The Silhouette - November 22, 2018

NEWS: So long, Patrick Deane // PAGE 5 ARTS & CULTURE: Westdale store holds workshops with local chefs // PAGE 19 SPORTS: Changing the face of men’s health with the men’s rugby team // PAGE 22

INSIDE>>

What A MESS S Hamilton musician, Ellis, takes a hands-on approach to her music // PAGE 17

The Silhouette

Thursday, November 22, 2018

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Thursday, November 22, 2018 McMaster University’s Student Newspaper

EDITORIAL BOARD editor-in-chief | thesil@thesil.ca Emily O’Rourke @emily_oro digital media specialist | dms@msu.mcmaster.ca Aaron de Jesus managing editor | managing@thesil.ca Sasha Dhesi @SashaDhesi production editor | production@thesil.ca Hamza Furmli online editor | online@thesil.ca Yvonne Lu sections

Cassidy Bereskin news reporter Ryan Forrest Tse news@thesil.ca news editor

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Sabrina Macklai opinion@thesil.ca

NOVEMBER 12, 1965

opinion editor

Justin Parker Jessica Carmichael sports@thesil.ca

sports editor sports reporter

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& culture editor Razan Samara & culture reporter Rya Buckley aandc@thesil.ca media

Kyle West Catherine Goce production coordinator Sukaina Imam production coordinator Sabrina Lin production@thesil.ca photo editor

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Sasha Roshan Martin Burwell online@thesil.ca

OUT OF THIS WORLD In 1965, McMaster Prof. Alfred Kristofferson, whose studies of the human brain may have helped the United States conquer space. Prof. Kristofferson added that he would probably be using male students for subjects, “studying them intensively for a fairly lengthy period. The project was operating on a grant of $82,000 from the National Aeronautical and Space Administration, otherwise known as NASA.

video editor

social media coordinator

COVER PHOTO Ariel Bader-Shamai Sukaina Imam

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www.thesil.ca | Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018

The Silhouette

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News Student organizations respond to We controversy Despite the allegations being levelled against We, Free the Children McMaster believes the charity’s work should not be discredited

C/O FREE THE CHILDREN MCMASTER Balsam Fasih Contributor

An investigative article published by Canadaland on Oct. 15 alleges that the WE Charity, formerly “Free The Children,” has partnerships with at least three corporations that use child labour, including Hershey’s, Kellogg’s and Unilever.

While it is not explicit in Canadaland’s investigation, it appears that their claim that Hershey’s uses child labour stems from a 2015 lawsuit filed

by Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP. This lawsuit accuses Hershey’s of using cocoa beans from West African suppliers that use child labour.

In November 2016, Amnesty International published a report that reveals that Kellogg’s and Unilever obtain palm oil from Wilmar International Ltd. Amnesty International investigated some of Wilmar’s plantations and discovered several

human rights abuses, including the use of child labour.

“The Kellogg Company (Kellogg’s), Nestlé and Reckitt Benckiser are sourcing palm oil from refineries where the palm oil has been directly supplied or, at the very least, been mixed with palm oil produced on plantations where there are severe labour rights abuses,” reads the Amnesty International report.

The report suggests it is “highly likely” that Unilever uses palm oil from plantations where there are labour rights abuses.

The We charity logo has been used to promote some of these companies’ products.

Included in the Canadaland report is an image of a Hershey’s chocolate display at a Walgreens store.

The display features an image of a smiling African child, the Me to We logo and the phrase “Together with Hershey’s, Walgreens helps children here and everywhere.”

The specific Walgreens locations where such displays were found is not mentioned in the report. However, Canadaland linked the display to a 2018 brand cause campaign for Hershey’s via the Me to We ‘Track Your Impact’ website.

Adriana Skaljin and Krupali Shah, co-presidents of Free the Children McMaster, maintain that their club does not work with any of We’s corporate partners. Instead, the club focuses on contributing to the Hamilton community and supporting education initiatives in India.

The co-presidents raise concerns about the Canadaland report’s sources and credibility and believe that the issue must be further investigated.

“I definitely see the need to explore this issue more and gather details on the partnerships from credible sources.

Until that is done, however, I do not think we can discredit any work done by We charity and its

association thus far,” said Shah.

Both Skaljin and Shah state that their involvement with We has had a positive impact on their lives.

“As someone who felt like just a small person in a world of possibility for change, We Charity empowered me to believe in my capability for making a difference,” said Skaljin.

As for the McMaster Students Union clubs department’s take on the controversy, MSU cubs administrator Josephine Liauw says that clubs are prohibited from using their financial allocation to make direct donations to any third party, including charities.

“Individual clubs are at liberty to manage their respective relationships with external organizations as they see fit, provided that all club conduct is governed by their respective constitution and remains in compliance with the Clubs Operating Policy,” said Liauw.

In response to the accusations, We served Canadaland with a notice of libel. The notice announces We’s intent to pursue legal action against Canadaland for defamation.

We accuses the news organization of using an altered image of a Kellogg’s cereal box featuring the Me to We logo as evidence of We’s partnership with Kellogg’s, which We calls a “non-existent partnership,” in addition to using unnamed sources in the report.

The organization is also demanding the retraction of the article and asks that any questions about the case be directed to info@we.org.

@theSilhouette

4 |

NEWS

Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018 | www.thesil.ca

Renovations and longer hours likely coming to HSL The SRA health sciences caucus is working with the library administration to extend Saturday hours and replace bookshelves with study spaces

The SRA represenatatives are taking a unique approach, looking to redistribute HSL hours rather than extend them.

KYLE WEST / PHOTO EDITOR Ryan Tse News Reporter

McMaster students may see changes in the Health Sciences Library study space and operational hours as soon as this year.

Student Representative Assembly health sciences representatives Devin Roshan and Tushar Tejpal are working closely with HSL director Jennifer McKinnell to redistribute Sunday hours to Saturday and replace bookshelves with more cubicles and desks.

The initiative is part of the SRA health sciences year-plan and aims to address concerns about limited study space and hours in HSL. “When I was elected, I had a lot of conversations with students who were saying that it was very difficult to find cubicles, particularly during midterms and exams,” Roshan said.

Roshan and Tejpal have been meeting regularly with McKinnell over the summer and into the school year. While short-term changes were diffi-

cult to implement, the plans for a summer 2019 renovation have recently been approved.

The renovations will involve removing some bookshelves downstairs and replacing them with cubicles or desks.

In addition, new study rooms may be constructed under the main stairway, and some computers may be removed in favour of desk space. The project is not related to the current closure of the reading pavilion room downstairs.

The renovations to the library are planned to begin in the summer of 2019 and finish before the fall.

Limited library hours have long been a concern of students and a priority of the SRA reps.

In the past, SRA representatives have been able to successfully lobby for extended hours as the exam period approaches. For

example, thanks to student advocacy, Thode library now stays open until 3 a.m. during the second half of the semester.

The health sciences representatives have been working to implement longer hours dating back to the 2016-2017 year.

However, extending HSL past the typical 10:45 p.m. closing time is not possible, largely because the library is located in the same building as the Hamilton Health Sciences Centre, which has jurisdiction over the closing time of the library.

“In the past, representatives have advocated for extended hours, like in Thode, but that is actually not possible due to security reasons,” Roshan said.

This year’s representatives have taken a different approach, looking to redistribute hours rather than simply extending them.

“My plan is essentially to look at what hours are not being utilized and how we can better use those hours for students,” Roshan said.

Specifically, Roshan and Tujpal are advocating for a

The renovations will involve removing some bookshelves downstairs and replacing them with cubicles or desks. redistribution of two or three hours from Sunday to Saturday, so the library will open later on Sundays, but stay open longer on Saturdays. Right now, the library closes at 5:45 p.m. on Saturdays, and opens at 10 a.m. on Sundays.

According to the health sciences representatives, statistics show that there are relatively few students coming into HSL on Sunday mornings.

This plan is also more feasible than previous ones in terms of staff costs, which have been another factor that complicates extending hours.

“It is essentially a more cost-effective plan for us.

Instead of asking for more

funding, we are just redistributing hours so that we’re still at a balance for the cost,” Roshan said.

The next steps for the health sciences caucus for the extended Saturday hours project is to organize a health sciences faculty petition to get support for redistributing hours.

“Once we get a compiled list of over 80 to 100 individuals, we are going to present that information to Jennifer McKinnell and from there, she can go above to her superiors and present that and then hopefully that will lead to change,” Roshan said.

The renovations to the library are planned to begin in the summer of 2019 and finish before the fall. Roshan and Tejpal are optimistic that a pilot project for extended Saturday hours will begin this year. @tweetingryantse

www.thesil.ca | Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018

The Silhouette

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MSU hosts free speech town hall In response to Doug Ford’s mandate, the university is staying firmly committed to its free expression guidelines

KYLE WEST / PHOTO EDITOR Anastasia Gaykalova Contributor

On Nov. 14, students and other members of the McMaster community met at TwelvEighty to join McMaster Students Union president Ikram Farah, McMaster University president Patrick Deane and associate vice president (Equity and Inclusion) Arig al Shaibah in a discussion about how the university is responding to Ontario premier Doug Ford’s free-speech policy directive.

