When science and social science collide
Scientific research provides much needed innovation for all kinds of activities and industries, like healthcare, insurance and law enforcement to name a few. But scientific research also relies on the work of social scientists like anthropologists, sociologists, and geographers to chart the ethical, social and cultural roadmaps of its recent innovations. Using the example of genomics, Antonia Maioni describes the complex web linking science and the SSH in this poweful Hill Times op-ed.
SSHRC Storytellers
SSHRC has put out their annual call for Storytellers who can describe a SSHRC-funded project happening at their university in three minutes or 300 words. The Storytellers program challenges post-secondary students to show Canadians how SSH research is affecting our lives, world and future for the better. Feeling brave? Apply to become a Storyteller today!
PM launches the Canada First Excellence Research fund
Today marked the official launch of the Canada First Excellence Research fund, dedicated to supporting research projects at Canada’s post-secondary institutions that will create long-term economic advantages for Canada. The fund will be administered by SSHRC on behalf of the three granting agencies. Proposals will be required to align with Canada’s updated science, technology and innovation priority research areas.
Rhodes scholars benefit from humanities education
The Rhodes Scholarship, awarded to 11 Canadians annually, requires a diverse mix of academic and extracurricular talents. Simona Chiose of The Globe and Mail takes a look at three of this year’s winners, whose achievements reveal that a humanities education forms an important component of the Rhode scholar’s personal profile. One of the winners describes how his interest in medicine was sparked by studying literature. A full list of this year’s Canadian awardees can be found in the same article.
25th anniversary of Polytechnique tragedy
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the Polytechnique tragedy, an event commemorated with pain by those who lost loved ones and who fear that we have made little progress since 1989. The Montreal Gazette describes the frustration of Jim Edward, the father of one of the victims, who has “slammed the government for dismantling gun-control laws and hailed NDP Leader Tom Mulcair for promising Wednesday to bring in a new gun registry if his party is elected,” according to the article. Earlier, Justice Minister Peter MacKay was criticized for suggesting that we may never understand why the victims were singled out, prompting an immediate response by NDP Leader Tom Mulcair.
Other news from this week:
Ross Finnie: How your degree might influence your earning potential (Ottawa Citizen)
Focus on human dimension of innovation, by Ursula Gobel, Associate Vice-President of Future Challenges at SSHRC (The Hill Times)
CICan Launches Indigenous Education Protocol for Colleges and Institutes (CICan News Release)
Is the U.S. Focusing Too Much on STEM? (The Atlantic)
How Sociologists Made Themselves Irrelevant (The Chronicle of Higher Education)
Le réseau des cégeps rapporte près de 10 milliards à la société québécoise (Communiqué de la Fédération des cégeps)