UNews - flash

Library enters world of new media

trevor.kenney — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 21:01:47 +0000

This fall, the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Library is offering multimedia services that provide students and library patrons with the resources they need in order to produce professional-quality multimedia projects.

Three high-end computers equipped with production software are available in the library with trained Peer-Assisted Technology Support Students (PATSS) on hand to provide assistance with creating graphics, videos, podcasts, websites and much more. The library is providing these services for individuals of all skill levels as tools for improving the overall quality of personal and school-related projects.

"There is an increasing demand for equipment and software packages to enable students to complete multimedia projects for classes," says Allan Gergel, Library Information Systems supervisor. "The library wanted to help out, as we often get these types of requests from students, and we have the facilities and expertise available to provide this service."

The new multimedia stations are located behind the PATSS service desk just inside the entrance to the library, in the space formerly occupied by the reference section. The available equipment includes two PC computers and one iMac computer; two large Wacom drawing tablets; one large-format Epson scanner (scans 11"x17"); and one Midi controller.

The machines will be equipped with Adobe Creative Suite 5.5 Master Collection, which includes Photoshop®; Illustrator®; InDesign®; Acrobat® X Pro; several Flash® programs; Dreamweaver®; Fireworks®; Contribute®; Encore; Media Encoder; and more. The iMac also features Avid Protools.

There are also a number of free and open source applications installed on each machine. The applications are listed on the library website: www.uleth.ca/lib/communities/index.php/multimedia/ in a section called "Free and Open Source Software". This is a collection of free software that the library recommends for students who cannot afford to buy software elsewhere.

The web page also contains a number of links to free resources that may be used in students' multimedia projects, including images, music, videos and sound effects. Links to useful tutorials are also provided, to save the user from spending countless hours of frustration. These tutorials are available in the Multimedia Creation Resources Section.

And of course, the PATSS are trained on how to use the applications on the computers, and are therefore able to provide useful assistance to library patrons using the stations.

Please let your students know that these stations are available – or come by the library and try them out yourself!

Co-op interns show off creative side

trevor.kenney — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 16:33:55 +0000

While Statistics Canada reported a 17 per cent unemployment rate for 15-24 year-old students this past summer, Faculty of Arts and Science co-op students told a different story, as they were all too happy to flash evidence of their impressive co-op work term experiences.

Students submitted work related pictures for the second year of the Co-operative Education and Internship Programs' photo contest. Arts and science co-op students are voting for this year's winner out of three finalists.

Gavin McAtee, a third-year kinesiology and psychology major, clearly had a lot of fun on his work term at Camp Warwa, west of Edmonton.

"This photo encompasses my entire experience as a summer camp counsellor/outdoor school co-ordinator. Not only did I have the opportunity to work with a variety of different age groups, I also had a blast while doing it," says McAtee.

Co-op student Gavin McAtee alongside a stormtrooper in

He says that the work term has clarified his career aspirations.

"As the result of my co-op experience, it has finally become clear that I wish to use my university education to pursue a career that provides athletic development programs for youth."

Evan Vandervalk, entering his third year in biological sciences, used pictures to compare old and new ways of tracking grizzly bears.

"My job this summer was to set up, bait and re-visit what are called 'hair snag sites'," says Vandervalk. "A bait pile, made up of sticks, moss, and rotten cow's blood serves to draw bears into the corral, over the single strand of wire, on which they snag their fur."

The data collected was used to estimate the grizzly population in the area near Hinton, Alta.

"My supervisor is hoping that these sorts of sites will function as a cheaper and less invasive way to monitor grizzly populations as compared to the collaring and trapping typically done in the past, which causes stress to the animal and costs more money," says Vandervalk.

Other students have focused on the natural beauty of their work settings, including 2011 contest finalist, Lucas Pittman. A fourth-year environmental science student, Pittman did a co-op work term with the Nature Conservancy of Canada and is pictured walking in the direction of Chief Mountain and Waterton Lakes National Park.

