How to Write That Final Paper

If you have done your work right through the semester, the final week of the term should leave you with 1 paper to write---and it should be the shortest one that needs to be done. After all, if you have written a steady diet of 3000+ papers all semester or term, that 1500-word essay should be a piece of cake to write. There are a couple of things you may work on before putting pen to paper (or in my case) fingers to the laptop.

1. Have as quiet an atmosphere as is possible

This may be a little more difficult to do in some circumstances (sharing a dorm room); but if you have been diligent, you will know places within the school to focus on what you are trying to do. The next point may seem to be a little contradictory, but when you have written as many papers as I have, (in more short notice situations than I will ever  care to admit) this can be done. 

2. Find the right music to help with writing the paper.

I will work to find the right music to help me write that paper. I will not divulge what music I use to write a paper, but whatever music you can use to stimulate your thoughts will make your writing experience far more enjoyable.

3. Make sure the paper is the shortest paper to write and is in a subject you enjoy studying. 

    This would be similar to writing the shortest question with the fewest marks attached to 

it on an exam. You’ve already spent most of your time on the hard stuff and now its time to finish off strong! With most of the marks in your back pocket in the last 15 minutes of the exam, that 3 or 5 mark question should be easy to answer and build up your final grade. If that final paper is in that one class you enjoy every time you come to the university, it will be easy to find a topic to write about, and the words will fly onto the paper (or computer screen) faster than for any other topic. The thoughts will come faster than your pen or fingers can get them down. 

3. It may be necessary to have a means to stimulate your brain, but not to the point that you 

may have to do a quick turn-around for a morning class. 

I hope that these ideas will help you write that final paper in the last days of the semester. Have a great holiday, and here’s to a great 2019.

N.B. Mr. Nobody is a nom-de-plume for a senior student; whose identity is known only to the Editor.

Studying For Finals

It’s that time again… the snow is falling, the lights are twinkling, the streets are filled with Christmas cheer – which means it’s time! It’s time for you to hole yourself inside the library and stress out about finals. Here’s some tips to make things less traumatic: 

1. Study in order from definitely, probably, might be. Definitely will be on the test, probably will be on the test and might be on the test. That way the basics are solid and the extras will be if you have the time and patience. Do this while also taking into consideration previous tests and assignments that tell you what you’re less confident in. Then you can prioritize the stuff you’re bad at that will definitely be on the test. 

2. Study with other people who will give you the opportunity to talk it through. Explaining something to a friend or someone willing to listen will help solidify the concepts in your own head. 

3. Put all the pertinent information into a format that is the easiest for your reviewing preferences. Ideally, condensing the information to its most important components as you go. For example, outlines or flashcards. But don’t get caught up in the making of study aids and lose valuable time to actually study the aids. 

4. As you’re going through your notes, ask yourself how the material might appear on the exam. Would this group of facts make a good multiple choice question or short answer question? How would the question be phrased? Not only does this prepare you for what to expect but also gets you to think about the material in a conceptual way that tests your understanding beyond memorization and makes it stick 

5. Start early. Even if your exams are well spaced out. 15 hours of studying three days before and 15 hours of studying over two weeks is not the same. Studying over a longer period gives your brain time to store the information in long term memory, making recall on test day so much easier. Also, the closer the exam date makes things more stressful, which makes it harder to focus and lowers your ability to retain information. The key to this is being able to manage your time so that you’re able to juggle all classes. Study schedules simplify everything. The academic skills center will even help you make one. Starting to study early also gives you the opportunity to move your focus. Instead of getting burnt out in one subject that you’ve already studied for hours, you can switch your focus to the next subject. Kind of like taking a break. Having a schedule to stick to also means you won’t have to skip out on sleep or other things you need to do to recharge your batteries. Bringing me to my next point…

6. Make sure you recharge your batteries. Yes, by sleeping, but sleep is not enough. Set aside an hour or so every day to do something for yourself. Work out, watch a movie, go for a walk, read a book, or just do absolutely nothing. 

7. Take breaks. Most people prefer to have scheduled breaks. Science suggests a 5 minute break every 40 minutes or so. Then you have something to look forward to when things get tough. But if you’re getting really frustrated or stressed, step away for as much time as it takes you to recharge (okay, maximum one day, otherwise it becomes counterproductive). 

8. Ask for help if you need it. And starting early helps with this because it means you’ll have time to ask for help, you can’t email your professor the night before the exam and expect them to reply or expect yourself to be able to retain what they tell you. But if you approach them a week before, it’s likely they’ll be ecstatic and you’ll have time to make use of what they say. You can also contact the academic skills center. 

9. Be nice to yourself. School is hard, and we often expect a lot of ourselves. Your mental health is always more important than your grades. 

Now for the ones you hear all the time but maybe still don’t believe: 

1. Sleep! If you have a good study schedule, this should be a given. And naps are okay, sleeping right after reviewing information improves recall later on. 

2. Eat good food! No, not the tasty stuff. Nutritious food. Junk food drains the valuable energy that is better used for studying. That means anything you can purchase at school is probably out… it might be time to experiment with meal prep.

3. Bonus: work out. According to science, just 20 minutes of cardio can improve memory (and also greatly reduce stress). 

The most important study advice is to learn what works for you and stick to it. Ideally, you’ve spent the year taking smaller scale tests where the scores were an indicator of how effective your study strategies are. Finals are not the time to experiment with methods unless you’re sure it’s going to work. Good luck! 

Brandon University Aboriginal Students Collective

As another year gets on the way, that means Brandon University Collectives will be busy planning events and fundraisers for Students of Brandon University – One of the Collectives in particular, is Brandon University Aboriginal Student Collective. Thus far BUASC has been busy planning and organizing a fun filled roster of events that involve community and building relationships within our first term.

Brandon University Aboriginal Student Collective strives to provide support and enrich the social lives of Aboriginal students at Brandon University, while incorporating cultural diversity within the Brandon University community. 

On August 27th the council met for a Team Building, Leadership Workshop that lead into their 1st meeting on August 28th. The team has been working hard and is filled with passionate leaders who are interested in serving their communities. This year’s Council includes – Valerie Sandy as President, Marisa Wood as Vice President, Darcie Cote as Treasure, Chelsea Sinclair as Secretary, Brad Clearsky as Social Coordinator, Justine Hutcheson as Cultural Coordinator and our Student Rep is Allison Wood. 

