Wikipedia in academia
The problems with Wikipedia are inherent. The information can be falsified or changed if an article is new, or if many users mob the site to overwhelm the truth. Perhaps best proven true a few years ago on the Colbert Report regarding ‘wikiality’, “together we can create a reality that we all agree on—the reality we just agreed on.” But arguably there remain many positive aspects of the site.
Conversational science: the effects of rising temperatures
Over the last couple of weeks we have looked at some of the evidence behind the theory of anthropogenic climate change (climate change resulting from human activities). To know why it is happening is one thing, but to realize the implications of rising temperatures and increased CO2 concentrations is entirely different.
Conversational science: CO2 and Global Temperatures
There is a definite relationship when comparing global temperatures over the past thousands of years to the concentrations of CO2 at those times. Temperature and atmospheric CO2 concentration data has been obtained largely through ice core samples taken all over the world (data is available through the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration).
Conversational Science: Our warming planet
This week, let us take a look at perhaps the most familiar concept of global warming: the greenhouse effect.
Ten Years Later: U-House hosts discussion on Islamaphobia post 9/11
The Race and Anti-Racism Network (RAN) hosted an informative presentation called “Race and September 11, 2001: Ten Years Later”.
UFV’s Antiguan exchange sees new developments
UFV’s Champions for Health program – a successful venture in which UFV Kinesiology students visit Antigua and Barbuda to teach physical education and life skills to local children – is now heading into its fourth year at our university with an unprecedented angle: inviting Antiguan teachers to visit Abbotsford as well.
Conversational Science: The past, present and future of NASA, post-shuttle
This past summer on July 21, the world witnessed the end of NASA’s Space Shuttle program as the shuttle Atlantis returned from the 135th flight in the program’s history. as the summer draws to a close, let us reflect for a moment on some of the past, present and future results which NASA and the shuttle program have, and possibly will yet offer the world.
The Higgs boson: A needle in a haystack
One hundred meters below the border between France and Switzerland lies perhaps one of the largest science projects taking place in the world today – the Large Hadron Collider (LHC).
UK study says parents major influence on teen drinking
While few would be surprised to learn that a teen’s friends and social life have a distinct impact on their drinking habits, a recent study has added evidence of an important new factor into the mix: children who witness their parents drunk are twice as likely to one day engage in regular binge drinking themselves. According to The Guardian, the study – conducted by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) – also found that the amount of supervision parents exercised over their children significantly affected the likelihood of teen binge drinking.
Conversational Science: Distorted “Spacetime”
We’re all familiar with the old anecdote of Newton’s inspiration for the Law of Gravitation. As William Stukeley, a physician who knew Newton personally, described in Memoirs of Sir Isaac Newton’s Life: “[Newton] told me, he was just in the same situation, as when formerly, the notion of gravitation came into his mind. It was occasion’d by the fall of an apple, as he sat in contemplative mood. Why should that apple always descend perpendicular to the ground, thought he to himself.”
Interning in the slums of Chadigarh
Instead of relaxing on the beach or watching the playoffs this summer, third year UFV Human Geography student Sara Bartsch is making a difference far from home. Taken on as an intern by Dr. Frederick Shaw, who runs the non-profit, non-governmental organization Developing Indigenous Resources (DIR) in Chandigarh, India, Bartsch has been working in the slums of Janta Colony and Adarsh Nagar.
Conversational Science: Cold fusion on the horizon?
Quite recently, there has been some commotion in scientific communities across Europe, as two Italian inventors have claimed to have created a device which consumes much less energy than it generates, through the mechanism of nuclear fusion. While nuclear fission has received some bad press lately in light of natural disasters, nuclear fusion as a source of energy has been the topic of investigation since the 1930s (as well as the topic of many science fiction films since). If you’re a bit rusty on the details of fusion, here it is in a nutshell:
Circadian rhythms are older than we think
Researchers from Britain’s Cambridge and Edinburgh Universities are now claiming to have discovered the specific mechanism in living beings that directs their bodily clocks, according to ScienceDaily. Additionally, a further study – both of which were published in the journal Nature – posited that the 24-hour circadian clock possessed by human cells is identical to that found in simpler life forms such as algae, and was thus likely found in primitive life forms millions of years ago.
Egyptian communications blackout threatens international reputation
President Hosni Mubarak’s recent mandated suspension of mobile phone and internet services throughout Egypt after the recent wave of violent protests may have overstepped the need for law and order, according to UFV Political Science professor Ron Dart.
Study of speech synthesis may have broad practical applications
Imagine a security system that analyzes the unique sound waves of your voice to grant access. How about an ECG that uses noise cancelling technology to differentiate between an expectant mother’s pulse and the movements of her unborn child? These are some of the many potential real-world applications of digital speech processing discussed by Dr. Surinder Dhanjal in his November 9 presentation at UFV’s Centre for Indo-Canadian Studies, the fourth address in their ongoing South Asian Lecture Series.
Dr. Pandolfo talks Global Climate Models as part of Discovery Speaker Series
On November 4th, Dr. Lionel Pandolfo appeared as the latest speaker in the Geography department’s Discovery Speaker Series. Pandolfo obtained a PhD in atmospheric dynamics and climatology at Yale University, and has worked at Columbia University and the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies and UBC. He also recently joined UFV as an adjunct professor.
Alcohol most dangerous substance available, says study
A new study by Britain’s Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs claims that alcohol is the most dangerous substance available, causing a greater level of harm overall than other drugs, like crack cocaine and heroin.
Terror threats from Canada perceived as strong in aftermath of 9/11
How does a country strike a balance between fighting terrorism and protecting the human rights of its citizens? This is one of the many questions posed at the lecture held in the Centre for Indo-Canadian Studies on Wednesday, October 20. Entitled “Just Between Friends: Bilateral Cooperation, Bounded Sovereignty and the Human Rights Dilemma,” the event was hosted by the University of Western Washington’s Dr. Bidisha Biswas, a political science professor. It was part of UFV’s South Asian Lecture Series.
U.S. Consul General talks B.C.-Washington relations
In part two of our exclusive interview with Philip Chicola, the U.S. Consul General in Vancouver discusses B.C.-Washington relations.
South African Lecture deals with one of society’s greatest taboos
Polygamy – it’s a fancy word for a custom that most North Americans find repulsive, and for which laws have been introduced to stamp it out. Would it be surprising then, to learn that last week a speaker at UFV advocated the acceptance of polygamy? Would it be even more shocking to learn he wanted to include it under the current legal system?
U.S. Consul General on NAFTA, American-Canadian business relations and a North American political union
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is now in its second decade of existence. The agreement has established a rapprochement between Canada, the United States and Mexico, and U.S. Consul General Philip T. Chicola, on a recent whistle-stop tour to UFV’s Abbotsford campus, believes that NAFTA will one day be subsumed into a more inclusive agreement that may include greater economic and political unity between the three countries, similar to the European Union.
US discovers huge mineral reserves in Afganistan
The U.S. National Geographic Society, working in tandem with the Pentagon, has recently discovered up to $1 trillion of untapped mineral wealth in Afghanistan. The story, which was broke by the New York Times, outlined the different minerals that were discovered in the country, “iron, copper, cobalt, gold and critical industrial metals like lithium.”
Of particular importance are the reserves of lithium discovered, which is an integral component in the construction of electrical goods, and could see Afghanistan become one of the world leaders in the production of lithium.