"That's me using my hand-made yoke to carry out bags of weeds, which we manually removed from the Shoderee Ranch Property," says Pittman.

An Inuit family jigging for Arctic Char and seals on the broken ice near Cambridge Bay, Nunavut. Photo by Lorin Doerksen

Lorin Doerksen's breathtaking photo in Nunavut was a part of last year's contest. He completed a 16-month co-op work term with Environment Canada before graduating with a Bachelor of Science with Co-operative Education last June. He now works for a small environmental consulting company in the upstream oil and gas industry.

"The experiences gained during the internship have proven useful, not only in getting my resumé noticed, but also in improving my ability to adapt to a new company and new responsibilities," says Doerksen.

Despite appearances to the contrary, Doerksen explains his photo was actually a late night scene taken at 1 a.m. one July morning.

"One evening I caught a ride out along the bay to a fishing spot. Each summer, by about July, the bay ice breaks up and Arctic Char move in to feed," says Doerksen. "Seals also follow the Char into the bay. Inuit families make use of the 24-hour sunlight to fish late into the night."

As a student intern, Doerksen was part of the Contaminated Sites Expert Support Group covering the Prairie and Northern Region.

"Contaminated sites include old mines (gold, uranium and silver), tailings ponds, Distant Early Warning (DEW) line sites in the arctic, and various other contamination sites all over the southern parts of our region."

Jasminn Berteotti, Applied Studies and Co-operative Education co-ordinator for the Faculty of Arts and Science, explains why the photo contest was started.

"We wanted to give our co-op students a creative venue for sharing amazing work term experiences with each other," she says. "We were looking for a 'Wow! Look what I did,' kind of message, and I think it worked. Our students get to do and see remarkable things, and this is the perfect way to showcase it."

Canada West takes a bold step forward

trevor.kenney — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 21:46:13 +0000

Fans of Canada West Athletics and the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Pronghorns will find it much easier to follow their teams this season with the introduction of CanadaWest.TV, a new web-based broadcasting service that debuts this month.

What it means for Horns followers is the opportunity to watch every U of L basketball game, both home and away, as well as all home hockey games and a select number of road contests.

"Our biggest goal with CanadaWest.TV is to try and strengthen the Canada West brand," says U of L Sports Information and Events Co-ordinator, Eoin Colquhoun.

Partnering with Stretch Internet, Canada West will be able to present a first of its kind university sport broadcast network. It will serve initially as the exclusive home to all Canada West basketball and volleyball games, along with selected games in other sports including football, hockey and soccer.

"The big step towards this took place last year when we mandated that all Canada West basketball games needed to be webcast," says Colquhoun. "Volleyball is also mandatory and then it will be up to individual schools to make decisions on what sports they decide to webcast. This year we'll also include our home hockey games."

Not only will the games be available by accessing CanadaWest.TV online from your computer, all streamed games will also be available on Flash 10.1-enabled mobile devices and, for the first time in Canadian university sport, on all iPhone OS devices – including the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch.

The overriding theme of the partnership is to expose Canada West sports to as many people as possible.

"It provides us with a unique opportunity as a conference and as individual schools to have our product seen by fans across Western Canada and around the world," says Ben Matchett, Canada West VP, Marketing. "Our new mobile platform also means they will not miss a minute of the action no matter where they go."

For Colquhoun, the logistics of staging a webcast are relatively simple, thanks to the support of Stretch Internet. He says the conference looked at eight to 10 proposals before signing on with Stretch.

"They provide us with all the software we need," he says. "We literally need to have somebody running the camera and whatever else we want to do with it is up to us. Their software allows us to interlay some stats and so forth and as we learn how to work with it, we'll probably be able to do a little more."

It's up to member schools as to whether they will include play-by-play description of the games. Colquhoun says that, at least for the first year, the Horns will go with picture only.

