![[University of Waterloo]](/images/logobars/goldbar.gif)
| Yesterday |
Thursday, February 10, 2005
|
Editor: Chris Redmond credmond@uwaterloo.ca |
![[Gladwell]](/images/2005/0209gladwell.jpg)
Author
Malcolm Gladwell
speaks
Saturday afternoon, sponsored by the UW library, retail services and
alumni affairs. Interest has been "overwhelming" and
the event has reached capacity, organizers say: "We
regret that we can no longer accept registrations. Only registered
attendees will be admitted. Our apologies."
|
It follows on the morning event last week that drew hundreds of staff, faculty and retirees to the Student Life Centre for cheers and cupcakes and words about Keystone -- the on-campus segment of Campaign Waterloo. Organizers are now talking about what challenges Keystone will set for itself between now and July 1, 2007, when UW reaches its 50th birthday and the campaign has its deadline.
The success of Keystone "sets a phenomenal example for the greater community to follow", said a letter sent from president David Johnston to staff who work night shifts. They're mostly in the plant operations department, food services, the UW police, and information systems and technology.
"I'd like to express my sincere thanks to the many donors, volunteers and sponsors in the campus community," Johnston wrote. He encouraged everybody to attend the event, from 10:00 to 10:30 in the Festival Room, and he's expected to be there tonight and say something about the campaign, along with Keystone staff co-chair Katherine Lithgow.
Meanwhile, daytime staff across campus are munching Keystone goodies too, as some 1,344 "treat-a-gram" cookies were delivered yesterday, the climax of a pre-Valentine promotion. Cookies were on order last month at $3 apiece.
Says Shelley Rudd of the development office: "The yummy chocolate chip cookies on a stick were delivered to faculty, staff, and students on campus, including those at the Distance Education and School of Architecture (Cambridge) locations. Also new this year, senders were able to attach a $10 donation to their order which brought in increased revenue. In total, the program raised more than $4,000.
"Last year, the proceeds were designated to undergraduate and graduate scholarship areas with the greatest need, to take advantage of the University's matching gift program, and organizers are planning to do the same again this year.
"Originally the idea of the Keystone Communications Working Group, this initiative involves participation from volunteers from all four Keystone working groups who helped with order taking, assembly, and delivery of the cookies. Special thanks goes out to all those volunteers and to UW Food Services who baked and donated the cookies!"
The author of three books and numerous scholarly articles concerning sexuality and health in southern Africa, Epprecht will address the historical basis for conflict over the most appropriate way to combat HIV/AIDS in that country. In particular, he will discuss the rationality of the decision by South African President Thabo Mbeki to reject western medical advice about how to combat a disease that kills more than 500 South Africans each day.
The talk will be the inaugural event in a series of public lectures sponsored by UW's department of anthropology. The topic of the series is "Public Anthropology: The Intersection of Health, Culture and Society".
Human health is arguably the most important public policy issue facing Canadians, and is connected to all other human endeavours, lecture organizers said. Epprecht's visit is supported by Learning Initiative Funds from the office of the provost. The second lecture in the series will be delivered March 10 by Roxanne Mykitiuk, professor of law at York University, who is an expert on disability, medical technologies and public policy.
Skidmore writes: "The town is the birthplace of Schiller, and many years ago the Schiller Museum decided to start an archive devoted to the works of Schiller and other famous Swabian writers (surprisingly, there are quite a few Swabians who have influenced German letters over the past 200 years). This archive has grown into the Deutsches Literaturarchiv, and that is where I am spending my days, making use of this wonderful library (close to 500,000 volumes devoted to German literature) and archive (containing almost countless papers, letters, radio and television broadcasts, and photos relating to almost every German writer, living or dead) to complete some projects on Weimar Republic Culture and contemporary Canadian-German literary relations."
His six-month sabbatical leave started January 1.
Here are some other faculty members whose sabbaticals began with the new year, and their plans as reported to UW's board of governors:
![[Lounder]](/images/2005/0207lounder.jpg)
Playing
for Canada as well as for UW's Warriors, Vickie Lounder (a
second-year civil engineering student) was a member of the
National
Junior team that represented the country in the Chile 4 Nations event
in December. "This was a chance of a lifetime to play against the
top junior competition in the world," says Lounder. But it may not
be the only chance in a lifetime: Lounder is hoping for a spot on
the team in the
Junior Pan American Championships to be held in San Juan, Puerto Rico,
next month. Meanwhile, as
the
field hockey season is over in this
climate, Lounder is playing for the
Warrior
indoor hockey squad. This summer, she'll
suit up for Team Nova Scotia, participating in the 2005 Canada
Summer Games, taking place in Regina in August.
|
Tara Collington of French studies has a half-year sabbatical "to pursue a book-length project entitled 'Crossing Space, Crossing Time: A Chronotopic Theory of Transposition'. This project entails the examination of the theory and practice of adaptation -- the transposition of a source text into different cultural contexts or genre. The project is supported by an SSHRC Standard Research Grant."
