MEDIA

More TTC riders start their trip at York
Bud Purves, president of the York University Development Corporation, responded to columnist Rob Granatstein’s July 29 article "De-rail Spadina subway" in a letter to The Toronto Sun Aug. 14. Purves wrote:

Rob Granatstein's column fails to understand the important contributions the Spadina-York subway extension will make to enhancing the access to York University for the increasing numbers of GTA residents seeking postsecondary places; improving inter-regional transportation with the Region of York; and increasing access to services and jobs in one of the most under-served areas of Toronto.

Four governments have evaluated this subway and recognized its importance by announcing their financial support.

More riders start their trip at York University than the vast majority of TTC stations on both the Yonge and Bloor lines. York sees 26,000 riders come and go on the TTC, which is more than 19 of the 29 stations on the Yonge line and more than 20 of the 31 stations on the Bloor line. Another 14,000 riders on other transit systems such as Brampton Transit, York's Viva and GO Transit pass through the university.

A significant volume of subway riders will be generated by the Region of York, which had a growth rate of 22.4% between 2000 and 2005, and this population growth is expected to continue adding about 30,000 new residents to the region each year for the next 15 years. At the same time, transportation studies demonstrate that cross-border flows continue to grow rapidly and the flow of people is almost balanced between York and Toronto.

Even before development activity begins, there is a high volume of ridership for this line and in terms of development activity along this line.

Attendance is up at latest Rogers Cup
If you were to simply read and hear about the women’s tennis competition at the Rexall Centre this week, you might expect the site would be a virtual ghost town complete with tumbleweeds, unable to attract anyone save the most hardened fans of the sport, wrote Toronto Star columnist Damien Cox, Aug. 17. Multiple withdrawals of major stars like Venus Williams, Amelie Mauresmo and Maria Sharapova injured the depth of the field going in. Still, thousands of customers again poured through the gates at the York University facility yesterday, either intent on getting something for their money spent on advance tickets or happy to watch whatever players were still alive and competing.

The tournament will pass the 100,000 attendance mark today and is slightly ahead of 2005 numbers, the last time the females were in town. So the perception of this event remains somewhat in contrast with the reality. People are coming and are interested, leaving only the question of whether their experience will make them want to come again.

A healthy way to spend your summer?
The video-game industry won a minor battle this week when a California judge shot down a state act prohibiting the sale of violent video games to children, ruling that the proposed law was too broad and that, in any case, there was insufficient evidence showing such games have a negative effect on kids, wrote The Globe and Mail Aug. 11.

But while politicians like Arnold Schwarzenegger may be doing their best to propose ways of limiting children's exposure to games in which torture and murder are commonplace, more and more studies are emerging that show that video games may be the opposite of destructive – that they may, in fact, be downright good for you.

And it's not just eyesight that seems to improve as players hone their gaming skills. A study published by researchers at York last year showed evidence that video-game players – not unlike bilingual speakers – tend to score higher in various, relatively difficult, mental tests than do non-players. Jennifer Jenson (right), a specialist in pedagogy and technology in York’s Faculty of Education and the editor of Loading...: The Journal of the Canadian Game Studies Association, points to the research of T.L. Taylor of the IT University of Copenhagen, who has argued that "the virtual/real distinction breaks down in the face of the embodied, lived, everyday realities of being online and participating in an online community."

Restaurant employees cook up unique fundraising event
The throng of sweaty feet and bodies moving rhythmically across the floor of the sports lounge at Stony Plain's Boston Pizza on Aug. 13 belonged to an eager crowd, ready to dance the night away – for the benefit of sick or injured children, wrote Alberta’s Stony Plain Reporter Aug. 17 in a story about a fundraising event for that city’s Stollery Children's Hospital. The event was the brainchild of three Boston Pizza employees, including York student Meredith Anderson, 22.

"We wanted to do something to actively promote (dance) here, to uncover the wealth of undiscovered talent right in front of our eyes," said Anderson, a second-year fine arts student at York.

Priciest condo in tallest tower goes to billionaire York alum
In the battle for one-upmanship in Toronto's luxury real estate market, York alumnus Alex Shnaider (right) (BA ’92) has revealed a convincing hand, wrote the Toronto Star Aug. 11. The enigmatic Toronto billionaire says in an exclusive interview he has decided to keep what has been billed as Canada's most expensive condominium, valued at up to $20 million, at the Trump International Hotel & Tower for himself.

A work in progress, his mansion in the sky could be as large as 14,000 square feet, and will have, in some areas, soaring 9-metre ceilings. "You can put an observatory up there. It's a great place to get away from the wife if we ever have a fight," joked Shnaider.

