Live and learn I guess…

This is your chance to meet and talk with like minded students about issues that matter to you. Think of it as a mini-Terry Talks. Each student comes with a 5 minute story in min about whatever topic they like. Everyone’s name is put into a hat and the names that come out get to tell their story to the group.

Its a great chance to meet new people, share ideas, and be inspired!

Terry Tales is happening every 2 weeks in the new Global Lounge from 5-7 on Mondays. Check out the facebook event for more details!

DNA 11 sends you a mouth swab that you use to collect epithelial cells from the inside of your cheek. You then mail these back to the company and they conduct a gel electrophoresis run of your genes. The results of this (the black and white bands often seen on CSI and the like) are then photographed professionally and digitally coloured. The result is an abstract painting of whichever colours you want featuring you.

Its a pretty cool idea and I’d imagine I’d have a lot of fun explaining to people what the painting was all about. However, I had some reservations.

I’ve written about genetic privacy before and am aware of the risks of mailing some company my most personal information. If it is stored digitally on a server in the US it become open to the Patriot Act. If they keep the info and the company goes bankrupt then what happens to the genetic information.

I did a little digging around and it looks like DNA 11 is totally legit. First of all they don’t actually decode your genes, they just get a fancy picture of them. Its the same kind of picture that criminologists use to identify two people. Each picture is unique but you can’t tell what any of the lines actually translate to (hair colour, skin colour, etc.). They also guarantee that they will delete and destroy all of the information and samples that they get after they have finished your piece. I sent them an e-mail and they confirmed all of this for me.

They also do personalized finger prints and kisses!

Nerdy? Check. Conversation piece? Check. Beautiful? Check.

1. To what extent will the proposed 2% tuition increase ($88.59 on a base Arts/Science tuition) be an impediment to you continuing your studies at UBC?
2. Your tuition currently pays for 28%-30% of the operating costs of your UBC education. A government grant and investment income pays the balance. Choose one of the following to rate this 28%-30%:
3. What is the most important thing for UBC to invest in at this time?

I have several problems with these questions, especially the first two.

Question 1: Will an increase of 2% tuition ($89) impede you from attending UBC?

x – It would not be an impediment

x – It would create some financial pressure but I could manage the increase

x – It would seriously impact me and I would have to consider delaying my studies or not returning to UBC

I think that this is a perfectly appropriate question to ask. However, it is worded badly and even more worrisome, it could be used to misrepresent students.

The authors should really specify whether the $89 is for one semester or two. Not a big deal but important if they want to clarify. My bigger concern is the way most students will answer and how that could be used against them. I would guess that if most students answered honestly (without thinking about the consequences of their answers) they would answer that it wouldn’t really impede them from returning. As high as some claim that tuition is I don’t foresee a lot of students leaving university over $100. Maybe I’m wrong, but that’s what I’m going to assume.

The concern with answering with the first option is that the administration will look at their results and say “Look AMS, here is proof that students can deal with larger increases.” That isn’t a good thing. And when the results are released the AMS, GSS, and students at large need to make sure that the questions aren’t used against them.

2. Your tuition currently pays for 28%-30% of the operating costs of your UBC education. A government grant and investment income pays the balance. Choose one of the following to rate this 28%-30%:

x – Too high

x – An appropriate range

x – Too low

Ahh the Goldilocks question. Too hot, too cold, or just right. The big problem with this question is that the issue is much to complicated to boil down to the three answers. I sympathize with the university on this but still think that this isn’t so much a question about tuition as it is a financial structure question. One that students at large and even those on the inside will have trouble answering.

Overall I’m quite upset by the survey. It strikes me as being very teleological (having a goal in mind before it is concluded). It is also possible that this was drafted up in response to the AMS tuition referendum question that passed. The university has subtly used the survey to show students that a) the tuition ‘increases’ that everyone is in a fuss about are very small and b) most of the money we get comes from outside sources (revenue or grants).

While I do agree with them that a 2% yearly increase is perfectly acceptable (I voted No on the referendum question) I disagree with the purpose of the survey and hope that the Administration didn’t mean it to be as nefarious as it could be interpreted.

And just for the record I beat Insiders on that one.

