Many McGill students feel as though they have little time to care for themselves, much less for a pet. However, the McGill student body is not without its share of dog owners, as many students can be seen walking their dogs on campus on a regular basis. Armed with a socially-acceptable reason for an adult to pet stranger’s dogs, The McGill Tribune set out to get to know student dog owners and the loving, unique relationship they have with their dogs.
(Grace Hebert / The McGill Tribune)
Sugar
Breed: Corgi
Age: 1 ½ years
It’s a balmy Thursday afternoon at the weekly Farmer’s market, which is in full swing. A couple walks briskly by with their dog trotting in front, despite her short legs. After a quick, well-appreciated scratch, owner Dana Li, U3 Joint Honours Economics and Finance, uses a knee as leverage for face kisses as others come to pet and take pictures of her dog, Sugar.
McGill Tribune (MT): How did you get Sugar?
Dana Li: “I have a friend of a friend who has a farm. They had two dogs and would give puppies away.”
MT: Where do you like to take her on walks?
DL: “Mostly on Mont-Royal, but I also take her on [walks] around campus.”
MT: Can you tell me anything special about Sugar?
DL: “She’s very well-behaved. She can shake hands and sit [on command]. She’s well house-trained.”
Harper
Breed: Morkie
Age: 8 months
A large throng of students pass through the Milton Gates on their way to class in the early afternoon. Amidst them, a small dog pulls ahead of the pack, followed quickly by her owner, Taylor Kris, U2 English and Marketing. The small, fluffy dog expertly weaves out from under the many feet in search of more smells and a faster pace.
MT: Is this your first dog?
Taylor Kriz: “My parents have two, but this is my first dog I’ve personally owned.”
MT: Where do you like to walk Harper?
TK: “I walk her everywhere! Usually on the mountain since you don’t need a leash.”
MT: What makes her special?
TK: “She’s a furball and pretty smart. She’s already potty-trained and can sit [on command].”
MT: What is your favorite thing about Harper?
TK: “She is such a snuggle bunny. She likes to sleep beside me every night.”
River
Breed: German Shepherd/Border Collie/American Pitbull mix
Age: 2 ½ years
On the grassy steps near the Milton Gates, River lounges beside her owner, Kyle Gardner, U3 Marketing Management, as he does homework. River stretches out on the grass, trying to get as much sun exposure as possible. With the approach of others, she perks up with a bright spark of intelligence in her eye.
MT: How did you get her?
Kyle Gardner: Actually, she’s my twin brother’s dog. He got her off of Kijiji because someone was trying to get rid of a litter. I’m taking care of her now because he can’t have River in the apartment. I’ve been taking care of her on and off since she was a pup.”
MT: Where do you like to walk River?
KG: “I walk her on campus, but I usually take her to the dog park on Docteur Penfield and Pins.”
MT: What is special about River?
KG: “She is the smartest dog I’ve ever had. She can do so many tricks. I’ve almost gotten her to get a beer from the fridge. We got the foamies for each can but she won’t pick them up. She can defend [a goal], like in soccer. She especially likes hide and seek and hiding the ball.”
MT: Do you have any concerns about the pitbull ban in Montreal?
KG: “I was thinking of registering her as a German Shepherd and Border Collie. I won’t get her tested though, just for plausible deniability.”
MT: Does she have any quirks?
KG: “She gets upset when no one is petting her. She also has a terrible nose. She can’t sniff out anything. And she doesn’t under the concept of pointing. She just stares at your finger.”
Vladimir
Breed: Black Labrador/Rottweiler mix
Age: 5 years
In front of the McConnell Engineering building, Vladimir’s huge, black frame pulls towards the Y-intersection with little heed of his owner, Mashal Khan,U1 Software Engineering, who attempts to keep with his break-neck pace. Upon being stopped, Vladimir jumps up for a hug, and goes straight for the face for kisses.
MT: When did you get Vladimir?