Peter Huck of civil engineering has a year-long sabbatical leave "to complete the majority of the writing of a book on biological processes in drinking water treatment and distribution".
Frank Safayeni of management sciences is on leave for six months to "further develop the Uncertainty Management program in collaboration with Bell University Labs (this will involve conducting a series of both laboratory and field studies on collaborative work and knowledge management); write papers on the research work that has already been completed; and continue supervision of my graduate students."
Greg Michalenko of environment and resource studies has a six-month sabbatical: "Comparisons will be made of the success of linked environmental preservation and sustainable development initiatives in two isolated areas (the Danube Delta in Ukraine/Romania, and Guantanamo Province of Cuba) where the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Program has established World Biosphere Reserves (I have worked for 9 years with the Niagara Escarpment World Biosphere Reserve). I will also continue work on environmental pedagogy centered on the concepts of sustainability and greening of university campuses."
Harry Panjer of statistics and actuarial science has a year-long sabbatical: "I am planning to write a book on Operational Risk Measurement and Management for Financial Institutions. I will visit several universities in other countries as well as commercial organizations for data and other information."
| WHEN AND WHERE |
|
Technical speaker competition sponsored by Sandford Fleming
Foundation, faculty of engineering, 10 a.m., Engineering II room 3324.
'Innovations in Wireless' seminar by David Yach, Research In Motion, sponsored by Coop Rankings, 11:30, Rod Coutts Hall room 101. Federation of Students candidates forum, Student Life Centre great hall, 1:00. New Democratic MPP Rosario Marchese, "Tuition Fees and the Future of Education", 3:30, Student Life Centre multipurpose room. Career workshop: "Job search strategies", 3:30, Tatham Centre room 1208. 'Should I Get HI? Opportunities in Informatics' lecture by Dominic Covvey, sponsored by Club for Undergraduate Bioengineers, 4:30, Rod Coutts Hall room 305. Upstart Festival of short plays continues tonight, tomorrow and Saturday, Studio 180, Humanities building, details online. Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery Valentine's wine gala, this evening, last-minute information 746-1882. 'Why Corporate Governance Matters', Randall Morck, Harvard University, sponsored by Centre for International Governance Innovation, Friday 12 noon, 57 Erb Street West. Outdoor Art Symposium sponsored by Society of Fine Artists, at UW's Artery Gallery, 158 King Street West, Kitchener: panel discussion Friday 7:30 p.m., exhibition Saturday 10 to 4. Warrior Weekend activities Friday night ("Winterfest", movies, free skate) and Saturday night ("Mini Monte Carlo Night"), details online. International Development Student Conference Saturday at St. Paul's United College, details online. Valentine's dinner Saturday, University Club, $40 per person, reservations ext. 3801. Teaching workshop: "Designing Multiple Choice Questions", Monday 12 noon, details and reservations online. |
A memorial service will be held Saturday afternoon for Klaus D. Woerner, chief executive of one of Waterloo Region's biggest companies, and incidentally a major benefactor of UW, who died Monday. Woerner was founder and leader of ATS Automation Tooling Systems, and at one point Canadian Entrepreneur of the Year. The memorial service will start at 3 p.m. Saturday at the Centre in the Square in downtown Kitchener. The obituary notice adds: "Memorial donations to the University of Waterloo Health Sciences Campus would be appreciated as your expression of sympathy."
The Waterloo Centre for German Studies has launched a newsletter -- half in English, half in German -- and its first issue includes an article by Mathias Schulze of the Germanic and Slavic department on "Using Technology to Teach German". He's describing something called WatPAL, funded through a Learning Initiatives Fund grant: "In the winter semester, 20 students of German who are registered for a 'Written Communication and Grammar' course will be loaned a tablet PC . . . and will use it for their work with the German language. We will analyse learning outcomes (e.g., the German texts students wrote), record learning processes (track their actions on the computer and video them in class), and ask them about their perceptions of these new learning methods and the use of new technology."
The Canadian National Institute for the Blind "Focus on Crocus" campaign continues, with plants for sale until Saturday at TechWorx in South Campus Hall. . . . Tomorrow at noon is the deadline for nominations for 2005-06 executives of the Graduate Student Association. . . . Tax receipts for students (officially known as form T2202a) for 2004 will be mailed out by March 1, the finance office says. . . .
Ruth Parker, a coordinator in the co-op education and career services department since 1982, officially retired February 1. . . . Nominations for the Distinguished Teaching by a Registered Student Award for this year are due tomorrow. . . . Engineering students from across the province will be on campus this weekend for the annual Ontario Engineering Competition, with competitions in seven categories of design and communications. . . .
CAR