Returning home for reading week often comes with the usual barrage of concern from my family over my choice to pursue journalism as a career. “Journalism is a dying field,” my family members say. “Anybody with a blog can be a journalist.” Yet, I could scarcely go a day without[Read More…]
Off the Board
Hey! You should come see my band tonight
You’re at Café Santropol on a Sunday afternoon. Visibly focused on your work, headphones in, you become aware of a turtlenecked, tiny-hatted, vaguely stinky entity behind you. He won’t tap your shoulder, but as seconds stretch into minutes, you begin to turn your head, not quite toying with the idea[Read More…]
Quebec safe injection sites need to catch up to fentanyl crisis
Since 2015, the fentanyl crisis has taken Canada by storm: The Public Health Agency of Canada estimated that over 4,000 Canadians lost their lives to opioid-related overdose in 2017. On Jan. 12, Dr. Carole Morissette, Montreal Public Health medical chief, delivered a public health warning to recreational drug users, signalling[Read More…]
Precarious perils: Entering the gig economy
It’s no secret that finding steady, full-time work as a young person in Canada is becoming more and more challenging. Gone are the days where an undergraduate degree alone could land you multiple job offers in your field of study. Now, for many students, an undergraduate degree holds as much[Read More…]
When AI slips between the sheets
Last week, I finally watched the 2015 sci-fi and artificial intelligence (AI)-themed movie, Ex Machina. Providing viewers with an in-depth look at the possibilities of AI in a not-so-far future, the film centres around the relationship between a young programmer named Caleb and a seductive robot, Ava. Caleb is mandated to[Read More…]
Go gentle into that good night
We fear the possibility of dying before we’ve accomplished everything we want to do. Or we fear the possibility of a loved one dying before they are able to see us accomplish everything we want to do. Both are paralyzing fears—and ultimately futile. When I was in high school, my[Read More…]
In appreciation of home—sweet, unremarkable home
“You’re not in Kansas anymore!” In the limited introductions I’ve made since the start of this semester, I’ve elicited this response four times. Mind you, I can’t blame anyone for failing to think of anything better. The most distinctive piece of trivia about my hometown, Kansas City, is that most[Read More…]
The guilty male conscience in the age of #MeToo
On Jan. 13, the website babe.net published the controversial exposé, "I went on a date with Aziz Ansari. It turned into the worst night of my life,” sparking conversations across the media about the #MeToo movement, verbal consent, and women’s’ agency. The report—and the conversations it provoked—diverged from the dominant contemporary[Read More…]
Wipe that smile off your face
Like the iconic little black dress, denim, and sliced bread, some things never go out of style. Others, like the big hair of the ‘70s or assless chaps, are less enduring. Looking back at photographs over the ages, we’re often horrified by past trends. For our generation to avoid such[Read More…]
Evaluating gendered bias in course evaluations
‘Tis the season—for course evaluations. At McGill, the online form asks students to effectively grade their professors, by identifying the degree to which they agree with statements such as, “Overall, this instructor is an excellent teacher.” These data are then made available to all McGill students, but open-ended feedback is[Read More…]