The mandate was promised during Ford’s campaign and calls on post-secondary institutions across Ontario to establish a “free-speech policy” that includes a definition of free speech and embodies principles based on the University of Chicago “Statement on Principles of Free Expression,” which states that schools should not “shield students from ideas or opinions that they disagree with or find offensive.”

According to Ford, if universities do not comply with the directive, they will face funding

cuts.

Nevertheless, most of the MSU’s town hall event focused on the topic of free speech more broadly, not the nuances of Ford’s recently promised directive.

Nevertheless, most of the MSU’s town hall event focused on the topic of free speech more broadly, not the nuances of Ford’s recently promised.

According to Deane, the university is seeking to ensure that it is a healthy place for disagreement. He cited the Socrates Project as an example of a project that exemplifies the university’s commitment to free expression.

Deane explained at Ford’s

directive does not ask universities to include the freedom to protest in their free speech policies, which to Deane makes the directive incomplete. Deane affirmed that the university needs to comply with the government while staying true to the beliefs of the university, which recognizes the right to protest.

Deane says the university’s own “free expression guidelines” serve this function.

At the event, Shaibah stressed the importance of dissent. Some attendees were concerned with how the university will ensure the safety of participants and speakers in the event of protest at events. Deane explained that a large part of it will lie in the actions undertaken prior to an event.

For instance, it is the responsibility of the organizers of a particular event to recognize how controversial the speaker they are inviting is and make accommodations, such as the addition of a mediator, accordingly. He explained that the use of force should be a last resort.

Deane said that protesters are allowed to disagree, but they cannot strip rights from others, particularly speakers. He stressed the need balance rights and ensure that force is not the answer.

According to Ford, if universities do not comply with the directive, they will face funding cuts.

Some attendees also brought up Jordan Peterson, whose lecture at McMaster in March 2017 was disrupted by campus activists. These students asked how safety will be maintained should the university host a controversial figure like Peterson again.

According to Farah, students on both sides were harmed and threatened by Peterson then, creating an even larger issue

than the protest of the event itself.

Deane said students wishing to protest are encouraged to look at the guidance document, which ensures protest is peaceful and allows for debate.

This conversation turned into a discussion about the de-platforming of speakers.

Some attendees argued that expression of opinion is a right but being granted a platform is not. According to Deane, the university will only engage in dep-latforming if the opinions voiced violate the law.

Overall, McMaster will aim to comply with Ford’s policy, but also seek to preserve students’ right to “acceptable” forms of protest. The university will be submitting a statement on the recognition of the right to protest to the province.

@theSilhouette

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NEWS

Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018 | www.thesil.ca

Mac changes over Deane’s term Despite being in his role for nine years, Deane’s most prominent and controversial initiatives were implemented only last year Grace Kuang Contributor

McMaster president Patrick Deane is approaching the end of his second five year-term in his role as president at the university. Over the past nine years, Deane oversaw significant changes at McMaster, such as the addition of new infrastructural developments and interdisciplinary programs at the university.

“It will be extremely difficult to leave McMaster,” said Deane. “I was welcomed here nine years ago and from that first day to this, I have been amazed at the ground breaking work of our researchers, the commitment of our students to making a difference, and the dedication of the staff, alumni and friends of the university to expanding McMaster’s impact on our community and our world.”

In 2011, Deane penned a letter addressing the McMaster community titled “Forward with Integrity: A Letter to the McMaster Community.” In the letter, Deane emphasized that

all of McMaster’s continued success will depend on the cultivation of integrity.

The letter advocated for integrity in four key and interconnected areas: student experience, specifically experiential learning, self-directed learning and interdisciplinary education, research, McMaster’s relationship with the surrounding community and the university’s dedication to internationalization.

“At McMaster, the evidence is that in the category of ‘Enriching Educational Experiences,’ which includes experiential activities, we fare a little better than our sister institutions in Ontario, but not as well as comparable U.S. Peers,” reads part of the letter.

Over the last few years, McMaster has focused heavily on experiential learning, most recently developing an innovation minor for students and partnering with Riipen Networks to create a continuing education project-based learning course.

Another one of Deane’s priorities concerned interdisciplinary education. During

Deane’s term, interdisciplinary programs such as the justice, political philosophy and law program and the integrated business and humanities program were created.

In his letter, Deane also stressed his goals for internationalization.

“Internationalization of the university by the presence of foreign students, by faculty involvement in a network of research alliances abroad, by faculty and student travel for research and development purposes, and above all by the adoption of an internationalized perspective in curriculum and program design on our campus: this is not only desirable and appropriate to present circumstances, it is urgently needed,” reads part of the letter.

McMaster’s model for global engagement was solidified in 2017. In addition, last year, tuition was reduced for international PhD students.

As such, it appears that some of Deane’s largest and most controversial initiatives were implemented within the last year.

One of these was the smoke and tobacco-free campus policy, which entailed the university becoming the first one in the province to claim to be 100 per cent spoke-free.

While the policy was praised by some, other students and groups, particularly the McMaster Students Union Student Representative Assembly, cautioned against the policy in an effort to prioritize “considerations of student safety, accessibility, and comprehensive access to McMaster University when considering implementation.”

This past year, Deane also helped create and implement McMaster’s free expression guidelines, which evoked mixed reactions from the campus community. The guidelines sought to strike a balance between protecting free speech and the right to protest.

However, a number of students, specifically student activists, expressed concern that the guidelines would stifle dissension and silence marginalized voices.

Deane will be departing for Queen’s University in July 2019.

Currently, it is uncertain who will replace Deane as McMaster’s next president.

In 2011, Deane penned a letter addressing the McMaster community titled “Forward with Integrity: A Letter to the McMaster Community.” In the letter, Deane emphasized that all of McMaster’s continued success will depend on the cultivation of integrity. @theSilhouette

Deane will be leaving to join Queens University C/O JD HOWELL

www.thesil.ca | Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018

The Silhouette

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Financial accountability in the MSU The MSU’s 2018 annual audit reports a net loss of $149,000

CATHERINE GOCE / PHOTO REPORTER

Tanvi Pathak Contributor

In the wake of the University of Ottawa administration’s recent decision to end their agreement with the university’s student federation, the University of Ottawa is expected to no longer recognize the SFUO as an undergraduate student association by Dec. 24. The decision followed the university’s alleged discovery of fraud and financial mismanagement by SFUO executive members earlier this year.

In light of the situation unfolding at the University of Ottawa, student unions across the province are being asked questions about their financial transparency, accountability and management.

The McMaster Student Union undergoes a yearly financial audit to avoid any risks associated with financial mismanagement from any executive member or employee. The union’s annual audit stretching back to 2015 can be viewed on the MSU website.

Each year, the MSU hires a globally respected firm to conduct the audit for the con-

solidated financial statements.

This year, the MSU worked with Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler during the months of June and July to conduct the audit.

In addition, a cheque amounted to $70,659 issued to the university last February was held by the MSU. The reasons underlying this were not substantiated in the report.

KPMG published a fully consolidated report and audit findings regarding the MSU’s financial reporting. The audit findings report highlights various important items in its disclosure. Some of them concern risk of management override of controls, meaning the potential

for the MSU to fraudulently misclassify information.

“We did not identify any issues regarding management override of controls,” reads a part of the report. “As a result of the audit work completed, we did not identify any issues related to fraud risk associated with the revenue recognition of the MSU.” Scott Robinson, the vice president (Finance) for the MSU, reported in his memo post that the report disclosed that “the MSU is in a healthy fiscal state” with a “strong reserve in the operating fund.”

Nevertheless, the 2018 annual audit reports a net loss of $149,000 compared to a gain of $660,403 in the previous year.

“The loss is linked to poor market performwwance of the Toronto Stock Exchange and New York Stock Exchange over the past year, specifically during the months of January to April 2018,” reads part of the report.

The report also notes that a number of cheques written out by the MSU have yet to be accepted by the payee.

“These held cheques

amounted to $51,962 for which KPMG has proposed an adjustment for which management has corrected. Upon further inquiry with management, the cheques primarily relate to student organizations and students on campus who have submitted a request to be reimbursed for expenses but have yet to collect the cheques,” reads part of the report.

In light of the situation unfolding at the University of Ottawa, student unions across the province are being asked questions about their financial transparency, accountability and management.

In addition, a cheque

amounted to $70,659 issued to the university last February was held by the MSU. The reasons underlying this were not substantiated in the report.

In previous years, KPMG raised concerns about the MSU’s inventory count procedures for Union Market, TwelvEighty and Compass.

This was brought to the attention of the MSU in the year 2016 and they have since undertaken the necessary steps to ensure the procedures are appropriate again. KPMG has not noted any more issues regarding inventory count this year.

When asked for specific details, Robinson stated that he could not specify further. Nevertheless, it appears the MSU’s systems of accountability are aligned with KPMG’S quality control objectives.

The MSU Student Representative Assembly is mandated by corporate bylaws to approve the audited statements by Nov. 30 each year.

@theSilhouette

PRESIDENT’S PAGE

IKRAM FARAH President president@msu.mcmaster.ca 905.525.9140 x23885

I have spent months consulting with students in regard to the directive made by the provincial government that mandates universities to have a “free speech” policy by January 1, 2019. The directive poses many concerns for students on our campus, particularly amongst marginalized and racialized communities.

