Short Story Review: The Library Of Babel

“Monkeys hitting keys at random on a typewriter keyboard for an infinite amount of time will almost surely type a given text, such as the complete works of William Shakespeare.”

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be in a library that contained every possible book? To most book lovers this library would be paradise, or some form of heaven however, Jorge Luis Borges says otherwise. In his 4-page short story “The Library of Babel,” there is a library that contains every possible 410-page book of a certain set of characters.

 What that means is that every past conversation, everything that will ever be said or written will be in this library. As well as this article itself, or what you are thinking about right now. Even a book about your complete biography, your complete genetic sequence, and so forth, but this also means that everything that someone didn’t write or say will be in this library. Everything you didn’t do yesterday, or the day before.

This leads to a major problem, because some infinities are bigger than others. Consider the word “the”, if we arrange all the possible ways “the” can be arranged, then only 1 out of 6 arrangements will be meaningful to us, so imagine a 410-page book in the same way. The ratio of meaningful things to nonsense will be small.

This is to a degree the plot of the story. Librarians are assigned to search through certain sections to find anything meaningful. Some Librarians start destroying books that they deem useless, other librarians disappear and are never seen again. How can one determine what text is useless? For example, what if you just destroyed a book that is the perfect genome sequence?

The crazy part about this story is that this Library of Babel is real. A digital library of babel containing every possible page of 3200 characters exists online for free. https://libraryofbabel.info/

 Now knowing this, will you search for your perfect essay paper, or read Jorge’s short story and find out why you would go insane searching for anything?

Organizing A Research Paper – Only The Important Parts

             There aren’t many things as overwhelming as a research paper. Especially ones that have little to no parameters. There is a unique sense of dread that accompanies the announcement “whichever topic you want as long as it relates to the course”. But… but just give me a topic. Give me a list of topics to choose from. Give me the structure of the paper. Give me the arguments. Just… write the paper for me. In this students unprofessional opinion, there are three things in a research paper that determine its success; the topic, the notes, and the outline. 

1.    The topic

It’s tempting to pick a topic you think will be ‘easy’, but it will much easier to motivate yourself to do the work if you pick a topic that interests you. It sounds like a cliché and it probably sounds like something your already over-worked brain doesn’t want to hear. Realistically, it is much easier to read 10 peer reviewed articles and spend 10 hours writing if the subject matter doesn’t make you second guess taking the class or going to university in the first place.

            What parts of the course keep your mind active even when class is over? Which lectures caught your attention? Keeping that in mind, you shouldn’t pick a topic for ease, if you gravitate to certain material for test answers and in class discussion because it seems to come easy to you – you’re probably genuinely interested in it.

            Search related material on the internet but to start, stay away from peer reviewed articles. Their overly academic jargon may scare you aware from a topic before you’ve completely explored the option. Look at less formal resources; news articles and blog posts can be stimulating ways to get ideas flowing.

            Once you’ve settled on a general topic, start reading the abstracts and backgrounds of relevant peer reviewed articles. This will help you understand what research has and hasn’t been done. Knowing what research has been done will determine how many quality sources are out there for you to draw from. Knowing what research hasn’t been done will determine if your topic is significant to fulfilling a specific niche. There’s a sweet spot between these two that can be bridged by the creation of your thesis statement. The trick is to keep the statement broad enough that other people’s research can contribute to responding to the statement, but also specific enough in that the question is slightly unique. A general rule is that your thesis should be focused enough that you can make three solid points about your statement. This statement can be an opinion, fact, or question and will serve as a starting point for all research.

            Your professor will never penalize you for asking for feedback on your thesis statement, and they may help you understand the scope, if it needs to be more narrow or more broad. Once you’ve decided on a thesis statement – congratulations – the hardest and most stressful part of this research paper is done.

2.    The research notes

As you do research, refer back to your thesis statement. There will always be notes you take that are so ridiculously specific you later decide they aren’t important and that you can’t even use them. There will also be notes you take that you later read and have absolutely no idea what they mean. Make sure your notes are focused on the topic. Constantly ask yourself, will I understand this when I read it later? If the answer is that you’re unsure, air on the side of caution and take detailed notes – reading peer reviewed articles is hard enough, do what you can to avoid having to read them multiple times.

            Pro tip: Keep the notes and their citations together ALWAYS – this saves you from having to reread articles or guessing where evidence came from. Not only is Microsoft OneNote an awesome tool for taking notes, it makes referring back to them so much easier. Make a ‘section’ for the paper, and pages for each source. This way you can keep track of sources and information without separating the two.

3.    The outline

            It’s hard to admit that a little extra work is worth it even when it’s not for grades, but writing an outline makes writing so much easier.

            Start by writing out the most major points. These should be the most general, broad statements. Smaller details regarding evidence or research should fit into these broad points. Sorting the smaller bites of information into these broad points becomes much easier if you are able to formulate the major points before you do the bulk of the research. Keep sorting information from your research until you have no more relevant notes left. This can be done by duplicating the document your notes are in so that you can literally delete information as you use it (but still have it in a different file).

            If you’ve done your research and you don’t yet know your major points, sort your notes by relevance. Group the pieces of information by how they relate to each other and you should begin to see patterns emerge that will inform the creation of your major arguments. 

