Daily Bulletin

Somebody let UW president David Johnston into the driver's seat the other day as the disabled persons office celebrated the arrival of its new student access van. The forest-green vehicle replaces an older van, which will be donated to a local charity. It comes complete "with all of the accessible conversion options", says Rose Padacz, coordinator of the office, mentioning "removable seats and flip-up seats, Q-straint tie-down systems for wheelchair users, a manual self-storing ramp and dual sliding doors". Fifty to 100 students use the van service each year, she said, ranging from some with permanent physical disabilities to some who are recovering from sports injuries.

Energy minister brings cheque

Jim Wilson -- minister of energy, science and technology -- brought official word of provincial funding for the two centres, both in the faculty of mathematics. He had mentioned them on his last visit to campus, March 15.

The Challenge Fund will invest $827,500 in the Centre for Applied Cryptographic Research. Funding by the university and private sector partners Certicom Corp., MasterCard International, Mondex International Ltd. and Orange and Associates bring the total investment to $3.3 million. ("$3.3M for e-commerce" is the K-W Record's spin on it this morning.)

"The research being done at the cryptology centre will have a tremendous impact on the growth of electronic commerce," Wilson said. "These new investments will help attract top researchers in symbolic mathematics and cryptology."

"The creation of the Centre for Applied Cryptographic Research recognizes the importance of the basic work in information security at the University of Waterloo," said Carolyn Hansson, UW's vice-president (university research).

In addition, the province is investing more than $1.54 million from the Ontario Research and Development Challenge Fund to establish the Ontario Research Centre for Computer Algebra. Contributions by Waterloo and the University of Western Ontario and private sector partner Waterloo Maple Inc. bring the total investment to $4.6 million.

The creation of this new research centre is to bring two distinguished scientists to Ontario each year to occupy chairs in computer algebra. "These investments recognize the excellent work being done at the University of Waterloo," said Elizabeth Witmer, minister of health and long-term care and MPP for Kitchener-Waterloo. "The new centre and research chairs will help to ensure that Waterloo continues as an international leader in research and development."

Wilson also mentioned grants of some $2 million to match grants received by UW researchers from the Canada Foundation for Innovation.

And he presented awards of $150,000 to three young faculty members under the Premier's Research Excellence Awards program. Winners from UW in this round of the PREA program are Bill Power of chemistry, Jeff Chen and Donna Strickland of physics.

New gift for research on aging

The money "will allow expanded research in areas related to aging, including Alzheimer's disease", an announcement said.

Murray, a retired businessman, is making a $100,000 gift to UW to establish a further scholarship endowment with his daughters, Susan Pearce and Leslie Harwood. His $50,000 gift in 1994 established the Murray Applied Health Research Endowment Fund, which has so far helped 19 students in their studies on aging and the elderly.

The latest initiative, known as the Susan Pearce and Leslie Harwood/Ontario Graduate Scholarships in Science and Technology, will be awarded to graduate students involved in aging research in such areas as nutrition, gait, balance and neuroscience. The endowment will initially allow two scholarships each with an annual value of $15,000 to be awarded each year for the next eight years. During that time, UW's plan to offer a single annual scholarship will be matched by the Ontario government's Graduate Scholarships in Science and Technology program, which will allow two annual scholarships.

UW's Alzheimer Research and Education Program was renamed earlier this year to acknowledge and honor Murray, its founder. Now known as the Murray Alzheimer Research and Education Program, it is a major project of the Centre for Applied Health Research within the faculty of applied health sciences.

After the death of Murray's wife, Helen, he approached UW officials with a vision -- to bring together scholars who would be dedicated to developing quality care for persons with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. The mandate was to take research "off the shelf" by evaluating existing models of care and developing new knowledge and practices for the direct benefit of patients and caregivers.

Murray has personally contributed more than $128,000 to the project, and through his efforts more than $1.5 million in additional support has been raised. He has also been instrumental in establishing partnerships with six innovation centres across Ontario, including nursing homes, homes for the aged, and a private psychiatric hospital. The centres serve as demonstration sites for new knowledge and models of care development through the UW program.

"My motivation for initiating this project was a desire to enhance the quality of life of all persons afflicted and affected by this disease while the search for the cause and cure continues," Murray said.

Drama department cancels 'Lear'

Director and drama department professor Maarten Van Dijk had cast the play and begun preliminary work on the production when he became ill, said Joyce Hahn of the drama department. Since the play was scheduled to run November 24 to 27, there was not enough time for another director to take on the project.

The students involved in the play are rallying to produce a variety show, "Sex, Lies and Other Stuff", which will be in the form of a coffee house, said Hahn. Details have yet to be determined.

The news comes as the first production of the drama department's season is just about ready to hit the stage. "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown", based on the comic strip "Peanuts" by Charles M. Schulz, will be performed October 27-30 in the Theatre of the Arts. It's directed by drama faculty member Joel Greenberg.

