February 13, 2017

Vol. CXXXVII, No. 18 February 13, 2017 thevarsity.ca —— The University of Toronto’s Student Newspaper Since 1880

Student leaders, USMC admin spar over SMCSU dissolution

Discord continues as SMCSU replacement consultations announced Blues swimmer

Jenna Moon Associate News Editor

So good we don’t need to gloat Varsity Blues sink the competition with 13 OUA records and 62 medals Sports — page 18

Love at first swipe Feature — page 10

The University of St. Michael’s College (USMC) is facing criticism from some students regarding closed-door meetings that were held with St. Michael’s College Student Union (SMCSU) council members.

A social media campaign called Our SMC was started by University of Toronto Students’ Union SMC Director Georgina Merhom to bring attention to what she sees as a transparency problem with the administration.

Last week, USMC announced through USMC News that they would be taking steps to form a new students’ union to replace SMCSU, which is the subject of a financial investigation by the university following alleged financial mismanagement.

SMCSU also made headlines after former and then-current council members were involved in a series of leaked Snapchat videos depicting jokes about Islam.

This past September, USMC President David Mulroney announced plans to reform the administration’s relationship with SMCSU and other student groups as a result of a disconnect in values; this has led to increased involvement on the part of the administration in USMC student life.

Since February 7, Our SMC organizers have been posting information about SMCSU’s recent controversies and criticizing the USMC administration’s handling of the situation through Twitter and Facebook. According to the Our SMC page, the campaign “aims to get students engaged in a much needed conversation about what’s been happening on our campus.”

Merhom started it in order to “engage students in an open conversation following USMC’s decision to replace St. Michael’s College Student Union with a new student government.”

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2 • THE VARSITY • NEWS

news@thevarsity.ca SMCSU, from cover

Vol. CXXXVII, No. 18

Behind closed doors

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Merhom told The Varsity that SMCSU had two recent closed-door meetings with USMC administration. The decision to prorogue council in December 2016 was presented in one such closed-door meeting.

According to Merhom, “Council was given two options to vote on: to dissolve SMCSU entirely or to prorogue Council activities for six weeks. There was no third option, and Council chose to do the latter.”

Merhom explained that, at the second meeting after prorogation, Mulroney told members of council, “SMCSU was going to be replaced by a ‘new student government.’” The decision was, “not one that was voted on by elected student representatives,” according to Merhom.

USMC subsequently told The Varsity that a student survey on how the college should proceed with student governance was in the works.

“After informing Council that SMCSU is being replaced by a new student government, USMC President, Mr. David Mulroney, invited all SMCSU Councillors to help create a survey that is intended to engage with as many student voices as possible,” said Merhom.

“I agree that there is no better way to serve our membership than to listen to their voices first, however this cannot be efficient if SMCSU’s membership is uninformed and there is a lack of transparency and accountability,” she went on.

Neither a chair nor a scribe were present at either meeting to mediate or transcribe, Merhom reports.

Merhom says the meetings left her feeling “intimidated, pressured, and voiceless; I felt unable to adequately represent my membership.”

Merhom also believes that holding closeddoor meetings may violate SMCSU’s constitution.

“Our constitution is not just a set of ‘practices,’” explained Merhom, “These bylaws exist to ensure that SMCSU is operating in a way that is transparent and accountable to its membership. It gives students rights, such as the ability to attend Council meetings, add motions to the agenda, and be able access a transcribed version of every meeting.”

“Replacing the Council of SMCSU with a new student government is, in my opinion, not the responsible, transparent, or accountable way to proceed. We have a lot of amends to make and a lot of healing to do.

SMC students deserve better” she said.

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Who’s got the money?

SMCSU’s signing authority has been passed on to Assistant Dean — Campus Life Oriana Bertucci and Chief Administrative Officer Bursar Effie Slapnicar, according to former SMCSU finance commissioner Vasare Gatelye.

Slovak did not confirm that signing authority had been handed off to members of the USMC administration.

“Already approved activities such as intramural sports and student clubs will continue to receive funding,” Slovak told The Varsity.

“As for the remainder of current SMCSU funds, they will remain in their accounts.”

Gatelye also noted that Bertucci and Slapnicar “have the authority to sign cheques within the 2016-2017 Fall/Winter budget,” and that this authority was previously voted on by SMCSU’s council.

Gatelyte stated that the “transfer of signing authorities is by no means a result of the audit.”

She also confirmed that unused funds would be made available to the 2017–2018 SMC Council.

NATHAN CHAN/THE VARSITY

Disgruntled students started social media campaign Our SMC. Looking forward The college released a statement through USMC News on Thursday that discussed the restructure of SMCSU. “The University of St. Michael’s College (USMC) continues to engage students in the renewal of student government. We offer this report to members of the USMC community as a means to better understand the process now underway. We will update it as work continues,” the statement begins.

The administration also noted that a questionnaire will be circulated so that USMC students can add input on the new SMCSU. “It is hoped that the questionnaire will also serve as a vehicle for encouraging participation in government by students who have to date not felt themselves included or even welcome in the process… In the meantime, we will strike a committee, involving participation by students across the USMC community, to harvest ideas from the questionnaire and to plan for the holding of new elections in March, 2017,” the statement continues.

When The Varsity reached out to confirm the committee’s members and what has been discussed to date, Slovak referred to the statement provided by USMC and offered no additional comment.

Unofficial SCSU elections results reveal UTSConnect slate dominance Sitharsana Srithas of UTSConnect wins presidency Jack O. Denton Associate News Editor

Cherlene Tay Business Manager

SMCSU Speaker Ben Coleman echoed Merhom’s concerns on how the meetings have been operating. He noted in an email to The Varsity that while he was the speaker, he has not been invited to any committee meetings and previously had chaired only three council meetings.

“I’ve told council that these closed-door meetings run by the SMC administration are unconstitutional. They rob members of their Article II rights to know what SMCSU is doing and how decisions are made. SMC admin have also given themselves unconstitutional signing authority on student’s money and veto power over student events.

The council members that have responded to my constitutional concerns do so privately—they’re scared to speak up and feel coerced by the administration,” Coleman told The Varsity.

USMC Director of Communications Stefan Slovak did not specifically answer inquiries on whether the closed-door meetings violate the SMCSU constitution and instead referred The Varsity to the Policy Document for Student Societies at The University of St. Michael’s College and a statement on USMC’s website from January 17.

The unofficial results of the Scarborough Campus Students’ Union (SCSU) election were released on February 10, with the UTSConnect slate winning 10 of the 11 positions they contested.

A five-person core executive, alongside directors for the centres and departments hosted at UTSC, make up the 21 representatives on the SCSU. The elections saw a clash between the UTSConnect and UTSC Links for three of the five executive positions. The entire executive was won by UTSConnect candidates.

Sitharsana Srithas won the presidency; Deena Hassan and Nana Frimpong won the positions of Vice-President Operations and Vice-President Equity, respectively in uncontested races; Christina Arayata won the Vice-President Academic & University Affairs

position; and Kubra Zakir won the position of Vice-President External.

There were 11,454 votes cast across all categories in the election, of which 8.89 per cent were abstentions and 7.55 per cent were spoiled ballots.

The slate DiverseUTSC lost every contest they had with UTSConnect for director positions. The Centre for Critical Development Studies position was won by Radhika Gupta; the Department of Anthropology and Health Studies was won by Lavelle Williams; the Department of English was won by Vanessa Vigneswaramoorthy; and the Department of Historical and Cultural Studies was won by Hania Jahangir, all of the UTSConnect slate.

The acclaimed contests for director positions included the Centre for French and Linguistics won by Claire Caluag of DiverseUTSC; the Department of Art, Culture and Media won by Sylvie Stojanovski of UTSCon-

nect; the Department of Computer and Mathematical Sciences won by Rahul Gupta of UTSConnect; the Department of Human Geography won by Justin Don who was unaffiliated; the Department of Management won

by Rosia Nouri of UTSConnect; the Department of Physical and Environmental Science won by Curtis Weaver of UTSConnect; and the Department of Sociology won by Ashley Morris who was unaffiliated.

There were four runoff contests between UTSConnect and unaffiliated candidates for director positions, including the Department of Biological Sciences won by Gobika Sithamparanthan of UTSConnect; the Department of Philosophy won by Ali Hosseini Nassab who was unaffiliated; the Department of Psychology won by Sarah Touman of UTSConnect; and the Department of Political Science won

by Raymond Dang of UTSConnect.

Lastly, the position of Part-Time Director remains vacant.

FEBRUARY 13, 2017 • 3

var.st/news

Inside the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms The Varsity explores the group helping UTM Students for Life, Trinity Western University in court Kaitlyn Simpson Associate News Editor

From helping pro-life campus groups sue student unions to assigning universities ratings on “campus freedom,” one Albertabased non-profit is becoming prominent within Canadian campus politics.

Formed in 2010, the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (JCCF) tackles controversial legal cases across the country. The registered charity defends individuals, groups, and organizations pro bono — it defends “Canadians facing a violation of one of their human rights or constitutional freedoms.”

The centre also criticizes government policies and court decisions that it believes “impact the civil and constitutional rights of Canadians.”

The centre hosts an annual student essay contest to promote critical thinking on constitutional freedoms and publishes an annual Campus Freedom Index, which measures the state of free speech on Canadian university campuses using a five-tier grading scale.

The latest Campus Freedom Index was released on November 1 and gave U of T students’ unions ‘F’ grades in freedom.

JCCF represents a number of campus groups suing their student unions. Given its prominence on the Canadian university scene, The Varsity looked into the centre by exploring some of its ongoing lawsuits and operations.

Notable active legal cases The University of Toronto Mississauga Students’ Union (UTMSU) is currently being sued by Students for Life, an anti-abortion group that was denied club status for the 2015–2016 year.

The club did not have its status renewed by the union because of its stance on abortion. Campus groups without official UTMSU status do not have access to certain resources that accredited clubs may access.

The JCCF decided to take this case and filed a court application on the behalf of Students for Life. The centre says it is defending the campus group and suing UTMSU for “violating its own rules,” acting in a way that

was biased and without good faith, obstructing fair procedure and “natural justice,” and “failing to respect students’ fundamental freedoms of expression and association.”

The JCCF is also defending the Ryerson Men’s Issues Awareness Society (MIAS) in a lawsuit against the Ryerson Students’ Union (RSU), which denied club status to this group. The RSU cited potential women’s safety concerns as a reason for rejecting MIAS’ application for club status.

The JCCF filed a court application against the RSU, arguing that procedural fairness and justice were not upheld and that the RSU acted in a biased manner, therefore violating their own policies. The JCCF stated that the RSU acted in a way that was “unreasonable, discriminatory and contrary to fundamental common law values and the values of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.”

In what is possibly its highest profile case, the JCCF successfully helped Trinity Western University — an Evangelical Christian university located in British Columbia — sue the Law Society of British Columbia (LSBC), which refused to accredit the university’s law school.

Trinity Western has garnered controversy recently for requiring law students to sign a Community Covenant which prohibits, among other things, “sexual activity outside of the marriage of one man and one woman.” The decision is pending an appeal from the LSBC. Operations The JCCF team includes Founder John Carpay, staff lawyers, a Director of Communications and Development, a Student-at-Law, and an Administrative Assistant. The centre also has a Board of Directors and an Advisory Council.

Carpay was the Alberta Director for the Canadian Taxpayers Federation from 2001–2005. Additionally, Carpay was a candidate for Alberta’s Wildrose Party in 2012. Now, he frequently writes columns for National Post, Calgary Herald, and Huffington Post Canada.

After receiving official charity status in 2010, the JCCF runs on a donation basis to operate and provide legal defence for those who cannot afford to pay lawyers.

SILA ELGIN/THE VARSITY

The JCCF has five open legal cases that involve parties suing their students’ unions.

Carpay confirmed that the JCCF has “a number of lawyers across Canada” who work pro bono for the centre. The JCCF does not receive any money directly from the government or government-affiliated organizations.

Values and goals The JCCF’s website says that the centre was created in response to the ongoing erosion of some of Canada’s fundamental principles — including freedom and equality.

The JCCF argues that the government and government-supported institutions, like Canadian universities or human rights commissions, are often sites for the erosion of the principles it promotes.

“We see daily and aggressive attacks against free expression on university campuses across Canada,” Carpay told The Varsity. “University administrations which pander to mobs which use physical coercion to censor the expression of opinion on campus… law societies in three provinces attacking the charter freedoms on Trinity Western University… student unions denying club status to campus groups on ideological grounds; the list goes on.”

Currently, of their eight open legal cases, five involve a party suing their university for refusing to grant club status to a certain campus group.

Carpay said, “What happens on campus often spills out into larger society.” He argues

that other arenas of public life could experience similar erosion if no current action is taken on campuses.

Carpay added, “Public universities owe it to tax payers to fulfill their mission and mandate and be a safe space for the frank discussion and vigorous debate of all ideas.”

Additionally, the centre says it defends those who have faced censorship, which it defines as “when a student union or university restricts or limits your right to communicate your beliefs and opinions with other people.”

The JCCF states, “Prior to the JCCF agreeing to provide representation for your club on your behalf, you will be asked to make a commitment to stand up for your rights.”

Although it calls itself non-partisan, the JCCF showcases endorsements from popular conservative thinkers and personalities on its website. Notable endorsements include Rebel Media founder Ezra Levant, former speechwriter for Prime Minister Stephen Harper Michael Taube, and current President and CEO of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation Troy Lanigan.

The centre outlines six specific fundamental values from the Charter on their website: freedom of religion and conscience; freedom of thought, belief, opinion, and expression; freedom of peaceful assembly; freedom of association; and equality before the law.