            It will be a little gift to yourself if you put information into your own words when you’re taking them from your notes to your outline. Ideally, if you write a detailed enough outline, all you will need to do to actually write the paper is delete spaces and bullet points and add connecting sentences in between information. Sometimes this feels like you’re skipping the real writing part. Which is obviously ideal but make sure to add the necessary padding so that the paper doesn’t read like you just deleted spaces between notes. If you use this outline method, give the paper an extra proof read to ensure it’s not choppy.

Brandon University Chinese Students And Scholars Association

布兰登大学中国学生学者联谊会（简称联谊会，英文缩写BUCSSA）是自2004年起在布兰登学习和工作的中国学生和学者组成的一个非政治性、非宗教、非盈利性并在BUSU 正式注册的组织。

 联谊会的宗旨是辅助BU对中国开展的协作计划，为会员提供协助和服务，维护会员权益。其主要工作内容有：

协助布兰登大学与中国各地区学校间的宣传和协作关系。

丰富布兰登大学中国留学生、学者的文化生活和学术及情感交流。

协助会员，特别是新来的成员，克服学习、工作和生活中可能遇到的困难。

保持并加强与祖国的联系。

促进与不同民族，不同文化以及本地友好社团的交流，推介中国文化。

布兰登大学中国学生学者联谊会每年都会开展新生讲座，迎新活动，以及中秋节、春节等中国传

统节日聚会来促进新老生之间的交流，以及表达海外学子的思乡情怀。

欢迎大家加入布兰登大学中国学生学者联谊会！新会员入会$5， 老会员续会$3，我们的活动对会员都是免费的，并且享有很多商家福利。

 

 The Brandon University Chinese Students and Scholars Association (BUCSSA) is a non-political, non-religious, non-profit and officially registered with BUSU students and scholars who study and work at Brandon organization from 2004.

The purpose of the association is to assist BU in its collaborative planning for China, to provide assistance and services to its members, and to safeguard the rights and interests of its members.

 We assist in the promotion and collaboration between Brandon University and schools in various regions of China.Enrich the culture and academic life of Chinese students and scholars at Brandon University.

We help the BUCSSA members, especially the newcomers to overcome difficulties that may arise in study, work, and life.

We maintain and strengthen ties with the motherland, and promote exchanges with different ethnic groups, different cultures, and local friendship communities to promote Chinese culture.

 BUCSSA will implement the orientation, mid-autumn, Spring Festival and other kinds of activities every year to promote the communication between new students and old students, and also express the homesick feeling between the oversea students in BU.

We welcome everyone join in the big family of BUCSSA! $5 for new members,and $3 for renew the membership. Every activities is free for our members, and we also have lots of welfare for our membership!

PWE Volunteers Spread Safer Substance Use Messages In A FUN Way

            Wearing their bright blue tees, volunteers from the Brandon University Peer Wellness Educator (PWE) Project were passionately mingling with students in front of the BU John E. Robbins Library on Sept. 26.

            Themed “safer substance use”, the PWE event offered fun experiences. The biggest “WOW” winner was the five goggles, which can simulate the effects of alcohol and drugs on vision and coordination in a safe and controlled manner.

“Really dizzy! …and this definitely sends positive messages on campus,” commented one student after trying out the “totally wasted” goggle.

            Besides the “wild” experience, relevant information about safer substance use is provided on the booth, covering the basics about cannabis, cocaine, alcohol, energy drinks, and so on.

            “Quite informative! I will give the message to my students and let them visit the booth after my class,” said one professor after glancing over all the information in the booth.

             “The safer substance use event aims to give information to students or the general campus community about the effects of these substances. This to give people a chance to make an informed choice when they do come into an actual situation. That's also the reason why we have the special goggles and Jenga kits. Plus, it doesn't hurt to have fun while learning”, according to Joseph Mamuric Jr., PWE Volunteer Coordinator.

            PWE Volunteers are a dynamic team of students who are committed to wellness initiatives on campus. The PWE Program is supervised by the Personal Counsellors with funding provided by Student Services, and this is the fourth year that the PWE Program has been in existence at BU.

Marsha Harris, BU Personal Counsellor, said: “PWE Volunteers are instrumental in planning and promoting thematic outreach programs to BU students on a variety of wellness topics such as sexual health, emotional wellbeing, physical health, stress management as well as other topics that the PWE volunteers are passionate about and feel need to be addressed.”

PWE volunteers participate in multiple training opportunities each year in order to develop their skill and knowledge in many areas of wellness and in event planning, facilitation, and promotion, according to Marsha.

“Try our mocktails…”

“Here is information about safer substance use…”

           “Come and play giant Jenga with our substance use impairment goggles…”

Friday Nights Were Made For This

Do you ever wonder what the Brandon University Music Students (BUMS) are up to? BUMS, do you ever wish there were more performance opportunities around the school? Look no further, Friday Night Lights is the solution!

This is a concert series geared to provide performance experience for soloists and small ensembles from across the School of Music. Taking place in the Lorne Watson Recital Hall (LWRH), this series creates excellent opportunities for students to share their hard work with friends in a professional environment. Our beloved Jazz Night is a favourite for many, however the casual atmosphere is not best suited to our classical majors. Performers at Friday Night Lights can be in the classical or jazz streams and have full access to the concert hall setting.

