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a, Research Briefs, Science & Technology

This week in space

by Wanlin Song on

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Throughout history, blood moons have been associated with bad omens. In Chinese tradition, a blood moon foreshadowed famine or disease. Mesopotamians believed that a lunar eclipse resulted from attacks by demons. But on Sept. 27, from 10:11 p.m. to 10:37 p.m., when the moon turned red, there were no famines or attacks. Beautiful and eerie, this colouration is caused by a total lunar eclipse. Unlike solar eclipses, which are rare and only visible from specific places on Earth, lunar eclipses occur at least twice a year. They’re visible to almost any part of the world, as long as it’s night when the eclipse is happening. 

What made this particular lunar eclipse so special was that this occurred during a supermoon—when the moon is at its closest point to Earth during its orbit, and looks bigger than normal. This was the first time in over 30 years that a supermoon and a lunar eclipse coincided.

A lunar eclipse occurs when the sun, Earth, and moon are aligned with Earth in the middle. As the moon creeps into the Earth’s shadow, it gradually disappears from the view of people on Earth. Once the moon enters the umbra—the central part of Earth’s shadow where all direct sunlight is blocked—a total lunar eclipse occurs. At this point, the sunlight that passes through the periphery of Earth’s atmosphere is scattered, giving the moon a red hue.

In the same week, NASA scientists released their latest discovery—evidence of water on Mars. Published in Nature Geoscience, the article detailed their use of Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) to obtain data that supported their hypothesis that flowing water exists on Mars. CRISM is a specially designed spectrometer which studies the absorption of light of different wavelengths. In this way, it maps the presence of minerals and chemicals on Mars that may indicate past interactions with water.

Lujendra Ojha, PhD candidate in planetary science at Georgia Institute College, lead the project. The idea first came to him when he discovered that high-resolution images of Mars showed narrow streaks of low reflectance compared to the surrounding terrain. These dark streaks are generally a few meters wide and 1.2 kilometers long. Ojha and his colleagues named these gully-like structures Recurring Slope Lineae (RSL), because the RSL would disappear and reappear seasonally. To be clear—RSL’s are not bodies of water. Rather, they’re geological structures whose formation may involve flowing water.

To prove that RSL’s were indeed created by flowing water, Ojha obtained spectra samples with CRISM from several areas where RSL were present. By comparing the spectra of RSL to spectra of a known substance, he was able to determine their compositions. In all the sample sites his team studied, they observed “water-related [spectrum] absorption features,” as well as minerals such as chlorate and perchlorate salts. From this, Ojha concluded that the RSL must be formed by highly-salted solutions, and not pure water. This is consistent with the fact that in order to have water flowing on Mars, it must be high in salt to have a low freezing point. 

“Although the [amount of] water in [the] perchlorate solution may be too low to support known terrestrial life […] this enhanced evidence of water flow also provides new clues as to the nature of the current Martian hydrologic cycle,” Ojha wrote in his article.

While the quest for life goes on, much can be derived from the understanding of the climate, the soil, and the atmospheres of places like Mars. 

Yours Truly, Montreal
a, Art, Arts & Entertainment

Yours Truly, Montreal provides a ride through the city’s cultural history

by Marina Sulmona on

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A permanent feature at the Pointe-A-Cailliere Museum in Old Port, Yours Truly, Montreal is an immersive exhibit that takes its audience on a journey through Montreal’s history to see how the city has evolved to become the diverse cultural and political hub it is today. The multimedia exhibit is a testament to Montreal’s roots. 

Above the archaeological maze dug into the ground is a 270º screen that maps out Montreal’s unique history. Throughout the show, four numbers projected on the rocks that serve as the base of the exhibit rapidly increase, notifying viewers of the years in question, as the narration speeds through Montreal’s upbringing. 

The number -11 000, representing 11,000 BCE, is illuminated on the structure of rocks, and the show begins. Projections of light replicating a sheet of ice are followed by water rushing in shine over the expanse of stone—movement that ignites an anticipatory excitement. Soon enough, the numbers have scrolled to 1642 and a voice-over representing Montreal introduces itself, “Bonjour Montréal! You are here.”