Silver Dollar Room to close during private student residence construction Reopening date of music venue undetermined following May 1 closure Tamim Mansour Varsity Contributor

Silver Dollar Room will be closing for construction on May 1. The construction is part of a planned private student residence that will precipitate the demolition of the adjacent Hotel Waverly and popular rave venue, the Comfort Zone.

U of T is not involved with the project; Wynn Group of Companies announced plans for a high-rise student residence on the site back in 2013.

The plans stirred up controversy over the proposed 22-storey height of the building which would have resulted in shadowing over the playground of the nearby Lord Lansdowne Public School. The plans also called for the demolition of the hotel, the subterranean club, and Silver Dollar Room.

The Toronto and East York Community Council rejected the application due to its height and a pending investigation into the heritage designation of Hotel Waverly and Silver Dollar Room.

“That was a proposal that the City opposed and we fought it because we felt it was too high, that it had a negative impact on the local school which was nearby and put shade over their playground but also that it closed and demolished the Silver Dollar,” said Toronto City Councillor Joe Cressy, who represents Ward 20 where the site is located.

Silver Dollar Room was designated under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act, however city staff determined that Hotel Waverly did not meet the criteria for designation.

“We have lots of heritage buildings designated throughout the city and that doesn’t mean they can’t be demolished but it does give added protection for the venues,” Cressy clarified.

“They appealed the City’s decision to the Ontario Municipal Board and so as part of a

legal settlement, the City did the following: we reduced the height of their building from 22 to 15 storeys, which in turn took the shadows off the playground. And at the same time, we also secured — and this is because the City fought for it — protection of the Silver Dollar,” Cressy explained.

This protection provided to Silver Dollar Room included the preservation of the location and built form of the club, as well as the conservation of heritage attributes identified as part of its designation, namely “the location of the original entrance, the exterior ‘Silver Dollar Room’ sign and its location on the east elevation, the open volume of the interior performance space including the bar, the stage with raised areas and the terrazzo floor.”

Even with this protection, there are no assurances that the reopened Silver Dollar Room will still operate as a live music venue. “The City of Toronto cannot dictate the commercial use of a facility. But legally, we mandated that it had to be a commercial entertainment ven-

ue,” Cressy said, adding that even today, the current operator would be able to change the club’s use as long as it remained a commercial entertainment venue.

Cressy is optimistic that Silver Dollar Room will continue to operate as a live music venue.

“Given the historic character, the strong recognition and support for the Silver Dollar and the fact that the current owner has first right of refusal to operate it, I am deeply hopeful and frankly will be surprised if it was used for something other than music,” he said.

Silver Dollar Room will reopen after construction of the private student residence but it is unclear when the construction will start. According to Cressy, Wynn Group of Companies has yet to submit a construction proposal to the City.

This news comes as El Mocambo, another historic live music venue just south of Silver Dollar Room, announced its reopening this summer following its temporary closure over financial difficulties.

Paul Wynn, President of the Wynn Group of Companies, was unavailable for comment.

4 • THE VARSITY • NEWS

news@thevarsity.ca

Student Commons projected deficit over $800,000 for first eight years UTSU looking into funding building operations through leasing space

Katrina Wozniuk Varsity Staff

New cost estimates from the University of Toronto Students’ Union (UTSU) show that the Student Commons is expected to carry a deficit of over $800,000 in its first eight years of operation, even with a student levy increase of 10 per cent each year.

In early September, The Varsity reported that the Student Commons project would have a deficit of $300,000 in its first year.

Vice-President Internal Mathias Memmel’s executive report for January stated, “Reverse-engineering this mess has taken longer than expected.”

Memmel explained to The Varsity that the UTSU is trying to put together a “viable” business plan, but clarified that “viable” means “enough to avoid bankruptcy.”

He continued, “Even if we pull that off, we won’t be able to do much more than keep the lights on until 2025 or so.”

Previous UTSU administrations planned to run food services at the Student Commons to finance the building operations; over the summer, the UTSU engaged Kaizen, a food services consulting firm, to see if this was possible.

“Based on our analysis, any food service operation would run at a loss,” said Memmel.

Instead of food services, Memmel said that the UTSU is looking into leasing out space to “student services and student-oriented business, which we’ll be able to do without taking space away from student groups.”

The University

0 00,00

$3

230 College Street

currently houses

the John H. Daniels

Vol. CXXXVII, No. 2 September 12, 2016 thevarsity.ca of Toronto’s Student

Newspaper Since

—— 1880

U of T seeks new Learning Porta l

Three compan ies vie to become U of T’s pick Dan Silveira Varsity Contributor

NATHAN CHAN/THE Faculty of Architect VARSITY ure, Landscap e, and Design.

UTSU faces Stu dent Com

mons woes Cash reserves meant to offset towards some operational defici “unjustified” ts went costs, union exec says Tom Yun

News Editor

U of T is seeking a replacemen t for Portal, which is currently offered its aging board.

by BlackThe Academic Toolbox Renewal initiative launched is under the sponsorshian of Vice-Presid p ent Innovation s in Undergraduate Education Susan McCahan Vice-President University Operations and Mabury; it seeks Scott a comprehen sive solution for the needs of instructors digital dents, with the and stunew Learning Portal being the backbone of this initiative.

“Feedback from the University nity is that the commuweb interface for the Portal is clunky and out of date, and it doesn’t flow the way people would like,” reads a portion of the Academic Toolbox Renewal website. “It’s also hard for instructors to incorporate new tools into their teaching.”

Portal, page 4

U of T stude nt still detained in Dhak a

Friends continu e to fight for Tahmid Hasib Khan’s release Rupinder Liddar Varsity Contributor

With the projected much-anticipated opening date for the After two months the Student Student Commons since a deadly Commons Agreement about a year’s siege occured in defines in Bangladesh time, the University , which project the terms of , friends Students’ Union of Toronto the UTSU’s use constitutes a dent Tahmid Hasib and family of U of T stubuilding, received sizeable financial (UTSU) is forecasting of the den Khan continue on the union. approval from proximately $300,000 bur- release ap- Council to await his Governing from Bangladesh in February 2015 in operational i authorities. within the first and was signed On July 1, five year of its opening. deficits the union in April

by The Costs militants entered 2015.

The plans for Artisan Bakery the Holey “So, over a number a student-run in Dhaka, the “The most UTSG has been centre on of years, it was capital of Bangladesh. During sive years, very in the works succes- Commons interesting thing in [the the attack, 20 collegial, very Student killed. since 2007, when students Agreement] is hostages were cooperative discussion, negotiation Khan voted in favour the costing of menting a levy of implewhat who survivedwas among thirteen individuals s involving successive each party is required student leaders to fund the constructio to do,” the attack. Since said Memmel. and their staff, Under the Student the Student Commons. n of from the July, Khan various people Commons Agreement, has been held without university side, The location charges by the Devonshire Place, at 100 from myself, individuals the UTSU is required to Banwhich is currently planning, Sheila pay a net-assign- gladesh police with little able square metre the Goldring communication home to Officer,” Brown, Chief his friends and Centre for High ( ASM) Finance to said U of T Vice-Presid cost. The union family. is charged approximat Performance, was originally Khan had ent University Operations chosen for the ely $200 per metre of usable Scott Student Comsquare T, completingfinished his fourth year mons. The site space in the at U of process of negotiatingMabury, describing the for the Student a major in Global building. The money will go was later moved Commons the Student Health and two minors in towards building agreement.

Commons to 230 College Anthropology maintenance and utilities.

Street, where the John H. Daniels and Statistics.

During his time However, UTSU Faculty of Architectur at U of T, Khan In addition to Landscape, and Vice-President was involved in Model United e, and Services the ASM costs, Design is currently Internal is Nations and served Mathias Memmel, the union rector also required Eight years after located. to pay who assumed as a Dioffice this year, for the Bangladesh the approval and security services. for a building manager believes that the of the levy, i Students’ Association. At the time contract was negotiated “too According to of the deadly attack, “in a normal Memmel, was quickly” and situation, the thinks that the Tahmid en route to Nepal for an university would appoint a building internship with U ICEF, when manager.” he stopped in Dhaka to visit friends and family.

Student Commons, page 8 Comment Tahmid, page 5 Feature

Let us swim Exploring what lead to the burkini ban

Page 9

s

Arts & Culture

Words of wisdom Upper-year students share their experiences, advice, and regrets

End of a legacy A reflection on The Tragically Hip

Page 12

Page 15

Science Celebrating science Science Literacy Week is coming to town Page 19

September 12

, 2016

NATHAN CHAN/THE VARSITY

The Student Commons will be located at 230 College Street, which is the current home of the John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design.

Plans for a central student space at UTSG were put in motion in after a referendum took place in 2007, when students voted in favour of a levy to fund the project. The Student Commons will be located at 230 College Street, which is the current home of the John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design.

Memmel has long criticized the Student Commons agreement, which the UTSU signed in April 2015. Under the agreement, the UTSU is required to pay: a $200,000 yearly licensing fee for 25 years, an operat-

ing cost of approximately $200 per square metre of usable space in the building, a building manager, and security expenses.

“If the outgoing executives hadn’t signed the contract on their last day [in] office, I’d want to hold another referendum. It’s not that there isn’t a need for more student space, and student groups would definitely benefit, but students voted for something that’s never going to exist,” he said.

Early plans for the Student Commons had the building located at 100 Devonshire Place, where the Goldring Centre for High Perfor-

mance is currently located.

“Basically, previous UTSU administrations wanted a bigger building, and now we’re here but no one wanted to put the effort in to actually crunching the number or thinking critically about its operation,” said Memmel.

The union plans to release a Business and Operating Plans by the end of the month.

Memmel insisted that the plan will have to be followed to save the project.

The Student Commons is expected to open in the fall of 2017.

UTSU to hold fee increase referenda to support accessibility fund, aerospace club Voting on both initiatives to take place next month Emaan Thaver Associate News Editor

The University of Toronto Students’ Union (UTSU) will hold referenda next month regarding the establishment of a new accessibility fund, as well as an Innovation Fund to support the University of Toronto Aerospace Team (UTAT).

According to minutes from the UTSU’s Executive Committee meeting and the Elections and Referenda Committee meeting held on January 13 and January 20 respectively, the establishment of both new funds would require an increase in member fees at UTSG, starting in the fall of 2017.

The proposed accessibility fund would require UTSU members at UTSG to pay 50 cents per session, including the summer session.

According to the minutes, “The UTSU would be required to spend the collected fees exclusively on caption for UTSU events, American Sign Language for UTSU events, personal support workers for UTSU events, and any other accommodations that a member with a disability would need within the UTSU event. The UTSU would not be permitted to spend any of the collected fees on UTSU human resource costs.”

If approved, the accessibility fund fee would be collected for five years, from fall 2017 until spring 2022, after which another referendum

would be needed to continue the collection of fees for this initiative.

The UTAT Innovation Fund, on the other hand, would support the team’s co-curricular aerospace projects, including the development and launch of a microbiology research satellite.

If approved, it would require each UTSU member at UTSG to pay a fee of $2.77 in the fall and winter sessions.

Members would have the option of opting out of the additional fee through the UTSU. “With the Innovation Fund, what we’re trying to do is establish a way for students at the university to get more access to more applied experience,” said Stephen Dodge, UTAT’s Director of Strategic Partnerships.

Dodge believes that while U of T has a “fantastic theoretical education environment,” many programs at the university don’t have enough applied learning experiences to offer students.

“That’s where design teams like UTAT come in,” he explained, “and there are a lot of design teams on campus but there are none that are doing quite as ambitious projects as this one that we’re doing, launching the microbiology satellite.”

UTAT’s satellite is the key element of a microbiology experiment that seeks to examine the behaviour of Candida albicans, a dimorphic fungus that is part of a group of naturally occur-

YURI HIRAMA/THE VARSITY

Voting for both referendum questions is slated to take place over three days next month, from March 14–16. ring flora found in human digestive tracts, over the course of a long-term space voyage.

The satellite, after being launched into orbit, would allow the team to collect data on the growth and mutation of the fungus specimen over the year that it spends in space.

If approved through the referendum vote, the majority of levy-collected funds would go towards funding the most expensive part of the project: launching the satellite into space. The satellite itself is currently in the primary stages of design, with a projected launch date of 2018.

“The design of the satellite isn’t remarkably expensive but actually putting it in space, it’s something beyond what any clubs can do in

funding and that’s why we’re looking to students to support us in that regard,” explained Dodge.

He is confident that with the support of students, the team will be able to “raise the name of the University of Toronto in the applied learning category... and bring back the rewards for U of T.” Voting for both referendum questions is slated to take place over three days next month, from March 14–16.

The UTSU previously held a referendum to establish a levy for student clubs in October 2016. The referendum was unsuccessful, with 74.5 per cent of voters casting their ballots against the proposed levy.

FEBRUARY 13, 2017 • 5

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UTSU Board of Directors attendance rises by 12 per cent At least 10 sitting directors have violated UTSU bylaws regarding attendance Kaitlyn Simpson Associate News Editor

Attendance for the University of Toronto Students’ Union (UTSU) Board of Directors has risen by 12 per cent since approximately this time last year.

Last February, director attendance was approximately 64 per cent, while this year attendance is around 76 per cent.

Including UTSU executive members, Board of Directors meeting attendance rose to approximately 79 per cent compared to last year’s attendance.

The Board of Directors acts as the governing body for the UTSU and is made up of 57 elected students who represent a variety of college and faculty groups on campus.

