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a, Arts & Entertainment, Film and TV

Gotham: When Batman’s growl had a pre-pubescent pitch

by Anna St. Clair on

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Why do people love prequels? Is it the allure of watching the characters you know so well develop psychologically? Perhaps it’s because everyone is younger and—usually—better looking? In the case of Gotham, maybe it’s both.

Gotham, which premiered on Sept. 22, was created by Bruno Heller and begins with the immortal scene of the Wayne family exiting an opera and walking through an alley before Thomas and Martha Wayne are murdered, leaving Bruce as an orphan. From there, the story shifts to a young Jim Gordon (Benjamin McKenzie), navigating the corruption of both Gotham’s criminals and its police department.

While the show centres on Gordon’s quiet rebellion against the corrupt police system as well as the mystery behind the Waynes’ killer, it also takes time to develop the background of numerous villains central to the Batman franchise. In the pilot, we see a teenage Catwoman stalking the streets of Chinatown, a young Poison Ivy cowering behind a plant from her abusive father, and a particular police officer with an affinity toward crafting riddles. Yet sometimes, it seems as though the writers are just trying too hard to put name recognition to faces. In one scene, a group of Carmine Falcone’s mobster cronies are beating up a man who owes them money when one of them says “hey take it easy pen-guin.” It’s about as subtle as having a cartoon penguin and a flashing arrow pop up on screen.

Unsurprisingly, Gotham is already being heavily compared to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. as part of the larger DC vs. Marvel real-life saga. Whereas Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is a twisting sci-fi adventure, Gotham is more of an alternative to the typical television crime drama, and for that it may have more staying power. It’s enough of an original concept to make it an interesting watch, yet has a mainstream appeal that could attract a large audience.

Batman’s realism has always differed from its Marvel counterparts. Gotham City is based in New York, and elements of the organized crime ring that controls the city have real-life connotations, allowing Batman and his enemies to feel a bit familiar despite their crazy names and costumes. The largest drawback from this overall sense of realism is the large number of anachronisms. Following the typical story line of Bruce Wayne’s life as established by the comics, it would make sense for the show to be set in the ‘80s, around the time of Bruce Wayne’s childhood. Yet half the characters are walking around with bulky flip phones circa 2002, while the villains all drive cars that appear to be from the ‘70s. This lack of an exact time period just doesn’t work for the show and takes away a big chunk of that realistic feel that Gotham seems to be going for.

Overall, the pilot provides potential for Gotham to take a number of fascinating roads, allowing for vast intrigue and extrapolation among viewers. The big question that remains is how closely the creators will follow the comics, an uncertainty that will keep long-term Batman fans just as engrossed and on-edge as those new to the series.

 

a, Science & Technology

Microbeads discovered in St. Lawrence River sediment

by Chloe Nevitt on

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Professor Anthony Ricciardi’s team thought they were going to be studying the Asian Clam—an invasive species—when they dropped their sediment-collecting grabs below the surface of the St. Lawrence River last year. Instead, they found the microbead—a type of microplastic defined as any debris less than five millimetres in size.

Rowshyra Castañeda, the lead researcher and a former master’s student now pursuing a degree at the University of Toronto, kept noticing small, multi-coloured beads present in almost all of the sediment. When prodded, the beads, would shatter, indicating their synthetic nature. Further tests proved the hypothesis correct; the beads were in fact made of polyethylene, the most commonly used plastic.

“These could be particles of synthetic plastics formed by fragmentation of larger plastics,” Ricciardi said. “But most of these are probably manufactured on purpose, as small granules for industrial abrasives.”

Industrial abrasives are used in cosmetics and household products to slough off dirt and skin. Unfortunately, the granules used in the products are non-biodegradable. They have started to accumulate in aquatic systems because wastewater treatment plants can not filter them. This is a result of not only their size, but also their buoyancy. It is also the reason scientists didn’t think to look for microplastics in lakes or rivers; researchers assumed they would float out into the oceans.

Scientists believed freshwater systems would wash the beads out into the ocean, and therefore focused their attention there. Unfortunately, Ricciardi and his team are discovering otherwise.