Mashal Khan: “I just got him this weekend at the local SPCA. He was abandoned and left on the street. Then he was adopted for 3 weeks and returned. So many people get dogs and then say they are too busy to take care of one and then get rid of them, especially McGill students.”
MT: Where do you like to walk him?
MK: “I walk him on campus. He likes Lower Field since he has space to run.”
MT: What is something special about Vladimir?
MK: “He never barks. He has the best temperament. He’s always friendly and he likes everyone. He especially likes to hug. When he’s tired, he likes to curl up next to me. He also loves belly rubs.”
Kaiser:
Breed: Miniature Pinscher
Age: 3 months
At the bus stop on Milton and Parc, Berk Tokmak, U1 Political Science, sits with his dog Kaiser; Kaiser is small enough to fit in his owner’s hands. Kaiser is shivering in the cold, despite his coat—though this doesn’t stop him from trying to eat bottle caps and drag his leash in front of pedestrians. Kaiser is full of youthful energy, and is very affectionate.
MT: Is Kaiser your first dog?
Berk Tokmak: “He is my first dog.”
MT: Where do you like to walk him?
BT: “Depends. I walk him everywhere.”
MT: What do you like most about Kaiser?
BT: “He’s very energetic. He is instinctively programmed to hunt down vermin.”
On Nov. 8, Chabad at McGill, the local branch of Chabad International, hosted an event on Lower Field that soon attracted protesters, including members and supporters of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) campaign. Chabad International is a not-for-profit educational outreach organization that aims to create a “home-away-from-home”. The BDS Action Network at McGill lobbies to divest from and prevent any future university investments in companies that profit from the occupation of Palestine, as well as for Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) to take a firm stance condemning Israeli actions. As part of the event, which was called Artists 4 Israel, Chabad McGill erected a section of wall on which participants could paint murals.
According to Eva Chorna, a U1 Science student and member of Chabad’s student board, the event was intended to promote positive messages.
"Basically, what we tried doing with this event [was] we brought a group of artists [who] came to spray paint a mural on which we were promoting a really peaceful and inclusive message for coexistence," Chorna said.
According to Chorna, the event was designed to bring together people of different backgrounds and political views through a common medium–art. The event was not related to Israeli-Palestinian relations.
"It’s just related to the idea that […] Israel comes to campus with its arms wide open, with the desire to have a conversation about peace, with the desire to engage with students in a meaningful dialogue, in a meaningful conversation," Chorna said.
Protesters felt that the wall on which the murals were painted inappropriately resembled the West Bank Barrier Wall, an obstruction built by Israeli forces in 2002 to separate Palestine and Israel. According to Laura Khoury, U3 Engineering and a BDS supporter who was present at the protest, the event made many students uncomfortable because of its likeness to the West Bank Barrier.
"It is […] frustrating that they used a form of appropriation [such] as the Wall, which for a lot of people is […] triggering because many Palestinians need to go through multiple checkpoints on this wall to even go to school," Khoury said.
Julie Skarha, U3 Arts and Science, a protester who is an organizing member of McGill BDS Action Network, indicated that she found the symbolism of the wall a matter of concern.
"The graffiti canvas normalized the occupation by appropriating forms [of] Palestinian resistance in the West Bank against the Apartheid Wall, [which] restricts the mobility, access to medical resources, and water supplies of Palestinians in the West Bank," Skarha said.
According to Chorna, once the protesters stood in front of the murals, she and other participants invited them to partake in spray-painting the mural and were firmly rejected by the pro-Palestinian.
"These guys decided that instead of contributing […] and maybe even tagging their own message […] to not interact with us, refused to speak to us, [stood] in front of our mural, [and blocked] the view of other students from this amazing, artistic work, and [created] tensions," said Chorna.
According to Khoury, the event sent an uncomfortable message to Palestinian students on campus.