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On September 21st starting at 4:00p.m. until 6:00p.m. right in the front of BU, BUASC hosted a “Back to School Powwow Demonstration” with hotdogs for purchase! Everyone was welcome, and the event ended with a good turnout. We also hold traditional skirt making sessions that run on Tuesday’s from 11:00a.m.-1:00p.m., with supplies and guidance provided. A study group is held every Wednesday evening from 6:45 to 7:15p.m., with snacks and drinks. Both events are held in the Indigenous Peoples Centre. 

To conclude this years and term events, we will be holding an Ugly Christmas Sweater Party December 14th, 2018 at the Double Decker - Guinness Room. There will be prizes, silent auctions, games, and fun. You may see posters around campus but there are limited spots to this Christmas party. If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to message the collective email address for further information. 

Concluding, don’t forget to join our FB page to stay up to date with what we are up to around Campus!

See you in the IPC! 

Anthropology Crash Course

I’ll skip this article because I’m not even an Anthropology student, I’ve never even considered taking a class – it’s not relevant to me. Let me ask: are you a human being? If you answered no, you’re excused. If you answered yes, keep reading; I’ll let you in on a little human secret. Content – information, facts, evidence – is the least important part of Anthropology. Although, yes, it uses the scientific method, the key to Anthropology is its perspective. It is a frame of reference for understanding the world beyond what people have told you. Anthropology is driven by the belief that in order for generalizations about human beings, whether characteristics of culture or biology, should be shown to be true of all places and times of human existence. If the generalization is found to not apply (as is the case with most) we should be skeptical about accepting it. Skepticism is our best defence against accepting inaccurate ideas about our fellow humans in the absence of valid evidence. With this perspective, it becomes clear that numerous specialities and disciplines are required to truly understand humans. 

Understanding humans requires explanations that are tested and supported by evidence. But in Anthropology, even your understanding of evidence gets a reality check. Even with extensive testing and acceptance all knowledge, at its root, is uncertain and subject to re-evaluation as new tests and technology is developed. And although the scientific method requires us to be objective, it’s impossible to be completely free of bias. Sure, we studied something objectively and found evidence to support a hypothesis. But the way we studied it affected the results. And our motivations for studying it affected the results. Someone with a different approach and different motivations would likely get different results. So we will never find absolute truth (the limit does not exist). 

Theories help a bit. We can create increasingly reliable understandings if theories are continuously revised and tested. But the concepts and ideas that theories address are not directly observable, so no theory can be proven. A theory may, however, suggest relationships or predications supported by new research. When a theory is supported, it is supported for the time being with available evidence that appears consistent. There is always a possibility that some implication or hypothesis will not be confirmed by future tests. This is true of any discipline, but Anthropology brings it to the forefront of thought as we are constantly reminded through the complex enigma that is being human. 

Don’t give up on us yet though, theories are not useless. And humans love making them because we have a tendency to attempt to make sense of the world. Essentially, anthropological theories encompass what is generally true of humans and how are they capable of varying. Necessarily, anthropology studies the widest range of people humanly possible to ensure that explanations are not restricted to only the culture from which the anthropology originates. Application of these theories on a global scale as well as in everyday life help avoid misunderstandings between people. They help us understand why a group of people might be different than us, giving less reason to denounce their behaviour just because we are unfamiliar with it. These theories help us understand that what’s good for some may not be good for others to stop us from imposing our beliefs on them. In the end, anthropology helps us understand and accept our place in the biological and social world – as primates trying to live our best life.  

Brandon University Foundation: Tripling Donation Sizes

Brandon University received its official university status just over 50 years ago, through the Brandon University Act. It was here when the BU as we know it today really started to take shape. The Education Building, the Western Manitoba Centennial Auditorium, McMaster Hall would not have taken place until this time and classes were not even held in the Brodie Building until 1971. The university has certainly been through a lot and seen some big changes, one can only be curious what the next 50 years will bring to this place.

Well I’m not saying you are going to have a major affect on this place the way creating the Health Studies building will, but there is a way you can pay your piece into helping the university out. Through this year alone, from Oct. 12, 2017- Oct. 12, 2018, BU received over $370,000 in donations. BU’s Annual Fund tripled last years amount thanks to the generosity of the community and certain individuals. There were three gifts of $50,000 each. One was from an anonymous gift, another from the BU’s President’s Advisory Committee and the third was a donation to the HLC from BU Board of Governors member Kerry Auriat.

Whether it was the 50th anniversary appeal or people were feeling just extra kind this year, more than 40 people donated for the first time, contributing more than $11,000.

“The funds so generously donated to the Brandon University Foundation will help us enhance our programs and services to students, increase scholarship and bursary support, and help fund our most important needs as they arise,” said BU Interim President Dr. Robinson. “Your generosity goes a long way in improving the student experience for each and every one of our future graduates and leaders.”

This next year BU is hoping to keep that kind of money flowing through the university to help with all its expenses. Since October when the first direct mail went out $55,000 has been received. 

Now how does this help/affect you as a student at BU? Well every dollar that goes into the school goes towards student travel opportunities, scholarships and bursaries, needs of the faculties and facilities. 

“As tuition and government grants cover only so much, these additional contributions are greatly appreciated,” says BU Development Officer Shawna English. “Our donors help Brandon University build on our foundation as an outstanding academic institution to create a bright future for our students and for all the wider community.”

As students at BU, the expectation you donate at this point of your lives.. probably as slim as your bank account size. However, one day, should you fall into or acquire a boat load of money, donating to the University is easy. You just mail, email, call or check out their site online at the Brandon University Foundation.

Donating to the Brandon University Foundation is easy. You can give online at BrandonU.ca/Give, call 204-727-7374 or visit the Office of Advancement and External Relations in Clark Hall.

Cheques can also be mailed to the BU Foundation at 270–18th Street in Brandon, MB. Donations to the BU Foundation can also be arranged through BU payroll deduction.