Friday Night Lights is completely free to everyone! The first date is October 12, 2018 at 8:00p.m. The programme will be posted before the concert. Mark your calendars and bring a friend!

Review Of The Week: A Space Odyssey

“Open the pod bay doors, HAL”

“I’m sorry Dave, I’m afraid I can’t do that.”

It has been fifty years since Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: Space Odyssey was first shown in 1968 and it has remained one of the most influential movies of all time. This movie would later give rise to some of the most well-known songs, movies, etc. across the globe. Examples of this include the hit song “Space Oddity” by David Bowie, or “Lower Your Eyes to Die with The Sun” by M83.

            With one of the most iconic opening scenes Kubrick kicks off the story with movie techniques unlike any of the films in its time. With scenes from an ape throwing a bone up in the air, to a space station in orbit around the earth, Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey is a story that dives deep into some of humanities hardest questions, such as “what is the limit of human technology?”, or “what is the limits of human knowledge?”

            The movie was based off the legendary science fiction writer, Arthur C. Clarke’s book, “The Sentinel.” “The Sentinel” is a story about an alien object buried millions of years ago under the moon’s surface, with the alien object than later warning other intelligent life forms in the universe of the existence of humanity. 2001: A Space Odyssey takes the audience on a journey through time and space challenging the current zeitgeists of humanity.

            Kubrick never intended for the movie to be understood after the first viewing. The movie was cleverly filmed to make people think about difficult concepts, such as “can humanity create a ‘perfect’ machine? To quote from Kubrick, “A film is - or should be - more like music than like fiction. It should be a progression of moods and feelings. The theme, what's behind the emotion, the meaning, all that comes later?"  As time goes on, the iconic supercomputer HAL, becomes more relevant in modern times, making us consider the motivations of an A.I. in the modern world as well as how the future of technology is perceived?

            Whether you are looking for a story like Homer’s Odyssey, or a movie about technological evolution you won’t want to miss out on 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Graphic Novel Review: The Dreg

Autumn is a time of plenty, a time of harvest when food and drink is hearty and warm. During this time of year it’s hard not to dream of spending time with friends and family while feasting and laughing as a community. In the four-issue limited series The Dregs, writers Lonnie Nadler and Zac Thompson, team-up with illustrator Eric Zawadzki and colourist Dee Cunniffe to tell a very different kind of story, one of homelessness and addiction, but centred around community and sustenance just the same.

 The Dregs follows Arnold, a homeless addict living in the east side of downtown Vancouver, who discovers that a friend, and member of his street community, has disappeared overnight. What follows is a unique detective story that highlights the somber beauty of life on the street, the escapist delirium of drug addition, and the bitterness of running from who you are while searching for someone else.

 In The Dregs, Nadler and Thompson offer a heart-wrenching take on the unreliable narrator, while exploring issues of homelessness and addiction with thoughtfulness and compassion. At no point in the story does The Dregs seem exploitative; the addition of a photo series documenting leisure activities of those living in poverty, titled Off Hours with photos by Thanh Nguyen, gives the series an air of authenticity.

 Artist Eric Zawadzki also brings a sense of realism to the story with depictions of Vancouver that are pulled right from the city’s streets themselves. On top of his architectural accuracy, Zawadzki uses the comic’s medium with boundary pushing artistry. Zawadzki’s art left me questioning how the dissection of images and the fluidity of storytelling can create a sense of voyeurism and disorientation simultaneously. Zawadzki’s covers, in particular, are delectable and Cunniffe’s colours are palatable in their simplicity. 

 Part social commentary, part pulp noir, part body horror creep fest – did I forget to mention the cannibalism? – The Dregs tells the story of urban expansion, societal prejudices, and the human condition with a voice which is completely unique. Their first foray into the comics medium, Nadler and Thompson’s critically acclaimed The Dregs is undeniably brilliant. 

Secrets of BU: The Observatory

Okay, I know it’s not really a secret but I know not everyone knows about it and if you do know and haven’t gone, now’s your chance. It’s open to students and the public alike.

Through six years of education at BU I had never gone up to the roof of McMaster until this summer when they had an event to see Jupiter and Venus and some other stuff, including the big grain elevator in Kemnay, about 10 km to the west. They used one of the little telescopes for that, which was somewhat surreal. Unfortunately, it was cloudy that night and so we were only able to fiddle with the telescopes and enjoy the sunset. The volunteers on hand to organize things were very helpful and had time to teach about what the Observatory had to offer and teach the attendees some interesting things. For example, if you hold up your pinky to the horizon, that counts as one degree above the horizon. Three fingers is five degrees, a fist is ten, and the relax symbol with your thumb and pinky gets you to 25 degrees. Kind of like what the wayfarers do in Moana.

So that was cool.

The giant telescope that we had a look at is encased in a giant faraday cage, which means no texting from inside, but also if there is lightning, you’ll be safe by cowering inside. You also get to feel like a real astronomer.

The Brandon University Observatory sits on top of McMaster and from that vantage point you get a little less light pollution from the city and can see into the skies a lot more efficiently. The entire structure has been refurbished over the past two years and is ready to receive visitors on the third Friday of every month during the school year. If you haven’t had a chance to go, please, give it a try. It’s really awesome.

