Vol. V April Edition

THE INNIS HERALD 18 APRIL 2019

VOLUME V, ISSUE 5

Innis student’s mini-doc premiers at Town Hall

Emma Paulus INNIS LIFE On March 12th, 2019, the short documentary From Syria to Hope premiered at Innis Town Hall. The film, which was directed by third year Innis student Yazmeen Kanji looks inside the lives of three Syrian refugee families living in the Greater Toronto Area. The film intends to combat the xenophobia and islamophobia that has been increasing in the media as more Syrian refugees move to Canada. From Syria to Hope is an official Films With a Cause documentary, and was made in collaboration with the non-profit organization York Region Muslims. The night began with a brief introduction to both the film and the director from the night’s host, Lily Evans, who is currently doing production work on Film With a Cause’s upcoming docu-series. She then called Yazmeen up to talk about the documentary before the film began. After the screening, there was a panel discussion moderated by Anisha Vohora, who works with Films With a Cause as a legal advisor. The panel featured Yazmeen Kanji, Gloria Nafziger and Bayan Khatib. Gloria Nafziger has been working with refugees in Toronto for over 30 years and, most recently, has been supporting refugee families through private sponsorship as well as though volunteer work at the refugee shelter, Romero House. Bayan Khatib is the co-founder and director of the Syrian Canadian Foundation as well as the co-founder of the Syria Film Festival in Toronto. The panel discussion included many important topics, such as the use and abuse of social media in spreading information about the Syrian refugee crisis, the importance of family reunification, and the challenges that Syrian refugees face upon arriving in Canada. When asked how people could assist in settling refugees and fighting intolerance, every panelist agreed in the importance of volunteer work within local communities. I had a chance to sit down with Yazmeen and discuss her documentary, as well as Films With a Cause. Innis Herald: Tell me a bit about yourself.

COURTESY OF FILM WITH A CAUSE

Directed by third year Innis student and filmmaker, Yazmeen Kanji, From Syria to Hope documents the lives of three Syrian refugee families living in the GTA. YK: I’ve wanted to do a documentary project for a film festival that I had shown anything to, and the first while—all throughout high school, in fact. The Syr- festival for this film. ian refugee crisis began in 2015, when I was in grade IH: And what festival was that? 11, and at that point I started thinking about making a documentary more seriously. My family and I were YK: It was the Toronto Short Film Festival. I recenthanging out with the first family shown in the film, ly got the notification that From Syria to Hope was and we were really close with them. We’d go to see awarded best short documentary at the festival. I was them on weekends, they’d make us food, sometimes really excited about that—that recognition for a first they would come over to our house, and we’d all hang try is really inspiring and really motivating, because out. I’d wanted to make a documentary for a long I can now see the potential for stories like these to time and this sort of came at the right moment where succeed in mainstream media. Some people recomI was trying to build my skills in video making. I also mended that I should try getting it on CBC or somehad such a close personal connection to the family thing like that, so I’m trying to do that right now with that we were interacting with—that made me want the company that I work with. We’re going to see if others to understand that they’re just here because that’s a possibility. they have to be here, and they really wish that they IH: Can you tell me a bit about Films With a Cause? were back home. YK: I started putting together the idea two summers IH: How did you pick the other two families? YK: I knew that I couldn’t have just one family in the ago, around the time that I was searching for families film because there’s a lot of different experiences, and and I was coming up with the idea for From Syria to a lot of different families that were brought to Can- Hope. I felt that bridge between filmmaking and soada through different means (like through sponsor- cial justice work didn’t really exist yet. I’ve always ship programs and through government funding). I been involved in videomaking, filmmaking, and sort didn’t just want one family to be shown, because then of an arts pathway, but I’ve also been really interested their story would be all anyone would really know. I in social justice work as well. I always felt like I had to ended up finding the second family through some of choose between them, and I wanted to find a way to my mom’s connections. They had reached out to this create a platform where I didn’t have to. That’s why I family because they had been interviewed while they created Films With a Cause.

were in Jordan, so they were a bit more comfortable Yazemeen Kanji: I’m in third year, and I’m doing a doing media work. I found the third family through double major in Equity Studies and Peace, Conflict, Facebook. There are a few Facebook groups for Syriand Justice, with a minor in Cinema Studies. an families, and I just posted an outline of what I was IH: Is From Syria to Hope your first big video looking for for this documentary project I was doing, project? and asked anyone who was interested to contact me. YK: Yes. I’ve done a lot of video projects, but this is The man in the family contacted me and we went forthe first documentary of this capacity. I’ve done some ward from there. videography projects for campus work, as well as two IH: You mentioned that it was going to be shown or three short films in high school, but nothing this in a film festival. Has that happened yet? length—and nothing that took this amount of time. YK: Yes! That happened on March 21st. That was reIH: How did you pick this topic?

ally fun and exciting, because that was the first major

I N S I D E

Innis students petition intersection

Interview with Hudson & Rex star

All-new satire section

this issue. . .

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IH: Tell me a bit about the docu-series that you’re doing.

YK: The premise is to show people’s daily lives, profiling individuals from different communities in five-minute episodes. Each episode is going to be a very short profile on an individual from a community who maybe isn’t heard from in mainstream media often enough, or who is only shown in mainstream media when their story can be exploited and sensationalized. Editor’s note: interview was edited for length and clarity.

An Ode to Innis College Upbeat spring playlist

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18 APRIL 2019

THE

INNIS HERALD

In memory of a chimney stack and a weather-tree

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF JAMES CHAPMAN MANAGING EDITOR MICHELLE ZHANG CREATIVE DIRECTOR LOUISA YOU LAYOUT EDITOR DARIA MANCINO ONLINE EDITOR & SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR JULIE SHI SENIOR COPY EDITOR SARAH LAUDENBACH CONTRIBUTORS AL-AMIN AHAMED MEGHAN GHERON CALDER MORTON-FERGUSON DANIEL LI JADINE NGAN EMMA PAULUS SHANKHALIKA SRIKANTH MARLOES STREPPEL BEN WESTSTRATE ANDREW ZHAO PHOTOGRAPHERS AND ILLUSTRATORS AL-AMIN AHAMED CALDER MORTON-FERGUSON DANIEL LI SABINE OSMANN-DEYMAN MUKTI PATEL CHIAO SUN ANDREW ZHAO NANCY ZHAO THANKS TO BEN WESTSTRATE INNIS INSPIRATIONS OUR 2018-2019 MASTHEAD, CONTRIBUTORS, AND READERS!

FOLLOW US! @theinnisherald www.theinnisherald.com The Innis Herald has given a voice to the students of Innis College and the University of Toronto since 1965. We circulate 1000 copies of our paper to Innis students, alumni, faculty, and anyone else who happens to come across it. We are committed to covering stories that matter to students. Our content aims to help students connect to their college, campus, city, and world.

RECYCLE OR DIE.

COURTESY OF SABINE OSMANN-DEYMAN

Herald Contributor CREATIVE I grew up in mid-town Toronto, between bustling Yonge Street and quiet brown townhouses, with their little gardens full of flowers and bees. The Beltline and countless parks weave their way through streets full of kids with dogs, smiling crossing guards, and colourful cafes. I lived on the twelfth floor of a white brick building. From our window we could see the face of another tall white building on the other side of a big dog park. To the south were variously sized buildings that stretched, glistening, into the distance. In the North corner of my view was a quiet retirement home framed by the black buildings of Eglinton Avenue. To the west, I could only see the tops of old trees that turned colour in the Fall, over which little airplanes passed by endlessly. I used to sit at my window for hours, just after sunset, counting the airplanes and making up little stories about the people in them. Whenever I got in trouble and was sent to my room, the little flashing dots on the horizon would keep me company until my parents forgave me. In front of that red-gold expanse was my elementary school, Davisville Public School. Divided into a series of attached square segments, it looked like a spaceship dropped straight from the moon. Each segment was fitted with a white roof that zig-zagged this way and that. From the centre, a tall brown chimney reached toward me. My school had windows for eyes and doors for a mouth, and the chimney in the middle was like a top hat. When I was really little, my parents would usher me across the street to school, and we would always wave hello to the always-smiling middle aged Filipino crossing guard. Every morning I would get to school late and the doors would almost always be locked from the outside already. The nice playground supervisor would always open the door for me with a smile and a joke, while the mean one would yell at me (to which I responded by purposefully bugging her during lunch break). Once inside, I would climb the hanging stairwells to my classrooms. Truth be told, these stairs were incredibly scary to scale as a tiny six year old who was (and still is) scared of heights. I always thought they were cool, though, because they were so different from everything else that existed. They seemed to just float, apart from the walls with each step separate from the next, lit up by the light coming through the windows that stretched non-stop from the first to third floors. To me, my school yard was divided into five parts: a slightly mottled, tree-lined field; a smaller gravelly field with golden trees, our resident hawk, and flowering vines everywhere;

a red and blue playscape that I got a billion splinters from; a little red brick wall where we played one-touch and used as a capture-the-flag jail; and various concrete areas where we had those basketball hoops that look more like over-sized blue plastic tulips than anything else. Halfway between the schoolyard and my window was a tall, delicately leaning tree that I could see from every window in our apartment. Every morning, I would run to my window and say good morning to the tree. I named it the Weather Tree, because I could tell if it was going to be a windy day or not by how much its branches were waving. I had complete faith in that tree for all things weather related: it always told me exactly how cold or hot it would be. One day, I looked out the window as usual, but the Weather Tree wasn’t there to wave back at me. Some forestry people had come by to cut its branches so it couldn’t wave anymore. I moved away in grade 10, four years ago. Right before I moved away, they tore down some of the brown townhouses with the flowering gardens full of bees. Within these four years, they built two new mid-rise glass buildings in the dog park I lived beside. The parents of one of my childhood friends owned a little convenience store beside a Starbucks at the main intersection. They sold that store and moved away too. Earlier this year, I was driving down Yonge Street, past the area I used to live in. I looked out and realized the chimney was missing. Turns out, the TDSB decided to tear down my school after many years of the community fighting to protect it. Truth be told, the building was way past capacity and the infrastructure was crumbling. I remember when we were taking our grade 6 EQAO, one of the tiles in our 3rd floor classroom ceiling came loose. Baby birds came flying out of the attic above and wouldn’t leave us alone for the rest of the day. That bird infested, spaceship shaped school with the woodchip playscape isn’t there anymore. The convenience stores and parking lots that make up the school yard’s west border will be replaced with a modern school building with a much larger capacity and no hanging staircases. Even though the area has changed so much since I moved away years ago, I still feel comforted whenever I visit. More than any other place I have ever lived, my wasp infested midtown Toronto with the willows and the grassy parks will always be my home. It’s a place where the traffic is always terrible but nobody ever honks. It’s a place where skinny houses with long backyards and tall buildings with glass balconies, retirement homes filled with Triscuits and elementary schools full of baby birds, and a Sobeys with a huge bakery section and convenient stores stocked with ripe bananas can all co-exist in some ever-changing story of neighbourhood change.

