Most incoming McGill students know about the rites of passage that they’ll experience, like living alone for the first time or a late night at McLennan cramming for an exam. What these students don’t know is that, at this university, there is another experience considered equally formative: Their first trip[Read More…]
Author: Sophia Micomonaco
McGill announces creation of postvention framework during Quebec Suicide Prevention Week
Content warning: Mention of suicide On Feb. 7, McGill will hold its first community consultation regarding a suicide postvention plan that has been in the works since a need was first identified in 2019. The postvention plan is one third of a larger project designed to address suicide on campus.[Read More…]
Copy–pasted nucleotides found to cause neurodegenerative disease
Neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and ataxia are caused—as their categorization would suggest—by the degradation of nervous system cells. One to three individuals per 100,000 are affected by late-onset cerebellar ataxias (LOCA), a disease characterized by impaired muscle control that worsens over time. While most types of ataxia set[Read More…]
Should AI chatbots display emotions?
If you’ve visited an online retail store, you’ve likely encountered a chatbot before. It’s the small message that pops up in your screen’s bottom corner, saying something along the lines of, “Hi there! Thanks for visiting our site. Can we help you look for something?” Elizabeth Han, a Desautels Information[Read More…]
Reports of alleged predatory behaviour at Redpath raise security concerns
Content Warning: Description of sexual harassment Since late December, multiple posts have circulated on social media reporting that a man has been preying on women at McGill’s McLennan-Redpath Complex. Posts on r/McGill, a student-run Reddit subpage for the university, have denounced the man for soliciting multiple women students in Redpath.[Read More…]
MISC panel tackles anti-Black racism in academia and beyond
Content Warning: Mention of racist violence The McGill Institute for the Study of Canada (MISC) brought three McGill academics together for the “Anti-Black Racism in Canada and Beyond” panel at Centre Mont-Royal on the evening of Feb. 2. The event delved into entrenched systems of power and oppression that limit[Read More…]
SSMU BoD debates motions about campus safety app and trans students’ rights on campus
The Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU)’s Board of Directors (BoD) met via Zoom on Feb. 2 to vote on four motions, including two awaiting ratification that had previously been approved by SSMU’s Legislative Council. Kerry Yang, SSMU vice-president (VP) University Affairs, presented the BoD with a motion regarding the[Read More…]
McGill must cut ties with Chinese military research
On Jan. 30, The Globe and Mail reported that top Canadian universities, including McGill, have been conducting joint research with scientists at China’s National University of Defense Technology (NUDT)—a military research institution run by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). As Beijing is rapidly developing its military capabilities, strengthening ties with[Read More…]
Finding the Old Home
I was nine years old when I first decided to go to synagogue with my grandfather. Every Saturday, I would sit on my couch, looking out the window onto the driveway, waiting for Zaidy Ell to pick me up in his grey minivan at 9:30 a.m. I began this weekly[Read More…]
Peer mentoring program returns to foster student connections
For many McGill first years, starting university can be quite a daunting experience—especially when you have little or no peers to turn to for advice and support. To assist with this dilemma, the McGill Student Accessibility and Achievement office (SAA) re-launched its McGill Peer Mentor program this January. The program’s[Read More…]