During these consultations, individuals expressed concern that the guise of free speech would be used to further limit free speech and instead provide a platform for hate speech to prevail.

In sharing these student sentiments to the Student Representative Assembly (SRA), I encouraged folks to gather more insight on what their constituents felt. Particularly relevant are reactions and responses to the University’s Guidelines for Event Organizers, Participants and Protestors: Freedom of Expression, Protest and Dissent. The document was released last spring and feedback from the McMaster community was invited. However, with the election of the Progressive Conservative government in June 2018, these

November 22, 2018 | thesil.ca

suggested guidelines will likely become the proposed “free speech” policy required by January 1, 2019.

After lengthy consultation, the SRA unanimously opposed the freedom of speech dictate from the government for a number of reasons. First of all, the SRA does not believe that there is a freedom of speech crisis on campus.

All Canadians have rights to the freedoms of speech and expression, as outlined in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. In addition, reasonable limits to speech and prohibitions on violence as a form of protest are clearly outlined in federal and provincial legislation, along with the Student Code of Rights and Responsibilities. Therefore, a university “free speech” policy is not needed.

Moreover, students overwhelmingly believe that this action of the provincial government will in fact limit discourse and be wielded as a tool to block the dissent, rebuttal, and protest against hate and bigotry. Students have communicated to the SRA that they believe this policy will silence them and disproportionately affect marginalized folks. Given the feedback from various students, the SRA took a stance to preserve free speech, as they believe the directive will serve to limit free speech,

rather than protect it.

From that motion, I further brought forward students’ concerns to senior leadership. Students were able to speak with University President, Dr. Patrick Deane and Dr. Arig al Shaibah, Associate Vice President (Equity and Inclusion), at the Presidents’ Town Hall on November 14. I organized the event with the hope of giving students a platform to directly speak their concerns to McMaster leadership. Students wanted to know how the proposed free speech policies would affect them, and I believe that those in attendance were able to communicate their concerns.

The video is also available on the MSU Facebook page.

“I organized the [Town Hall] with the hope of giving students a platform to speak their concerns to McMaster leadership.”

My advocacy within the University is to ensure that these guidelines and free speech policies are reflective of our population at McMaster and will safeguard dissent and protest. Beyond the

University, there are advocacy efforts in relation to the provincial government as well. Alongside our partner schools of the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA), I had the opportunity to directly speak to Members of Provincial Parliament during the week of November 12, wherein I asked members of the PC government to repeal the directive.

While MPPs were hesitant to commit to that ask, as they have a campaign promise to fulfil, they recognized and lauded our efforts in bringing forth student apprehensions. I have received commitments from MPPs that hate speech will not be tolerated on campus and that students have the right to protest.

Nonetheless, the opinions of this particular topic are incredibly diverse.

That is expected in a school with 23,000 undergraduates, filled with unique perspectives and beliefs. However, my priority will continue to be the safety of students and to provide the opportunity for students to speak their truths.

As MSU President, I will continue to condemn hate speech on campus and represent student interests at both the university and government level. As always, please feel free to reach out to me for a chat via email or by visiting me in MUSC 201.

Students line up to ask questions of (from left to right), Dr. Arig al Shaibah, Associate Vice President (Equity and Inclusion), Dr. Patrick Deane, McMaster University President, and Ikram Farah, MSU President at the Presidents’ Town Hall. C/O Kyle West, The Silhouette.14

The President’s Page is a space sponsored and used by the McMaster Students Union (MSU) Board of Directors (BoD) to communicate with the student body. It functions to highlight the Board’s projects, goals, and agenda for the year, as well as the general happenings of the MSU.

www.thesil.ca | Thursday Nov. 22, 2018

EDITORIAL

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Editorial Weed is the new steel So, what is going to happen in April?

Emily O’Rourke Editor-in-Chief

In a few weeks, the question of whether Hamilton should host private cannabis stores goes before the city’s planning committee.

Within the year before marijuana was legalized, the number of marijuana dispensaries operating in Hamilton had nearly tripled. With nearly 80 dispensaries popping up around the city, Hamilton had the most dispensaries per capita across Ontario, a testament to how huge the weed market really is in our city.

Right now, the only legal way to buy recreational cannabis is through the Ontario Cannabis Store’s website. Come April 2019, the province will roll out a tightly regulated, private retail model which will see the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario granting licenses to private retailers.

Until then, effectively speaking, cannabis dispensaries in Hamilton are illegal and unregulated. But what will happen to the remaining 21 dispensaries that the city has left?

In a presentation in January 2018 by Supt. Ryan Diodati,

head of Hamilton’s police’s investigative services, Supt.

Diodati noted that nearly 130 hours of staffing time had been invested in one investigation that had taken place in December 2017.

In many cases like this, that same dispensary could reopen the next day, ultimately demonstrating that overall, raids and closures resolve to be ineffective ways to shut down the climbing number of dispensaries across the city.

Municipal governments have until January to opt out of private cannabis stores within their jurisdictions, and there has been lots of talk within city council as to what will happen in April 2019.

Many councillors have put forward their concerns about the fate of dispensaries in the city. Namely Ward 4 Councillor Sam Merulla, who put forward a motion surrounding the fact that a lack of sustainable revenue sharing from the province in relation to the retail sale of cannabis to municipalities will amplify the regressive downloading crisis in Hamilton.

Considering the effect of nearly 130 hours of police staffing time that goes into one in-

vestigation and considering just how obsolete this work really is in shutting dispensaries down, where do we go from here?

Is there a reasonable point in shutting down the remaining dispensaries in Hamilton if they have the resources to open up again within hours? Is there a point to reallocating resources from our police department towards something that has proven to be ineffective?

As of April 2019, storefront dispensaries will have to be licensed by the province, but there will be no cap on the number of outlets within the city. Instead of wasting resources, energy and money on eliminating existing dispensaries within Hamilton, providing these businesses with a license would mean a more accessible and regulated approach to legalization.

The city’s planning committee will decide whether they want to host private cannabis stores on Dec. 11. @emily_oro

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to genuinely sweet messages from strangers to waking up to voicenotes to roses and thorns to crabby patty to the return of chocolate pretzels at UM to your last two braincells coming together to finish the cover to Hanks Kerchiefs

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10 |

HUMANS

Kian Kousha Contributor

What is your role as McMaster Intropsych course coordinator and professor?

I am responsible for a lot of the administrative aspects of the course. So I handle everything to do with Avenue to Learn, the grades, the quizzes, basically the general running of the course. I am also one of the instructors, so I teach one of the sections every year. I also fill in for Prof.

Kim whenever he can’t make it to his classes.

What does psychology mean to you and why did you choose to pursue a career in psychology?

I’ve always liked psychology. I’ve always been interested in it, even since high school; Just how our brain works, and how consciousness comes to be and how all of that mixes with science.

I think it’s interesting that we somehow have this whole field of research that studies something so abstract in such a scientific way, I really was into that. That’s one of the reasons I chose McMaster because it is a research heavy institute. I actually did my undergraduate work here and my graduate work, and then I got a job, so I

Dr. Michelle Cadieux Mac

Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018 | www.thesil.ca

just never left.

But the real passion for me I think started in my second year of undergrad here. I had a course on cognition taught by Prof. David Shore and I loved it.

It was just awesome. There were so many interesting examples and illusions and things that I fell for that I never thought I would and there was all of these reasonings behind why I behaved in the way I behaved and I thought that was just so cool and so interesting. When it came time to pick a thesis when I was in my third year, I approached Prof. Shore and said I really want to be in your lab and he was nice enough to take me by a very good recommendation from Ann Hollingshead, who is still my keystone person.

My whole life is based around the fact that she gave me a good recommendation. Then I did my thesis work and I loved it, and by the time I got there I sort of gave up on that every science student’s dream of going to medical school. You know what I mean, everyone wants to go to medical school and that’s what I wanted to do in first year.

Then I started doing research and realized that, that’s really where my passion lied and I loved trying to figure out why we behave the way we behave. I just though it was so cool.

What is the most valuable lesson that you have ever learned during your undergrad?

my dreams, and things like that.

I really wish someone could have smacked me earlier.

Most valuable lesson that I have ever learned is probably that I had to work harder to get where I wanted to be. I was a really good student in high school, I had that A+ average I was one of the top in my class.

Then I came here, and I wasn’t getting As anymore and I had this sad realization that I was somehow dumb and that I just wasn’t as smart as everybody else.

That kind of haunted me for my first couple of years at university. Then I remember joining a study group cause you know, I needed to get better grades and I realize that they weren’t smarter than me, they were just working harder than me.

I think that was a huge realization for me that top performing students are not all geniuses. I mean some of them are, that’s for sure, I have met them. But most of them are just putting in a lot of time into their classes. They are taking university seriously, they are putting aside real time to study, and write papers and do practice questions and actually read their textbook chapters, and all of this other stuff.

I learned that I wasn’t working hard enough and when I started scheduling my time better as an undergraduate student I did so much better.

I really wish that I could have gotten that advice earlier in my career. And actually now, part of our lecture in the middle of the first semester we have a whole class on how to study and everything else and I actually use that class as a time to sort of tell my personal story about where I went and how badly I was doing and what I did to change to be able to get the kind of grades necessary to do something after university, to get into grad schools, pursue

What inspires you in life right now?

