Group work or group hassle? While group work is great in theory, in practice it requires serious restructuring in order to be effective at the university level
Photo by Kyle West By: Monica Takahashi Group projects are becoming an increasingly unavoidable element of university. Nowadays, it seems as though group work is included in every course. There has been also been a simultaneous rise in project-based programs, especially at McMaster University. Different courses treat group work differently. Some require students to answer a difficult problem that should, in theory, be easier to solve...
Holding students accountable for club commitments
Photo from Silhouette Photo Archives By: Pooja Sreerangan The McMaster Students Union boasts having over 350 clubs with an entire section dedicated towards clubs that are meant to raise awareness and funds for a diverse selection of social issues. While this sounds noble on paper, how many of these clubs actually impart meaningful change? There are many reasons students join or create these types of clubs and unfortunately, altruism...
The empty shelves of Union Market Union Market claims to be the best spot to get food on campus, but where it succeeds in affordability it lacks in availability
Photos by Kyle West Food security is a major issue that an unfortunately large number of students at McMaster University face. McMaster offers students over twenty different on-campus locations to get food. These locations range in their selection but are united by their general lack of affordability. The Union Market, located on the main floor of the McMaster University Students Centre, differs from the rest in that they are a...
Creating the perfect student Does the fulfillment of breadth requirements truly guarantee a well-rounded student?
Photo by Kyle West What does it mean to be a well-rounded student? According to the University of Toronto, a well-rounded student is one who has satisfied their breadth requirements. Since 2010, in order to graduate with a University of Toronto degree, students must take at least one course from the arts, the natural sciences, history or philosophy or cultural studies, quantitative reasoning and social and behavioural sciences....
Reading week sans the reading Why fall reading week should drop the “reading”
Photo from Silhouette Photo Archives By Katarina Brkic The beginning of an academic term is a stressful time. After the first week spent reading over the syllabus, students are thrown into a state of panic with projects, tests and studying. The abundance of work students receive can drastically affect their mental health. It is a relief then when reading week arrives with its promise of a relaxing week of light work and rest. But this...
The diversity problem in physics Navigating academia is difficult, but navigating academia as a woman, much less a woman of colour, is nearly impossible
Photo from Silhouette Photo Archives By Sabrina Macklai On Oct 2. 2018, Donna Strickland became the first woman to win the Nobel Prize in physics in 55 years. Strickland graduated McMaster University in 1981 with a degree in engineering physics and has since been responsible for greatly advancing the field of laser physics while at the University of Waterloo. She won the prize for introducing the technique of chirped pulse...