Swirling through a breadth of history, the eye is prone to wander, and the mind must keep up with the vast array of information that spans from the politics of the fur trade, to the stories of the city’s founders Paul de Chomedey, Sieur de Maisonneuve and Jeanne Mance, to the fervor of the migration to the suburbs experienced in the 1960s. 

Though the quantity of information provided is extensive, the show’s graphics wholeheartedly fulfill their purpose of illustrating the city’s atmosphere throughout various points in history. A curated mix of animation, video content, and photography propels the show and preserves a harmony between the respective mediums of representation. 

Minimal, colourful illustrations of stained glass cathedrals, and crisscrossing expressways envelop the screen. A stream of watercolours paints over black and white sketches of the Plateau. The vividness of the illustrations brings an air of youthfulness and clarity to the exhibit. By keeping the visuals eye-catching, intricate, yet simple enough not to get lost in, the exhibit is able to keep its viewers hooked. 

The task of providing an all-encompassing historical summary of the development of a city is daunting. Covering centuries of evolution in landscape, culture, and economic setting in under 20 minutes is a remarkable task. Though it often feels as though the narrator of Yours Truly, Montreal is rushing to squeeze the extensive amount of content in on time, she maintains a certain eloquence while doing so. The exhibit is able to embrace its ambitious challenge, and more importantly, the voice of Montreal does not hesitate in defining its past.

Whether a tourist or a Montreal native,Yours Truly, Montreal inspires a sense of pride for the city. From the lights of Place Ville Marie, to the greenery of Parc la Fontaine, the expanse of diverse neighbourhoods are all given appropriate recognition. The real magic of the exhibit is its ability to highlight the features that make each neighbourhood unique while showing how they work together to define the city as a whole.  

Overall, the message of the exhibit is that Montreal is a cohesive, striving entity whose past has seen hiccups, but has remained undeterred. It’s a place composed of multiple ethnic backgrounds, varying geographic landscapes, and a wealth of artistic expression—able to accommodate a population as diverse as its history. 

The stopwatch alerts us that it’s 2015 as the film pans to a landscape of today’s metropolis. In a nostalgic tone, our narrator signs off with the reminder; “I am, you are, we are all Montreal.” 

Yours Truly, Montreal is a permanent exhibit at the Montreal Museum of Archaeology and History (350 Place Royale, Corner of de la Commune). Admission for students 18-30 is $12.

a, Recipes, Student Life

Recipes: Spiced apple oatmeal

by Liz Willcock on

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Fall is in the air—which unfortunately is a lot colder and a lot less romantic than it sounds. ‘Tis the season for midterms, sweaters, and cheesy autumn-themed 8tracks playlists. More importantly, however, ‘tis the season for comfort food. Gone are the days where you might wake up and, in a bout of health-filled inspiration, make a green juice or opt for a salad for lunch. Although the Tribune can’t help out with midterm preparations, students’ comfort food needs covered with this warming spiced apple oatmeal recipe.

If you’ve ventured anywhere near a farmer’s market this week, you’ve surely noted the abundance of local apples. Although it is still a challenge to figure out how to distinguish Gala from McIntosh and Spartan, this season has them all, and they’re equally delicious. For this recipe, the vendors behind the Macdonald Campus stall at the McGill Farmers Market recommended Gala apples for their sweetness, but any variety of local apples will do! At 25 cents per apple, there are no good reasons to say no.

This week’s recipe takes advantage of the proximity of the market to campus, but there’s still time for an apple-picking excursion in the coming weeks. In fact, the Tribune has compiled a list of Montreal’s best apple picking farms to make a weekend trip out of. 

This recipe is wholesome, sweet, and will give you the energy to ward off the cold until lunchtime.