I want to say all of the people around me in my department. I’m amazed at how so many individuals, working in so many different fields of research, with just a huge variety of interests come together and form a cohesive department that works together and has grad students doing multiple projects in different labs.

I think it is neat how much science manages, and how many variety of topics manage to actually happen within our department. And every once in a while I talk to all these different researchers about different things, and we always have different seminars and it’s just interesting to watch science continue to move forward.

“Most valuable lesson that I have ever learned is probably that I had to work harder to get where I wanted to be”.

Dr. Michelle Cadieux MacIntroPsych Coordinator & Instructor I have been here so long that I have seen some of these research lines kind of start at the beginning. Now we are 10 years later and I’m seeing what’s happening with it and that’s just really cool.

As you talk about your history at McMaster, what does McMaster mean to you?

Oh, McMaster is what basically gave me my life. I mean that sounds really bad but I did my undergraduate work here, I did my graduate work here, I met my husband here, my husband was another graduate student within the department, different labs and doing totally different things but you know I met him here and then I got a job here and I love it.

This was actually one of the only jobs that I applied for.

I was going to go off and do something else if I didn’t get this, and I really liked the idea of staying within our depart-

ment because it is just such a great department, everyone is so nice and collaborative and made me feel welcomed, so McMaster really gave me my entire career path and sort of everything that I do now a lot of it is because I randomly decided to come to McMaster as an 18 year old.

It has been said that mental health is becoming an important issue for university students especially in undergraduates, because they are dealing with difficulties whether in their life or education. What would you say to students in this stage of their life?

Probably a couple of things.

One, it’s okay to feel a little overwhelmed, especially for first year students. I deal almost exclusively, with first year students and a lot of them are very very overwhelmed, especially in the first couple months of work and I want them to know that’s normal, but to a degree.

If they are so overwhelmed that they can’t get anything done, there are so many services on campus to help them and a lot of people have this element of pride and being able to do something themselves, and everything else, but everyone needs help sometimes, and there is absolutely no problem with getting the help that you need to be able to succeed. I mean I did not get to the position that I am in, alone.

There are so many people who guided me throughout my undergraduate career, who gave me good references, who gave me pep talks. Then grad school, was giant pile of horror and stress where you are just constantly doing things. I had so many people who helped me, who guide me, who provided me with stress relief. Seek out the help when you need it. It’s okay to have a bad day, but if all of your days are bad, make sure that you’re getting guidance so that that’s not always gonna be the case for you.

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OPINION

Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018 | www.thesil.ca

Opinion Teaching the teaching assistant McMaster University should enforce standardized training for teaching assistants Kyle Ansilio Contributor

Throughout a student’s undergraduate career, they will likely be taught under dozens of teaching assistants. Students are then bound to experience varying encounters with their TAs in regards to differing teaching values, instruction methods and marking.

These diverse experiences do not merely extend to separate courses. In fact, it is conceivable that two students taking the same course could have dramatically different learning experiences primarily due to different TAs instructing or grading them. The reason for this disparity is rooted in three distinct problems.

First, the vast majority of undergraduate programs do not prepare students for teaching roles. This in and of itself is not a problem. Developing skills required to teach in addition to meeting standard program outcomes would be an immense undertaking with little to no benefit for most graduates. But, as some TAs are even undergraduate students themselves, this lack of preparation can serve as a serious hindrance to the students being taught.

Additionally, some universities do not conduct standardized TA training. At McMaster University, the faculty of engineering requires TAs such as myself to participate in a sixhour training session in which we are taught the fundamentals of good grading practice and lesson planning. On the other hand, my colleagues from the faculty of science were not provided formal training from the faculty itself, leaving their expectations to the discretion of their individual departments or instructors.

Finally, the faculties that do offer training for their TAs often do not enforce their expectations. During McMaster’s training, engineering TAs are told to give marks based on

C/O MADELINE NEUMANN

the student’s thought or work process and not solely on the final answer. Marking schemes though are ultimately created by the instructors, who are free to reject the principles endorsed by the faculty.

With these factors in mind, it is difficult to view teaching assistantships from the perspective of the university as anything more than a means to subsidize someone’s education in exchange for lightening the workload of faculty members.

Without approaching this role with the appropriate care, and the proper training, the unpreparedness of TAs can severely impact student learning.

For example, due to this problem, York University has experienced several strikes. According to the Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 3903, the York administration was “not interested in improving the working condition of its workers, or the learning conditions

of its students.”

The role of a TA is incredibly important to get right. TAs share responsibility over student learning with the instructor and are often the first point of contact for students seeking clarification and feedback. They are leaders in the classroom and have incredible influence over the quality of a course.

For graduate students seeking faculty positions, teaching assistantships are their first opportunities to grapple with the teaching responsibilities that will be expected of them.

University faculties have an obligation to these TAs, and by extension the students that they teach, of providing some form of standard in teaching that cannot be overwritten at the departmental level.

Though there is certainly much to be improved, McMaster presently offers some resources for TAs. The MacPherson Institute is the teaching and

Without approaching this role with the appropriate care, and the proper training, the unpreparedness of TAs can severely impact student learning. learning center on campus, and they offer plenty of resources to both undergraduate and graduate students, and are currently developing a TA guide.

For those seeking to learn more about pedagogy, the Students as Partners program allows students to work collaboratively with faculty and leaders in education to conduct

research or complete projects.

For graduate students seeking to improve upon their teaching methods, MacPherson offers a series of courses at no charge which can be completed towards two certificates of teaching and learning which appear on the student’s transcript. MacPherson also offers support to departments and faculty upon request, and has been working to increase awareness of the services that they offer.

McMaster would do well to make use of these services to create and enforce standardized TA training so that students can expect some degree of consistency throughout their program.

@theSilhouette

OPINION

www.thesil.ca | Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018

| 13

A trash policy Hamilton’s one-bag trash limit may be environmentally conscious but is not student-friendly Sabrina Macklai Opinion Editor

I live in a twelve-bedroom student house. In a single week, we have, at minimum, between two and three large bags of garbage.

So far, the city has taken our bags, but this will soon change once we run out of trash tags.

While my crowded housing situation might be unique, many other students are in a similarly tight position in regards to Hamilton’s garbage and recycling policy.

Since 2010, Hamilton has had a one-bag per limit policy for homeowners. This means that the city will collect only one bag of trash during the weekly curbside collection, with no limits placed on the amount of recycling collected.

The policy was created to improve the city’s waste diversion efforts, with a goal to divert 65 per cent of residential garbage away from landfills by 2021. With the city’s waste diversion rate currently stand-

ing in the mid-40 per cent, it is evident that there is still much work to be done.

The policy has undergone several revisions since its initial implementation but has stayed firm in its one-bag limit. The most important revision has been the increase in available trash tags. If more than one garbage bag needs to be picked up for the week, the additional bags require trash tags.

Each household receives 12 trash tags and can request once per year, with no fee, up to 14 more. Once requested, no more trash tags can be ordered until the following year.

This translates to 26 additional bags of trash that can be collected per year. While this seems like a lot, that is not enough to sustain a house that produces at least two bags of trash per week for a year.

Untagged bags of trash are not collected, so where does this excess trash go?

The city’s recommendation is that excess waste is dropped off at the nearest community

recycling centre, with an associated fee. Unfortunately, many students lack the time, resources and finances to utilize these centres. What typically results then is either illegal dumping or the storing of excess waste somewhere in the household, with hopes that it will be collected during the next collection period.

Both alternatives have their consequences. Illegal dumping often counteracts any environmental benefits that a one-bag limit creates. While storing excess waste in one’s house can temporarily solve the issue, this can lead to a build-up of trash that has the potential to cause a number of health and safety concerns.

It is not feasible for large student households to greatly reduce their total waste to meet a one-bag limit. There ought to then be a balance between reaching the city’s waste-reduction goals and forcing students to look for alternative, costly means to dispose of their waste.

Until changes are made, these

There ought to then be a balance between reaching the city’s wastereduction goals and forcing students to look for alternative, costly means to dispose of their waste. issues will continue to plague the city.

A complete elimination of the one-bag limit is not necessary; what should be developed is a special consideration for student households. A special consideration policy has already been developed for certain individuals that are likely to have more than one garbage bag every week.

Households that involve people with medical circum-

stances, families with two or more children under the age of four, registered home day cares or agricultural businesses can apply for special consideration.

Upon approval, these households are given extra trash tags that can be used on a need-be basis. By listing student households as one of the accepted special consideration cases, this can allow large student households to request additional support from the city as needed.

While obviously the onebag trash limit was founded with good intentions, it is ultimately an unrealistic policy for every student house to abide by. With the appropriate change, however, the city can continue to strive towards its environmental goals while accommodating its large student population.

@_sabrinawitch_

C/O GRANT HOLT

OPINION

www.thesil.ca | Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018

| 15

The Hamilton disconnect Push to bridge the gap between the Hamilton Mountain and McMaster University Sam Marchetti Contributor

The Hamilton Mountain, as it is affectionately referred to as by many Hamiltonians, is more than just a section of the Niagara Escarpment. It is an entire community, filled with rich history, quiet streets and the ever-outof-reach Lime Ridge mall.