If you are a student bent on making a positive difference in the world then this is the place to get your start. This year, the 3rd CGIU is happening in Miami from April 16-18. It will undoubtedly be as awesome this year as it was last year. Participants will get to hear speeches from and interact with world leaders in many disciplines. Be sure to check out the webcast from last year’s meeting to get a scope of what happens. More importantly you will meet dozens of other university students from all around the world engaged in globe changing projects.

There is a catch though. Potential applicants need to make a ‘Commitment’ to the Clinton Global Initiative in one of 5 areas: Education, Environment & Climate Change, Peace & Human Rights, Poverty Alleviation, or Public Health. My commitment was the UBC MIX project and fell under the Education category.

If you are interested in submitting a project you are currently working on to the CGIU and attend be sure to check out the CGIU homepage. The early application deadline has already passed but the final deadline is February 22, 2010. It is crucial that you start working on your application early as it is quite a lengthy process.

UBC is also looking at finding some support for student’s who are interested in applying. I’d be happy to help you out with your application and show you mine from 2007. UBC Student Development also wants to help out so please contact Kim Kiloh if you intend to apply. You can look her up in the UBC Directory. The best way to contact me is to e-mail me – geoffcosteloe at gmail dot com (phonetically spelled but you know how to fix it).

Best of luck applying!

If you are attending (and here comes the shameless plug) I’m running two sessions that day that you might think about signing up for. They first is ‘Finding Your Element’ where I will pass on some advice from Sir Ken Robinson’s best selling book The Element. It will be an intorverted look at yourself to see whether or not your goals are in line with your leadership style.

The second session will be a presentation about UBC MIX, which has been chosen as an SLC Highlighted Project this year. If you are interested in what UBC MIX is all about or want to find a way to get involved please come out and get some more info.

Hope to see you all there!

That’s what researchers University of Bath are looking at. Lead by Adrian Bowyer, the team has created RepRap: an open source machine that is capable of creating (at least in part) a copy of itself.
You may have heard of three dimensional printers before. They print an object layer upon layer so that the final product has shape and form. These printers usually cost tens of thousands of dollars to buy. RepRap is trying to change all that.
Lets say your friend had a RepRap. They could download open source designs to create anything: coat hangers, doors, desks, whatever you could dream up. These might be made in small pieces that you have to assemble, but almost anything is doable. Great, your friend has his own little factory, but how does that help you?
What if your friend could program RepRap to make a copy of itself? Then you can have your own little factory on your desktop, to create whatever you need or more RepRaps for your friends.

Check out this awesome video below and RepRap’s homepage!

RepRap from Adrian Bowyer on Vimeo.

Its been a fair challenge to figure out but I thought I would share with you what I’ve learned so far.

There is a steep learning curve to cryptics. It often requires recognizing certain words in the clue that direct you to solve the clue in a specific manner. These various manners are relatively consistent and include double definitions, hidden words, reversals, cryptic answers, anagrams, and more that I don’t totally understand yet. The best way to learn is to jump right in, so here is our first example clue (from Wikipedia):

Found ermine, deer hides damaged (10)

You’ll notice that when read as a sentence the clue makes almost no sense. This is the case for almost all cryptic clues. Remember that this isn’t the Jeopardy style crosswords that you are used to. The clue itself won’t direct you to the answer, it is a puzzle within itself.

I have found that the best way to start solving a clue it to do two things: look for a ’style’ clue and trying to split the clue into two parts. Almost every clue can be split into one part that gives a rough synonym of the word (sometimes they are very misleading) and another half that gives you the tools to solve the clue. The split between these parts is often in an unexpected spot. So in this clue, you might assume that it is the comma, which is wrong. A good way to find the split is to look for the ’style’ clue. These are often verbs. hides is the ’style’ clue in this cryptic and it tells us that this is a hidden word style, meaning that the word is actually hidden within the other words of the clue. If you had read the clue as a sentence you would have read hides as skins, but again, nothing is as it seems.