While New York billionaire Donald Trump is the brand, Shnaider, at 39 Canada's youngest billionaire, is the financial muscle behind the ultra-luxury project in the city's financial district. Shnaider went to William Lyon Mackenzie CI while helping his parents in the deli. He later studied economics at York University.

Discovering inspiration
York alumnus James Levac (BEd ’02) finds the inspiration of a late piano teacher in every note he plays, wrote the Cornwall Standard-Freeholder Aug. 15 in a profile of the Toronto musician. The pianist only took lessons with the late Bob Eadie for a few years before his teacher passed away. Yet, during that brief period of time, the youngster realized the joy and purpose behind Eadie's instruction. "Bob was a serious piano player," said Levac. "He wasn't just a piano teacher, he was a serious entertainer. "Bob was damn good."

Levac hasn't sought a traditional life of performance in the music halls of the nation. Instead, he prefers to share his gift by performing in rather non-traditional venues for seniors and shut-ins, as well as teaching his own students in the evenings.

"I'm trying to carry Bob's spirit forward," explains Levac, who is also Faith Presbyterian Community Church's organist on Sundays. "There are 400 retirement and nursing homes in the Toronto area, and almost every day I play at one."

Using art for healing…and to earn a living
Ahmoo Angeconeb (right) performed a prayer ceremony with a pipe and drum to open his latest exhibition of artwork, Ahmoo's Prayer, wrote the North Bay Nugget Aug. 11. The Lac Seul First Nation artist and recent recipient of an Ontario Arts Council Senior Artist's grant gave detailed descriptions of the meanings behind the human being figures and their spirit helpers in his blue and white pencil crayon drawings during June's opening of the summer-long exhibition at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery. Angeconeb studied art in 1976 at York and travelled to London and Paris during 1979-1980 to study art in Europe.

Picking up the pieces
The black eye and broken shoulder came from a spill on a scooter but in a strange way, both injuries have added a new dimension to Christina Kingsbury's exhibition, called Making Ends Meet, wrote the Guelph Mercury Aug. 11. Her pieces will be hung in the Green Room at the Bookshelf on Monday with an official reception from 7 to 9pm on Aug. 24.

The phrase usually refers to the struggles of balancing a budget or having enough money to cover the bills. It can also be a sewing reference – the piecing together of fabric swatches so there will be enough. For Kingsbury (BFA ’05), who majored in photography and minored in environmental studies at York’s Faculty of Fine Arts, this exhibit is a way to use the ends of other projects. She's stitching together bits of photographs, ticket stubs, old road maps and such, into a photographic patchwork quilt. And given her injuries and limited mobility, she's also meeting other people as they pitch in, in quilting-bee style, to help her finish the exhibit on time.

A leap of faith
Last night was a long time in the making for local playwright and York alumnus Paul Ciufo (left) (BA ’94, MA ’97 ), wrote the London Free Press Aug. 11. When the drafts of his play Reverend Jonah hit double digits and the calendar turned to 2006 – marking seven years since Ciufo began writing it – one might have suspected the work would never see the stage. But Ciufo never gave up hope. A year ago this month, Reverend Jonah was given the green light at the Blyth Festival, where it made its world premiere to a sold-out house Friday night with the buzz normally reserved for Hollywood.

York alums share a Macau connection
A 10-block stroll down Georgia Street from his 10-lawyer firm's Royal Centre office would show Anthony Remedios (LLB ’81) a symbol of olden days in his native Macau, wrote columnist Malcolm Parry in The Vancouver Sun Aug. 16 in a story about the Vancouver neighbourhood. He'd see the nutty house the one-time Portuguese colony's casino czar, Stanley Ho, finessed city hall into letting him build at the entrance to Stanley Park. Remedios, who studied law at York’s Osgoode Hall Law School, notes that fellow alumnus and Macau Chief Executive Edmund Ho (right) (BBA ’78) graduated from York’s Schulich School of Business.

Kinesiology student likes his 'hood
Even though he doesn't spend much leisure time hanging out in Bloor West Village, York student Andrew Torres certainly appreciates his 'hood, wrote the Toronto Star in a story about the neighbourhood Aug. 16. Home to young families, aged residents who've lived here for decades and some Toronto VIPs (including Mayor David Miller), the community might be a little sleepy for a 22-year-old. But after a wild night out in Toronto's club district, Torres is always happy to return to this quaint area, west of High Park and north of Swansea. A third-year kinesiology student, Torres takes a bus to school that stops a few feet from the house he shares with his parents, near Keele and Dundas streets. He has lived there for eight years.

