University of Calgary

Fall 2008

VOLUME 4, NUMBER 3 

FEATURES:

Return of the Dinos

The Age of the Dinosaur is back, thanks to new leadership and student talent.

Health's Brave New World

Biomedical engineering—the marriage of engineering, science and medical research—will result in a better quality of life.

Walk This Way

Studying our neighbourhoods reveals how the urban environment affects our activity levels, health and sense of community. 

UPSTANDING ALUMNI:

The Sociology of Ultimate Fighting

It’s been decried as ‘human cockfighting’ but Ryan Williams says mixed martial arts are more about honour than horror.

Laughing Matters

Jumpa, a therapeutic clown working at hospitals and clinics, knows that laughter really is the best medicine.

Finding your Groove

High-performance wellness coach Shauna Romano stresses alignment, hard work and lots of fun.

DEPARTMENTS:

UNIVERSAL NOTE
Rose Goldstein, vice-president (research), says biomedical engineering is just beginning to demonstrate its vast potential.

UPDATE CAPITAL PLAN
The latest on the U of C’s largest-ever capital expansion.

UPDATE NEWS
The latest developments and upcoming events at U of C.

UNCONVENTIONAL RESEARCHER
Alan Shiell says healthy living is about the way we live, where we work, our education and our friendships.

UNCOVER RESEARCH
Heritage building secrets, homelessness and telehealth in aboriginal communities.

UNLEASHED OPINION
Columnist Mark Hopkins chooses hope over fear while living with the prospect of a devastating disease.

UNEXPECTED VIEW
Alumnus Brett Wilson sheds light on an issue “below-the-belt.”

UNITE COMMUNITY
Meet three students who hope to change the nursing landscape in Qatar.

UNRELENTING OLYMPIANS
Speed skaters Jamie, Jessica and Sara Gregg tap into their sibling rivalry to get the competitive juices flowing.

UNLIMITED ALUMNI
Catch up on your peers’ news in the latest class notes.

UNFORGETTABLE IMAGERY
This month the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine welcomes its first class of undergraduate students; it’s the only such faculty in Canada to offer its students a unique distributed program.

UPBEAT EVENTS

Class of 2008:
stay connected—
get your alumni card

To our newest readers who graduated from the U of C earlier this year, we hope you enjoy your first issue of U magazine. As a member of the Class of 2008, you’ve earned a free, lifelong membership into the Alumni Association—a worldwide family of 130,000 grads. Your membership gives you an attractive collection of privileges and benefits, and your membership card gives you access to many of those benefits, such as discounts on resort accommodation, valet parking at Calgary’s airport and media subscriptions. At convocation, we told you that the U of C’s alumni office would send your membership card to you with this issue of U magazine; in the interests of security and privacy, we have instead elected to send your membership card in a separate mailing you should receive in the next few weeks.

Always stay connected to the U of C by sending your updated contact information to alumni@ucalgary.ca or call 403-220-8500 or 1-877-220-8509. We look forward to keeping in touch with you, and we hope you enjoy the benefits of membership in the U of C’s Alumni Association.

Our Global Issue

U magazine’s Winter 2009 issue will be our annual global issue, highlighting the U of C’s impact around the world, and in particular connecting with our alumni in 126 countries. It’s also your chance to join in with “U of C Everywhere”—simply grab your U of C swag, be it a ball cap, hoodie, T-shirt or Rex doll, and take a picture of yourself with it in an international setting. Send the pictures and a brief description to umag@ucalgary.ca and we will publish the best shots in our Winter 2009 issue.

 

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U is published three times a year by University of Calgary External Relations and the U of C Alumni Association.
Editor: Colleen Turner [ colleen.turner@ucalgary.ca ]
Associate Editors: Matthew Fox [ mbfox@ucalgary.ca ], Beth Frank [bfrank@ucalgary.ca]
Art Director: John Vickers, Scout Communications
Copy Editor: Veronica Hoskins [ vhoskins@ucalgary.ca ]

Contributors:
Ken Bendiktsen, Lynne Dulaney-MacNicol, Kelly Exner, Gail Fredrickson, Rose Goldstein, Mark Hopkins, Jacqueline Louie, Don McSwiney, Judy Monchuk, Mary Anne Moser, Jennifer Myers, Ewan Nicholson, Joe Obad, Grady Semmens, Meghan Sired, Jennifer Sowa, Jason Stang, Laurie Wang.
  
Cover:  Swimmer Katy Murdoch, a fourth-year kinesiology student and the 2006 CIS rookie of the year, struck gold in the 200-metre backstroke at the 2008 CIS national final. Cover photo by Jason Stang