"What's great about it is that it provides one place where any Canada West fan of any school can go and find the webcasts," he says. "It's not a different location for every school or every sport as it may have been in the past, it's all in one place and hopefully we will expand fans of the whole Canada West product as a result."

GET THE FACTS

• Available at http://canadawest.tv, the first game broadcast on the new network was the Sept. 2 Canada West football game between the Regina Rams and UBC Thunderbirds.

• The Horns debut on the network Sept. 30 when the men's hockey team hosts the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Saskatchewan.

• The Canada West basketball season begins Nov. 4. Pronghorn fans will be able to watch the Horns on the road at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Winnipeg.

This story first appeared in the September issue of the Legend. For a look at the full issue in a flipbook format, follow this link.

CanadaWest.TV to debut in fall

trevor.kenney — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 17:20:24 +0000

Fans of Pronghorns Athletics will have the opoportunity to follow their hockey and basketball teams on the road this season with the launch of a new television service that will broadcast Canada West sports online.

The Canada West Universities Athletic Association announced on Wednesday a partnership with Stretch Internet to launch CanadaWest.TV, the official home of web-based broadcasting for all 14 Canada West member institutions during the 2011-12 season and beyond.

The first network of its kind in Canada, CanadaWest.TV will be the exclusive live home of all Canada West basketball and volleyball games along with selected games in other sports including football, hockey, and soccer.

The U of L is planning on broadcasting all its men's and women's basketball and hockey games initially. The bonus for Horns fans is that they can know follow their teams on the road.

"We are thrilled to announce this partnership with Stretch Internet and launch this online network, which will greatly enhance the experience of our fans who want to catch live Canada West action for those who cannot make it to the game," says Ben Matchett, Canada West vice-president, marketing. "It provides us with a unique opportunity as a conference and as individual schools to have our product seen by fans across Western Canada and around the world, and our new mobile platform means they will not miss a minute of the action no matter where they go."

Live video for all streamed games will be available online as well as on all Flash 10.1-enabled mobile devices and, for the first time in Canadian university sport, on all iPhone OS devices – including the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch.

"I cannot emphasize enough how thrilled we are to partner with Canada West," said Stretch Internet President Ryan Ermeling. "Our platform is perfectly suited to the needs of the conference and its 14 member institutions. Fans will enjoy an incredibly user-rich experience, with high-quality live and on-demand video along with integrated live stats and other features – on both desktop and mobile platforms. Since our very first discussions in Calgary, it has been evident to us that quality and professionalism are of the utmost importance to the conference, and we are confident we will deliver on both fronts."

Passion for film drives Poliquin

trevor.kenney — Thu, 19 May 2011 17:25:15 +0000

Do you remember when the family video camera was a rare and valuable piece of bulky equipment brought out of its protective case to record little more than holidays and birthdays? Fast-forward a decade or more and video cameras, found in everything from cell phones to laptops, are a common and well-used technology that we can no longer imagine living without.

Like most of his generation, 24-year-old John Poliquin (JP) (BFA '08) grew up using digital media to capture the everyday moments of his life. Unlike his peers, however, this up and coming music video director took it to another level, building a creative and promising career using the common technology.

"In high school I was into skateboarding and my friends and I were always making videos for that. I also took graphic design and was into flash animation and Photoshop. I designed a lot of posters for plays and parties, but it was just for fun. I really wasn't thinking about new media as a career," recalls Poliquin. "Then my mom read about the New Media program at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge in Macleans magazine."

Alumnus JP Poliquin at work in the studio.

After recommending the program to a friend, Poliquin visited her on campus, saw the facilities and enrolled himself.

Although Poliquin's initial intent was to focus on graphic design, he fell in love with film production during his second semester at the U of L. As a child, he'd acted in several commercials and spent time on set with a childhood actor friend. Taking Terry Gallie's film production course reminded Poliquin of how much he loved the energy and activity on a film set.