Says a publicity announcement: "This musical brings Schulz's cherished 'Peanuts' characters to the stage with all of their loveable quirks and idiosyncrasies firmly in place. You will see Snoopy, the high-flying beagle with a dream; Sally, Charlie Browns jump-roping, valentine-collecting younger sister; the scheming Lucy, famous dispenser of psychoanalysis for a nickel; the Beethoven-loving, Lucy-deflecting Schroeder; Charlie Brown, that loveable round-headed kid unable to succeed at baseball, football-kicking or kite-flying; and Linus, the philosopher of the bunch, with an unnatural dependence on his security blanket."

A special Halloween matinee of "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown" is scheduled for Sunday, October 31, at 2 p.m. Regular performances of the show are at 8 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday next week. Tickets ($10 general, $8 students/seniors, $5 children 12 and under) are available from the Humanities box office at ext. 4908.

The talk of the campus

Two corrections Yesterday's Bulletin, listing faculty members who had just received grants from the Canada Foundation for Innovation, mentioned a professor in the school of accountancy as one of the five. True enough, but the office of research sends a clarification: "The award received in name by Ranjini Sivakumar also involves Carla Carnahan of accountancy." One is the "principal investigator" and so that's the only name that was on the list, but the two are sharing in the grant. And some Bulletin readers yesterday will have been told that Cameron Shelley, receiving the alumni gold medal for PhD studies at convocation this Friday, was from the department of psychology. In fact he's from philosophy, and the majority of readers will have seen the correct information; if you read the Bulletin on a newsgroup and saw "psychology", my apologies.

UW's Midnight Sun solar race car continues to roll south across Australia. At last report, the car and crew were at Tennant Creek, and Midnight Sun was in 22nd place out of 35 surviving entries in the World Solar Challenge. (Cultural note: "Legend has it that the site of Tennant Creek was established when a cart carrying beer and building materials broke down and so, with typical Territorian priority, the intended camp was relocated to where the beer was. This glorious and unusual tale is still told today by the locals for the tourist.")

The first of three brown-bag seminars sponsored by the Employee Assistance Program this term will be held today. Linda Barton, nutritionist in health services, will talk about "Eating for Energy", at 12 noon in Davis Centre room 1302.

Also at 12 noon, the teaching resource office (TRACE) offers a "skills-based workshop" on assessment issues: "Assessment is fundamental to our work as university instructors, but why and how do we assess?" The session will be led by four staff members from TRACE, and takes place in Math and Computer room 5158.

And at 12:30, the noon-hour concert series at the Conrad Grebel College chapel presents Anwar Khurshid, "Rhyming & Poetry in the Raags of Northern India". Admission is free.

The UW computer store will hold the first of a series of "Wednesday Demonstration Days" today in the South Campus Hall concourse. "Each week," writes marketing coordinator Jason MacIntyre, "will feature demonstrations of new hardware, software, and/or peripherals. Faculty, staff, and students are welcome." Today: Academy Systems, HP Brio, and Lexmark.

"Wanted: residence life staff," an ad says. "We are looking for a diverse group of people, interested in and dedicated to helping other students. All UW students are invited to an information session," tonight from 6:00 to 7:00 in the Village I great hall.

And just below there, it's "Italian Night . . . sponsored by Primo" at Mudie's eatery in Village I.

The "new millennium" series at St. Paul's United College continues tonight with a talk by Joseph Novak, of UW's philosophy department, under the title "The Once and Future Man: Tomorrow's Humanity in Science Fiction". The college, at 885-1460, can provide more information.

The second of this fall's two Pascal Lectures will be given this evening: Howard Van Till speaks (at 8:00 in the Theatre of the Arts) on "The Universe: Accidentally Robust, Intelligently Designed, or Optimally Equipped?" Admission is free. Van Till will also be giving two afternoon seminars during his visit to UW, today in the Student Life Centre and tomorrow at St. Jerome's University, both at 2:30 p.m.

Not too far in the future will be this fall's charity ball sponsored by the Math Society. "The theme is Fire and Ice," writes publicity director Nory Prins. "It is a charity ball to benefit the Food Bank of Waterloo Region and the organizations it supports, including Mary's Place, Anselma House, the House of Friendship Hostel and Argus Residence in Waterloo and Trinity Community Table in Cambridge." The ball will be happening Saturday, November 6, with dinner, live and silent auctions, a "dance demonstration" and dancing until 1:30 in the morning. Tickets are $30 single, $55 pair, and more information (as well as tickets) can be had from the Math Society at ext. 2324 or in the office in Math and Computer room 3038.

CAR

Editor of the Daily Bulletin: Chris Redmond
Information and Public Affairs, University of Waterloo
credmond@uwaterloo.ca | (519) 888-4567 ext. 3004
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