argosy janurary 14, 2010

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OPINIONS

In my role as Editor of e Argosy, I

read through each article before it goes

to press. Not only do I essentially get

a heavy view of the issues we cover, I

also tend to see the other side of issues

as I watch editors and writers work

through them. I harbour no grand

belief that I know more than anyone

else and I am the first to admit that

I am as capable of missing details as

the next person. My position as Editor

does not give me super powers in any area.

However, over the past four months,

I have been continually confronted

with the fact that there is a lack of

awareness. We may be amazingly adept

at feeling compassion and sympathy

towards others, and we are certainly

talented at being passionate about the

things that we care about. Yet, can we

be passionate about the things that

don’t strike a chord in our lives, that

don’t tug at our heart strings?

Maybe it’s not about being

passionate, but about being aware.

When my roommates asked what I

was writing on for my weekly editorial,

and I replied by saying “awareness”,

they amusedly asked “awareness about

Knowing is half the battleHaving an awareness of the world around you is critical

Julie Stephenson Argosy Staff

what?”

It’s not about what specifically...but

the concern of being aware of as much

as we can.

So much has happened over the past year. At Mount Allison, we have seen

our student government stumble over

several complications, student numbers

rise, the launch of our own observatory,

and influential faces such as Stephen

Lewis have graced our podiums. On the

global platform, there has been a Black

US President, an economic crisis, two

Canadian governmental prorogues,

continued warfare, multiple human

rights violations, and the H1N1 fiasco.

If you recognized the majority of those

matters, congratulations. What about

the other issues? Do you know about

the changes in teaching evaluations at

Mt. A, health care options for students,

Sackville’s Film Festival, or that wind

power is now a possibility in town.

I am not trying to point out

shortcomings or flaws in the masses atMt. A. If I were, I would be pointing

to myself before anyone else. Instead,

I am hoping that instead of making

New Year’s resolutions about weight

loss, making it to all your classes

this semester, or drinking less, try

committing to being more aware.

Surprisingly, it takes less eff ort than

the traditional resolutions.

Make an eff ort to take five minutes

to browse a news site, pay attention

to global issues, and be aware of local

issues. Despite the fact that most of

us are away from Sackville for five

months out of the year, we are still

residents. It pays to listen to the town;

you find out that they are searching

for new doctors and by-laws against

idling and in support of solar shading

are being considered.

Next time I go walking through

campus looking for comments on

current issues, I would love not to hearthe phrases “I don’t know about that”

or “what is that?”

If you turn to the Features section

of the Argosy, you will find an editorial

on the proposed anti-homosexual law

from Uganda. e article details the

possible human rights violations that

are occurring in the country; results

of a group of people who are unaware

or choose to be unaware of the gross

indecencies and hypocritical thought

they are promoting. We are certainly not

in line with the Ugandan government,

but all it takes is ignorance or decisive

inaction and we become part of the

damage.

At the end of the day, it is your

decision how much you are involved

in physically changing or aff ecting

something. Sometimes we can’tcommit to an event or charity. Being

aware of what’s going on in the world

around you, in the town around you,

and in community that surrounds you,

is probably one of the easiest changes

you can make.

ere are other articles within the

Opinions section that speak about

acting now and making sure our rights

and freedoms aren’t taken away from us.

Each of those writers make intelligent

comments about the current state of

aff airs in Canada and the world today.

You should read each of them carefully.

Don’t let other people tell you what to

think. is is the year of International

Engagement, after all.

Missed@MTADear Mr. Pear,I really miss our nightly cribbage matches. Lookingforward to beating you in theNew Year! XOXO,

Worst Musician Ever

Yellow Hat Soc Exam You walked into our soc exam wearing a yellow hat and ourprof said he didn’t want tomess around with you. I, onthe other hand, would love tomess around sometime.

To German universitiesPlease stop sending yourexceptionally attractive malestudents to Mount Allison. Itis particularly distracting tosome of us female students.Okay, well don’t actually stopsending them. But I meanreally... wow.

Heartless? You walked right by my dog without seeing him. He wagged his tail at you andsniff ed your shoes as youcharged on by. Stop and pethim next time!

Pretty Girl at the PubI saw you on Trivia Night inan all-girls team. You’re anace trivia master and your hairflipping drove me crazy. Wantto exchange trivia facts overdinner sometime?

Morning MooseOn Monday morning around9 am, I entered the studentcentre to see a guy in a moosehat - literally, a hat with a

moose face and antlers. atreally made my morning,moose hat guy!

Girl with the Magenta Coat You’re always so happy, it’s very cute! Keep on singingand feel better soon <3

Dear film music composer Don’t give up just yet!

Meal Hall LoveHey big guy with the chef hat in meal hall... your foodis yummi!

Glove love You wear the darkest hats andcoats and always look quitesurly when you walk around.However, your bright redmittens are a great contrastand show a nicer side of you!

Meal Hall inker You often sit by yourself inmeal hall with nothing but abook for company. You seemto really enjoy the quiet andthe isolation. If you’re everinclined, I’d love to join yourbook club!

What should Mount Allison’s New Year’s resolution be?

Allison Dolan To lighten the workload of hard working students.

Brandon Cullins To not letresolutioners intothe gym.

Julia Kondak Chicken strips inmeal hall!

Lisa MacLean To maintain it’sperfectness!

Sarah Underhill To have moreschool-wide eventsoutside of Frosh Week and otherthan Sports games.

Jordy Paul-FontaineCreate more space forincoming studentsin residence to createa more comfortableliving space.

Photos by Jenifer Boyce



7JANUARY 14,2010 THE ARGOSY • OPINIONS

Stephen Harper’s move to prorogue Parliament

is purely tactical and arrogant, and appropriately

described in the Economist magazine as nothing

less than “naked self-interest”. Historically,

Parliament was given power to control the powers

of the King. In our current system, the purpose of

Parliament - made up of our elected members - is

to hold the government accountable, thus keeping

it in check from abuses. It is a fundamental

institution and its role is vital to our democracy

- it’s what we vote for! We don’t vote for a PrimeMinister!

In calling Governor General Michaëlle Jean

(rather than meeting in person as is required by

protocol) to prorogue (SHUTTING IT DOWN)

government until March 3, Harper has shown

deep disrespect for Canadian’s Parliamentary

institution. is seeming contempt has rendered

our votes meaningless-and for what?

To prorogue Parliament is nothing new to the

world, or this country; the diff erence in this case

lies not only in the facts, but also the role it plays as

part of a larger narrative. ere is nothing ‘routine’

about this prorogue. Try as he might to use the

Olympics as an excuse, no other host country has

prorogued so early, instead sitting either right

up to or during the Olympics. As shocking as

these facts are in and of themselves, what is much

more disturbing is that this is the second time

our Prime Minister has prorogued Parliament in

little more than a year, for equally unacceptable

reasons (to hide from a vote of confidence) that

violate our democratic traditions.

Governments have prorogued Parliament in

the past typically to end a term, when the bulk of

the bills had been passed— this is a stark contrast

with the thirty-seven pieces of legislation (more

than half of all government bills) that are now

killed (so all that work for waste and we pay

their salaries) as a result of Harper’s decision on

December 30 when he thought we’d be too busy

to notice, planning our New Year’s revelry or

hanging out on a beach somewhere. ough our

economy continues to struggle and our soldiers

are at war, Harper has gone ahead and suspended

Parliament for sixty-three days - while our

Commonwealth allies are heading back to work

in Australia, New Zealand, and the U.K. - only

Canada has ‘SUSPENDED GOVERNMENT’

for such an extended p eriod. Why?

It would appear the Prime Minister

has prorogued to avoid responsibility and

accountability for the torture issue, the deficit,

the economy, etc., and getting away with it is a

direct attack on C anadian democracy. Harper has

in essence ‘flipped the bird’ to Parliament by his

outright refusal to hand over documents relating

to the detainees tortured in Afghanistan and thus

is in “contempt of Parliament” as Parliament has

the legal right to those documents. at is the

law of our land.

Harper is attempting (and thus far successfully

so) to concentrate power in the PMO - his

office - to make himself like a king. By allowing

Harper to end discussion any time it suits himmakes Parliament accountable to him, and not

vice versa. us, he is granting higher authority

to himself, and in doing so silencing opposition

whose entire purpose (in Parliament) is to hold

the government accountable. Accountability as

gained through such checks and balances that

Parliament provides is a large part of what makes

the system democratic; taking that away renders

our votes, thus making our voices, irrelevant,

diminishing our democracy.

It is all too apparent the lengths Harper

is willing to go to gain political power at the

expense of Canadian democracy. He has been

successful to date due to his increasing hold

on the media. Without an objective media

that challenges and questions government, a

democracy is weakened. Canadians are starting

to wake up to this pattern of running away from

accountability, shutting down, and silencing

dissent. is isn’t the ‘democracy’ our forefathers

had in mind. We are moving backward.

Harper is doing this based on the assumption

that Canadians are apathetic; that apathy is what

is allowing this to happen. We must fight to

protect what we too often take for granted. Our

democracy is slipping out of our grip and we

must take it back. Our votes do mean something

-- we can’t let our voices be silenced because

Harper doesn’t want to hear what we have to say.

He is not ‘king.’ We as Canadians, and especially

as youth, have an obligation to take back our

future which is being stolen from us; it’s time

to take a stand. Attend the rally on January 23

(posters will be up this week), write to MP’s, and

when the time comes, vote. Across the country,

Canadians are finally starting to wake up (the

Facebook group “Canadians Against Proroguing

Parliament” has 150, 960 members and is still

growing, an indication at very least)—have you?

Pro-rogue

Justine Panchuk

Argosy Submission

Jessica Emin



8 JANUARY 14,2010THE ARGOSY • OPINIONS

During one of my frequent bouts of

procrastination during this past exam

period, I found myself perusing the

headlines on the CBC website. For

those of you who have forgotten (either

accidentally, or because you wished to),

back in December the climate change

conference in Copenhagen was the

talk of the day. On that particular

day, as snow fell softly outside, the

headline that caught my eye read as

follows: “UN head chides countries at

Copenhagen.”

Goodness gracious, chiding? Isn’t

that a bit uncalled for?

As I read further, it got worse. It

would appear that this chiding was in

fact prompted by, as the CBC called

it, “Dickering.” Whoa, now. Shut the

front door!

If you like to think of t he math, the

level of cooperation at UN climate

summits is inversely proportional to

the amount of carbon dioxide in the

atmosphere. Early on at Copenhagen,

the G77 nations had boycotted talks,

formal working groups had been

cancelled, and with all this ‘dickering’

the head of the United Nations, Ban

Ki-Moon, pulled out the only weapon

that the UN still u ses: chiding.