After the team’s initial observations, Ricciardi sent his students out to collect more samples—this time focusing on the microbeads. What they found was startling.

Samples taken from a total of 10 sites along a 320-kilometre freshwater section of the river showed microbeads present at eight of the sites. According to Ricciardi, some sites had as many as 1,000 beads per litre of sediment.

“This rivals that of what has been found in oceans,” he said. “We believe we underestimated the concentrations [of these microbeads.] We show that they’re accumulating and that they’re ubiquitous [in water sources.]”

The microbeads develop a film when introduced to nature. This allows them to settle and accumulate at the bottoms of lakes and rivers.

The long-term effects this might have on the food system are still unknown.

However, a study done at the University of California showed the immediate dangers of microbead consumption for aquatic animals.

Consumption of unaltered, lab-made microbeads induced slight stress on the livers of tested fish, yet the fish exhibited severe liver failure when fed microbeads collected from nature. The polyethylene in the microbeads had absorbed pollutants from the water; consequently, the toxicity of the beads had risen to a million times more than that of the surrounding water.

Ricciardi believes that the microplastics have a negative impact on aquatic environments.

“We have reason to believe there will be a cost [on the environment,]” Ricciardi said. “We have reports that the plastic has been found in fish—hundreds of  them.”

Previous reports have speculated about the presence of microbeads in fish, but the team plans to take the next real step in finding out. With funding from the Quebec Centre for Biodiversity Science (QCBS), Ricciardi and his team have started collecting round gobbies, a species of bottom-dwelling fish. Their goal is to examine the stomachs of these fish to see how prevalent these pollutants are in the food web, and how many of the microbeads are being consumed.

Other species will have to be tested and the ecotoxicity measured to determine the severity of the costs that microplastics will have on any environment.

Several states in the U.S. have already passed legislation banning microbeads from products. Canada has yet to propose such regulations. Ricciardi believes that microplastics should be regulated everywhere.

“I think they can be phased out,” he said. “This is an emerging issue in marine ecology, but companies can definitely use natural products as abrasives—[…] something that will break down.”

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a, Arts & Entertainment, Film and TV

Reality bites: Spike Lee’s latest finds the writer-director in new territory

by Max Joseph on

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Spike Lee’s work has always been deeply concerned with issues of race and class. It’s most apparent in the acclaimed director’s iconic films like Do the Right Thing (1989) or Malcolm X (1992), which showcase the topics as their central themes, but he even manages to sneak them into ostensibly apolitical genre exercises, like the heist film Inside Man (2006). The one unifying factor is that he’s always chosen to explore these issues through the lens of realism—up until now, that is.

While he hasn’t by any means shed his commitment to the discussion of racial politics in the Kickstarter-funded Da Sweet Blood of Jesus—a remake of the 1973 cult blaxploitation horror flick Ganja and Hess, and Lee’s most recent film—he has opted to address them in the realm of the fantastical. Protagonist Dr. Hess Greene (Stephen Tyrone Williams) is a wealthy anthropologist studying the ancient Ashanti Empire. His research leads him to discover a dagger from the civilization, which his research assistant, Dr. Lafayette Hightower (Elvis Nolasco), plunges into his boss’s chest towards the end of the film’s first act. Greene awakens unscathed—only to discover that his assistant has shot himself. Greene also develops a ravenous craving for blood, which he satiates by availing himself of the ample resources emanating from his colleague’s dead body.

Greene realizes that he needs blood to survive, and quickly sets out to find more. He begins by stealing samples from a local hospital, which he later drinks at a cocktail party in his expansive Martha’s Vineyard estate—though he’s unable to consume it after his manservant Seneschal (Rami Malek) spikes it with vodka in one of the film’s funniest scenes.

Despite the satisfaction he gets from blood, the vampire life is a lonely one for Greene until he finds companionship in Hightower’s widow, an upper-class British woman named Ganja (Zaraah Abrahams). Despite her curiosity about her husband’s fate, she is entranced by Greene, and she’s happy to spend countless hours getting high and having sex with him. While it seems at first that he is content to spare her from having to share his fate, the temptation eventually grows too strong, and he seals her fate as his vampire bride with a bite into her neck.