York Regional Police chief keeps special photos in his cap
Tucked inside the cap of York alumnus and York Regional Police Chief Armand La Barge (right) (BA ’95), where no one can see them, are five laminated photographs, wrote the Toronto Star Aug. 16 in a profile of him. There are pictures of Consts. William Grant, 26, and Douglas Tribbling, 49, both of whom died in the line of duty in 1984, and two of La Barge's cousins, who were killed fighting for Canada in World War II. The most recent addition is a photo of Det. Const. Rob Plunkett, the 22-year veteran who was run down by a driver and killed two weeks ago during what started as a routine surveillance detail. "If you don't pay tribute to those who sacrificed their lives, then they died two times," La Barge says.

He has been a police officer for 35 years and York Region's police chief for five, but La Barge's profile has never been higher. La Barge became chief in 2002 after joining the force in 1973 as a cadet. The Star said he was one of the first graduates of Atkinson's certificate program in multicultural studies.

York coach impressed by Quebec’s Eastern Townships
What has impressed people the most at the men's and women's under-15 national basketball championships has been the Eastern Townships, wrote The Record (Sherbrooke, Que.) Aug. 14. Certainly the weather has cooperated, allowing visitors to enjoy the scenery, lakes, numerous golf courses and easy access to the United States (when they were not in a gymnasium watching basketball). Bill Pangos, head coach of the York Lions women's basketball team at York University, who is in town to watch his son Kevin play for the under-15 Ontario team, took his family on local bicycle rides and camping at Mount Orford.

Science of cyanobacterial blooms still shrouded in mystery
Blue-green algae and its many scientific mysteries were hot topics at an international water-quality conference in Montreal, wrote The Gazette (Montreal) Aug. 15. While blue-green algae needs sufficient levels of phosphorus to grow, said Lewis Molot (left), a biologist in York’s Faculty of Environmental Studies, his research in northwestern Ontario indicates several species also require iron. Removing iron from waterways could be another tool for limiting cyanobacterial blooms.

Growth plan vital for universities
It is welcome news that York University, the University of Toronto, Ryerson University and the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) in Oshawa are already putting their heads together to cope with the anticipated crunch, wrote the Toronto Star in an Aug. 13 editorial about projected increases in university enrolment. Given the scope of the impending application surge and Canada's ever-increasing need for highly educated workers, we cannot afford to leave the post-secondary aspirations of so many young people to chance.

No single institution will be able to absorb that many new students on its own, said the Star. That's why creative ideas and cooperation between universities, with the backing of the provincial government, are needed. The easiest solution would be to take advantage of existing infrastructure by expanding the universities we already have.

Panel on street food includes York’s Liette Gilbert
Ontario recently amended regulations so street food can expand beyond hot dogs, wrote the Toronto Star Aug. 15. Toronto city council is working on applying the changes here, but nothing is expected to happen until spring. In the meantime, Katie Rabinowicz and Andrea Winkler's Street Food Vending Project is tackling the issue from various perspectives, including a vending cart design competition, research and public education. It hopes to help bring healthy, affordable and culturally diverse street food to Toronto. A panel held Aug. 13 and organized by the project to examine the "urban dimensions and benefits" of street food, included Liette Gilbert, associate dean of York’s Faculty of Environmental Studies.

'Digi schooling' is growing
Millions of hits on YouTube's countless how-to videos suggest a growing trend toward online, do-it-yourself, popular education, wrote the Toronto Star Aug. 13. Mary Leigh Morbey (right), associate director of York's Institute for Research on Learning Technologies, adds that, with some guidance from teachers, using this cutting-edge teaching tool is effective and engages students in a medium that they know best.

If class was still in session, Morbey says her students would have watched and debated CNN's recent YouTube Democratic presidential debate and the fall-out of Larry King's Paris Hilton interview on YouTube. Another advantage for online, interactive, 3D environments like YouTube, says Morbey, is that it's "open source", meaning it's free and open to everybody.

The 'mathemagical' esthetic
The 20th century has seen a rise in non-representative sculpture based on the sculptor's efforts to communicate abstract ideas about spatial relations, geometry, volume, complex curvilinearity: in other words, "mathemagic", wrote the Kingston Whig-Standard Aug. 15. These works seek to meld the universal languages of sculpture and mathematics. Here in Kingston, we are fortunate to have two such pieces: Tetra and Time.

Tetra, a work by Ted Bieler (left), professor emeritus in York University's Faculty of Fine Arts, was commissioned to commemorate the Olympic sailing events held at Portsmouth Olympic Harbour in 1976. Tetra, 26 feet high, is constructed from aluminum. The sculpture features four diminishing regular tetrahedra rotated and placed at 90 degrees to each other.

Schulich's golden rules
Self-made Canadian billionaire Seymour Schulich distills a lifetime of experience in his new book, Get Smarter™: Life and Business Lessons (Key Porter Books, 304 pages, $29.95), written with financial journalist Derek DeCloet, wrote the National Post in a review Aug. 11 that included this excerpt.

