December 4, 2008 Vol. 44 No. 34 The University of Western Ontario’s newspaper of record www.westernnews.ca PM 41195534 HAPPY BIRTHDAY YOUR FOOD FINAL FRONTIER John Milton may no longer be around – the poet’s Consumer demand for locally grown and organic The Elginfield Observatory just north of London 400th birthday is next week – but an extraordinary food is being felt everywhere – including the has been quietly unlocking the secrets of space for collection of rare books of his work is on display Western campus. almost four decades. and provides the next best thing. Page 5 Page 6 Page 11 Beauty Of Math Heather Travis, Western News In her downtime, Robarts Research Institute software developer Lori Gardi creates intricate designs of a simple mathematical equation called the Mandelbrot Set. Besides creating works of beauty on display across campus, the process can help visualize blood flow, map heart beat or even detect tumours. See story on Page 10. RESEARCH Waste-to-fuel machine near market-ready B Y HEAT H ER TRAVIS At a public lecture last week, the Ltd., Berruti will begin to com- food products ... and look at the farm waste) using heat, but in professor of Chemical Engineer- mercialize the technology in opportunities.” the absence of oxygen. This unit y early December, most ing described a process which 2009. Unlike other biofuel initiatives can be taken to farms during farmers are stowing he, along with colleague Cedric This means that farming doesn’t such as corn to ethanol for mixing harvesting season to convert the Baway their equipment and Briens, developed to break down have to stop once crops are taken with gasoline, Western’s system so-called ‘waste’ of stalks and left- watching the market prices for organic material, such as corn off the fields; there is money to be does not convert food products over organic materials into gases, the return on a fruitful season. stalks or wood, into useful fuels found in what is left behind. into fuel - only waste. liquids and a solid residue. With a little engineering – make in a matter of seconds – a process “For thousands of years we Berruti has been instrumen- Once broken down, biomass that a lot of creative engineering which would take nature millions have used biomass for foods, but tal in developing the mobile produces bio oil, bio gas, bio-char – University of Western Ontario of years. even when you use biomass, there pyrolysis unit, a machine that (which includes many minerals professor Franco Berruti hopes And with the help of university is waste,” he says. “Our inter- chemically breaks down biomass to extend the harvest season. spin-off company Agri-Therm est is to take the waste from the (the non-edible constituents of Continued on page 16 INSIDE: Academe 20 | Careers 20 | Classified 20 | Coming Events 19 | Student Services Bulletin 19 2 DECEMBER 4, 2008 WESTERN NEWS Just how free is your speech? Science goes boldly B Y PAUL MAYNE into ‘inner’ space inding the right line between freedom of speech and the A Western-led sored by Western and will return Fprotection of rights and to the campus for the second equality in Canada is an ongoing annual conference in 2010. exercise, according to Western conference in “Our university is one of the Law professor Grant Huscroft. leading institutions in the world “Protection of rights and free India explores on nano-science and nanotechnol- speech… you can’t have both, ogy,” says Singh, who will travel unfortunately,” says Huscroft. nanotechnology to India with seven to eight fel- “We have the Charter of Rights low Western professors. and Freedoms, which looks very B Y PAUL MAYNE “It is a great achievement official, but the problem only for our university to organize comes when you have to put it he notion of injecting nano- this conference on the very hot to work. structured materials into research topic of this century.” “We’ve always had human rights Tthe human body to attack The conference is expected laws in Canada. The moment the a tumour or performing surgery to bring together more than 250 Charter came along to protect on individual cells sounds like scientists and engineers from speech we set up a conflict.” futuristic fiction. around the world to discuss Speaking recently to senior However, these technological various aspects of nanomaterial alumni, Huscroft says Canada breakthroughs, and others, are synthesis and characterization, Submitted Photo takes seriously the violations closer than many would imagine along with photonics and the most against human rights, yet set lim- Western Law professor Grant Huscroft says balancing freedom speech and and will be part of the discussions recent developments in the areas its to those rights. the protection of human rights is a difficult task. Jan. 5-8 at the first International of growth and characterization of The Charter states rights are Conference on Transport and nano-structured materials. protected ‘subject only to such Optical Properties of Nanomate- reasonable limits prescribed by in Europe. It also says some Mus- that may be controversial.” rials at Allahabad University in law as can be demonstrably jus- lims are violent radicals. While a majority of human India, about 350 miles southeast tified in a free and democratic The case was brought to the rights complaints filed are legiti- of Delhi. “When it comes to society.’ HRC in Ontario and British mate, Huscroft says it has become The four-day conference is nanotechnology, the That’s where someone has to Columbia, as well as at the fed- too easy to file a claim - for exam- being led by Western Physics possibilities are infinite.” make a decision which rights eral level. In two of the cases, the ple an article that may subject a and Astronomy professor Mahi should win out. complaint was immediately dis- group to hate or contempt - under Singh, whose personal research – Mahi Sing, “Someone has to interpret this missed without a hearing. In one, commission rules. focuses on the study of transport, Physics and Astronomy and put it to work, but there is where there was a hearing, the In essence that is a type of magnetic, chemical and optical no obvious answer to that,” says complaint was also dismissed. harassment, since there is not a properties of biological, elec- Huscroft. “You need to weigh the Each ruling stated there was cost to file a complaint and the tronic, and photonic materials. two. On one hand you’re fighting no breach of human rights and no defendant is responsible for all The challenge with his work is “On the nanoscale, size itself discrimination and on the other legal jurisdiction to proceed. costs, win or lose. to bridge the gap between theory produces novel physical, chemi- hand you have the loss of free “Reasonable people, in good “I think it’s a real problem,” and experiments, with the ulti- cal and engineering properties speech. The gain must outweigh faith, are going to disagree about says Huscroft. mate objective of his research that can be exploited to fabricate the loss. It’s about cause and human rights. It’s what we should While he feels the HRC is not being to fabricate a new genera- devices with entirely new char- effect.” expect in our society,” says up to the task of dealing with tion of bio-molecular and elec- acteristics,” says Singh. “The A prime example of this was Huscroft, adding the case galva- freedom of speech issues – better tronic devices, computers, ultra associated challenges, both intel- the recent Human Rights Com- nized the academic and journal- dealt with under criminal law – it fast optical switches and micro- lectually, scientifically and even- mission (HRC) case against istic community around the issue is important to have discussions lasers. Such devices may work tually industrially, are enormous Maclean’s magazine for publish- of freedom of speech. around these issues and not leave faster, fit into smaller spaces, and fascinating.” ing an article considered by four “Had this complaint succeeded, it to the courts to sort out. require less power, and give off Countries to be represented Muslim students at the Univer- you would have had a lot of fear “The choices we have to make less heat. include India, Canada, UK, USA, sity of Toronto to expose Muslims over anyone publishing any- in society are difficult,” says While Singh has travelled to France, Germany, Israel, Brazil, to hatred and contempt. thing. Huscroft. “Disagreements about and spoken at numerous confer- Japan, Norway, China, Turkey, The article discussed the high “If causing offense will land rights and how they’re to be ences, there has never been one Egypt, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Sin- birth rate among Muslims and you in a (human rights) tribunal, applied are inevitable. That’s a specifically focusing on his work, gapore, Sweden and more. speculated Islamic people could we are in trouble. It forces people good thing.” so he figured “do it myself.” “When it comes to nanotechnol- become the majority population to justify what they’re writing The conference is mainly spon- ogy, the possibilities are infinite,” says Singh, noting applications in medical, communications and military are just some of the areas that would benefit. “I knew I could find He adds the conference will Christ the King University Parish it if I came in here.”* also be a great opportunity to showcase Western. and e Office of Campus Ministry “The interactions between Western scientists and academ- at King’s University College MARKET ics from other parts of the world during this conference can serve welcome you to join us for the as a fertile ground for nurturing CRAFTS future connections and collabo- rations,” says Singh.