 Like and follow their page on facebook for updates.

https://www.facebook.com/BU-Astronomical-Observatory-225611934117350/

Review: “The Carn Davidson 5+4” Review

     On Tuesday night Sept.18th, 2018 there was a fantastic concert which happened in the Lorne Watson Recital Hall. There were nine great musicians performing in this concert including Greg Gatien (Tenor Saxophone), Matt Steckler (Baritone Saxophone&Bass Clarinet), and Aaron Wilson (Bass Trombone) who is from Brandon University. There were also guests from Toronto: Tara Davidson (Alto Saxophone& Flute), Williams Carn (Trombone), Alex Brown (Lead Trumpet), Dan Fortin (Acoustic Bass), Ernesto Cervini (Drums) and the Dean Mcneil (2nd Trumpet) from Saskatoon.

     Tara Davidson introduced each piece before the band started, and led the band extremely well in the position of composer. Williams Carn is also a talented conductor who composed for Murphy’s Law and other compositions.

There were soloist’s in each of the songs, with the audience giving each member a big applause in recognition of their piece when they finished. I really liked the beginning song ‘Code Breaking’ which is very exciting and caught the audiences’ interests. In contrast of ‘Code Breaking,’ the second song ‘Family Portrait’ was in a slow tempo and sounds very gentle, accenting the two songs different styles while both remaining beautiful pieces of art. Another brilliant song which the band played included ‘Second Art’ which has a lovely beginning melody which reminded me of the sound of the famous Japanese composer Miyazaki Hayao.

   The drum players really made the concert come to life, and you could tell that each musician really applied themselves into the music. The musicians brought an overwhelming energy to the audience, which could be seen as the audience involuntarily swayed with each song, as if they were entranced by the rhythm.

    Before the final piece, Tara introduced all the guests on the stage, and then the ending pieces took place to finish off the evening. The final song was a quiet one, which came to a completion with group humming at the end. The humming was an eloquent way to end the piece, being so gentle and sweet to hear from a team who clearly worked long hours perfecting their performance.

Career Planning Workshops

Most people who choose to attend university and spend thousands of dollars do it because they have a goal in mind and receiving a degree from a post-secondary institution allows them to move ever closer to that goal. For the majority of us, that specific goal is a career we would like to see ourselves in. In order to prepare for this transition, from student to working professional, Brandon University has the Career Planning and Placement office. The Career Planning and Placement office is run by the Career Planning and Placement Officer and open to all students on campus. Here students can learn about on-campus recruitment, employer information sessions and employment referral services. The Centre also hosts a series of workshops throughout the year to teach students a variety of skills that will be useful in searching and applying for a job in their specific field of study. With the launch of a new academic year there are quite a few Career Planning Workshops approaching in order for students to develop their appropriate skills and gain information and on the career they wish to pursue.

For the remainder of September there are two key workshops coming up that students are welcome to attend. The first is on Tuesday, September 25th from 12:40 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. and is a workshop on how to properly write your resume and cover letter. In today’s modern world having a properly written and edited resume and cover letter are essential if you want even the slightest chance of landing the job you’re applying for. If the company takes a liking to your resume or cover letter you may be called in for an interview. A workshop on preparing for an employment interview is being offered on September 26th from 1:40 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Even though your resume and cover letter may have been stunning you aren’t in the clear unless your interview(s) go well. Both the How to Write Your Resume and Cover Letter workshop and the Preparing For Your Interview workshop will be hosted in room 104 inside Clark Hall.

Just because September ends doesn’t mean the Career Planning workshops do! After all planning and preparing for a career isn’t done overnight. The Career Planning and Placement Officer is hosting the workshop Finding Your Permanent/Summer Job on October 10th from 1:40 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Here students will learn techniques on how to successful find summer or permanent employment. Another workshop is set in the works for October 17th from 1:40 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. In this workshop, titled Planning Your Career, students will receive ideas and suggestions on how to better set and achieve their career goals. In order to be successful in any career you have to know how to properly network with people. Luckily there is a Networking Skills workshop being hosted on campus on October 23rd from 12:40 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. to assist students in networking and communication techniques. There will also be a career planning workshop on October 24th from 1:40 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Employee Rights in the Workplace. This workshop will be especially useful to students wondering what exactly their rights are in the workplace. Finally, on October 31st from 1:40 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. there will be a workshop that I'm sure many teachers would like their students to take. A workshop titled How to Manage Your On-line/Social Media Presence will be hosted on campus and open to all students who wish to attend. Here students will learn how to properly and effectively manage their online activities in a professional manner. Like in September, all Career planning workshops will be hosted in room 104 inside Clark Hall.

To learn more about these specific workshops or about career planning in general visit the Career Resource Centre in room 115 inside the A.E. McKenzie building. They are open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday to Friday with the office closed for lunch daily from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. All services provided by the Career Resource Centre are covered by the student services fee included in your tuition. Drop ins are welcome or students can make an appointment by calling 204-727-9651 or emailing the Career Planning and Placement Officer at pople@brandonu.ca.

 

Review Of The Week: Deadly Class

Coming back to university always makes me think of Harry Potter: the journey to school, the quirky professors, the magic of friendship, and the hallowed halls. Coincidently, I also have a friend and classmate who is reading the series for the first time. The conversations we are having sparked the inspiration for this week’s review. 

