OVER THE ERGE NEWSPAPER. NOVEMBER 22. 2006 UNBC Moves to Canadian Server Because of US Patriot Act Concerns JEREMY JOHNSON STAFF WRITER RefWorks is a name very few UNBC students would be familiar with. This is because the service was only put in place a week ago. The service helps students get a better handle on citations. The problem? It’s a US based service and individual users using the service are vulnerable to the Patriot Act. According to the Globe and Mail, this concept was enough for the University of Alberta to move to aCanadian based server. Are the issues of major concern to UNBC students or is this hardly a need for con- cern? Over the Edge spoke with Joanne Murphy who is overseeing the issues surrounding RefWorks at UNBC’s ends2+> Murphy confirms that, as it stands to day, UNBC does use RefWorks on a US based server, however, many of UNBC’s research services currently available to students are all on US servers. So is it not that big of a deal? Murphy explained that the concern isn't necessarily the fact that UNBC is using a US based server, but rather the fact that, unlike the other services being offered, RefWorks asks students to make a personal account. As it stands with the other services, students connect to the services with a signature which is an IP (Internet Proto- col) address, The thing is, everyone has the same IP address, therefore, it makes it exponentially more difficult to iden- tify someone in the network without in- house tracing, Essentially, it's like some- one going to someone else and asking for various bits of information for other people. With RefWorks, the person asking for various bits of information would instead say that ‘Bob Smith’ is asking for this information, The person on the receiving end will therefore know exactly who is requesting that informa- tion instead of just. the fact that some- one wants the information. .. the Canadian server offers Sthe fact that both the per- son asking and the person receiving the question are on the same side of the bor- der even if the information is in the US,’ For the privacy sensitive, this was a cause for outcry because of US regula- tion on privacy (somé may argue, lack of privacy) but there is hope— the exist- ence of a Canadian server. The Canadian server offers the fact that both the person asking and the person receiving the question are on the same side of the border even if the infor- mation is in the US. Joanne argued that while this may remove some concerns, it doesn't neces- sarily make the issue that much better because the Canadian government can easily be asked by the US to hand the in- formation over by the US government. The good news is that there is that gov- ernment oversight that might not neces- sarily exist in the US. She said that UNBC is in the pro- cess of moving to the Canadian server. While there is no deadline or set time, the move is in progress at this time. While contemplating the issues sur- rounding privacy, she wondered how likely a student's research would land them on a black list or watch list of some sort. She figures that it is highly unlikely something bad would come out of this. Paraphrasing, Murphy says, do I agree with the Patriot act? No. DoI think something will happen out of this setvice? Highly highly unlikely’ Folding May Save Your Life New Program Looks to Understand Protein CAMERON ORR NEWS EDITOR The UNBC computer club has or- ganized a community computing event which helps to unlock the mysteries of the human protein. Tt might sound like something your mother might say, but folding could one day save your life. Protein folding is the process that a protein undergoes before it can perform its specific task. This method of self-as- sembly is not fully understood, More- over, less is understood about the the implications of a faulty fold. Misfolding can lead to some serious diseases. Eric Chlebek has organized the Folding@Home program for anyone,,-. to participate in. Hopefully through a combined computer effort the protein folding can be more understood. “This was an idea that I promoted at our annual general meeting a while back,” says Eric Chlebek. “The board liked the idea and I was put in charge of the project. It is a totally voluntary pet project.’ The setup is very similar to the SETI@Home project of a few years ago. The idea is that there is an abundance of unprocessed data about proteins. Units of data can be sent out to personal com- puters for them to process and analyze the data. The more computers that are linked, the more analyzing can be done, The project actually originated at Teach English in Taiwan! Discover Asia and pay off your loan! - Part Time: $2,000 Living costs: $1,300 “Exchange rates wil vary Full Time: $2,900 No Experience Necessary!!! Free TEFL Training Provided ‘interest Free Setup Loan (up to NT$30,000) Regular Raises and Bonuses Requirements: - Native English Speaker Canadian/US Passport Any Bachelor's Degree ll Average Monthly income and Spending cai 1-Year Contract Commitment www.hess.com.tw Stanford University. Stanford is where the analyzed data is sent. UNBC is among many participants who believe in the cause of understanding and prevent- ing diseases such as Alzcheimers and Huntingtons, “Protein folding is the pro- cess that a protein under- goes before it can perform its specific task. This meth- od of self-assembly is not fully understood. Moreover, less is understood about the the implications of a faulty fold. Misfolding can lead to some serious diseases. Folding@Home has already made a lot of progress. The p53 tumor suppres- sor has been studied and as a result a | higher understanding of the mutations involved in cancer has developed which will potentially lead to new treatments. “I'm not