McMaster News Archive

November 23, 2001

[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/cameraman.jpg” caption=”Cameraman films new exhibit in Museum”]The large billboard at Longwood and Aberdeen streets in Hamilton tells the story. McMaster's Museum of Art . . .

November 23, 2001

It's taken almost a week to move a 74,250-kilogram giant into the McMaster Manufacturing Research Institute. Physical plant employees, security, machinery movers -- teams of people have been working on moving a new automotive sheet metal forming press into the back end of the John Hodgins Engineering building. The mammoth press has been lying on its side outside the engineering building as movers determine how to ease it through a hole in the wall, tilt it into a standing position, while at the same time positioning it into a 3.6-metre deep pit. Hydraulic lifts and conveyer belts are being used. And yes, it takes a few engineers to figure this out. The $1.6 million press, funded by the Canada Foundation for Innovation, comes from a company north of Toronto. Mukesh Jain, of the MMRI, said major automotive companies like the Ford Motor Co. would have this type of press in their manufacturing operations, but the McMaster model will be used as a highly refined research tool. "This one is unique, " said Jain, who left Alcan's Kingston operation three months ago to join McMaster. "This is well instrumented and well controlled." Jain said the McMaster operation would be one of the largest among universities in Canada. The press takes a flat sheet of metal and stamps it into a component, with the capacity to punch metal at a force of 900-tonnes. "The research will be working with material suppliers and automotive companies to try and understand the different types of metal forming processes." Jain said researchers will study topics such as how new materials and lubricants behave in the metal forming process. Once the press is ensconced in its new home, it will take a few more months to set up the instrumentation before researchers can begin conducting research using the machine. The new press is the final piece of equipment to be housed in the 15,000 sq. ft. MMRI facility, which houses 13 industrial machines and a robot. The institute is designed to meet the sophisticated research and development needs of leading manufacturers. MOVING DAYS: MMRI researcher Mukesh Jain stands in front of the new sheet metal forming press being installed in the institute. Photo by Shelly Easton

November 22, 2001

The room is bright and airy, with giant poster board art on the walls. It's filled with navy comfy couches, blonde wood tables, plants, a fridge, microwaves and a sleek, black computer. Rather than punch in numbers to a key pad, employees swipe a proximity card to get access to the room 24 hours a day. Quite a change from the janitor's room with its mops and cleaners that constituted the lunchroom for physical plant co-workers Dora Bianchi and Jackie Emery. The two women were guests attending a ribbon-cutting ceremony yesterday in the newly-refurbished employee lounge in the Arthur Bourns Building (ABB). "This is nice and bright," said Emery. "It's good to get away from the work area with the janitor supplies. You don't want to see that on your lunch hour. Here you get to meet new people, socialize. That's important. It's good for your health." The ABB lounge (Room 273) is the first designated employee lounge to be refurbished through an initiative that grew out of recommendations from the Employee Lounges Implementation Team. The team is one of four formed in February to work on recommendations from the staff survey. Click on New lounge space for employees in Arthur Bourns, Burke Science to read an earlier Daily News story about the lounges initiative. Karen Belaire, vice-president administration, told yesterday's gathering that the ABB lounge improvement project is the "first of many." She thanked the employee lounge steering committee, led by Ingrid Ellis, for the work put into the lounge renovations and the physical plant projects team, led by Peter Whitaker, for the work that group did on the room. Ceremony guests: (Front L to R) Dora Bianchi, Jackie Emery, Karen Belaire, Ingrid Ellis, Leah Allan, Sandra Sullivan, Mary Williams, Muriel McKay; (Back L to R) Peter Sutherland, Stephen Shurvin, David Kidney, Peter George. Photo by Ron Scheffler

November 22, 2001

[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/CampusplanNovopenhouse1.final.jpg”]The campus master plan steering committee wants feedback on a draft campus master plan. Dozens of members of the McMaster community on and . . .

November 21, 2001

[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/SolarcarSantas.final.jpg”]The McMaster Solar Car Project team helped spread holiday cheer, along with awareness of renewable energy resources, at the Hamilton Santa Claus parade . . .

November 21, 2001

In 1960, Alvin A. Lee, then a brand new assistant professor, had a dream. The brash young professor wanted to establish and build a research library at McMaster. With this in mind, he visited University librarian Marget Meikleham and left her office with a fund to begin a collection in his specialty areas of Old and Middle English. This was the beginning of Lee's 41-year relationship with the Library. On Nov. 8, Lee's numerous contributions to the development of the Library and his untiring support were recognized when he was presented with the first Library Advocate Award. In his remarks, University librarian Graham R. Hill said, "There is no doubt that a vital university library is the product of the intense interest and vigorous advocacy by the faculty that it serves...In his role as president and vice-chancellor from 1980 to 1990 and again as co-chair of the community campaign in the recent Changing Tomorrow Today campaign, Alvin Lee has constantly demonstrated his belief in the priority of the Library, and the continuing need for its growth and development." Accepting the award, Lee recalled that in 1962, having heard from the head of the English department, Roy Wiles, that the senior administration wanted arts departments like English to establish doctoral programs, he and another equally-brash colleague went off to see the then dean of graduate studies, physicist Harry Duckworth. Their purpose was to point out that building a research library would require significant new funds. Asked what he thought was needed, Lee replied that a million dollars a year for the next 10 years would be a realistic start. Within a few months the University was providing this money in the budget. Lee also recalled with pleasure the opportunity, during the Centennial Campaign in the late 1980s, to play the leading role in raising the $21-million of public and private money to expand and renovate Mills Memorial Library. To commemorate his award, the Library will inscribe two books that Lee has selected: The Encyclopaedia of Canadian Literature  which, when it is published next year, will be the most complete and up-to-date reference work on Canadian literature ever published  and The Diaries of Northrop Frye, 1942-1955, Volume 8 of The Collected Works of Northrop Frye. Now retired from the University, Lee continues the demanding leadership of the editorial project to publish The Collected Works of Northrop Frye. He has also given of his time, energy and knowledge to work with the Library to raise funds for the Library of the Future Endowment Fund in the belief that the McMaster community must support the continued excellence of its library collections in this time of severe economic stress. (End of story)

November 21, 2001

John Basmajian John Basmajian MD is internationally recognized as a leader in the field of rehabilitation science, specifically in the area of electromyography. At McMaster . . .