"After my first assignment in film production, I was so excited with it that I realized I really liked the aesthetic of film and working in that medium. I also really liked learning about effects and about how I could bring my design
experience into that," says Poliquin. "The New Media program at the U of L is really good. I know a lot of other directors that went to film school but I am really glad that I have a full university degree. It is so much broader in terms of the media we learned. The fact that I have different skill sets that a lot of people in my field don't, that I have experience with sound design and editing and graphic design and web editing, it just makes it a lot easier for me to market myself and not be pigeonholed into one thing."

Following his first year at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ, Poliquin spoke to Gallie and got some advice about how to work in the film industry. He returned home to Vancouver and began working with a production assistant on the sets of The Fog and RV. He continued to spend subsequent summers immersed in the Vancouver film industry, sampling everything from camera assistant and assistant director to working in wardrobe.

Poliquin also brought his passion for film back to campus. He and his friends founded the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ's Student Film Festival in 2007, premiering the film, Inside Charlie, which they had written and produced. He pulled all-nighters in the new media lab and even had to hide from a security guard once in order to keep working after hours – although he would not recommend doing that today!
Since his graduation in 2008, Poliquin has amassed quite a body of work directing music videos, and is beginning to break into commercial directing and fashion photography.

"I love being a director, writing the ideas and following it through to the editing. It is nice to be able to look back at your portfolio and see these different creations," says Poliquin. "My next goal is to move to New York City; I want to try it out while I am still in my twenties. My goal is to eventually direct high concept commercials, music videos, maybe a feature film or TV episode once a year, and then do fashion photography and editing on the side."

GET THE FACTS

· Poliquin has directed more than 30 music videos.

· He was nominated for music video directing awards for: ill Scarlett featuring Kardinal Offishall (Much Music Video awards); Paper Lions, Tim Chaisson, Morning Fold (East Coast Music Association Awards and Music PEI Awards); Hey Ocean (Leo Awards).

· His film, Inside Charlie, was nominated for Best Short Film at the Calgary International Film Festival.

· To check out some of his work go to: www.johnpoliquin.com.

This story first appeared in the Legend. To view the Legend in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Theatrextra opens with dramatic tale

trevor.kenney — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 19:18:09 +0000

With a flash of lightning and a clap of thunder, the stormy tale of The Song of the Say-Sayer, by Daniel Danis, rolls into the David Spinks Theatre in the new year.

Appearing Jan. 20-22 at 8 p.m. nightly (with a 2 p.m. matinee on Jan. 22), TheatreXtra's third production of the season explores the trauma and tribulations of four extraordinary orphaned siblings.

"I'd describe this play as a psychological thriller combined with a magical bedtime story," says Genevieve Pare, drama major and director. "It's a dramatic play, but magical and fantastical things are woven into the story."

As audiences have come to expect with TheatreXtra, creativity takes centre stage with a minimized use of sets and props.

"This play engages the imagination; the kind of imagination we had as children. At certain points, it is up to the audience to use their own imagination to create their own interpretation," Pare adds. "I was introduced to the script by one of my professors. I thought it would make a great show for TheatreXtra because it was about the characters and story rather than about props and set. It's written in a style I've never experienced."

Featuring a live percussion ensemble, the whimsy of The Song of the Say-Sayer leaves an indelible impression on audiences.

Tickets are available at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Box Office (403-329-2616) beginning Jan. 10. Regular hours for the box office are Monday through Friday 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. Tickets are priced at $11 regular, $7 for students and seniors.

This story originally appeared in the Legend. For a look at the full issue of the December Legend in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Theatrextra opens with dramatic tale

trevor.kenney — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 17:48:31 +0000

With a flash of lightning and a clap of thunder, the stormy tale of The Song of the Say-Sayer, by Daniel Danis, rolls into the David Spinks Theatre in the new year.

Appearing Jan. 20-22 at 8 p.m. nightly (with a 2 p.m. matinee on Jan. 22), TheatreXtra's third production of the season explores the trauma and tribulations of four extraordinary orphaned siblings.