Males grow up in a world where having a chip on their shoulder is a bit of a positive. In a hockey game, if they get slashed, they wait and retaliate in the corners with a butt-end to an opponent's head or, if the opponent is a blockhead, other tender parts of his body. Women don't have this chippy, macho edge. The women university presidents I've had the privilege to know and work with, Lorna Marsden and Heather Munroe-Blum, are outstanding leaders and human beings who brought out the really important values in human relations: abundant respect and loyalty! This leads us to love.

Train fewer teachers, union says
A motion before the annual meeting of the Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario, held this week in Toronto, says the union needs to press the government to review biannually and adjust the number of students in faculties of education because "we are entering a period of declining enrolment in elementary schools and it is becoming apparent that new graduates will have a long wait before becoming a contract teacher in Ontario."

Paul Axelrod (right), dean of the Faculty of Education at York, said even in good times, it can take a couple of years for teacher graduates to land full-time jobs, wrote the Toronto Star Aug. 13. "The situation has changed," he said. "It's not terrible, although in certain parts of Ontario it is challenging, especially in the north." In the Greater Toronto Area, an area of greater population growth, there are still positions at elementary and secondary levels. Axelrod also noted there are "enormous opportunities" around the globe for Ontario-trained teachers.

York itself is starting a program for French Immersion teachers this fall at its bilingual Glendon campus, said the Star. York has 300 students in its concurrent education program, where students earn a bachelor's degree and a teaching degree in five years, and about 750 in its consecutive program for those who already have a degree.

Wind farms are a blight in Ireland
Regarding the reply of Mark Winfield, professor in York’s Faculty of Environmental Studies, to Jesse Ausubel's opinion of wind farms being anything but green: Winfield needs to look at the devastation caused by the installation of wind farms in the UK and Ireland, wrote Terry Crofton of Ballydehob, County Cork, Ireland, in the Calgary Herald Aug. 13. They really are a blot on the landscape. That, coupled with the negligible amount of electricity they provide makes them a complete waste of time. I agree with Ausubel. The only real green alternative is nuclear.

For a pot smoker in pain, no help is on the way
Alison Myrden, a multiple sclerosis sufferer, has been fighting to help medical cannabis gain credibility for nearly 10 years. A few weeks ago, Myrden was denied a summer student – one of five hired to give companionship to MS sufferers – by the Burlington chapter of the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada. The reason they gave her? The university students could be harmed by the marijuana she continually uses to control the savage pain in her face and help her walk.

Myrden's lawyer, Alan Young, a law professor at York’s Osgoode Hall Law School who has led the charge on medical marijuana approval, said he's surprised that the MS Society reacted this way, because it "has been quite supportive of marijuana research." Young says "mixed messages" in the legislation cause confusion about marijuana use. "If Alison were able to secure a tablet that had the same products in it, they wouldn't blink," he says. Since the Conservative government has moved away from decriminalization, they are unlikely to support a strong medical marijuana program, Young points out.

Ontario hospital is being sued by Bayer
A major pharmaceutical company has taken the unusual step of suing a hospital in Thunder Bay, Ont. for patent infringement, alleging the institution effectively duplicated a patented Bayer Inc. antibiotic by diluting a more concentrated, generic version of the same drug, reported the National Post Aug. 17.

The case is an extraordinary example of the lengths to which pharmaceutical companies will go to defend their intellectual property – and is likely to succeed in court, said medical and patent-law experts. However, the lawsuit may well backfire on the public relations front, they predicted.

"I think this is going to look, from Bayer's point of view, pretty petty," said Joel Lexchin, an emergency doctor and a professor in York’s School of Health Policy & Management, Faculty of Health. "The hospital is probably doing this for a small number of patients, costing Bayer almost zilch in terms of lost sales. If this drives up hospital costs, Bayer, I don't think, would look very good."

Harper needs to make tax cuts a pocketbook issue
Many Canadian voters, indeed, celebrate high tax rates, assuming, along with US Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, that taxes are the price we pay for civilization, wrote The Globe and Mail Aug. 17 in a story about Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s thinking on the subject. Neil Brooks, professor in York’s Osgoode Hall Law School, once expressed this sentiment quite succinctly: "I like paying taxes." Brooks said this in December, 2005, only a few weeks before Harper won enough support in the last federal election to form a minority Conservative government.

Brooks's position on taxes was straightforward. Any politician who promises "to let Canadians keep more of their hard-earned money," (such as, for example, Harper) is a barbarian of sorts, an enemy of high-quality public schools, excellent medical care, public parks and libraries, safe streets and liveable cities. Such politicians, he said, were essentially telling Canadians "to forget [their] moral obligations, to heck with [their] noble aspirations."