18 APRIL 2019

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Innis students demand review of local intersection

COURTESY OF DARIA MANCINO

Innis students complain the intersection of St. George and Sussex is both awkward and dangerous, writes Daria Mancino.

Daria Mancino INNIS LIFE If you frequently cross the street between Innis Residence, Innis College, and Robarts, it’s fairly likely you’ve had at least one near-death experience (I, personally, have had three). The intersection at St. George and Sussex is something of a death trap, but not the exciting kind of death trap where your heart races and you feel proud to have narrowly escaped with your life. It’s the awkward kind, the kind where you do a bizarre back-and-forth step that looks like your aunt dancing at a wedding after one too many glasses of wine and which leaves you face to face with an oncoming vehicle (or cyclist) despite looking all three ways twice. That is, to say more succinctly, the intersection is a mess, and one which frequently puts the safety of pedestrians in jeopardy. After countless years of near-accidents between students and vehicles, a group of students at Innis Residence have created a petition to make the intersection more pedestrian-friendly. This petition was created by outgoing IRC President Daniel Li and has been carried out with the support of Adrian Sin, a co-chair of the Innis Residence Environmental Committee, and Jadine Ngan, an outgoing IRC Junior House Representative. I sat down with Daniel and Jadine (Adrian was unfortunately not available) to hear more about what motivated them to create the petition, what the process has been like, and what they ultimately hope to see change at the intersection as a result. Daniel said he was inspired to take action after fellow IRC executive Katharina Vrolijk told him she had almost been hit by a car at the intersection and insisted that the IRC had to do something about it. Having personally experienced issues with the crosswalk and knowing many other students who had as well, Katharina’s incident prompted Daniel to start the petition and advocate for the safety of the residents he represents as IRC president. Daniel wrote the petition over winter break, and has since received close to 200 signatures from Innis College students and members of the broader community who use the space.

Indeed, the crosswalk doesn’t just present an issue for the Innis College community. With its proximity to Robarts and connection to a residential neighbourhood, the petition aptly notes that “the crosswalk is relied upon by a variety of community members on a daily basis.” Both Jadine and Daniel hope to collect signatures from wider community members by standing at intersection as the weather improves, some of which may have to be done this coming September. The petition outlines five major issues with the petition as it currently exists: 1. Drivers (and cyclists) do not always obey the stop signs. 2. The stop signs are too far away from each other. 3. The intersection lacks painted markings that indicate it is a crossing space. 4. The intersection is too large, which results in vehicles having to stop in the middle of the intersection. This makes pedestrians feel intimidated by the standing cars and prompts them to rush across the street. 5. The intersection has lower visibility at night which exacerbates the above issues. Both Daniel and Jadine say the main goal of the petition is to flag the intersection as an issue for city council. Daniel admits that he doesn’t know the exact solution to make the crosswalk safer, but hopes that if the petition gains enough traction the city will look into implementing the most feasible and beneficial change for students. The petition does provide some suggestions that would improve the safety of the space, including moving the stop signs closer together, increasing signage, painting white lines on the crossing areas to increase visibility, and creating a speed table to slow traffic. In addition to creating the petition, Daniel has reached out to local City Councillor Mike Layton, who has since raised the issue at multiple committee meetings. “It’s going somewhere,” said Daniel, who hopes to send along the petition when it collects more signatures—his goal is 300. Jadine and Daniel also plan to do more research over the summer and learn about the process of bringing this issue to council and seeing a positive change result from it. Overall, the petition has received wide support

from community members. Daniel and Jadine have each encountered one person who felt it wasn’t necessary or felt that pedestrians had a responsibility for their own safety, but these two are outliers in what has generally been a well-recepted campaign. Most people Jadine, Daniel, and Adrian have spoken to have expressed personal concerns about the intersection and are glad to see a motivated group of students take action to make it better. Reflecting on her own involvement, Jadine said “I didn’t even fully realize it was an intersection until it got brought up at the IRC meeting. I always just felt like I was jaywalking there, which probably says something about the situation. I didn’t even realize it was meant to be a place of crossing.” She was inspired to work on the petition based on her own experiences and so she could help make a positive impact in the community. Both also hope that the crosswalk will inspire a shift in both the IRC and ICSS. “I generally think the student councils in general should be doing more advocacy,” said Daniel, “I know it’s difficult… it’s easier for us to run events because we do get money for it, but I think there’s a lot of value in us being that voice for students in a broader sense. I thought this was a good start.” Daniel hopes to see student unions across campus take on a stronger advocacy role, particularly related to issues of student wellbeing and broader issues like tuition. Jadine also shares this hope, citing the inspiring work that students do on campuses in the United States and Europe as inspirations. “It says a lot about the power we could potentially be harnessing as students,” she said, “and I feel like there is an opportunity here that we haven’t fully taken. This is like a first step towards that.” With the school year coming to a close, the petition is likely to be stagnant over the summer but will return in full force in the fall. As Toronto continues to try to create safer spaces for both pedestrians and cyclists, hopefully our campus will do the same. ­­­—————————————————— If you haven’t already, you can sign the petition online at http://chng.it/2VtjS7SvKh or visit the Facebook page, “Make Sussex and St. George Pedestrian Friendly”, for more information.

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18 APRIL 2019

Innis elections: the good, the bad, and the deleted Facebook events Andrew Zhao STUDENT LIFE ICSS and IRC elections just wrapped up in March. Here’s the breakdown of the good, the bad, and the ugly. The Good IRC executive elections were more competitive than past years, with 10 candidates running for five positions. Four residents ran for Treasurer, which was the most highly contested position. Two candidates—Paxton Wong and Josie Meza-Silva—ran for IRC President, with Meza-Silva narrowly winning the election by 3.8 percentage points. Last year, the position was uncontested. Turnout for the election was a relatively high (but objectively low) at 33%. ICSS elections were also competitive for positions below the executive level—all portfolio positions were contested except for Grad Rep and Equity & Outreach, with 25 candidates running for seven positions. Last year’s addition of an International Rep also proved to be a success. Four students ran for the one International position, demonstrating the need for increased international student representation on the ICSS. In other good news, referenda on the college build levy and the creation of a Sustainability Director position both passed. The election saw 12% of Innis students cast their ballot, an approximate increase of 40% from last year. As noted in The Varsity, this was the second-highest turnout out of any student society election on campus, second only to the Victoria University Students’ Administrative Council (VUSAC) elections.

The Bad All ICSS executive positions were once again uncontested this year, and all of the candidates already held positions on council. This means that Innis students did not have much choice about which viewpoints they wanted to be represented at the highest levels of the ICSS. That’s not to ding any one candidate for their positions—choice is just always preferable to no choice in an election. This also reinforces the ICSS’s image as a council of insiders that is not representative of the entire constituency. That being said, executive members like VP Internal-elect Winston Chan expressed during the candidates’ forum that they would try their best to represent all Innis students. While this is positive, the ICSS should do more in the future to encourage people to run for executive positions—both for current members to challenge each other and for non-council members to feel comfortable putting their names forward.

There was also a lack of transparency around the ICSS campaign regulations and demerits. During the campaign period, notifications about demerits were posted on the Facebook event with no additional explanation beyond “campaign violation” (see above). All that these cryptic notifications did was fuel the rumour mill as people speculated about why certain candidates received demerits. Some campaign violations are more severe than others, and the Elections Committee should be more transparent in the future about the nature of these violations so students can be more informed when casting their ballot.

The Cancelled Facebook Events Starting around 11 p.m. the night before the election, you probably received a barrage of notifications saying “Event Vote _____ for _____ was deleted.” This is because candidates are not allowed to leave campaign events up during the voting period since it constitutes campaigning outside of the campaign period. This rule should be scrapped. Facebook events have become the primary way that candidates present their platforms to the public. Forcing these events to be deleted before the voting period begins makes it difficult for students to refer back to candidates’ platforms when casting their ballot, making it harder to cast an informed vote. It is also incredibly confusing. For those who are unfamiliar with the election rules—which are not posted publicly—it looks like people are dropping out of the race the night before. In a statement on the ICSS election Facebook event, Chief Returning Officer Stephanie Kroone wrote that “all campaign materials (physical or digital) [should be] removed by 11:59 tonight to avoid passive campaigning” (emphasis added). It’s not clear how this squares with the current election guidelines for ICSS election. The Herald obtained a copy of the information package given to ICSS candidates and the package only forbids “active campaigning” outside of the campaign period. There is no language in the guidelines or the ICSS Constitution which forbids leaving Facebook events up during the campaigning period. Forcing candidates to delete Facebook events provides no benefit to voters and actually makes it harder for voters to make an informed choice. This rule has no basis in the election guidelines or the constitution. It’s time to scrap it.