The mountain community is composed of largely everything atop the escarpment from Ancaster Mill and Mohawk College over to the Red Hill Valley Parkway and the infamous Devil’s Punchbowl.

In between the two, there are beautiful views of the mountain brow, great entertainment at The Zoetic Theatre and a massive residential area which is home to a large portion of the Hamilton community. If you’ve never been up the mountain, I highly recommend checking it out — if you can get there.

The mountain community has so much to offer and McMaster University’s students have so much they can contribute. For example, the Hamilton-Wentworth District School

Board’s annual science fair usually occurs at one of the high schools on top of the mountain, as does the Bay Area Science and Engineering Fair which takes place at Mohawk College.

It is an entire community, filled with rich history, quiet streets and the ever-out-ofreach Lime Ridge mall.

Both of these events need judges, a task that undergraduate students are well-equipped for. However, it is rarely the case, especially in the former event, that students take these roles.

Usually parents or teachers are forced to judge these events either due to a lack of promotion at McMaster, or more likely, because it is too difficult for students to make the trek up the mountain. The same logic applies for other communi-

ty-involvement opportunities on the mountain that are ideal for students — it just isn’t worth the trouble for many of us to get there.

To access the mountain community, McMaster students need to take a minimum of two buses. Students first have to catch one of three buses, the 5, 51 or 1, that take around 20 minutes to arrive at the downtown transit terminal.

From there, they have to take another bus that takes them up one of the numerous mountain accesses.

Totaling around 10 minutes to reach the mountain, to arrive to your destination can take, at minimum, an additional five to 20 minutes, depending on the location and any other buses you need to take. This is also assuming a non-weekend trip as weekend bus schedules from McMaster are even further reduced.

Students will also find that they usually are left waiting longer on the mountain for a bus than they would at McMaster, but these buses have fewer stops and are often on time. The

point is, once up the mountain, getting around and accessing everything the mountain has to offer is pretty easy.

The mountain should not be inaccessible to McMaster students, who want the ability to freely explore their community and have the means to contribute back.

The rate limiting step always has and, until change occurs, always will be getting there. There are a number of solutions to this problem. The Hamilton Street Railway could provide a route, similar to the B-Line express, that can run directly from McMaster to the mountain brow. The total time it would take for a route like this would be about 14 minutes.

This is half the time it takes to get there now, and removes the complexity of switching buses. Not to mention, such a route would be extremely beneficial to student commuters from the mountain.

Looking more long-term, the new light rail transit system seems to be timed perfectly to solve this issue. It opens doors for more LRT routes to be built around Hamilton, which could include one that takes McMaster students up the mountain.

No matter which solution is taken on by the municipal government, it is fair to say that this problem should be seriously addressed. The mountain should not be inaccessible to McMaster students, who want the ability to freely explore their community and have the means to contribute back. Until action is taken, it appears the city doesn’t care if students experience Hamilton.

@theSilhouette

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A&C

www.thesil.ca | Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018

| 17

Arts & Culture Setting the mood Emo dream pop artist Ellis takes a DIY approach to creating her sound and aesthetic Rya Buckley A&C Reporter

The music video for Ellis’ first single “The Drain” opens with less than a second of television static. That glimpse of static appears several more times throughout the course of the video but it’s more than just a motif for the video, it’s the overarching theme of her debut project, The Fuzz.

Ellis is the musical project of Hamilton-based singer-songwriter Linnea Siggelkow, who derived the name from her initials. Her sound was once described to her as emo dream pop and this is the label she assigns to it. It is beautiful, dramatic and sad music.

The Fuzz, which dropped on Nov. 9, is a collection of songs that Ellis wrote around the same time. She independently released the six-track project, which includes her first two singles “The Drain” and “What a Mess.” The EP gets it its name from the feelings that Ellis felt while writing the songs. “[T]he Fuzz is… this metaphorical place like the noise on a TV screen. It’s just the lack of clarity… a feeling of being lost and a place I found myself often in and... where a lot of the songs came from was feeling sort of disoriented and confused and uncertain in this sort of metaphorical place,” Ellis explained.

On Nov. 28, Ellis will be playing at The Casbah for her EP release show. While performing makes her anxious, one

“[T]he fuzz is… this metaphorical place like the noise on a TV screen. It’s just the lack of clarity… a feeling of being lost and a place I found myself often in and... where a lot of the songs came from was feeling sort of disoriented and confused,” Ellis Singer-songwriter

spread for each song consisting of photographs, handwritten lyrics and GPS coordinates for significant places.

“I’m trying to create a mood… and I think to me the project is moody. But I also want it to just be beautiful… I love having visual elements. I think it’s a great way to connect the listener with music in a different way… I hope it’s a way of, if people are interested, going a little bit deeper into the songs themselves,” Ellis explained.

While the personal nature of the project means that it’s hard for Ellis to discuss all the events that inspired the EP’s tracks, she wants listeners to be able to relate to and resonate with the music. For her, making music is a way of processing emotions and using them to

create something productive and tangible.

She started playing piano as a child since her mother was a piano teacher. When she was 12 years old, she began playing guitar and writing songs.

Song-writing is very much ingrained in who she is.

Her song-writing process begins solitarily, which lends itself to the intimacy of her music. She always begins with a lyric and then builds up the song as much as she can on her own before she brings in her collaborators.

Ellis was deeply involved in all aspects of The Fuzz. She co-directed the videos for “The Drain” and “NYE” with her friend Andy Friesen.

“I think for this project it’s been mostly DIY… I definitely like to have my hands on as many things as I can to do with the project. I feel a bit possessive of it,” Ellis explained.

This homespun approach has created a sound and visuals that feel attentively crafted and beautifully raw. In the new year, Ellis hopes to create a full-length album and tour, allowing her to share her stories of fuzz and freedom with more of the world.

@theSilhouette

thing she loves about performing in Hamilton is being able to see the familiar faces of her friends and collaborators in the audience.

Not originally from Hamilton, Ellis loves the creative and caring community that she has found in the city. On The Fuzz, she collaborated only with the circle of talented individuals that she feels lucky to call her friends. Being able to trust her collaborators was important in creating this personal project.

In order to share some of the meaning behind her intimate tracks, Ellis created a zine with collaborative partner, Sean Richman. The zine features a

C/O Ariel Bader-Shamai

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The Silhouette

www.thesil.ca | Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018

The Mush Hole Project Emotional performance share stories of torment and resilience around Canada’s residential school system as well as the title of the performance.

While the characters were often all within the same room together, they moved in lonesome. Often the characters mimicked trying to hug each other but never being able to actually touch the other person as if a force field blocked them.

There was an incessant longing to comfort one another which sadly was retaliated with violence. This violence was conveyed upon themselves in

Drew Simpson Contributor

Content Warning: descriptions of violence Without any lights on in L. R. Wilson’s Black Box theatre, it can be a dark void and clean slate waiting to be molded.

Three school chairs sat staggered, two up front and one centered and backwards. On the attached desk were three darkred bricks formed into a cross.

The Mush Hole performance is a reckoning to express the depths of tormented realities faced within the Mohawk Institute without traumatizing members of the audience with lived experience.

The chairs sat in front of three projector screens, one facing forward and the other two diagonally placed to enclose the space. A quote by John A. Macdonald calling for industrial boarding schools sat on the main screen. Projected images of the Mohawk Institute Indian Residential School portrayed different rooms onto the screens.

The Mush Hole performance is a reckoning to express the depths of tormented realities faced within the Mohawk Institute without traumatizing members of the audience with lived experience. The project aims to respond to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Call to Action.

Often the characters mimicked trying to hug each other but never being able to actually touch the other person as if a force field blocked them.

Of the five characters, each represents a survivor’s story.

They each have names, or as the Mohawk Institute identified children with, a number. Number 48 and 29 were Ernest and Mabel who met at the residential school and became father and mother respectively to number 34 and 17, Walter and Grace.

The fifth character is number 11, the girl without a name or fam-

The lights that allowed the audience to find their seats dimmed into the darkness.

And we, the audience, became part of the void as we watched their stories.

ily, as she was a runaway from the Institute.

After some brief introductions by the director of Indigenous studies at McMaster and by Santee Smith, the artist producer of the Mush Hole Project, the lights that allowed the audience to find their seats dimmed into the darkness. And we, the audience, became part of the void as we watched their stories.

The show started with choking. Everyone was constantly choking because they were constantly silenced by the Institution. Another constant was starvation, as one scene clearly projected the mush they ate. At first it resembled oatmeal, but that breakfast dish does not call for maggots. The maggot-infested mush was all the children ate in the Institution, inspiring the name given to the institution by survivors

the form of slapping their own hands away, scrubbing at themselves or even upon each other as the children fought.

Although the characters were dressed in 1950s school uniforms, their environment more accurately mimicked a prison. The children marched, they could not touch each other, they fought over things like apples, which they considered luxuries, they starved as they laboured to produce food, they constantly cleaned and the constant chain of locks being open and closed were haunting.