Serves 1

Ingredients:

1/2 cup of rolled oats

1/2 cup of almond milk or whole milk

1/2 cup of water

A pinch of salt

A pinch of cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon of vanilla

1/8 teaspoon of ginger

1 teaspoon of hemp seeds

1 teaspoon of raisins

Maple syrup to sweeten 

1 peeled apple

Coconut yogurt or Greek yogurt

 

Directions: 

Mix the oats, milk, water and salt in a saucepan and warm over medium heat for one minute. Add in cinnamon, vanilla, and ginger.

Keep stirring the porridge for 3 to 5 minutes, or until desired consistency is reached.  Pour into a bowl and sprinkle with raisins, apple, and hemp seeds. Drizzle with maple syrup and then add the yogurt on top.

a, Science & Technology

Bioinformatics is changing the experimental process

by Clare Lyle on

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Every iPhone has a processor that is roughly 10 times faster than the Apollo Guidance Computer, used during the first moon landing. The IBM 7090, considered the fastest supercomputer in the 60s, would fail to keep up with today’s smartest watches. Computational power has grown exponentially over the years, but it is only recently that scientists have begun to apply these techniques to studying the microscopic world.

Mohamed Smaoui, a post-doctoral fellow at McGill, is doing exactly this. His research explores novel approaches to modeling how proteins behave in cells. Proteins are long chains of molecules called amino acids, and the spatial arrangement of these amino acids has major implications on how they behave in the body. By understanding how proteins can misfold, diseases that can be caused by improper protein folding, such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and diabetes, are better understood.

A 2015 paper from the lab, published in the journal BMC Structural Biology, detailed the process by which Smaoui was able to find a method of treatment for diabetic patients whose symptoms were caused by a misshaped protein called an amyloid.

Simulating amyloid behaviour requires a lot of computational horsepower. 

“Some of [the molecules we were modeling] had a few million atoms,” said Smaoui.

By finding clever ways of reducing the number of calculations that a computer has to make in its simulation, computer scientists can reduce the amount of time it takes to model proteins.

The discovery occurred largely due to a new algorithm that Smaoui developed to model protein behaviour, which allowed scientists to make use of supercomputers to simulate the interactions of larger molecules. By developing an algorithm powerful enough to simulate molecular interactions between amyloids and potential treatments, Smaoui could find a compound that reduces the toxicity of the misfolded proteins found in the diabetic patients. 

“The novel thing about the algorithm was that it was creating these long fibril structures, that no one has modeled before computationally,” Smaoui explained. “The best we had [before] was modeling one single protein.”

Even with cutting edge algorithms, however, the complexity of the protein structures means that simulating a nanosecond of interactions requires a lot of time.

“For [the nanosecond] timescale, that takes up to a week of supercomputer time,” said Jérôme Waldispühl, a professor at McGill who leads the Computer Science and Biology Group in the School of Computer Science.

Despite their limitations, computers can still provide a faster alternative to the tedious process of recreating experimental conditions, and this is helping the field of bioinformatics gain traction in the biochemistry community.

Computational tools like the algorithm Smaoui developed are becoming increasingly available to researchers in genetics and microbiology who lack the mathematical background necessary to do modeling or data analysis themselves. For example, Smaoui developed a program called Fibrilizer to help other scientists model proteins.

David Bujold, a master’s student at McGill, is also working on developing computational tools that let geneticists and biochemists take advantage of developments in computer science. He described the field as a melding of two distinct but complementary disciplines.

“In bioinformatics you have a mix of both [computer scientists and biologists],” said Bujold. “You have a whole bunch of people who are studying biochemistry, microbiology, et cetera, who are coming to the field and then learn computer science to be able to do what they want to do. And then you have on the other side people with a computer science background apply what they know about computer science to solve the problems that geneticists and biochemists have.”

Beyond simply promoting collaboration between biologists and computer scientists, new academic programs are encouraging students to consider entering the field of bioinformatics proper, rather than through a strictly computer science—or biology-related path.