Innis Inspirations: Full Circle “This is where it all began. Sixteen years ago, I nervously stood on the Innis Green for my first day of orientation week. Today, I proudly stand here as an alumnus and staff member. Despite this symmetry, my path has been anything but linear or clear. Why am I not the orthopedic surgeon that I expected to be, when I first stood here? How did I become a “communications officer”—a job that the 16-years-ago version of me had never heard of? (I’m still trying to figure it out, BTW.) Those intervening years saw a lot of exploration and self-discovery, a couple of degrees, and one very inspirational Innisian of my own. I had the privilege of studying for learning’s sake, feeling very little pressure to earn a degree for heightened status or pay. And so, I floundered (read: loved) my way through architecture, art history, environmental studies... I think there was a political science moment in there too. While I was stuffing my brain and challenging my assumptions, my discoveries outside of the classroom/inside the Innis community were most formative. At Innis, I discovered more than a handful of people who subscribed to my specific brand of “nerd.” These same nerds didn’t flinch when I realized I was gay. They are my best friends to this day. Every wedding becomes an Innis reunion. I kid you not. Within this web of community connections, I was wholly entangled by one Donald Boere, our registrar (and figurative daddy long-legs). I was a work-study student in the Registrar’s Office and was rehired upon my directionless return from grad school, six years later. Why Donald took a chance—nay, chances—on me is beyond comprehension. I’m sure grateful he did. Fast forward another six years, and here I still stand on this Green, reflecting on the many, growing inspirations that draw me back to Innis. Included in this list is the man behind the camera, Chiao Sun, plus countless more students whose initiative, commitment and sense of fun make me grateful for my wobbly, yet full COURTESY OF CHIAO SUN circle Innisian story.” —Ben Weststrate

18 APRIL 2019

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An Ode to Innis College

James Chapman INNIS LIFE Over the past year, I’ve had the pleasure of being a campus tour guide for prospective University of Toronto students. With tour guests ranging in age from high school to adulthood, and geographically from North York to Tokyo, knowledge of the university’s undergraduate experience varies. While some guests know less than the university’s unofficial title (U of T), others have a detailed knowledge of admission scores and dropout rates, both of which they don’t hesitate to quote when asking “questions”. On every tour, after viewing the tranquil and aesthetically-pleasing quads of St. Michael’s, Victoria and Trinity—colleges who feel the need to attach ‘university’ to their collegial titles, in case anyone forgets their elitism—the tour inevitably arrives at Innis College. Here is this red brick building, cowering below a brutalist 14-storey library on a less-than-peaceful intersection with no romantic architecture to boot. At this point, guests usually stare at me blankly as I explain how privileged I’ve been to call Innis home for the past four years. Despite this first impression, for those who count themselves among the members of the Innis community, the college’s charm is not soon forgotten. Indeed, for a college whose official mascot is a flaming beaver, Innis makes no secret about its quirky and offthe-wall ways. There is something truly unique about both the history and contemporary flavour of Innis College, which I now look upon with nostalgia as my undergraduate career comes to a close. Perhaps Innis’s quirky history began when the college’s present location at 2 Sussex opened in 1976. Principal Peter Russell described the college’s opening ceremony in his official Principal’s Report from that year. When Lieutenant Governor Pauline MacGibbon arrived to mark the official opening of the college, she glimpsed “…a strange band of characters jostling their way up St. George Street with beat up blackboards [and] battered chairs…” the remnants of moving day from the college’s former location. Not only was the Lieutenant Governor met with such a peculiar sight, but despite being the monarch’s representative, MacGibbon was then presented with noth-

ing more than a shoestring to cut, marking the official opening of the new college. In “good Innis-style,” Russell writes, the opening ceremony also ran slightly behind schedule (two-and-a-half minutes after 5 p.m., to be exact). This concept of “Innis-style” is something that runs through many publications about Innis’s early history. In a Herald article published in the late 1970s, the author describes that while the new building was warmly characterized by some students as the “The Good Ship Innis,” others noted the building’s leaky roofs, doors that led to nowhere, and problems with heating—all things that reflected Innis architectural and social style, according to the author. With the completion of the new build in 1976, Principal Peter Russell hoped that “…a much larger proportion of students [would] enjoy the college, but also the university at large [would] participate much more at Innis.” Indeed, over the past 45 years, Russell’s dream has come true—Innis is undoubtedly the envy of the university, deserving of praise for everything from its tight-knit community to its rich student life. While students may once have been attracted to the juvenile college for its cheap booze (subsidized by the profits of the basement’s former pinball machines), farm property (once considered perfect for weekend getaways), and hippie past, today as these former staples of the college have evolved there is still much about Innis which many would count themselves lucky to be a part of.

Despite the odds, for example, the Innis Café has remained as popular as when it sold 90 cent bottles of beer 25 years ago. The familiar faces of its family-run kitchen and famous home-cooked meals make it difficult to find a seat in the café during lunch hours. Innis Town Hall has also become a unique institution at the university. While other college theatres tend to pander to more elite audiences, Town Hall ensures a diverse and, more often than not, peculiar group of community members, like former Premier Christy Clark, are spotted around the college. The college’s library has also experienced an increased amount of popularity with students from across campus as of late. Sydney Narciso Wilson, a Trinity-College-turned-Victoria-College student (but we won’t hold that against her), once described Innis Library to me as an “industrial treehouse.” Indeed, the 3 storey “jungle gym,” as Sydney would call it, was essentially unused until a few years ago, with coffee-stained desk chairs and artifactual computers as its defining features. Yet, since the addition of a vocal and dedicated advocate in our somewhat new librarian, Kate, much like the café it is often challenging to find a seat in the Innis library. As legendary as these Innis institutions might have become, perhaps nothing is as memorable as the people at Innis College. In a university with some 93,000 students across its three campuses, it is a rare occurrence for any student to be able name, let alone connect, with senior administrators. At Innis, however, this is second nature. Many students boast being on a first-name basis with Principal Charlie Keil and both his and registrar Donald Boere’s reputation now precede them. Indeed, ask any U of T student, and without hesitation they will call Donald the most accommodating and helpful registrar on campus. An early 2000s edition of the Herald noted, “…Innis is a lively community with many different kinds of people. From weird to really weird, we have a variety of nerds here.” While this is hopefully not the only adjectives used to describe Innis students (and I’m sure there could be worse ones), Innis students have left their mark as of late on the campus environment. Indeed, our college’s students have brought unique Innisian perspectives to the highest levels of leadership on the university’s student unions, clubs, and print publications. Winning the university’s meme bracket (for older audiences, this was a social media competition where only one college would be crowned the favourite of U of T students) proves that Innis students continue to punch above their weight. For a college born out of an orgy of government spending in the 1960s, Innis College has truly developed to embody many of the ideals of university life. With any luck, the Herald will keep documenting this fact for years to come.

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18 APRIL 2019

The political economy driving Disney

COURTESY OF SCREEN RANT

Julie Shi ARTS & CULTURE It takes a little more than a glass slipper and some friendly mice for Disney to be satisfied with its happily ever after. “Embrace what makes you different” is just one of the life lessons that Walt Disney’s 1941 animated classic Dumbo shares. But now, with a stream of remakes produced and slated for release in recent and coming years, including a 2019 rehash of Dumbo, Disney might be holding on a little too tight. According to Time magazine, Disney has at least 10 live-action remakes and spinoffs planned between now and 2020. This is on top of the eight remakes that have already been released since 2010. For those of us who grew up during the company’s 1990s animated renaissance—identifiable by the hand-drawn quality and innocence of its characters and songs— the return of these classics in live-action form is a walk down memory lane for many. For some fans and film critics, however, the clear lack of originality behind these productions combined with the jarring difference in tone compared to the animated originals is irksome at best. Would a live-action Mulan really be the same without Li Shang? Is Dumbo really Dumbo if there aren’t any tears shed? Regardless of these criticisms and concerns, a number of outlets have correctly pointed out that audiences of all ages are suckers for the familiar and the nostalgic—and it shows in the numbers. From 2010 to 2015, Disney saw its stocks grow by 200%. While Frozen certainly contributed to this soaring growth, the magnetic draw of Disney’s original classics is unquestionable—and the timing of these remakes is impeccable. Thirty years since the beginning of the renaissance, the original viewers of iconic films from Beauty and the Beast to The Lion King are all grown up, some now with children of their own. As adults watch for the brief return to carefree innocence and children continue to experience the magic of Disney, the films are a failsafe reminder to a broader-than-usual audience of the timelessness of Disney’s classics that keeps the company at the core of childhood memories. But recast with the bells and whistles of modern technology, these newer productions are photorealistic and constrained in ways that the hand-drawn cartoons were not. For one, as Dani Di Placido wrote in Forbes, the precision that illustrating afforded the animators over facial expressions, visual cues, and

body language—especially where talking animals are involved—allowed them to “tell a beautiful, stylized story” that “was about replicating humanity.” The important distinction here is that Walt Disney never intended for his films to be conflated with realism and replicability. Rather, their animated quality called for a suspension of disbelief and an immersion in the imaginary that would inspire adults and children alike to reach for their dreams, because “if you can dream it, you can do it.” As such, the staying power of these live action films will likely be quite low, but for the company, they do the job of re-centering Disney in the Hollywood scene and entertainment world very well. What, then, is the real motivation behind Disney’s slew of star-powered, visually enhanced, and entirely unoriginal productions? In an industry as uncertain as film, the answer is unfortunately money. Falling back on the tried and true, pre-existing successful content and established audiences return much higher profit margins than new ventures that may take off only moderately or momentarily. Take, for example, Tim Burton’s live-action Alice in Wonderland and the animated original Tangled, both films that came out in 2010. Producing Disney’s first live-action remake since the 1990s, Burton brought in over $1 billion USD at the box office alone. That’s more than five times the film’s budget—despite being panned across the board by film critics. By comparison, Tangled garnered itself an Oscar nomination, but it only amounted to $591.8 million USD at the box office. Despite having one of the biggest Hollywood budgets of all time (priced at $260 million USD) Tangled cleared the 100% return on investment only by a small margin. Behind the faith, trust, and pixie dust is a clearly defined and well-executed strategy that relies on the enduring attraction of the classics, the novelty of CGI and photorealistic effects, and star power. While this formula diverges from Disney’s usual modus operandi, the company has long since accounted for its animated classics, with long-term frameworks keeping them alive and at the forefront of the public sphere. Collecting all of its films and home-video releases in the ‘Disney Vault,’ the studio has adhered to a twoprong moratorium policy since the 1940s that allows it to control demand and access in roughly seven-year periods. Whether by re-releasing features like Bambi to usher in new generations or reissuing enhanced editions of ‘retired’ favourites for older audiences to relive the magic, the company’s cyclical strategy has kept fans coming back for more. Although the vault program is set to end with the official launch of Disney’s streaming platform, Disney+, the subscrip-

