Accolades
Andrea Falcon (Philosophy) has been elected to the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton for the second term of 2007-08 on the basis of a project that will result in the production of a book entitled Xenarchus of Seleucia and Aristotelianism in the First Century BCE (Cambridge UP). Xenarchus is known for his vigorous criticism of Aristotle’s thesis that celestial bodies are made of a so-called “fifth substance.” Falcon examines his thought as an early interpreter of Aristotle, places it in context, and traces its impact through antiquity, the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.
“Giving Up on Unattainable Goals: Benefits for Health?” is the name of a paper Carsten Wrosch (Centre for Research in Human Development) published recently in the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. The studies, including one done with Concordia student volunteers, enabled the authors to predict that people who let go and reengage with other goals may experience better physical health. One of Wrosch’s three co-authors was Stephanie Brun de Pontet, also of Concordia.
Students in the John Molson School of Business have earned a gold award for the second time in a month. This time, the competition was the Omnium Financier, hosted by HEC Montréal (Université de Montréal). Nine universities from Quebec and Ontario competed, and the JMSB earned five medals in six disciplines. The names of the winners are on the JMSB’s news site at johnmolson.concordia.ca. Congratulations to them, and to those who helped head coach Mark Haber.
On Feb. 3, The Gazette’s Amuse-Bouche column featured the People’s Potato. The collective kitchen on the seventh floor of the Hall Building is run by Concordia students and feeds between 400 and 500 students a day on a pay-what-you-can basis. Volunteer Adrienne Colby was interviewed, and photographed stirring a big cauldron of soup. The People’s Potato has a cookbook called Vegan on a Shoestring that costs $10.
File Photo
RoboKeith is as durable as his namesake, Keith Richards. The robotic guitar player developed by engineering students performed live on CBC’s Radio Noon, and was on hand at the university’s Open House on Jan. 25. Radio Noon included an interview with Niladri Roy, who was instrumental in the design of the mechanical fretting and strumming mechanism, and Rolling Stones fan Ted Obuchowicz, project co-supervisor.
The Vancouver Sun published a front-page story on Jan. 29 on a study on endangered species by James Grant (Biology). He told the newspaper that agriculture and urbanization cause substantial habitat loss and pollution.
Gad Saad (Marketing) is publishing a new book called The Evolutionary Bases of Consumption (Lawrence Erlbaum). He says it’s the first book to demonstrate the ways by which evolutionary theory can be used in understanding consumption. Saad has published papers recently in Psychology & Marketing, Medical Hypotheses, Managerial and Decision Economics, Scientometrics, Young Consumers, and Behavioral and Brain Sciences.
Media Relations and Outreach Director Chris Mota was the subject of a Feb. 3 Gazette feature called “Justify Your Existence.” The article looked at the challenges and satisfactions of speaking to the media on behalf of the university.