"Forgetting the political sphere in which we [live] and in which the continuous colonization of Palestine actually exists and promoting Israel as a country [and] culture of peace beyond the political spectrum is not in any way fair […],” said Khoury. “It does not portray the actual situation on the ground and for us Palestinians that [walk] by on this campus, we feel very uncomfortable to see the appropriation of Palestinian resistance."
A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that the BDS Action Network at McGill lobbies to prevent university investments in Israeli companies that profit from the occupation of Palestine. In fact, the BDS Action Network at McGill does not exclusively focus on Israeli companies. Further, the Action Network lobbies for the university to divest from current investments as well as to prevent additional investments that contribute to the occupation of Palestine. The Tribune regrets this error.
I am compelled to thank all of the McGill gym bros who have approached me over the past four years for teaching me how to work out. Your generosity consists of stopping me mid-set to critique my form, asking me which of my boyfriends taught me how to lift weights, suggesting that I use the bar meant for girls, and telling me that another exercise would be more effective. Apparently, being a female in the gym permanently renders me clueless as to lifting weights, despite having done so for years.
I have noticed that although there is a standard way to conduct oneself in the gym as a male, there is a glaring lack of standardized procedure for newcomer gym bros. For example, a first-year attending the gym for the first time might actually respect others’ space while working out, and wait to use equipment. As a lowly female that dares to enter—and use—the weight section, I maintain that the McGill gym community must avoid such a bro-pocalypse. Worry not, potential and novice gym-goers. I present to any aspiring bros a polished guide to working out in gym bro fashion and flexing masculinity!
As any alpha male should, McGill’s gym bros must set an example to all beta gym-goers. Incoming gym gals will not know how to work out if no one tells them how to. Endeavour to grunt as loudly as you can—yell, if necessary—during any and all compound movements, especially the ultra-masculine bench press. If you happen to be spotting your fellow bro, support him by counting his reps as loudly as possible, and shout any motivational quotes that come to mind. Always be mindful that if you do not make your presence known to every single person in the fitness centre, the gym pedestrians will continue with their routine of useless exercises. Without seeing a shining example of real, unfettered strength, the McGill population will surely shrivel into—heaven forbid—negative gains.
As any alpha male should, McGill’s gym bros must set an example to all beta gym-goers.
The next step in solidifying bro status is to occupy as much space as possible in the weights section. Place your water bottle—presumably filled with quadruple-strength explosive pre-workout mix—and towel on separate box steps. Otherwise, why are you at the gym? Let others know you need as much space as possible to properly activate your muscles. If someone dares to ask for such a crucial piece of equipment as your water bottle platform, make sure you do at least two more impeccable sets of deadlifts before acknowledging their presence. If they have not already cowered away, move your precious bottle of pre-workout to the floor, accompanied with a loud sigh to signify your displeasure of acquiescing to their unreasonable demands.
Above all, make sure to observe any lowly gym-goers closely while they work out. When you witness improper form, ineffectual exercises, or the gains-destroyer—also known as cardio—provide your unsolicited, but much needed, advice. Never mind their goals or their physique, you are the authority on all physical activity. Disrupt such a display of embarrassment and lead them to the right path, even if that path is to the exit turnstile. If you see a female in your lifting territory, simultaneously correct her form and tell her to lift heavier weights if she wants booty gains. Then, do numerous pull-ups in front of her between sets to reassert your strength and wisdom. Bonus points to if you manage to interrupt her mid-set!
Upon consistent and rigorous devotion to the aforementioned principles, you will eventually flourish into the McGill gym bro you always dreamed of becoming. Go forth and bestow this gift of knowledge on everyone else. And by that, I mean tell them their form sucks.
Jennifer Lockerby is a U3 Political Science and IDS major from a thriving metropolis known as Niagara Falls. She enjoys street photography, SoundCloud rappers, makeup, intersectional feminist discourse, and attempting to lift weights.
As an arachnologist studying the biodiversity of spiders and insects in Arctic systems, Buddle is no stranger to the hostile environments of the North. Much of his research addresses the critical situation concerning climate change that has been becoming an increasingly significant factor in Arctic habitats.
