Daily Bulletin

Research centre serves three universities

As part of a national consortium with funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), UW has been selected as the site for the Southwestern Ontario Research Data Centre. Other new centres will be located at the University of British Columbia, University of Toronto, University of Calgary, Dalhousie University and the Université de Montréal, the lead institution in the venture.

Of the $5,380,089, announced last month by CFI for the project, the UW centre will receive $506,067 in infrastructure funding for purchase of equipment and for renovations to 1,312 square feet of space in the Psychology, Sociology and Anthropology building, said sociology professor John Goyder, who coordinated the application for the centre from the three area universities. As well, he said, SSHRC will be providing "some operating funds".

Expected to be operational by next spring, the research data centre will provide a locked lab with 10 secure computers not connected to the outside world, says Goyder. They will be available for use by approved researchers -- UW, WLU and Guelph faculty and graduate students who have had their research proposals vetted by Statistics Canada.

Researchers will have access to information from non-census, longitudinal surveys, now available in libraries for the public in a version containing "collapsed code". While data provided to the research centres will provide more information such as birth dates and will allow users to follow anonymous individuals over time, names of survey respondents will not be available.

"For example," said Goyder, "we wil be able to track people who quit smoking, and five or ten years later see if they report a greater feeling of health and well-being."

The centre will be managed by an employee seconded from StatsCan, along with a management committee. Currently a steering committee is in place with representatives of WLU and Guelph, along with UW members Roy Cameron (health studies and gerontology), Mary Thompson (statistics and actuarial science), Sandra Burt (political science), Keith Warriner (sociology), Andrew Barker (office of research) and Goyder.

$40 (or less) to watch the Warriors

The picture grabs attention on a gold flyer that's inviting staff, faculty and other sports fans to buy their 2000-01 season tickets for Warrior football, hockey, basketball and volleyball before the season starts early next month.

Students get their season tickets at no extra charge, but other people who want to see the major-sport teams in action need to buy them. The price is $40, students over the age of 12 $30, seniors $25. Children under 12 are admitted to Warrior games free. Admission is free for everybody to Warrior competition in such other sports as field hockey, badminton and rugby.

Altogether the ticket gives access to "over 60 exciting home events" and "4 great tournaments", the flyer says. It includes admission to the Naismith Classic (men's basketball), the Women's Basketball Shoot-Out, the Oktoberfest men's hockey tournament, and the men's Warrior Volleyball Classic. Season ticket holders also get the Gold & Black fan newsletter and other "special benefits". A free "Warrior e-Watch" news report is also available by e-mail.

The season starts with a home football game this year, as the Warriors will host the McMaster Marauders on Saturday, September 9, at University Stadium on Seagram Drive. Last year, in a break with tradition, there was no home football game to wind up orientation week -- the team played at McMaster, and some 1,000 first-year students followed it there by bus.

Season tickets can be bought at the athletics office in the Physical Activities Complex, or by campus mail (make cheques payable to University of Waterloo).

Note for athletes: The athletics department has announced August and September meetings for "walk-on" athletes in various sports -- newcomers who are hoping for a spot on the teams, ranging from football to swimming. Details are available on the athletics web site.

And there's a possibility of a whole new sport at Waterloo: "There has been interest in starting a women's varsity ice hockey team at Waterloo. The Director is prepared to meet with all interested women this Fall, 2000. Details of this meeting will be publicized in the Fall with all the other varsity sport information."

Sunshine for the holiday weekend

Mill Race, which starts on Friday night at 8 p.m. and continues on Saturday, beginning at noon, is free, with venues along the Grand River in downtown Cambridge (formerly Galt). There, on the main stage, Robin Jones of optometry will be volunteering as MC on Saturday from noon to 2 p.m., and running an open stage nearby from 7 to 9 p.m. Highlights include children's entertainment, crafts, local and internationally known musicians, and a virtual siege of Morris dancers.

UW offices and most services will be closed on Civic Holiday, Monday, August 7. The Computing Help and Information Place will be closed all weekend, from today at 5 p.m. until Tuesday morning at 8. Over the weekend:

If you notice an outage of the campus computer network or any major IST-maintained computing facility during this period, you can report it by telephoning the IST HelpDesk at 888-4357. If the outage has a severe impact on the University computing environment and the appropriate facility-support personnel can be contacted, the problem will be addressed; otherwise, it will be pursued Tuesday morning.

• UW police: on duty 24 hours, 888-4911.
• Student Life Centre: open 24 hours, turnkey desk 888-4434.
• Maintenance emergencies: phone ext. 3793, 24 hours a day.

Barbara Hallett
bhallett@uwaterloo.ca

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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