tion-based service holds only new potential as a revenue source. But nostalgia wouldn’t be enough to convince executives that investing millions to repurpose old content is worth it. What really clinches the monetary success of this strategy is that it also helps Disney continue holding onto the intellectual property rights to most of its content. The studio has, in fact, been in the copyright field for the long game. Debuting in the 1928 short “Steamboat Willie,” Mickey Mouse had been set to enter the public domain in 2004, 75 years after his creation. In 1998, Disney executives and hired lobbyists thus took to Washington to appeal for changes to copyright laws. Citing legislation in Europe that protected their intellectual property rights for longer, Disney eventually got its way and the Copyright Term Extension Act made its way through the senate. Otherwise known as the Mickey Mouse Protection Act, the revision allowed creators to retain legal rights over their works for a further 20 years. Short of returning to Washington, Disney’s repackaging of content from the vault as independent releases then works around these copyright expirations. By incorporating individual audiovisual and thematic features in new films, Disney renews its ownership over intellectual property rights by virtue of the automatic copyright protections that take effect with each film or artwork produced. Where this artificial extension has huge implications for public access to and permissions for characters, songs, and motifs, even if the company cannot retain rights over the original films themselves, critics have also picked up on another underlying issue. As argued by The Mary Sue, the vast majority of Disney’s characters and storylines can be traced back to other works that are available in the public domain. From Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, which fell into the public domain in the early 1900s, to Mulan, whose source ballad was written at some point during the fifth or sixth century, Disney has profited tremendously from the free use and manipulation of other people’s work. But as these stories become conflated with the Disney studio, the original public works are increasingly pushed to the wayside and run the risk of being forgotten or misattributed entirely. The same cannot be said for its own productions, however, and as Disney acquires more and more rights to franchise works under Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilms and more, the future of creative license and pop culture in the public domain is unclear.

18 APRIL 2019

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From bedtime stories to Broadway Louisa You ARTS & CULTURE “Look, I didn’t want to be a half-blood.” Rick Riordan’s The Lightning Thief grew out of bedtime stories the author wrote for his son, who loved Greek mythology and wanted to see heroes with ADHD and dyslexia just like himself. In its most recent incarnation, the story of Percy Jackson was adapted for the stage as part of a musical production that is currently touring Canada and the US. My memory of reading the original “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” series is nebulous, but it must have included some version of middle-school me venturing into the more ‘mature’ section of my school library (i.e. for the high school seniors) again and again to read about Percy’s quests. After the original series ended, Riordan wrote more books, including the “Heroes of Olympus” series. Each year, I would read the books over and over again until the new one came out the next October, and I would go buy it at Costco because the book was 10% cheaper there than it was at Chapters. I own both the original and sequel series, and my own copy of The Lightning Thief is so worn that the spine is held together with scotch tape. When I left for university, I thought it was impractical to bring all of these books with me across the country. Instead, I brought one copy of a spin-off, Percy Jackson’s Greek Gods, which only weighs as much as a small refrigerator. I know the opening and last lines of the books by

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The musical adaptation of Rick Riordan’s The Lightning Thief will take fans back to the original series, write Louisa You. heart. When I started reading The Lightning Thief, about their dreams and wishes (think “My Shot” from both Percy and I were 12 years old—and by the time Hamilton, or “Part of Your World” from the Little Merof the concluding book we were both 17. To say I was maid). It was absolutely lovely to see my favourite character get to sing such an important and impactful excited to go see the musical is an understatement. I loved that the musical had the perfect vibe. It was song even though she wasn’t the title character. I have to say, though, the best part of the experifun and weird and quirky and just the right amount ence is the amount of orange Camp Half-Blood shirts of rock-and-roll. It didn’t take itself too seriously and the jokes got a laugh from both the long-time fans in the audience. I saw so many kids there, and it was like me as well as younger audience members. I un- evident that many were deliberately wearing Percy’s derstood that the musical had to edit the content for favourite colour (blue). Although I grew up with Perthe adaptation and couldn’t include everything, but I cy, I am so excited about how many younger readreally appreciated the small shout-outs to characters ers are enjoying Riordan’s works, including his new and plot points I treasured: the “dam snacks” joke, the “Rick Riordan Presents”—a project that features under-represented authors telling mythological stories St. Louis arch, and of course, Bianca di Angelo. My favourite song was Annabeth’s solo: “My from their own cultures and backgrounds. I’m going home this summer and I can’t wait to Grand Plan.” Musical theatre productions usually re-read all my Percy books again. feature an “I Want” song, where the protagonist sings “For once, I didn’t look back.”

Does Captain Marvel go further and faster? Meghan Gheron ARTS & CULTURE The Marvel Cinematic Universe’s (MCU) latest entry has something for Marvel ultra-fans, casual viewers, and cat lovers alike. Starring Brie Larson, Samuel L. Jackson, and Jude Law, Captain Marvel is the twenty-first MCU film and the first to premiere in 2019. It has since grossed $938 million worldwide, making it the year’s biggest opener and the fifth highest initial totaler for any Marvel film. It’s Larson’s job to carry the film as its protagonist, and she does so with style and confidence. Whether you recognize her from her wildly different roles in Scott Pilgrim or Room, there’s no denying her talent. She doesn’t disappoint as Carol Danvers, delivering a breezy flippant character with a notable vulnerable streak, shuffling expertly between typical Marvel witticisms and genuine character work. She’ll feel right at home with the cast of Avengers: Endgame, where she’s next set to feature. There’s a certain unflappable sarcasm to Carol that’s a joy to watch and makes you think that even Thanos and his snap couldn’t shake her. The film hops on a recent trend of nostalgia in film and television, taking the audience back to ‘95: Blockbuster Video, Radio Shack and slow-loading computers. In the lead up to the movie, Marvel even launched a retro promotional website that’s worth checking out if only for the memories of past Internet struggle. It’s effective, if a bit tired —and at least it’s not yet an-

other 80s nostalgia kick. Captain Marvel is a movie that doesn’t quite know how to begin, and as such doesn’t truly find its feet until it crashlands onto Earth and introduces its supporting cast while kicking the main plot into gear. Larson and Jackson are the film’s revelation—their chemistry is effortless and buddy-cop-esque, and it’s a delight to see just how good Marvel is getting at their de-aging CGI. From there, it’s banter, jet planes, and an excellent Earth-invasion premise with a charismatic semi-antagonist in Ben Mendelsohn. The film also refreshingly grounds its hero in something different from the usual traumatic backstory: there’s little time wasted on a sob story. Instead, Captain Marvel is all about getting back up when you fall down as well as valuing your relationships with friends and family. There’s no love interest for Carol, just a best friend and a daughter for whom she cares deeply. “That really tight knit bond is family. This is the love of the movie. This is the love found again. This is the person to go to the ends of the earth to fight to defend. And to me, it’s so natural”, says Larson of the relationship between Carol Danvers and her best friend and copilot Maria Rambeau. Meanwhile, Maria’s insistence that Carol was the most powerful person she knew before she received her powers echoes the sentiment first approached in Spider-Man: Homecoming: “if you’re nothing without the suit, you shouldn’t have it.” Unfortunately, it’s a theme that Marvel often forgoes in favor of flashy technology and power, as with Peter Parker’s Iron Spider suit and the emphasis on Carol’s immense

power as Endgame approaches. It’s a solid film, one of Marvel’s better origin stories, and more importantly a total blast —worth seeing whether you’re deeply entrenched in Marvel’s ever-expanding cinematic universe or not. Even if you’re not interested in the character of Carol Danvers, Captain Marvel leads directly into Avengers: Endgame and showcases Avengers characters that haven’t been seen on the big screen since 2014 (hello, Coulson!). At the very least, you’ll want to learn how Nick Fury lost his eye. But if you’re expecting something significantly different from the Marvel mold, you probably won’t find it here. In spite of whatever controversy it might have stirred up from the darkest corners of the Internet regarding its female lead, Captain Marvel doesn’t deliver anything new or particularly unconventional, and doesn’t feel stylistically unique in its direction or cinematography at any point. Its twists and turns are enjoyable, but nothing groundbreaking. Marvel is in a comfortable spot right now, finding success after success without shaking up its formula and basic structure, forgoing risk-taking. It will be interesting to see how they approach films following the final Avengers, although a slew of sequels featuring already-established heroes don’t look promising. Then again, Captain Marvel doesn’t need to be groundbreaking to be a success, nor did it promise anything new. It’s enough that it introduces Marvel’s first female lead, neatly sets up the penultimate Avengers movie, and doesn’t disappoint anyone looking for a good time or already invested in the Marvel formula.

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18 APRIL 2019

New police drama pairs K9 and cop

The Herald’s interview with the star of CityTV’s Hudson & Rex Jadine Ngan ARTS & CULTURE There are police dramas, dark and fast-paced, and there are more lighthearted dog films; occasionally, a show comes along that seeks to carve a niche somewhere between the two. Hudson & Rex follows the high-stakes pursuits of sharp major crimes detective Charlie Hudson (John Reardon), and his partner Rex (Diesel vom Burginwald). Formerly with the K9 unit, Rex saw his previous handler killed; Hudson stepped in to save the dog from euthanasia and the two fell into a natural partnership. Along with their department, they navigate cases ranging from hostage situations to an art theft murder, scouring both the upper echelons and abandoned corners of St. John’s Newfoundland to bring their suspects to justice. The Herald spoke with the show’s lead, John Reardon of Continuum and White Chicks, at the CityTV studio in the week before the show’s March 25 premiere. Hudson & Rex is a bit like CSI with a dog, star John Reardon tells The Innis Herald. Innis Herald: In previous interviews, you’ve de- so it’s really nice to be back on the East Coast and it scribed the show as having ‘action with heart.’ feels very familiar. St. John’s is very similar to Halifax. I love the people there; everyone’s very welcoming to Can you tell me a bit about that? us. John Reardon: ‘Action with heart’ is one of the catchphrases that we use with the show. There’s a lot of IH: It’s a bit of a homecoming, then, because action in the police world, but then we try and mix you’re based in LA now. that in with relationship stuff between myself and Yeah, exactly. I go back a couple times a year to the Rex, [and] between all of us as a unit. So it’s a com- Maritimes, but I’m never back for more than a month. bination of wanting to have these exciting sequences My son was born in LA and this is the longest he’s where we push the envelope because we’re doing it been able to come back too, so he gets to see family. with a dog, but we also want people to like the char- IH: I heard there was an interesting anecdote acters—watch the characters grow and change, and about how your son’s name played a role in you care about them. taking this on. IH: Could you describe the dynamic between the central characters?