This might all seem to happen merely for shock value—and much of what occurs on-screen certainly is shocking. The film contains both some of the most sexually explicit and graphically violent scenes of Lee’s career, and they’re tempting to dismiss as a way to draw attention to a film otherwise likely to be largely ignored by moviegoers. But Lee uses them as a device to milk the satire that could otherwise risk lying dormant in his narrative. Unlike the exploitative sequences frequently found in Game of Thrones and countless other films and shows, Lee uses nudity as a way to showcase the raw physicality and power of the human body. He overwhelms us with long, languishing shots of the bodies, and dares us to suggest that black can’t be beautiful.

Likewise, the violence—though often grotesque—reveals the extent of the vampires’ addiction to blood. Like many addicts, Ganja and Greene have to commit horrifying acts to get their fix, and the graphic nature of Lee’s depiction of them spotlights the grim nature of their predicament. Though the characters derive satisfaction from the blood, their pleasure comes at a great price.

Lee shows a similar lack of subtlety when it comes to the socioeconomic class of his characters—though, like the sex and violence, it never feels unnecessary. While Greene is happy to chow down on his poorer victims, he needs someone of a social status comparable to his to call his partner-in-blood. Ganja’s ability to fulfill this need is exaggerated to comic effect—particularly through her behaviour towards Seneschal, but the emphasis helps us to see the focal points of Lee’s satire.

Some of these points do get obscured over the course of the film’s two-hour plus running time, but Da Sweet Blood of Jesus mostly succeeds as a potent satire of addiction, race, and class. Horror has a grand tradition as a vehicle for social commentary, and it’s refreshing to see a director steer the genre away from being a springboard for young-adult blockbusters and towards a higher cause.

a, Features

Investigating journalism

by Mayaz Alam on

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It’s no secret that the landscape of the journalism industry is profoundly different than it was at the start of the 21st century. The prevalence of the internet has fundamentally altered the way in which people consume print journalism; consequently, it has eroded both circulation and advertising, the primary revenue streams for publications.

These changes have been felt in a different way on university campuses. For example, the University of Ottawa has suspended its journalism program for another year, while Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia closed its journalism school in 2012. Elsewhere, many schools are eschewing the term ‘journalism’ in favour of ‘media’ or ‘communication’ as part of a rebranding effort. Many student publications have also struggled to keep up-to-date with digital industry trends, even though the majority of students consume the news in an interactive, online manner. According to a 2012 survey, 37 per cent of college newspapers within the United States did not have a website in 2012.

The ‘McGill School of Journalism’ is not undergoing a drastic overhaul because no such school exists, nor has it ever. In Montreal, McGill stands as the exception: UQÀM, Concordia, and Université de Montréal—the other three universities in the city—all have undergraduate journalism programs. However, the aforementioned programs are part of a grand total of only 11 programs Canada-wide—in a nation of 98 degree-granting universities.

Although McGill does not currently have a journalism program, it has had a rich history of undergraduate student publications that have stepped in to fill the void. The resulting mosaic has created an extremely diverse group of news publications that have evolved over time.

The McGill Daily, the oldest of the current on-campus publications, was created in 1911 as a daily sports paper. As The Daily’s relationship with the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) became increasingly contentious,  The Daily sought independence from SSMU.

“Over the years […] the shape of the paper has changed quite a bit,” said Dana Wray, coordinating editor of The Daily. “But even [in] the ’60s and ’70s, The Daily was covering issues that were considered to be controversial and not mainstream. In the ’70s, we covered International Women’s Day. In the ’80s, we created the gay-lesbian supplement […] so it’s been in its current form for decades now.”

Le Délit, The Daily’s sister publication, shares an office and management with the Daily Publications Society. The French-language newspaper was founded in 1977 by The Daily’s bilingual editorial board. Le Délit faced scrutiny from within the larger McGill community in its initial stages.

“We take it for granted now, but the idea of having an all-francophone newspaper on campus was something quite big back then,” explained Joseph Boju, rédacteur en chef of Le Délit. “The Daily received letters of support, but also aggressive statements, such as [a] letter signed by an irate mother predicting the destruction of ‘the best university of the province’ because of the francophone minority. Since then, Le Délit hasn’t stopped publishing its issue once a week, advocating for francophone students on campus.”