Donations received or postmarked before the end of the year are eligible for a 2018 tax receipt.

Home Alone: The Christmas Movie To Own

Home Alone is Christmas comedy film that was made all the way back in 1990. Yes indeed, that is a very long time ago. Did they even have Wi-Fi or cell phones back then? What about Netflix? Nonetheless they did have this gem of a film. Home Alone is a movie that gets watched and discussed every single Christmas season. To some families it’s like a staple in their holiday tradition. Others, such as mine, even watch it when there's no snow on the ground to be found. Why my family likes to watch this particular film in the middle of July still alludes me. On the plus side I pretty much now every line throughout the film.

Home Alone was directed by Chris Columbus (no, not Christopher Columbus). The writer and producer of the film was John Hughes. Although there are certainly a lot of characters in the film, the movie centers around Kevin McCallister, a young boy who gets left behind by his family for the holiday season, played by Macaulay Culkin. The film also features Joe Pesci as Harry, Daniel Stern as Marv, Catherine O'Hara as Kate McCallister and John Heard as Peter McCallister. Home Alone was the highest grossing live action comedy film throughout the entire United States from 1990 until 2011. It still is the highest grossing Christmas movie of all time in North America when inflation is taken into account. Due to the film’s success four sequels were created and the second movie in the franchise, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, had the same original coast as the first movie. 

Home Alone opens with the McCallister family preparing to leave Chicago for their holiday trip to Paris. Kevin does not get along well with his cousins, that are staying over at his house before the big trip, and his other siblings. After fighting with his older brother named Buzz, Kate sends Kevin up to his room for the night. Kevin responds by saying he wishes his family would just disappear. Due to a temporary power outage no one's alarm goes off and in a rush to get out the door to the airport the McCallister family forgets Kevin in his room. When Kevin awakes he finds his house empty and believes his dream has been fulfilled. However, he soon comes to fear the 'wet bandits", two criminals names Harry and Marv who are famous for breaking into people’s homes and leaving the water running, who are planning to target the McCallister household after they discover that Kevin is home alone. Meanwhile Kate realizes that she forgot Kevin and quickly discovers that all flights to Chicago are booked and can only get one as far as Scranton, Pennsylvania. Therefore, upon her arrival in Scranton Kate enlists the help of a traveling polka band to drive her all the way to Chicago. Back at the McCallister household Kevin discovers that Harry and Marv are going to attempt to rob his house on Christmas Eve. Therefore, he bobby traps his entire house and prepares for the inevitable theft attempt. Despite countless, and I do mean countless, injuries and failures the "wet bandits" refuse to give up and chase Kevin out of the house into a neighboring home that is vacant. However, they were unaware that Kevin had already called the authorities and with some help from his neighbor Old Man Marley young Kevin successfully escapes and the police arrest Harry and Marv. In the end Kate, Peter and the rest of the family arrive back at home in Chicago to find Kevin. They are surprised to find the house in such disrepair and that Kevin actually went shopping for groceries. The movie closes out by Buzz yelling at Kevin for the mess he created in his room. 

Home Alone is considered to be the Christmas movies of all Christmas movies by many, and for good reason. It has won countless awards and is still sought each holiday season. Although it’s almost thirty years old it never fails to bring Christmas joy to all the families that watch it, every single year.

Christmas Cookie Cravings

Every day it’s getting closer and closer. No, not exam week, although that’s getting quite close as well, but Christmas. Although the jolly holiday is still many weeks away students and staff alike are getting into the early Christmas spirits. With Christmas lights, old time carols and loads of snow it won't be long before kitchens go into full baking mode. Christmas is, arguably, the busiest season for baking. With everything from cakes, cookies and chocolates the Christmas season certainly doesn’t possess a lack of flavour. With so much baking going on at once there are an absolute abundance of Christmas cookie recipes out there. Throughout the years I have come across two holiday cookie recipes that have really caught my eye.

The first recipe that has stuck with me through many Christmas seasons is that of Chocolate Pecan Sandies. These snowy snacks right away remind you of the time of year and certainly don’t disappoint in the creative department. The Chocolate Pecan Sandies are easy to make and only require 15 minutes for preparation. Best of all this recipe yields 2 dozen cookies, meaning you will have a collection of snacks leading into exam time. 

Chocolate Pecan Sandies 

Ingredients 

1 cup of butter at room temperature

4 tablespoons of white sugar 

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

1 ¾ cup of sifted all-purpose flour 

1 cup of ground pecans

¼ cup of unsweetened cocoa powder

1/3 cup of sifted confectioners or powdered sugar 

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly grease a baking sheet with shortening 

Cream the butter and sugar together in a large bowl. Beat in the vanilla.

Add the flour, pecans and cocoa powder to the large bowl. Mix well.

Form dough into 1-inch balls and place on the greased cookie sheet. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Cool the cookies then roll them in the confectioners or powdered sugar. Enjoy. 

Another Christmas cookie recipe that I enjoy every holiday season is titled Big Soft Giner Cookies. It can be said the ginger has a very acquired taste to it. However, these cookies provide just enough ginger snap to be tasteful but not overwhelming so that even people who aren’t a real fan of the flavour of ginger can enjoy these delicious delights. With a preparation time of only 15 minutes and a baking time of a mere 10 minutes, these Christmas treats can be ready in no time.

Big Soft Ginger Cookies 

Ingredients 

2 ¼ cups of all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons of ground ginger 

1 teaspoon of baking soda

¾ teaspoon of ground cinnamon 

½ teaspoon of ground cloves 

¼ teaspoon of salt

¾ cup margarine, softened 

1 cup of white sugar

1 egg

1 tablespoon of water

¼ cup of molasses

2 tablespoons white sugar 

Directions 

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Sift together the flour, ground ginger, baking soda, ground cinnamon, ground cloves and salt.

In a large bowl cream together the margarine and 1 cup of white sugar. Then beat in the egg with a fork and stir in the water and molasses. 

Gradually stir the sifted ingredients into the molasses mixture. 

Shape the cookie dough into walnut sized balls and roll them in the remaining 2 tablespoons of white sugar.

Place the cookies onto an ungreased cookie sheet and flatten slightly.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Cool and enjoy.