JR: Kevin Hanchard plays our superintendent [Joseph Donovan]. He doesn’t play a stereotypical boss; he’s very hands-on and always trying to help as opposed to coming down on us. So he’s very much a part of the team. Mayko Nguyen plays our forensics expert [Dr. Sarah Truong], so she analyzes the evidence that Rex often finds. Justin Kelly’s our tech expert [Jesse Mills], and does everything millennial related. And then Rex has special talents with his senses that nobody else has, so he picks up on things. IH: You’ve been filming in Newfoundland. How are you finding that? JR: I love Newfoundland. I’m from Halifax originally,

IH: Did you train with him beforehand? JR: I did. It was very quick, because I got to St. John’s four or five days before we went to camera. So we spent every day before we went to camera getting to know each other. We put in as much time as we could in the beginning to start to grow that trust. Because I think it’s the trust that makes the relationship happen. IH: The show was based on an Austrian one. Did you do any prep with that, going into the role?

JR: It’s based on the Austrian show Inspector Rex, [which] went for about fifteen years in Europe. And I feel like Hudson & Rex is a little bit different, even JR: My son’s name is Hudson, and he was born ten though it does very much stick to the rest of the months before the production. It was actually the model. I actually made a choice to not watch [Infirst thing that caught my attention when I read the spector Rex] until we finish shooting the first season, script, was that there’s got to be a little bit of… Seren- just because we were trying to find our own voice for the show. I knew that if I watched it I’d have that in dipity? Yeah, definitely. my head. But I want to watch it after the first season, IH: What’s been your favorite thing, setting this because I get so many comments from people about apart from all the other projects you’ve worked how much they love Inspector Rex. on? IH: Does that put any pressure on you, then, comJR: The group that I’m working with, and Diesel and ing up with the remake of it? the dog team—Sherry Davis, who’s the trainer and Diesel’s owner. Our show is obviously different from JR: Nope, I don’t think so. I think we definitely want a lot of cop shows, but it’s also different from a lot to do justice to the show Inspector Rex, but I think of cop-and-dog shows that there’s been in the past, we’re also creating our new thing. I think that it will because we try and shoot with Diesel in as much of appeal to a really large audience because of the dog, the scene as possible. He’s integrated into everything and because of the stories. So no, I don’t feel a lot that we do, and I think that makes it a little bit more of pressure, but I do want people who loved the old show to love this as well, and think that we’ve paid realistic. good homage to it. IH: He really is part of the family, would you say? IH: For those who aren’t familiar with the origiJR: Oh, absolutely. nal, what are two other shows you could describe IH: Do you have any memorable moments from this as a cross between? filming with Diesel? JR: Do you know Turner and Hooch? It’s probably a JR: We really bonded when he met my son, and that was fairly early—he met my son right before we went to camera. My son loves him and wakes up every morning and wants to go see Diesel, so that was pretty great. I also remember when I was doing a scene with Diesel and I went down to pet him. He gave me a lick, but licked me right inside my mouth—which was a little unexpected.

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COURTESY OF BETA FILM

bit older. Umm.. CSI with a dog? [Or] Criminal Minds with one of the members of the team being a dog. Watch Hudson & Rex on Mondays at 8 on CityTV or stream online at CityTV.com ­—————————————————— Editor’s note: interview was edited for length and clarity.

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Vinyl supplier RPM shuts down Sarah Laudenbach ARTS & CULTURE Without so much as a word of warning, on Monday, January 7th, 2019, Canadian vinyl distributor RPM sent the following email to all of its clients: “I regret to inform you that RPM Distribution will be closing all operations effective immediately. No orders will be processed moving forward, and any existing orders in the system will be cancelled. All returns on site will be processed and credits will be provided. New returns will not be issued or accepted. Limited staff will be here to facilitate and oversee accounts payable/receivables and supplier returns…” For many years, RPM Distribution was the leading independent distributor of vinyl records for all of Canada–and without any warning or explanation, the company suddenly shut down in early January of this year. Retailers were left reeling; while some larger shops had time to (quickly) look for an alternate supplier, smaller record stores weren’t so lucky. As The Toronto Star writes, “the move put a halt to vinyl shipments for many smaller music shops,” meaning that independent retailers simply stopped receiving music altogether. While the suddenness of RPM’s closure made retailers panic, it also made people wonder–why, after all of these years, was RPM shutting down so suddenly? What had happened to it? Why was no one talking about the reason behind the closure? Mystery and panic surrounded the abrupt closure, leaving retailers and buyers alike anxious about the future of vinyl in Canada. It was not until early February that questions would be answered. Two weeks after RPM announced its closure, the company filed for bankruptcy; and it was found that RPM owed $8.9 million CAD in liabilities to various major music labels – primarily, Universal Music Canada. This was found out when Paul Herzog, the president of RPM’s parent company Sound City Music Entertainment Inc., filed a sworn statement in an Ontario court on January 25th, 2019. This, however, did nothing to comfort vinyl retailers. With shelves left empty from the Christmas and Boxing Day rushes the month before, stores were left floundering, wondering how they were going to restock. Some stores relied on RPM to supply more than 70% of their stock, and did not even get the chance to receive their regular post-holidays restock before

RPM went under. While there was already no hope for record stores to receive new albums, the sudden closure also meant that many stores didn’t even receive their regular stock. Left bare-shelved and with absolutely no support from RPM, vinyl stores across the entire country were in deep trouble. So, what are the lasting effects of RPM’s closure? For one, customers won’t be able to find album or artist titles as easily. There may be less stock altogether, and you may not even be able to find as many copies of popular music anymore. And, because of this incredibly limited amount of stock, it is likely that vinyl stores are going to have to start raising prices. With vinyl albums typically retailing between $25 and $45 (excluding limited edition albums), these prices may have to increase just to keep record stores afloat. RPM’s closure has also left many people wondering if this is an indication of the state of vinyl’s popularity. Rest assured, however, that last year alone saw a 25% increase in vinyl sales in Canada–as Doug Putman, the president of Sunrise Records says, “the industry as a whole is healthy…it is still a very healthy niche business.” While this might not mean that vinyl is going away any time soon, now, it is more important than ever to support your local record stores. Yes, prices may be going up, but if you truly love records, please continue to support the industry–particularly independent locations, that were more severely impacted by the RPM closure. And, if you’ve never been much of a vinyl fan, now is the time to start collecting! Below is a list of record stores nearby campus that are worth checking out. Support Toronto’s independent vinyl retailers! Dead Dog Record 1209 Bloor Street West Run by former employees of Sunrise Records, Dead Dog Records is similar to what you might remember HMV looking like. With a solid vinyl collection, this record store also sells music t-shirts and other accessories, if you’re looking for something beyond records. The team at Dead Dog is small, dedicated, and always good for new music recommendations! Kops Records 229 Queen Street West A chain of record stores (which has recently gotten smaller, following the closure of their Bloor Street

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location), Kops Records is a classic Toronto record store that has been around since the 1970s. This location houses North America’s largest collection of rare and Northern Soul 45s, and is located right next to Osgoode Station on the subway line, if you don’t feel like walking! Play De Record 411 Spadina Ave. Having just relocated after twenty-six years from its Yonge Street location, Play De Record was initially oriented toward DJs. Still the go-to place for DJs who prefer the old-school stuff over digital music-making, this record shop is small, but mighty. The staff are very knowledgeable, and if you’ve ever considered entering the world of DJ-ing, this is the place to start! Sonic Boom 215 Spadina Ave. Sonic Boom has one of the largest record collections I’ve ever seen. Upstairs houses their newest releases and employee favorites, along with a sizeable collection of books, record players, neon lights, and other little novelties. Downstairs is a massive vinyl and CD shop, with almost every genre and artist imaginable. Can’t find what you’re looking for? They’ll order your records in for you! Tonality Records 2168 Dundas Street West If you’re looking for something a little more indie and niche, Tonality Records is the place to go. Tonality, as is printed in big, bold letters on their website, specializes in “small-run indie and hard to find vinyl.” If more mainstream music isn’t to your taste, this shop is definitely worth checking out for some incredible finds. Shortstack Records 256A Queen Street West A fairly famous Toronto record store, Shortstack Records has a wide selection of vinyl. It’s the ideal place to sell old records and buy new ones, if you’re looking to change your tastes up a bit! The staff is incredibly friendly, hands-on, and knowledgeable about their stock. Shortstack also boasts an incredibly popular Instagram account (@shortstackrecords) for record collections and enthusiasts.