“Nowadays, the field of bioinformatics is developing as well, so you have undergrad and graduate programs about bioinformatics in its own right,” Bujold said.

a, Student Life

The Yellow Door is open to everyone

by Amber Hord on

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In a city as diverse and fast-paced as Montreal, isolation is something that many people experience, and is especially prevalent among youth. The Yellow Door, a non-profit organization, realizes it is not as easy to make connections in Montreal as one may think, and seeks to create a space focused on building relationships and breaking down isolation.  

“There are a lack of contexts in which we have to interact with one another and build real relationships,” Matthew Bouchard, executive director of the Yellow Door, said. 

Located in the Milton-Parc community at 3625 Rue Aylmer, the organization looks to bring young people together within its walls through weekly events. It also fosters the participation of youth in the community by empowering them to create and engage in projects that promote social inclusion and holistic well-being.

The Yellow Door has grown and evolved since its beginning in the early 1900s. Its founder, Baron Strathcona, noticed what he perceived to be a lack in the promotion of Christian values in the Montreal community.  In response, he started an organization whose aims were to promote these principles, and consequently founded the Yellow Door. Since then, the Yellow Door has moved away from its original mission through a constant adaptation to society’s ever-changing needs. It was after the Quiet Revolution and the Vietnam War that the Yellow Door became secular, and turned its emphasis towards services that targeted inclusivity and community building.

In the past, according to Bouchard, the number of events and projects was small, and the organization was nearly shut down due to lack of participation.  The only program that was having any success was the Generations project—a service that battled inter-generational isolation by partnering up a young volunteer with an elderly person in the community. Recently, however, the Yellow Door has undergone a resurgence in its programming and involvement in the Montreal community. 

After assembling a new team of driven individuals, Bouchard described how they attempted to revive the organization and reinstill its importance in the Montreal community.

“We sat down and said, what was it that made the Yellow Door so successful in the ‘60s and ‘70s? There were so many avenues to get in," Bouchard said.

Many of the programs that are in place now were born from a community member coming in with an issue they saw, with an idea of how to address it—something that has been a practice since the Yellow Door’s formation. For example, between 1970 and 1972, volunteers noticed how the counterculture drug scene within Montreal was affecting the community. In response, they set up a drop-in psychiatric clinic that counselled young addicts.  The Coffee House—which still runs today and features open mic and comedy nights—began in this era as a place for people to connect over music, poetry, and philosophy, as well as other art forms. 

“The Yellow Door is a launchpad,” said Bouchard. “[It’s] a place where people can come, exchange ideas, find a social issue that motivates them, and do something about it […] the young adults and the members of the organization that determine our opinion.”

The Yellow Door’s mandate—to constantly evolve based on the needs of the people involved and the community it serves without aligning itself with a particular political ideology—is what makes the organization unique. In an effort to open up the organization to more people with a wider variety of interests, Yellow Door kickstarted a multitude of new projects and workshops. Recent projects include the Rabbit Hole Café, which serves vegan lunch every Friday and a food bank for students, and BranchOut, which offers workshops focused on social inclusion, and provides support for volunteers who want to start their own projects in the community.

“We now have activities like meditation, a tea ceremony, poetry readings, and a songwriter workshop,” explained Bouchard. 

Bouchard also attributed the resurgence in Yellow Door’s participation to an increase in their online and social media presence.  The website is more user friendly, and a community events calendar is in the works.  This helps community members easily find where and when events are held, and ultimately make the Yellow Door more accessible. Information about events and getting involved can be found on Twitter and Facebook.

“Looking forward, the Yellow Door is hoping to grow organically,” said Bouchard.

New ideas and increase in participation hope to grow in tandem, resulting in the development of the organization as a force of positive social change within Montreal.

a, Student Life, Student of the Week

Student of the Week: Samlau Kutana

by Audrey Carleton on

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Samlau Kutana, U3 Arts, has a strong passion for helping others that has guided him into psychology. At first, however, he didn’t know that he wanted to pursue psychology as a major. Like a lot of university students, Kutana experienced a change of heart in his academic interests midway through his university career. 