Some might say that the United

Nations needs a backbone, or whatever

the multilateral equivalent is. Although

I don’t consider myself a climate c hange

alarmist, it’s unacceptable that lack of

cooperation has become the hallmark

of environmental discussions. e UN

organizes conferences and then allows

them to become shouting matches

and grand wastes of precious time. But

I understand that getting everyone

together is hard enough, let alone

finding a good compromise. In fact, a

good compromise is near impossible

when there are so many competing

interests.

Responding to responsibility Protests and propaganda at Copenhagen

Martin Wightman Argosy Staff

Copenhagen, Denmark - December 14 2009 - As the Copenhagenclimate talks enter their second week, the four horsemen of theapocalypse descend on Copenhagen. They are in Copenhagen to sendan ominous reminder to world leaders of what is at stake if they donot take urgent climate action and agree a fair, ambitious and legallybinding deal. © Christian Åslund / Greenpeace

...with all this ‘dickering,’ the head of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon, pulled out the only

weapon that the UN still uses: chiding.

e predominantly Western

environmental movement tends to

view itself as far and away the most

important cause in the world. Within

the environmental movement there

are a few who are truly educated and

walk the talk. ere’s also the crew of

bandwagon enviros who are generally

bored, rich, and none too concerned

about the science. Alternatively in

the West there are those who use a

handful of emails stolen from the

University of East Anglia to discount

every scrap of climate research --

- ever. However, in contrast to both

these groups, those who are concerned

about their next meal seem to have

little time to jump into the debate:

glorified environmentalism often

doesn’t resonate well with developing

nations who are also interested in

alleviating poverty, creating jobs, and

providing health care. Add in the so-

called BRIC nations (Brazil, Russia,

India, China), and you’ve got quite the

bowl of soup.

So, with all these conflicting points

of view, it’s no surprise that long range

planning is less enjoyable than just

some good old-fashioned dickering

and protesting. I am not naïve enough

to believe that any compromise will

be simultaneously satisfactory to hard

line environmental groups and flexible

enough to accommodate the poorest

nation or strongest transnational

interest. I do hope, however, that

Copenhagen serves as a warning to us

that governments are unlikely to band

together and come to some magical

solution. If there is any progress made,

it’s not likely to make the ultimate big

diff erence we might like. e UN has

a tough job.

at sounds bleak, but thankfully

Copenhagen is not the end of the

story. I don’t know if you’ll like the

real story though. It involves us

taking responsibility for ourselves and

not mindlessly blaming traditional

targets like governments and abstract

‘corporate and industrial polluters.’

Although these targets are not without

their sins, the time we allot for large

scale protests and lobbying should be

limited (let’s not all fly to Copenhagen,

for example), and some of us should

start living the talk in those areas

where we’re not. I suppose in theory

we know that real environmental

change requires scores of us radically

changing our lifestyles and altering our

consumer choices. But the trick is that

real environmental change requires us

(yes, us at Mount Allison just as much

as anyone) to change our lifestyles. I

repeat for a third and final time: real

change means voluntarily making big

changes in our living standards and

lifestyles. And until we do, it’s unfair

to put all the blame on governments

and corporations, or even the UN.

I’m as frustrated with the dickering

as Ban Ki-Moon, but if our only

response is verbal, we’re missing

the point. It’s time to shut off our

megaphones until we commit to

cleaning up our own act.

is past Christmas Day, a young

man by the name of Umar Farouk

Abdulmutallab, attempted to blow up

an airplane. It was a transatlantic voyage

from Amsterdam bound for Detroit

and in the final hours of the flight

the young man attempted to ignite

a bomb containing pentaerythritol,

a powerful explosive. ankfully, the

attack failed and no one except the

intending bomber himself was injured.

However, despite the i mpotence of the

bomb itself, the incident has not been

without fallout.

Reactions to the attempted bombing

have run the typical gamut of political

commentary, however as the attack was a decided failure, many pundits

have wasted no time in turning the

issue to ridicule. Names like the

“crotch bomber,” and “fruit of the

boom” have abounded and have turned

what might otherwise have been a

national tragedy into an item for comic

bemusement. One group, however, that

isn’t laughing is the Transportation

Security Administration (TSA), who

have, since the bombing attempt, been

mandated by United States President

Barack Obama to put into practise

on a large scale the use of full body

scanners.

Full body scanners emit

electromagnetic radiation with a

wavelength of a few millimetres that

allows them to penetrate clothing and

reflect off the individual to be captured

by a receiver in order to produceimages with a resolution fine enough

to distinguish eyelashes. e result

is an image of the human body that

leaves very little to the imagination.

Full body scanners are not exactly

new; the Kelowna Airport has been

using a trial system for over a year

now. However Rob Merrifield, the

Minister of State for Transportation,

has confirmed that since the foiled

bombing attempt, forty-four new units

have been ordered and will be installed

at airports in Vancouver, Calgary,

Edmonton, Winnipeg, Toronto,

Ottawa, Montreal, and Halifax. ese

new security steps are in keeping

with the direction put forward by the

United States Government; our own

Canadian government has not had a

similar discussion on this issue becausePrime Minister Stephen Harper has

prorogued Parliament and undertaken

this process without Parliamentary

consent or mandate.

e question of whether full body

scanners are eff ective in protecting

against terrorism remains to be seen.

While these new devices can identify

heretofore undetectable plastic

explosives, they cannot penetrate

body cavities and security experts have

pointed out that is simply a matter

of time before the “crotch bomber”

becomes the “anal cavity bomber.”

All questions of efficacy aside, a more

pressing question for this Editor

is what exactly we’re giving up in

our seemingly relentless pursuit of

security. It’s at this point in my rant

that I should quote the oft-cited

platitude by Benjamin Franklin that“those who would sell their freedom

for their security deserve neither;” the

sentiment bears consideration.

Now, I’m no prude; I recognize that

similar technologies and exposure are

in use in hospitals and doctors offices,

however I’m not entirely comfortable

with the prospect of a scanner snapping

a photo of me in naked totality.

Particularly since, despite the TSA’s

explicit statement to the contrary, these

scanners can record, save, and distribute

the photos if configured appropriately.

In fact, so revealing are these photos

that the scanners are not permitted to

be used on children under the age of

eighteen because they would violate

the national criminal code provisions

protecting against child pornography

in the USA, Canada, and the UK.Despite these reservations, in a

recent poll of American citizens, 78 per

cent were in favour of the new devices

and similar results have been found

in Canada. It seems that despite their

intrusions on privacy, the modest gains

in security aff orded by body scanners

are winning the day in the court of

public opinion. I suppose when media

outlets and our own governments

pander to our fears of terror it’s not

unreasonable to expect otherwise.

e recent case of a hapless man

wandering past an unattended security

kiosk into a secure area of Newark

Airport without being scanned is a

perfect example of the chronic panic

we have inflicted on ourselves. e

security breach caused the complete

lockdown of one of the world ’s biggestand busiest terminals for more than six

hours, delayed hundreds of flight, and

required the rescanning of thousands

of frustrated passengers. All of this

because a kiosk was left unattended

and a man accidently wandered

through. What’s more, despite the

gratuitous display of security, the man

was never found.

As a society we have become

conditioned for an omnipresent fear

of terror without ever being asked to

evaluate what exactly our society is

doing to merit such hatred. Perhaps

if we were more accustomed to

that sort of self-reflection we’d be

more repulsed by the fact that our

government sees no problem asking

us to eff ectively strip naked without

a Parliamentary mandate. is wasdone at the same time the government

shut down Parliament as it was in the

process of subpoenaing for the release

of documents detailing the treatment

of Afghan detainees and how we may

have violated the Geneva Convention

in the process. e majority of

Canadians who have no problem with

the use of body scanners aside, does

anyone else see a problem here?

Checking our dignity and rights along with our luggage

Stephen Middleton Argosy Staff

Internet Photo/silive



ENTERTAINMENT

e few, the proud, the best albums of 2009 e Argosy looks back at the finest records of 2009, from Julie Doiron to Dirty Projectors and more

Neil Bonner

Argosy Staff

Julie Cruikshank

Fuck Buttons – Tarot Sport Fuck Buttons’ 2008 debut Street

Horrrsing was a collection of fascinating

sounds – neon synth loops, worn drum

breaks, death metal howls, and washes

of white noise – in search of just the

right mixture. It was a fascinating

record, sure, but it also felt like the

prelude to something greater.

Tarot Sport doesn’t just meet

these expectations, it destroys them.

Following the lead of Street Horrrsing ’s

stunning single “Bright Tomorrow”,Andrew Hung and Benjamin John

Power achieve a perfect synthesis

between dance and noise, using one

to unlock diff erent dimensions of the

other. Each of the seven tracks on

Tarot is fascinating and fully realized

– no mean feat when most of them are

almost ten minutes long: “ e Lisbon

Maru” chronicles the sinking of the

titular Japanese troopship through

harsh, almost marital arpeggios and a

burbling synthesizer loop that remains

just out of frame until a massive blast

of noise brings everything into focus.

“Olympians” sounds like a cross

between the Chariots of Fire theme

and a panic attack; if there were any

justice, this would be the song playing

as ski jumpers land in Vancouver.

Best of all is “Flight of the FeatheredSerpent”, which rides a blissfully

simple hook into the sunset. Ecstatic

and hypnotic.

Julie Doiron – I Can Wonder What I Did With Your DayIn which our beloved hometown hero

drops one of the best albums of a long

career, seemingly without breaking

a sweat. Doiron switches between

the fuzz-pop of “Consolation Prize”,

the gentle acoustic ditty “Glad to be

Alive”, and looping “When Breaks Get

Wet” with ease. New interpretations of

Calm Down It’s Monday and Shotgun

and Jaybird tunes sit comfortably

along with Doiron’s new material. Put

simply, I Can Wonder What You Did

With Your Day perfectly captures the

charm and beauty of our little town of

Sackville.

Japandroids – Post-Nothing As the title suggests, Post-Nothing

isn’t some genre-busting game-

changer to be analyzed in the back

pages of pop music journals. Rather,

Japandroids have created an almost

deceptively simple album of punchy,

noisy rock songs aimed directly at your

pleasure centre. You know that part in

a song - a perfect drum solo, guitar riff ,

or vocal – where you have just drop

what you’re doing and bang your head

accordingly? Guitarist Brian King and

drummer David Prowse must have sat

down and said, “Yeah, let’s do that,

but all the time.” Somehow, it never

gets old: the unstoppable opening

trio of “ e Boys Are Leaving Town”,

“Young Hearts Spark Fire”, and “Wet

Hair” gives way to the strutting “Heart

Sweats”, the aff ecting “I Quit Girls”,

and “Crazy/Forever”, which is like

Vitamin C’s “Graduation” for kids

in white t-shirts and ripped jeans.