Following The Daily’s independence referendum in 1981, SSMU created the McGill Tribune, which was founded in 1981 to serve as SSMU Council’s student newspaper. In 2010, the Tribune became completely independent as it sought greater editorial freedom.

More recently, the Faculties of Engineering and Management have established faculty-specific publications in an attempt to cater to students within those fields. The Plumber’s Ledger, which evolved from an Engineering Undergraduate Society (EUS) newsletter, reached its current magazine form in Fall 2012. Although The Ledger is still young, a long history of publications—comedic and otherwise—exists within the Faculty of Engineering.

“The history of The Plumber’s Ledger begins with the history of The Plumber’s Pot, a publication that was there for 30 years or so,” explained Luis Pombo, editor-in-chief of The Plumber’s Ledger. “They crossed the line […] back in the day and The Plumber’s Faucet, which was a serious publication back then, moved to a more satirical stance.”

The Ledger is still struggling to make a large dent outside of its faculty, but steps are being taken by expanding distribution to more on-campus locations. Within the Faculty of Engineering, however, The Ledger represents the interests and needs of members of the EUS.

“Outside of the faculty […] it’s a relatively unknown publication, but we are looking to change that,” Pombo said. “Within, I think the majority of the people see us as the engineering voice on campus and see it as a publication that reflects their views.”

The Bull and Bear, which is funded and published by the Management Undergraduate Society (MUS), can also trace its roots back to a faculty-specific newsletter. Since 2003, when it became an official publication, it has served to provide writing training, greater coverage of management-related issues, and a different perspective on campus issues for management students.

“There’s been a huge discussion within the faculty that management students don’t get enough writing training, and [The Bull and Bear] became an outlet for students,” said Max Feinsot, executive editor of The Bull and Bear.

As magazines that publish once a month, both The Bull and Bear and The Plumber’s Ledger produce a different type of content compared to a weekly newspaper. For Pombo, this means that there is more room to experiment with different types of articles.

“The fact that we have such diverse content every month really works well,” Pombo said. “We do a lot of features and that definitely helps in setting us apart. We also have short stories every month, which I don’t think any other major publication does.”

With five major news publications on campus and a myriad of other journals and newsletters, McGill’s print media might seem fragmented to the average student. Wray acknowledges that this situation may pose an interesting quandary for a first-year student who is surrounded by five different campus news sources, but notes that the landscape of media at McGill has become one of the university’s strengths.

“The diversity of journalism on campus is one of the strongest things about McGill,” Wray said. “You really don’t see that [on] other university campuses. I think that it’s excellent that there are these very different newspapers where students can really find their place to shine.”

Boju notes that the presence of five different publications could possibly cause competition; even though all have their respective niche, each is attempting to convince students and advertisers that their publication is the one to read.

“We are more than happy that there are several newspapers at McGill,” Boju said. “It’s a ‘healthy competition,’ as people say, though we don’t see it as a competition because we differ in coverage. There is something quite extraordinary on this campus: It doesn’t have a journalism program and [yet] it produces more newspapers than any campus in [Montreal].”

Journalism is a changing industry, and on-campus publications are facing many of the struggles that their real world counterparts face. The future of journalism will undoubtedly look and feel very different from the past. Pombo sees the media at our fingertips with the proliferation of mobile apps and Jenny Shen, the editor-in-chief of the McGill Tribune, understands that digital media will become more and more prominent, prompting publications to look inwards.

“We’ll all have to re-evaluate what our intents are in terms of what our purpose on campus is so that even as we move online, we don’t forget our campus readership,” Shen said.

Feinsot, along with the others interviewed, hopes that print publications will still play a role on campus 10 years from now, but acknowledges that the ability to attract readers will have to change.

“There will be more digital offerings […] and more electronic interactivity,” Feinsot explained. “I hope that they all don’t go down the […] route of becoming promotional pieces. There’s money in it—but it’s dirty money.”