As audiences have come to expect with TheatreXtra, creativity takes centre stage with a minimized use of sets and props.

Featuring a live percussion ensemble, the whimsy of The Song of the Say-Sayer leaves an indelible impression on audiences.

For a look at the full issue of the December Legend in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Prentice Institute taking shape with McDaniel appointment

trevor.kenney — Tue, 12 May 2009 16:15:48 +0000

Numbers can be cold, hard and impersonal. Put them in the hands of Dr. Susan McDaniel however and they can be used to influence policy decisions that effect change at the most personal of levels.

The newly appointed director of the Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy is an internationally renowned sociology researcher and demographics expert, combining her love for mathematics with a penchant to study people and society's big-picture issues. It was a research focus that was initially unintentional but has proven to be a life's work.

"Demography allows you to see how individual actions don't add up to what you think they'll add up to," McDaniel explains.
"The collective outcome of individual actions is very different than what the individuals intend and it's that kind of mystery that entices me. To me it's phenomenal because some of it is counter-intuitive and I'm still fascinated by that."

McDaniel returns to Alberta (the place she mostly refers to as home) from Utah where she was a senior scholar at the Institute of Public and International Affairs and Professor of Family and Consumer Studies at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Utah. Previously, she'd spent 15 years at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Alberta as a full professor of sociology and another three years at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Windsor.

Her return is a testament to the U of L, its vision and the opportunity afforded her as the first director of the Prentice Institute.

"There were no push factors for me leaving Utah, it was all pull," McDaniel says. "I'm hoping to really build this institute as a centre that people will say, 'The Prentice Institute is a leader on . . .'. That would really be great."

The mandate of the Prentice Institute is to promote the research of big-picture issues relating to global population change and demographics, among other topics. McDaniel is enthused by the opportunity to be in on the ground floor of constructing the Institute and its reputation.

"My goal is building something that's not just flash and dash but something solid that will last for a long time, and when people think about population issues and economy, they think about the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge," she says.

Getting to this point has been a long and non-traditional route for McDaniel.
Entering post-secondary study as a math major, a bad experience in her first course turned her eye elsewhere and she found demography.

"It was a question of using mathematics to study people and I thought, wow, I've found my calling," she says.

Through demography she slowly made her way into studying the societal impacts of her demographic research. Ironically, she is now world renowned as a research sociologist, has written an introductory sociology textbook and taught the course at a post-secondary level but because she entered the field through the back door, never actually took introductory sociology.

McDaniel's extensive research, publishing and teaching record reflect her varied interests and research on demographic aging, generational relations, family change and the social impacts of technology.

The arrival of the Prentice Institute comes at a perfect time for the U of L as it continues to emerge as a leading comprehensive university. McDaniel revels in building graduate programming, has a long record of collaborating with the best doctoral and post-doctoral researchers and trumpets the concept of community outreach, from local to international levels.

"The idea is to build interdisciplinary research that will have public and policy interest, but also to have outreach to the community. I want to see public issues of importance addressed here, and in a profound way," McDaniel says.
"What interests me is the notion that this is global. This is a new concept at the U of L and an area of strength that we're planning on building."

GET THE FACTS

• The Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy was established in late 2006, when John Prentice, a Calmar, Alta., based agri-business entrepreneur, with his wife, Connie, donated $8.25 million to the U of L – the largest private philanthropic gift the U of L has received in its 40-year history.

• McDaniel took her undergraduate studies at ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Massachusetts, studied a master's degree at Cornell ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ and her PhD at ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Alberta.

• A lover of bird watching, walking and jogging, McDaniel is apt to be spotted enjoying the outdoors with her one-year-old Maltese puppy Victoria

• Her research on gender and aging issues led to her involvement in the Dove soap self-esteem campaign

• McDaniel is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada

• In addition to her role as director of the Prentice Institute, McDaniel will also teach an undergraduate course at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ

UNews - flash

Library enters world of new media

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