Remember how in September I wrote

that you could “[e]xpect to see this one

at the top of my list come the year’s

end”? Well, here we are.Outdoor Miners – Twelve Hundred

Dollars Yeah, it’s not an album, but so what?

is Edmonton trio’s debut single

provides more bang for your buck than

most of 2009’s full-lengths. Imagine

if Wire and Pavement moved to

western Canada, met during a break at

their dull jobs at the tire factory andstarted playing fuzz-rock tunes in a

damp basement to stave off the harsh

Edmontonian winter, they might

sound like Outdoor Miners. Or maybe

not. Either way, these three songs have

hooks to spare, drenched in perfectly

caff einated guitar tone. You’ll love

this. 7-inch single available on Pop Echo

records, mp3s available on iTunes.Dirty Projectors – Bitte Orca

e best of the megahyped indie trifecta

of 2009 (the others being Grizzly Bear

and Animal Collective), Bitte Orca

was my summer jam. Something like

a 1970s soft-rock album pressed on

warped vinyl, crossed with a radio r-and-b jam. If you’ve heard the name,

you’ve probably heard lots of eff usive

praise for Bitte Orca, so I won’t bore

you with anymore. Just go listen to it,

okay?

Destroyer – Bay of Pigs [EP]

Once again proving that an artists’

best work can be found in between

albums, Destroyer’s Dan Bejar sets a

drunken, rambling tangent on the Bay

of Pigs invasion to fourteen minutes

of icy “ambient disco”. Unexpected?

Not entirely: Destroyer’s earlier work

relied heavily on MIDI synthesizers,

but it never had a beat quite like this.

Difficult? Surprisingly, no. Beneath

Bejar’s comic, touching, and sometimes

perplexing lyrics (sample: “Magnolia’s

a girl. Her heart’s made of wood /

As apocalypses go, that’s pretty good/ Sha-la-la, wouldn’t you say?”), lurks

a genuinely catchy blend of gorgeous

ambient space, clapping beats, and just

the right amount of acoustic guitar.

Attack in Black – Years (by Oneousand Fingertips)Far be it from this reporter to try

and figure out what Attack in Black

wanted to accomplish with Years, but

I can’t help feeling like these four lads

from Welland, Ontario have created

the ultimate Canadian road trip

album. e rhythms of these sixteen

sounds mirror the various stages of

a cross-country trek – blasting down

the Trans-Canada, pulling into small

towns at sundown, gaping in awe at

sights you had no idea could be found

in your own backyard.

Mostly though, this is just someof the best rock music of the year.

Attack in Black are equally adept at

shuffling folk (the title track), jangly,

harmonized pop (“Leaving Your Death

in a Flowerbed”) and slow-burning

anthems (“ e Greater Niagara Circle

Route”). Years of touring, recording,

and backing musicians from Shotgun

Jimmie to City and Color have paid

off , turning Attack in Black into one

of the most formidable bands in the

country. Years is a bona-fide Canadian

classic.

tUnE-yArDs – BiRd-BrAiNsLo-fi production can go one of two

ways: it can be used as a mask to make

weak songs more authentic, or it can

resonate with the songs, causing the

listener to reconsider the possibilities

of recording. Happily, tUnE-yArDs

falls into the latter category. Armed

with only a digital voice recorder,

shareware mixing software, a ukulele,

and irritating capitalization, Merrill

Garbus created one of the years

most unique and endearing debut

albums. A blend of folk music, worldly

grooves, brittle hip-hop beats, and

field recordings (the first song ends

with a child talking about fresh

blueberries), BiRd-BrAiNs is long on

charm and short on fidelity. Garbus’

voice is capable of delicate sing-songs

as well as needle-pushing belt-outs.

e positive notices BiRd-BrAiNs is

racking up are a good sign that Garbus

might be able to record in a studio next

time. But it’s comforting to know she

doesn’t need it.

Top row (L-R): Fuck Buttons -

Tarot Sport , Julie Doiron - I Can

Wonder What You Did With Your

Day , Japandroids - Post-Nothing.

Middle row (L-R): Outdoor Miners

- Twelve Hundred Dollars, Dirty

Projectors - Bitte Orca, Destroyer

- Bay of Pigs. Bottom Row (L-R):

Attack in Black - Years (by One

Thousand Fingertips), tUnE-yArDs

- BiRd-BrAiNs.

Internet Photo/ e Skinny Internet Photo/Jagjaguwar Internet Photo/Polyvinyl

Internet Photo/Weird Canada Internet Photo/Amie Street Internet Photo/Pitchfork

Internet Photo/Aquarium Drunkard Internet Photo/Quick Before It Melts



17JANUARY 14, 2010 THE ARGOSY • ENTERTAINMENT

G A I N P E R S P E C T I V E

Applications accepted until January 31, 2010

For details visit STU.ca/socialwork

This piece of paper canhelp you change lives.

The Post-Degree

Social Work Programme

at St. Thomas University

If you’re someone who is

dedicated to making a di erence

in the lives of others, then

St. Thomas University

has been waiting for you.

Frost warms hearts at George’s Corey Isenor releases his second album to a packed house

Evan Rensch

Neil Bonner

Argosy Staff

I arrived at George’s Roadhouse for

the launch of Corey Isenor’s album

Frost Saturday at 10:00 pm. You might

think I was cutting things a little close

considering that’s exactly when the

show was set to begin, but keep in

mind that’s 10:00 pm GMT (George’s

Mean Time), which roughly translates

to “whenever”. is is a widely

acknowledged fact around town, so I

was surprised to find a sizable crowdalready seated. It’s a testament to

two simple facts about Corey Isenor:

(1) people like him a lot, and (2) he’s

becoming one hell of a songwriter.

Opening the show was Prince

Edward Island folk-rock quartet

Raccoon Bandit. Riding on some very

positive buzz for their 2009 album

Campcraft , which has landed them

spots in the 2010 Music PEI Awards

and the Dead of Winter Festival in

Halifax. e band has clear roots

in the Canadian folk tradition and

country music, but there’s also a clear

indie rock influence, especially in the

upbeat songs toward the end of the set.

For a band as new as Raccoon Bandit,

their set was impressive. Expect them

to steal hearts across the country very

soon.

Isenor’s new CD Frost is, as thetitle suggests, a more muted, autumnal

aff air than his last album Young Squire.

While the album itself contains

production work and additional

instrumentation from Shotgun Jimmie,

Corey performed solo, with only a pair

of acoustic guitars. is seemed like a

risky proposition at first, considering

the size of the crowd and the ensuing

noise levels (including one person who

kept yelling “YEA-UH” à la Lil Jon).

But Corey’s songs were strong enough

to capture the crowd’s attention. Album

opener “Riverwoman” started the set;

the waltz-like drumbeat and swooning

harmonium of the album version were

absent, but the core of the song was

a captivating one. He stuck to songs

from Frost , bringing out his harmonica

later in the set. Notably, Isenor told thecrowd that his harmonica was found

inside the couch at Ducky’s, proving

that he is a far braver man than I.

Having finished his set, Corey led the

crowd in two covers: the Shotgun and

Jaybird perennial “Marquee Glass”

and e Faces’ classic “Ooh La La”.

All around the roadhouse, people

had arms around each other, swaying,

singing along, and clinking beer

glasses. e first George’s show of the

new year proved that Frost ’s reception

was anything but chilly.

Avatar ’s stunning visuals live up to the hype

Rebecca Caissie

Argosy Correspondent

When I arrived at the movie theatre,

we all stood in line filled with an

excitement that I haven’t felt about

going to the movies since I was a

little girl in elementary school. After

hearing all the rumors and reading

all the reviews, I was pumped! Totally

psyched! I looked up and down the

line and we were all pretty much in

the same state of… frenzy… could

that be the word? Finally I ordered my

ticket and received the much coveted

3D glasses and the pass that would

allow me entrance into the fantasy

experience of Avatar .

Oscar-winning director James

Cameron reportedly began working

on Avatar fifteen years ago, before

the technology was available to make

his vision a reality. He has apparently

been working on the production of the

film for four years. It is a live action

film with cutting edge special eff ects,

promising to immerse viewers in a

new cinematic experience. For once,

the goal is to utilize amazing new

technology to enhance rather than

over shadow the story.

But, what is that story? We have

heard so much about the amazing

visuals that most of us went in with

barely any idea of the plot. Well, I

looked it up in advance, because like a

child at Christmas, I just couldn’t wait.

e story is placed in an alien world

where civilization faces an energy

crisis. e key to solving this energy

crisis lies in a rare mineral found in an

outpost light years away on an outpost

called Pandora. Because Pandora is a

toxic atmosphere, humans must have

their consciousness linked to an Avatar,

a remotely controlled biological body,

a genetically engineered hybrid of

human DNA and native Pandorian

DNA. Jake’s (main character) mission

is to infiltrate the colony of natives,

the Na’vi, who oppose the mining

necessary to produce the mineral that

would save Earth. Of course, things

become complicated when Jake meets

and falls in love with Neytiri, a native

of Pandora.

I’m happy to report that the film

was absolutely stunning. e visual

eff ects were amazing and lived up

to everything that was reported by

both media and those who had gone

on to see it. e visual eff ects made

the length of the film seem almost

too short, which was perfect because

you are left feeling you wanted to see

more, even though you had seen so

much. Anyone who has seen Avatar

will understand exactly what I mean

by that. For those who haven’t, I highly

recommend seeing this film at the

theaters in 3D because this isn’t one of

those movies you will want to see first

at home.

e panoramic nature scenes were

juxtaposed to the mined and “ruined”

earth images which seemed to me

to mirror the conversations we have

currently about the fears of driving

Earth to ruins. As for the story itself,

it was wasn’t exactly enhanced by the

special eff ects. If this was a flaw, I

would say it was a minor one as the

movie nonetheless translated onto the

screen Cameron’s fifteen-year vision.

Time and reality passed away as I was

swept up into the world of Avatar .

Its message of a ruined world, hope

and unity came through, but it was

the imagery and special eff ects that

made this film an instant classic and

James Cameron’s latest film fulfills the promise of 3D movies, and begs to be seen on the big screen

Internet Photo/Collider

Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) looks on as his avatar is prepared in James Cameron’s Avatar . The film has topped the box office since its release.

Corey Isenor, who launched his latest album Frost on January 9.



By now you have no doubt seen posters of a fire breathingpheasant wreaking havoc on the peaceful metropolis of Sackville,and you might be asking yourself: “What IS Stereophonic?” Well,before residents start assembling a Pheasant Annihilation TaskForce, STEREOPHONIC IS CHMA'S ANNUAL FUNDRAISINGMUSIC FESTIVAL and it is set to take Sackville by storm January20th to 23rd. Just to clarify, CHMA has not employed pheasants(fire breathing or otherwise) for this year's festival. Instead, loversof live music can look forward to enough music to quench even themost insatiable of musical appetites.