McGill doesn’t have an undergraduate journalism program. Instead, students have worked to develop a fabric of campus journalism that stands as an exception both within Quebec and Canada at large. Students have been thrust into leadership positions and tasked with managing large publications.

At times they have caused controversy, but as a whole, McGill’s student journalists’ independence from the administration has emboldened the nature and quality of campus media. The lack of a journalism program should be viewed as a positive; it has resulted in a diverse and robust campus journalism landscape that enables students to consume and participate with the news from diverse viewpoints. In many ways, the ‘McGill School of Journalism’ has had classes for more than a century now—and class is undoubtedly still in session.

a, Arts & Entertainment, Music

Album Review: Aphex Twin – Syro

by Clark Bray on

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In early September, Richard James, aka Aphex Twin, teased his eager fan base with the release of his new album’s first track, “minipops 67 [120.2].” The song’s resonant kick-drum harmony reminded me of Moderat’s crowd-pleasing 2009 single, “Rusty Nails,” which lead me to believe that Syro was going to be James’ attempt to cater his distinctive sound towards the clubbing demographic. While the album does have its dance oriented moments, my original prediction proved to be shortsighted—as the album’s melodies become progressively stranger and often creepier as it unfolds.

The album is by no means alienating, as James maintains an energy throughout it—which, albeit eclectic, is honest and visceral. Moments of certain songs are evocative of other artists and even classifiable, such as the Daft Punk-esque robotic funk groove in “XMAS_EVET10.”

Viewed as composite structures, the tracks cannot be justifiably classified. It is almost as if James employed an orchestra of laptops to create the album, each programmed with its own unique and foreign sound, and each directed by his figurative baton to enter the music at unpredictable, whimsical moments. If music exists on another planet or dimension, I believe that Syro is a near perfect representation of how that music might sound.

Nevertheless, as left field as Aphex Twin takes the listener on Syro, intrinsically, the album is a convincing, original expression of James’ peerless musical genius. With James’ previous release of Druqks in 2001, the 13-year wait for Syro was well worth it.

a, Arts & Entertainment, Music

Pop Rhetoric: Mysterious craze—Why the U2 hate has gone too far

by Eric Noble-Marks on

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Is there a more hated band in the world right now than U2? (more…)

a, Arts & Entertainment, Film and TV

20,000 Days on Earth: An artist finds fulfillment by losing himself

by Daniel Fishbayn on

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Like most projects Nick Cave pours his soul into, 20,000 Days On Earth is a gripping experience. (more…)

a, McGill, News, PGSS

PGSS hosts conference on the future of health research in Canada

by Philippe Dumais on

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Dr. Alain Beaudet, president of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), discussed the future of Canadian health research in an event hosted by the Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS) on Sept. 26. The event was intended for graduate students seeking opportunities in academic and private medical research.

Beaudet began by explaining his thoughts on the current state of scientific research and healthcare in Canada.

“For those of you who wonder how we rank, we rank well,” he said. “[We] want to increase it. The problem is: Where we are absolutely great at science, we are not terribly great when it comes to delivering healthcare [….] You have to understand that our role is to produce the best possible science, but more and more the public is asking for an impact [in the healthcare system].”

The increasing costs of healthcare were also discussed. Beaudet outlined the paradox affecting medical research regarding healthcare costs.

“Right now,  healthcare in this country costs over 200 billion dollars per year,” Beaudet said. “It accounts for almost 40 per cent of all provincial budgets, [which] is a huge burden.  Yet research is still seen [as] a cost driver, and indeed, in some cases it is. But research is also the only way to be able to curb the costs.”

According to Beaudet, health research in Canada faces the challenge of accounting for the different realities experienced by Canada’s diverse populations. Beaudet specified that Indigenous peoples’ must be included in research processes.

“This is not acceptable in our country,” he said. “Canadian Inuits have the highest suicide rate in the world in young males.  They have unbelievable rates of [type 2] diabetes in the aboriginal populations and in the North, increasing prevalence of tuberculosis.”

The role of the private sector in research was at the core of the presentation. Beaudet warned against financing universities through the private sector, saying that it would not only impact academic freedom but also limit the power of research in creating new industries. He also made suggestions regarding how partnerships could be formed to fund research.

