out of reach.

Ojo would score a try for Western in the closing minutes of the contest, but it was all for naught as the game ended with a final score of 29–18. With the win, the Gaels avenged their loss to the Mustangs in the previous year’s final.

Despite the loss and the disappointment, Thomas remained optimistic about the team.

“We have used more players in the starting 22 this year than ever before,” he said. “The players showed that they have the talent to raise their respective games.”

“We have some great lads on the roster with real talent,” he continued. “We will concentrate on the National 7s tournament now and move on. There is no cause for concern.”

thegazette To place your ad in thegazette MARKETPLACE, please contact us at 519-661-3579 or adoffice@uwo.ca N E ENT A A A T Studio Class presents their first show Free Association in the Artlab located within the John Labatt Visual Arts Centre until November 16th. Hours: Mon to Fri, 12 noon to 6 pm; Thurs 12 noon to 8 pm.

ANN N E ENT A TAT N A T A EN E Mustang Lounge, UCC Bldg, 8:30 am to 5 pm today. Take a study break with #PSVarsity. Elimination rounds today. Still time to come play some great games for fun with friends. For UWO students only.

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For solution, turn to page 2

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