What if you took Harry Potter, mixed in some hard drugs, a dash of punk rock, a sprinkle of cold-blooded murder, and set the whole thing to bake in the 1980s? You would get Deadly Class, a comic series by writer Rick Remender, artist Wes Craig, and colourist Lee Loughridge that is soon to be hit a T.V. series on Syfy. 

Deadly class pic copy.jpg

Deadly Class follows Marcus Lopez, a newly enrolled student at King’s Dominion High School for the Deadly Arts. Located in the San Francisco underground, King’s Dominion is a school where the word’s deadliest assassins, dictators, and crime syndicates send their children to become heartless killers. With classes on dismemberment and mid-terms that require murder, King’s Dominion is a vicious school, especially if you don’t fit in. When Marcus shows up to school with no affiliation to a prestigious crime family, and a tendency to wear his heart on his sleeve, teenage angst becomes the least of his worries. 

Deadly Class is exquisitely written, and Remender seamlessly integrates music from the mid 80s in every gutter and panel of the series. Music plays such a large role in creating the atmosphere of Deadly Class, that Remender has posted a playlist on Spotify to supplement the comic reading experience. 

Beyond Remender’s writing is the unrelentingly talented Craig, an artist at the height of his creative medium. Craig’s use of panels is so masterful that the page layouts become almost tangible in their intricacies. Colourist Lee Loughridge is also at the top of his game; his minimalist colour pallet leaves yellows, blues, and pinks dripping off the page and landing directly in your mind’s eye. 

Deadly Class is currently sitting at seven collected volumes and counting, so check this series out before you’re the only one who doesn’t know how finals end at King’s Dominion. 

Club Day Recap

Loud chatter, video games, and the smell of food that definitely wasn’t intended as bait filled the student mingling area on Wednesday the 13th as student clubs settled into their tables for the better part of the day.

The Quill sat huddled in the corner with our offerings of mini donuts and cinnamon buns drawing in the curious and the hungry alike. Next to us BUGA a.k.a the Brandon University’s Gaming Association set themselves up with a T.V. and console, and other groups scattered around the room were eagerly recruiting. ENACTUS and Brandon University Memes could be found sharing a table, Brandon University Varsity Christian Fellowship sat across from us brining in unsuspecting students in with Tim Horton’s Tim Bits (well played). Other clubs included The Brandon University Dance Club, The Biology Club, Brandon University Rugby, BU WUSC, BUFASA, BUTC,BUASC, JSA, and plenty others! If the acronyms are terrifying and confusing, hop onto the Brandon University Student Union’s website for the full listing of various club organizations- included is contact information for the various student organizations so if you’re worried you missed your chance don’t be! Send a quick email or poke around on social media and get in touch with whichever club strikes your fancy. Chances are they’ll be happy to answer any questions you may have. Though fair warning all the free food from club day has probably been inhaled by now- the starving student trope is real and alive.

If you’re wondering why on top of balancing your studies, work, and the generally stress inducing experience of being alive you’d want to join a club, there are plenty of reasons! First of all they’re a great way to meet people with similar interests and keep up your social life. Especially for those of you who are maybe new to the campus and are looking to meet some people that aren’t local Russian singles in your area, clubs are a great way to make some comrades and get familiar with student life in general. Not to mention the advantages that add onto your resume. Whether it’s having your written work published in the school newspaper or getting involved in your community, commitment to a club will teach you plenty of marketable skills that will definitely make your time at university worthwhile aside from that fancy piece of paper with your name on it. 

You’re not going to be at Brandon University forever, so take advantage of any and all opportunities to enjoy and make the most of your time here. Clubs probably aren’t something you considered applying for, but this is as good an opportunity as any. Join that club you wanted to today! There is no time like the present.


Science Seminar:

Dr. Bernadette Ardelli’s science seminar titled “The Diversification of My Research Portfolio: Minimizing Risks and Maximizing Returns” was a delicate balance between Dr. Ardelli’s research questions, methods, and results as well as the evolution of both research and researcher through her academic journey. The presentation outlined not only Dr. Ardelli’s insights into drug resistance in parasitic nematodes (worms), but also lessons learned regarding how research is carried out in a university setting. 

Dr. Ardelli demonstrated how her research taught her about “undergraduate power” – that although they may lack in technical experience and be restricted by their course load, a significant contribution can be made by a motivated undergraduate student. 

The seminar also shed light on some of the politics of doing research associated with big pharmaceutical companies. Her research aimed to first discover if the parasites had developed resistance to the drug that was widely available on the international market. Later she would compare the resistance and mechanisms of two drugs manufactured by competing companies.  

As a student or enthusiastic onlooker, it is easy to get wrapped up in the big research questions. Dr. Ardelli reminded us of the importance to ground ambitions in reality – with minimal risk and maximum output. Some factors that required consideration for her program included the necessity of working mainly with undergraduates, inability to use human subjects or clinical trials due to extensive ethics approval, and accessibility of samples. This, as well as the need to differentiate her research identity from that of her accomplished supervisors, led to her current area of study in understanding how drugs work. This led Dr. Ardelli down a research path that now focuses on the relationship between the host and the parasite in the development of drug resistance. 