“There is a paradox if the university serves an industry that already exists,” Beaudet said. “How are we going to generate new industries in that context?  If the private sector can participate in the founding through partnerships—great [….] What I propose are similar partnerships for specific and narrow developments [applying] to medical research [and] devices: Applied science where the private sector has a genuine interest to invest [in].  It is nonsense that the public sector bears all the risks. That burden must be shared.”

Erin Strumpf, McGill professor of health economics, echoed Beaudet’s point of view.

“The distinction is essentially that the results from commercial research can be ‘commercialized,’ that is, sold in the hopes of making a profit,” Strumpf said. “That can happen with academic research, but usually the goal here is to increase knowledge, not to discover or develop something profitable.”

Strumpf continued to explain how the private and public sectors did not necessarily have the same incentives for conducting research, as some diseases only affect a small percentage of the population so that no one has the economic incentives to foster research.

“There is certainly the possibility for profit-earning health interventions, [such as] stents, CVD drugs, etc, but also areas that are unlikely to attract private-sector investment, [such as] orphan diseases, treatments and immunizations for diseases prevalent in poorer countries, etc,” Strumpf said. “Government funding can help support these areas where the private market fails, because research that might increase social welfare would not benefit private investors.”

Beaudet also encouraged the audience to promote scientific awareness.

“We need more people who understand science,” he said. “It is a little disappointing to see how few scientists there are in the House of Commons, for instance [….] You can have an appointment with your MP easily and just talk about science. Tell them what you are doing.”

According to PGSS VP External Affairs Julien Ouellet, McGill is likely to play a role in generating a conversation among the different actors of the medical research field.

“Virtually all graduate students know that the world of research is changing, for better or for worse.” he said. “Considering the success of this event, our executive hopes to attract the presidents of the other two granting agencies: The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) [….] We hope that by pooling our resources with the other Montreal based universities, we might create winning conditions to convince them to address our members.”

a, McGill, News

New Engineering Café to open in October

by Lindsey Hageman on

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The dining area of the McConnell Engineering building will reopen as a newly renovated food retail location on campus on Oct. 14. While a new coffee location, Dispatch, has already been unveiled right outside the cafeteria, the food court itself has not yet opened.

Oliver de Volpi, executive chef of McGill Food and Dining Services (MFDS), said that the renovations were necessary due to the cafeteria’s poor condition and impractical layout.

“A lot of things were getting quite used and beaten down,” de Volpi said. “The flow was absolutely terrible. Everyone would walk in the same door or the same path as they would walk out all the way next to the cashier [….] We didn’t feel we were able to serve the food that we wanted to serve with the equipment in there and the layout.”

According to de Volpi, Dispatch, the coffee stand right outside of the cafeteria, aims to help lessen the crowds in the café by providing an extra location at which students can buy coffee and quick snacks.

“It’s going to take a little bit away [from] the crowds that used to be in there that were just coming for a coffee and a muffin,” he said.

Mariam Khan, U3 Engineering student, acknowledged the positive design changes but expressed concerns about the new prices.

“I feel the prices will go up more,” Khan said. “I noticed that even in the outside coffee place the prices have gone up.”

De Volpi noted however that there will be a lower -priced option for coffee inside the cafeteria once the new food location opens.

“You’ll see fair trade coffee in both locations, both at Dispatch and inside the [cafeteria], because there’ll be a small, just brewed coffee [place] at a lesser price than Dispatch,” de Volpi said. “Overall, the prices will remain the same as they were last year.”

Carl Fournier, U3 Engineering, agreed that Dispatch should help ease the crowds, but questioned the necessity of the entire major renovation.

“It’s really nice, but the thing is, it wasn’t really bad before,” Fournier said. “We didn’t actually need to renovate it. A good point though is that the Dispatch place, even though they only serve a few things, it takes a big load off the cafeteria because many people were just coming in to get coffee.”

According to de Volpi, the renovation project was done after consulting students and gathering their inputs.

“Many, many discussions happened, not only with the Faculty of Engineering but with the students there,” de Volpi said.

