King’s College no longer under fire
After 24 years, King’s college can finally say that it meets fire codes, following two years of upgrading the institutions residences. King’s hasn’t been in compliance with fire codes since 1988, and was taken to court by the city of Halifax in 2010 because of the issue. The upgrades include new fire safety doors and exits in residences, a fire exit for the campus pub, and new fire detectors and self-closing doors in residence rooms. The cost of upgrades exceeded $657,000.
With files from The Watch
UBC holds $11.8 in staff’s interest-free mortgages
According to information obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, 47 UBC staff members were found to hold UBC-offered mortgages with their faculties paying the interest. The loans, which were given by the UBC treasury are referred to as “interest-free,” but actually do acquire interest. UBC defended the practice by citing Vancouver’s high housing costs, which necessitate the practice for faculty and administration recruitment.
With files from The Ubyssey
UVic announces next president
The University of Victoria has announced that its seventh president in office will be long-time law professor Jamie Cassels. Succeeding current president of 13 years David Turpin, Cassels will begin his five-year term in July. Cassels joined the Faculty of Law in 1981, and spent nine years as vice-president academic and provost.
With files from The Martlet
U of A researches dinosaur mating rituals
University of Alberta paleontology researcher Scott Persons has found that some feathered dinosaurs used to tail plumage to attract mates, much like modern-day peacocks and turkeys. Dinosaurs called oviraptors show a peculiar fusing together of vertebrae that formed a ridged, blade-like structure, which only birds have today. Persons argues that these tail feathers evolved as a means of waving the dinosaurs’ feathered tail fans.
With files from the U of A website
