Science Canada: 03/15/10

Monday, March 15, 2010

Innovation is our hidden deficit

What would it take for Canada to be an innovative economy for the 21st century?
Mar 11, 2010
Kevin Lynch
Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/innovation-is-our-hidden-deficit/article1497976/

Hon. Gary Goodyear on Budget 2010

Mar 11, 2010
Hon. Gary Goodyear, Minister of State, Science and Technology
Canadian Science Policy Centre - Opinion Section
http://sciencepolicy.ca/news/hon-gary-goodyear-budget-2010

Budget deep freeze will lead to end of climate research lab

Critics say end to funding indicates Tories' skepticism of climate-change science
Mar 9, 2010
Shawn McCarthy
Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/budget-deep-freeze-will-lead-to-end-of-climate-research-lab/article1495628/

Climate-change scientists feel 'muzzled' by Ottawa: Documents

Mar 15, 2010
Mike De Souza
Canwest News Service
http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Climate+change+scientists+feel+muzzled+Ottawa+Documents/2684065/story.html

Name dishonest researchers, government urges

Mar 15, 2010
Margaret Munro
Canwest News Service
http://www.vancouversun.com/technology/Name+dishonest+researchers+government+urges/2683360/story.html

Star scientist hit with 'indefinite' grant ban

Research funds spent on TVs, iPod, custom car parts
Mar 13, 2010
Margaret Munro
Canwest News Service
http://www.timescolonist.com/business/Star+scientist+with+indefinite+grant/2679568/story.html

Millions in federal grants at risk, U of C warned

Researchers told to better account for spending
Mar 11, 2010
Jamie Komarnicki
Calgary Herald
http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/Millions+federal+grants+risk+warned/2669401/story.html

Saskatchewan must go global for innovation

Mar 11, 2010
The StarPhoenix
http://www.thestarphoenix.com/technology/Saskatchewan+must+global+innovation/2668999/story.html

Workshop on barriers to commercializing R&D

Mar 11, 2010
GLENNA HANLEY
The Daily Gleaner
http://nbbusinessjournal.canadaeast.com/front/article/980481

UW to coordinate diabetes research network

March 9, 2010
Johanna Weidner
Waterloo Record
http://news.therecord.com/article/680788

Cuts to higher education a losing strategy, U of A president says

South Korea touted as proof of dividends paid by generous funding
Mar 9, 2010
Gary Lamphier
Edmonton Journal
http://www.edmontonjournal.com/news/Cuts+higher+education+losing+strategy+president+says/2660793/story.html

University of Ottawa first to embrace Open Access

New online repository supported by institutional funding
Mar 8, 2010
John Lorinc
University Affairs
http://www.universityaffairs.ca/u-o-first-to-embrace-open-access.aspx

Agreement with Cree communities could set precedent for research

Indigenous people retain majority of intellectual property rights over research findings stemming from their traditional knowledge of local medicinal plants
Mar 8, 2010
Véronique Morin
University Affairs
http://www.universityaffairs.ca/agreement-with-cree-communities.aspx

Student fees set to rise

Universities in some provinces want to increase fees, without calling those fees ‘tuition’
Mar 8, 2010
Daniel Drolet
University Affairs
http://www.universityaffairs.ca/student-fees-set-to-rise.aspx

U.S. forcing more meat inspections in Canada

Mar 15, 2010
Sarah Schmidt
Canwest News Service
http://www.vancouversun.com/health/forcing+more+meat+inspections+Canada/2684500/story.html

Questions raised about gap in food inspection standards

Plants producing food bound for U.S. require more frequent inspections
Mar 15, 2010
Gloria Galloway
Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/questions-raised-about-gap-in-food-inspection-standards/article1500460/

How to defeat a needless epidemic

The experience in the NWT shows that access to the best treatment can make a real difference in stamping out TB
Mar 15, 2010
Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/editorials/how-to-defeat-a-needless-epidemic/article1500529/

Japan whale cull not necessary: researchers

Mar 15, 2010
The Associated Press
http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/03/15/whaling-research-hunt-japan.html