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18 APRIL 2019

Intersecting STEM and the humanities An interview with linguistics Professor Nathan Sanders

Shankhalika Srikanth SCIENCE For Professor Nathan Sanders, STEM and the arts are not mutually exclusive. Currently an assistant professor with the Department of Linguistics here at UofT, his areas of research and expertise are grounded in both the sciences and the humanities. Following is our discussion on how he has integrated these two seemingly antithetical academic areas in his work throughout his career, as well as his thoughts on common misconceptions that may be fuelling the tension between the two. Throughout grade school, Professor Sanders was passionate about the sciences, but also had a keen interest in languages, and studied multiple during school. He observed that he wasn’t approaching each language simply by rote memorization of verb charts, however: “One of the things that I was doing that I didn’t realize that I was doing, is I was approaching languages from a very scientific point of view. I was trying to figure out how they worked, what was their structure; I was looking at the patterns, not what you typically do. “Then in university I took a linguistics course and discovered that I had been doing linguistics on my own... then I fell in love with the field. It was basically a marriage of my two interests: this mathematical, scientific approach to looking at the world, and language.” Originally intending on pursuing a degree in just math, Professor Sanders graduated MIT with a Bachelor of Science in math with a minor in linguistics, and then went on to earn his masters and PhD in linguistics. Although the field of linguistics in itself has always had a strong science element to it, Professor Sanders’ work “goes even farther than some linguists” in terms of its incorporation of concepts generally confined to STEM fields. “My main area of study is phonetics and phonology, so I look at sounds primarily, and the phonetics side of that is physics. It’s sound waves, frequency, resonance; and lately I’ve also been working on sign languages, and looking at the phonetics of sign languages. So the physics of the body: how does the torso move, how does arm movement affect the torso; so I’m looking at things like mass and acceleration and force and torque and rotational inertia.” He does feel there are many misconceptions surrounding methodologies and characteristics that are taken to be defining traits of certain fields. Looking at STEM for example, those outside this area may “make assumptions about how rigorous it is. There’s a lot of art to how you decide which way to analyse something. You’ve got your data, and you’ve got to come up with some analysis of why the data is distributed the way it is, and it’s a little bit of an art trying figure that out, so there is some arbitrariness on the STEM side that I think is not perceived by the other side; and I also think that outside STEM, people think that STEM doesn’t see the bigger picture, the heart, the humanity in what they’re doing. I think they say “Oh, they’re just dealing with numbers, they’re not dealing with real people, or real emotions.” And they are—it just doesn’t show up as obviously. Linguistics in particular, I think, is an area where this is very clear. In sociolinguistics or documenting endangered languages, the people are a huge factor in what we’re do-

ing; so these things are happening, often behind the scenes, often backgrounded rather than foregrounded in the sciences; so I think that’s something where STEM is perceived one way, but it’s not a totally accurate perception. “Conversely, I think that STEM folk look at the humanities and think that it’s all fluffy, that it’s all opinion, that it’s all anecdotes, that it’s not rigorous— that two different people can look at the same thing and come up with completely different interpretations and that either one is equally valid or invalid, that it doesn’t matter. And again, this is something that’s about the surface part—it appears that way. But there is rigour behind what’s going on. People aren’t just making random things up; they’re basing it on the evidence that they see, and they may not be using mathematical formula to derive their results, but they’re using a rigorous process in their head— logical thought and argumentation. They’re making connections to things that could be missing in mathematical analysis. “I was noticing something the other day, it’s like if you happened to look at a particular author and you get the sense that they use metaphors way more often than comparable authors do, if you’re in the humanities you might just say that. You might just say “Mary Smith uses metaphors more than her contemporaries do,” but over on the sciences side somebody might say, “let’s test that,” and they count up the number of metaphors, and it turns out that everyone uses about the same amount of metaphors. But there was still something right about what was said on the humanities side because they noticed it, so why did they notice it? And it could be because those metaphors that she used are more resonant, they’re more evocative, more colourful; there’s some unquantifiable quality that the humanities person is noticing that the sciences person who’s just looking at it numerically is missing. And so what we see is that both of these are working together to give us a picture of what’s going on.” “The picture is that everybody’s using metaphor the same to the same amount, but this person is using something extra, this ineffable quality of an obvious metaphor or an effective metaphor, that you just can’t measure, you can’t put a number on it. And so both approaches are important. You need this just raw, gut, emotional human reaction to what you’re seeing, and you need numerical quantification to get the full picture of what’s happening. So I think when there’s tension between the sides, part of it is not seeing the value in what the other side is doing and not seeing that they are actually doing these things that you think they’re not.” In terms of why tension exists between the two, Professor Sanders believes that a significant cause for divide is that “we are socialized to believe that these two ways of viewing the world are very different. I think we’re socialized to believe that growing up, you’re a math person or you’re a language person. If you happen to show a slight preference to one, that gets picked up on by your teachers, and they keep pushing you in that one direction, and you don’t get as much practise using the skills needed for the other side. So I think that’s one aspect, we’re just socialized to believe, so you grow up to be one of these people, and you socialize the next generation, and it’s just this endless cycle. “So then the question is: why is there a tension, why don’t we just say, “Oh there’s STEM people and

COURTESY OF NANCY ZHAO

Professor Nathan Sanders reflects on the unnecessary divide between STEM and the humanities. there’s not-STEM people and we’re all happy.” I think humans just have a general ‘us versus them’ mentality, that if you’re in your group, your group’s the best and so I think there’s just this natural tendency to do that, especially when it’s something so fundamental as how you think, the way you look at the world, that seems like such a basic component of your identity. And we put a lot of emotional content on this division. We talk about humanities and STEM people in both positive and negative ways that ties it to our emotional reaction to these things; so STEM is cold and detached but rational and logical. Humanities are foofy and opinionated and flighty and not grounded in patterns, but they’re also aware of the humanity, the human condition, they have a deeper connection to what’s going on with people. So I think the way we talk about these fields also drives this tension, and so we butt heads. I think it’s just a self-perpetuating cycle. “This is one of the things that I like about linguistics because it straddles the boundary. It’s dealing with language, which is rooted in people, people’s interactions, but it’s a scientific mathematical approach to studying language and so it has to deal with both. It’s a really beautiful interdisciplinary field, because you have people at the really STEM-y end like me who are doing the physics of language, and then you have people at the more humanities end living and working with communities to document their language and culture, it’s this nice range from science to humanities and everything in between.” While ideally Professor Sanders encourages taking as many varied courses as possible, he realizes the practical limitations on this, and instead chooses to emphasize to his students that “this is a really special time in your life as a student. There are very few times in your life when you’re going to be able to take random classes from world class experts on anything. Name a topic and there’s a class on it, and it’s going to be taught by someone who really knows the material and I try to get students to take full advantage of that. You have this opportunity, you can go take these classes, so go do it, because once you’re out in the real world working your job you’re not going to have that opportunity.”

Editor’s note: interview was edited for length and clarity.

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You can't put out a fire with wishful thinking Marloes Streppel SCIENCE “If humans could really change the climate, everyone would be talking about it, and people wouldn’t be talking about anything else.” This quote by Greta Thunberg, a 16-year-old climate activist from Sweden, perfectly sums up a major deadlock in effective climate policy—people don’t act like it’s a crisis. People simply hope that politicians know what they are doing, and that they are aware of the risk that climate change brings. They believe that activism will be done by others and that they don’t need to play a role. The climate crisis is not one that requires 10+ more years of research; it has already been solved. The problem doesn’t lie in science—it lies in the politicians, companies, and citizens ignoring science in favour of short-term gain and comfort. Since the late 1960s, evidence of the effects of our actions has been present on both the Internet and through research. Before I continue, however, it is essential to recognise that the damage done is not universal. The wealthiest 10% of the population, which includes most people in the global North, are responsible for 49% of total CO2 emissions in the world. The poorest 50% are only responsible for around 10%, yet they are the ones that will likely see the worst effects of climate change. It is the responsibility of those who brought on this crisis to solve it, and to ensure that the nations who suffered at the hands of the North’s development are compensated so that they, on their own terms, can develop sustainably. The lack of action from the general public against political inaction can be blamed mainly on how the climate issue is framed. You would think that when we hear that climate change is “the defining issue of our time,” that it would be all anyone could talk about. That there would be severe regulations against the use of non-renewable energy and deforestation. That there would be mandatory classes in school to educate students about the environment. How are people supposed to grasp the urgency of the climate problem when we can legally use fossil fu-

Congratulations to our new masthead! On March 27th, The Innis Herald held its Annual General Meeting and elections for the 2019/2020 academic year. The meeting was attended by the current executive, current contributors, and engaged readers. The meeting began with the approval of minutes and an empassioned speech from outgoing Editor-in-Chief James Chapman. In his official update, he highlighted the many achievements of this year’s paper, including the expansion to pubishing 16 pages instead of 12, the addition of an Orientation Week issue for incoming students, the creation of recurring columns like “Innis Throwback,” and the recruitment of more Innis student writers, illustrators, and photographers to the paper. Chapman is sad to come to the end of his four-year involvement with the Herald, but is proud of what his team accomplished and looks forward to decades more of original and quirky Innis student content.

COURTESY OF GRETA THUNBERG

Agreeing with Nobel Peace Prize nominated 16-year-old climate activist, Greta Thunberg (above), the climate crisis deserves our full attention, writes Marloes Streppel.

els to heat our homes; when politicians campaign on removing carbon taxes and cutting regulations; when breaking news focuses on Trump’s new tweets rather than Pacific Islands being swallowed by the sea.

