#The University of Waterloo

[survivingcapitalism]

“Remember that right-wing culture war and transphobic propaganda is never just about discourse, debate, or the ‘potential for violence,’” Jeremy Johnston, an assistant professor at Canada’s Western University, tweeted. “It’s about actual violence.”

[sageandred]

I've learned

that people

will forget

what you said

people will forget

what you did

but people

will never forget

how you made them

feel.

[Maya Angelou]

[materialsscienceandengineering]

Imagine a coat that captures solar energy to keep you cozy on a chilly winter walk, or a shirt that can monitor your heart rate and temperature.Picture clothing athletes can wear to track their performance without the need for bulky battery packs. University of Waterloo researchers have developed a smart fabric with these remarkable capabilities. The fabric has the potential for energy harvesting, health monitoring, and movement tracking applications. The new fabric developed by a Waterloo research team can convert body heat and solar energy into electricity, potentially enabling continuous operation with no need for an external power source. Different sensors monitoring temperature, stress, and more can be integrated into the material.

Read more.

[allthecanadianpolitics]

Canadian police say an attack on a university class examining gender studies was  ideologically motivated and targeted due to the suspect’s animus towards the transgender community.  On Wednesday, a 24-year-old man walked into a Philosophy 202 class at Waterloo University in Ontario and stabbed three people, including the class professor.   Investigators believe that the attack was ideologically motivated, and that Geovanny Villalba-Aleman targeted that particular class because of his animus towards the transgender community.  A 38-year-old female professor, and two students — a 20-year-old woman and 19-year-old man—were transported to hospitals where they were treated for stab wounds described as “serious but not life-threatening” by Waterloo Police.  Geovanny Villalba-Aleman, a recent graduate of the university, was arrested shortly after the attack and has since been charged. [...]

Continue Reading.

Tagging: @politicsofcanada

[lesmisscraper]

The Fall of Napoleon. Volume 2, Book 1, Chapter 9.

Clips from <Napoleon 2023>.

[waterloo-carte]

RWRB really came to change my life... Now I started reading fanfics and it was something I didn't even care about...

And guys, there are some fanfics that appear, guys...

[atlxolotl]

[timelessvampire30]

Imagine being able to jump from universe to universe like it's the most normal thing ever!

[quasi-normalcy]

[pureanonofficial]

LES MIS LETTERS IN ADAPTATION - A, LM 2.1.4 (Les Miserables 1958)

It is almost superfluous here to sketch the appearance of Napoleon on horseback, glass in hand, upon the heights of Rossomme, at daybreak, on June 18, 1815. All the world has seen him before we can show him. That calm profile under the little three-cornered hat of the school of Brienne, that green uniform, the white revers concealing the star of the Legion of Honor, his great coat hiding his epaulets, the corner of red ribbon peeping from beneath his vest, his leather trousers, the white horse with the saddle-cloth of purple velvet bearing on the corners crowned N’s and eagles, Hessian boots over silk stockings, silver spurs, the sword of Marengo,—that whole figure of the last of the Cæsars is present to all imaginations, saluted with acclamations by some, severely regarded by others.

That figure stood for a long time wholly in the light; this arose from a certain legendary dimness evolved by the majority of heroes, and which always veils the truth for a longer or shorter time; but to-day history and daylight have arrived.

[isbashirah]

my undergraduate journey: from the faculty of math, to becoming a multi-award-winning poet

becoming an alum, and reflecting on the situation in Gaza

This summer, I finally became an alum of the University of Waterloo. Looking back at the long and winding path it took to get me here, it’s interesting to see how things fell into place. I recall, the seemingly never-ending slurry of coursework that demanded so much time and attention. The late nights I would stay up attempting to complete assignments in the early hours of the morning. I remember the quiet lull of those weeks after the end of the final-exam period. I remember the nights when things didn’t seem like they would work out. When they still did. And when they didn’t. And how all of it somehow lead me, twice, to the Department of English Language and Literature Awards.

When I first set out to write this article for mathNEWS, I wanted to write about my journey as an undergraduate student, that started out in the honours math program, and the circumstances that lead me, like many, to transfer out of the Faculty of Math altogether.

Teachers and family members had high expectations of me. I think they thought I’d be making bank in finance or something of the like by now. Instead, I’ve become a poet. I reflect on these unfulfilled expectations, and the potential I had, that I chose to let go of, in order to pursue the path I’m on right now.

People warned me that I’d probably struggle to find employment without a STEM degree, especially as a person existing at the intersection of several marginalized communities. I knew I didn’t belong in Math, so when I decided to leave, I also committed myself to the pursuit of excellence. Academic achievement felt like a form of survival. I reflect on the obstacles I face now, emerging as a new grad in the midst of this tumultuous economy.

Sometimes my friends ask me what it feels like, having had my creative work recognized with awards. More than anything, the experience highlighted for me what was missing. Winning these awards, for me, was kind of like high school graduation. It’s another line to add to my resume. I know it might put me ahead a little bit, but none of my everyday problems have really been resolved. The glamour of the awards paled quickly. All that was left were the same everyday problems as I had before. My family, still fragmented, and myself, still lacking in many areas.