“We know that the Arctic is changing,” Buddle said. “It’s very alarming, because the rate of which things like climate change happen in the North is very, very rapid.”
The far northern environments, which Buddle refers to as “the fragile Arctic,” most severely feel the effects of changing climates. Through his fieldwork in the arctic, Buddle hopes to understand the consequences of climate change on the northern ecosystems and to benchmark the state of its biodiversity.
During one of his northern expeditions, Buddle and his research team collected approximately 30,000 spiders, consisting of 14 families and 306 different species. The Arctic is home to a wide array of spider diversity and taxonomy. The Arctic species exhibit an impressive degree of plasticity and adaptability in order to thrive in challenging conditions.
In 2012, Buddle and his graduate students found that more than half of the female wolf spider population were parasitized by wasps in the Yukon—an unusually high rate. The parasitic relationship begins when the wasp latches on to the spinneret of a female spider and lays its eggs in the egg sac of the host. The wasp eggs hatch and subsequently devour the spider.
A particularly memorable arachnid encounter occurred when Buddle and two research associates accidentally stumbled upon a new species of pseudoscorpion under rocks in the Yukon. Coincidentally, pseudoscorpions—a close relative of scorpions and spiders—were also discovered by complete chance in the 1980s.
“That’s not how we think of science working, by accident, but I think it works by accident more often than not,” Buddle said.
Upon further investigation into these mysterious species, researchers found that pseudoscorpions can survive without breathing for 17 days in deoxygenated water—a discovery that was later reported on by the BBC.
Buddle discussed the importance of species identification in order to track and understand the real and profound effects that occur as a result of climate change.
“We need to tell the stories of species. They have a story to tell, we just don’t know the stories,” Buddle said.
Natural history, as described by Buddle, is usually presented as dead relics in dusty museums. Instead, it ought to be considered as a foundational piece of how humans perceive nature and how field observations are a valuable component of the scientific method. Unfortunately, the number of courses and textbooks on natural history have been decreasing over time. Nonetheless, many passionate professors at McGill are working to integrate natural history back into classes.
“Always be open to working [with] people. They know a hell lot more than you do,” Buddle said. “Collaboration is key, and I think almost most importantly, [is] curiosity, wonder, and passion […] let’s make sure that keeps happening.”
Ongoing construction on McTavish and Sherbrooke Streets has been causing trouble for students and professors alike.
McGill staff and students have come up with strategies to cope with the obstructions, such as Anthropology Sessional Lecturer Karen McAllister, who created a map when students had difficulty locating her office.
“Getting to lectures was an issue sometimes, especially when they first started the construction,” McAllister said. “You just recognize that, okay, it’s going to take a bit longer, and that’s fine.”
Local businesses have not been as adaptable to restrictions of movement. Restaurants in particular have been adversely affected by the construction and claim to have generally been uninformed about the process. Pizza Navona Manager Kamalpreet Singh felt that the construction significantly reduced sales, although he pointed out that losses were somewhat offset by the construction workers themselves going for lunch.
“I think, because of the construction, not many people like to pass on this side, they either like to go through Maisonneuve or Sainte-Catherine,” Singh said. “There are a lot of other factors that dropped our sales [.…] But I can say it has affected us, and it has affected our [sales] by 30 per cent along with a number of other factors.”
Singh also expressed displeasure with the dust that the construction stirs up.
“In summer, we were unable to open our doors. We don’t have any air conditioner, but as soon as we opened these doors, dust would come flying in and sit on the tables and pizzas,” Singh said.
Pannizza Manager Erik Boulet was frustrated with the lack of communication from the City of Montreal. His recent investment into an outside patio was made obsolete with very little prior notice.
“The city allowed me to put a patio right in front and a year and a half later they chopped the sidewalk off,” Boulet said. “A couple months before they started doing the construction they came up and said, ‘yep, this is what we’re doing; you have to take down your patio.’”
Boulet expressed frustration over the loss of sales since the construction started.