The board is organized into three divisions: Division I, which includes UTSG Arts & Science colleges and the Transitional Year Programme; Division II, which represents Professional Faculties; and Division III, which includes the sevem directors from UTM. Also sitting on the board are the eight UTSU executive members and seven General Equity Directors; the latter are tasked with representing various identity groups. Two of these positions are currently vacant.

According to UTSU bylaws, Division I and Division II Directors “shall be deemed to have delivered their resignation” if they have missed two meetings without sending regrets, missed three consecutive meetings, or missed any four meetings regardless of them sending regrets.

By The Varsity’s count, at least 10 sitting directors have violated one or more of these criteria.

The Varsity has reached out to all UTSU executive members and directors for this article, 15 of whom responded as of press time.

Explaining absences The majority of board members who responded to The Varsity cited academia, extracurricular activities, part-time jobs, and commuting as some of the reasons why directors may have missed meetings.

Many directors commented that scheduling conflicts are unavoidable, especially given the increase in number of directors on the board this year.

Andrew Sweeny, who is a Director for the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Sciences, said that he has had to miss class in order to attend some meetings, which “is a sacrifice not all directors can [or] want to make.”

Faculty of Law Director Aidan Fishman discussed the unique struggles of directors representing second-entry programs — such as Medicine, Law, and Dentistry — who often have additional academic responsibilities: “second-entry directors will find it nearly impossible to meet the attendance expectations laid out for them in the UTSU bylaws.”

As a result, Fishman says that he prioritizes the meetings that includes issues he sees as important to his constituents.

Social Sciences Director Timothy Law also mentioned that attendance can be especially difficult during the summer when many students have fulltime jobs.

University of Toronto Mississauga Students’ Union (UTMSU) President Nour Alideeb noted that attendance can be especially difficult for UTM directors given the commute to downtown Toronto. Most board meetings occur at UTSG, while at least one per session must be held at UTM according to the UTSU bylaws.

Alideeb also said that, when meetings are held at UTM quorum is barely met “simply because of the location.”

A few directors expressed that some individuals are unaware of the roles and responsibilities of the position when they are running. UTSU VicePresident Professional Faculties Ryan Gomes said, “It’s a worrying sign that people are running for the UTSU and then not following through with their commitments.”

Board of Directors Attendance When referring to directors who have missed a majority of the meetings, Sweeny said “at that point we’re looking at people who were never really serious [or] cared about being a director and shouldn’t have been elected in the first place.”

Other directors discussed the culture in meetings as a disincentive for attending. “Unfortunately, there have been cases where folks don’t feel comfortable enough to attend meetings as well, and I frankly have no idea how to address that other than saying I hope next year’s board learns how to respect one another and create an environment where everyone can contribute without feeling judged,” said New College Director Sila Elgin.

In addition, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Sciences director Addy Bhatia said that some directors contribute less because many issues do not impact their constituents. He said often discussion items can also be “boring.”

General Equity Director Jayme Nadolny noted that their “position on the board does not require regular attendance at meetings.”

Potential solutions A variety of solutions were put forward by the directors and executives. Gomes explained that directors can “send regrets” if they miss a meeting due to academic conflicts and this absence will not be counted against them.

A few directors suggested that UTSU executive members should account for availability through polls; many said that, given the size of the board, this may not be effective.

Woodsworth College Director Christina Badiola noted that directors who commute do have the option to use Google Hangouts to participate in meetings.

General Equity Director Ramz Aziz suggested that directors should receive a short list of upcoming important decisions being made by the board and emails should be sent out to directors two months in advance of a meeting.

Importance of meetings Almost every director and executive that responded to The Varsity emphasized the importance of attending meetings. The consensus was that meeting attendance was crucial for two reasons: representation for constituents and quorum.

St. Michael’s College Director Georgina Merhom expressed that politics sometimes overshadows constituency representation: “I have seen it happen too many times, where directors become overly invested in UTSU ‘politics’ and eventually lose touch with the communities they are pledged to represent,” she said.

Victoria College Director Garnet Lollar said that despite many motions being uncontroversial, “it’s still unfortunate to be missing input.”

Additionally, General Equity Director Nish Chankar said, “In a perfect world, the UTSU directors on the board are in touch and engaged with their constituents.”

Chankar adde, “It’s hard to find the balance between directors that represent their constituents, and directors that are able to prioritize work with the UTSU in a way that’s necessary and currently underserved.”

Numerous directors mentioned that struggling to maintain quorum has been a problem in meetings, and thus attendance can be crucial for meetings to even occur. The quorum for Board of Directors meetings is 20 people.

“It’s a Director’s job to attend board meetings, and if they can’t it’s important that they give us notice,” said UTSU Prsident Jasmine Wong Denike.

“If they haven’t been attending board meetings, or attempting to get caught up to speed by fellow board members or executives, they aren’t fulfilling their roles.”

Disclosure: Sila Elgin contributes to The Varsity’s Photo, Comment, and Features sections.

EXECUTIVE MEMBERS

DIVISION II

President Jasmine Wong Denike

Professional Faculties at-large Faizan Akbani

VP Internal and Services Mathias Memmel

Professional Faculties at-large Sophia Wang

VP University Affairs Cassandra Williams

Architecture and Visual Studies Marienka Bishop-Kovac

VP External Lucinda Qu/Matt Thomas

Dentistry Joshua Raison

VP Equity Farah Noori

Applied Science and Engineering Addy Bhatia

VP Campus Life Shahin Imtiaz

Applied Science and Engineering Danja Papajani

VP Professional Faculties Ryan Gomes

Applied Science and Engineering Andrew Sweeny

UTMSU President/Designate Nour Alideeb/Jackie Zhao

Kinesiology Naomi Maldonado-Rodriguez

DIVISION I

Medicine Justin Kim

Innis College Cole Mellows/Amal Ismail-Ladak

Nursing Katie Grundy

New College Nadine Abdel-Ghafar

Pharmacy Adriana Too

New College Sila Elgin

Toronto School of Theology Orvin Lao

New College Nicholas Grant

Law Aidan Fishman

St. Michael’s College Damian Di Biaise

Music Jacob Feldman

St. Michael’s College Leanne Grupusso

DIVISION III

St. Michael’s College Georgina Merhom

UTM Sarah Amjad

Trinity College Sarah Harrison

UTM Teresa Bai

University College Chimwemwe Alao

UTM Noor Bajaj

University College Mira El Hussein

UTM Noor Chaudhry

University College Ryan Hume

UTM Sharon Lui

Victoria College Garnet Lollar

UTM Ameera Marlewski

Victoria College Stephanie Spagnuolo

UTM Fatima Mohamed

Woodsworth College Christina Badiola

GENERAL EQUITY DIRECTORS

Woodsworth College Ahmad Ilyas

Equity Director Nish Chankar

Woodsworth College Sebastian Salomon/Evan Rose

Equity Director Falhad Mohamoud

Transitional Year Programme Paul Rhamey/Osman Osman

Equity Director Krunal Kanani

Computer Science Jacob Reinertson

Equity Director Ramz Aziz

Humanities Victoria Liao/Audrey Kuzinich

Equity Director Jayme Nadolny

Life Sciences Alissa Mirochnitchenko Math and Physical Sciences Vacant/Josie Wu Rotman Commerce Tsukasa Kikuchi Social Sciences Timothy Law

Perfect attendance 1–3 meetings missed 4 or more meetings missed

6 • THE VARSITY • NEWS

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Etiquette Squirrel is BACK in all of his fluffy goodness.

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Notice to Members: St. George-wide Referendum Referendum Question 1: The University of Toronto Students’ Union (UTSU) is seeking consent from its members on the St. George campus for the establishment of a UTSU accessibility resources fund. Each member of the UTSU would pay 50 cents per session, including the summer session beginning Fall 2017. The collection of this fee will continue for five years until Spring 2022, after which a referendum will be required for its continuation.

Ballot Options: Yes, I am in favor of the establishment of the UTSU accessibility resources fund.

No, I am not in favour of the establishment of the UTSU accessibility recources fund abstain Voting information: Tuesday, March 14th, 12:00 am (midnight) to Thursday, March 16th, 06:30 pm

The UTSU would be required to spend the collected fees exclusively on caption for UTSU events, American Sign Language for UTSU events, personal support workers for UTSU events, and any other accommodations that a member with a disability would need at the UTSU event. The UTSU would not be permitted to spend any of the collected fees on UTSU human resource costs.

*Note: Vote online at utsu.simplyvoting.com. Online voting opens March 14 at midnight and will be open for 24 hours until the voting period ends.

Campaigning information: In-person campaigning: Monday, March 6th, 09:00 am to Monday, March 13th, 12:00 am (midnight) Online campaigning: Monday, March 6th, 09:00 am to Thursday, March 16th, 06:30pm

Comment

February 13, 2017 var.st/comment comment@thevarsity.ca

Speak softly and carry a big welcome sign Canada should respond to Trump’s refugee ban not through discourse, but with concrete solutions DANNA ARANDA/THE VARSITY

Jenisse Minott Varsity Columnist

President Donald Trump stunned the public by issuing an executive order travel ban only a week into his term. The ban suspended the Syrian refugee program indefinitely, halted the rest of the US refugee system for 120 days, and prohibited entrance into the United States for 90 days to citizens of Syria, Iran, Libya, Iraq, Sudan, Yemen, and Somalia — all predominantly Muslim countries.

After Trump’s order was signed, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tweeted about Canadian acceptance and diversity, but failed to mention Trump’s refugee ban outright. When asked in the House of Commons if he felt that the ban was an insult to Canadian values, Trudeau tap-danced around the issue without condemning Trump’s order.

While Trudeau skates away from direct confrontation with Trump at every turn, indignant Canadians and marginalized communities demand a harsher response from our country.

Some think that if we ignore Trump’s racist agenda, we fuel it.

Yet in this case, tact ought not to be confused with indifference, and the absence of a solid voice of dissent serves Canada politically. A significant performance boost in Canadian refugee programs can atone for past mistakes while preventing new ones. Therefore, Canadians should open their doors — not merely their mouths — in response to Trump’s refugee ban.

The relationship between the United States and Canada offers both nations mutual and necessary support. Formalized in 1989, the Canada-US Free Trade Agreement — and later, the North American Free Trade Agreement — simplified trade between the two nations.

In 2015, Canada spent $431.9 billion CAD — $337.8 billion USD — on US goods and services. In the same year, 94 per cent of Canada’s energy exports went to the United States at a value of $96 billion CAD. Moreover, Canada depends on the US for joint protection and security. For instance, the bi-national North American Aerospace Defence Command uses the resources of both nations to monitor man-made entities in outer space and determines whether or not they threaten the safety of either nation.

Canada’s interdependent relationship with the US consequently complicates our position. As stated

by Liberal MP Andrew Leslie on CBC Radio, because the Americans are “our closest friend and biggest ally,” we have a responsibility to settle our differences quietly. Leslie cautioned against the desire to call them out on the world stage because “that’s not what friends do.”

In summary, to protect the timehonoured friendship between Canada and the US, the Canadian response to Trump’s executive order must be drawn delicately.

This should not dampen our Canadian values. Regardless of whether or not the government condemns the US publicly, it must take action to prevent the detrimental backlash this ban promises to bring.

Passed in 1988 under thenPrime Minister Pierre Trudeau, the Canadian Multiculturalism Act enshrined multiculturalism as a Canadian value. Many Canadians, if not most, pride themselves on the country’s openness towards cultural difference and expression and consider multiculturalism a core Canadian value — one that celebrates benevolence and goodwill.

Despite typically considering Canada a welcoming country, we cannot forget that, historically, it has closed

its borders when help was most urgently needed. After the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, for example, Black refugees escaping slavery in the United States were not welcomed by white Canadians and lived difficult lives upon entering this country.

During the Holocaust, Canada exhibited racism by closing its doors to Jews seeking refuge.

Canada held 2,300 Jewish refugee men from Austria and Germany in camps between 1940–1943.

To stay silent in the face of suffering would arguably, and unfortunately, be on par with this history. Instead, Canada must pair its discrete disapproval of US affairs with a superior — and more expansive — refugee program. In doing so, Canada can atone for its past indifference and aid those in need in the present.

When students at the University of Toronto held a vigil for the victims of the Québec City mosque attack, the country’s true essence shone through, and it became clear that Canada refuses to be divided by race or religion. In this vein it is action, not words, that should characterize our national response to Trump’s refugee ban.

Canada’s new refugee initiative must account for two things: the surplus of people fleeing war-torn

nations and the absence of American support. Removing the 1,000 cap on privately sponsored refugees — as NDP MP Jenny Kwan has suggested — would help more people than simply directing criticism at an administration that seems to be steadfast in its convictions. The cap prevents Canadians from aiding more refugees, and removing it would require no government funding, since the initiative is privately sponsored by Canadians themselves.

There are also a great many initiatives and programs that can increase the quality of life for refugees who get to Canada. Canada should reframe its friendly invitation to refugees as a compassionate promise to do whatever is in our nation’s power to alleviate the burdens of those in need.

Casting incessant blame and needless commentary is not the Canadian way — not in the absence of action. To rebuke a nation with fundamentally different values and practices is a waste of time and breath. Yet with open doors and open hearts, Canadians can show refugees whose side we are truly on.

Jenisse Minott is a second-year student at UTM studying Communication, Culture, Information, and Technology. Her column appears monthly.

Bigotry bears no right to a platform Protesting the Toronto Action Forum was justified given its choice of speakers Adina Heisler Varsity Staff

On February 4, 2017, protesters interrupted the Toronto Action Forum event held by Students in Support of Free Speech (SSFS) — a campus group developed in the wake of the Jordan Peterson controversy — and Generation Screwed, an economic activism group.