Last year, Stereophonic Six was the most sucessful festival to date,raising important funds for your campus and community radiostation and treating everyone to some great live music. Who couldforget Old Man Luedecke at the Vogue Cinema had audiencemembers standing and clapping and singing along enough toshake the theater walls? Or the conclusion of the festival by Plants& Animals, and Wintersleep had crowds at Georges in a drunkenrock-frenzy? This year is sure to sure to be just as memorable.

Talented acts from around the Maritimes are packing theirmicrophones, and music venues across Sackville (conventional orotherwise) are being preped for next week's festivities. CHMA isglad to welcome back some of our favorite bands and singersback as well as bringing in what are sure to staples for futureStereophonics. Wednesday night's music starts at the MountAllison Chapel with some beautiful music from the likes of Pat

THE CHMA 106.9 FM CAMPUS & COMMUNITY RADIO BULLETIN JANUARY 14, 2010 THIS YEAR’S BEST EDITION

FINALE – A PIPE DREAM AND A PROMISEHip-hop's not dead, it just moved to Detroit and got laid off by GM.

FERRISWHEEL – WOODSONGS FROM THE BACKROOMPiano and acoustic guitar can be made to sound like minimal techno.

STAY ALI – MUSIC FOR MENSwedish children ghost-write an unreleased Daft Punk album on their Gameboys.

NOVELLER – RED RAINBOWS AND PAINT ON THE SHADOWSRIYL: Noise. Ambient.

ATTACK IN BLACK – YEARS (BY A THOUSAND FINGERTIPS)Guitar music doesn't suck, no matter what they tell you.

SHOTGUN JIMMIE – STILL JIMMIE, PAINT IT PINK EP, THE ORGAN DONORThe same is true for organ music.

DANIEL, FRED & JULIE - “DANIEL, FRED & JULIE”Bringing it back to what's golden.

VALLEYS – SOMETIMES WATER KILLS PEOPLEWho gave these folks effects pedals?

YORK REDOUBT– YORK REDOUBT, CHEAP FUNERALS EPIn honour of (a short) lifetime achievement.

NEKO CASE – MIDDLE CYCLONEKiller whales.

THE BEST* ALBUMS OF 2009*THREE COMPLETELY SUBJECTIVE VIEWS OF MUSIC FROM THE PAST YEAR FROM CHMA'S RESIDENT MUSIC ENTHUSIASTS

ATTIC TRANSMISSIONS

THE CHMA CHARTS WEEK ENDING JANUARY 12, 2010

THE CHARTS

RANK ARTIST TITLE (LABEL)01 SAID THE WHALE* Islands Disappear (Hidden Pony)02 DANIEL, FRED & JULIE* Daniel, Fred & Julie (You've Changed)03 ATTACK IN BLACK/BABY EAGLE* Attack In Black/Baby Eagle Split (You've Changed)

04 HORSES* Horses (Out Of Touch)05 SHARE* Slumping In Your Murals (Forward Music Group)06 THE JOHN WAYNE COVER BAND* The Flatlands (Self-Released)07 SHOTGUN JIMMIE* Still Jimmie (You've Changed)08 OHBIJOU* Beacons (Last Gang)09 CONSTRUCTION & DESTRUCTION* Video Et Taceo (Self-Released)10 BAHAMAS* Pink Strat (Nevado)11 COUSINS* Out On Town (Youth Club)12 ATTACK IN BLACK* Years (By One Thousand Fingertips) (Dine Alone)13 ISLANDS* Vapours (Anti-)14 REVERIE SOUND REVUE* Reverie Sound Revue (Boompa)15 OWEN PALLETT* Final Fantasy : Heartland (For Great Justice)16 KAREN O AND THE KIDS Where the Wild Things Are (Interscope)17 THINK ABOUT LIFE* Family (Alien8)18 OROMOCTO DIAMOND* Le Choc du Futur (P572)19 THE FIRST AID KIT* Still Standing (Self-Released)20 YORK REDOUBT* York Redoubt (Noyes)21 OBITS I Blame You (Sub Pop)22 THE XX XX (Young Turks)23 DEVIL EYES* Devil Eyes (Signed By Force)24 THE GOT TO GET GOT* Sahalee (Noyes)25 DOG DAY* Concentration (Outside)26 PAT LEPOIDEVIN* Blue Tornadoes (Self-Released)27 HANNAH GEORGAS* Chit Chat (Hidden Pony)28 A HISTORY OF* Action In The North Atlantic (Noyes)29 VARIOUS New Moon Soundtrack (Atlantic)30 VALLEYS* Sometimes Water Kills People (Semprini)31 COREY ISENOR* Frost (Independent)

DOUG HOYER

Lepoidevin and Baby Eagle and then the night ends with atraucous concert with BA Johnston at the campus Pub. Thursdaybrings the second annual station dance party with OromonctoDiamond in the CHMA offices and to unwind later that nightDucky's Pub will host a Mario Kart Tournament (and other videogames). Friday will see The Vogue Cinema transformed intoSackville's best-kept-secret Music Venue on Friday for theBeautiful Music Showcase featuring Corey Isenor, GiannaLauren, Cousins, and more! The whole week comes to acrashing finale on Saturday night with two more concerts startingoff at Struts Gallery where indie sweethearts Construction &Destruction and will be playing alongsideThe Bad Arts. TheTraditional Saturday night rock concert ends the festival atGeorge's Fabulous Roadhouse with Port City All Star AdamMowery and Sackville's own John Wayne Cover Band, andShotgun Jimmie. More acts will be announced soon, and theentire lineup and additional information is available now on theStereophonic website.

Stereophonic is a great festival which brings together communitymembers and university students alike together to enjoy live musicand support campus radio. Festival passes and Tshirts are on salenow in the Student Centre. See you in front of the stage!

No pheasants were harmed in the making of this music festival.

www.mta.ca/chma/stereophonic.htm

STEREOPHONTASTIC YOUR STEREOPHONIC SEVEN SURVIVAL GUIDEBY VANESSA BLACKIER

ST. VINCENT - ACTORBeautiful vocals, crunchy guitars, dark lyrics, and beats, beats, beats.

GRIZZLY BEAR - VECKATIMESTOur generations Beach Boys? Sure, why not.

WILCO - WILCO (THE ALBUM)Their worst album, but still really good.

DIRTY PROJECTORS - BITTE ORCASort of wanky, sort of weird, sort of awesome.

JULIE DOIRON - CAN WONDER WHAT YOU DID WITH YOUR DAYAnother great album from Julie Doiron. Julie embraces the rawk on this one.

THE DECEMBERISTS - THE HAZARDS OF LOVESurprisingly good for a rock opera about shape shifters and child murderers and stuff.

ATTACK IN BLACK - YEARS (BY ONE THOUSAND FINGERTIPS)These guys just keeping getting better and better.

BILL CALLAHAN - SOMETIMES I WISH WE WERE AN EAGLEYou might also know him as Smog. Or (Smog). I just know him as that talented older dude.

JOEL PLASKETT - THREEI'm shocked at how little filler is on the three discs that make up this album.

JOHN VANDERSLICE - ROMANIAN NAMES /SHOTGUN JIMMIE - STILL JIMMIE (TIE) John gets synth-y and Jimmie is still good ol' Jimmie.

DAN MANGAN - NICE, NICE, VERY NICEI Robots

JULIE DOIRON - I CAN WONDER WHAT YOU DID WITH YOUR DAYBeautiful Sackville days and drunken nights at Ducky's.

LIGHTNING DUST - INFINITE LIGHTThat old timey feel.

CLUES - CLUESLike an ugly puppy that you like more and more.

OHBIJOU - BEACONSDefinitely not the opera.

JENN GRANT - ECHOESAs sweet as fireflies on a warm summer night.

SAID THE WHALE - ISLANDS DISAPPEARAs magical as Camillo the Magician

VARIOUS ARTISTS - FRIENDS IN BELLWOODS 2Best Friends Forever.

YOU SAY PARTY, WE SAY DIE - XXXXLet's crash Laura Palmer's Prom.

ZEUS - SOUNDS LIKE ZEUS EPFive songs that will be marching through your head.

INDIE ROCK NIGHT!!!

JON McKIEL + DUZHEKNEW WITH COUSINS

FRIDAY JANUARY 15THSTRUTS GALLERY ~ 9PMALL AGES ~ 5$

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

JAMES GODDARD VANESSA BLACKIER SCOTT BROWN



HUMOUR

Top Ten New YearÊs

Resolution (And

Their Reason for

Termination)

Lindsay Laltoo

10. Attend Friday afternoon classes(broken once roommate unveils the Wii they got for Christmas and the Weekly Bowling Battles begin).

9. Eat better (until Burrito Day at thecafeteria coincides with the arrivalof your mom’s care package of elevendiff erent types of fudge).

8. Exercise more (abandoned when you get out of breath walking up York Street to the gym).

7. Spend less (kept until youaccidentally smash your roommate’s TV screen during an intense Wii bowlingsession and need to replace it).

6. Stop pining over your ex (one day when looking for spare change for

January 14, 2010

Dear Diary

You know what? This whole vampire thing is just a pain in the ass. I made a new friendyesterday at school. He invited

me over to his house after class to test out the Xbox 360 he got for his birthday. We were about when he started talking aboutgirls and he asked me if I hada girlfriend. I started to think about the past three hundredyears I have spent alone. Mystomach started to rumble and then I ate him.

See, the thing is diary,I’m an emotional eater. Every time that I think about how I havenever had anybody to hold my pale, cold-blooded, sexy vampirebody, I get this feeling inside of me that makes me just want toIt can be triggered by almostanything. For example, the other day I got lost at the local Wal-Mart and found myself in the jewellery department. As I lookedat the rings, pondering what wasmore beautiful, the diamondsor my skin when it was struck by natural sunlight, the cashier asked me “Oh lookin’ for a lastminute Valentine’s Day gift for the special girl, are we?” Then that same feeling of sadnessrushed inside of me and I ate her

too. I was disgusted with myself as the store manager ran over toher. He started to cry and kissedher head. He was her husband

and I had taken her from him.He would never love again, notlike this, and he would be lonely.I felt his pain, I felt his sadness.Then I ate him too.

I don’t know what I ameating anyone I meet becauseI hate being lonely, and I amlonely because I’ll eat anyoneI meet. The other day I startedreading the twilight series. Iunderstand how unrealistic the story is, but I can’t help but wonder if there is hope for me. As you know diary, vampire tears are rare and sacred becauseof their ability to cure Type 2diabetes, but I couldn’t keep from sobbing every time Bellalet Edward hold her. I must haveeaten two people in this town for every chapter I read, but it was worth it for the inspiration it gave me. Starting today I will begin dealing with my feelings without eating anyonearound me. Actually, this entryhas made me pretty upset, so Iam ending it here by sayingstarting tomorrow, I will begin dealing with my feelings without eating anyone.

the New TV Fund you come acrossa wrapper f rom their favourite gum,and the whole downward spiral startsanew).