November 20, 2001

Physical Plant is currently in the process of reviewing and reassessing its services. Over the past week the department has held three sessions on campus . . .

November 20, 2001

Everyone is invited to attend the second Campus Plan Open House to review and discuss future directions for the McMaster campus. The plan will shape campus growth and development for the next 30 years. The open house is Wednesday, Nov. 21 in Convocation Hall from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Significant work to refine the campus plan has been undertaken since the first campus plan open house last March. McMaster's consultants, Urban Strategies, and University representatives will be on hand to guide you through the draft campus plan, discuss the key directions and themes that have emerged, answer any questions and receive your feedback. For additional information, call ext. 24330. (END OF STORY)

November 20, 2001

Take a CPR certification or re-certification course and you could help the McMaster Student Outreach Clinic (MACSOC) help Hamilton's homeless. The Heart & Stroke Foundation . . .

November 19, 2001

The 2001 Holiday Hamper Food Drive, a joint venture of the Faculty of Health Sciences and the Hamilton Health Sciences Corporation, is underway in the Health Sciences Centre. All university and hospital employees and students are invited to bring in non-perishable food items to the decorated boxes throughout the building. This year's goal is to surpass last year's collection of 6,000 pounds of donated food. The collected food will be presented to the Food Share of Greater Hamilton, on Friday, Dec. 14 at 10:45 a.m. in the main lobby of the Health Sciences Centre. Entertainment will be provided by children from the McMaster Children's Centre. (End of story)

November 19, 2001

The University of Manitoba Bisons defeated the McMaster Marauders Saturday to win the Churchill Bowl and advance to the national championship Vanier Cup game. The . . .

November 19, 2001

Students enrolled in McMaster University's Certificate in Writing Program fulfilled some of their dreams last night at the book launch for the fourth volume of . . .

November 16, 2001

FACT SHEET What is SHARCNET? SHARCNET (Shared Hierarchical Academic Research Computing Network), based at The University of Western Ontario, is a network of high-performance Beowulf . . .

November 16, 2001

Astrophysicist Hugh Couchman likes to look deep into the cosmos. Powerful computers help him explore galaxies millions of light years away. Now he will have even more power behind his research when SHARCNET links his 112 Alpha computer processors at McMaster with 285 computer processors from other universities across southern Ontario. "SHARCNET, an acronym for Shared Hierarchical Academic Research Computer Network, is a distributed network with a hierarchy of clustering," says Couchman. Working in parallel, university computers at McMaster, Western, Guelph and Wilfrid Laurier and computers at Fanshawe and Sheridan colleges, will give researchers the opportunity to perform high-speed calculations. Representatives from McMaster and the participating universities and colleges, government, industry and SHARCNET are celebrating the official launch of the new super computer network today in London. Click on SHARCNET fact sheet for more information about the project. Couchman is trying to understand how galaxies formed billions of years ago. He uses computers to simulate galaxies in a cosmic three-dimensional environment. "I use numerical computations to provide a bridge between the cosmic theorist and the observer who uses a telescope," says Couchman. "I simulate a physical system on the computer and then perform experiments on the system. Numerical simulation allows us to experiment with the universe." Super astrophysicist: Numerical computations and super computer processors connect McMaster astrophysicist Hugh Couchman to galaxies millions of miles away. Photo by Ron Scheffler

November 16, 2001

[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/Forks.jpg” caption=”The Secret Life of Forks”]Freshly painted showrooms. New labels. A new exhibit. There'll be plenty new to see when the McMaster Museum . . .

November 15, 2001

Three McMaster researchers studying fish physiology, silver chemistry and water geochemistry have won a national innovation award recognizing outstanding university-industry research and development partnerships. Biology professor Chris Wood, Canada Research Chair in Environment and Health, and professors emeriti Russell Bell and James Kramer are winners of the Synergy Award. Bell, who contributed research on silver chemistry, is a professor emeritus in the Department of Chemistry and Kramer, who studies the area of water geochemistry, is a professor emeritus in the School of Geography & Geology. The trio won for their multidisciplinary partnership with researchers from Universiti du Quibec and Wilfrid Laurier University and Kodak Canada Inc. They contributed to collaborative projects measuring silver released into the environment during the photofinishing process and researching the effects of silver on aquatic organisms. This research will help set criteria for new water quality guidelines for metals in the environment. Click on Kodak and Canadian universities develop better water quality guidelines to read more about the partnership and projects. The Synergy Award, sponsored by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council and the Conference Board of Canada, includes $25,000 research grants for the university partners. The prize-winning partnerships were selected from 37 entries in this year's competition. The Synergy conference and awards dinner takes place Nov. 20 in Montreal. (End of story)

November 15, 2001

[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/enemy.jpg”]Students, faculty and visiting artists at McMaster University's School of the Arts are about to unveil their fall major production of Henrik Ibsen's . . .

November 15, 2001

John Kelton, dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences, officially opened the new Maternity Centre of Hamilton recently. The centre is a partnership between the . . .

November 14, 2001

The tradition of the annual Children's Christmas party will continue this year thanks to the work of several members of the McMaster community, including President . . .