U of Manitoba to implement affirmative action

[WINNIPEG] – The University of Manitoba’s Faculty of Education recently announced the introduction of affirmative action to their admissions process. As of Sept. 2017, 45 percent of places in the program will be reserved for members of marginalized groups.

Niigaan Sinclair, head of the university’s Department of Native Studies, said in an interview with CBC that the lack of diverse teachers is not benefiting Manitoba, because they bring a diverse spread of knowledge from their personal histories.

With files from CBC

New molecule helps monitor brain signals

[EDMONTON] – Scientists at the University of Alberta have developed a molecule that uses red light to detect and showcase signal transmission in brain cells.

Titled FlicR1, researchers hope to use the invention of PhD student Ahmed Abdelfattah to monitor brain activity and identify brain cells more effectively than what has been possible via the traditional approach.

With files from Edmonton Journal

Brock scientists research Zika outbreak

[ST. CATHERINES] – Scientists at Brock University are conducting research on Canadians’ risk of contracting the Zika virus, recently branded a “global health emergency” by the World Health Organization, from our native specimens.

Many medical authorities have deemed the danger to Canada to be minimal, as the mosquitoes most notorious for transmitting the disease cannot survive in our climate. However, due to rising temperatures in the Ontarian climate, entomologist Fiona Hunter notes that possible transmitters could arrive in Canada within “the next decade.”

With files from Toronto Star