5. Stop mocking your roommates(they get crocs to putter around theapartment in. Crocs.)

4. Start flossing (you realize it’s a lameresolution, and besides which, you need your floss to install trip wires aroundthe apartment).

3. Get better grades (you head to thelibrary for a study session, but since you’ve never been there you get lost,and somehow end up at the pub. A

couple pitchers in, and everything’slooking A+!).

2. Do something nice for someoneeveryday (after a few days of this, youget bitter that no one’s returning thefavour, and start spitting in people’scoff ee when they aren’t looking).

1. Write for Humour! (We can makethis happen! Seriously, don’t you wantto keep at least ONE resolution?).

From the Mixed-Up Files of

The Vampire Watch Society(Sackville Charter)

The following document was uncovered by Erik Fraser.

...a sex shop in Vancouver is promisingfree vibrators to all medal-winningathletes, with Olympic penis rings alsoon sale (QMI Agency)

...a man trying to help clear his street with his snowblower ended up with apublic intoxication ticket after nearly

getting run over twice ( e CanadianPress)

...a man who’s been living at theUniversity of Victoria since 1991,despite not completing a course forcredit since 1997, has recently beenevicted ( e Canadian Press)

...a Romanianfamily is tryingto recover theirfunds after aman hid 40,000 euro in a pair of oldshoes, which were accidentally thrownaway by his wife ( e AssociatedPress)

In Odder News.... Weird Stories From Around The World

...police are charging a man in Oregon with third-degree robbery for snippingor gluing women’s hair in severalseparate incidences on area buses ( eAssociated Press)

Argosy InAction by Lindsay Laltoo

Adventures In University by Kate Paterson

a touch of grace by Erik Fraser



SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Sci/TechNews Ticker

Tsutomu Yamaguchi, survivor of both US nuclear strikes on Japan in WWII, dies of cancer at age 93

Deep in the most covert Microsoft

facilities, presumably requiring security

access beyond “Level Windows 8”, is

a team working on Microsoft’s most

ambitious gaming project since the

Xbox. e project is called Natal and

what it seeks to do is nothing short

of change the way we understand

games and interactive media. Natal

promises to add full body, facial and

voice recognition to the Xbox 360,

allowing for seamless real-time control

of games and software using gesture

and voice - and eliminating the need

for control devices.

To date, Microsoft has released

very little information regarding the

specifics of Natal’s hardware since it

won’t be making its release until late

this year. However, what is known is

that the unit will contain a 3D video

camera, a microphone and hardware

for receiving and sifting through the

data to obtain an input signal to be

sent to the Xbox 360.

e Natal camera closely resembles

a webcam but operates in 3D by

using both a conventional black and

Matt Collett Argosy Correspondant

white image sensor coupled with a

near-infrared beam. is camera will

be responsible for both facial and

movement recognition. e software

packed inside Natal’s hardware will

use data from the camera to identify

roughly 30 parts of the basic human

form such as the face, torso, hips and

appendages with their respective

joints. To do so, Microsoft claims to

have taught the machine to see and

Xbox 360 to get game-changing motion peripheral

Introducing Microsoft’s Project Natal - and why it might flop

ere are countless cellphones on the

market today, and it seems that with

each and every vendor announcementof new hardware, the question comes

about: could this finally be the iPhone

killer? Up until now, it didn’t seem

as though anyone had succeeded in

creating such a device, but whom

better to try their hand than the

venerable giant of the information-age

itself: Google Inc.

A little over a year ago, Google

released its Android operating system

for cellular phones, and since that time,

a number of cellphone manufacturers

have adopted it and implemented it

into their current off erings.

While the platform has received

mixed reviews, none of the devices

running the software have been able

to become a full blown iPhone killer,

but recently Google has set its sights

on just that, with the introductionearly last week of the Google-branded

Nexus One smartphone.

So what exactly is a smartphone,

other than some buzzword used for

the cellphone carriers advertising

campaigns? e premise of the

smartphone is rather simple: it becomes

the device that you rely on for just

about any task, be it checking email,

texting, surfing the net, or wasting

away hours playing an addictive game.

All of this is done in the palm of

your hand. Most everything on the

modern smartphone is dependant on

the Internet, and it seems only right

that Google, undisputedly a titan of

the Internet, might have something to

say about the smartphone market.

e Nexus One phone has some

impressive specs. It ’s very aesthetically

pleasing with a black and gray metallicenclosure, and boasts a rather large and

attractive 3.7-inch multitouch display,

a 5-megapixel camera with built-in

flash, five easy access buttons located

below the display, and an onscreen

keyboard.

Internally, the phone is also very

feature-rich with a state-of-the-art

processor, 3G and WiFi connectivity,

and GPS. It also features four

gigabytes of included storage, but is

expandable via a microSD slot on the

side of the device.

e real allure of the device is

brought forth by its operating system:

Android OS. Android off ers a rich

experience with its user interface. e

OS utilizes all the technologies of the

phone: a web browser for surfing the

net, Google Maps for directions usingthe built-in GPS, a mail application,

and few widgets which off er easy

access to information such as news,

stocks, and weather. It has all of the

basic functions of a basic cellphone:

texting, calling, and voice activated

dialing using the voice recognition

feature. e phone’s functionality is

also expandable as new applications

are released in the Android market.

Overall, early reviews suggest that

the Nexus One is a quirky smartphone

capable of giving the iPhone a run for

its money. e polished user interface

Google releases Nexus One smartphone

Patrick Losier

Argosy Contributor

The Nexus One retails for $529USD; while subsidized by US carriers, Canadians pay full price - for now.

Internet Photo/Google

Search engine giant hopes to do battle with Apple as it wades into the smartphone hardware market

is promising and with Google-backed

software updates, the Google Nexus

One will continue to get better and

better, and may someday trump the

industry-leading iPhone in terms of

user experience and overall consumer

satisfaction.

e Google Nexus One is

immediately available in the United

States though no date has been

announced for a Canadian release.

With any luck, we should see it on

Canadian store shelves very soon.

SciTechLink:

Estate of sci/fi

author Phillip K

Dick sues Google over

naming of Nexus One

http://bit.ly/8FtMhI

of movement the human body can

perform. Now, when the machine

encounters a new form of movement,

it guesses which parts are which and

the possible movements they can

make based on the previous forms it

has encountered. Microsoft claims

Natal can identify the human form in

front of the camera and create a digital

model of it thirty times each second,

rendering a virtually real-time model

of the user.

At this year’s CES, Microsoft’s

Aaron Greenberg told the gaming blog

Kotaku that Xbox users can expect a

new experience with Natal and not

a reworking of old game formats:

“What we want to do with Natal is

bring entirely new original experiences

to life. ese are going to be brand

new original games and brand new

entertainment experiences that never

existed before. Because there’s nothing

else like it, developers are going to be

making brand new content for us.”

ough it seems that Microsoft

claims to be at the verge of a new

era of interactive media, they haven’t

yet shown much to prove it. ey

have indicated, via press release and

interviews, that their games will be an

experience quite unlike that found in

current motion controlled software.

However, their recent tech demos have

signalled that either Microsoft has

more tricks up its sleeve or that they ’re

backed into a corner with some great

technology but no way to use it.

Recent videos online and

presentations at consumer electronic

expos have seen Natal powering a fairly

weak sports simulation and as also as

an alternative controller for the game

Burnout Paradise. None of the Natal-

oriented software that Microsoft has

shown has been confirmed for release

and two tech demo videos (Godzilla

and Milo) are said to be computer

generated.

is is a mistake that is often made

when marketing designs products.

Design, ads, and the product’s

position relative to competing brands

are severely overvalued which then

lead to the undervaluing of creative

capital. Microsoft has said nothing

of software developers for Natal

and has confirmed no releases. Does

Microsoft have ideas for games

already, or are they simply hoping that

other developers will begin investing

their eff orts? Or are they hoping that

conventional blockbuster games with

hastily ported motion controls will be

enough to satisfy the appetite of the

Natal userbase? Microsoft needs to

start showing off their vision of Natal

in action before their hype train derails

prematurely and people see Natal for

what it currently seems to be: a really

cool and advanced gizmo with no

games backing it up, meaning it has

almost no practical value. If this does

happen then Microsoft will be in dire

straits, since they appear to be riding

on Natal’s novelty value to bolster

popularity and eventually, sales.

Coinciding with the predicted

entrance of 3D televisions to the

mass-market, Natal’s release later this

year could mark a major step forward

in the field of virtual reality. For now,

however, it seems that unless Microsoft

begins employing creative developers

and publicizing their work, Natal

could end up being another motion-

sensing gimmick in a market already

dominated by the Nintendo Wii.

SciTechLink:

Live demo of Project

Natal on Late Night

with Jimmy Fallon

http://bit.ly/msjE0

What we want to dowith Natal is bring entirely new original experiences to life.ese are going to bebrand new original

games and brand new entertainment experiences that never existed before. Becausethere’s nothing else likeit, developers are going to be making brand new content for us.

recognize parts by employing a field of

AI called machine learning. By feeding

the computer millions of images of

people, it learns to understand the

basic form and the countless variations



Geek Chicof the Week

Holy crap, Star Trek wetsuits. While the ocean is hardly “ where no man has gone before”, you can now safely enjoy Earth’s last frontier while thinking of that other one. Bonus: the jocks can’t give you a wedgie. ere’s nothing tograb.

http://www.roddenberry.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=wetsuit&x=0&y=0

January 14. 2010:Star Trek Wetsuit

Internet Graphic / Roddenberry

the future, soonranting about CES for1.53322919 × 10^-4 millenia

Stuart Townsend Argosy Staff

Ah, 2010. A new year, and a good

year, I suppose, if only because we

finally removed ourselves from

that singularly unpronouncable

decade, the 00s. Despite my obvious

enthusiasm for a new arbitrary time

unit, I do believe that this year will

herald advances in the one field of

endeavour guaranteed to put a smile

on my face: consumer electronics.

Every January, the Consumer

Electronics Show (CES) delights

nerds from every corner of the

Internet with gadgets from every

corner of the world. It was at CES

that Blu-ray, the original Xbox,

Tetris and even Pong (in reversechronological order, of course) were

showcased; many gadget bloggers’

yearly schedules revolve around this

event, and many more denizens

of the Internet use CES to decide

which unreleased gizmo to salivate

over in the coming year. So, gentle

reader, let me guide you through my

own personal prognostication for this

coming year: what to pay attention

for, gadget-wise.