For the technical stuff or more information, you’ll have to speak to the “worm whisperer” herself. 


What Makes A Good Professor?

What makes a good professor? Is it a deep-rooted passion for the subject? Is it their teaching method? The way they attract, and most importantly retain the attention of the class? Or is it a combination of multiple traits? Truth is, everyone learns in different ways, and just as we are all stimulated in different ways, we will all have different answers to this question. Nonetheless, I think we could all agree on a few qualities and characteristics necessary to make a good professor. 

  • Passion/Love for the subject. 

Passion is the invisible force that drives one’s dedication towards something. Without being passionate about something, one could never endure it long enough to teach it. Bottom line, nothing is worse than a teacher that has absolutely no interest in what they’re teaching. The kind that simply reads slide after slide in the same monotone voice then wonders “Hmm, why are my students performing so poorly?” Passion and dedication for the subject enables teachers to display the beauty and intellect that surrounds the subject and by doing so they engage their students in a way that facilitates the exchange of information. This can turn a boring classroom or dull lecture into one that students look forward to attending and learning more about every week. Without being passionate about the subject, professor’s will find it difficult to help their students retain the lessons. Which is highly unfortunate for the people who have paid in both money and time to try and understand these subjects.

  • Teaching method/ Classroom engagement

While it’s up to students whether they pay attention or not in class, the way lessons are presented always affects classroom engagement. This has a direct impact on how much material is absorbed by students.  While some professors use the common phrase “you are here to learn, not to have fun”, learning under a fun environment constitutes a plus for both the teacher as well the students. 

Ultimately, it is not what you teach, it’s how you teach it. 

That being said, there are various names that continuously pop up when inquiring about the best teachers in Brandon University. These names are, but certainly not limited to the following:  


         Names                   Department

  • Dr. Baker                                             Political Science

  • Mrs. Paola Di Muro           Mathematics and Computer Science

  • Dr. Balfour Spence                                   ADES

  • Mr. James Forsythe                               DRAMA

  • Mrs. Zehtab-Jadid                               ECONOMICS




 


Time To Update Sex Ed On Campus

Walk around campus and you might notice something… or rather a lack of something, on a subject that effects many people on campus. Sex Ed. Bulletin boards and campus bathrooms have very little informative posters for sexual education, or none at all. The one poster that does exist is quite old, one that was created by SERC (Sexual Education Resource Centre). It is worn around the edges and wearing thin. It has been in the campus bathrooms for at least five years.

Modern culture is constantly evolving, and so is the way society views sex. It is now more important than ever to have proper sexual education for students. This includes adult students attending university. Not everyone has an equal amount of knowledge towards sexual education, and they may not have access to information that is necessary in order to remain protected and safe during sex.

Talking about sex in any form can be an uncomfortable subject to broach with anyone, even adults having a conversation with someone in their own age group. Having information in brief points on posters can help distribute the information to students. Posters are an anonymous way for students to gather information. The posters can also assist students in finding out appropriate places and people to go to if problems arise or they need to talk to someone about sexual health.

People are more likely to make healthier decisions that are right for them when they have accurate, unbiased information and the ability to talk with non-judgemental people who can answer their questions. Sexual education can also help students develop decision-making skills to apply the strategies and techniques learned into their daily lives. This is why updating and adding to the sexual education posters in both bathrooms and on bulletin boards across campus will benefit students’ well being. Access to non-judgmental information is important and should be made readily available for all students.

每逢佳节倍思亲

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张琴辉 (教育学院)       

留学生涯，不仅是繁忙的学习任务，还有在异乡的孤单和思念。 下周一（九月二十四日）就是中国的传统节日－中秋节。 这个节日意味着亲朋好友们团聚，赏月，吃月饼，畅谈人生。有句古诗叫“每逢佳节倍思亲”－ 在外的游子，在传统节假日来临之际，会加倍地思念故乡的亲人和朋友。 

在此借Quill 板块一角， 祝愿大家在Brandon 大学学习、生活愉快。让我们一起庆祝这团聚的日子，并敬请关注中秋节活动公告。另外， Quill报纸每隔一周会刊登中文版的Brandon大学的趣事杂谈。期待您的来信来稿，让我们与Quill一起，共度美好的校园生活！


Every Festive Season


The first Chinese traditional festival of this new semester is “Zhong Qiu Jie”（中秋节）, which is also known as The Moon Festival. It is celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar. On that night, the full moon is extraordinarily round and bright, which was given a mythological twist, with the legends of Chang’e, a beautiful lady living on the moon. On this night, we traditionally invite our family members and loved ones to congregate and enjoy the full moon, which is a promising symbol of harvest, harmony and family reunion. Additionally, the foods we prepared for this special day usually are cups of tea and a plate of moon cake. 

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Next Monday, September 24, you can experience this wonderful Chinese traditional festival by a cup of tea and a piece of moon cake, siting on a comfortable chair in your back yard, raising your head, gazing on the clear moon and imagining that beautiful lady.  Or, you also can come and join our activity “The Moon Night”, September 23 on campus. Please email us if you want to attend this wonderful night activity, know more about Chinese cultures, give us comments or make suggestions.