“I started out as a biology student, and it was really hard, I will admit,” said Kutana. “But I also wasn’t really as interested in learning about [biology] […] so I made the switch to psychology.” 

Though biology wasn’t for him, Kutana’s time spent studying in the sciences did not set back his studies. On the contrary, it gave him an edge when he made the transition. Kutana was also able to utilize his knowledge of biology for his minor in computer science. Students with this combination often note that psychology and computer science have a lot in common because of the parallels between brain functioning and computer functioning. Kutana acknowledges this similarity, but still feels that there is a large gap between his two fields of study. Rather than being daunted by this dichotomy, Kutana finds it enjoyable. 

As a fourth-year student in psychology, Kutana has had time to identify his key interest in the field, and the ways in which it is changing. 

“I really like personality psychology,” said Kutana. “Right now, I’m just really interested in how we’re going to revamp our classification of mental disorders. [The researchers for the Diagnostic Statistics Manual are] trying to move away from rigid categorizations and more into a spectrum-based approach.”

What drew Kutana into the field in the first place was his underlying desire to help people, and he hopes to go into teaching or possiby counselling. He speculates that his desire to help people was passed down to him by his parents, who are both doctors. In particular, his dad, who is originally from Ghana, works on developing the medical community there.

“My dad has been really interested in giving back to the [Ghanaian] community,” Kutana said. “He’s been trying to build up their medical infrastructure. He’s been setting up internships with students at Boston Medical Centre to go to Ghana. I’ve been really inspired by that as a way to give back from what I have, and what I’ve gotten.”

Kutana’s passion for helping others also comes from his extensive time working as a lifeguard and swim instructor in his hometown of Sharon, Massachussetts. While other swim instructors struggled with staying patient when working with children, Kutana found himself able to remain calm quite easily. For this reason, his preference is to teach children who find swimming scary or challenging. 

“I never want to yell at kids—I’m never going to do that [….] It was kind of stressful for me watching other people do that,” Kutana explained. “So I would request the kids that were getting yelled at by the lifeguards, to get them in my class, because they’re not doing that well.”

One swimming student in particular stands out in Kutana’s mind when discussing his natural ability to teach. 

“The most challenging and the most rewarding thing is connecting with kids who really don’t have any self-confidence,” Kutana said. “I had one kid who had no self-confidence [because of] the fact that he couldn’t swim, and his parents couldn’t swim.” 

Teaching a student who does not believe they can learn what is being taught is a daunting task for any instructor, yet Kutana explained his strategy for dealing with this situation.

“We were able to just turn it into games and make it fun, and it was cool to watch him go from level two to level three and four and five in the span of like eight weeks,” he said. “It was really amazing.”

As someone with a propensity for helping people and a natural ability to interact well with others, Kutana is a strong example of leadership within the McGill community, and he hopes to apply his passion and patience when he graduates next May. 

 

Q&A

McGill Tribune (MT): Would you rather fight one horse-sized chicken, or a hundred chicken-sized horses?

Samlau Kutana (SK): One horse-sized chicken is a formidable opponent. It’s got a sharp beak and talons and is probably pecking really fast. Chickens are pretty smart, and it would have all the pent-up chicken rage because we’ve enslaved trillions of their fellow chickens. I don’t want to fight that. A hundred chicken-sized horses would also be hard, but I feel like it’s doable. You just have to find the high ground.

MT: Do you have a person in your life that you look up to the most?

SK: Not really, but I try to look at people in my friend group and in my life who have qualities that I admire and try to emulate that in myself [….] So it’s more just be your own person, but incorporate the best that you see out there and everything will fall into place.

MT: If you could meet any person, living or dead, who would it be?