With exam season approaching much faster than most students want it to it is important to bulk up on those early Christmas goodies. These two cookie recipes provide dozens of study snacks when you don’t have time to cook up something larger. Best of all they take under an hour to prepare, bake and enjoy. Christmas might not be here yet, but its cookies sure are!

Autumn Sweet Treats

Ah yes, the season of autumn. Many things are associated with this time of year. Back to school, Thanksgiving, Halloween and astounding scenery. However, baking can also be associated with fall. While it's true that Christmas takes the cake in terms of baking seasons that doesn't mean fall is out of the picture. There are plenty of seasonings, sugars and spices that are closely tied to the fall season. With cooler temperatures many people are experiencing the urge to fire up their ovens and bake delicious cakes, pies and muffins. Every fall season I have two recipes that serve as my go to for seasonal snacks. 

As students ‘time’ is the singular, most valuable thing imaginable. There is never enough of it and it seems to go by instantaneously. That’s why this Betty Crocker recipe for Easy Caramel Apple Bars is perfect for university students. Preparation time is only 15 minutes and each bar contains a measly 100 calories. Not only is the recipe easy to prepare but the ingredient list is also relatively short. Easy Caramel Apple Bars provide a quick grab and go snack when studying, assignments and projects begin to add up.

Easy Caramel Apple Bars 

Ingredients 

½ cup of cold butter

1 egg

¾ cup of caramel topping

¼ cup of all-purpose flour

1 finely chopped and peeled apple

1 pouch of Betty Crocker oatmeal cookie mix

Directions 

Heat oven to 350 F. Spray the bottom of 13x9 inch pan with non-stick cooking spray.

In a large bowl cut the butter in to the oatmeal cookie mix using either a fork or pastry blender. Then proceed to still in the egg with a fork.

Set aside 1 ½ cups of the cookie mixture. Press the remaining cookie mixture into the bottom of the pan. Bake for 15 minutes.

Sprinkle the apple over the baked crust. Then mix the caramel topping and all-purpose flour in a small bowl. Proceed to drizzle the mixture over the apples. 

Take the 1 ½ cups of reserved cookie mixture and evenly spread it over the apples. Bake for 25 minutes. Cool for 2 hours.

Cut the bars into 9 rows by 4 rows and enjoy. 

Once in a while students realize that they can’t live off of treats and snacks throughout the entire school year. As attractive as cake and cookies are they usually aren’t the most nutritious items to eat. Luckily a recipe I came across a while back offers both nutrition and flavour. Pumpkin Bread is perfect for fall time snacking. This simple and long-lasting recipe can be stored at room temperature for 4 days or refrigerated for 10. Best of all it is packed full of nutrition. Each slice offers only 95 calories and 4 grams of fat. It provides a dose of dietary fibre and 42% of an individuals required Vitamin A daily intake.

Pumpkin Bread 

Ingredients 

1 2/3 cups of sugar

2/3 cup of vegetable oil

2 teaspoons of vanilla 

4 eggs 

3 cups of all-purpose or whole wheat flour

1 can or 15 ounces of pumpkin

½ cup of raisins

½ cup of chopped nuts 

2 teaspoons of baking soda

1 teaspoon of salt 

1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon 

½ teaspoon of baking powder

½ teaspoon of ground cloves 

Directions 

Move oven rack to the low position within the oven so the top of bread pan will be in the center of the oven. Preheat oven to 350 F. 

Grease the bottom of a 9x5x3 inch pan with shortening.

In a large bowl mix together pumpkin, eggs, vegetable oil, sugar and vanilla. 

Add the flour, raisins, chopped nuts, baking soda, salt, ground cinnamon, baking powder and ground cloves to the mixture. Stir well.

Pour mixture into the 9-inch pan. Bake for 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 20 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes and loosen sides of loaf. 

Remove bread loaf from pan and place on a wire cooling rack with the top side up for 2 hours. Slice and enjoy.

Whether it’s Easy Caramel Apple Bars or Pumpkin Bread as this fall season continues on I'll have my oven working around the clock. These two recipes are designed perfectly for students as once you’ve baked your treat of choice you’ll have quick grab and go snacks for the rest of the week. Although it’s not Christmas quite yet, seasonal baking has already begun.

Soothing Drinks For The Season

Fall is in the air and although it's been a much colder season than most would like, winter is not officially here yet. Therefore, there’s still time to enjoy those spiced autumn beverages that we’ve all been craving since last fall. There are certain flavours, spices and seasonings that are heavily associated with the season of fall. Today, I will showcase two of my favourite hot beverage recipes that I believe make the season of fall bearable.

First up is a Pumpkin Smoothie recipe. Now many people may think that smoothies are more of summer drink and certainly don’t associate them with cooler temperatures. However, just because its cold outside doesn't mean you can’t enjoy that delicious puree of mysterious mixtures! Besides, anything with pumpkin in the title automatically screams two things, Halloween and Thanksgiving. The Pumpkin Smoothie is incredibly easy to make and doesn’t require half a ton of ingredients. It also only has 155 calories and is a good source of protein. If you’re a die-hard pumpkin fan than the Pumpkin Smoothie is just what you need to get through those dreary fall days.

Pumpkin Smoothie

Ingredients 

1 can or 16 ounces of pumpkin puree

2 cups of milk 

¼ cup of brown sugar 

2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon 

Directions 

1. Place your pumpkin puree in a tightly sealed freezer bag. Then proceed to freeze the puree for 24 hours.

2. Heat the bag of pumpkin puree for 2 minutes on high in the microwave.

3. Pour the milk into a blender. Then proceed to add the ground cinnamon, brown sugar and heated pumpkin puree. Blend until smooth and enjoy.

Sometimes the cool fall breeze brings on the desire to have a warmer beverage than a smoothie. One of the best drinks to warm you up is tea. While students are continuously locked in the debate of coffee versus tea, there is nothing more smoothing on a chilly fall day than a large glass of Hot Cranberry Tea. This delicious fall treat has a nice kick to it and is low in sodium. 