Speakers at the event included Peterson, Psychology Professor who has been called transphobic by

some students on campus following his Professor against political correctness YouTube lecture series, and Ezra Levant, founder of rightwing media website, The Rebel.

Other well-known correspondents for The Rebel, including Lauren Southern and Faith Goldy, were also in attendance.

According to protester and community activist Qaiser Ali, the protesters objected to “the fact that the university has both allowed and sanctioned an alt-right, neo-

fascist hate conference starring Ezra Levant.” The protesters occupied the building, chanting “Fuck white supremacy!” and “No Trump!

No KKK! No fascist USA!” While leaders of the SSFS reportedly felt that the event would have sparked protests with or without the controversial speakers and that the protesters used Levant as a “scapegoat” for making their views heard, this is not the case. The protesters are correct in saying that the speakers should not have been

permitted to have this platform in the first place.

The protesters have been accused of opposing the presentation of conservative viewpoints on campus. However, whether or not a speaker should be allowed to have space on campus cannot necessarily be boiled down to a left-versus-right issue. There are a number of reasons why we might object to having certain types of events on campus.

For example, it was completely unacceptable when Ken O’Keefe, a

conspiracy theorist and Holocaust denier, was given a space to speak on campus in June 2016, because he was propagating blatantly false anti-Semitic views.

It should also be noted that there are right-wing groups at U of T that host events with little controversy and no protests, like the Campus Conservatives. We cannot accurately say that all conservative viewpoints are being silenced on campus.

Protest, page 8

8 d THE VARSITY d COMMENT

comment@thevarsity.ca

Protest, from page 7 SSFS has also failed to comment on other important issues related to censorship in North America, including the silencing of environmental scientists by current US President Donald Trump and by former Prime Minister Stephen Harper, or the silencing of Elizabeth Warren by Republicans when she attempted to read a letter written by Coretta King during the recent Sessions Debate.

Despite criticisms that the protestors inaccurately characterized attendees as Trump supporters, some of the event’s attendees were seen wearing ‘Make America Great Again’ hats and chanting “Trump” STEVEN LEE/THE VARSITY and “Build that wall.” The overlap Right-leaning groups on campus, like the Campus here is telling by nature of its hyConservatives, have hosted events in the past pocrisy — Trump frequently bewithout interruption. rates the media and anyone who dares to criticize him, and conStudents protested the presence Rebel correspondents, who trav- sequently, it is hard to believe he of Levant at the Toronto Action Fo- elled to Québec City to “follow the holds very open views on freedom rum because of his past expressions facts, wherever they lead.” of speech. of racism and Islamophobia. Levant When The Varsity asked Levant Freedom of speech, legally has made racist comments towards to respond to this point, he made speaking, means that you cannot Romani people and is the author no comment. be arrested or punished by the govof a series of articles for The Rebel Both SSFS and Generation ernment for what you say unless it that suggest Europe is being “over- Screwed claim they are not asso- puts people in danger. Nobody is run” by Muslims. Southern has ciated with fascism or racism and suggesting that this should happen used homophobic slurs on Twit- their goals are the promotion of to any of the speakers. ter and retweeted an anti-Semitic freedom of speech and fiscal reWhat freedom of speech does not tweet that implied someone who sponsibility, respectively. These entail is speaking without having to found a swastika on their door drew claims are hard to take seriously face consequences or being permitit themselves. when they welcome speakers like ted a platform wherever you want.

Levant and The Rebel have also Levant, who is known for racially- All groups on campus, regardless been accused of actively spreading charged rhetoric. of political alignment, should be conspiracies and false rumours surI also wonder why a group that permitted to hold uninterrupted rounding the Québec City mosque claims to be in support of free events. But speakers who promote attack. An email sent out by The speech has remained noticeably racism, Islamophobia, or any other Rebel on January 30, 2017 suggest- silent around issues of academic kind of bigotry should never be gived mainstream media was obscur- freedom, outside of the Peterson en a space here. ing the fact that a Muslim individual context. For instance, the group was involved in the shooting — de- has not publicly criticized the Adina Heisler is a second-year spite no evidence to support this. ‘watchlist’ that was made in the student at University College Levant asked for donations to cov- US accusing leftist professors of studying Women and Gender er the accommodations cost of two spreading propaganda.

Studies and English.

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Debate Club

Is Valentine’s Day stupid?

Two of The Varsity’s editors talk love in light of the upcoming holiday Ariel Gomes and Sean Smith Senior Copy Editor and Sports Editor

Resolution: “Be it resolved that Valentine’s Day is stupid.”

Debate Club is a column that pits writers head-to-head on questions that matter to students. Though it lacks the shaky knees and microphone feedback screeches that typically accompany any oratory competition, rest assured that Debate Club is not for the faint of heart.

In favour: Ariel Gomes (AG)

SS: Love for the sake of love is one of life’s greatest pleasures. To stop for a day in celebration of this fact should not be demeaned or considered stupid. I invite you, my cynic, my love: voice your objections so that I can teach you the value of a day dedicated to what you profess to feel for me.

which we can relish in our love for each other — exclusive anniversaries that we have cultivated on our own accord, that we shall continue to cultivate throughout the rest of our lives.

AG: The love anyone feels for another person cannot be demonstrated in a day. It is stupid to assume that the celebration of one day of love adequately portrays the heart’s emotions, especially since true adoration is a chronic affection.

SS: Of course it is impossible to contain the love that I feel for you in a day — or even a lifetime. But, we do not diminish our love for our mothers by celebrating Mother’s Day any more than we limit our love for each other by celebrating Valentine’s Day. We celebrate Valentine’s Day not to confine our loving relationship to a 24-hour period, but to spend a day honouring each other.

AG: Theoretically, a day spent honouring each other and our relationship is a very attractive prospect — realistically, sweetheart, this day is nonexistent. Valentine’s Day functions only as a platform for retail and the media to commercially capitalize on. Because it is celebrated by anyone and everyone, Valentine’s Day results in a cycle of mass production and consumption that overrides any true heartfelt emotion. February 14 and the days leading up to it are excessively laden with flowers, chocolates, hearts, gifts, dinners, promotions, and gimmicks that only remove the personal aspects of love from the equation. You and I, however, possess our own personal days in

Opposed: Sean Smith (SS) *Disclosure: Our editors are dating each other.

SS: I concede that Valentine’s Day has commercial ramifications, but this isn’t a bad thing — certainly the chocolatiers and the florists would agree with me. If you find it impersonal to consume these things while celebrating your love, then celebrate Valentine’s Day without partaking in the commercial aspect; a romantic walk along the boardwalk, for instance, is not any less a celebration of love, or of Valentine’s Day, than buying chocolates or flowers. Our anniversaries are wonderful, but they are much like Valentine’s Day in that they are celebrations of us being together.

How can you argue in favour of one and then not the other?

AG: There is a crucial difference between our anniversaries and Valentine’s Day — ours are completely genuine. We do not seek each other’s company on Valentine’s Day to escape a sense of vulnerable loneliness, simply to ‘Netflix and chill’ or to toss in a last-ditch effort at finding true love. Those applications of the holiday are stupid at best, consequentially harmful at worst.

SS: Those “applications” are not unique to Valentine’s Day, and you cannot vilify a holiday for the misfortunes of romance that happen everyday. Hopefully I have made some headway, because we have a reservation for 8:00 pm, and you’re going to like it.

AG: I’ll see you there, babe.

LAST WEEK’S RESULTS: Should more young people run for office?

Wisdom through experience

44%

56%

The kids are alright

FEBRUARY 13, 2017 u 9

var.st/comment

It’s great to be a loser We need to overcome stigma surrounding failure and embrace the act of trying instead Avneet Sharma Varsity Columnist

The 2014 TV comedy Garfunkel and Oates, starring musical comedy duo Riki Lindhome and Kate Micucci as fictionalized versions of themselves, seemed like it would fit in well with the lineup of quirky comedies on the US TV network IFC. Yet it only lasted for eight 22-minute episodes before being cancelled.

Despite an existing fanbase from the duo’s popular music videos on YouTube, the show did not garner enough viewers to be renewed for a second season, nor did it achieve the same critical acclaim or accolades as other TV shows in the musical comedy genre, like the 2015 show Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.

Ultimately, Garfunkel and Oates’ attempt to produce a successful comedy series ended

with a widely publicized failure. But in the context of failure, it’s important to look at how the show ended. Garfunkel and Oates still managed to conclude with a poignant, emotionally-resonant finale involving both characters working towards a goal but ultimately failing, as well as a musical number that celebrates the value of trying over merely spectating.

When faced with the prospect of trying and failing, in a competitive setting like U of T, it is often easier not to try at all. In the world of academia, there is a tangible stigma surrounding failure, whether in the context of a course, competition, or job opportunity. It can be jarring to suddenly experience hardship and loss, especially if you were an overachiever prior to attending U of T. While Garfunkel and Oates celebrate loss and failure as a necessary part of life, many students avoid situations that may result in failure — a norm that needs to be more openly challenged.

Trying is difficult: it is easier to set a low bar, achieve an easily obtainable goal, and completely avoid failure. But doing so means making the mistake of setting goals that may not be challenging enough.

For instance, if you are consistently receiving a ‘B’ in a course and do not motivate yourself to try and snag an ‘A’ on the final, you may be preventing your own growth and improvement. You may be avoiding the sting of failure, but at the same time, you are depriving yourself of the valuable drive, determination, and passion needed to achieve your goals.

Picture yourself as a student interested in running for a masthead position at The Varsity or trying to obtain a position within another group on campus. A lack of experience might lead you to doubt yourself. Still, by running for a position — and potentially losing — you are acquainting yourself with the process, and you can use this valuable experience as a stepping stone to do better in the future.

The alternatives to these scenarios are undesirable. While you may temporarily feel better about yourself for evading failure, you will not have gained the valuable experience of toiling through the process.

We need to overcome the stigma against loss and failure, in order to embrace the act of trying and failing. Though it can be difficult to break away from peer and family pressures, when it comes to your own achievements, it does not matter how other people perceive your losses and failures — just pay attention to your own personal growth and improvement.

What we can learn from Garfunkel, Oates and campus experience is that fear of failure should never hamper your efforts to succeed.

And if you fail, Garfunkel and Oates say, “Who really cares? At least you tried.”

Avneet Sharma is a second-year student at Trinity College studying English and Book and Media Studies. His column appears every three weeks.

Will Trump’s policies affect Trudeau’s promises?

Evaluating the US presidency with respect to its impact on international climate change efforts Kieran McMurchy Varsity Staff

Donald Trump has been the President of the United States for a little over three weeks. Throughout his campaign, he repeatedly bashed the issue of climate change, at times even calling it a hoax. His ascent to the presidency means that we must now contemplate how his campaign rhetoric will translate into policy.

The US is Canada’s closest ally, and much of our policy regarding climate change has been similar. Both nations have ratified the Paris Agreement, part of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Under former US President Barack Obama, Canada and the US looked to be developing a solid relationship regarding climate change policy. Unfortunately, it looks like that may change.

When the US signed onto the Paris Agreement on September 3, 2016, the country committed itself to being a leader in the vastly important effort to reduce emissions and create clean and renewable energy sources.

China, the world’s second largest economy and a burgeoning world superpower, signed the agreement on the same day.

Anyone leading the charge to combat climate change will tell you that it is imperative for emerging global superpowers like India — which signed onto the agreement on October 2, 2016 — and China to dramatically alter their energy production. These are the countries that will truly determine which paths we as a species take to change the effect that we are having on the Earth’s climate.

It is within this context that the future of US environmental policy seems all the more consequential. According to multiple reports, Trump plans to pull the US out of the Paris Agreement. One can only imagine that many other countries — who might have only ratified with the understanding that the US would as well — may follow suit.

This should surprise no one. Trump has made his opinion on climate change known.

His is an opinion that has no basis in fact: the science on climate change is clear. Nevertheless, in an Instagram video released in December of 2015, Trump said of Obama, “While the world is in turmoil and falling apart in so many different ways, especially with ISIS, our President is worried about global warming.

What a ridiculous situation!”

On February 1, 2017, Rex Tillerson was sworn in as the US Secretary of State. Previously the CEO of Exxon Mobil, a multi-billion dollar oil and gas corporation, Tillerson will now be a major voice in the US foreign policy. Having spent 40 years of his life working for Exxon, earning millions, and increasing the company’s value and influence, I highly doubt we can expect US foreign policy that actively aims to combat climate change.

Trump also made waves when he announced his nomination for the head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

He tapped former Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt, whom The New York Times reported to be a “close ally of the fossil fuel industry” and who has notably been “a key architect of the legal battle against Mr. Obama’s climate change policies” — including having filed multiple lawsuits against the EPA itself.

Meanwhile, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has made an effort to rehabilitate Canada’s climate change policy in his first 14 months in office. Canada signed its intent to ratify the Paris Agreement in October of 2016, committing to the reduction of emissions and the development of clean energy.

During the same month, Trudeau informed Canadians that the provinces had until 2018 to implement a tax on carbon, otherwise his federal government would impose one on them. A “floor price” of $10 per tonne would be set in 2018 and rise to $50 per tonne by 2022 — requiring provinces to meet carbon caps or exceed ex-

ELHAM NUMAN/THE VARSITY

pectations through either a direct price on carbon or a cap-and-trade system.

Yet, Trudeau’s government can hardly be characterized as a bastion of improvement for Canada’s environmental policy. Almost immediately after being inaugurated, Trump breathed new life into the Keystone XL pipeline — and Trudeau’s cabinet consequently called this “a great decision for Canada and Alberta.” Trudeau and Trump are on the same page when it comes to pipelines. If it helps the economy and creates jobs, then consequences be damned. Pipelines are not only harmful to the environment, they displace Indigenous peoples and interfere with land rights and sovereignty.

