VOL. 48, ISSUE 8 • JANUARY 9, 2013 WAITING TO CONNECT Dead connections at BCIT as wireless woes continue page 5 NEWS CULTURE HUMOUR pages 3-6 pages 7-9 page 12 • U-Pass going to referendum this spring • Contact festival rocks BC Place • British Columbia Museum of Technology • On-campus strikes may continue • Top albums you may have missed in 2012 • How to tell if you are a werewolf • Childcare centre opens at Burnaby Campus • Vancouver Noir tells tale of crime & corruption • Fauxroscopes 2 THE LINK ) ) The Link PHOTO of the WEEK Wednesday, January 9, 2013 Volume 48, Issue 8 Next issue: January 23, 2013 ABOUT THE LINK The Link is the British Columbia Insti- tute of Technology’s student newspa- per. Published bi-weekly by the BCIT Student Association (BCITSA), The Link circulates 3,000 copies to over 46,000+ students, faculty, and staff. THE LINK Room 281 - Building SE2 3700 Willingdon Ave. Burnaby, B.C. V5G 3H2 PHONE 604.456.1167 FAX 604.431.7619 PUBLICATIONS MANAGER John Morrison III [email protected] 604.456.1167 ADVERTISING SALES Andrea Lekei [email protected] 604.453.4072 SENIOR EDITOR Kevin Willemse [email protected] ASSISTANT EDITOR Angie Theilmann [email protected] NEWS EDITOR Neetu Garcha BCIT’s famous squadron of crows is a frequent winter spectacle. Credit: Kevin Murray [email protected] CULTURE EDITOR Jesse Wentzloff [email protected] Submit the photo of the week and we’ll pay you $20 PROOFREADER Send a horizontal photo that is related to campus life to [email protected]. Include your name and a description of what you shot. If we print it, you make $20. Sarah Gray THIS WEEK’S CONTRIBUTORS Meriha Beaton, Maxine Davies, ibaraki Hyakuri, Michael Jarosz, Kai Jacobson, Dan Johnson, Nagin CAMPUS QUERY Rezaiean, Olsy Sorokina Cover art: Ion Oprea Have you ever had an issue with Wi-Fi on campus? Write, photograph, or illustrate for The Link! E-mail [email protected] for more information on how to get involved. Please share or recycle this newspaper. Thank you. The views expressed in The Link are not necessarily those of BCIT, the BCIT Student Association,The Link editorial staff, or the publications manager. As a member of Canadian University Press (CUP), The Link adheres to the CUP code of ethics and will not publish any material deemed by the editors to MANDEEP SANDHU CHANEL LUM STAN GORMENSKI KAITLYN KROIS be sexist, racist, homo/heterophobic, Marketing Communications Marketing Communications Tourism Marketing Communications or in poor taste. The Link is proud to be associated with “I no longer count on Wi-Fi “We’re at BCIT, an institute of “It’s so slow or it doesn’t load and “Quite often it’s not available these organizations: because it’s a risk so I just make technology, and the Wi-Fi is the final product is I’ll just end up and you have to keep trying and sure I keep enough time to go spotty at best.” putting away my laptop.” sometimes it takes 15 minutes to to the library.” half an hour [to log on] and that’s really frustrating.” The Link NEWS 3 U-Pass program going to referendum this spring CAMPUS SHORTS Future of UBC microbrewery remains murky BCIT among 11 post-secondary institutions to vote whether or not to continue universal UBC’s new Student Union Build- ing (SUB) will be opening soon, transit pass this spring but there are questions about the student-run microbrewery OLSY SOROKINA set to be located there. The Link In a spirited debate, Alma Mater Society (AMS) execu- Student unions at 11 post-sec- tives, permanent staff, alumni, ondary institutions in Metro and a vocal delegation from the Vancouver, including BCIT, will BrUBC home-brewing club dis- take part in a referendum decid- cussed the financial aspects of ing whether or not to continue bringing a microbrewer to the participating in the U-Pass pro- university. Discussions centred gram when the current contract around whether the potential expires in March this year. monetary and social gains from Presently, all students (whether brewing beer in the SUB out- they use it or not) pay the monthly weighed the project risks. mandatory fee of $30 in addition A final AMS Council vote on to tuition fees to cover the cost of the status of the microbrewery the pass. is expected to take place in Jan- The pass permits its users to uary 2013. use public transit in all three fare zones in Metro Vancouver and get a discount for the West Coast Ex- Langara student union restricts press, a weekday commuter rail student access to board meetings service between downtown Van- BCIT students’ future with the universal transit pass to be decided this February. Kai Jacobson / The Ubyssey couver and Mission. Langara Students’ Union (LSU) According to the information is enforcing a set of changes to on British Columbia Institute of ary students’ needs. directly onto the students’ Com- to the financial burden to us as its bylaws, passed in a referen- Technology Student Association There are no significant pass Card, the electronic fare card students,” Thushara Suresh, a BCIT dum, to prohibit students from (BCITSA) and TransLink websites, changes to the U-Pass, other that will replace all FareSaver student, told The Link, “but I feel attending meetings of the LSU’s the revised program will be in ef- than the price: the pass will con- tickets in late 2013. Compass is like it’s still worth the investment board of directors. fect from April 2013 to April 2016, tinue to give eligible students a reloadable fare system which compared to the more expensive The LSU has ignored repeat- and will adjust U-Pass rates yearly access to bus, SeaBus and Sky- allows commuters to add value alternatives.” ed email, phone and in-person in accordance with TransLink fare train services in all three fare onto a single card instead of buy- Michael Fan, General Insurance requests for information from changes. ing multiple tickets or passes. and Risk Management student, national student media coop- The proposed monthly U- The new system was designed to shared Suresh’s opinion. perative Canadian University Pass rates are: $35 from May reduce waste from paper tickets, “They [TransLink] are going to Press and Langara’s campus pa- 2013 to April 2014, $36.75 from Despite the fee and collect commuter data to im- change the prices for the regular per, The Voice. May 2014 to April 2015 and $38 increase, there is no prove transit services. adult passes: $91 for one zone, from May 2015 to April 2016. From February 15 to 22, BCIT $124 for two zones and $170 for While this is an immediate news of an increase students will have their chance to three zones,” says Fan. “Compare University of Alberta researchers increase of $5 per month from in service levels vote whether to renew BCIT’s U- that to the mere $35 to $38 that proposed tax on sugary drinks the current rate, it saves stu- specific to post- Pass program or not. we’ll be paying, we should be dents up to $135 in transit fares When asked about their grateful.” Two University of Alberta re- in comparison to the regular- “secondary students’ opinions on the new program, The referendum for the new U- searchers have proposed a tax priced adult pass. Despite the needs. BCIT students expressed their Pass will take place at participat- on all sugar-sweetened bever- fee increase, there is no news desire to keep the U-Pass. ing post-secondary institutions ages (SSBs) sold in Alberta say- of any changes to public transit zones within Metro Vancouver. “It’s not a surprise, and it’s most across BC starting January, and ing it could decrease consump- services specific to post-second- The new U-Pass can be loaded definitely not a welcome addition will continue until March 2013. tion and raise $750 million in revenue. Research conducted by PhD student Sue Buhler and super- PROPOSED U-PASS FEE INCREASES (PER MONTH) visor Kim Raine led to a sweet discovery: Albertans drink about $40 1.5 billion litres of SSBs annually, amounting to more than one litre per person each day. $38 They found that implement- ing a tax of $0.05 per 100 mL of $35 $36.75 SSBs could lower consumption $35 by 10 to 17 per cent in the prov- ince, as well as provide revenue that could finance a wellness $30 foundation, or promote health $30 throughout Alberta. — Nagin Rezaiean Current May 2013 - April 2014 May 2014 - April 2015 May 2015 - April 2016 January 9, 2013 4 NEWS All photos by Kevin Willemse Childcare centre now open at Burnaby Campus Modern, professional, and “Fortunately for me, I came sive environment.” friendly facility offers friends in when the fun began, and I Learning is continually in- of BCIT an attractive day- was able to shop, shop, shop!” tegrated and extended through D’Altroy said. “I got to make the play, and Sue plans subjects and care option centre as home-y and unique as craft classes in advance — for I could in a very short time.” example, this week everyone KEVIN WILLEMSE The creation of the centre is will be learning about birds and Senior Editor part of the ongoing renovations building feeders. package taking place at BCIT, Healthy, hot lunches are pro- After a complete renovation of headed by BCIT Student Asso- vided by the kitchen at Professor the SE41 building, BCIT Burn- ciation Executive Director Car- Mugs pub, the cost of which is aby Campus can now boast oline Gagnon, which included included in the enrolment fees.