Turing Award recipient and McGill alumnus Yoshua Bengio, best known for his seminal work on artificial intelligence (AI), is the latest recipient of the Killam Prize, a $100,000 award given to outstanding scholars. Bengio is the founder of the Montreal Institute for Learning Algorithms (Mila), a world-renowned AI research institute. [Read More…]
Science & Technology
The latest in science and technology.
World Oceans Day highlights pressures on marine environments
On June 8, humans dumped 13,000–15,000 pieces of plastic into the ocean. At the same time, we were celebrating United Nations (UN) designated World Oceans Day, which raises awareness about oceans’ importance to humanity. It also connects people worldwide through social media, encourages participation in partner organizations, and inspires year-round[Read More…]
HIV in East Africa: An ongoing struggle
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 19.6 million people are living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in eastern and southern Africa as of 2017. As part of McGill’s Africa Field Study Semester (AFSS), students had the opportunity to interact with local individuals and public health practitioners that deal with[Read More…]
Biological crisis forces species to adapt or go extinct
An extensive report released last month warns that unsustainable human activities, such as agricultural expansion and marine pollution, are accelerating species extinction rates and causing the fastest loss of biodiversity in human history. Authored by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), the foremost body for issues[Read More…]
The fatal consequences of turning the clocks back
Every spring, millions of sleep-deprived Canadians are prompted to wake up an hour earlier, all the while cursing the person who invented daylight saving time. Few people probably imagine that one man’s love of bugs could have disturbed the life of so many individuals on an annual basis. In 1895,[Read More…]
Cargo ships contribute to spreading alien species
In 1988, the arrival of the zebra mussel irreversibly transformed the ecosystem of the Great Lakes. The introduction of the species was, and continues to be, a disaster for North American waterways. By 2009, the species had spread as far as Manitoba and Texas, driving out local species and costing[Read More…]
‘I feel you’
Empathy is often talked about in popular culture, particularly within the realms of politics, advertising, and psychology. Articles from ‘Why Empathy May Be Your Most Important Business Skill’ to ‘How to Avoid the Empathy Trap’ are popping up all over the internet. Generally, popular culture labels empathy as a positive,[Read More…]
Climate change consensus and denial at McGill
For many students, climate change is a daily consideration when making choices like bringing reusable bags to the store or using refillable coffee cups. Environmental awareness is as prevalent as its effects are terrifying, exemplified by the 150,000 people who walked at the Montreal March for Climate Justice on March[Read More…]
An obituary for ‘Oppy,’ humanity’s long-lost Space Prince
Opportunity, the Mars robotic rover that stunned humanity by remaining operational for over ten years past it’s original mission date, powered off for the last time on Feb. 13, 2019; a final goodbye at the end of a 225-million kilometer journey. Affectionately nicknamed ‘Oppy,’ the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s[Read More…]
You aren’t right-brained, you’re just wrong
For much of history, Western theories of what makes people different from each other, such as phrenology, or the pseudoscience linking head shape to mental traits, have been based on the observable, physical differences in our brains. Such theories are unsubstantiated. However, pop culture continues to perpetuate the myth that people[Read More…]