You’ll be happy to know that the hard part is finished. Next, we have to find where the answer is hiding. The (10) at the back tells us how many letters are in the answer was two words it would read (4,6) or something of the sort. Because hides is our divide between the two sections we can look at damaged and see that it has only 7 letters in it, which isn’t enough for our solution. We then move to Foundermine, deer and, looking within it we find

Found ermine deer,

The solution to this clue is undermined, a ten letter word contained within the first half of the cryptic and is somewhat synonymous with damaged, the second half of the cryptic. The nice thing about cryptics is that when you get the answer you are 100% sure you are right unlike regular crosswords that can sometimes have several ‘correct’ answers to a question.

Okay, on to another clue. This one is a bit tougher (which seems impossible, I know).

Returned beer fit for a king (5)

Again, we start by looking for a ’style’ clue or cutting the cryptic in half. Like last time, the ’style’ word is a verb, but unlike last time it doesn’t sit in the break between the halves. Returned is the ’style’ word and it indicates a reversal. Other clues for a reversal can be ‘receding’, ‘in the mirror’, ‘going the wrong way’, or ‘rising up’ (for vertical solutions), and ‘going left’ for horizontal ones. This ’style’ involves reading a word backward to get the solution.

Our next step is to figure out where the break in the cryptic is. Because Returned comes immediately before beer it would be a good assumption that they want you to read beer backwards, spliting the cryptic into beer and fit for a king, where fit for a king is our rough definition or synonym. The only problem is that the solution contains 5 letterTerry › Edit Post — WordPresss (as indicated in the parentheses) and beer only has 4 letters. Here is where a scrap piece of paper comes in handy. If you think (and write down) all of the synonyms for beer with 5 letters in them you will eventually come up with lager. Reading lager backwards (as indicated by returned) we ret regal, something that is fit for a king. It sounds like a huge leap of thinking, but it is incredibly satisfying when you get an answer.

Here’s a fun one (maybe its just me who thinks its fun). Its also a pretty straightforward one.

I’m a leader of Muslims!

Before we start this one, an important point should be made. You should always ignore capitals and any punctuation in a cryptic, they are only there to mislead you. The only exceptions to this rule is when the cryptic ends in a ! or ?. A ! indicates that the cryptic can’t be broken into two discreet parts or that the whole word is a definition. A ? indicates a need for a dramatically different interpretation of the words.

This clue could actually be one that you would see in a traditional crossword and you might be able to guess the answer right away: Imam. Further inspection will confirm this. In this case the ’style’ clue is the ! and leader of. When you see words like leader, follower or something that seems like a sort of hierarchy, it usually is. In this case we look at the leader of the word Muslims to get M (the first letter). When you put this letter after I’m a you get I’maM and ignoring punctuation and captials makes the solution even clearer. It is truly genius to be able to hide a solution in a question and that makes seeing it even cooler.

One more really hard one (I couldn’t get it):

Bishop turned on the gas light (6)

So initially I thought that turned was the ’style’ clue and directed me to do a reversal (it being turned). I was way off however. Turns out that the break in the cryptic is between gas and light. Light is the definition/synonym and the rest is the tools to get there.

Now they throw a rather obscure reference at you. On a chess score sheet, the bishop is referred to as B. Chess is an unfortunately overly referenced part of cryptics. A synonym for turned on is ‘lit’ and a elemental symbol for a gas (helium) is ‘HE’. Put these all together and you ge B+LIT+HE= Blithe. Blithe is a rather unused word now. It dates to before the 12th century and means being joyous and happy or light-hearted. (I guess its the opposite of dreary). Hence the second half of the cryptic, light. How you would ever make those jumps blows me away.

Search around the internets and you’ll find some free cryptics. A good site by GP Tucker has them here.

There is also a some places to learn about other styles that come up (there are quite a few more than are mentioned here). This is a good one.

I’ll post 3 more and see if any Terry readers can get them.

Equilibrium shown by graduate with weapon (7)

Gold metal of the mouth (4)

Counts on parts of swimming pools lacking extra opening (7)

Remember, getting the answer means nothing. To prove you got it you have to explain how you would get the answer.

Good luck!!

So recently feathers have been ruffled people have been causing a ruckus around an ad attempted to be published in the two major Calgary papers. The ad, produced by the Vancouver Humane Society (VHS), depicts a competing cowboy calf-roping a calf as a bully/baby relationship.