 



Paw Pass And Its Benefits

The start of a new school year brings upon many things such as financial constraints, headaches and stress. However, it also brings in new discounts for both Brandon University and Assiniboine Community College students. Each year the Brandon University Students Union (BUSU) and the Assiniboine Community College Students Association (ACCSA) put together a student initiative called the Paw Pass. The Paw Pass in reality is a little sticker that goes on the back side of your student card. However, by presenting your student card with the Paw Pass sticker attached to various local businesses you could receive a hefty discount!

Obviously not every business in Brandon and the surrounding area take part in the Paw Pass program although there are over fifty businesses that do! These businesses range from dining establishments and entertainment facilities to apparel stores and health organizations. Some are dine-in restaurants such as the Wok Box while others are fast food places or pizza joints such as Dominos. The majority of businesses that participate in the Paw Pass program offer discounts between 10%-20%. However, there are a few that offer a greater percentage. One such business is Dominos pizza which offers students 40% off any pizza when you order online using the coupon code BOBCATS for BU students or ACC2018 for ACC students. Another great pizza place also provides students with a break when it comes to their financial resources. Papa Johns Pizza offers students 50% off regular menu priced pizza and 25% off on all side items. Finally, switching gears out of the pizza business, Lasting Image offers all students a discount of 25% off all block mounting, laminating and dry mounting. All three of these businesses are less than five minutes away from campus!

One last thing you should know about the Paw Pass is that the discount aren't limited to the City of Brandon alone! There are a couple of businesses outside of Brandon that are also part of the Paw Pass Program. These include the Dairy Queen at Neepawa which offers a 15% discount to students as well as the Super Thrifty Drug Store in Dauphin which also offers a 15% discount on regular priced merchandise. 

To receive your Paw Pass sticker head on down to the BUSU office, located on the first floor of the Knowles-Douglas Building. They are open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday to Friday. You will also receive a Paw Pass pamphlet detailing the discounts each business offers as well as any restrictions that may be in effect. Now that you know the most vital and important information there is for students to know get out there and grab those discounts! Everyone, and I do mean everyone, loves a bargain. As students any chance you get to save even a small fraction of money I advise you take it.

Orientation And Your First Week

I believe I speak for everyone when I say that nothing beats the excitement and vigour with which the freshmen entered their first days of school. At Orientation this year hundreds of bright eyed optimists descended into our haunt of stress induced late pre-exam panic attacks. If you were fortunate to have seen the jovial bounce in the step of each newbie as their Student Leaders showed them the lecture halls you would have been flabbergasted. Then again it is said that Lambs will meekly follow the butcher to the chopping block and even prisoners learn to accept their chains.  After the latest incarcerated inmates of this prison of gloom were made familiar with the boundaries of their new confines they were brought out in front of Clark Hall. Here a last meal of burgers and chips was prepared for them. A final cruel reminder of what they would miss, as from now on these poor souls will subside off Cup'O Noodles, grilled cheese sandwiches and tap water. The dinner music, a dirge, played by local bands for the unsuspecting as they, burger in hand, passed through booths of various sponsors. These sadists malevolently keep providing means for this factory of dread to turn out more and more soulless empty graduates. Upon satiation students were later brought to the computer lab where the malicious Student Leaders got them to choose their method of torture, death by titration or oral presentation. Finally the freshmen were sent home with the promise that their Student Leaders would be watching them in the days to come both seen in their yellow shirts and disguised as the rest of the prison populace.  

Hopefully you freshmen have gotten the feel of the land by now! We students love to play up the stress our studies put on us. At times it feels like a competition. The more stress you are under the harder you must be working. Don't believe a word of it! It is entirely feasible for you to experience a successful academic career and enjoy it as well. Your time at BU will be as miserable or amazing as you make it out to be. Listen to the Student Leaders and the advice that they provided you. Take advantage of their offer to help you along your first steps as a university student. They have been through it all before, both the ups and downs, the successes and the failures. Remember programs that they showed you that are offered here at BU. These were put into place by hardworking individuals whose purpose it is to see you succeed. We are all pulling for you. Remember the excitement you feel today will soon give way to familiarity. Breeding tedium, exhaustion and disenchantment. That it is unless you do something about it! Find a reason to get excited about coming to school each day. Whether that is to be with new friends or to learn something new and stimulating.  

How To Read A Peer Review Article

The peer reviewed journal article. The journal article. The scholarly paper. The scientific paper. Stomach-cramp-causing-probably-10-pages-too-long-but-mandatory-for-class-discussion article. Call it what you might, if you ever want something to make you question your decision to pursue post-secondary education as well as your sanity, all you have to do is read one. 

Back up. What even is a peer reviewed journal article? A peer reviewed journal article is a communication of research written by an expert in a specific field. It is revised and edited by other experts in that field. It is then put out into the world by a publication run by experts in that field that distributes research relevant to that field. The many steps and multiple experts involved here make these articles more likely to address reasonable conclusions that are scientifically valid. 

Journal articles are the foundation of scientific communication, and how to read one effectively is all too often overlooked. Here are some things you should know: 

  1. You’re not stupid. Sometimes scientists are bad writers. If an article is indecipherable, it might not be the result of your reading comprehension – some articles are written poorly. 