SK: I’d like to have dinner with George Washington Carver. He was a crazy smart botanist and inventor, who first introduced peanut butter to the world. He had over 100 recipes involving peanuts; the dude was magical. I’d want to get his opinion on a Reese’s cup as well.

a, McGill, Montreal, News

SSMU, CKUT host Federal election candidates debate

by Nick Milum on

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On Sept. 30, the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) and CKUT hosted a debate between six candidates running to be members of parliament in the upcoming federal election. Rachel Bendayan represented the Liberal Party of Canada from the Outremont riding, Daniel Green the Green Party from the Ville-Marie­—Le Sud-Ouest—Île-des-Sœurs riding, Rodolphe Husny the Conservatives from the Outremont riding and Simon Marchand the Bloc Quebecois from the Hochelaga riding. Also present were William Sloan of the Communist Party, and Allison Turner of the New Democratic Party (NDP) who are running in the Ville-Marie riding. The debate focused on three main topics: Education, environment, and economy.

During the education portion of the debate, Turner was quick to inform the listeners about her party’s views on student employment.

“A large number of students end up graduating with a huge debt,” Turner said. “What the NDP wants to do in order to alleviate the plight of that debt is not to have students walk into a society where there are […] few paying jobs […] but to invest in creating 40,000 jobs for students in the coming years.”

Following Turner, Bendayan presented her party’s policy on the same issue.

“The Liberal Party of Canada is going to invest $1.3 billion over three years […] in order to create jobs for young Canadians,” Bendayan said. “I think that’s important because you should stay in Montreal if you want to stay in Montreal; you should stay in Canada if you want to stay in Canada, and there should be good paying jobs for you.”

The debate moved on to environmental issues, which Green spoke about at length.

“One thing that the Green Party really stands for is to reinvest in science,” Green said. “The Harper government has disinvested in science, specifically in environmental sciences. We need more money to be invested in research to really understand what climate change and environmental upheaval will do to Canada.”

Sloan added to the discussion on the environment, showcasing his party’s stance.

“We have to go away from the oil and the gas and the coal,” said Sloan. “We have to go to renewable energies [….] Capitalism will never be able to solve the problems that we have with the environment, so we have to make a radical change.”

The final topic of the debates was the economy, a topic which Husny was vocal on.

“When you’re going to get out of [McGill], you’re either going to start your own company, work for a small-medium size enterprise [SME] or a large corporation if you don’t choose the public sector,” Husny said. “We’re lowering taxes for SMEs, cutting red tape, because SMEs need to grow. We are not going to raise taxes on big corporations, because big corporations are going to affect our capacity to actually attract investment in Canada.”

Marchand expressed disspaointment at the government’s continued emphasis on military spending.

“I’m just sad that nobody here committed to stop investing in the military […] and I think it’s very disappointing to see that,” said Marchand. “We could make a difference that could be positive in our society by not paying billions and billions of dollars for boats or for planes when this money could be invested in our education system.”

 

a, Opinion

Commentary: McGill administration’s response to austerity falls short

by Alessandra Puopolo on

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Given that McGill is currently in a dire financial situation, it is surprising that the administration has not taken a firm stance against austerity. The university has projected that its accumulated deficit will rise to $96.3 million by the end of 2016. McGill’s funding problems are largely due to the reduction in funds by the provincial government, which in attempts to balance its budget, has cut millions of dollars from public spending.

McGill’s stance on austerity has been described by McGill’s Teaching Support Union (AGSEM) President Justin Irwin as one of “happy acquiescence.” While the university has not openly supported the province’s decrease in funding, it has done little to condemn it. The administration has almost taken a sympathetic tone when discussing the Quebec government’s economic woes, and has adopted a mantra of ‘grin and bear it.’ While the provincial government has promised a balanced budget, this should not come at such a high cost to social services—including education.

In the past year, thousands of students and public service workers have taken to the streets to protest the government’s reduced spending plan. Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) has condemned the austerity measures and even held a week to raise awareness of the issue. While student unions have traditionally discussed such issues with the government, given the current hurdles facing provincial federations, the university must take a stand in its place.

For McGill to reclaim its position in the global academic field, it must take a strong stance against the provincial government’s austerity measures, and call for funding to return to pre-austerity levels.