One might wonder if Trudeau will stand his ground as Trump inevitably disregards

the dire issue of climate change, or if he will cater to the desires of the POTUS. Trudeau has said, “All Canadians know that Canadian climate policy will be set by Canadians, not by whomever happens to be president of the United States.” Only time will tell how Trudeau will respond to Trump in the medium term.

In the meantime, environmental groups, including ones led by students, should continue to place pressure on the Canadian government to not fall victim to political persuasion and act in the interest of our planet’s wellbeing.

Kieran McMurchy is a second-year student at St. Michael’s College studying Political Science, Philosophy, and History.

I

created my Tinder account at a New Year’s Eve celebration in 2015, mainly as a joke to appease my party guests. Days later, I was sucked in, and so began my bumpy journey on the Tinder train, cruising along toward an evermore uncertain romantic future.

Since I got my first match, I’ve been mildly obsessed with the evolving nature of love and intimacy, how our understandings of those concepts have been shaken up by recent technological developments, and our increasing reliance on them as a society. Does the cementing of Tinder into our collective consciousness mean that the nature of courtship itself has reached the point of no return?

I reached out to my Tinder matches to see if they could help me understand what it is that makes the app so appealing to young adults, and its ramifications on the course of romance for years to come.

Tinder, explained Launched in 2012, Tinder skyrocketed into infamy over a short span of two years, reaching an estimated billion swipes per day by 2014. Predated by old-school dating websites like match.com and OKCupid, a number of similar dating apps — like Bumble, which one of Tinder’s co-founders helped create — have also surfaced.

All aim to put love, sex, or whatever else users are looking for at their fingertips.

U of T Economics student, and one of my interviewees found on Tinder, Gregory Markou, appreciates the app. “I think it’s brilliant. It’s a completely transparent way to find somebody,” he says.

Tinder’s mutual opt-in interface means that both parties have to swipe right in order to start a conversation, which — so the story goes — means you can talk to someone who you already know will be receptive to that first message.

“There’s some people who are really good at talking to girls but they’re not good with the first introduction part,” Markou says. “But if they were given the opportunity where they already know them somehow… That’s what Tinder is really good for. It takes away that awkward first five steps.”

What this also does, however, is place pressure on users to stand out from the crowd, leading to a wide variety of first-line strategies designed to grab the attention of potential paramours. One of the lines I’ve been hit with more frequently on the app is the earth-shattering “hey” — a message that continues to clutter my inbox in a variety of manifestations, unanswered to this very day.

All four of the matches I speak to refer to Tinder as a “game,” and some users have taken this approach to the extreme. Markou explains that some of his acquaintances approach the app with a specific strategy: if you don’t get a phone number within the first 10 messages, move on.

Chase Fowler, an Urban Studies and Economics student, mentions stumbling upon a reddit thread in which Tinder

users evaluated each other’s profiles and opening lines, sort of like “teaching each other how to play the game.”

I logged onto reddit with the intention of tracking down the thread, which proved impossible given the vast amount of incredibly specific Tinder subreddits I had to go through.

What shocked me — being a naïve and irregular reddit user — was the unabashed exchange of other users’ information and photos, including entire subs devoted to strangers’ nudes.

Because Tinder requires all users to sign in through Facebook, it is chillingly easy to track someone down even if you don’t get their digits. Millennial one-nightstands certainly happen, but it’s virtually impossible to disappear into the woodwork once you go your separate ways.

For a generation who can maintain contact with their Uber driver weeks after their five-minute ride home, keeping tabs on a hook up is laughably easy.

Even while I sat inside the Starbucks where Fowler and I were supposed to meet, we exchanged three texts to coordinate our whereabouts, and he reminds me of this when the conversation turns to anonymity. “Look at how much interaction me and you had even just before… I had to look up your picture to double-check that I was staring at the right person for two minutes.”

“There is definitely that instant connection,” he says.

There’s gotta be a spark What is ultimately clear is that, over the four years of its existence, Tinder has developed its own niche within the dating scene. As Markou points out, the interactions on the app are effective insofar as they are context-specific — introductory gifs, monkey emojis, and the notorious “wyd” (what you doing) text are not only accepted but have become part of users’ shared language.

It is remarkable how quickly and seamlessly the concept of Tinder dating has translated into contemporary life, complementing and complicating our perpetual search for companionship.

THE GAME OF LOVE Tinder has revolutionized the millennial dating scene — and one writer asked her matches to help her understand how Teodora Pasca Comment Editor

“We’re wired to want to be dating each other, to [be] making connections and whatnot,” Fowler says. “Everyone wants to meet someone. When you get something like Tinder, it’s like that on crack.”

When it comes to finding people we can really connect with, however, it’s questionable how effective tools like Tinder really are. Its algorithms, at least for now, are relatively crude, limited to age, gender, and geographic proximity.

Technology itself can also serve as a barrier to deeper interpersonal connection. There is a strange, unspoken stigma around admitting that you met on Tinder. And when compared to more romanticized first meetings — dropping your books in the hallway, locking eyes in a crowded bar — just swiping right and sending a gif into cyberspace pales in comparison.

“I felt like it just ruined going out and actually meeting a girl in real life,” explains Matthew Lowder, U of T student and musician. “I would just have my matches on Tinder and I could just pick whatever girl I wanted to talk to from my matches, instead of actually going out there... [It’s a] technological advancement in a way but in the same way it just disables you from real life.”

When asked how he compares using Tinder to meeting people in person, Engineering Science student Ramón Sibello says, “I like it far less.”

Sibello attributes this partially to the limited nature of conversation one can have on Tinder, all the while having potentially similar conversations with countless other romantic prospects. “It turns it a bit into a numbers game,” he explains. “You start getting to who you like best from the bell curve.”

The ‘numbers game’ characterization of Tinder falls in line with more widely-held beliefs about sex and open relationships among millennials — often gathered under the umbrella of hook up culture that characterizes this generation’s amorous antics.

Despite the problematic nature of this label stigmatizing casual sex and non-monogamous relationships — not to mention the evidence suggesting millennials are no more promiscuous than their older counterparts — beliefs about hook up culture persist across generations.

While Sibello, Lowder, and Fowler are open-minded towards the concept of hook up culture, Markou disagrees.

“Hook up culture is fucked. I’ll be the first one to say it,” Markou says. According to him, not only are people wasting time and money to go searching for hook ups in bars, but doing so also comes with the risk of emotional turmoil if both parties aren’t on the same page — something that can “totally mess with someone’s brain.”

It is also worth noting that Tinder is not usually considered the place for meeting long-term partners. “Everyone associates it with, ‘everyone on Tinder is just trying to fuck,’” Markou says. “They really need to get away from that because they’re losing a huge market, and it’s not helping the hook up culture scene at all.”

Yet at the same time, the prospects of meeting someone online aren’t entirely bleak, and everyone on Tinder has different approaches to that kind of searching. Ultimately, the app is just a platform — how you navigate it and what you get out of it remains up to you.

“ I t i s r e m a r k a b l e h ow q u i c k ly a n d s e a m l e s s ly t h e c o n c e p t o f T i n d e r d a t i n g h a s t ra n s l a te d i n to m o d e r n l i fe — c o m p l e m e n t i n g a n d c o m p l i c a t i n g o u r p e r p e tu a l s e a r c h fo r c o m pa n i o n s h i p . “

Love looking forward Tinder has evolved considerably since its launch. Features like Super Likes, Tinder Social, and Tinder Boost have all augmented the initially unassuming interface. More significantly, last November, Tinder finally introduced more inclusive gender options, granting users the option to describe their own gender identity or to refrain from disclosing this information at all.

This prompted me to ask my matches what they might envision dating to look like 20 years from now, and what technology would have developed in turn.

Most mention the rise of artificial intelligence and the possibility of a more nuanced algorithmic process when generating matches — with the ultimate goal being to tailor your potential partner to your ideal preferences.

Yet Markou and I agree that such minute calculations might take away from the fun of it all, potentially prompting users to log off and do their soulmate-searching off-screen.

We might also consider how much technology can really change what lies at the core of human interactions, especially when it comes to something as ingrained as romantic relationships. In this vein, Sibello says, “meaningful longlasting relationships, they come back to the same foundations: communication between two people. I don’t think technology can get in the way of that much.”

At the end of each interview, I ask my matches to offer their own philosophies on dating. The results are, in my view, endearing.

“Swing and see what happens,” Sibello tells me, emphasizing that dating is all about trying things to see what works.

Markou, on the other hand, boils down relationship success to “having freedom in your own space.” He adds, “Go out! Live your life. One person shouldn’t hold you back.”

These are certainly ideas I can get behind, as I’ve been through my share of romantic roller coaster rides. We can hardly blame Tinder for emotional fallout when, as Markou puts it, it only represents “the first step.”

Who knows? Perhaps more futuristic advancements may make the utopian vision of ‘the perfect match’ a more attainable reality.

Still, it’s curious how an app can so significantly influence the way people think about romance. Maybe it’s less about the swiping and more about the people behind the screen.

ILLUSTRATIONS BY ELHAM NUMAN/THE VARSITY

Science

February 13, 2017 var.st/science science@thevarsity.ca

The Cabinet Project puts science on display Art-Sci Salon will be transforming unused cabinets into scientific art installations Tiffany Lieu Varsity Contributor

Imagine an anatomy textbook without illustrations — the content would be much harder to understand. This holds true for many science textbooks, as illustrated diagrams play as large a role as the text. Though the arts and sciences may seem like very different fields of study, they can be more intertwined than you think.

Stephen Morris, Professor from the Department of Physics at the University of Toronto, alongside Lecturer Roberta Buiani have co-founded the Art-Sci Salon, an organization that aims to overcome the divide between art and science.

Monthly meetings bring together artists and scientists from various backgrounds to present their work through multiple platforms. Since 2010, a multitude of exhibitions have been showcased in Toronto and have exposed public spaces to the “cross-pollination across science, technology and the arts.”

After a successful exhibition last year, the Art-Sci Salon is set to launch The Cabinet Project, which will run from April 6 until May 15, 2017. Eleven empty and neglected cabinets across UTSG campus will be revitalized as art installations, featuring 13 local and international artists whose creations revolve around scientific objects from the University of Toronto Scientific Instrument Collection.

“The cabinets are intended, originally, to be a place where a passerby could look at the science that was going on in that department,” said Morris. “It’s no longer used in the way it was used in the past, which was to have physical demonstrations and objects to look at — and this is seen all over the campus, people don’t really put as much effort into these cabinets as they used to do.”

There’s a reason it’s called the Faculty of Arts and Science. PHOTO COURTESY OF CATHERINE BEAUDETTE While the arts are thrust into the spotlight, the sciences are often hidden in the dark. The Cabinet Project intends to shine a light on the mysterious world of science by incorporating art into the scientific works and developments around campus.

“This is not commonly done, and for some silly, historical reason, we have a big opera house but we don’t have a big science house where the public goes to appreciate the science — it’s just not how it works,” mused Morris.

“Scientists tend to be sort of isolated from the public… It stands with some strange relationship to culture, and I would like to advance the idea that science and arts [are] both similar, in the sense that they are contributing to culture in a similar way,” he said.

Morris continued, “Just as the public can go and appreciate the culture produced by artists, they should be able to go and appreciate the culture produced by scientists. If you talk to artists and scientists, you can really tell that they’re driven by the same kind of motivations… They’re mostly interested in the fascination with nature and what the world allows.”

The hope is that using art to capture science will not only give new meaning to the unused cabinets, but also to individuals from both the arts and science communities.

“I think it’s because people are spending so much time working on what is online that they have neglected the real-life thing,” Morris added, in regards to the previously unused cabinets. “The idea is to reutilize these

cabinets and give them to somebody who has a purpose for them, so the artists can have a display in front of that department, using things from that department, but also using their own artistic input.”

The revival of the cabinets serves to join together two worlds that seem vastly different on the surface. Similar core motives from both disciplines reveal that artists and scientists have more in common than they initially thought.

“There’s no essential difference between the botanists who collect the plants and the artists who paint them — they’re both interested in them for basically the same reasons and the products are very complementary,” said Morris. “An artist can appreciate a beautiful scientific result and a scientist can appreciate a beautiful artistic contribution.”

The dark side of burnt toast

Sheryl Anne Montano Varsity Contributor

As you drag yourself out of bed, dreading the upcoming deadline for your research paper and that term test you’ll probably have to cram for tonight, what you eat for breakfast is probably the least of your worries.

While you are scrambling to get ready for class and cursing the clock for moving too fast, you mindlessly pop a piece of bread in the toaster, not giving much thought to its nutritional value — until you hear the news about its potential cancer risk.

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Last week, food officials in the UK labelled “crunchy roast potatoes” and “burnt toast” as “danger foods,” causing a stir among starch lovers around the world, even inducing hypochondria in some.

The culprit Don’t blame yourself for indulging in your favourite on-the-go breakfast. The real culprit here is acrylamide, classified as a “probable human carcinogen” by the International Agency for Research on Cancer.

This chemical is formed when “high-starch foods — such as potatoes, breads and parsnips — are

New research indicates that a massive intake of toasted food may be linked to cancer

baked, roasted, grilled or fried at high temperatures.”

It’s difficult to completely eliminate it from our diet, because trace amounts are found in foods that we consume everyday, such as coffee, cookies, and cakes. “Basically, they’re found anywhere where you have some sugar that is glucose together with the amino acid, asparagine,” explains Dr. Joe Schwarcz, Director of McGill University for Science & Society, in one of his blog videos.