Peter Fricker of the Vancouver Humane Society on Monday:

We think the calf roping is one of the cruelest of rodeo events. We felt that there wasn’t any other major animal protection group taking on that issue at the stampede.

Obviously, whats good for the goose must be good for the gander he has some hangups.

One may wonder why the Vancouver Humane Society is the one doing the protesting. Are the Calgary Human Society volunteers to busy working in their oil rigs and churches to care about a poor defenseless animal? VHS must have thought so: they didn’t even contact the CHS before pitching the ad. Actually, the CHS has chosen the high ground and rather than crowing complaining about the issue from a distance, they are actually on the ground involved in the Stampede. Rodeo events at the Stampede are monitored by both the Alberta Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the CHS.

The role of livestock and animals central to the theme of the Stampede. The event has persisted for more than 97 years since Guy Weadick produced the first “Frontier Days and Cowboy Championship Contest in 1912″. The idea was and remains to be a celebration of the pioneer spirit that settled the Prairies. Along with the rodeo there are shows and exhibitions such as the World Blacksmithing Championship, petting zoos, milking demos, and live auctions. The Aboriginal Plains People have been a crucial part of the celebration since the Stampede’s 1912 inception and allows us city folk to learn and take part in tipi raising contests, trying bannock, and learning about traditional music and dance. It truly is an event that allows Calgarians and Albertans to be proud as peacocks about their history.

And yet, it is the apparent horrors of the Rodeo that always attract the attention of animal rights activists like moths to a flame.

The events that occur at the Calgary Stampede rodeo and at other rodeos around the world are based off of the daily activities of the ranching pioneer’s who settled the plains (save perhaps bull riding, that started out of boredom). If you are moving a herd of cattle from one grazing area to another and a calf breaks away from the main herd, whats a cowboy to do? Call the SPCA to pick it up for them? No, you rope it, just like they’re doing in the competition.

These events didn’t start out as a competitive event. When Weadick started the Calgary Stampede and Exhibition, it was to exhibit the prairie way of life. There was no professional rodeos, just local joes who came out to meet, have a laugh, and have a go. The historical culture that persists at the Stampede should be celebrated as a part of this nation’s history, just as we still allow various aboriginal Canadians to practice their traditional hunting.

What about the actual animal injuries as a result from tie-down roping? The VHS claims that “Calves roped while running routinely have their necks snapped back by the lasso, often resulting in neck injuries.” They are all hat and no cattle. In reality, injuries are incredibly rare. A report done by the New Zealand Rodeo Cowboys Association (NZRCA) and the National Animal Welfare Advosry Committee (NZ) states:

The NZRCA has collected statistics over the last 20 years and reports that there is a very low level of injuries. Injuries are probably overestimated since any sort of injury from a small laceration to a fractured limb or death are recorded. In the period January 1999-Feburary 2000, injuries recorded by veterinarians, from trucking and yarding associated with rodeos, as well as those related to the events, numbered 42 out of 5527 animals (0.76%). Calf roping accounted for 4 of those injuries (out of 646 calves) and one calf was euthanased. Reports from the USA also indicate that there are few injuries associated with the modern rodeo. For example, one minor injury out of 915 calfroping runs (August-September 1994), 15 injuries from 27,767 animal runs at 19 rodeos (1998-1999) and 15 injuries from 26,584 animal runs at 21 rodeos (1998-2000).

Full report here.

That’s far fewer injuries than you would expect sending your kid out to play little league soccer.

The animal rights debate will resurface at every Stampede, and it should. It is important to make sure that we are keeping watch of our practices and treating the livestock well. But lets get real here: the Malibu princesses walking around with a little dog inside their purses are being just as cruel as the cowboys at a rodeo. These activists, although well intentioned, are making a mountain out of a molehill overreacting.

We wouldn’t want to celebrate the role that animals have had in our society and history would we?

I’ll be watching the Stampede this week, cheering on my favourite roper – Fred Whitfield.

Original Source:

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/calgary/story/2009/06/29/rodeo-ad-humane-society-calgary-stampede-calf-roping.html?ref=rss

Happy Canada Day everyone.

Today is one of my favourite days of the year because we get to celebrate the 142nd birthday of our country. Its not just a paltry rip off of July 4th either, its the day we get to gloat about living in the best nation in the world.