“We’ve had a decrease in sales of 10 to 11 per cent,” Boulet said. “It’s probably going to get a little bit worse when they start doing the sidewalks too and I don’t even know if I will be able to have access to my commerce.”
The Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU), however, has unexpectedly benefited from the tearing up of McTavish Street. SSMU VP Finance Niall Carolan empathized with students, but was pleased that his earlier prediction that construction would limit foot traffic and, as a result, food sales in SSMU turned out to be incorrect.
“While I empathize that it is an added hassle, having students re-routed through our building on the first and second floors has helped spread awareness and boost sales for our student-run operations,” Carolan said. “We are thankful [construction] has not posed any major or long-term inconveniences to our general activities.”
Furthermore, Carolan expects that the finished project will bring more potential customers to SSMU.
“I am very excited for the completion of the construction project, being the last point at the top of the walkway before the mountain should provide a great opportunity,” Carolan said. “As long as we are able to adapt our operations to be able to capitalize on the increased foot traffic, I am confident this project will benefit SSMU operations.”
Thanks to a study published in the October issue of Nature Communications, ecosystems are now known to be capable of surviving in the ancient rocks of the Earth’s crust.
Two members of McGill’s Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences—Boswell Wing and Thi Hao Bui—assisted colleagues from the University of Alberta and the University of Toronto to publish this groundbreaking discovery.
The researchers extracted water from a non-active portion of a mine outside of Timmins, Ontario. The high concentration of sulphur and the variety of sulphate isotopes within the extracted water were deemed worthy of investigation. Isotopes are versions of the same element, but with a different number of neutrons within their nuclei and different radioactive charges.
Measuring the sulphate isotopes proved a tricky and involved process. Bui, a postdoctoral research graduate in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at McGill, outlined the process.
“For every litre of water extracted from the mine, about one milligram of isotope exists,” Bui said. “In the wet lab, research assistants work to locate this one milligram of isotope within the litre of water, which takes a lot of time and energy.”
A machine built by members of McGill’s research staff detects differences between these isotopes because the variation in the number of nuclei affects their weight.
These measurements led the team to its unexpected conclusion: Microbial organisms must be acquiring their energy from the repeated recycling of ancient sulphur.
“We didn’t actually identify any microorganisms in those subsurface waters,” Wing, former Associate Professor of the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at McGill, explained. “But what we identified was evidence of their activity.”
By measuring sulphate isotopes dissolved in water, scientists concluded that microbial organisms could thrive in fracture waters found between the cracks of ancient rocks. Microorganisms can take in organic carbon—like sugars—from their atmosphere and can then use sulphate to oxidize it. The combination of suphate and organic carbons allows microorganisms to maintain metabolic activity over two kilometres below the surface of the Earth.
“When [the organisms] do that, they have a very slight preference for the sulphate that contains sulphur 32, relative to the heavier isotopes of sulphur, like sulphur 33 and sulphur 34,” Wing said.
Lead author Long Li, assistant professor at the University of Alberta’s Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, explained that these isotopes provide a renewable energy source for the microorganisms.
“Sulphate […] is actually produced in place by reaction between the water and rock,” Li explained to the McGill Newsroom. “What this means is that the reaction will occur naturally and can persist for as long as the water and rock are in contact, potentially billions of years.”
Not only do the sulphate isotopes highlight how diverse the habitable portions of Earth are, but also that there is a possibility that similar life forms exist on Mars.
While this prediction may also be true for other planets, similarities between early Earth and early Mars make our neighbouring planet a particularly convincing candidate for once having sustained life. Evidence of historical shorelines and indicative chemicals affirms that there were once large bodies of water on Mars. Furthermore, Mars is largely made of the same type of rocks as Earth.
Wing explains that the surface of Mars is dry, cold, and has little protection from UV radiation. However, living deep in the crust of Mars, off only hydrogen and sulphate in a fluid-filled pocket, could allow for growth and a habitable environment.