Through a series of chemical conversions, known as Maillard reactions, acrylamide forms. Studies have shown that high levels of

acrylamide cause cancer in rodents, but there is no clear evidence that a similar risk exists in humans. A prolonged exposure to acrylamidecontaining foods, however, might increase such a risk.

Schwarcz states, “Epidemiological studies that looked at cancer cases and food intake have revealed no connection between the amount of acrylamide [to] which we are exposed and cancer.”

Should we give up toast?

According to Dr. Daiva Nielsen, Lecturer in the Department of Nutritional Sciences at U of T, the typical human exposure to acryl-

amide is too low to cause cancer.

She reassures us that there is no need to get rid of your daily morning toast as long, as you’re eating a healthy, balanced diet.

Her advice is to simply follow the golden rule: everything in moderation. She suggests limiting burnt foods overall in your diet, including charred meat. “Eat the latkes,” said Schwarcz. “Of course we should because there’s more to life than worrying about every morsel of food that we put into our mouth.”

Schwarcz imparts the following advice: “Do your best to stick to the light rather than the brown. Follow the ‘golden rule.’”

FEBRUARY 13, 2017 • 13

var.st/science

Science Around Town

Fishy business Research from U of T shows high levels of plastic pollution found in fish IRIS DENG/THE VARSITY

Brechann McGoey Varsity Contributor

Consumers around the world may find an unexpected addition to their fish dishes — microplastics. According to a study published by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), many commercial fish and shellfish contain small pieces of plastic.

These unwanted morsels are a direct result of pollution and put consumers at unknown risks.

Anyone who has spent a day at the beach is probably not surprised by the fact that plastics are making their way into our oceans, but the sheer volume of garbage is staggering. A 2015 study estimated that between 4.8–12.7 tons of plastic waste enter the oceans every year.

By some estimates there are 5–50 trillion microplastic particles in the surface oceans alone.

Many people associate microbeads with microplastics, but these synthetic exfoliants only account for an estimated one per cent of the microplastics floating in the oceans. Other sources of plastic range from the obvious bottles and bags abandoned on beaches to the more inconspicuous synthetic fibres from our clothes and tire dust from our cars.

Given the immense volume of plastic debris, it might not be so surprising that plastic has been found in the guts of dozens of fish species and in shellfish, including mussels and oysters.

Thinking of chowing down on some seafood with a side of plastic may be disturbing, but do not swear off salmon just yet. The research on this topic is just beginning, and nothing is

‘On the brink’ of innovation U of T undergraduates host conference on neurodegenerative disease Sabrina Ge Varsity Contributor

Neurodegenerative disease includes a wide range of debilitating conditions that cause damage to the neurons in our brains. Of these diseases is Alzheimer’s dementia, the seventh greatest contributor to mortality in Canada. This ranking is expected to rise drastically in the future as our population ages.

Despite being considered incurable, efforts are being made around the world to combat the disease.

The Neurodegenerative Disease Society of Toronto (NDST), an undergraduate-led organization at the University of Toronto, devotes itself to spreading awareness of neurodegenerative diseases and inspiring the next generation of researchers to ultimately find novel therapies and treatment.

“We started this organization together after having worked in a lab over the summer that researches the underlying mechanisms of Parkinson’s disease,” explained Co-President

known about how plastic contaminants in fish impact human consumers.

Dr. Chelsea Rochman, University of Toronto Professor and expert on microplastic pollution, emphasized rethinking what is in your waste bin, not your grocery bag.

“I think the take home message is not to think about it in terms of how you should change your diet but more in terms [of] how you might be able to change your consumer behavior around plastic in general… I think it shows that mismanagement of our waste has come back to haunt us on our dinner plates because we are part of the connected food web in the ocean,” Rochman explained.

She suggested making sustainable consumer choices, participating in beach cleanups, and voicing concerns about harmful products to politicians.

An ocean of unknowns The IMO authors describe the study of microplastics as being “in its infancy.” There remains ample work to be done on the potential impacts of plastic pollution on food security and safety.

For example, aquaculture may increase the risk of exposure since plastics are used in the containment of fish and can break down and be ingested.

Half of all global fish production comes from aquaculture. Further research could help us determine if using different materials for aquaculture infrastructure would help mitigate the risk of microplastics in commercial fish and shellfish.

Chris Lozano. “During our time at this lab, we had the amazing opportunity to meet worldclass researchers.” This is an experience that NDST aims to share.

NDST’s second annual conference on January 21 displayed the group’s commitment to its mission. “On the Brink,” as the event was called, featured six distinguished researchers, who spoke about the innovations and advancements in therapeutics for neurodegenerative diseases.

The all-star line-up began with Dr. Donald Weaver, Director of the Krembil Research Institute at Toronto Western Hospital and practicing neurologist with a PhD in medicinal chemistry and drug design. Weaver presented his research on developing novel drugs for Alzheimer’s, exploring the various breakthroughs and hurdles encountered.

Dr. John Turnbull, the Chair in Neurology at McMaster University, was next with his presentation on the difficulties of treating Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). Following Turnbull’s thought-provoking presentation was a presentation by Dr. Susan Fox, the Associate Director of the Movement Disorders Clinic at Toronto Western Hospital. Fox provided updates on clinical trials for Parkinson’s disease.

In the afternoon, Dr. Tarek Rajji, the Chief in Geriatric Psychiatry at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, presented his

There are only a handful of studies on the impact of microplastic ingestion on fish health, but researchers have found evidence of disrupted development and liver stress. A critical gap in our knowledge is how ingested plastics impact the fish tissues which humans consume and what the subsequent effects on human health are.

Shellfish are usually eaten in their entirety so they may pose a greater risk given that anything they ingest can be passed directly to the human consumer.

Finding a piece of plastic in the gut of a fish you brought home for dinner will have a very high ick factor, but likely more dangerous are the plastics we cannot see. Nanoplastics, less than 1,000 nm, could move from digestive tracts into the bloodstream.

Possibly more dangerous than the plastic themselves are the pathogens and contaminants that adhere to them. Rochman describes nanoplastics as the next frontier in plastic pollution research.

Coastal communities have an important role in keeping plastic waste out of the oceans. Here in Toronto, we may be far from marine environments, but Lake Ontario is right at our doorstep. Upcoming research in the Rochman lab will focus on the impact of microplastic pollution on sport fish in North American waters.

While we wait for more research, we can all help fish, ecosystems, and ourselves by reducing and reusing plastic products, making good consumer choices, and picking up litter. As Rochman said, “All drains lead to the lake.”

work on neurostimulation — particularly its effects on frontal lobe functions like working memory in Alzheimer’s patients.

Dr. Ray Truant, Chair of the Scientific Advisory board of the Huntington Society of Canada, discussed the correlation between DNA damage and neurodegenerative diseases such as Huntington’s. He explored the idea of DNA damage being the basis of neurodegeneration, contrary to the theory that it is caused by age.

Dr. Andres Lozano, the most cited neurosurgeon in the world and Chair of Functional Neurosurgery at Toronto Western Hospital was the final speaker of the day. Lozano’s presentation primarily featured his research in neurosurgical interventions, such as deep brain stimulation, a work so unique that it had been featured in an episode of House, M.D. Following an extensive question and answer period with Lozano, as there had been with all the previous speakers, the conference ended with concluding remarks from Co-Presidents Kevin Liu and Maria Tereshchenko.

“We hope the presentations have encouraged all of you to continue exploring the field of neurodegeneration, both from a scientific and humanistic vantage point,” said Liu. Sabrina Ge is the Webmaster of the Neurodegenerative Disease Society of Toronto.

Arduino for Beginners Pop-Up Learning Lab will be holding an Arduino training session for beginners. Arduino is a microcontroller board that is used to make computers and other electronic systems.

Date: February 14 Time: 6:30–8:00 pm Location: Toronto Public Library — Spadina Branch, 10 Spadina Road Admission: Free with registration Assisted and/or Prolonged Dying: An Issue for Conscience Doctor Assisted Dying is arguably the most contentious practice in modern-day medicine, often surrounded by a whirlwind of ethical issues. The Joint Centre for Bioethics at U of T will be welcoming Professor Roger Hutchinson who will be discussing the ethical concerns regarding assisted dying.

Date: February 15 Time: 4:10–5:30 pm Location: Health Sciences Building, 155 College Street, Room 108 Admission: Free Social Movements for Social Change Science for Peace will be holding a public lecture hosted

by Professor Blake Poland of the Dalla Lana School of Public Health who will be discussing how to instigate change in the modern-day healthcare system.

Date: February 15 Time: 7:00–9:00 pm Location: University College, 15 King’s College Circle, Room 152 Admission: Free

LSCDS Seminar: Networking 101 Many students argue that, alongside GPA, networking is one of the most significant aspects of your university career. The Life Sciences Career Development Society at U of T will be holding a seminar to teach students the most effective networking strategies.

Date: February 16 Time: 6:00–8:00 pm Location: Red Room, Donnelly Centre, 160 College Street Admission: Free for U of T students

14 d THE VARSITY d SCIENCE

science@thevarsity.ca

Your pencil is now a superconductor Graphene has been shown to conduct electrical flow without resistance Govind Mohan Varsity Contributor

We all use graphite in our everyday lives, be it in the form of our pencil cores or in batteries where it serves as an electrode. But what’s not so well known about graphite is the nanomaterial of which it is composed — graphene.

Graphene is made up of carbon atoms arranged in a honeycomb-like structure, which, when stacked on each other, form the amorphous graphite that we are used to seeing.

Though we have been aware of graphene’s existence for about two centuries, it wasn’t until scientists Andre Geim and Kostya Novoselov managed to extract graphene layers with the thickness of a single atom in 2004 that we began to notice there was something strange going on.

They did this using the so-called ‘scotch tape method,’ which, predictably, involves putting a piece of graphite on scotch tape and repeatedly peeling off layers. They initially did this to purify the graphite sample to determine if it was eligible as a transistor, a switch that serves as the basis for logic gates and hence computation itself.

But when they transferred the graphene onto a silicon substrate and passed a current through it, the material entered a quantum state where the electrons passing through started to behave as though they had no mass.

Subsequent tests showed that it was also stronger than steel and harder than diamond, another form of carbon. Due to the quantum effects it displayed, researchers guessed that it could act as a superconductor, in which current can flow without resistance.

In 2016, Japanese researchers discovered a way to invoke this state by inserting calcium atoms into the graphene lattice. Despite its promise, researchers were unsure as to whether this effect was due to properties of graphene itself, as metals tend to interact with it very strongly.

Last month, however, researchers from Cambridge University coupled graphene with a metal compound whose superconducting abilities are understood well enough so as to be distinguishable from that of graphene. Intriguingly, the form of superconductivity that graphene seemed to display was one that had rarely been seen and is in fact still unconfirmed empirically, namely Pwave superconductivity.

P-wave superconductivity was observed previously in strontium ruthenate, but the crystalline structure of this matter proved to be too bulky to provide a good specimen.

Graphene is essentially a two-dimensional structure and could provide a much better example of this behaviour.

Furthermore, given that we are already able to place graphene on a silicon substrate, we could use its superconducting

VOTE NOW Governing Council Governing Council is the senior governing body that oversees the academic, business and student affairs of the University.

6 student positions to be elected Voting Period: February 6 to 17 Find out more at uoft.me/GCElections

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activity for a more efficient variety of superconducting devices. If this is true, it could provide a whole new dimension to our understanding of electromagnetism, in addition to being a significant milestone in the field of chemistry.

Research in this area has provided very promising results in the past few years. Scientists have begun to ask whether similar properties could be observed in other elements that form chains with themselves,

a property called catenation. To this end, researchers ran a computer simulation this month on boron, which has three outer shell electrons and can undergo catenation.

They discovered that when boron atoms are strung into a one-dimensional chain and stretched, they can become semiconductors which, when released, fold back into place. Though this is just a simulation, it is not so far away from the realms of possibility to be dismissed as conjecture.

Arts&Culture

February 13, 2017 var.st/arts arts@thevarsity.ca

Ten groovy singles for singles

U of T initiative breaks down language barriers

No matter your relationship status, these tunes are the perfect soundtrack to Valentine’s Day

NMC-CESI brings students and refugees together through the challenge of understanding

MIA CARNEVALE/THE VARSITY

Charlene Hanania Varsity Contributor

Valentine’s Day is coming up, but it might not necessarily be a romantic day for everyone. Let’s all try not to take Valentine’s Day too seriously – whether accompanying a night out with your significant other, or a night in with your closest friends, these tracks are sure to get you dancing and having a grand old time.

1.

“Matadora (Medina Remix)” by Sofi Tukker With bewitching Portuguese vocals, Sofi Tukker’s hit is perfectly remixed by Medina with soft electro swings. This slow song is a perfect way to start off the night.

2.

“Kind of Love” by Mister Gavin Mister Gavin excels at strong drops, especially in “Kind of Love.”

This will surely cause you to get up onto the dance floor, even if it’s your living room. The tambourine and all the mixed electronic notes provide funky grooves that will put you in the best mood.

3.

“Temptations (FKJ Remix)” by Cloud Nine Funky and groovy are the best words to define one of French Kiwi Juice’s best remixes. If you’re not burning calories yet, this quintet will give you the boost to move.

4.

“I Want You Back (Shaparder & LRX Remix)” by The Jackson 5 The Jackson 5 did kill it with their original, but this remix sends the song straight through the roof. By now, you should be out of breath, if you’ve been following my instructions to dance your heart out.

5.