Tigers nearly extinct in wild: UN group

Mar 15, 2010
The Associated Press
http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/03/15/tech-un-species-cites.html

Unprincipled 'Precaution'

India is only the latest country to retard technological progress in the name of safety
Mar 15, 2010
JULIAN MORRIS
Wall Street Journal
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704416904575122592784329892.html?mod=WSJ_latestheadlines

The Pros and Cons of Genetically Modified Seeds

Mar 15, 2010
Wall Street Journal
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB126862629333762259.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

Tories ignore taxpayer-funded crime research

Mar 14, 2010
BRUCE CHEADLE
The Canadian Press
http://www.torontosun.com/news/canada/2010/03/14/13226076-cp.html

Canadian scientists uncover poppy's painkilling power

Breakthrough could mean cheaper codeine, now too expensive for many in the developing world
Mar 14, 2010
Anne McIlroy
Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/technology/science/canadian-scientists-uncover-poppys-painkilling-power/article1500380/

Listeria-contaminated meat prompts lawsuit

Mar 14, 2010
The Canadian Press
http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2010/03/14/listeria-suit.html

Atlantic bluefin tuna ban considered

Mar 13, 2010
CBC News
http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/03/13/pei-atlantic-bluefin-tuna-ban-1156.html

Skeptics and scientists spurned

Mar 12, 2010
Peter Christie
Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/letters-to-the-editor/skeptics-and-scientists-spurned/article1498210/

We are living in weird times

'Don't shoot me, I'm only a climate change scientist'
Mar 12, 2010
ALBERT NERENBERG
The Gazette
http://www.montrealgazette.com/technology/living+weird+times/2673945/story.html

Eureka! Less poison really is more – deadly

For 500 years, science has believed that we can tolerate a little bit of almost kind of any poison. Those days may be gone
Mar 12, 2010
Martin Mittelstaedt
Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/technology/science/eureka-less-poison-really-is-more-deadly/article1499340/

Speech from the throne pays little heed to clean-water action plan

Sensible national strategy would improve ecological and economic agendas
Mar 12, 2010
Thomas Axworthy
Ottawa Citizen
http://www.edmontonjournal.com/opinion/Speech+from+throne+pays+little+heed+clean+water+action+plan/2673650/story.html

Villagers hung up on keeping cellphones out of town

Modern times catch up with picturesque hamlet in the West Kootenay mountains
Mar 12, 2010
Jane Armstrong
Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/villagers-hung-up-on-keeping-cellphones-out-of-town/article1498198/

B.C. joins birth control class action lawsuit

Mar 12, 2010
Darcy Wintonyk
CTV News
http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20100312/bc_birth_control_lawsuit_100312/20100312?hub=BritishColumbia

Birth control users sue Bayer

Mar 12, 2010
CBC News
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/saskatchewan/story/2010/03/11/yasmin-yaz-birth-control-lawsuits-bayer.html

Polish isotopes to help cover Chalk River gap

Canadian hospitals hit by reactor shutdown welcome the move
Mar 12, 2010
Joanna Smith
Toronto Star
http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/778797--polish-isotopes-to-help-cover-chalk-river-gap

Alberta cuts oil and gas royalties

Mar 12, 2010
Archie McLean
Edmonton Journal
http://www.edmontonjournal.com/business/Alberta+cuts+royalties/2672204/story.html

Incentives could spur Alberta drilling, create jobs

Analysts doubt benefits for shale gas play
Mar 12, 2010
Shaun Polczer
Calgary Herald
http://www.calgaryherald.com/business/Incentives+could+spur+Alberta+drilling+create+jobs/2673302/story.html

Lack of snow will make life harder for B.C. salmon

Low water levels will interefere with summer spawning
Mar 12, 2010
CBC News
http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/03/12/bc-spawning-salmon-low-snowpack.html

Montana governor wants Canadian drugs

Mar 12, 2010
The Associated Press
http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2010/03/11/governor-drugs011.html

Oilpatch gets new government rules

Long-awaited competitiveness review expected to streamline regulatory process
Mar 11, 2010
Archie McLean
Edmonton Journal
http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Oilpatch+gets+government+rules/2669536/story.html