Hot Cranberry Tea 

Ingredients 

3 ½ quarts of water 

1 package or 12 ounces of cranberries 

2 cups of white sugar 

2 whole oranges, juiced

2 whole lemons, juiced

12 whole cloves 

2 cinnamon sticks 

Directions 

1. In a large pot combine the water and the cranberries

2. Bring the mixture to a boil then reduce the heat to medium, simmer for 30 minutes

3. Add the sugar, orange juice, lemon juice, cinnamon sticks and cloves. 

4. Cover and let ingredients soak for 1 hour. Serve warm.

On a cool fall day nothing beats a seasonal beverage. Whether your holding onto summer with a Pumpkin Smoothie or embracing the change with a Hot Cranberry Tea you’ll be looking at fall with open eyes. These two recipes are both easy, inexpensive and relatively quick to make. If you find yourself with time to spare this season fire up the blender and get a taste of fall.  

Evans Theatre Update

With the new month comes a new lineup of showing at Brandon University’s Evans Theatre. And with the snow on the ground there’s no better time to stay indoors out of the cold and catch some cozy entertainment.

The Sisters Brothers will be having three showings beginning on November 9th at 7:30, another on the following day on the 10th at 7:30, with the last on the 11th also at 7:30. The Sisters Brothers is based on the novel by Canadian author Patrick deWitt. The story follows that of the assassin brothers Eli and Charlie Sisters as they pursue their target Hermann Kermit Warm, while dealing with Eli’s doubts about the wisdom in his chosen profession and the potential conflict of a counter offer by Hermann. This film is rated 14A for violence. 

The Wife will be playing from November 16th to the 18th at 7:30 pm in the Evans Theatre. Based on the novel by the same name by bestselling author Meg Wolitzer, the story is that of the wife of to a soon to be noble prize winning writer who travels with her husband to Stockholm to receive his prize. Conflicts arise however as complexities in the relationship are revealed and the impact of gender is revealed upon the Wife’s own literary pursuits. The film is rated 14A for course language. 

Lastly from November 30th till December 2nd at 7:30pm Beautiful Boy will be playing. Based on the memoirs of David Sheff and Nic Sheff, the film follows divorced father and journalist David Sheff as he struggles to reconnect and help his son who has become addicted to methamphetamine. The film stars Steve Carell as David Sheff and Timothée Chalamet as son Nic Sheff. The film is rated 14A for drug use. 

All movie tickets are $6 cash only at the door. 

The Tell-Tale Heart

Imagine coming home from your classes only to find a set of eyes glaring at you, like how a vulture stares upon dying prey, knowing that it wants nothing more than to scavenge over a carcass. How long could you endure the feeling of having your every move watched intently? As if someone was always there, waiting to gain for your demise. Now imagine you committed a crime, how heinous of a crime would you do if you knew you could get away with it? How would you feel if you killed and could never be caught or tied to the deed? Could you keep your sanity? Or would you be forever haunted by the demons of your own mind, slowly but surely losing grip on reality and plunging into the embrace of insanity?

Almost anyone could pick out the familiar writing style of Edgar Allen Poe. The discordant trochaic poetic metre and the notorious macabre imagery is the signature style of Allen Poe. In his short-story The Tell-Tale Heart, Allen Poe allows the reader to share the same thoughts and feelings as the narrator of story. In the short-story, the narrator claims to have hyperacute senses, which could very well just be the narrator suffering from severe delusions. The narrator is haunted by the pale blue cloudy eye of an old man, which the narrator describes as “vulture-like” or “evil’. 

The narrator then carefully plans out murdering the old man for seven days. He insists he cannot be insane at this level of calculation. During those seven days, every night, the narrator enters the old man’s room an lets a single ray of light revealing that the “evil eye” is still open peering upon him. On the seventh day, after claiming to hear the heartbeat of the old man, he decides to strike, thus killing the old man, then lastly hiding the body. Only to hear a knock on his door, followed by heartbeats from under the floorboards. 

Perhaps, instead of trying to finish reading one of Stephen King’s 1000-page horror stories, or 2 to 3-hour movies, we should return to the works of Edgar Allan Poe. We’ve all heard the saying, “sometimes less is more”. To make Allan Poe’s short-stories seem even more scary, I recommend reading the story in a pitch-black room; except for light from your phone, late at night, alone, regular uniform television/radio static. The reason why the uniform static, is because of something called the Ganzfeld Effect. Which basically means that prolonged exposure to uniform stimuli, causes the brain to hallucinate, and given that you would be reading Allen Poe’s short-stories, due to priming, you might start hallucinating the sounds from the story. The Ganzfeld Effect usually starts to kick in around 30 minutes. 

The Scariest Thing Of All: Students Loans And Debt

If I could dress up as the scariest thing I can think of for Halloween it would be my student loan. I thought about what I could wear to represent the terror of a student loan. But then I decided to think more realistically, I’ll just dress up as an over stressed and under paid millennial and ask for spare change. Oh wait… 

According to the Canadian University Survey Consortium, the average Canadian student will leave their post-secondary education with approximately $27,000 of debt. 

The Canada Student Loan program claims that most graduates take about 10 years to pay their loans. 

When recent American graduate Chad Haag realized he had to somehow make payments of $300 a month on his $20,000 loan with a job that doesn’t pay a living wage, he moved to Uchakkada, a small village in India. His student loan wisdom is, “if a tree falls in the woods and no one hears it, does it really exist?”. 

Brian Karimzad, co-founder of a financial analysis service, MagnifyMoney, says their studies indicate that the most meaningful difference between students graduating with student loans or without is that students with debt end up with half the amount of retirement savings than those without debt. Although being in debt doesn’t seem to affect the ability to buy a home, it does affect the value of the purchase. Those with loans purchase homes valued at 5% less than those without debt. Karimzad also reports that the majority of people who have loans rely on credit-card debt to finance their month to month living expenses. Maybe we’re just falling back on familiarity, I know it makes me suspicious when my bank account balance is not in the negatives. 

Student loans also mess with your ability to be an entrepreneur. According to finance professor Karthik Krishnan, people with student loans over $30,000 are 11% less likely to start a business than a graduate who is debt free. He also found that businesses started by people with debt don’t grow as fast as businesses started by people without. He postulates a gradual deterioration in economic mobility and start-up companies. 