The administration could be hoping to weather this storm as quickly and as quietly as possible so as not to harm the university’s reputation. Publicizing McGill’s financial problems could deter potential students from attending the university; applicants may believe that McGill struggles to meets its students’ academic needs. Additionally, taking an openly anti-austerity position may agitate the provincial government and result in further funding cuts in coming years. Regardless, McGill’s silence comes at a great expense to current students who have to suffer through the effects of the budget cuts.

McGill used to be the highest ranked institution in Canada, which in recent years, has seen its ranking in international reports drop. Due to a lack of funds, the university has imposed a hiring freeze for administrative and support staff, postponed all non-essential equipment purchases, and stopped all non-emergency, unplanned funding allocations. Rather than creating new programs for students, the university is struggling to maintain old ones. While McGill has tried to maintain an optimistic tone in its budget proposals, and has reiterated how it remains committed to staying a competitive institution with the best professors and staff, there are clear indicators that the university is struggling to meet its commitments. For McGill to reclaim its position in the global academic field, it must take a strong stance against the provincial government’s austerity measures, and call for funding to return to pre-austerity levels.

A scene from Madama Butterfly
a, Arts & Entertainment, Music

Past vs. Present: Puccini’s Madama Butterfly vs. Weezer’s Pinkerton

by Maxime Scraire on

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“Tired of Sex” is the first song of Weezer’s 1996 cult classic Pinkerton and is possibly one the most thrilling album openers of all time. Featuring drummer Patrick Wilson’s salvage stomping—which alone has almost enough power to excuse the band’s latest 15 years of generic pop music—and lead-singer Rivers Cuomo’s terrified screaming of a sex-agenda over distorted guitar feedback, the track is as hysterical as it sounds. It may come as a startling introduction for an LP that shares its name with a character of Giacomo Puccini’s celebrated opera, Madama Butterfly (which recently wrapped up its run at Place des Arts), but listening beyond genre stereotypes and preconceptions, similitudes between the works abound.

In his diary, Cuomo talked about the opera’s central character, B. F. Pinkerton, describing him as an “asshole American sailor similar to a touring rock star.” The man cruises from one continent to another in a quest for pleasures, selfishly marrying a hopeful 15-year-old Japanese girl before leaving her, never to return, despite promising her that he would. Following the success of the Blue Album and its mega-hit “Buddy Holly,” Weezer jumped into the rock’n’roll lifestyle, similarly travelling the world in an endless search for meaningless, groupie-related adventures that left Cuomo deeply disillusioned by celebrity. Pinkerton acts as an account of those troublesome times, showing the singer lost in the midst of conflicting feelings towards women, love, and settling down. Unlike the opera, where the young girl serves as the main character, Cuomo has his “Pinkerton character” as the centre of attention, acting more as an anti-hero than a villain. 

Nonetheless, both works examine relationships from the same extremely childish point of view. The opera displays its titular Madama Butterfly as ever hopeful, trusting her lover’s word so much that she waits three years for him to come back. Like many passionate teenaged lovers, she repeatedly claims that she would kill herself if her husband didn’t return. As for Cuomo, he rejects all responsibilities for his bad behaviour, and instead spends most of the album’s length walking the tightrope of hormonal confusion and adolescent misogyny. Moreover, he selfishly refuses to accept that a woman would do to him what he has done to her, and awkwardly stalks a girl without her even being aware of his existence.

Pinkerton’s lyrical rawness is the principal reason why it received such an overwhelmingly poor reception from both the public and critics when it first came out. Cuomo sings so openly about his most intimate feelings that awkwardness on behalf of the listener was inevitable, especially when he wonders out loud how one of his groupies touches herself at night in the middle of “Across the Sea,” or when he acknowledges in “No Other One” that he would drop his girlfriend at any moment if he knew he could get anyone else. 