For iPhone users like myself,

CES looked good. Relying upon the

iProduct Line’s ubiquity, hardware

manufacturer L5 Technology has

released the L5 Remote, a peripheral

that attaches to an iPhone/iPod’s

dock and serves as a truly universal

remote. Claiming to autodetect

the coding of any given IR device,

and capable of ‘remembering’ 1000

diff erent remote control presets, the

$50 price tag on this item almost

seems reasonable.

E-Readers have seen an insane

popularity boost, as well. E-ink, a

propriatary material that pretty well

mimics the appearance of real paper,

has led to absolutely everybody

releasing an ebook reader; Amazon’s

Kindle series, the Sony Reader,

Plastic Logic’s Reader, and Barnes &

Noble nook, to name just a few, and

you should expect more. Even FoxitSoftware, known for their PDF

reader applications for PCs, has made

a reader (presumably with awesome

PDF support). Personally, I won’t

buy one until they’re completely

DRM-free (and crazy-Orwellian-

shenanigans-free; google “amazon

kindle 1984”) and in full colour.

Several manufacturers showcased

3D TVs; impressive, sure, but glasses

seem a necessity for now, plus I don’t

have like two grand. A more exciting

off er is the concept of the connected

home theatre; the latest TVs and

Blu-ray players are coming standard

with Ethernet jacks, ready to be

plugged into the Internet to provide

you with YouTube, Twitter feeds...

and the Americans with Netflix.

Sorry, Canada.Keep on the lookout for wireless

power. at’s right, inductive

charging - no batteries, just power

beamed through the air. Don’t look

so confused, Nikola Tesla did it

in 1891. WildCharge, eCoupled

and WiTricity (the latter being my

personal favourite) are names to look

out for.

Not to toot my own horn (which

is an idiom; get your mind out of the

gutter), but white-space devices look

promising, too. See my article, above,

for more information.

Lastly, tablets. e years-long

trend of laptops growing smaller isn’t

stopping at netbooks. e officially

announced Microsoft Courier (a

Minority Report-esque hybrid of a

touchscreen netbook and a pen-and-

paper clipboard) and the rumour-

milled-to-death Apple tablet (almost

a sureity, according to Apple fanboys

obsessively watching the supposedly-

tablet related patents and part orders

Apple has recently made) would be

enough for me to crown tablets the

tech zeitgeist of this year, but there’s

also HP (as-yet unnamed), Lenovo’s

Ideapad U1, and the Notion Ink

Adam Smartpad (which includes an

e-ink screen).

It’s going to be the future, soon.

“Web 2.0 Suicide Machine” automates the permanent removal of your of Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and LinkedIn profiles

U.S. drug company Cephalon Inc. has

released a new drug sure to be sought

after by procrastinating students all

over North America. Nuvigil is a

modification of a drug released by

the pharmaceuticals company in 1986

called Provigil.

Provigil was first marketed in France

as a treatment for narcolepsy but has

since become a popular prescription for

many disorders resulting in excessive

sleepiness, including sleep apnea,

shift-work sleep disorder, jet lag, and

other disease-related fatigue.

Usually when a drug’s patent runs

out, cheaper generic versions appear

on the market. e similar name is no

coincidence; Nuvigil is only marginally

diff

erent from its predecessor Provigil.

e two are enantiomers: chemicals

with the same basic structure, but

diff erent arrangement, of the sameatoms around a central carbon atom.

Nuvigil off ers only one of two isomers

of the compound that makes up

Provigil. Cephalon claims that the

Nuvigil-enantiomer will take longer to

be metabolized, thus making Nuvigil

longer-lasting than Provigil.

e “discovery” of Nuvigil comes at

a great time for Cephalon, as in just a

few years their earning potential from

Provigil will take a major dive. Nuvigil’s

patent will run out in 2024, giving the

company plenty of time to capitalize

on the drug. e task now is to bring

loyal proponents of Provigil to the

Nuvigil camp. e price of Provigil has

increased from $5.50 a pill to $13.60

over the last five years, and currently

Provigil is 50 percent more expensive

than Nuvigil.

Cephalon’s ‘nu’ drug regimenRoss MacLean

Argosy Staff

Cephalon was charged in 2002

for not adhering to statutes of the

U.S. Food and Drug Administration(FDA). A drug cannot be marketed

for treatment of conditions other

than those approved for the drug

by the FDA. Provigil was accused of

undertaking a misleading marketing

campaign in a lawsuit resulting in over

$500 million in fines to t he company.

Politics and business sense aside,

users of Provigil speak volumes about

its eff ectiveness. It eliminates fatigue

without many of the side eff ects

of amphetamines which are often

prescribed for the same conditions. It’s

extremely sought after by students for

offlabel use in exam cramming.

SciTechLink:

More on student abuse

of Provigil et al

http://bit.ly/PgcH1

In our society, TV is ubiquitous. Ever

since the first brave broadcast in April

1927 from Washington, D.C., most

of North America has been bathed inthe warming glow of analog television

signals. e ‘rabbit ears’ have been

cultural symbols of the boob tube for

as long as anyone who watches too

much TV can remember.

And the USA’s FCC-mandated

digital television transition of June

2009 (with Canada’s CRTC following

suit in August 2011) will bring that

era of analog, over-the-air television

to an end. But the frequencies once

reserved for the modern era’s opiate

of the masses might soon be utilized

by the likes of Google, Verizon and

Microsoft to provide broadband,

wireless internet with the range and

power of analog television.

is group, styling themselves the

“White Spaces Coalition”, hopes to

one day provide broadband-style, 80

megabit-per-second (10 megabytesper second) speeds to your (as-yet

unreleased) white-space device, pretty

much anywhere. But how?

While analog television was limited

to one, 6 MHz-wide band per channel

- a good thing, considering that ’s how

we once diff erentiated one channel

from another - white space devices’

digital transmissions are not. Digital

transmissions don’t have to worry so

much about interfering with other

channels, a problem analog television

overcame by leaving many megahertz-

White space, the final frontier

Stuart Townsend

Argosy Staff

Reclaimed TV frequencies to usher in new era of broadband anywhere wide buff ers between channels.

e proposed white-space

broadband would take the unutilized

portions of the television broadcast

spectrum, between 54 to 698 MHz

(better known as TV channels 2

through 51), and transmit wireless

internet signals on them.Right now, it’s not tech that limits

your ability to check your email in the

middle of Lake Michigan, but rather

interference. Currently, the FCC has

quite stringent rules regarding how

white space devices can transmit.

ere’s little danger of the devices

interfering with one another, thanks

to cognitive radio (which could be

compared to the digital equivalent of

signaling to a friend across a crowded

room that you two find a quiet place

to exchange words). But factor in

some rogue electronics that illegally

transmit on the same frequencies

as proposed white-space networks

(wireless mics and medical telemetry,

to name the most concerning devices),

and problems arise.

e solution? e FCC has ruled that

all white-space devices must consultan FCC-mandated database of local

frequencies (virtually guaranteeing

the inclusion of GPS technology)

and monitor the spectrum once every

minute to ensure that transmissions

aren’t interfering with the previously

mentioned rogue electronics. e

official maintainers of this database?

Google and other members of the

White Spaces Coalition have applied,

and once the FCC officially names the

database coordinators, analysts expect

white-space devices to take off .

SciTechLink:

Wikipedia on

Cognitive Radio

http://bit.ly/d1Sw2



SPORTS & FITNESS

e men’s and women’s basketballteams wasted no time in the new

year, with commanding wins in

both exhibition and ACAA games

over the past week with the women

running over University of Maine

– Machias, UNB – Saint John, and

Holland College, while the men were

impressive in their wins over University

of Maine – Machias and UNBSJ.

On Tuesday, the University of

Maine – Machias Clippers visited

Sackville for an exhibition matchup

between the two squads who had met

late last year in Maine. In the first

game, the women’s squad ran out to

an early lead and held off an energetic

Machias team to grab the win 75-58.

e Lady Mounties were powered

by second year forward Marlon

Smith (17 points) and third yearforward Meghan Dickie (16 points).

e second game saw a fight between

the Mounties and the Clippers, with

the Mountie men scoring in the

final seconds off an alley-oop dunk

by fifth year guard Jeff Sadler to

win 70-68. e Mounties were led

by first year forward Ben Chisholm

(15 points), Sadler (14 points), and

fourth year Josh Graham (12 points).

Saturday saw the Mounties travel

to Saint John to take on the UNBSJ

Seawolves. In the first game, the

women dominated the Seawolves from

the beginning and took a commanding

win of 67-27. e Lady Mounties wereagain led by Smith (15 points) and

third year guard Danielle Trenholm

(9 points). For the men’s matchup,

the Mounties fell behind early with

the Seawolves taking control on an

11 point first quarter run. However,

they rallied in the second half to win

59-40. Leading scorers for Mount

A were Graham and third year

guard Akil Smith (10 points each).

Sunday featured a home game

between the Mounties and the visiting

Holland College Hurricanes. e

early game saw a strong defensive half

from both teams followed with an up-

tempo second half. Led by Sackville-

native Jennifer Robinson’s game

high 15 points, including nine from

beyond the arc, the Lady Mounties

won 81-46. e men’s matchup saw a tough, physical battle between the

Mounties and the visiting Hurricanes

with officials calling 20 personal fouls

in the first quarter alone. While the

game was close throughout regulation,

the Mounties were done in by a

combination of technical fouls and

the sharp-shooting Hurricanes, falling

86-75. Graham led the Mounties with

19 points while second year Stephen

Bohan netted a double-double

with 12 points and 12 rebounds.

e Lady Mounties currently sit

in second place in the ACAA in a

tie with STU and 4 points behind

first place MSVU. e men’s squad

sits in a tie for fifth place with

ABU, ten points behind the league

leading Mystics. is weekend, the

University of King’s College Blue

Devils visit Sackville on Saturday for

an afternoon matchup and on Sunday,

the MSVU Mystics roll into town

for a full weekend of ACAA action.

With files from Sue Seaborn and

Ankur Ralhan

Basketball Mounties kick off 2010 in style Women grab a trio of wins; men snag two out of three

Noah Kowalski Argosy Staff

Sue Seaborn

e Volleyball Mounties kicked off the

new year with a two-match showdown

with the first place University of New

Brunswick – Saint John this past

weekend in Sackville. On Friday, the

Mounties handed the Seawolves

their first loss of the season with a

rousing 3-1 victory. However, the

Mounties fell short Saturday against

a feisty UNBSJ team, losing 3-0.

and 25-23. e Mounties were led by

game MVP first year Alex L ogue Storr.

Saturday’s matinee matchup did

not turn out as well for the Volleyball

Mounties as the Seawolves rebounded

from their first loss with a win over the

hometown Mounties. Behind a strong

team defensive eff ort, UNBSJ swept

the games and stormed to a 3-0 with

game scores of 25-19, 25-22, and 25-23.