“I don’t want your hope. I want you to panic. I want you to feel the fear I do. Every day. And want you to act. I want you to behave like our house is on fire. Because it is.” –Greta Thunberg We don’t talk about it. Currently, the majority of the nations that ratified the Paris Agreement are on track to fail in keeping the temperature below a 1.5°C, or even 2°C increase above pre-industrial levels. It might be preached as a “diplomatic success,” however, the scientific reality is that, with the current COP21’s plan (Paris Agreement), we are on track to hit a 2.7°C increase in temperature by 2100. By then, most of us reading this will be around a hundred years of age if we are privileged to live that long, with children and grandchildren of our own. A 2-3°C increase will see This update was followed by the elections. Only one of the seven positions was contested—that of Creative Director. Both candidates for this position were unable to attend the elections due to previous commitments, but each provided engaging speeches for the voters. Candidate Jadine Ngan was ultimately successful and was elected as Creative Director. All other positions were filled with the exception of Layout Editor, which remains vacant and will be filled through an application process before the start of the academic year. The new team sees a mix of the past year’s executive and new contributors joining the masthead, with each individual bringing new perspectives and innovative ideas for the future of the paper. Thank you to everyone who came out to our AGM and helped support The Innis Herald and its new executive team. This is our last edition of the year, but we'll be back in September to continue to keep you connected to your college and campus (provided Doug Ford doesn’t cut us first!).

a risk of global mass extinction, global crop decline, and millions at risk for displacement by the rise in sea levels. At the 3-4°C increase, our adaptability to this planet will become questionable. We are much too hopeful. We are told to recycle, turn off our lights, and buy metal straws; we are told that our individual actions are enough. And in a sense, they are. I am not advocating for you to stop recycling, but you can’t stop at recycling. You can’t leave your future in the hands of a government that still promotes the use of fossil fuels and spends $ 4.5 billion on another transnational pipeline. You cannot hope that our leaders are aware of the implications of their inaction. We need to drastically increase the pressure on our leaders through protests and public action. We need to unite as a population and force climate change to become a daily focus in the news. We need to take responsibility for the thousands of individuals that will fall victim to coastal flooding, and for the thousands that have already lost their homes due to rising sea levels. We cannot push off this issue any longer. If the Paris Agreement, a “diplomatic success,” is not a drastic enough measure, it goes to show just how behind we are in taking a stand. 2019/2020 Masthead: Editor-in-Chief: Daria Mancino Managing Editor: Julie Shi Creative Director: Jadine Ngan Online Editor: Daniel Li Senior Copy Editor: Louisa You

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Innis Herald to begin printing on compost bins Daniel Li SATIRE The recently elected Editor-in-Chief of The Innis Herald, Daria Mancino, has announced plans to offer students of Innis college the option of buying future editions of the paper printed on compost bins. The change is part of Mancino’s goals to increase readership and to reduce waste. “With everybody getting their news online through Facebook or Reddit these days, we’ve been noticing dropping readership numbers in the past decade”, she says. Before the widespread use of the internet, The Innis Herald had dozens of Innisians reading the paper. However, this year, out of the 2000 Innis students surveyed, only six students (the exact number of students who sit on the paper’s executive) reported reading the paper. In the same survey, nearly 99% of students living in Innis Residence reported using the paper to line their compost bins. “That’s when it hit me,” exclaimed Daria, “it was like a lightbulb went off in my head. I couldn’t believe we didn’t think of it before. We should just print the paper directly on the compost bins.” The Innis Herald invited Innis college students to a focus group, assessing public opinion before implementing the compost bins throughout the college. “I think it’s a great idea and I’m excited to see it happen”, said Innis resident and incoming Environmental Committee Co-Chair, Justin Callahan.

“It’s killing two birds with one stone. [The paper] already goes into the compost anyways. We can reduce the paper being used, and students can read the paper every time they take out the compost.” The Innis Herald plans to collaborate with Greenlid™, the current supplier of compost bins for the Innis College Residence. Morgan Wyatt, an Innis alumnus and co-founder of Greenlid™, is looking forward to the innovative idea. “Our compost bins are already made of recycled newspapers, so this is really thinking ahead. It’s great to see student leaders make decisions like this”, he said. The new publishing style also builds upon the paper’s existing fanbase, particularly avid readers who posted glowing reviews of the paper on its Facebook page. One such review read, “The Innis Herald could not be worse if it tried. At least it’s a good compost liner.” The Herald decided to honour this fan by taking their review to heart and printing the paper directly on the compost bin itself. The Herald is also looking into printing directly onto apple cores and used paper towels to further facilitate the composting process. “It’ll be more challenging, for sure,” said Daria, “but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try.” In a statement published on The Innis Herald website, residents can expect to see Greenlid™ Herald Edition compost bins in their suites by this upcoming September. Commuter students will also be able to purchase sets of 5 in The Innis Herald office to use and read at home.

Pickle Barrel stock drops as Innis swears off catering

COURTESY OF FLICKR

Daniel Li SATIRE For the first time in nearly ten years, IN2U, a leadership conference organized by the Office of Student Life (OSL) at Innis College, did not serve Pickle Barrel (TSE:PCKB) for lunch. Stockholders and investors attending the conference were noticeably shaken by the surprise, and Pickle Barrel stock dropped more than 7 points over the weekend. “We just don’t get it”, said panicked stockholder Bick Parr, “Sure, the food doesn’t taste great, but these are students. Do they really care what it tastes like if they don’t have to pay for it? More importantly, do we really care?” It seems as though somebody cared, as this year’s conference was catered by Pumpernickel’s. Other investors are less surprised by the catering choice, suggesting the retirement of the past Innis College Dean of Students, Tim Worgan, as the cause of this change. “We planted Tim in the

OSL ages ago to make sure we could keep selling food. People don’t seem to realize that selling bland sandwiches is more difficult than it sounds,” said investor Purd Bird. Tim Worgan was the Dean of Students for ten years, starting as Acting Dean in 2009. “I remember the days when we would sell dozens upon dozens of sandwich platters, not because students wanted them, but because we asked Tim to buy them,” Bird reminiscently spoke. Despite the change to catering, some students were still unimpressed. “This food is literally the same as it always is. It’s uninspired and bland, and I’m a little insulted that they think we would eat this,” said third-year student Paxton Wong, as he stuffed plastic containers with sandwiches. “What? This? Well I still need food for dinner,” he explained. Confidence in Pickle Barrel regained itself as investors realized that Pumpernickel’s is a subdivision of Pickle Barrel that serves exactly the same food. By the end of the week, Pickle Barrel stock had shot up 14 points.

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MY WATER BOTTLE IS ALIVE! nal year of school, the teakwood finish was chipping off. The bottle had been with me during lonely days (days when I was haunted by bittersweet memories of times when I still used the glass bottle), it had been with me during all my exams, and it was still with me “My mom gave it to my dad, and my dad didn’t then, except for a few chips of paint. As the school want it.” This is how I tend to recount the history of year started, I bathed my bottle in warm water and my water bottle. But this is my bottle’s story only in peeled the paint off, leaving only the shining silver the sense that “I was born in a hospital” is mine. This metal beneath it (see photo). It truly was like skinhistory misses its character, its place in my life—it ning a peach. It felt like a new beginning. This was the misses the fact that it makes breathing sounds, vio- first time I assigned significant meaning to the bottle, lates physical laws, and is likely a conscious entity. identifying my own life’s events with changes in the It’s a 25oz S’well bottle with all the paint scratched bottle’s physical self. off, and I never leave home without it. I am a big water The process of applying for graduate school was guy; I drink it all the time. The hardest part of apply- something into which I put a lot of time, energy, and ing to grad school last fall was the fact that I couldn’t emotion. One night, during this period, I dropped my drink water for three hours while taking the Mathe- water bottle onto my kitchen floor, and when I picked matics Subject GRE®. I think it has become a living it back up, it had a huge dent in its side. I pushed at being recently, but it’s possible that it’s been alive the it from every angle on the inside, and couldn’t fix it. whole time without me knowing it. I have loved this This made me deeply sad. I had identified so strongly object even before I noticed its supernatural tenden- with the water bottle, and thought of it as so meancies. My bottle channels deep and mysterious universal forces which trace my life, all while doing the impossible: doing literally impossible things. Before this one, I used a glass Victoria College water bottle with a red plastic lid. I have never been affiliated with Victoria College, and I also am not the kind of person who should have a glass water bottle. I used my previous water bottle because Kate gave it to me, and it was a very beautiful water bottle. When I eventually broke the red lid was when many things seemed to shift all at once. (It was a surprise to everyone that I only cracked the plastic lid rather than shattering the entire bottle. Sometimes I think this old water bottle intentionally protected itself from this fate. I still have it in my closet.),I was starting to think about my last year of university and applying to grad school, I was no longer seeing Kate, and now I had to find a new water bottle. This is when my aforementioned mom gave a new S’well bottle to my aforementioned dad and he didn’t want it. I was next in the chain of succession for water bottles in the family. I speak so whimsically about the ways in which my bottle seems to transcend the physical world, and yet the physicality of my bottle is intrinsically linked to the way I understand its ethereal power. It was originally a brown bottle with a painted-on pattern that His water bottle’s rhythmic breathing and healed dent alludes looked like wood. As fall came and I entered my fi- to life, claims Calder Morton-Ferguson.

Calder Morton-Ferguson SATIRE

ingful, and I had no idea what the dent would mean for my own life. I felt the dent, for the days and weeks before and after it happened. When applications were done, and a stressful and busy period had given way to a period of sustained waiting, my bottle began to make breathing sounds. By this, I mean that I began to hear rhythmic inhaling and exhaling coming from my water bottle from time to time. This still happens every day. I don’t know why or how this happens, and the only explanation which I am willing to accept is that my water bottle is a living being. Then I got into grad school. I exhaled, too, with a sigh of relief. The climate of my brain improved significantly after this point—I was less stressed, and living better and more fully, more certain about my future and my place in the world. One morning during this period of emotional sunrise, I woke up and picked up my water bottle, searching with my thumb for the dent on its side. As if breathing wasn’t enough proof of my water bottle’s supernatural power, it had done the physically impossible. The two-inch crater I had been so upset about a couple months earlier was gone. My water bottle had healed itself without a trace. Just as the dent in my water bottle had reverberated through time and space as an emotional dent in my life, the emotional healing in my life had manifested through the impossible physical healing of a big metal dent. The objects that surround and accompany us as life unfolds must not be forgotten as part of the universe’s interconnectedness. My water bottle reminds me that beauty and mystery lie not only in complex systems, but in its simple ones, too. I believe that the significance which I choose to assign to my water bottle is just as rich and materially powerful as the significance one could assign to any other concept. The only way I can understand consciousness itself is as a cosmic sense of meaning expressing itself through a physical vessel; our human consciousness is so obviously an example of consciousness simply because we are lucky enough to have sufficiently complex machines through which this sense of meaning can be expressed. I feel grateful to have gotten to know my water bottle well enough to understand it as conscious and to recognize its power over the universe in relation to mine. It’s getting kind of leaky though.

BREAKING! HAROLD INNIS SAYS “WHY EAT AT THE NORTHROP FRY MCDONALD’S WHEN YOU CAN EAT AT THE INNIS CAFE?”