I never really intended to become a good poet, or even to improve on what skills I naturally possessed. I turned to writing because it gave me a space to discuss the problems I didn’t feel like I had the space to discuss otherwise. I turned to writing because I felt lonely, and I needed a healthy distraction. I enjoyed writing workshops, because amongst strangers, it was a space where I could just exist, unburdened by the past, or the future.

I have a hard time writing about these accomplishments now; I feel compelled to write about the students in Gaza. The students who will never graduate. The students whose universities have been destroyed, and the many students who have died. The artists, and the engineers. I think of the potential that is lost with civilians who die in war, and those who live on with less opportunities available for their flourishing.

I think about the Gaza House encampment, and encampments at other Canadian universities. The students who put their careers on the line, and put parts of their lives on hold, to speak out against war crimes, and advocate for those who cannot be heard. Those who are under the rubble. I can’t bring myself to further discuss my achievements while the situation in Gaza continues to escalate. I ask, why am I the one that gets to achieve? Right now, the opportunity to achieve is privilege in itself.

I think about my grandmother, with her limited literacy, who survived the Great Partition of India. My grandmother who never received a formal education and lives to see her children and grandchildren go on to become doctors, accountants, software engineers, and poets.

I think of the Palestinian olive trees. How it can take them years to grow before they start bearing fruit. I think of the olive trees that have been violently uprooted under the occupation, and the Al Badawi tree, a Palestinian olive tree that is estimated to be over two thousand years old.

Then I think of the longest night of the year, and the cold winter seasons, how the Al Badawi tree has lived through those long nights and seasonal shifts, into and out of cold and darkness, at least two thousand times.

When civilians die in war, especially children, they are robbed, not only of the opportunity to see what the world has to offer, but the ability to be a part of something larger than themselves. A family. A community. I am not Palestinian, I cannot speak for people in Gaza, but I still think about how I can serve them. As a creative, much of my work is deeply personal, but I believe that creatives have a duty to serve their communities, by creating and holding space for others when they need it. A space to just feel, and be in community with others.

Do you need space to talk about what’s going on in Palestine? I invite you to continue the conversation with me in the comments below.

Warmly,

I. S. Bashirah

This article was originally published on July 26th, 2024, in Volume 155, Issue 6 of mathNEWS.

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I. S. Bashirah is a multi-award-winning poet and recent alumna of the University of Waterloo. She was awarded the English Society Creative Writing Award for Poetry, as well as an Honourable Mention for the Albert Shaw Poetry Award, at the University of Waterloo Department of English Language and Literature Awards Ceremony in 2023. In 2024, she was also awarded the Albert Shaw Poetry Prize.

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Please note: this Tumblr blog exists as an extension of my Substack newsletter. If you would like to keep up with my work, and see my newest posts, they will be up on Substack first.

[feyres-divorce-lawyer]

back from my field trip to u of t🥳🥳

the bio lab was my favorite, SPIDERS! also almost spilled hydrochloric acid on my self so that was fun. found some amoebas in pond water, identified rocks. lead is a lot heavier than it looks. 10/10 experience

[kerovous]

Victoria Park, Waterloo, Ontario by Eric Dewar

[materialsscienceandengineering]

Polymer foam aims to transform oil spill cleanup

University of Waterloo researchers have developed a new material that can absorb more than eight times its weight in oil, offering a new solution in preventing groundwater contamination from spills or accidents. The study, "Fabrication of Triblock Elastomer Foams and Gelation Studies for Oil Spill Remediation," was published in Macro Molecular Rapid Communications. "The current technology for oil capture is lagging," said Tizazu Mekonnen, a professor at Waterloo's Department of Chemical Engineering. "Preserving our environment is crucial, which is why developing advanced technologies like this polymer is essential for remediating future groundwater contaminants that involve oil." The polymer foam—formally known as a tri-block polymer styrene-ethylene-butylene-styrene (SEBS)—that Mekonnen's group designed turns into a gel upon contact with oil, that prevents groundwater contamination.

Read more.

[allthecanadianpolitics]

The University of Waterloo says it will offer free tuition to qualified students from the two First Nations communities whose traditional grounds the school sits upon.

It says those who are members of the Six Nations of the Grand River and the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation will be considered for the initiative.

“This announcement is part of Waterloo’s efforts toward indigenization, decolonization and reconciliation, which are at the heart of the values guiding us as an institution of higher learning,” Waterloo president Vivek Goel stated.

“We hope that by reducing financial barriers for these students we will encourage them to participate in our innovative academic, entrepreneurship and co-op programs, which increases their future opportunities while strengthening communities and economies.”

Full article

Tagging: @politicsofcanada

[skam-in-every-language]

Preston Walters (ED story) ~ Waterloo Road Reboot

Trigger Warning: Eating Disorder