Smith explained that in such a prison-like atmosphere, survival and self-preservation become priorities over human connection. Agonizingly, all I could do was sit and watch siblings Water and Grace constantly reject each other’s tried comfort or condolences. Even when Walter needed it the most trapped inside a boiler room.

The introduction to Walter’s solo was a visual backdrop and sounds of steam and other sounds to set the tone of the boiler room. As every character had a solo in a specific room, this solo was gutting. He danced as if trying to escape and to stop whoever was stripping him. The solo was suggestive, but it was the fear, guilt and trauma in his eyes and his hands as they reached out during his dance that communicated he was being abused.

Every person suffered in the Institute. The girl labelled number 11, was lucky enough to run away, but it was suggested she did not fully escape. At the end of her solo, the screen showed her laid in the snow, her hair covering her face.

In another scene Mabel and Ernest sat at their kitchen table, playing popular 1950s music as Ernest drank and Mabel carefully pushed the chairs under the table, tapping at imaginary heads and smiling. Sometimes she motioned to spoon-feed the imaginaries in their seats.

Ernest pulled and shoved the chairs away, urging Mabel to drink.

In the inescapable prison, Grace used her taught Christianity to cope. In one scene she loudly sang a gospel as number 11 and Walter rumbled and choked in their seats.

The show communicated multi-faceted torment, discussed the ideas of identity, self-hatred, inter-generational trauma, abuse and overall the effect of such a prison-like system that was the Mush Hole.

Above all, it was conjoined stories of resilience for surviving every room and every lock and key. @theSilhouette

C/O MUSH HOLE PROJECT

A&C

www.thesil.ca | Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018

| 19

Getting back to chocolate basics Westdale’s The Casual Gourmet hosts a chocolate workshop with Cake & Loaf Bakery chef

Chocolates from the Cake & Loaf Bakery.

KYLE WEST / PHOTO EDITOR

Andrew Mrozowski Contributor

Nestled away on the corner of King Street West and Paisley Avenue South lies a small storefront with kitchen accessories on display in the windows.

Peering through, you are sure to see a cute boutique filled with cutlery, appliances and cookware. Only if you go into the store, will you find a functioning kitchen and breakfast bar tucked away in the back-right corner.

The Casual Gourmet has made its home in Westdale Village since 1997 but for the last three years, retail has only been part of the equation. Ever since co-owners Tannis Jarvis and Ilona Santa took over the business three years ago, they had a vision for the Casual Gourmet.

“We really wanted to have more than a retail store, we wanted a real interactive place with great experiences,” RAZAN SAMARA / A&C EDITOR explained Jarvis.

Jarvis and Santa quickly saw the potential their Hamilton store had to offer and started to reach out to local chefs to host workshops. Since January 2017, over 84 different workshops have been held from ‘A Night in the Caribbean’ to ‘Knife Skills 101’. The Casual Gourmet will be hosting ‘Dinner with Jonny Blonde’ and ‘Winter Soups with the Burnt Tongue’ in the coming months.

“With Hamilton growing and having such a great food scene, we thought it would be great if we could bring in a lot of those Hamilton chefs to really offer those customers a neat experience. They all bring such a wealth of knowledge,” said Jarvis.

One of these chefs is award-winning pastry chef Maria Boyd of Cake & Loaf Bakery.

Growing up in Germany, Boyd got her hands wet in the industry by working for a catering company. When she moved to Canada, she attended George Brown College for Baking and

Pastry Arts and Management, completing a two-year certificate.

While making cakes, chocolates and running a flourishing business, Boyd realized one thing: she hated to work with chocolate. She didn’t know what her future held in store but was certain that chocolate wouldn’t be a part of it.

Chef Boyd knew that the city of Toronto was too large for her to leave her mark. She turned her gaze towards a smaller city whose food culture was growing each day and where she could find a better sense of community.

Setting up shop just west of Hamilton’s downtown core, Boyd opened Cake & Loaf Bakery in 2011 and has quickly risen through the ranks as one of the city’s top bakeries.

The following year, Chef Boyd started to ironically play around with chocolate and confections.

“I always try to get my hands dirty and learn something I’m not comfortable with.

I always try to challenge myself,” said Boyd.

Honing her chocolate skills and developing a department for Cake & Loaf Bakery, Boyd pushed herself to become a well-rounded pastry chef but now found herself wanting to share her chocolate-making skills with others.

“I always wanted to do classes, but the bakery never had the space or time to hold them. [The Casual Gourmet] approached us to do evening classes which everyone always wants,” said Boyd.

Presenting her workshop, Chocolate Basics, Boyd taught attendees how to release their inner Willy Wonka by showing them how to temper chocolate, make ganache, truffles, caramel and provide ideas for some festive holiday treats to be shared with loved ones throughout the coming months.

“I want to inspire people to do something that they wouldn’t normally do, or for those who would, just to be able to give

them some more things to think about,” said Boyd.

For Boyd, food is about challenging yourself to do something difficult. She went from hating chocolate to becoming a leading chocolatier within the city on the whim of wanting to push herself and accomplish more.

As everyone was gathered around the breakfast bar tucked away in the heart of Westdale village, watching Chef Boyd create a chocolate masterpiece, one could feel the sense of belonging and unity through the power of food. The Casual Gourmet will continue to bring the community together through a diverse range of workshops set for the new year. @theSilhouette

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The Silhouette

www.thesil.ca | Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018

Microbes and Machines

Exhibits explore lake microflora and evolutionary computing through science and art

C/O GRANT HOLT

Anastasia Gaykalova Contributor

Have you ever thought that science can become art? That the harsh lines separating the two can be blurred and made one? Well, that is just what the artists Nicole Clouston and Stephen Kelly have done with their works currently displayed at Centre[3] for Print and Media Arts until Nov. 29.

Collecting 15 different samples of mud and water from various locations around the shore of Lake Ontario, Nicole Clouston, a practice-based researcher, let microbes grow and become a living art sculpture. Her work, Portrait of Lake Ontario, consists of 15 columns, arranged aesthetically as an image. Both the look of the sculpture and the process of its creation carries meaning.

“In themselves, they sort of form a landscape, a horizon in the piece itself, which I think relates to that landscape that they came from,” pointed out Clouston.

The varying levels of water and mud and the different colours create unique dynamic art. An equally important part of the artwork is the process and care that goes into it. She tops up the columns with dechlorinated water and feeds the microbes eggshells, egg yolk and newspapers.

This care is meaningful to

Clouston, as it creates a symbiosis relationship and a collaborative environment between her as an artist and the living organisms that make up her art.

The complexity of this collaboration was the initial inspiration for this project.

This care is meaningful to Clouston, as it creates a symbiosis relationship and a collaborative environment between her as an artist and the living organisms that make up her art.

“I was interested in the fact that microbial life is such an integral part of not only our own bodily function but the function of the environment,” explained Clouston.

She plans on continuing this work and exploring the intricacies of the relationship between Lake Ontario, its microbes and its people further.

“I needed to delve deeper into the relationship with one particular body of water and get to know it. So, what is coming

up next is [that] I would drive around Lake Ontario again and collect another 15 [samples] and make another sculpture like this one. I’m kind of interested in this relationship between the two sculptures,” explained Clouston.

She has given her art life through microbes. This is not a static work of art, but one that lets itself change and create itself.

Similarly, Stephen Kelly has made computers evolve and adapt, giving art, science and biology a place to interact in unusual ways. His project which also can be considered research, is also a complex, dynamic work. This work consists of remotes that acquire energy of light and once they have enough they use it to twist cables that hang from each remote.

Through a communication network with a computer and each other, the remotes exchange information with a goal to devise a unique way of twisting the cable, evolving and learning from the ‘population’ of other remotes.

Kelly’s first work was devising code that adapted to beat ghosts in a well-known game of Pacman. Using a mechanism similar to that of natural selection, he got a computer to evolve its strategy.

“I guess I’m inspired by the possibilities of a combination of biology and computing, the

idea of creating machines that can surprise me and behave in unpredictable ways,” explained Kelly.

Similarly, Stephen Kelly has made computers evolve and adapt, giving art, science and biology a place to interact in unusual ways.

His project which also can be considered research, is also a complex, dynamic work.

This approach introduces creativity and an element of scientific play and pure experimentation. Allowing the work to guide the artist, instead of the other way around, opens more opportunities and ways to explore. This is when the dichotomy of art versus science fails, forced to make room for a combination of both.

“It’s both equal parts… I think that the division between those two isn’t really that

important. I think that they’re both creative processes that involve experimentation and play,” described Kelly.

Kelly’s work is called Reality Gap. This refers to the difficulty of transferring real-world processes and experiences into computerized simulation and vice versa.

“I approach it as a sort of an engineering problem. The reality gap represents a problem to be solved; how do you bridge the gap between simulation and reality in the course of solving evolutionary computation,” explained Kelly.

The reality gap is a key discrepancy between reality and simulation that prevents machines from replicating natural performance. Overcoming this reality gap is a possible step towards artificial intelligence.

Art can be alive. It can make machines evolve and let microbes flourish in novel ways.

Art can be dynamic, something that changes every day by itself and be independent of human involvement. You can experience this phenomenon through Portrait of Lake Ontario and Reality Gap.