The novel discovery could help guide further Martian explorations. To look for life on Mars, look within its crust.
On the morning of Nov. 8, I awoke with an overwhelming sense of pride and excitement over the possibility—in my head, it was almost a certainty—of a woman in the White House. After 44 male presidents, an incredibly qualified woman was about to claim the 45th spot and change the trajectory of women’s rights in an unprecedented way. It felt as if American voters were breaking boundaries. Now, all I see are broken hearts.
The election of Donald Trump exposed a world I didn’t believe existed. Residing in my safe-haven at McGill—a liberal university in Montreal, Canada—has made it easy to maintain this perspective. By electing Trump, Americans decided that it is no longer okay to be different. Different, in this case, is anyone who doesn’t identify as a white, heterosexual male. While society may shudder with fear of this nightmarish reality, this realization is crucial to promoting a future where people can learn to understand and love one another. Facing and coming to terms with Trump’s world elicits the question, what now?
Trump’s world is one where women are deemed less worthy than men to occupy positions of power. It is a world in which women are told that they don’t have fundamental rights to their own bodies, a world where sexual assault survivors are shamed and silenced, and a world where grabbing a woman “by the pussy” is just “locker room banter.” The most frightening feature of all of this is that 53 per cent of white women voted to not only condone, but actively participate in this world.
Trump’s world is also one where minorities are denied personal freedoms. Trump actively condemned the Black Lives Matter movement and has a long history of marginalizing black people, for example, through housing discrimination. Mike Pence—now Vice President-elect—staunchly spoke out against the legalization of gay marriage and advocates for horrific gay conversion therapy. Trump blatantly insulted Latino-Americans and Americans of Muslim faith, using racist rhetoric to question their civil liberties. The Klu Klux Klan, a white supremacist group, endorsed Trump as a presidential candidate. I sympathize with the millions of Americans—Republicans and Democrats alike—who, as of Nov. 8, are essentially second-class citizens in their own country.
By electing Trump, Americans decided that it is no longer okay to be different.
While Canada may seem far, far away from this nightmare, we can all feel the reverberations. Many did not predict that America would hit such a shocking low—especially not the media. The raw exposure of this terrifying world—one where Donald Trump is the President of the United States—shatters our innocence and naiveté. Clearly, many of us are out of touch with the world we live in.
As Canadians, we can feel comfort knowing that the leader of our country does not denounce our differences or openly question our personal freedoms. However, with this comfort must come the acknowledgement that we, too, have a long way to go—especially in terms of adequate representation in politics. It is crucial to open our eyes and ears to the differences around us. Change will come with the capacity to accept what makes us unique, and to hear disillusionment before it is too late.
It is easy to envision society as continuously moving forward: Barriers get broken, stereotypes are dismantled, people become more open-minded and tolerant, and, as a result, the world is a better place. In 2008, Barack Obama became the first black president, inspiring millions with his message of hope. Obama had broken the “last racial barrier” in American politics. Yet, this election demonstrated that progress is nonlinear, and—even more frighteningly—that the progress Americans thought they had achieved was no more than a façade.
Those of us who stand with her mourn the opportunity to elect the first female president. We also mourn the election of Trump and the subsequent validation of his hate rhetoric. But, going forward, we must work to alter the systemic social norms, standards, and interactions that permit such blatant racism, sexism, and discrimination. With disturbing revelations, however, comes the potential for tangible change. Hate will not win when love and compassion continue to fight back. We can use this message to show the millions of Americans who feel unsafe as a result of this election that they still belong.
Alexandra is a columnist and a U2 student studying Political Science and International Development. She is a proud Torontonian, passionate traveler, and knows all the lyrics to "Bohemian Rhapsody."
After a surprising election last week, we’ve got ten sports results that you probably didn’t see coming.
1. The New York Giants defeated the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII in 2007. New England entered the game undefeated and as heavy favourites. The game, which featured the “helmet catch” by David Tyree, ended with the Giants taking a 17-14 lead that they wouldn’t relinquish as they handed Patriots their first loss of the season.