A paper published by the Roosevelt Institute concludes that the amount of debt a student is in does not have significant relationship with their income. In other words, the amount you pay for your degree does not have a bearing on its financial return. With the cost of Canadian universities being significantly smaller than the United States, student loans are slightly less daunting, but the horror is the same: before you’re old enough to rent a car, you must make financial decisions that will affect the rest of your life. 

But maybe, if you wait long enough the government might just… forget about it. The federal government has recently announced plans to write over nearly $344-million worth of student loans that is not expected to be recouped from loan recipients. Loans may be deemed uncollectible when people file for bankruptcy, cannot be physically located, or the loan passes the legal limit on collection. Within the last two years, the federal government has written off about $3-billion in student loans. Any of the tips regarding paying off loans faster sound like living with a continuation of university life – minus the fun stuff. Work a side job, put any extra money toward repayment, get a roommate. Might as well stay in school, the institutions will own us anyway. 

The Evils Of Candy

Candy is cloaked in danger. Danger to your health, causing tooth decay and obesity. There is also the danger of being manipulated for malicious intent. As you’ve heard, “don’t take candy from strangers” – except on Halloween. But even on Halloween candy is associated with the terrors of tampering and contamination.  

Candy as small packaged morsels of delicious mass produced sugar became widely available in the 1880s. Prior to this, things like fudge, taffy, and brittle were homemade, and store bought hard candies available were relatively expensive. Recent trends in holding on to what is ‘natural’ tend to favour treats that can be made at home. But the same sugar is in candy as fruit, but big companies have always known we’re afraid of ingredients we can’t pronounce so they just changed the packaging to say “corn syrup” instead of “glucose”. This is to say that the pre-1880s homemade candy would be just as nutritionally deficient as what you buy from Nestle. Regardless of what you call it and if it comes from a peach or a chocolate bar, the plaque will build. 

Nostalgic for the supposed health of the past, another hot topic on social media is ‘the good old days’ when are kids were safe on Halloween – the only night they’re allowed to talk to strangers and eat their candy. Remember the past, when neighbours wouldn’t try to distribute illicit substances in lieu of treats?This is correct if by the ‘good old days’ you mean prior to 1959. In 1959, Dr. William Shyne, a dentist in California gave trick or treaters 450 candy-coated laxative pills, making 30 of the kids receiving this trick treat severely ill. Subsequently, candy scrutiny by parents became widespread. In the 60’s some towns allegedly set up stations at hospitals to x-ray the candy. To this day we hear cautionary tales about strangers sabotaging our kid’s after we let them ring the doorbell three times and beg for sugar. Surprisingly, most of these complaints turn out to be unfounded. Except one case in Texas where a child died due to drugs put in a pixie stick. But not at the fault of a strange neighbour, the child’s dad was the culprit. 

What did we think was going to happen with a tradition founded by capitalism? Before 1922, candy makers emphasized themed candy for Christmas and Easter but not Halloween. At the 1922 National Confectioners Association, executive secretary V.L. Price circulated the idea: “If manufacturers would create special Hallowe’en candies and retailers in large numbers would feature special displays and sales on Hallowe’en, but that it would greatly increase candy sales on that day, and in doing it, would eventually make Hallowe’en a candy season.” Like good capitalists, candy expert Dr. Samira Kawash says candy manufacturers often publish inaccurate and sugar coated histories of their products, as most large companies copied or stole home-kitchen inventions. Thanks V.L. Price and Dr. Shyne for showing us the way; putting our trust a billion-dollar industry whose success is entirely dependent on our desire to eat things with absolutely no nutritional value instead of trusting the people who live next door. 

A Letter To Quintilius

Dear Quintilius,

Now that Marijuana has been made legal in Canada do you think the rest of the world will follow suit?

Sincerely, Mary-J Investor

Dear Pot Belly Pig,

Marijuana is another item the government can tax. Of course it will eventually be legalized world wide. Even nowadays marijuana has been decriminalized or the laws are largely unenforced by police around the Earth. Sure it will be a little more difficult in politically divided countries or areas with certain religious ties but the sales and regulation of drugs will only benefit the people of that nation.

I will list several reasons why all countries should or will eventually allow the selling of marijuana. 1) It’s not that bad for you compared to some of the other stupid shit people are doing. Alcohol, tobacco and even sugar are all dangerous to the human body in large quantities. Also these are all already legal. These are items which are addictive, destructive and will eventually kill you. Marijuana isn’t some super healthy drug but it does offer different side effects and has some positive consequences. As an example you can look to those who use the drug medically.

2) Overdosing on marijuana is not possible according to any records on file. They tested a metric shit-tonne of weed on rats and you know what happened? The rats ate a lot of food, fell asleep for three days and then ate some more food. Overdosing occurs when weed is mixed with something else, for example fentanyl or other opioids, which also can make it addictive. Legalizing and regulating marijuana will help keep people safe as they know where their weed is coming from. It is specially bred and specifically focused on making sure the THC is able to elicit different responses in people and get them the type of high they want to experience.

3) Taxes. 10% or $1.00 per gram goes to an excise tax, note this doesn't include the HST or PST which is dependent by province. In Alberta alone, on the first day of legalization, they sold $730,000 and made about 8300 sales. No PST or HST there, therefore in Alberta alone the Federal and Provincial governments made about $73,000 just in excise tax.

Don’t get wrong, I hate dealing with morons and lack wits, but I deal with these people all the time anyways. At least now their smoking habit is turned into a benefit for the economy.

This Week In Science: Potential First Exo-Moon Discovery

Recently two astronomers, David Kipping and Alex Teachey, may just have discovered the first exomoon. An exoplanet is a planet that orbits around a star that is not our sun. An exomoon is a large celestial mass that orbits around an exoplanet, or in other words, a moon that does not orbit any of the planets in our solar system. 

Using the Kepler space telescope, Kipping and Teachey have been searching for far out moons around planets for a long time. When Kipping and Teachey were looking at an exoplanet, Kepler 1625b, which is many times larger than Jupiter; which is about 71,440 km. Both Kipping and Teachey noticed strange anomalies in their transit data; a transit is when planets, or celestial masses are revealed after passing in front of their host star. “We saw little deviations and wobbles in the light curve that caught our attention,” Kipping said.