@theSilhouette

McMaster Students Union’s

Events Calendar

Autonomous Vehicle Awareness Friday, November 23, 2018 Where: Bridges Cafe Time: 6:30pm - 9:30pm The event is to gather McMaster undergraduate students who are interested in transportation engineering and discuss the the topic in which people who are older than 65 are not allowed to drive.

The event aims to spread the knowledge of autonomous vehicles and hope to stimulate students awareness of autonomous vehicles.

Harm Reduction Fair Monday, November 26, 2018 Where: MUSC Atrium Time: 11:00am - 2:00pm

Stay Connected:

SHEC is thrilled to announce the Harm Reduction Fair! Harm reduction focuses on minimizing risks associated with substance use, acknowledging that some people undoubtedly use and will continue to use drugs and illicit substances, and we can provide ways to make it safer for folks.

We’ve partnered up with many exciting community partners to bring you informative booths with resources, information, and more surrounding harm reduction and substance abuse. With snacks, games, trivia, and prizes, this is an opportunity to learn and unlearn that you don’t want to miss!

Into Existence Zine Fall 2018 Issue Launch Party Thursday, November 26, 2018 Where: Bridges Cafe

MSU_McMaster

Time: 8:00pm - 11:00pm Come out to celebrate the art and writing in Into Existence Zine's Fall 2018 Issue!

Pencils 4 Kids Coffeehouse Tuesday, November 27, 2018 Where: Bridges Cafe Time: 8:00pm - 11:00pm Would you like to support a wonderful cause while watching talented performers?

Come out to Pencils 4 kids McMaster's coffeehouse!!

Check out the full Events Calendar at: msumcmaster.ca/events

MSUMcMASTER.CA

22 |

www.thesil.ca | Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018

SPORTS

Sports Mo-rauder motivation Diving into the McMaster men’s rugby team’s Movember campaign as they strive to change the face of men’s health alongside other Marauders Adriana Skaljin Contributor

For the past five years, the McMaster men’s rugby team has been running their own Movember campaign, raising money for men’s health initiatives.

Last year, the team collectively raised around $6,100, motivating them to increase their goal for 2018 to $7,000.

The Movember Foundation is the leading charity that focuses on men’s health. They focus on issues such as prostate cancer, testicular cancer, mental health and suicide prevention.

This initiative was started in 2003 and has funded more than 1,200 men’s health projects worldwide.

Callum MacLeay, a fifthyear kinesiology student, is leading this year’s Movember campaign. As the club captain on the rugby leadership team, it was his responsibility to take over the Movember initiative, since the club captain is involved with coordinating any off-field fundraising and team bonding. MacLeay has raised over $1,400 since 2015 and has set a personal goal of $1,000 for this year.

“Seeing as last year’s goal was $6,000 and this year’s is $7,000, it would be awesome to reach the realm of raising $10,000,” said MacLeay.

MacLeay has been participating in Movember for four years now and was inspired by the fact that his grandfather had prostate cancer. “[This] made [Movember] something easy to engage with because it was something that I personally connected to,” said MacLeay.

Seeing as Movember raises money for men’s health, it is something that connects and affects everyone on the men’s rugby team. This creates a sense of motivation towards making a difference in this area of chari-

Callum MacLeay is leading the men’s rugby team’s Movember campaign this season.

SILHOUETTE PHOTO ARCHIVES

table work. “[Movember] has ranged to a new focus on mental health, which is a big push that made us want go support [this initiative],” MacLeay explained.

When they first started the campaign, they had around 20 players participating; they now have around 50. This increase in participants shows an increase in support, thus bringing awareness to this initiative’s importance.

“On the field, we come together to achieve a common goal, but to have the camaraderie that comes with a community sense is great, and it is nice to see the newer players join [in helping with Movember],” said MacLeay. “The more you bring awareness, the more people want to get involved. This is due to a sense of empowerment.”

“Having everyone come together on something that is bigger than rugby is important, and I think that it helps build camaraderie both on and off of the field.”

Callum MacLeay Wing Men’s Rugby Team What comes with this sense of empowerment is the understanding that no one is alone and that we are all going through things. With focuses on

issues such as mental health, we can remove stigmas and transition into a world that disallows people from suffering in silence.

Not only has the men’s rugby team worked towards removing stigmas and promoting men’s health, but they have banded together with other Marauders as well.

“Men’s volleyball, basketball, baseball, and football have joined us in our Movember initiative here at McMaster,” said MacLeay. “Movember has been a meaningful experience for me since we get to engage with coaches, alumni and student field therapists in the fundraising, so it [goes beyond] the players. Having everyone come together on something that is bigger than rugby is important, and I think that it helps build camaraderie both on and off of

the field.”

On Nov. 29 and 30, the men’s rugby team will be setting up an information table in the David Braley Athletic Centre on campus. They will be selling t-shirts, wrist bands and will be holding a raffle as well. All proceeds will go towards their Movember campaign.

It is without a doubt that the amazing efforts of the McMaster men’s rugby team are instrumental in changing the ways in which we view men’s health, while sparking a conversation around mental health.

Change is possible, with some Marauder spirit, camaraderie and a sense of empowerment.

@theSilhouette

SPORTS

www.thesil.ca | Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018

| 23

Leading the pack Fourth-year women’s rugby centre Britni French led the McMaster women’s rugby team to another OUA bronze, repeating as a Second Team All-Canadian in a strong 2018 campaign Justin Parker Sports Editor

Entering her fourth year with the McMaster women’s rugby team, centre Britni French led a promising squad who looked to conquer Ontario University Athletics. Following a 2017 bronze medal, the hopes were high to surpass that in 2018.

Part of a crop of solid senior players who have been a fixture of Marauders’ rugby for the past few seasons, the veteran centre was chosen to captain the team throughout 2018.

“That was really awesome and I enjoyed kind of finding myself in that role and where I stood among everyone else,” French said. “I’m not a very loud, outspoken person, so it took me a bit to understand how to lead in a different way than some people would.”

The Marauders would go on to finish the season 2-2, including a dominant 71-10 win over Western University, and were ready to make a convincing run at the gold medal. They opened their playoff run with a mind-boggling 109-0 thrashing of the Wilfred Laurier University Golden Hawks, with 11

French was instrumental in Mac’s success throughout the 2018 season.

C/O RICK ZAZULAK

players getting their name added onto the score sheet, including three tries from French herself.

Coming off such a dominant win, the Marauders were flying high heading into a re-

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match with the Queen’s University Gaels, a team they lost to in the second game of the season.

Unfortunately, the Marauders ultimately ran out of time as their comeback try fell just short, losing 29-24 in a hard-fought game.

“We were able to perform, and we did some pretty amazing things,” French said.

“We confronted them physically and we let them know that we were not just going to let them have an easy way to the national championship.”

The team did manage to bring home some hardware, repeating as OUA bronze medal winners following a 59-5 beatdown of the Brock University Badgers.

The season would turn out to be a personal success for French, being named to the U Sports All-Canadian Second Team for the second year in a row. French was a force on both the offence and de-

fence, scoring five tries throughout the regular season, leading the balanced Mac team.

“It’s pretty exciting,” French said. “To me, it reflects the team because I think I was able to perform as well as I could because of everyone else around me… I think it shows that our team is a very strong team and I was recognized, but I think it is a recognition that is shared with other people as well.”

Although the team did not get the result they had hoped for heading into the season, French highlighted that tight OUA semifinal loss to the Gaels as a key moment in their season, as they rallied against a team that had beaten them soundly just a month before.

“It was a complete change from when we played them in the regular season,” French said.

“We maintained our composure, we gave them a fight, and you know, if he had maybe five to 10 more minutes, it may have gone a different way. We were gaining momentum and we just did not have enough time to finish off what we had gone into the game hoping to do.”

Hoping to return for her final year of eligibility in 2019, French noted that there will be

a noticeably different roster next season. However, that will not hurt their chances of bringing home a medal once again.

“Next year, we have senior players leaving which will be really hard because they’re all part of my rookie class,” French said.

“But we have some really strong incoming athletes; rookies who showed themselves this year. I’m really excited to see them move into those starting positions, and being able to show their skills, because I think they have a lot to offer and are excited to see us build.”

With an offseason of recruiting, planning and adjusting ahead, the Mac women will have time to assess their 2018 campaign and prepare for the next season. With a dynamic player and strong consistent leader like French dominating the centre of the field, the sky is the limit.

@writingparker

24 |

www.thesil.ca | Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018

The Silhouette

Jessica Carmichael Sports Reporter

Marauders basketball has been off to a great start this season.

With a fresh new team and home opener win, things were starting to look up when the McMaster men’s basketball team defeated the nationally-ranked Brock University Badgers, giving them a 3-0 record.

This success is a result of head coach Patrick Tatham’s 2018-19 season changes. After having a slow start to the 2017 season losing nine games straight, Tatham learned a lot of lessons, but he also knew big changes needed to be made in his second year of coaching at Mac. “One thing that I did learn is that there’s a ton of highs and lows in one program,” said

Tatham. “Also, understanding how much works need to be done during the offseason, like recruiting players of different years.”

For Tatham, the one thing he enjoyed from last year’s upand-down season was the one thing that remains constant: the support. No matter how much they were winning or losing by, the Hamilton community and the people that support their games would still come out.