2. Do you believe in miracles? The U.S. men’s hockey team defeating the feared Soviet Union at the 1980 Winter Olympics on American soil was one of the biggest upsets of all time. With a team full of nobodies, they took Lake Placid by storm, and stopped the Soviet machine in its tracks.
3. In 1985, the No. 8 seeded Villanova Wildcats upset the Patrick Ewing-led No. 1 seeded Georgetown Hoyas, who had been looking to repeat as National Champions. Villanova shot an astonishing 78.6 per cent for the game to shock the reigning champs 66-64.
4. Buster Douglas knocking out Mike Tyson in 1990 will go down as one of the biggest upsets in boxing history. At 42-1 odds, Douglas knocked out Tyson with one punch and took his heavyweight title. The biggest, baddest man in boxing had lost his aura of invincibility.
5. The U.S. men’s soccer team’s 1-0 defeat of England at the 1950 World Cup became known as the “Miracle on Grass.” At the time, England was considered the “King of Football” while the Americans had lost their last seven matches by a combined score of 45-2.
6. Alexander Kerelin, nicknamed the “Russian Bear,” was considered the greatest Greco-Roman wrestler in modern time. In the 2000 Sydney Olympics, he went into the final after going 13 years undefeated in international competition, but lost to a low-ranked American named Rulon Gardner. He retired from the sport in the same year after the upset.
7. In 1919, the racehorse, Man o’War, had been undefeated coming into the Sanford Memorial. The streak ended when he lost to 100-1 longshot horse, who was appropriately named Upset. It was the only blemish in Man o’War’s illustrious 21 race career.
8. At Wrestlemania 22, Rey Mysterio defeated reigning world heavyweight champion Kurt Angle and villain Randy Orton in an entertaining triple-threat match. He pulled out all the stops to win and capitalize on his previous famed victory at the Royal Rumble earlier that year, which earned Mysterio his shot at the heavyweight title.
9. At the 2011 Cricket World Cup, Ireland bettered their famous victory against Pakistan in 2007 by defeating their oldest rivals: England. Chasing an imposing 327, the Irish were aided by the fastest century in World Cup history—courtesy of Kevin O’Brien—to come up with the biggest chase ever in the tournament.
10. The 2016 English Premier League (EPL) season has gone down as one of the most astonishing finishes in soccer history. Leicester City won the EPL after being almost relegated the year before. With 5000-1 odds to start the year, they outplayed Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United, and Tottenham to win the league.
McGill often draws comparisons to Hogwarts because of its high towers, majestic archways, and strong academic culture. However, the comparison runs much deeper than aesthetics and academia. McGill fields not one, but two Quidditch teams, both of which competed in the Eastern Championships in Mississauga, Ontario from Nov. 11-13.
In Quidditch, players are divided into four positions: Three chasers, two beaters, a seeker, and a keeper, each of whom run around the field with a flightless broom between their legs. Additionally, one person dresses as the snitch in a gold morphsuit with a tennis ball attached to their back. The team that catches the snitch is awarded 30 points and immediately ends the game. Chasers try to throw the quaffle—a slightly deflated volleyball—into three hoops to score 10 points, while the keepers try to prevent goals. Beaters throw dodgeballs at chasers and seekers, who, if hit, must exit the play and touch their own hoops before re-entering the game.
The McGill Quidditch Club was created in 2008, becoming the first muggle Quidditch team in Canada and the only co-ed team at McGill. The sport has grown significantly since coming to McGill and competition to get on the team has increased along with the popularity of the sport. A second team, Canada’s Finest Quidditch Club, followed in 2012 due to high student interest in the sport.
“McGill has been known to have large scale tryouts for Quidditch,” Lina Du, U3 Engineering and Beater for the McGill Quidditch team, said. “In the past four years, we have had over one hundred new players and veterans show up to tryouts [for…] only forty-eight positions.”