After this discovery the two astronomers were granted time to use the Hubble space telescope to investigate this strange phenomena further. Using the telescope, they noticed shortly after the first transit, a slightly dimmer transit, which suggests that there is a moon, or larger mass following the planet. Both Kepler 1625b and its potential moon are not like the regular rocky planets and moons you would expect. Both are large gaseous masses. Because the exomoon is predicted to be gaseous, it leads to interesting questions about how the Neptune sized moon even formed in the first place. Considering the distance the “Nept-moon” is from its neighbouring star, the exomoon has a predicted surface temperature of about 80 Centigrade or 176 Fahrenheit. 

 To make an extraordinary claim that the first exomoon has been discovered, requires extraordinary evidence. Currently, the evidence is being reviewed for confirmation. 

It really is a fascinating discovery because the universe is known to be infinite, with trillions of trillions of stars, and trillions of planets orbiting many of those stars. To find out that we have not seen a moon outside the solar system really shows that we are only looking into one small glass of water from a vastly large ocean. Revelations like this open the world to many more unique discoveries that have yet to be seen in the universe or even considered as possibilities to look for. I am excited that the first exomoon has potentially been discovered, because if only our solar system has moons then that would be way too surreal to make sense. 

Review: Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?

“I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain.” – Roy Batty

The book that the Blade Runner movies are loosely based off, “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” is a dystopian science fiction novel written by Philip K. Dick that is set in San Francisco some time in 2021. Just after a third world war, millions of animals and species were rendered extinct and mankind was driven off the planet. 

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The people that remained on Earth, would covet the remaining living animals. For the poor, and people who could not afford one, hyper realistic birds, horses, sheep, were created, even humans, or androids. These new androids are so realistic that no one can tell whether they are human or machine and the government on Earth decides to ban the androids, for fear of their power. Androids are driven into hiding, while having bounty hunters known as “blade runners” hunt them down and “retire” them. 

When one group of androids are faced with this fate, they decide to fight back so they can experience and be treated like living beings. However, these androids face a deadly blade runner, Rick Deckard. 

While reading the book, the reader is faced with difficult questions about whether the main character Rick, or even perhaps you, are androids created with false memories implanted into your brain. The story also makes the reader question current moralities of how we view machines, and if we as part of humanity should treat artificially intelligent machines as “alive”. Even Dick’s title question is an astoundingly difficult problem that does not have clear answers. It is not even clear why humans dream, or if they have dreams, because currently, dreams are maya; facts that cannot be seen. 

All these problems are becoming more real as time goes on. In the not so distant future, humanity will have to consider the rights and morals of machines, or whether we should treat them as equals. We also might face the problem of not knowing whether you yourself are an android implanted with someone else’s, or false memories. 

I highly recommend readers to give this dystopian novel a read, and to consider for themselves whether an android is “alive”.

Recovering From A Bad Midterm

Your midterm mark came back, and it was rather disappointing. The good news is, there is still plenty of time to turn things around.

First you need to calculate how many more marks you need in the course to earn the passing grade you desire. Need a final grade of 60, but only scored 40% on a test worth 30% of your grade? This means you have lost out on 18 marks, but you have still earned 12 marks. [.40 x 30 = 12; 30 - 12 = 18] That leaves 70 more possible marks to earn in the course, and if you subtract the 12 you currently have, you only need to earn 48 out of those 70 marks in order to get that final grade of 60. That is equivalent to earning 69% on each future test or assignment. [48 ÷ 70 = 68.5]

With this information in hand, you need to resolve to put in the time and effort to achieving this new target mark. Your current habits and time spent on this subject have not been enough and you need to hold yourself accountable. Make sure you are attending every class. Take notes, pay attention to anything the Professor repeats or talks about in great detail.  Prioritize and block off time slots in your schedule for when you are the most productive (not after eating large meals, perhaps immediately after class, or right after a workout). Try including a friend in at least one study session a week so they can make sure you are genuinely spending that time on the subject. When temptations try to steal away your study time, stand your ground and remember why getting this mark is important to you.

Next, give a few new study strategies a try. Cue cards are great for memorizing definitions, anatomy, or items with a specific numeric value, such as elements from the Periodic table. Online cue cards are an option for giving your wrist a break or saving money and reducing environmental impact. Review with the end of chapter questions in your textbook, which are often used on real tests. Didn’t buy the textbook? Find somebody in the class you can borrow from, and offer them something to show your appreciation if possible. Watch videos on Youtube about the topic to get a better understanding (ASAPScience is a good channel), and set a limit on your Laptop/Phone time. Khan Academy is a great website for explaining math and science concepts. If you feel like you don’t know what direction you need to be focusing on, try and speak with your Instructor just before or after the lecture.

Finally, if you are serious about getting a solid grade on your end of term paper, go see the staff at Student Services. The Writing Skills Specialist can help you to really grasp what you are supposed to be doing with your topic, and how to navigate APA and other formats. 

The reality is that getting good marks takes effort, and you are capable of pulling it off. Your classmates are in the same boat, so reach out to them and learn from them as well. You’ve got this.

Best And Worst Places To Study On Campus

Before starting at The Quill and gaining access to its facilities I was like many of you, trying desperately to find a quiet place to study. Throughout the past few years that I have been at Brandon University I have discovered some great and some not so great places to study on campus. Today I shall share my secrets with you all.

I have always wanted to get the bad news out of the way before the good news comes in; therefore, this article will be no different. There are a few spots around campus that are absolutely terrible when it comes to finding a quiet place to study. The mingling area comes in as number one. This is understandable as both Forbidden Flavors and the Brandon University Bookstore are located there. There are also a lot of students and staff that use the mingling area to actually mingle, therefore it gets fairly loud during the day. Harvest Hall is also generally not a good location to study for exams or tests. Being the main dining hall for all three residence buildings, Harvest Hall becomes a gathering place for students staying in residence. Studying in Harvest Hall also opens the door up to numerous distractions. One such obvious distraction is that of food. Being a food hall there would be no shortage of items to eat. There are also projector screens that show TV programs, which would make it considerably difficult to concentrate on studying. Finally, I’ve had students say to me that the campus courtyard is one of the best places to study. I must, however, whole heartedly disagree. An obvious reason as to why it's not a good idea to go studying in the courtyard, or outside in general, is that we happen to live in the province of Manitoba, where half the year we are covered with nothing but snow and -20 C temperatures. Even if we were to only study outside during the warmer months it still would not prove to be the best location on campus. This is because there are loads of distractions outdoors. With everything from traffic noise to wind and rain I can assure all of you there are far better places on the Brandon University campus to study for an exam.