Puccini’s opera also showcases its hero acting in an uncomfortably crude and direct fashion. More than once, Butterfly threatens to kill secondary characters with a knife for suggesting that B. F. Pinkerton may never come back to her, and spends an unhealthy amount of time explaining to her two-year-old child that it is not his fault that she is about to commit suicide.

The two works conclude on the same note, with Pinkerton lying down crying next to the lifeless body of Butterfly, who ended up slicing her throat after meeting her husband’s new wife, and Cuomo shakily whispering “I’m sorry” to the girls he hurt by doing “what [his] body told [him] to.” 

With Pinkerton, Cuomo has written the perfect reinterpretation: An album that channels specific events and themes of its original source of inspiration while also being deeply personal. Almost 20 years after its release, it stands as one of the most singular albums of all time, a masterpiece that might prove itself just as timely as the opera it’s based on. 

a, McGill, News, PGSS, SSMU

AGSEM ratifies McGill’s Global Offer of Settlement at GA

by Catherine Wang on

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The Association of Graduate Students Employed at McGill (AGSEM) voted at a General Assembly (GA) on Wednesday to ratify the Global Offer of Settlement from McGill. The vote passed 172 to 101. The decision brings to a close a negotiating process that has been ongoing since the expiration of the last agreement on June 30, 2014.  

Guilia Alberini, the AGSEM teacher’s assistant (TA) bargaining chair, explained that although negotiations were handled by a bargaining committee within AGSEM, it was the organization’s members who decided to accept the offer, rather than reject it in favour of a strike.

“The bargaining committee [was] not making a recommendation to members to vote either against or for the final offer,” Alberini said.  “We do not believe that McGill’s final offer addresses many of the concerns of our members expressed throughout the year, above all the issue of TA hours [….] However, voting against the agreement means we must vote in favour of a strike. Therefore, we believe members have the right to be well-informed and make their own decision regarding a possible strike.”

On Sept. 1, McGill submitted its final Global Offer of Settlement to AGSEM, which included improvements on harassment protections and grievance procedures, as well as a retroactive wage increase of nine per cent over four years. According to Alberini, one demand that remained unaddressed in the final offer was TA to student ratios.



“In the last eight years, TA hours have remained completely the same […] while undergraduate student enrolment has been increasing every year,” Alberini said.  “We wanted to index TA hours to undergraduate enrolment, and have some upper limits on how many students were assigned to each TA [….] McGill did not want to discuss any of these issues.”

TAs who were in favour of rejecting the offer and initiating a strike vote raised points about the longer term implications of the agreement, and expressed concerns about how these implications might affect the quality of their work at McGill. Claire McLeish, a TA in musicology, specifically addressed the decline in the ratio of TA hours to student enrolment as an important issue.

“If we accept this agreement, we are basically voting for a decline in the quality of education […] and a decline in the quality of TAships,” McLeish said. “I [want to decline the offer] not just for us, but for the students.”

Trevor Leach, a TA in the Department of Political Science, felt the agreement was satisfactory, given past bargaining results.

“I think if you consider McGill’s position on most of these issues, and what we’ve gotten from them, we’ve done pretty well for ourselves,” Leach said. “There’s a lot of austerity in Quebec […but] despite this, we got the raise [….] It’s not much, but at least it’s tied to inflation.  There’s always room for future negotiations […but] I’m pretty happy with this deal.”

The AGSEM bargaining committee is currently in the process of meeting with McGill’s negotiating team to finalize the new deal, AGSEM President Justin Irwin explained.

“We are going to be in contact to set up a meeting during which we can make all the appropriate final steps to sign off and make this official,” said  Irwin, “It won’t be by the end of the week, but it won’t be too long after that. It will be […] as soon as we can get all the principals in the room to sign off.”

The final deal will be a four-year contract retroactive from 2014, in place until June 2018. Although bargaining for the TA agreement has finished,  Irwin explained that the union still has further work to do.

“This long process has come to an end for TAs,” Irwin said. “However, AGSEM also represents the several hundred invigilators at McGill, and that negotiation process is ongoing. Going forward, that process will be a strong focus of our activities.”

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