As part of the day of civic pride, I thought I would share with you my favourite 5 Canadians. These are people who inspire me and we should all be proud of. The list isn’t in any particular order.

1. Sue Johanson – Sex Educator and Education Activist

If you have never seen Sue live, its a real treat. At 88 years old, she shakes up our stereotypes of women, sex-education, and octogenarians with hilarious, candid stories. I remember her describing (and acting out) how boys will attempt to hide their unwanted erections in grade 8 math class. Through stories like this she manages to connect to her audience on levels no other health worker can. Yes, her messages are very much the same as any other RN or health worker (wear condoms, talk to your partner, don’t pressure/or be pressured in to anything, etc.) but her real value is that when she talk, people really listen. They leave believing that they aren’t alone in what is usually an awkward growing experience and that they can talk to their friends/parents/doctors about issues around sexual health.

Sex truly is a universal motif. As uncomfortable as it may be to talk about, its the one thing that almost every person on the planet has (or will have) some experience in. Sue taps into that universal knowledge bank and proves that you can have an impact on lives no matter how old you are.

She was also awesome on The Hour. Check out the intro here.

2. My Grandfather/Canadian Military

If there is one area that Canada has continued to punch about its weight class in it is our military. We have a record of sacrifice and honour in all of our engagements. Our politicians have played a part in this record, putting Canadians in harm’s way only when it is necessary to protect our citizens or values (some people think otherwise).

My late grandfather served for his entire career in the Forces. He was a shining personification of the Canadian military: polite and modest yet strong, steady, and ready to quietly do what needs to be done. The members of the forces that I know have similar traits. They are some of the most professional people I have ever encountered. They are certainly an inspiration to me and hopefully, one day they will get the respect they deserve in this country.

3. Jack Layton – Leader of the NDP/Crazy Socialist/Trekkie

People who know me probably think that this is a strange one to be on my list. I can’t stand Jack Layton. I don’t like his party and I don’t like his vision for the country. What I can respect though is him as a model politician. I met Jack on UBC campus once after he gave a brief speech about some of his economic plans were he to become PM. It was nuts: something about restricting the amount oil and gas that will be shipped to the US every year. After he was done he walked out into the audience to meet with the students who came to hear him. I shook his hand and asked him about his plan.

Me – “You do realize that your plan for Canadian business is akin to nationalizing private industry. Is that how it is intended?”

Jack – “Yes.”

Its very rare to meet a politician (Federally or even at AMS council) who will give you a straight answer. I can respect that. He knew that we were at odds about the issue so instead of trying to appeal to my sentiments or forcing his upon me he simply stated his position. Canada could benefit from a more straightforward style of politics and Jack Layton emulates how politicians should present themselves.

I just hope he never gets any real power. That would be some scary stuff.

4. Terry Fox

Maybe the only person on my list with a true international following, Terry is one of the most iconic figure of just before my time. Living in the second largest country in the world should not only fill us with pride, it should be seen as a challenge. Running/biking/wheeling from one ocean to the other is a time honourd challenge. It is a task that is daunting to most people. But, some individuals, given significant motivation and an unbreakable will, rise to that challenge. Terry Fox should the world the power of Canada’s quiet determination. He is undoubtedly a Canadian who will forever be immortalized in our psyche.

5. Roberta Bondar – Canada’s First Woman in Space

Dr. Bondar is a example of Canada’s continuing role in international science and exploration. Not only was she a contributor to Canada’s successful space agency, CSA, but she continues to impact science, business, and medical communities as a public speaker, consultant, and activist. Her space research concerning the adaptability of humans to chaotic environments has been beneficial to major companies, like Pfizer, and government organizations, like the FBI.

It is important to also remember Canada as a scientific leader. Roberta Bondar belongs up with Canada’s most prolific researchers such as Banting, Polanyi, and the inventors of McIntosh apples, the zipper, plexiglass, green currency ink, and basketball.

So there you have it. A list of my favourite Canadians.

Whose on your list?

PS – I’m preparing a list of my least favourite Canadians to be released on Trudeau’s birthday. I’m also open to suggestions for that.