So, it was a nice treat for these loyal fans when the new and improved men’s team came out strong this October.

“We brought in nine new players. A mixture of young guys, transfers and a returnee, Connor Gilmore, who has helped a great deal,” said Tatham. “We’ve also added an assistant coach who used to play

For Tatham, the one thing he enjoyed from last year’s up-and-down season was the one thing that remains constant: the support. here, so that has been a great addition.”

Other off the court changes he has been passionate about was the formation of a social media team. For Tatham, in a world that is so social media driven, a strong social media presence is the best way to build

hype for his team, win or lose.

“You kind of have to go with the mainstream or get lost in the shuffle,” said Tatham.

Back on the court, he has already seen an immense deal of improvement from his new recruits.

“We’ve had about six of the new guys here all summer and you can see their progress already,” Tatham said. “Guys like Tristan Lindo, Jordan Henry, Maliek Gordon and Connor Gilmore have all had wonderful growth, but we have to continue to grow.”

Unfortunately for the Marauders, their first road trip weekend put an end to their early undefeated record. Falling short to the Nipissing University Lakers and the Laurentian University Voyageurs who are led by the 2018 BLG Award for U

Sports Male Athlete of the Year, Kadre Gray. For Tatham, these losses were due to a combination of a number of factors.

“For the first-year guys, sometimes they don’t really understand how hard it is to get regular season wins on the road,” said Tatham. “But at the same time, I think that the approach for last week was a little tricky. We had yet to play back-to-back games for the first time, so guys we’re still just really understanding the magnitude of a road trip.”

The key for the team to bounce back is simply going back to the basics.

“Just getting back to all the little things that we were doing before,” said Tatham. “Rebounding, playing with our hands, getting deflections; playing with great pace and getting defensive

www.thesil.ca | Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018

SPORTS

| 25

A TEAM REBORN Head coach Patrick Tatham reflects on changes, wins and losses and facing old friends

Although the game’s results were expected for Tatham, former interim head coach of the Ryerson Rams, he will always take their matchups more personal than others. stops. We’re excited [for our next game]. I think the guys are up to the challenge of taking the No. 2 team. But we’ll see what happens tonight.”

Being able to bounce back against the No. 2-ranked Ryer-

son University Rams is no easy task. The Marauders were able to hold their own for the first quarter, leading 19-17 with three minutes to play in the first, but Ryerson quickly reminded us why they were national contenders after going off on 10-0 run and Mac was never able to catch up.

Although the game’s results were expected for Tatham, former interim head coach of the Ryerson Rams, he will always take their matchups more personal than others. Having taken current Rams players to nationals in 2017, it always makes it an interesting experience for him to coach against them.

“They’re a team where I basically learned all my coaching from over the last six years,” said Tatham. “J.V Mukama — a Hamilton local, whose younger

brother Jesse happens to play for the Marauders — is probably the one guy on the team that I considered a young son to me, and I also work with [Ram’s head coach] Roy [Rana] with the senior men’s national team.

So, it should be a special night no doubt.”

Having to wear the two hats of friend or father figure and opposing team’s coach is not always easy for Tatham, but it has to be done.

“It’s funny because we’re going out to a Raptors game even though we’re going to play each other in two days,” Tatham said.

“But I’m always ready to put that other hat on when it’s time to compete.”

The night may not have ended in the Marauders’ favour, as Ryerson took home the dub in typical Rams’ fashion 102-70,

Having to wear the two hats of friend or father figure and opposing team’s coach is not always easy for Tatham, but it has to be done. but it was a night to remember for Tatham regardless.

The Marauders bounced back as expected the following night, and defeated the University of Toronto Varsity Blues 89-77, thanks to veteran David McCulloch and a breakout night for the rookie and newly-named starter, Sefa Otchere.

Up next, the Marauders are

headed to Ottawa to first face the University of Ottawa GeeGees and then the No. 1 nationally-ranked Carleton University Ravens.

“The Carleton one is an interesting one simply because we play them on the second night of a back-to-back. So right now, we are focused on if we can take care of what’s in front of us,” said Tatham. “Win, lose or draw, I think it will be a great experience for our guys because in the end, we’re focused on one thing, and that’s winning the West.”

Only time will tell if the Marauders can put this goal to fruition, for now, they are on to Ottawa.

@theSilhouette

KYLE WEST / PHOTO EDITOR

26 |

www.thesil.ca | Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018

GAMES

GAMES

Across 1- Kind of D.A.; 5- Biblical mount; 10- Goya subject; 14- Actress Talbot; 15- Deflect; 16- Mideast airline; 17- Just ___!; 18- Caterpillar competitor; 19- Bulldoze; 20- Writer Fleming; 21- Narrate as history; 23- Slants; 25- Walk in water; 26- Deutsch, here;

29- Mother of Calcutta; 33- Fathers; 35- Cassette half; 37- Popular ISP; 38- ___ impasse; 39- Allots, with “out”; 40- Turkish honorific; 41- Doze; 42- “Endymion” poet; 43- Permit; 44- Capital of Greece; 46- Exclamation to express joy; 48- Cong. meeting; 50- Something to be learned;

53- Renter; 58- ___-Magnon man; 59- Wight, for one; 60- On ___-to-know basis; 61- Carbonized fuel; 62- Principal; 63- Either of two Chinese dynasties; 64- Golf stroke; 65- Unclothed; 66- Pass into disuse; 67- To ___ (exactly);

Down 1- “Delta of Venus” author Nin; 2- Rope fiber; 3- Write in shorthand; 4- Tic ___ Dough; 5- Extreme cruelty; 6- Folk singer Burl; 7- Nair competitor; 8- Shaft shot from a bow; 9- Repeats; 10- Dealer in textiles; 11- Jai ___; 12- New Orleans music; 13- Sheltered; 21- “His and ___”;

22- Brainchild; 24- Hammer end; 27- On a cruise; 28- Gritty intro; 30- Highest rank in scouting; 31- Manhattan neighborhood; 32- What there oughta be; 33- Capital of Yemen; 34- Let’s just leave ___ that; 36- Arnaz of “I Love Lucy”; 39- Military cafeteria; 40- Pub offerings; 42- Leg joint; 43- Impersonator;

45- Ancient ascetic; 47- Solemn promise; 49- Actress Braga; 51- Use a soapbox; 52- Nick of “Cape Fear”; 53- Describe; 54- Twin in Genesis; 55- Put ___ on it!; 56- Spring; 57- Cub Scout groups; 61- Tax pro;

HAMILTON, THERE ARE SOME NEW HEROES IN TOWN

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THURSDAY

THE

HAMILTON SPECULATOR HAVEN’ T TRUSTED SCORPIOS SINCE 1934

NOVEMBER 22, 2018

NOTSPEC.COM

Your weekly horoscope: November 22 This week will be turbulent if you don’t read this. It will probably also be turbulent if you do read this, sorry!

Gemini | May 21 to June 20

Sagittarius | Nov. 22 to Dec. 21

Stop using the time you peaked in high school as the main attraction to your personality, you attention seeking binch. I can’t say too many mean things here because all of my best friends are Geminis. Pray for me.

You must embrace a new chapter in your life.

I know you’re not used to reading, but it’s time to start because sooner or later you’ll have to read a new chapter somehow.

Capricorn | Dec. 22 to Jan. 19

Cancer | June 21 to July 22

Stop asking for a bag of hot Cheetos, Pisces. This definitely isn’t the time for such questions. Now is the time to work on something concrete. You will need the help of others if you’re going to get that crunch. It’s time to get out of your hole and take action!

Listen, you emo bitch. Grow some skin and toughen up before you drown the city in your tears. Get a hobby or something.

Leo | July 23 to Aug. 22

It’s time to clean your fridge, little lion. The kale you bought in hopes to make a healthy smoothie is about to turn into a disgusting mutation if you don’t get your shit together and clean up your goddamn life.

Aquarius | Jan. 20 to Feb. 18

Justin, if you’re reading this, please start wearing pants. We’re worried about you, and it’s getting cold outside.

Pisces | Feb. 19 to March 20

Virgo | Aug. 23 to Sept. 22

Danny DeVito will appear to you in a dream and tell you that you need to loosen the hell up. It’s time to get what you need, Pisces.

You will quickly accomplish every goal set out for you at your job this week, including and especially that goal of yours to overthrow the Queen and take over the monarchy for at least 15 minutes.

Aries | March 21 to April 19

Gracefully accept all change. Literally all the change you can get. Steal from people’s pockets, check every crevice in the couch. Gracefully accept all change.

Taurus | April 20 to May 20

Pace yourself. You’re running way too fast and soon enough you’re going to ram into a window if you don’t slow down! Take it slow this week and learn that it’s bad to go fast, or else.

Libra | Sept. 23 to Oct. 22

The week ahead could be filled with big plans, big ideas and big ass trucks! You’ll squander your big ideas and plans by spending your monthly budget at a monster truck rally. Sorry! At least there will be big trucks!

You know I had to cut Scorpio out. I’m not about to give them a platform. Not sorry!

Disclaimer: The Hamilton Speculator is a work of satire and fiction and should not under any circumstances be taken seriously. I’m a cancer.

PER ISSUE: Astrological stability INCL. HST, PST & A rising Libra.