Having looked at all the poor studying locations on campus lets address some of the positive ones. Overall, I have found that there are three great spots, some hidden away, that truly provide an oasis of silence. These environments are exactly what you need in order to properly prepare for an exam or test. First off, and one that is probably the most obvious, is the library. On campus we have one massive, singular, library housed in the George T Richardson Building. Here you will find desks with computers available for student use as well as an area in which you can print your documents off for a modest fee. On both the first and second floors you will find a collection of desks and tables that are available for your use in order to catch up on some that studying you've been avoiding or complete that assignment which is due soon. Being a library, there is also an abundance of research material available. Books, databases and other materials make the library the best spot to complete a research paper. However, as many students soon come to realize the library is a busy place. A quiet place, but nonetheless an active one as well. Therefore, there are other areas on campus that still provide a quiet place to complete your school work. One of these areas is located inside the Education building on campus. In the basement of the education building there is a gathering spot which the majority of education students use when they have their lunch breaks. However, it is rarely used in the evening or when education students are out on their practicum and therefore provides students with a getaway from the hustle and bustle of the university campus. Although both the library and the basement of the education building provide great places for students to sit down and study I have always found the Clark Hall study rooms to be the best on campus. Clark Hall, as many of you are probably aware, is the big old building at the front of the university campus that houses both the Faculty of Arts and the University Administration. Inside Clark Hall there are four floors plus a basement. On floors two through four you will find three study rooms, one on each floor. These study rooms are centrally located on each floor and provide, in my opinion, the best possible location for a student to study while on campus. Each study room is a fair size and includes a reasonable amount of tables and chairs. Here students can study in peace and quiet while remaining on the university campus.

Now that I have shared with you the best, and the worst, places to study while on campus go out there and see what spot best fits your liking. Like most things it is better to get a grasp on studying and assignments early in the school year, rather than waiting until the last minute. By that time, not only are you struggling to find a quiet place to study, you also have an incredibly short time line to get your work done.

Chris Hadfield: The Legend In Town

Chris Hadfield came into town this past weekend to speak for the 50 year homecoming for the class of 1968-1969. The event went on fabulously as people from across the province coalesced   to meet the retired Colonel. The Canadian legend began his speech  with a story about astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, and how during their mission in space, complications arose with their landing zone. They would be unable to land there, so quick thinking Neil, grabbed the manual control of the spaceship and landed the ship at a location they saw in a distance. When Neil landed the spaceship, he only had 16 seconds of fuel left in the tanks. One can only imagine how intense these precious seconds would have been for the space explorers!

This moment was a revelation for the young Chris Hadfield. “If Neil can do that then, what could I do? You know? Maybe I can do something like that. That’s what I want to do. I want to fly in space. It’s not possible yet.” – Chris Hadfield 

One of the most interesting parts of his presentation was when Hadfield talked about the time he had to send two astronauts outside in space to fix an ammonia leak on the International Space Station. In order to keep their mission from being compromised the leak had to be fixed without even a day to prepare for the dangerous space walk. Chris said that he had been preparing his team for any sort of trouble, for 5 years in case something did go wrong. “Things go wrong all the time.” One golden piece of advice Colonel Hadfield gave, was that we should never hope, or cross our fingers that something will go well. He said we should be competent and utilize our time appropriately to prepare for things to go wrong, so when issues arise we’re not caught up creek without a paddle.

Colonel Hadfield also emphasized on the important point that we should educate ourselves and teach at least one person some of the valuable knowledge we have to pass on. We all owe it to one other person to teach them. He then quoted the poet Mary Angelou, “If you earn, then share. If you learn, then teach.” Hadfield says it is important that we all find a way to share the amazing experiences to other people and the world, because “Impossible things do happen.” 

After Colonel Hadfield finished a short Q and A, he picked up his guitar and played David Bowie’s A Space Oddity to finish off the speech. Leaving the audience with a memory that will reside inside them for the rest of their lives. For me, personally, it was one of the best songs I have ever seen performed or heard live in my life. 

Awareness In The Month Of October

Aside from the reintroduction of pumpkin spice into everyday life and the airing of cheaply produced horror movies, October has a lot of important days and overarching themes to it, in particular health awareness takes precedence. October is national occupational therapy month, a particular branch of therapy “that helps to solve the problems that interfere with a person’s ability to do the things that are important to them”, one of the focuses of occupational therapy month is to get more dialogue going and explain the benefits of it as well as pressing for occupational therapy coverage in the workplace. Rett Syndrome Awareness month also takes place in October. Rett Syndrome is a neurodevelopmental condition that affects the ability to communicate through speaking and hand use, as well as other medical conditions. 

Specific times dedicated to a theme or event in October include Mental Health Awareness Week which took place from October 1st to 7th.  Focused on raising awareness for mental health issues and reducing the stigma around it, dialogue has been a priority in the previous years. World Mental Health Day took place on the 10th. 

HPV Prevention Week was October 1st to the 7th, focusing on education around sex and safe practices, as well as the infection itself and how to recognize it and prevent it. 

Respiratory Therapists Week is from the 21st to the 27th, focusing on “Advancing the Profession” this year, looking at how practitioners have impacted the health of the public.

World Sight Day was October 10th, advocating for the “right to sight”, dealing with prevention and increasing access to eyecare in order to lower chances of vision issues. 

Some more days include: World Arthritis Day on October 12th Pharmacy Technician Day is October 16th , along with World Spine Day, National Psoriatic Arthritis Day on October 19th and International Stuttering Awareness Day which is October 22nd.