a biologist” says Chlebek, “but I chink it is obvious the program is generating results.” The web site to visit is http://acorn. no-ip.org/folding, The site will give you all the relevant information, a means to download the program and a full list of succcesses the program has achieved. “I would very much like to see this project become a long standing tradition at UNBC, especially amongst people in the sciences,’ says Eric. The only thing the Folding team needs now is support so if you're inclined to participate just visit the website and find out how you can help. Emily ANNA GRADOWSKA STAFF WRITER For the first time, Emily Carr arts courses ate being brought to students through UNBC's Continuing Studies program. The recently offered courses, including Drawing into Painting and The Contemporary Comic and Chinese Art, are part of a further effort to bring a Fine Arts degree to UNBC. The recent courses are two day work- shops taught by Emily Carr's own in- structors. They cost within the range of $250-265 and offer something that was, until now, not accessible to UNBC students. The workshop courses will be offered into the Winter 2007 semester and are the same courses offered at the Vancouver Emily Carr campus. The coutses made recently available will lead into a more refined joint Bach- elor of Fine Arts course between UNBC and Emily Carr. The degree, the first of its kind in Northern BC, will offer a range of courses from both institutes. EWS 5 Carr Comes to UNBC The combination of UNBC’s creative writing and literature courses with Emi- ly Carr’s art courses will create an ex- cellent program whose curriculum will involve education in studio, art history, English, and creative writing, as well as new media and digital technology. “It is a wonderful opportunity for artists from throughout the region to advance their skills without having the burden of extra travel costs” said Kim Knutsson, UNBC Continuing Studies coordinator. The new degree, which is set to begin in September 2007, is in the final stages of negotiation. Emily Carr has already signed a protocol to create the joint de- gree that will cater to the needs and vi- sions of UNBC. For information on the current and upcoming courses coming to UNBC fresh from Emily Carr, you can go to the Continuing Studies webpage at: www. unbe.ca/continuingstudies Farmers Market Aids Local Economy Potential for Year-Round Market is Promising KRISTY DA COSTA STAFF WRITER A local study has found that nearly $800,000 goes into our local economy from the Farmers Market. Research by David Connell and a team of students conducted a research on the Prince George Farmers Market. They surveyed more than 300 people on September 9 and estimated that almost “Our research has shown that the Farmer's Market has had a strong positive influence on downtown Prince George’ - David Connell 2,000 people visited the market. According to their research the Farm- er's Market contributes $794,000 to the local economy per year. The Farmer's Market also draws large groups of people to the downtown area. Connell’s research shows that 64% of that group also attends neighboring businesses while in the downtown area. This shows that the Farmer's Market also indirectly aids the economy by drawing people into other downtown businesses. Additional spending at other downtown businesses is estimated at $402,000. “Our research has shown that the Farmers’ Market has had a strong posi- tive influence on downtown Prince George. This is borne out by the hard numbers as well as the opinions of mar- ket attendees and neighboring business- es who — almost without exception — see the Farmer’s Market as very positive as- pect of the downtown. The results give us a glimpse of what the potential bene- fits would be of a year-round market” states David Connell. ‘The market is only held from May to October, so it's too late to participate this year but it will recurn again in 2007. The crafts and foods are typically locally produced and the fair consists of up- wards of 55 vendors. Recent town markets have also in- cluded the craft fair held at UNBC and similar markets through local schools and churches. Husky Energy Fuels Medical Research KRISTY DA COSTA STAFF WRITER A large contribution of $100,000 has been given to UNBC from Husky En- etgy. This donation will allow UNBC to purchase.a Blood Glucose and Lipid Profile Auto Analyzer. This. equipment is: used to measure blood glucose levels, triglycerides, HDL cholesterols, and LDE cholesterols. It aids in diagnosing cardiovascular diseases and diabetes, “Husky's donation to this very worth- while initiative reflects our corporate philosophy of supporting the com- munities where we do business, This gift marks the completion of our Clean Fuels Project, as well as celebrates Husky's 30th year of operations in the community of Prince George” said John C.C. Lau, President and Chief executive oan officer of Husky Energy. UNBC is engaged in a Northern Med- ical Program that accepts 24 students a year, As well, UNBC offers a bachelor’s degree program in Nursing, a Bachelor of Health Sciences and a master’s de- gree program in Nursing, The purchase of the Blood Glucose and Lipid Profile Auto’ Analyzer will aid UNBC's re- searching capabilities. “This new equipment will allow us to engage in research into various forms of chronic disease where the capacity of early intervention through blood screen- ing can greatly enhance health and dis- ‘ease prevention, says Don Cozzetto, UNBC’s President. “Thank you to Husky Energy for making this research possible here.’ Husky's Prince George refinery now produces low sulphur gasoline and diesel fuel under the Government of Canada's new fuel specifications and produces 12,000 barrels a day.