![[University of Waterloo]](/goldbar.gif)
| Yesterday |
Tuesday, July 29, 2003
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Editor: Chris Redmond credmond@uwaterloo.ca |
![[Walker]](/images/2003/0128walker.gif)
Bud Walker, UW director of business operations, at the time the Bombshelter was closed in January. Photo by Ryan Chen-Wing, courtesy of 'uwstudent.org'. |
Here's the text of a joint statement issued by Bud Walker, UW director of business operations, and Chris Edey, president of the Federation:
"The Federation of Students and the University of Waterloo are pleased to announce that an agreement has been reached regarding the Federation-run campus bars, the Bombshelter Pub and Federation Hall, which have been closed since January 20, 2003.
"The agreement was reached at a mediation session at the Waterloo Inn yesterday.
"The agreement allows for the bars to open under the authority of a newly created directorate (composed of one University and one Federation representative), which will oversee campus bar operations. Representatives from the University and the Federation will meet with the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario to review the terms of the agreement and to obtain the approval of the commission in principle to its terms.
"'Both sides approached these negotiations with an open mind and a determination to find a deal we could all be comfortable with. As a result, we now have a good agreement and we can move forward with it,' said Chris Edey, Federation of Students President. Edey cautioned, however, that this agreement does not mean that the pubs will open immediately as staff must be hired and trained. 'When we open, we are going to do it properly,' he said.
"The two establishments provide part-time employment for approximately 137 students and their revenues are crucial to the operations of the Federation of Students. As part of the agreement, the Federation agreed to withdraw its motion for an injunction and to consent to an Order dismissing the lawsuit against the University without costs."
Court-ordered mediation has been in progress over the past three months.
![[Sybase construction site]](/images/2003/0729sybase.gif)
Construction has begun
on the new Sybase building that will be part of the research and
technology park on the north campus. In a brief update on the park,
Tom Galloway of plant operations reports that "Servicing is complete and
a new electrical system will be energized
shortly." Galloway also notes that progress is being made on the
landscaping, including a major entrance feature off Columbia
Street, and that a new daycare parking lot and varsity football field
are now complete.
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About that Internet outage: word is that it was the result of construction equipment in downtown Waterloo nicking an overhead cable on the afternoon of July 9. (UW currently buys its external connectivity from a firm that's a subsidiary of Waterloo Hydro, as a new system for Ontario universities is under development.) Repairs were made by mid-morning on the 10th.
On the bright side of recent events, UW's Midnight Sun solar car made an impressive showing in the American Solar Challenge, a number of faculty members have received honours for research achievements, and Student Life 101 brought thousands of new students to campus for a quick preview -- all these things being chronicled by some of my colleagues who kept the Daily Bulletin going while I was away. My thanks to Avvey Peters, Barb Elve, Jesse Rodgers and the others who were responsible.
When I was able to read the Daily Bulletin during my three weeks away, it was mostly in the picturesque Smith Memorial Library in my beloved Chautauqua. On every visit, I find new things to see and do at Chautauqua, and this trip, one small discovery is worth a mention at Waterloo. I discovered that Chautauqua's Chapel of the Good Shepherd has a stained-glass window honouring Florence Li Tim-Oi, whose career is the focus of a centre at UW's Renison College.
Anyway, I'm home again and back at my desk, which is piled high with mail, both paper and electronic. Among my gleanings in the first few hours:
And in another eyeblink or two, the fall term will be starting. Fees are due September 3 and lectures begin on Monday, September 8. The registrar's office notes that "open enrolment" for fall courses, through the Quest computer system, is now under way.
A session on "Web Site Prototyping for Usability" is scheduled today (11 a.m.) in LT3, UW's Centre for Learning and Teaching Through Technology. Says the LT3 web site: "Alan Kirker, LT3's Graphic Designer, will conduct an informal presentation on developing web site interfaces as well as the pros and cons of different prototyping and user-testing techniques. Designing and developing web sites without prior adequate prototyping and user-testing usually leads to a less- effective finished product. Every designer/developer will fall victim to the "get it out there now and fix it later" syndrome at some point in their career. This presentation will look at how this can be minimized through some quick, inexpensive prototyping and testing. The latter portion of the session will be devoted to a discussion forum where people can share their advice and experiences on the subject." RSVPs go to Kirker at ext. 6749. The event will be held in the "Flex lab" on the third floor of the Dana Porter Library.
This afternoon, Tushar Sarkar of India's Jadavpur University will give a colloquium (sponsored by UW's philosophy department) on the little-known Jain religion, which he describes as "a form of non-theistic humanism":
Historical background, clarification of three key-concepts: viz, religion, non-theistic and humanism, basic patterns of anti-theistic arguments found in Jainism, concept of 'god' as a perfect role-model in Jainism, etymology of two Sanskrit words for 'god', intrinsic nature of self vs. self-in-bondage in Jainism, three basic issues in contemporary philosophy of religion, viz, i) monotheism vs. polytheism, ii)idolatry vs. non-idolatry, iii) literal vs. non-literal interpretations of religious language in connection with the 'divine attributes' re-viewed from the Jaina perspective, some social consequences of the Jaina view, Jaina 'karmaphalavada' and the dignity of man in Jainism, different types of 'anupreksha' and their 'existential' tone, the point of calling Jainism 'a religion of non-theistic humanism' reconsidered.The event starts at 2:30 in Humanities room 334.
CAR