Indeed, tryouts are becoming increasingly competitive due to the rising prevalence of North American Quidditch as a whole. Both McGill Quidditch teams travel across North America, playing in places ranging from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina to Vancouver, British Columbia.
“A lot of people think Quidditch is just a game for nerds,” Du explained. “But Quidditch is actually very competitive and it is becoming a more established sport.”
As Quidditch grows in popularity, students are joining not only for a love of Harry Potter, but also to stay in shape, represent McGill, and compete across North America. Competitors include American and Canadian university teams, recreational teams, and CEGEP teams, making the sport a medium that brings people together across borders and communities. Quidditch and the McGill program have gained increased recognition on a global scale.
“A few of our players even went to Germany to compete in the World Cup,” Du said.
The co-ed nature of the sport fosters the community element even further. Most varsity and club sports that exist at McGill are delineated based on gender, but in Quidditch, all are welcome to try out and play. For Du, this aspect is a huge draw to the sport.
“One of the best things about Quidditch is that everyone can play and compete, ” Du said.
The competitive nature of the game and the community element are sure to make the sport even more popular over time. With Canadian schools like the University of Guelph, Western University, and University of British Columbia also fielding competitive teams, perhaps one day the sport will gain varsity status across North America, allowing the game to transcend fiction to become a bona fide varsity sport.
How can one make a modern-day audience hang on every word of a three-thousand-year-old story? An Iliad, a one-man show directed by the McGill Classics department’s Lynn Kozak and produced by Chocolate Moose Theatre, proves that remakes of classic texts can be executed in both a skillful and entertaining way.
The play takes the form of a story told by one man, the Poet, who is played by Martin Law, co-founder of Chocolate Moose. This man’s identity and origin, however, are secondary to the story he has to share. It’s a familiar tale: The story of how the Greek warrior Achilles slayed the Trojan warrior Hector. But the Poet’s monologue is not a simple retelling of the classic tale. Although he appears to the audience as a modern-day man, he was there during the war, where he saw and felt its horrors. Through his monologue, the audience sees and feels this turmoil as well.
The story is interwoven with references to today’s world. After three thousand years, the memories of the conflict’s tragedies are still fresh in his mind; he sees them repeated throughout time in the wars humans continue to fight. The ubiquitousness of war is a theme in the production and one of the reasons the Iliad still resonates with audiences. Though Homer’s story is most remembered gorey and graphic descriptions of battle, An Iliad shows that there is much more to the narrative than this.
“It’s a story about grief, rage, emotions related to death,” said Law.
Throughout the production the Poet takes the audience inside the minds of the characters: Battle-crazed warriors, angry gods, and grief-stricken loved ones. He tells a story of honourable men on both sides, clashing against each other for deeply personal reasons. The Poet makes the audience understand the motivations of the characters.
“Being able to break the fourth wall is fantastic,” said Law. “There’s more storytelling when I can look at someone right in the eye and say, ‘You, yes, you, sitting there, this is what I’m telling you,’ in a way that almost gives you an acting partner, someone to feed off of.”
Law offered his own insight into why people everywhere relate to An Iliad. He discussed grief in the Bible and in the classical tradition.
“In the Biblical tradition, it’s dealt with, but there’s an answer for all of death, and it’s the will of God,” he said. “For the Greeks, the will of Zeus, the will of many gods, capricious gods, is much closer to some of the real things that people feel.”
In his role as The Poet, Law attempts to tell this classic story of intense grief as naturally as possible in order to make it resonate with modern audiences.
“As an actor, the easiest thing Lynn [Kozak] did for me was just to say, ‘Look, put it in your own voice,’” Law said. “That was the best way just to make all the text sort of pop.”
The audience is compelled to get angry with Achilles at the loss of his dear friend and to weep with Hector’s wife at the news of his death. An Iliad is an acutely emotional experience, filled with grief and rage, love and suffering. Through the Poet’s monologue, the epic poem becomes universal to human experience.