“Do It” by Tuxedo These easy lyrics and bass line are the perfect combination to prompt a sing-along session. Tuxedo manages to combine pop and funk into a perfectly groovy song.

6.

“Golden (Kaytranada’s Life Living Edition)” by Jill Scott Jill Scott remixed by Kaytranada is a sure recipe for success.

First, Scott’s voice will amaze you, then Kaytranada’s great vibes will rock you.

7.

“Pricks of Brightness” by Ratatat Ratatat provides a splash of rock vibes with lingering mellow electronic sounds. You can never go wrong with this group – they’re perfect for any occasion.

8.

“Redbone” by Childish Gambino Childish Gambino’s recent release Awaken, My Love brought a new style along with it. The surprising introduction of rock and soul into Gambino’s established hip-hop formula is a welcome addition to his musical offerings.

9.

“The Mojo Radio Gang” by Parov Stelar Parov Stelar offers a jazz-swing-electro combo that’s popular in Europe but hasn’t quite reached North America yet. Take a moment to appreciate his unique sound.

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE NEAR AND MIDDLE EASTERN CIVILIZATIONS CULTURAL EXCHANGE AND SUPPORT INITIATIVE

The language learning program also raises funds for refugees.

Adina Samuels Varsity Contributor

Extraordinary bonds are forming on seemingly ordinary Saturdays as students and newcomers from Syria, Turkey, and Iraq spend the days conversing in Arabic and English at the Department of Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations Cultural Exchange Support Initiative (NMC-CESI) at U of T. The NMC-CESI acts as a resource for Syrian refugees and other newcomers from Arabic-speaking countries to improve their English, while also giving its student volunteers the opportunity to practice Arabic and learn about a culture that is different from their own.

The program fosters a sense of community for the newcomers, providing them with assistance in acclimating to life in Toronto. It eases the process of settling into a new city and speaking a foreign language by creating a safe and encouraging space to learn and develop conversational skills.

The initiative also raises funds for Syrian refugees and at-risk students, and spreads awareness about the current situation in Syria and the Middle East.

Ian Costa, current PhD candidate at U of T and one of the program’s organizers, said that the weekly language and cultural workshop “is more than just a workshop. It has become a community.”

“It’s hard to put into words,” Costa explained, “but I think it meets a need for the community, beyond being a great opportunity to improve language skills.”

Costa said that he and other Near and Middle Eastern Civilization students came up with the idea for this program before the first wave of Syrian refugees arrived in Toronto last year.

The weekly workshop has taken on greater significance in recent days, considering President Donald Trump’s recent action to ban immigrants from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the United States. Of what is transpiring in the US, Costa said, “As far as the workshop is concerned, we try to be as lighthearted and fun as possible. But of course people are thinking about it.”

Each workshop is comprised of reading and writing portions, where participants discuss certain topics and ask each other for assistance when necessary, in addition to a fun activity, such as an outing to the ROM or a baseball game. The interactive style of the workshops transforms them from being simply a place to study language to a place for the newcomers to receive advice on adjusting to life in Toronto.

The impact of this program is felt both by the immigrants and student volunteers. Some of the younger participants, empowered by their newly acquired language skills, are applying to universities and chasing their dreams. This is another one of NMC-CESI’s goals: ensuring that refugees are able to integrate into society with the help of a university education, if that is what they wish to pursue.

The unifying force of conversation is what maintains the unique atmosphere of the program.

Students and newcomers alike struggle and laugh over new words, the sounds of Arabic and English mixing, and a deeper understanding of culture and community develops between both groups.

The participants refuse to allow language to be a barrier that divides them. Rather, the challenge of understanding one another is precisely what brings them together.

The NMC-CESI is open to all students, regardless of their level of Arabic fluency. For more information, visit NMC-CESI’s Facebook page.

10. “Modern Love” by David Bowie And finally, make sure to end off your night with an homage to our beloved Bowie.

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FEBRUARY 13, 2017 u 17

var.st/arts

“I can’t imagine an alternative world where I am not motivated” U of T’s ‘serial entrepreneur’ talks persistence and social enterprise Gabrielle Warren Associate Arts & Culture Editor

Manu ‘Swish’ Goswami is a student at the University of Toronto, a recipient of Canada’s prestigious Top 20 Under 20 award, and a member of the Hart House Debating Club. He describes himself as a serial entrepreneur, public speaker, and debate enthusiast.

Recently, he joined JB Fitzgerald Venture Capital Firm and founded a wearable tech startup with his best friend from high school. In an interview with The Varsity, Goswami described how he got started in the field of entrepreneurship and what keeps him motivated.

The Varsity — What do you do and why?

Manu Goswami — I build businesses and I look more toward creating a social impact than getting money — though of course money is nice and I have done this for almost 10 years of my life... Why I do it is because many people find a way of expressing themselves whether it be through music or through art — I express myself best through business.

TV — At what point did it dawn on you that business was a conduit for you to express yourself?

MG — I don’t think it was one single point. It wasn’t like I woke up one day or anything like that. I think for me it was when I was seven years old and

and not only are companies going to have to label where the product is from, but more importantly what you can get when you buy that product.

GABRIELLE WARREN/THE VARSITY

‘Swish’ started his first business at the age of seven. started my first business. It was with my dad and I think he was trying to get me into engineering and we were making a hovercraft business and he was trying to show me the beauty of building the hovercraft, but for me, I loved to go out, getting people to buy it. I loved trying to convince people that this was something that they absolutely needed.

For me, writing, reading, and all of these things didn’t come very natural for me. What did come natural was sitting in a room with other people and figuring out a solution and figuring out steps on how to be able to accomplish it… Every day I am learning something about my vision, or more importantly, how to express myself.

TV — You have defined yourself as a social entrepreneur — what does that mean to you?

MG — I think it is hard to define because so many people have different definitions of it. For me, social entre-

preneurs balance three key factors: people, planet, and profit. I just think that a social entrepreneur’s underlying incentive is helping people and impacting people.

Two businesses I ran... in the first year I was running losses, I was taking on pro bono stuff when I shouldn’t have... I wanted to help people and I didn’t care if I was running and using my own money and burning my own money. So I think that is the whole mentality of a social entrepreneur, you’re very much toward people.

TV — Where do you see your field in the future?

MG — [A social entrepreneurship model] is very appealing because consumers, at least in my mind, are starting to get more informed with their choices with social media, with all of these various modes of communication. I think it is only going to be 20, 30 years from now where people are literally going to look at the shelves

TV — What you do can be stressful; why do you keep going? What’s your motivation?

MG — I can’t imagine an alternative world where I am not motivated, I’m not ambitious, and I am not looking forward to anything. That world just scares the crap out of me... A lot of people say “Don’t play on fear,” but I do that and I use fear as a great strength for me. I am just scared of waking up one day and not having those dreams and not having those goals. So much so that every day I continue to motivate myself to push deeper and deeper... I think that if you’re passionate about something, motivation comes natural.

When it comes from stress, yeah it exists especially with managing with school, but I think that at least 90 per cent of my day is just me doing stupid stuff, like really dumb time-wasting stuff… I do take time off, but I believe that there is 90 per cent of my day that I can capitalize upon more efficiently.

Whenever people say that “I have no time to do this,” I am like, “You are lying to yourself.” Because nine out of 10 times you probably have 10, 20, 30 minutes to spare and use it toward your dream.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Writer Harriet Alida Lye on creativity and the writing process A writer’s biggest challenge is self-doubt, says Lye Selena Mercuri Varsity Contributor

Harriet Alida Lye is a Torontobased writer and the founder of the international literary magazine Her Royal Majesty. Her past projects include the Little Red Guide to Toronto, for which she was the writer and photographer. In an interview with The Varsity, Lye discussed her creative ventures and the quirks of the writing process.

Lye founded Her Royal Majesty as an undergraduate student in Nova Scotia, and it became international when she moved to Paris, where she lived for seven years.

“The Anglophone community there is so strong,” said Lye. Her experience in Paris centred on the famous bookstore Shakespeare & Company, where she worked and later lived as a writerin-residence.

At Shakespeare & Company, Lye was able to hold several launch events and readings, which she described as “a really natural way of getting to extend the network and meet writers from all over the world.” The main thing that elevat-

ed the magazine to a new level, said Lye, “was finding two hugely talented and generous graphic designers, one for the website and one for the printed magazine, whose work elevated the journal to what I would consider the caliber of an ‘international magazine.’”

Lye contributed to Julie de Muer’s project Promenade nocturne à Marseille, with two other writers on a Google Story. The project allows participants to digitally explore the streets of Marseilles by night. While freelancing for a French advertising agency, she was assigned to find people in France who had relied on Google’s ‘Search and Maps’ features for a creative or humanitarian project.

“I found Julie and became super interested in her story because of the way she discovered, and then animated, contemporary and historical narratives in her city in order to help try to remove the negative associations that Marseille has in the public consciousness,” Lye said.

Lye believes that the biggest challenge writers face is “self doubt, combined with an oversaturation

of the market.”

She described the difficulty of feeling confident about a written work and putting it in the world.

On her own writing process, she said that the first draft of her upcoming novel The Honey Farm was written over the course of two or three months, and she wrote around 1,500 words a day while staying at a family friend’s house in northern Sweden. The greenhouse was one of her favourite spots, and she would work there with her laptop perched on her knees.

“I look things up on Google Maps a lot and walk around the digital streets, open up books and read paragraphs at random just to remind myself of what a sentence is, drink coffee, look at the sky, walk,” she said. After taking a break from the book for over a year, she spent two years doing intense edits, with the help of many readers. At one point during these edits, she cut 200 pages from the novel, and rewrote 100.

The result is a psychological thriller as well as “a love story/ identity crisis.” Lye outlined the novel’s development, explain-

PHOTO BY LAURA STEVENS, COURTESY OF HARRIET ALIDA LYE

Lye wrote much of her most recent book in a greenhouse in Sweden. ing how its conception began with the setting, a honey farm in northern Ontario, followed by the character of the woman who runs it, Cynthia.

The book follows Silvia and Ibrahim, who end up at Cynthia’s farm after she markets it as a writer’s retreat to attract free labour. “At the start of the novel, Silvia has just graduated from university, has a very closed and Catholic background, and wants to be a writer, but has never written much of anything,” Lye said.

The Honey Farm will be published in April 2018 by Nimbus Press.

S

I D E S

B-Sides is a weekly feature where we pose a question about the arts to generate discussion about the role of culture in our everyday lives. This week’s question is: “In honour of Valentine’s Day, which fictional couple best represents #goals?”

Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley taught me what a good relationship looks like. They share a sense of humour and common interests. Most importantly, they’re equals. She puts him in his place when he’s being unreasonable and understands him better than anyone. When he has to go hunt Horcruxes, she doesn’t just wait around, but instead revives Dumbledore’s Army at Hogwarts.

They’re both passionate, strong, empathetic, and entirely deserving of each other.

— Linh Nguyen

Yuri Katsuki and Victor Nikiforov from Yuri on Ice. Both are from incredibly homophobic countries — Japan and Russia, respectively — but the anime features them in a healthy, non-hypersexualized gay relationship. While they’re at different points of their life, they meet each other where they are, rather than trying to move their relationship faster or slower.

They both have each other’s best interests in mind and are willing to sacrifice their skating careers for each other. Most importantly: they both love dogs.

— Nicole Perez

Rahul and Anjali from Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham. He leaves fortune and superficial esteem for her; she stands by him as he builds himself back up again. He’s a charmer and she’s no-nonsense.

He’s generally smooth and she’s generally a klutz. Also, SHAH RUKH KHAN AND KAJOL ARE FOREVER OTP. — Sarim Irfan

Eleanor and Park, from the eponymous book by Rainbow Rowell.

They are both 16 and unconventional by 1980s standards. They also represent the universal fear of ‘will this relationship work or not?’ Even though they’re fictional and young, Eleanor and Park have the sort of relationship that you want to root for. They accept each other for their quirks and defend one another in an ‘us-againstthe-world’ kind of way. The book reminds me of just how terrifying relationships can be — in the end, Eleanor and Park are the best because they’re realistic.

— Liana Ramos

Sports

February 13, 2017 var.st/sports sports@thevarsity.ca

Varsity Blues swim teams bring it all home U of T teams collectively win 62 medals in three days Sean Smith Sports Editor

Watching top athletes compete provokes a childlike glee — the kind that only comes from watching the very best do what they’ve trained for years to do. As I walked around the statuesque figures of buoyant perfection last weekend, the swimmers at the OUA championship seemed perfectly at home.

I was overdressed in a light jacket and the poolside of U of T’s Athletic Centre was sweltering, but the buffeting heat was forgotten the second the swimmers dove into the pool.

I became transfixed watching the swimmers carve through the water at a speed that televisions fail to capture.

Byron MacDonald, recipient of the women’s OUA Coach of Year and Head Coach of the Varsity Blues men’s and women’s swimming teams, echoed this sentiment: “Rarely do you ever see firsthand someone who is truly among the very top of the world.”

The hosting Varsity Blues dominated the tournament. Thirteen of 15 OUA records set in the three-day tournament were broken

by Blues swimmers. There were 42 events in total with medals awarded individually, and the Blues medalled in all but one of the events, earning a cumulative 62 medals.

The Blues earned two more OUA swim championship banners for their collection and the fourth straight banner for the women.

Banners are given to the best overall team

performance in both the men’s and women’s categories.

The Varsity Blues’ women’s team decimated their competition, winning their banner with a lead greater than the total number of points the second place team earned. “I believe this is the largest margin of victory ever,” said MacDonald.

