Thursday August 4, 2011

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Ted Talks

Mark Pagel: How language transformed humanity

Biologist Mark Pagel shares an intriguing theory about why humans evolved our complex system of language. He suggests that language is a piece of "social technology" that allowed early human tribes to access a powerful new tool: cooperation.

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Travel Safety

GOVERNMENT OF CANADA INVESTS IN AIRPORT SAFETY

WATERLOO - The Honourable Denis Lebel, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, announced that the Government of Canada is investing more than $3.2 million in improvements to the Region of Waterloo International Airport. Under the Airports Capital Assistance Program, the money will be used to partially rehabilitate the pavement on Runway 08-26.

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Official Opening

NEW COMBINED SERVICES BUILDING OPEN AT AIRPORT

BRESLAU – Officials gathered at the Region of Waterloo International Airport to officially open its new combined maintenance and fire hall facility. The spacious, multipurpose building features environmentally sustainable technologies and was built to LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver standards.

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Emissions

Collaborative project receives funding to take action on community-wide greenhouse gas emissions

Local partners commit $205,000 to The Climate Collaborative to support the development of a community-wide greenhouse gas inventory and action plan

WATERLOO REGION – Sustainable Waterloo, REEP Green Solutions, and the Regional Municipality of Waterloo announced that they are collaborating to take community-wide action on climate change. Thanks to the generous support of two local funding agencies the project, called “The Climate Collaborative”, will develop a community-scale greenhouse gas inventory, reduction target and action plan for Waterloo Region.

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Awards

Five University of Waterloo graduate students win coveted Vanier Canada awards

WATERLOO - Five University of Waterloo graduate students received Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships, prestigious awards that recognize top academic achievement and leaderships skills.

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Research

Finding could reduce antibiotic use in critically ill patients

Kingston - Measuring the levels of a natural body chemical may allow doctors to reduce the duration of antibiotic use and improve the health outcomes of critically ill patients.

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Research

Aggressive drug therapy aids superbug evolution

Kingston - New research raises troubling concerns about the use of aggressive drug therapies to treat a wide range of diseases such as MRSA, C. difficile, malaria, and even cancer.

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Survey

Community Diversity Survey

Cambridge - The YMCA of Cambridge and the City of Cambridge are pleased to announce the launch of their annual Community Diversity Survey. All Cambridge and area residents are invited to fill out the survey online or can pick up a hardcopy at the YMCA’s Cultural Diversity office in Cambridge.

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Business Launch

Steve Maich Appointed Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Sportsnet Magazine

TORONTO - Ken Whyte, Executive Vice-President, Rogers Publishing Limited, announced the appointment of Steve Maich as Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Sportsnet magazine. Launching in late September, the publication will be Canada's first national bi-weekly sports magazine focusing on sports stories that matter most to Canadians.

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Award

Carleton PhD Candidate Wins Prestigious Northern Studies Scholarship

Ottawa – Carleton University PhD candidate Thomas Mumford has been named a recipient of an esteemed $40,000 W. Garfield Weston Award of Northern Research. The earth sciences student was honoured in June with the award by the Association of Canadian Universities for Northern Studies as part of the Canadian Northern Studies Trust (CNST) awards program.

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Scholarships

Prime Minister Stephen Harper visits campus to announce 2011 Vanier scholars: six McMaster graduate students among winners

Hamilton - Prime Minister Stephen Harper has announced the winners of the prestigious Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships for 2011, a group that includes six McMaster scholars.

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Award

Trent Ph.D. Student a Top Pick for Canada's Prestigious $150,000 Scholarship

Graduate student Brigitte Evering's research could make a difference in global environmental health

Peterborough - Trent University student Brigitte Evering will receive a $150,000 scholarship over three years, as a recipient of Canada’s most prestigious scholarships for doctoral students – the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship, among 167 esteemed scholars announced in Hamilton by the Right Honourable Stephen Harper, prime minister of Canada.

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Economy

New Combined Caribbean & Central America BPO & Contact Center Report 2012 Published by Zagada Institute, Region's Leading Research Firm

New Analysis Highlights Central America Bilingual Agent Density Has Bypassed Caribbean, 125,000 Workers in Sector With Revenues and Direct Economic GLOBAL Impact Approaching US$5 Billion

MIAMI, FL and CORAL GABLES, FL - Zagada Institute, the research arm of Zagada Markets, announces the publication data of its combined Caribbean & Central America BPO & Contact Center 2012 Report for Monday, August 8th, 2011. The combined report is an updated analysis to the company's earlier August 2009 Central America analysis and Caribbean 2010 studies. The report is data rich and offers strategic guidance and intelligence to corporate buyers, investors, service providers and executives about how to evaluate each market, assess third party service providers and vendors and utilize Zagada's advisory services on the region.

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Green Construction

Shaking up the housing market, building an earthquake-proof green home

Ottawa’s trendy Glebe neighbourhood is home to a new generation of structural steel construction methods that frustrates the fault line

Ottawa – Rising up among its neighbours like the crane-enabled steel cage of a U2 stage-set, the latest green home project by The RGB Group is a home that will withstand a quake five times more powerful than the one that shook Ottawa and region last summer.

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Financial

Second Quarter 2011 Results

TORONTO - Sun Life Financial Inc. announced operating net income of $425 million for the second quarter of 2011, compared with operating net income of $155 million in the same period last year. Operating earnings per share, which excludes the dilutive impact of convertible securities, were $0.73 in the second quarter of 2011, compared to $0.27 in the second quarter of 2010.

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Auto

Auto Group Achieved Best-ever July New record for year-to-date sales

RICHMOND HILL - BMW Group Canada (BMW and MINI brands combined) reported 2,867 retails in July, an increase of 14.1 per cent over July, 2010. A total of 19,761 units have been sold so far this year, an increase of 12.5 per cent over last year.

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Sales

July Car Sales Results Anounced

Total year-to-date sales up 2.5 per cent, year-to-date truck and SUV sales up 15.5 per cent

MISSISSAUGA - Nissan Canada Inc.released July sales of 7,523 units - a decrease of 9.6 per cent over July 2010 and up 2.5 per cent calendar year-to-date. Nissan sales accounted for 6,954 units, down 7.6 per cent over the same month last year, while Infiniti sold 569 units, a decrease of 28.2 per cent.

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Sales

July Auto sales results reported

MARKHAM - Combined July sales of 8,818 units by the Honda and Acura divisions represented a 24 per cent decrease over last year's sales. The Honda Automobile Division reported July sales of 7,654 units, down 25 per cent from last year. The Acura Division reported July sales of 1,164 units, down 19 per cent over last year.

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Career Survey

Experience Outweighs Education as Key Driver of Career Progression

New Kelly Global Workforce Index Report Finds

TROY, MI - More than three quarters of respondents around the world say experience is more important than education when it comes to advancing a person's career. Nearly 80 percent cite experience while 18 percent nominate formal education and two percent remain undecided, according to the latest survey from workforce solutions leader, Kelly Services.