Suspended mastectomy doctor will operate

Mar 11, 2010
CBC News
http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2010/03/11/windsor-heartwell-operating-100311.html

Quebec to fund in vitro fertility treatments

Mar 11, 2010
CBC News
http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2010/03/11/mtl-quebec-in-vitro-funding.html

Developers delay $4-billion Bute hydro project

Amid confusion over B.C. energy policy, Plutonic Power and GE decides to wait a year to pursue green power deal
Mar 11, 2010
David Ebner
Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/developers-delay-4-billion-bute-hydro-project/article1496990/

Restoration of U.S. icebreaker should propel Canada to Arctic action: Senator

Mar 11, 2010
Randy Boswell
Canwest News Service
http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Restoration+icebreaker+should+propel+Canada+Arctic+action+Senator/2672495/story.html

Don't demonize the messenger

Mar 11, 2010
Elizabeth E. May
National Post
http://network.nationalpost.com/NP/blogs/fullcomment/archive/2010/03/11/elizabeth-e-may-don-t-demonize-the-messenger.aspx

Fable or not, crying wolf is still a bad idea

Critics on both sides of the climate change debate do themselves a disservice by citing weather fluctuations as proof of their argument
Mar 11, 2010
Craig McInnes
Vancouver Sun
http://www.vancouversun.com/technology/Fable+crying+wolf+still+idea/2670029/story.html

No safe way to get a tan: cancer society

Mar 11, 2010
QMI Agency
http://www.torontosun.com/news/canada/2010/03/11/13193311.html

Ontario's sweet drug deals threatened by disclosure of rebate terms

Confidential rebates let province reap large savings on brand-name pharmaceuticals, but that secrecy is under siege
Mar 11, 2010
Adam Radwanski
Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/columnists/adam-radwanski/ontarios-sweet-drug-deals-threatened-by-disclosure-of-rebate-terms/article1498059/

Group wants microwave regulation tightened

Mar 11, 2010
BRYN WEESE
SUN MEDIA
http://www.torontosun.com/news/canada/2010/03/11/13200126-qmi.html

No coyote cull for Nova Scotia

Mar 11, 2010
CBC News
http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/03/11/ns-no-coyote-cull.html

Not whaling but drowning

In a sea of international opprobrium. But a compromise may be at hand
Mar 11, 2010
The Economist
http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displayStory.cfm?story_id=15663372

Metabolic syndrome: A game of consequences?

One of the scourges of modern life may have been profoundly misunderstood
Mar 11, 2010
The Economist
http://www.economist.com/science-technology/displaystory.cfm?story_id=15660902

‘Doomsday’ seed bank growing strongly

Arctic vault now contains the world's most diverse repository of crop seeds, operators say
Mar 10, 2010
Ian MacDougall
Associated Press
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/doomsday-seed-bank-growing-strongly/article1496577/

Canada's warmest winter ever 'beyond shocking'

Season was balmiest, driest on record
Mar 10, 2010
Margaret Munro
Canwest News Service
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/technology/Canada+warmest+winter+ever+beyond+shocking/2666979/story.html

Tailings pond breaks law: federal officer

Syncrude not charged until 2008 duck deaths
Mar 10, 2010
Alexandra Zabjek
Edmonton Journal
http://www.vancouversun.com/business/Tailings+pond+breaks+federal+officer/2663851/story.html

Superbug MRSA on rise in Canada

Mar 10, 2010
The Canadian Press
http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2010/03/10/mrsa-superbug-hospitals-canada.html

Climate panel to receive external review

Mar 10, 2010
The Associated Press
http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/03/10/tech-climate-ipcc-review.html

Seal pups beached in ice-free Gulf

Pups seen on Quebec shores, as far north as Newfoundland's Northern Peninsula
Mar 10, 2010
The Canadian Press
http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/03/10/mont-seal-pups-ice-gulf-lawrence.html

Quantum computing may lead to a quantum Canadian leap

Governments are twigging to the face that owning the 21st century will mean innovating their way to the top
Mar 10, 2010
Gary Mason
Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/quantum-computing-may-lead-to-a-quantum-canadian-leap/article1496565/