Mathieu Laperle, senior director of Student Housing and Hospitality Services (SHHS) said  he had met with the Chairs and Directors of the Faculty of Engineering as well as the Engineering Undergraduate Society (EUS), earlier in January to present the plans for the revamp of the cafeteria.

“Many liked the fact that the lobby and corridor would be vastly improved as a social space and that this would bring some life to the buildings­­—something that disappeared with the very sterile renovations in this lobby,” Laperle said.

Funding for the project came mostly from Compass, a food provider, with whom SHHS signed a contract in May, according to de Volpi. A smaller part of the funds came from SHHS itself. In addition to the expenses for the actual cafeteria, these funds covered Dispatch and renovations on the surrounding hallway.

Students will be able to purchase more locally sourced food at the new café, according to de Volpi. Compost bins will also be available at the food court a few weeks after its opening.

“[We will open] a full service food location that will have everything from homemade soups to homemade pizza,” de Volpi said. “They’re going to be using much of our [Macdonald campus] farm produce. All the grab-and-go and all the desserts that will be there will be made in-house.”

A week prior to the opening, there will be a “soft opening” of the new food court, during which some of the new food options will be available to be sampled by a test group from within the Faculty of Engineering.

a, Baseball, Behind the Bench, Sports

Dusk of the pinstripes

by Aaron Rose on

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Six years ago, I made a pilgrimage to the old home of the New York Yankees, the so-called “House That Ruth Built.” It wasn’t a special game per say, just a late May tilt between the Yankees and the Seattle Mariners. To me though, this game meant something. I was witnessing history. After 85 years, the Yankees were moving across the street to a new and improved stadium. The old building’s concrete was covered with layers of grime and its blue seats were decrepit and old. But this stadium had a mystique about it, something that couldn’t be found anywhere else.

After a Johnny Damon groundout, the late Bob Sheppard’s voice rang out: “Now batting for the Yankees, the shortstop, number two, Derek Jeter, number two.”

For 56 years, Bob Sheppard was the voice of Yankees baseball. He saw 13 World Series Champions and narrated the careers of 16 Yankee Hall-of-Famers. He called Mickey Mantle’s Triple Crown season and he was there for Reggie Jackson’s three home run game.

I don’t want you to think I’m some sort of deranged Blue Jays fan, I absolutely loathe the Yankees. I hate their arrogant New York attitude, their seemingly endless payroll, and the fact that they just never seem to lose. Yet in the end, I begrudgingly respect them. The Yankees just seem to have a special way of doing things.

I never got to see Mr. October or the Great Bambino, but one day when my children ask me if I ever got to see Mr. November step into the box, I’ll tell them about that night. In an era where fans are hesitant to form attachments to players, guarding their hearts against the frantic pace of free agency, Jeter has been a constant. He was the Yankees’ shortstop the first time I saw them play, and he’s been the only shortstop I’ve ever known to don the pinstripes. If his 14 All-Star appearances, five golden gloves, and .309 career batting average don’t impress you enough, maybe his flair for the dramatics will. He helped seal the 2001 American League Division Series for the Yankees when he scooped up an errant throw from outfielder Shane Spencer and, with his momentum carrying him off the field, flipped the ball home to throw out a sprinting Jeremy Giambi. 

His 3,000th career hit was crushed over the left-field fence in Yankee Stadium for a home run. Last Thursday night, Jeter hit a walk off single in his final at-bat at home in front of the 48,000 crazed New Yorkers. The hit, a slapped grounder to right field, was vintage Jeter. On Sunday at Fenway Park, he earned a hit in the final at-bat of his long career, beating out a high chopper to the Boston third baseman. His legend is one of storybook proportions.

In 1995, catcher Jorge Posada, starting pitcher Andy Pettitte, closer Mariano Rivera, and Jeter put on the pinstripes for the first time, forming what would come to be known as the “Core Four.” After five championships and a combined 5,996 games, baseball fans everywhere waved goodbye  on Sunday not just to Derek Jeter, but also to the end of a special era. With Major League Baseball becoming more and more commercial, it may be a while before we see another player transcend his stats and transform into an icon.

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