Following the two matches, Coach

Andrew Kennedy commented,

“We managed to split with the top

team in the league [which] is very

encouraging for us. Our service

game needs improvement, as well

as certain aspects of our back court

defensive game.” He added, “we

know that we can defeat them if we

are consistent in our approach on the

court, and play relaxed and confident.

We certainly were not relaxed or very

confident in our game at times on

Friday and Saturday, and this hurt our

defensive and serve receive systems.”

Second year player Caila Henderson

echoed Kennedy’s assessment, stating

“We were very excited for this weekend’s

games and have been training very

hard. Although the outcome wasn’t

all that we hoped we will take the

positive things away and are motivated

to continue working hard for the next

time we see [UNBSJ] on the court.”

With the weekend split, the

Volleyball Mounties currently sit in

second place in the ACAA with a 7-

2 record, behind first place UNBSJ.

Nationally, the Mounties are still

ranked, squeaking into the rankings

at fifteen. e young Mounties return

to action next weekend with a home

matchup against the third-ranked

MSVU Mystics on Sunday at noon.

Volleyball Mounties tangle with SeawolvesEarn Split with top-ranked UNBSJ

Friday

3

1Saturday

03

On Friday evening, in front of a

packed gym, the Volleyball Mounties

took the floor against the first place

Seawolves. While they dropped the

first game, they quickly shook up the

rust from the break and rallied to take

three straight games and the match with

game scores of 20-25, 25-22, 25-14,

Noah Kowalski

Argosy Staff

Callan Field



THE ARGOSY • SPORTS & FITNESS 25JANUARY 14, 2010

e Mount Allison Women’s Hockey

Mounties faced off at home on

Sunday to open the second half of

the 2009-10 season, and fell short to

the UPEI Panthers by a score of 4-1.

e Mounties did not play their

best game of the season when it was

needed, and now sit 9 points behind

the Panthers for the final playoff spot in

the AUS with eleven games remaining.

e home squad got off to a shaky

start, allowing a goal on the first UP EI

shot by Jenelle Mackenzie on the

power play four minutes in. Mackenzie

would set up Lindsay Manning for

another UPEI goal with under two

minutes left in the first period to give

the Panthers a 2-0 lead even though

being outshot 6-5 by the Mounties.

e second period was a diff erent

story, with UPEI outshooting Mount

A 23-5. Genna Phelan scored the lone

Panthers goal in the period on the

powerplay, and Mounties netminder

Meghan Corley-Byrne made several

great saves to keep the Mounties inthe game. Ashlyn Somers had the

Mounties’ best chance of the period

on a shorthanded breakaway, but was

Hockey Mounties lose tough gameFace steep uphill battle to postseason

Wray Perkin

Argosy Staff

14

Captain Jillian Greene holds o a UPEI attacker during Sunday’s game. The Mounties fell 4-1 to UPEI.

Sue Seaborn

turned aside by UPEI’s Kristy Dobson.

e third period saw Mounties Head

Coach Zach Ball do some line juggling,

and the teams exchanged late goals,

with Mount Allison’s Jenna Briggs

banging home her third of the season

to put the Mounties on the board.Mackenzie and Phelan each

had a goal and an assist to pace

the Panthers attack, which fired 45

shots on Corley-Byrne. Briggs’ line

with Jenica Bastarache and Ashlyn

Somers was the Mounties’ best line,

with Somers having a team-high 4

shots and Bastarache earning the

game’s third star with a strong eff ort.

Penalties killed the Mounties at

inopportune times, as every time

they seemed to be getting something

going in the off ensive zone they

would suddenly find themselves

shorthanded. UPEI capitalized twice

on seven powerplay attempts, while theMounties went 0-3 on the powerplay.

Dobson stopped 19 shots in

the win, while Corley-Byrne

made 41 saves in the loss.

e road does not get any easier for

the Mounties, as on Friday they host

AUS leading scorer Marieve Provost

and the Universite de Moncton

Aigles Bleues at the Tantramar

Civic Centre. Gametime is 7:15 pm.

League Standings (W-L)

10-210-2

7-57-56-65-8

1-13

e NBA is predicated on the star

system. Current TNT analyst

and former player Charles Barkley

preaches that the optimum way to

experience NBA basketball as a fan is

essentially to identify the best players

and follow their every move. David

Stern probably feels the same way.

Since he became commissioner of the

league in 1984, Stern has been publicly

forthright with his plan to model the

NBA after the Disney Corporation,

at the buzzer. Bosh was far from a

complete product, but he stood out

to the point that it was clear he was

the future of the basketball in Canadaand worthy of Mickey Mouse status.

e Raps shipped off Vince Carter

accordingly to officially usher in the

Chris Bosh-Era (revisionist history,

I know). In the years that followed,

Bosh continued to improve, adding

multiple All-Star appearances to

his suddenly impressive resume,

culminating in what we currently

witness on a nightly basis: a consistent

superstar who puts up 29 points and 13

rebounds as routinely as Snookie takes

it in the face. Further, Bosh is a great

ambassador for the NBA, someone

who my grandfather describes as

seeming “articulate and well-read”.

at has to count for something, right?

Well, not really. Despite his on-court

brilliance, Bosh won’t be starting the

All-Star game for the third straight

year because of a lack of fan votes,

losing out to established veterans like

Kevin Garnett and Allen Iverson.

Why is Bosh consistently overlooked?

Because he plays in Toronto. In a league

with teams in twenty-nine cities, only

three (Los Angeles, New York, and

Chicago) boast a larger media market

than Toronto. Yet, the Raptors are

almost always an NBA afterthought

because they exist in a foreign country.

Sad, but true. With an average of zero

to two games per season broadcasted

on American television, the Raps are

amongst the least watched teams. e

lack of U.S. exposure might not make

any diff erence on the court, but it

speaks to why players like Bosh have

historically failed to get the recognition

they deserve. I call this phenomenon

the Canadian Shield. While

universally known as eight million

squared kilometres of Precambrian

rock, from a sporting perspective the

Shield refers to athletes or teams in

the Canadian sports landscape that

slip under the radar outside of the

Great White North. How else can

you explain Roberto Alomar falling

eight votes shy of a spot in baseball’s

Hall of Fame? Can you name me a

better second baseman? For CB4,

it wasn’t until the Beijing Olympics

when, upon watching the U.S. men’s

basketball team win the gold boasting

a ‘best five’ of Bosh, Lebron, ‘Melo,

Kobe, and Wade, American fans

realized just how good Bosh is. Chris

Bosh should be considered the next

great Power Forward, taking over from

an aging Tim Duncan, but that’s just

not the case. Granted, Bosh’s profile

as an elite player has rose this season,

fuelled by stellar play and rumours of

him playing elsewhere next year and

beyond. He may never be an A1 Alpha-

dog in the mould of Duncan, or even

contemporaries like James or Wade,

but the look on Chris Bosh’ face during

Raptors game screams of someone

who recognizes the presence of the

Canadian Shield and decidedly wants

out from under it. After all, there’s

no Shield in Miami. Or Houston.

Or Dallas. Or... you get the point.

Chris Bosh and the Canadian ShieldDavid Charles Zarum

Argosy Correspondent

Chris Bosh has been consistently overlooked, despite being one of the most dominant forwards.

Internet Photo/ e Indian

Chris Bosh should beconsidered the next great Power Forward

creating a business model in which

the players are the product. Back in

the day, Michael Jordan was Mickey,

Magic and Bird were Donald Duck

and Goofy, Barkley was Tigger...you

get the idea. Twenty-five years and

a new cast of characters later, NBA

marketing still favours great players

over great teams. ese days, Kobe

and Lebron are Woody and Buzz

Lightyear, Dwyane Wade is Simba,

Dirk Notwitzki is Hannah Montana,

and Shaq is the Genie from Aladdin

(obviously). Sadly, in this model, the all-

time leader in points, rebounds, blocks,

and FTs for the Toronto Raptors,

Chris Bosh, is perennially overlooked.

We should have realized that Bosh

was going to be a great player when,

in his tenth NBA game, he carried the

Raptors to a double-OT win over the

Houston Rockets, scoring 25 points

that included a key three-pointer



THE ARGOSY • SPORTS & FITNESS26 JANUARY 14, 2010

Tobacco kills about 45,000

Canadians a year, making it

responsible for more deaths than

AIDS, car accidents, suicide,murder, fires, and accidental

poisonings combined. It is a known

fact that smoking kills, yet many

people are still drawn into the bad

habit as a form of stress reduction,

a way to fit into a social network,

or as an attempt to lose weight.

is can become an expensive

habit that has a history of being

hard to quit. At smoking fifteen

cigarettes per day, with twenty

cigarettes in a pack, and with

the national average cost per

pack being around nine dollars,

smoking for one year will cost you

$2463.75. To put it in terms most

of you will understand, smoking

for four years at university would

cost you more than a year’s tuition.

is is not the only cost incurred by smokers. Science has proven that

smokers are at a very high risk for

diseases such as chronic obstructive

pulmonary disorder, several forms

of cancer, coronary disease, and

leukemia, to name a few. Studies

have also been able to demonstrate

that even inhaling second-hand

smoke can cause these diseases.

Insurance companies are aware of

this and feel that if you are a smoker,

you have a high probability of

incurring large medical bills as you

age. e insurance companies must

cover a portion of these medical

bills and as a result, smokers and

their spouses are now paying higher

insurance premiums. Smokers

will also lose value on homes

and vehicles due to the damageincurred over the years f rom smoke.

If you are a current smoker, take

the time to think about how much

you are actually giving up for this

bad habit. Over the years the bills

will add up to much more than

the cost of the cartons. If you feel

that you are ready to quit, the

student development councilors in

the Wellness Centre are available

to discuss the psychology of

quitting smoking with any student.

January encompasses non-smoking

week and as a part of “Weedless

Wednesday” on January 20, the

Health Matters Society will have abooth set up in the afternoon in the

entrance of the Wallace McCain

Student Centre. is booth will

display several facts on the eff ects

of both cigarettes and marijuana.

Stop by to check out the displays

and “guess the number of butts”

for a chance to win one of several

stainless steel coff ee mugs. ere

will be pamphlets available with

tips on how to quit smoking as

well as numbers to call for help.

If you find yourself too busy to drop

by, here are some tricks that have

recently been printed in the “Times

and Transcript” that people can

use to distract themselves from the

cravings while attempting to quit.

• Regularly chewing gum,

drinking sweet liquids and water,and cutting back on coff ee can

help the symptoms go away

• Nicotine replacement can help

mitigate the withdrawal symptoms

• Cut up small drinking straws

to the size of cigarettes to inhale

from and chew on to mimic the

feeling of holding a cigarette

• Online programs with chat

rooms where those quitting

can seek encouragement and

understanding from one another

ere is no better time than the

present to quit smoking. e rewards

will begin to accrue just twenty

minutes after your last cigarette

when blood pressure will drop to

normal and body temperature will

increase to normal. By eight hours

after that last cigarette, carbonmonoxide levels in the blood

drop and oxygen levels increase to

normal. Stop by the Health Matters

booth on January 20 to see the

results after twenty-four hours,

forty-eight hours, one week, one

year, five years, and fifteen years

after smoking. You will be surprised!