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18 APRIL 2019

Game of Scones: Breakfast is Coming • Lemon zest from half a lemon • 1 tsp of lemon juice • 1 tsp milk (more if needed)

Al-amin Ahamed RECIPES With the warm weather finally upon us, it is time for us to dabble with some cute springtime recipes to get over all the L’s from this semester. While we start to catch up on some sleep, it’s also important to wake up and eat a filling breakfast or brunch. A fancy addition to your traditional brunch menu can include scones, frittata, and even sangria. To keep things refreshing and simple, today’s recipe will be mixed berry scones with a vanilla-lemon icing. Scones can be quite intimidating to make, mainly because it can be hard to achieve that buttery and flakey texture. This recipe incorporates butter in three different steps to achieve a delish buttery flavour, but also a flakey pastry. Now since this semester has drained us of our livelihood and quite possibly led to foodless and sleepless nights, this recipe is sure to plump us up with all the sugar and fat, but don’t feel guilty—at least there’s some fruit. INGREDIENTS Mixed Berry Scones: • 1 1/3 cups mixed berries (frozen). You can use any sort of berry combination here or leave them out. • 4 tbsp icing sugar • 3 cups flour (all-purpose) • 3/4 cup butter (unsalted, cut into cubes) • 1/3 cup sugar • 1 tsp salt • 1 tbsp baking powder • 1 tsp vanilla extract • 3/4 milk (whole milk preferred, 2% is okay) • 1 egg, plus 1 extra egg yolk (large) Glaze for Baking: • 3 tbsp butter (unsalted, melted) • 2 tbsp jam (any kind, can substitute for honey)

INNIS THROWBACK

Vanilla-Lemon Icing: • 1/2 cup icing sugar (more if needed) • 1/2 tsp vanilla

DIRECTIONS 1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 400F. 2. Combine frozen berries with the icing sugar and place in freezer till later. 3. Combine the flour with the regular sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add in half the cold butter and work into the flour until you form a fine sand. Add the remaining butter and work into the dough until you form small pea-sized pieces. Mix in the frozen berries with a spatula gently. 4. In a separate bowl beat the egg, yolk and milk till combined. Pour into the dry ingredients and stir gently until just combined. Do not overmix. 5. Generously flour a work surface and pour the dough onto it. Knead the dough until it comes together and forms a large disk. Around 1 inch in height. 6. Use a knife to cut the disk into 8 equal triangles. Place on baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes or until lightly golden brown on down. Rotate the baking sheet after 10 minutes of baking. 7. After 20 minutes remove the scones and brush the tops with the glaze. Place back in oven and cook for 5 minutes or until nice and golden brown. (For the glaze place the butter and jam/ honey in a bowl and microwave till melted). 8. Transfer onto a wire rack and cool the scones. Once cooled drizzle over the lemon glaze. (For the glaze, add the vanilla, sugar, lemon zest/juice and milk to the icing sugar. Add more sugar if too liquid or add more milk if too viscous). 9. Serve alongside some tea or coffee. Enjoy them room temperature or warm.

COURTESY OF AL-AMIN AHAMED

Columnist Al-Amin Ahamed’s scones, compliment any teatime (whether it’s sipping a cup or spilling a cup).

This recipe is very versatile and can be tailored to one’s tastes and dietary restrictions. You can change the combination of berries you use or you can leave them out entirely. Another option would be to flavour the dough with 1 tbsp of lemon zest and poppy seeds. You can eat these scones with jam and even butter. Scones make a great alternative to traditional cookies and crackers during tea time, because you know spilling the tea with friends is the best time of the year. Lemon-poppy seed scones pair well with rooibos tea or hibiscus, mixed berry scones pair well with earl grey tea or classic English breakfast teas. Why not also try scones with currants and ginger NOTE: The scone dough can be cut into triangle and that you can pair with the spiciness of chai tea? The be frozen individually and stored in a plastic bag to be possibilities are endless! baked for another time. They can stay frozen for up Regardless of the type or occasion, scones are a to 1 month. When baking, place them in a 350F oven great way to impress the boys and reel the future baby for 20-25 minutes (before adding the glaze). daddy in! So, show off all that class, sass and whole lot of… SKILL with your adventurous scone making!

“Fuzz Says” remembered Louisa You INNIS LIFE

In the October 1984 edition, Fuzz said, “Don’t take bribes.”

Michael “Fuzz” Friend is probably best known among current students as the namesake of the M. Fuzz Friend Memorial Award—but alongside being Innis’s resident maintenance man, he was also occasionally a guest columnist in Heralds past. Previous editions made sure to feature a “Fuzz Says” section, filled with precious nuggets of wisdom from the man himself. In the April 1985 edition, The Fuzz graced us with this in his feature: “This issue of the Herald sucks.” In addition to wearing hats as Innis’s caretaker and sage adviser, The Fuzz was also the bartender at the College bar. The bar hosted the ICSS’s Happy Hour Club, serving beer for a dollar on Friday afternoons. It has since been replaced by the Innis Cafe. This edition also featured The Fuzz at his post at the bar.

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LOVE TODAY Sarah Laudenbach

PLAYLIST

This time of year is, undoubtedly, an absolute nightmare. Odds are if you’re reading this, it’s on a rare break between all five of your exams, which are probably all happening within the next week. When you’ve been stressed for, oh, the past eight months, it’s easy to let all of the pressure get to you – so, this is a playlist full of upbeat, feel-good songs to remind you that the world isn’t as terrible as U of T makes it seem. If nothing else, the weather’s nice! So crank up this playlist and go enjoy the sunlight for a few hours, before you’re stuck back behind your desk. Scan the QR code to listen on Spotify! #1 "Love Today" MIKA

#7 "Dynamite" Taio Cruz

The inspiration for this playlist is MIKA’s Grammy-nominated single “Love Today.” Upbeat and endlessly catchy, in the words of MIKA, “‘Love Today’ captures the euphoric feeling you get when things go right."

An oldie, but a goodie. If you haven’t heard “Dynamite” since middle school, it’s time to give it a re-listen: I bet you’ll remember more of the lyrics than you think you do. Seriously, why don’t they play this at clubs anymore?

#2 "On Top of the World" Imagine Dragons

#8 "Shingaling" Tom Swoon

Off their first hit album Night Visions, this song is a personal favorite. Along with some inspiring, you-can-do-it lyrics, “On Top of the World” is easy to sing and dance along to and great for letting off steam between study sessions.

This fan-favorite from The Umbrella Academy soundtrack is infectious. With a strong beat, hummable melody, and danceable rhythm, it’s impossible to sit still when “Shingaling” comes on.

#3 "Best Day of My Life" American Authors

#9 "We Come Running” Youngblood Hawke

This song has been used in every film, television show, and commercial you can think of, and for good reason! Upbeat with an overwhelmingly positive message, “Best Day of My Life” will brighten any cloudy day, if only just a little.

Youngblood Hawke’s debut song has been used in FIFA and Coca-Cola commercials alike– which shows how cheery and feel-good it is. Rolling Stone has hailed the song as “energetic” and “triumphant,” and they aren’t far off base.

#4 "Mr. Blue Sky" Electric Light Orchestra

#10 "Top of the World" Greek Fire

The release of Guardians of the Galaxy 2 made Electric Light Orchestra’s 1978 hit popular all over again. With a distinctly 70s pop-rock sound, this song is a toe-tapping, head-bopping classic fit for laying under a sunny blue sky.

If there’s ever a day when you’re feeling particularly down, “Top of the World” is the perfect song to listen to. Powerful, spirited, and glorious, this song will–as its title suggests–make you feel as though you’re on top of the world.

#5 "Surrender" Cheap Trick

#11 "Animal" Neon Trees

Deemed the “ultimate Seventies teen anthem” by Rolling Stone, “Surrender” is another iconic bop from 1978. This song is fitting for the credits of a cheesy 80’s teen movie and is perfect to spice up your Friday night at Robarts.

“Animal” has been covered by everyone from Taylor Swift to Panic! at the Disco to Glee. Bouncy with a edgy rock vibe, “Animal” has a catchy melody sure to get stuck in your head during that very important exam you have coming up.

#6 "Kaleidoscope" A Great Big World

#12 "Pumpin Blood" NONONO

A Great Big World’s “Kaleidoscope” is a decidedly happier jam than their 2013 hit “Say Something”. Pieced together with layered vocals and a bright guitar melody, this is the type of song for those who like to walk to a steady beat.

It’s likely you’ve heard this song by Swedish trio NONONO. Can’t place it? It was the go-to song for car commercials a few years back. The best part of the song is its whistling hook which is sure to drive your roommates crazy.

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CROSSWORD COURTESY OF THE INNIS HERALD

SUDOKU COURTESY OF PUZZLES.CA

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5. This gory three-season TV show was shot at both UTSC and UTSG 8. Based on a superhero-esque TV show which ran from 2006 to 2010, this miniseries divided its time between UTSG and Los Angeles 11. A famous U of T alum whose filmography includes MASH, The Hunger Games, and The Italian Job 12. Though set in Detroit, Convocation Hall can often be seen in the background of many shots in this 2014 high-tech sci-fi film 13. This 2004 cult classic famously shot a brief scene in Convocation Hall 14. This UTSG building famously stoff in for an MIT lecture hall in the 1997 hit film Good Will Hunting

1. This 2013 monster movie, which was shot all over Toronto (including in front of Chestnut residence), was a major box office success 2. The UTSG college which houses U of T’s Cinema Studies Program 3. This UTSG building stands in for a prosthetics lab in Netflix’s The Umbrella Academy 4. An Adam Sandler flick which debuted in 2015 that was shot almost entirely in Toronto and features UTSG in the background of many shots 6. The famous Canadian horror film director who attended UTSG from 1963 to 1967 7. The leading actress of a current, massively popular TV show that shoots at UTM and famous Toronto landmarks such as City Hall 9. The leading actor of a (mediocre) superhero film who goes on a rampage in front of Knox College 10. Knox College makes a lengthy appearance in this 2012 sci-fi film reboot

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