Pipeline recommendations could face streamlining before April hearing

Mar 10, 2010
Dina O'Meara
Calgary Herald
http://www.calgaryherald.com/business/Pipeline+recommendations+could+face+streamlining+before+April+hearing/2667746/story.html

Changing the Climate of Uncertainty

It’s difficult to have confidence in the federal government on climate change when they’ve been so unclear
Mar 10, 2010
Tyson Dyck
The Mark
http://www.themarknews.com/articles/1108-changing-the-climate-of-uncertainty

New research could give Canada advantage in Arctic

Mar 10, 2010
Randy Boswell
Canwest News Service
http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/research+could+give+Canada+advantage+Arctic/2663985/story.html

Obesity: 'Soda tax' detractors complain of tax on the poor

Mar 10, 2010
Meagan Fitzpatrick
Canwest News Service
http://www.vancouversun.com/health/Obesity+Soda+detractors+complain+poor/2668052/story.html

New Canadian research shows vaccinating children for flu also protects adults

Mar 10, 2010
Shereen Dindar
National Post
http://network.nationalpost.com/NP/blogs/posted/archive/2010/03/10/new-canadian-research-shows-vaccinating-children-for-flu-also-protects-adults.aspx

Aboriginal Canadians more than 30 times more likely to have tuberculosis: Report

Mar 10, 2010
Mia Rabson
Winnipeg Free Press
http://www.vancouversun.com/business/Aboriginal+Canadians+more+than+times+more+likely+have+tuberculosis+Report/2668166/story.html

Aboriginals in Canada face ‘Third World'-level risk of tuberculosis

Risk of infection among natives is 31 times greater than non-natives; for Inuit, risk is 186 times greater
Mar 10, 2010
Bill Curry
Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/aboriginals-in-canada-face-third-world-level-risk-of-tuberculosis/article1496790/

Green energy bubbles

Despite bubbles, governments keep pumping air into alternative energy
Mar 10, 2010
Terence Corcoran
Financial Post
http://network.nationalpost.com/NP/blogs/fpcomment/archive/2010/03/10/terence-corcoran-green-energy-bubbles.aspx

New Canadian science-writing prize unveiled

Annual $10,000 award will honour books in adult and children’s categories
Mar 9, 2010
Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/books/new-canadian-science-writing-prize-unveiled/article1494774/

Budget time offers a glimpse into the future - but how far?

Mar 9, 2010
David Suzuki With Faisal Moola
The Canadian Press
http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5i1Z7t7AZ1b5MOesEmp4vZmTw1LSQ

Teens tackle science of climate change

Symposium brings together youth from four countries
Mar 9, 2010
KEVIN CONNOR
Toronto Sun
http://www.torontosun.com/news/torontoandgta/2010/03/09/13170926.html

Fighting the blue-green algae plague is blooming complicated

The principal man-made contributor to Lake Winnipeg's problems comes from agriculture
Mar 9, 2010
Jeffrey Simpson
Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/fighting-the-blue-green-algae-plague-is-blooming-complicated/article1495356/

Canada to map central Arctic seabed

Researchers will deploy robotic vehicles beneath the ice
Mar 9, 2010
CBC News
http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/03/09/cda-arctic-mapping-borden.html

Move school-age kids up in the flu shot queue, study suggests

Researchers found that vaccinating younger children prevents the transmission of the virus and confers protection to those not already immunized
Mar 9, 2010
Caroline Alphonso
Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health/move-school-age-kids-up-in-the-flu-shot-queue-study-suggests/article1495526/

Disease, weather kill Vancouver Island bees

Mar 9, 2010
CBC News
http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/03/09/bc-vancouver-island-bees-die.html

B.C. apiarists stung by bee deaths

Parasite and weather blamed for '90-per-cent losses' in Vancouver Island hives
Mar 4, 2010
BRENNAN CLARKE
Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/technology/science/bc-apiarists-stung-by-bee-deaths/article1488995/

Syncrude duck pictures not seen by Stelmach

Mar 9, 2010
CBC News
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/edmonton/story/2010/03/09/edmonton-syncrude-premier-has-not-seen-duck-images.html