Olympic bronze medalist and star of the Blues swim program Kylie Masse took home female OUA Swimmer of the Year honours and won the Dr. Jeno Tihanyi Award for IM Excellence, following her OUA record performance in the 200m Individual Medley on Friday.

MacDonald commented, “[Masse] is truly magnificent to watch streak through the water.” She won a total of six medals this tournament alone.

The men’s team was also impressive, winning the banner with a healthy lead over second place University of Western Ontario Mustangs and a commanding lead over third place University of Ottawa Gee-Gees.

This is the fourteenth straight banner that U of T’s men’s team has won. Hochan Ryu won male OUA Swimmer of the Year after winning three gold and one silver medals at the meet. This is the third year running that he has won this accolade.

Members of both the men’s and women’s teams walked away with OUA Rookie of the Year awards. Ian MacKinnon won for the men and Rachel Rodé won the award for the

NATHAN CHAN/THE VARSITY

Blues win with perhaps the “largest margin of victory ever.” women. MacDonald commented that “the fact that we graduate only one male and no female swimmers certainly means U of T should be highly favoured again next year.”

This year’s competition was a win for the swim team first and foremost, but also for school spirit. “Winning is great, but winning at home is extra special because so many

parents and alumni could join in the celebration,” said MacDonald.

Great swim teams are somewhat of a legacy at U of T, as we have won more men’s and women’s OUA championships than any other school. The fact that we have such a young team going forward means we have both a history and a future to be proud of.

Brendan Shanahan, Steven Caldwell headline 2017 Sports Industry Conference Conference provided students with an up-close look at the business side of sports Raghad A.K. and Vanessa Wallace Varsity Staff and Varsity Contributor

The sixth annual Sports Industry Conference hosted by the University of Toronto Sports and Business Association (UTSB) and Rotman Sports Business Association was held from February 10–11. With the theme ‘Positioning in Sports’, the conference provided students and young professionals with an opportunity to interact with and hear from different professionals within the sports industry.

DAY 1: Playing Your Position The first panel provided insight from the brand perspective of the industry. Jacqueline Ryan, Vice President Sponsorship and Partnership Programs at Scotiabank, explained the importance of hockey to the bank’s sponsorship and strategies.

Nigel Scott, VP Sponsorship and Experiences for Rogers Communications remarked on the strength of the Raptors’ ‘We The North’ campaign, highlighting how the marketing strategy doesn’t rely on performance to engage audiences outside Toronto.

“Agency Panel” hosted an exciting debate about the future of live sports and consumer trends. Trojan One founder and chair of the Canadian Sponsorship Forum Mark Harri-

son said the future of sport is bleak.

Matthew Logue, COO of S&E Sponsorship Group recognized that “the Olympic model is broken.” Logue maintains that the ability of live sports to capture people’s attention is unrivaled.

The speakers at “the Property Panel” were from different sectors of the sports industry.

Brenda Andress serves as the commissioner of the Canadian Women’s Hockey League. She’s worked there for eight years and expresses how the goal for women’s hockey in Canada is to continue growing the sport for women.

Andress understands the importance of fans to sport: “At the end of the day, it’s all about entertainment. None of this exist without the fans in any sport.” She elaborated, saying that keeping fans entertained is important to success.

Mark Ditmars, Vice President, Corporate Partnerships and Luxury Suites for the Toronto Blue Jays, discussed how important Jays fans are to Canada because they are the only Canadian Major League Baseball team.

His advice for the fans attending the conference was to never lose their passion for sport.

Dan Mackenzie, Vice President & Managing Director of NBA Canada, has spent 17 years with the NBA. He explained that the NBA is on it way to launching a new eSports league, which will make the league more accessible. He also spoke briefly about the Raptors players and how they are role models in the community.

Kyle McMann is a Group Vice President with the NHL; he has been working within the NHL for 11 years. He talked about the

success of the World Cup of Hockey, held in Toronto this past September. McMann noted that holding the Cup in Toronto helped to unlock international hockey fandom in European countries.

He also spoke about technology in the NHL and how now livestream through Twitter is resulting in new ways to create value and engage with fans. McMann’s advice for young professionals and students interested in working in the sports industry is to be excited and passionate about the industry and to think of new ways to make it better.

Michael Rossi, President of Adidas Group Canada, was the keynote speaker of “Putting it All Together.” He touched upon the key features of the different brands within Adidas and their contributions to the different sports leagues.

Rossi said “Sports have the power to change lives.” He added that the World Cup of Hockey in Toronto was the first time Adidas promoted on ice, and it was successful.

He hopes that in a few years, Adidas will be a brand for the NHL. DAY 2: Changing Your Position A panel featuring former athletes included Steven Caldwell and Rex Kalamian.

Caldwell is a retired Scottish international soccer player and former captain of the Toronto FC. When asked if he would’ve continued his career if he hadn’t suffered a severe injury, Caldwell said he probably would have continued to play for one or two more seasons; he chose to retire because he did not want to miss

any more games due to injury.

Since his retirement, he has taken on the role of Director of Corporate Development for Maple Leafs Sports & Entertainment.

Caldwell is looking forward to Toronto FC’s upcoming season, especially after the success the team has achieved over the past two seasons.

Rex Kalamian, the Assistant Coach for the Toronto Raptors, used to play basketball in college but his career was also cut prematurely due to an injury. Kalamian got into coaching because he loved to teach the sport to other players.

When referring to his role as an assistant with the Raptors, Kalamian describes himself as a counsellor, a coach, and a teacher.

The final speaker of the two-day conference was Toronto Maple Leafs President & Alternate Governor Brendan Shanahan.

Shanahan has made his mark on the Leafs by shaking up the team’s culture through drastic changes to the team, including hiring a new coach and a new general manager, trading two goalies, and drafting last year’s franchise star Auston Matthews. “[They were] all good moves with big risks,” Shanahan said regarding the changes he made since he took over.

Shanahan’s believes that “competitors respect competitors.” He believes that the logo is the face of brand, not particular players.

Shanahan explained that he saw the NHL as a family when he was a player, which led to him working in the NHL after he retired.

Overall, the conference provided attendees the rare opportunity to hear from leading professionals in the sports industry.

FEBRUARY 13, 2017 u 19

var.st/sports

Do you supplement your workout?

Supplements may help with gains, but there is a lot we don’t know

Patriots mount record 25-point comeback

Noah Walker

Varsity Contributor

Even for the lucky few who can achieve intense gains in a mere three-week training session, building muscle is a difficult task.

Hard work is more than necessary, as producing clean muscle requires effort, interest, commitment, and — above-all else — time. Add academics on top of all that, and student-athletes can have difficulty getting the most out of their training.

Since the use of steroids would require both a prescription and a rewrite of regulations relating to the use of performance enhancing drugs, supplements have surged to the forefront of athletics as the mechanism for progression.

As advertisements for drugs and supplements can confuse even the most intelligent among us, a clear distinction must be made between the two.

Drugs, including steroids, alter the body’s chemistry in a manner that increases testosterone and muscle growth. This amounts to great results from seemingly little effort — and is why they are often banned from the world of professional athletics.

Supplements, on the other hand, are designed to replace or ‘supplement’ the minerals, vitamins, and amino acids that are present in certain foods or add nutrients to an already stable diet.

There are questions, however, about the efficacy of the products, especially with respect to building muscle. Scientific studies on the efficiency of the products often conflict and offer little in the way of assistance.

Creatine is the most popular supplement among academic athletes. According to the

WBUR BOSTON’S NPR NEWS STATION/CC FLICKR

Joseph Rossi

Varsity Contributor

Are pills and powders really the answer? NATHAN CHAN/THE VARSITY WebMD site,“An estimated 40% of college athletes and up to half of professional athletes say they use creatine supplements.”

Some studies show evidence that creatine supplements improve performance during short periods of athletic activity, so it comes as no surprise that it is utilized when lifting.

Protein powders are another common supplement that have become a staple of many athletes’ diets.

Protein is required for muscle growth, and the human body relies on a stable source of nutrients, so the practice of maintaining a healthy diet while also consuming extra protein will promote growth, both on and off the field.

Protein is best absorbed through an

aqueous solution, though, contrary to what the typical high school football star might assume, drinking protein all day is not the most efficient way of acheiving muscle growth.

For the leanest and cleanest muscle building results, a person should drink protein directly after a workout as their muscles are repaired.

This, as well as a stable diet, is sure to produce clean muscle without many side effects.

Supplements like protein powder, however, should never fully replace certain foods, like amino acid rich meats.

Careful consideration must be taken to ensure a healthy-diet, which, after all is most important — not just making gains.

An American national holiday American Culture Club bands together for Super Bowl LI Rachel Chen

Features Editor

Brennan Hall is eerily empty at 5:00 pm, save for two students at the piano. By 6:00 pm, the executives of U of T’s American Culture Club (ACC) have arrived for their Super Bowl party and stocked the tables with traditional snacks — pizza, wings, and nachos.

President Jaimi Foster and Vice-President Charlie Mitchell co-founded the ACC with the mission “to promote American culture and society in a positive light amongst Canadians and other international students.” “[Not] all Americans are the pro-[President Donald Trump] kind of people that Canadians think they all are,” Foster said. “We just wanted a club where people could have fun and say like, ‘Hey, we’re fun too, we’re people just like you.’”

The football pennants they put up on St. Mike’s trophy case are reminiscent of American high school homecoming weeks, while the handmade New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons signs inform those who have not followed the season exactly who is playing.

People slowly begin to trickle in, some for the free food, others actually staying for the game this year; maybe it’s due to the lack of

A Super Bowl for the ages

midterms or just better advertising than last year.

Despite the inevitable handful of people simultaneously working while watching and the lack of super fans yelling at the screen, a decently-sized crowd forms this year’s party.

Of course, it is still much calmer than the Super Bowl parties Foster is used to in the United States.

In the US, Foster says, “You talk about it in class, people talk about the food, you see the early commercials, like the day of, you’re usually invited to several Super Bowl parties, plus your family usually has one. It’s a pretty big deal.” Foster has been a Patriots fan since she was 10, and tonight she is rooting for them.

From Arizona, Foster was surprised to experience such a subdued sports culture during her first year, especially when none of her friends expressed interest in Varsity Blues football games.

“I think sports are neat because it brings the crowd together, as opposed to, let’s say, if you liked to knit. [Knitting] is a very individualistic kind of thing, but sports are like a thing to do... You get the big hot dog, the beer, the coke, whatever, and you’re there with the crowd, and the band plays, and there

is so much loyalty, and it gives people a sense of community,” Foster says.

Commenting on recent political events, ACC Treasurer Ben Alperstein says, “In a normal year you wouldn’t even think about [politics], you know? And that actually came up in my mind when thinking about who to root for.”

Alperstein continues, “[The Patriots have] won too much, they’re cocky, they support Trump. [Tom] Brady, the owner, [Bill] Belichick... have all publicly endorsed him.”

Alperstein wants the Falcons to win this year, but he is a Chicago Bears fan at heart, coming from “Chicagoland” himself.

For American students with close family and friends on opposite sides of the political spectrum, handling political divisions can be difficult. In times like this, sports has a chance to shine.

The Super Bowl, even if only for a night, can offer a much-needed reprieve from politics.

“I have people in my family that voted for Trump and it doesn’t matter,” Foster said.

“They’re still all… coming together for the Super Bowl.”

In a first-ever overtime Super Bowl, the Patriots ultimately defeated the Falcons 34–28, which may be a much easier type of animosity to live with.

Legendary — that is the only way to describe the New England Patriots’ improbable comeback performance in Super Bowl LI on February 5.

The Patriots were huge favourites over the Atlanta Falcons going into the game.

New England had already won four Super Bowls under quarterback Tom Brady and head coach Bill Belichick. Throughout the first half of the game, however, the Falcons dominated.

The Falcons’ first touchdown came courtesy of a 71-yard drive, concluded by Devonta Freeman’s five-yard carry into the end zone.

On their next possession, the Falcons quarterback and NFL MVP Matt Ryan repeatedly connected with star receiver Julio Jones. Ryan finished this drive with a touchdown pass to Austin Hooper.

The Falcons finished off the first half in style when Robert Alford picked off Brady, before going all the way into the end zone to give the Falcons a 21–0 lead.

The second half of the game began with the Falcons up 21–3, and they extended their lead with another touchdown. But the momentum swiftly shifted, and that was it for the Falcons — Brady and the Patriots soon took over the show. On their next possession, the Patriots scored a touchdown but failed to convert on the extra point attempt.

The Patriots secured a field goal on their next drive. Shortly thereafter, the Patriots stripped the Falcons of the ball, deep in Falcons territory. They capitalized on the opportunity and completed the touchdown with a two-point conversion.

On their next drive, the Falcons looked strong, moving quickly up the field. Ryan was then sacked, and a holding penalty put them out of field goal range. The Patriots gained control of the ball on their own nine-yard line, with three and a half minutes to play.

A third-and-10 conversion kept the drive alive early, and then Julian Edelman made arguably one of the greatest catches in Super Bowl history to get the Patriots to midfield, grasping the ball from the feet of his defender and regaining possession of the ball a few inches above the turf.

From there the Patriots marched to the Falcons end zone again, pulling off a two-point conversion to send the game into overtime.

The Patriots received the ball first in overtime, knowing that they needed to score a touchdown to cement the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history — and that’s exactly what they did. An eight-play, 75-yard drive was capped off by James White’s run into the end zone, sending the Patriots onto the field in a roaring celebration.

Brady was named Super Bowl MVP for a record fourth time. Although he has won the award in the past, he has never before had to overcome a record 25-point deficit to win the honour.

FEBRUARY 13, 2017 u 20

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