  2. Ask yourself what you need to get out of the article. Are you only looking for general conclusions or specific pieces of evidence? Do you need background information for a report? Evidence for a research paper? A better understanding of the topic? Why are you reading this article? Knowing what you’re looking for is the first step to finding it. Now, where to look…

  3. Understand what information is covered in each section of the article. Knowing what should be there will help you pick out key points in their entirety. For example, if you make a note about methodology from the abstract, you might not fully grasp the concept. If you know the structure of each section, you’ll understand where to look if you missed something; if you don’t understand where an interpretation in the discussion came from, you’ll know to look back at the results to understand the data.

  4. Don’t overlook the references section. There is a 100% chance that an article that has relevant content has relevant sources. Use this section as a gateway to even more information related to the topic at hand. 

  5. You don’t have to read the article in the order its laid out. Most of the pros don’t. By understanding why you’re reading the article, and what is in each section, you can create an effective plan of attack. 


Many people read in the following order: title; abstract; introduction, conclusion, discussion, materials and methods. Some say it follows better, some change this sequence up. This order makes sense to some because it puts information in order from the broadest to the most specific. Others prefer to narrow information down by reading the whole article one time to understand the bigger pictures, and a second time for details. You might have to experiment with the order to find what works best for you. 

But you should probably read the title first. Does it contain keywords or reference to the topic at hand? If no, move on. If yes, start with the abstract to further determine if the research is relevant; even though the title might be, the abstract provides more detail that might say otherwise. The abstract should give you an idea of what the introduction and conclusion are going to say. It should outline the fundamentals of what, why, how, as well as results and their inferences. Using this information should help you decide if the rest of the study if going to be relevant and if you should move ahead in reading the article (or give you reason to dread the fact that you have to rest the rest). 

The introduction should include a rationale for the study including background of the topic and previous research as well as aims, objectives and possibly a hypothesis. Making a mental or actual note of these things will help you check back to see if the authors ambitions were achieved by the end of the article. 

Materials and methods explain how research was conducted. This section should explain how the problem was studied – what procedures were used, what data was recorded and how – in enough detail that the study could be repeated by the person reading. This is an important section to read in order to consider if the means by which the results were achieved were appropriate. 

The results should explain what was found through reference to data. This section shouldn’t interpret the data or explain anything beyond the raw facts.  

The discussion is where research questions are answered, meaning of analysis and interpretations of the data are explained. Strengths and limitations of the study are outlined. The discussion should include how the results fit into context with other research in the subject area and the directions of future research. Keep in mind that discussions are interpretations, not necessarily facts. 

The conclusion should wrap up the findings. It should enable you to assess if the author reached the goals set out in the introduction. Consider if the discussion and conclusion included interpretations that were clearly based on data and analysis. Were the interpretations reasonable? Are there unanswered questions?  

If you still have unanswered questions, you may need to reread the article a second time. The second go around will make more sense if read in order because you’ll already have an idea (even if it’s a very vague idea) of what’s going on. The second read through will help you understand if it’s you that’s missing or misunderstanding something or if the article actually leaves questions unanswered. 

Peer reviewed journal articles can be seriously confusing, don’t hesitate to ask your professor for clarification on subject matter. Also, don’t hesitate to ask your professor how they read the articles, the most effective method might vary by discipline. Also, they’ve probably read hundreds if not thousands, they will likely have suggestions on how to read more effectively. 

Social Media Adventure

Despite our current esteemed editor’s desire to the contrary, social media isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. And since our news team is comprised of opportunistic and ambitious people, The Quill will be more active this year online than we’ve been in the past in order to keep up with the demands of our audience. And to, you know, have an audience.

Of course this wasn’t an easy transition. It involved at least half an hour worth of worth struggling to remember what password worked and why Instagram decided we both had an account with our email already yet had no account with our email to reset our password. Which resulted in several minutes spent skimming their support before promptly abandoning their less than helpful (re: useless) FAQ and leaving feedback with a very disappointed frowny face. We however preserved and got our account set up. 

Twitter was a breeze once we figured out there was no salvaging our old one and started from scratch. Facebook was easy peazy. At this point we figured we’re somewhat getting the hang of this. Then of course we try to upload our profile picture of a quill- you know the very object we’re named after- without it being cut out or trimmed down. Not possible. Completely unachievable. Despite wandering onto dubious sites and downloading supposedly resized images, which optimistically don’t include any additional viruses, our photo remained determined to thwart our combined genius. After poisoning the air with exasperated and quickly resigned profanity we threw in the towel. Besides, you can still tell it’s a feather, so hopefully the connection between our name and our logo is evident. If not we’ll just be a circle with a pretty feather. 

Additionally, as of the time this article is being writing we can proudly boast two followers on Instagram! Yes, proudly. That’s truly where our bar is at, for the moment. Which is where you- students, faculty, and other various readers come in!

Now you may ask, is all of this just a long advertisement for our social media? Yes, yes it is. So while I have your attention you can find our Facebook account by looking up “The Quill” or @QuillBU, our Instagram @BUTheQuill, and our twitter @TheQuillBU. Follow us for reminders about events going on around campus, sports updates, and for general news. Our website is still up and running at thequill.ca where you can read full articles online and join our email list to be notified every time we publish an article. 

We hope this new platform proves more convenient for you, the readers. Any feedback can be sent to the Editor, Rob, at eic.thequill@gmail.com.