Samantha Scribner Argosy Correspondent

After three boring games and a

game that provided a heart attack

a minute in the Wildcard games,

NFL fans can look forward to what

should be a more exciting weekend

in the upcoming Divisional Round.

Here is a game-by-game look at

the Division Semi-Final Matchups.

NFC: Arizona (11-6) at New

Orleans (13-3)

e Cardinals are coming off of a

thrilling 51-45 overtime victory against

the Packers in the wildcard game, and

Kurt Warner had a virtually flawless

game, passing for five key touchdowns.

e Saints are still the favourites,

but many questions have been raised

after losing three in a row to end the

season. With Warner and Saints pivot

Drew Brees going at it, it could be a

repeat of the Packers game; expect an

aerial battle but keep an eye on the

secondaries, particularly Arizona’s

Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and

New Orleans’ Darren Sharper, both

of whom finished in the top five in

the NFL in interceptions this season.

Wray says : New Orleans in a

barnburner.

Dallas (12-5) at Minnesota (12-4)

Dallas is coming off two blowout

victories in a row against the

high-powered, fast off ence of the

Philadelphia Eagles. Tony Romo is

finally looking like a high-calibre

quarterback after November, and their

defence has also looked impressive

of late. But Brett Favre and the

Vikings cannot be counted out of

the equation. With Adrian Peterson

in the backfield and Sidney Rice and

impressive rookie Percy Harvin in

the arsenal, look for Favre to have

a good game against a maybe over-

confident Cowboys defence. It may

have to come down to a battle in the

trenches, where Jared Allen (second

in NFL with 14.5 sacks this season)

and the home squad have the edge.

Wray says: Vikings in a

tough, physical close one.

AFC: Baltimore (10-7) at

Indianapolis (14-2)

Much like the Saints, the Colts

were looking great not too long ago,

opening the season 14-0. But losses to

the Jets and the lowly Bills to end the

season have people wondering. Veteran

quarterback Peyton Manning and

youngster Joe Flacco will face off in

an interesting battle of the pivots, and

defensively watch for Indy’s Dwight

Freeney and the Ravens’ Ray Lewis,

their heart and soul, to be diff erence

makers. In order for Indy to win they

will have to stop the run, something they

have had trouble with at times this year.

Wray says: Baltimore in a very

close upset.

New York Jets (10-7) at San Diego

(13-3)

San Diego has quietly been the most

consistent team in the NFL over the

last few weeks of the season. However,

the J-E-T-S Jets! Jets! Jets! have been

quietly the most rapidly-improving

team over the same time. It is crunch

time for the Jets, clearly the underdogs

in this one. Key matchups include Jets

corner Derrelle Revis against Chargers’

wideout Vincent Jackson, and Jets

running back omas Jones against

Shawne Merriman and the Chargers’

Defence. e grinding off ence of the

Jets will do battle with the big-play

capability of quarterback Philip Rivers,

Jackson and tight end Antonio Gates.

Can the Jets become the true Cinderella

team of the season and advance to

the AFC Championship Game?

Wray says: No. Chargers in a hard-

fought, but ultimately not close game.

Previewing NFL Divisional Playoff sFans wishing for more OT shootouts

Wray Perkin Argosy Staff

With the season just past the halfway

point this is the perfect time to

examine how everyone’s NHL season

is coming together. As of the writingof this article five teams have already

passed the 60 point plateau and are on

pace to finish well above 110 points:

the Chicago Blackhawks, New Jersey

Devils, San Jose Sharks, Buff alo

Sabres, and Washington Capitals. e

biggest surprise in that group is the

Buff alo Sabres, a light-scoring team

riding goaltender Ryan Miller who will

certainly garner Vezina consideration

following the season. Chicago, San

Jose, and Washington are high-

scoring powerhouses each boasting a

roster of young, talented star forwards.

Possibly the most surprising team

in the entire league so far this season

are the Phoenix Coyotes. After

months of legal issues surrounding

the ownership and possible sale of t he

team and relocation, the team’s future

is finally, albeit temporarily, stable.

Now that the Coyotes have turned

to timely scoring from captain Shane

Doan and Matthew Lombardi, along

with excellent goal-tending from

Ilya Bryzgalov they sit fourth in the

Western Conference. ey are eyeing

their first playoff berth since 2002, and winning a playoff round for the first

time since 1987, when they were the

Winnipeg Jets; a stretch that has seen

ten first round exits, and eleven times

missing the post-season all together.

Another surprising team this season

is the Detroit Red Wings. However,

this time, it is for the wrong reasons.

e Red Wings currently sit ninth in

the Western Conference, outside of the

playoff s. Should the Red Wings fail to

make the playoff s this year, it would be

the first time since 1990 that the Red

Wings failed to do so, breaking a streak

of eighteen seasons. Much of the blame

has been levelled on the goalies Chris

Osgood and Jimmy Howard. However,

the fact that their dynamic duo of

Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg

currently sit fifty-fifth and sixty-third

respectfully in NHL scoring speaks

greatly to the off ensive woes that the

Red Wings have faced this season.

Another team that is surprisingly

struggling is the Philadelphia Flyers.

It’s hard to imagine a team with stars

such as Mike Richards, Jeff Carter,

Danny Briere, and Chris Pronger isstruggling to compete on a nightly

basis, but the Flyers have found a

way. However, in late December,

it seemed they might be coming

around with a short winning streak.

One interesting piece of information

I noticed over the past week was

during TSN’s weekly plus/minus

segment; there, the TSN talking heads

choose their heroes and zeros of the

past week. After scoring four goals in

their victory over the Flyers, Senators

forward Alexei Kovalev still managed

to get himself named as a minus. For

most players, this would be quite odd.

However, Kovalev’s underachieving

eff orts on most nights has been

overshadowing his incredible talents.

NHL RecapMidseason Review

Ryan Esch Argosy Correspondent

Internet Photo/Zimbio Pictures

In addition to the many health r isks that come from cigarette

smoking, students should also be worried about the monetary

cost of smoking. Stop by the Health Matters booth to nd out

more information and helpful tips for quitting smoking!

Jessica Emin



27THE ARGOSY • SPORTS & FITNESSJANUARY 14, 2010

From the Sports Desk...Breeding loyalty

is past week, the US men’s junior

hockey team did something no other

team has managed to do in five years:

beat Canada in the World Junior’s. While I certainly knew about this as

an American living and studying in

Canada, very few of my country mates

had any idea what was going on. e

news didn’t even make headlines on

ESPN; you had to navigate through

several pages in order to find any sort

of reference to the tournament while

Canada’s silver medal was plastered

over every newspaper and media outlet.

I’ve always been amazed by the

national consciousness that Canadians

seem to possess about hockey. While

trying to engage a BC native about

the NFL playoff race is a continual

disappointment, they can easily

talk to me about the problems with

the Canucks. Talk badly about the

Leafs and you’ll be shunned by your

friends from the GTA for weeks.And don’t even get me started

about the Canadien fans…I’m fairly

certain some of them have killed in

the name of support for the Habs.

What breeds this insane commitment

to these hockey teams? Most of it

must derive from geographic loyalty.

I know I cheer for the Bruins mainly

because they are close to Vermont.

However, I know my loyalty is also

due to the fact that they AREN’T the

Canadiens, a trait that I’m sure comes

up when deciding one’s dedication to

say the Oilers or the Flames. Some of

it probably also comes from who our

friends and family cheer for. If all of

your friends are Senators fans, mostlikely, that’s who you’re cheering for.

How is loyalty bred? For many

university students, in the US and

Canada alike, their universities become

part of their sports family with people

rabidly supporting t heir schools. I find

that when I’m at a game, the people

most likely to turn out are the other

varsity sports teams. Every time I’ve

been at a hockey or volleyball games,

the football team has been out in force,

cheering on the Mounties. While the

situation is getting better, our support

for our teams is something like the US

support for its junior hockey team. Yes,

there are many dedicated followers

who were overjoyed when our teammanaged to somehow hold off Canada

and win the gold. However, the vast

majority seems to be content with their

apathy; they might know that we have

a team, but ask them anything about

it and they are completely clueless.

Noah Kowalski

Argosy Staff

Internet Photo/Idaho Statesman

Athlete of the Week

Marlon Smith

Sponsored by Joey’s Pizza and Pasta

Amherst, NS resident Marlon

Smith has won Mountie Athlete of

the Week honours for her reliable

and steady play against the Maine

Clippers, UNBSJ Seawolves, and

the Holland College Hurricanes.

Smith scored in double figures

for all three games over the past

week of women’s basketball action.

Against Maine she scored 17

points in the Mounties’ 75-58

victory, shooting five-for-five

from the three-point line. In

league play at Saint John, Smith

dropped in 16 points, pulled in

four rebounds and four steals, and

blocked one shot in her team’s 67-27

win over the Seawolves. On Sunday,

against the visiting Hurricanes, she

continued her pace contributing 10

points, six rebounds, and a steal. Also

along with her teammates, Smith

worked the press and helped to cause

38 Hurricane turnovers over the game.

Marlon is a former athlete from

Amherst Regional High School where

she played for the school basketball

squad coached by Fred Gould. She was

also a multi-sport MVP and captain in

softball and soccer as well, and was

the school’s Athlete of the Year over

three consecutive seasons (2006-

2008). In her first year at Mount

Allison last season, Marlon was

selected as the Basketball Mounties’

Rookie, and as the Atlantic Colleges

Athletic Association’s (ACAA)

Conference Rookie of the Year.

A 5’9” forward, Marlon is currently

in her second year of Arts at Mount

Allison, and is majoring in English.

Other Athlete of the Week

nominees were: Stephen

Bohan (basketball), and

Allison Settle (volleyball).

Sports WeekendFriday, January 15th

Hockey vs UdeM; 7:45 PM

vsBadminton @ UKC; 7:00 PM

@Saturday, January 16th

Badminton @ UKC; 7:00 PM

@Basketball vs UKC; 1:30, 3:30 PM

vsSunday, January 17thVolleyball vs MSVU; 12:00 PM

vsBasketball vs MSVU; 2:30, 4:30 PM

vs

SPORTS TWEET

OF THE WEEK “I feel worst than TigerWoods right now, at leasthe chose to leave his job i aint got a choice but to gohome...” - Chad Ochocinco (Bengals

Wide Receiver on beingeliminated from the playoffs)

WANT TO COVER

THE OLYMPICS?

WRITE FOR SPORTS!

argosy janurary 14, 2010

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