August 29, 2008
U of S Awarded $2 Million to Address Key Societal Issues
Posted August 29, 2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - August 28th, 2008
2008-08-05-OTHER
University of Saskatchewan researchers can develop policies for urban Aboriginal housing initiatives, create better training programs for teachers, and help forestry-dependent communities adapt to the challenges of climate change thanks to more than $792,000 in funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC).
“Because of this funding, our leading researchers and student scholars can have a real impact on many of society’s pressing issues,” said Karen Chad, U of S Acting Vice-President of Research. “Our researchers will be able to make a difference by undertaking practical projects while enhancing classroom learning.”
SSHRC also promised $700,000 for 20 U of S graduate student scholarships and $555,000 toward eight doctoral student awards.
The 10 successful U of S research projects and 26 scholarships were selected along with hundreds of other top research projects across Canada as part of a $202.2-million SSHRC funding announcement made today by federal Secretary of State James Moore.
“We can have all the robust technologies in the world, but we need the social sciences and humanities to know how to harness them and interpret them from a human perspective so that they translate into benefits for society,” said Moore.
U of S research projects include:
•Linda Wason-Ellam (education) will measure how children raised in media-saturated homes filled with television viewing and computer games respond to media messages about physical activity and nutrition.
•Maureen Reed (geography) will complete a pilot project working with forestry-dependent communities to develop techniques that help them adapt to climate change. The study will compare efforts in La Ronge, Saskatchewan, and develop a methodology to continue this work in other model forests in Canada and Sweden.
•Richard Schwier (education) will investigate how well people learn in online virtual communities. The goal is to find out how people build social networks and connect with each other when they are part of self-directed leaning programs.
•Ryan Walker (geography) will consider the links between housing provided by urban Aboriginal organizations and outcomes in other areas such as education, health, culture, employment and urban quality of life. The results will contribute to developing policies and programs for Aboriginal housing and positive development in urban areas.
•Angela Ward (education) will look at how university education faculties can build on existing partnerships with school divisions to transform teacher education programs.
Noted U of S historians Bill Waiser and Jim Miller were also successful in the SSHRC competition. Waiser is writing A World We Have Lost, a look at pre-1905 Saskatchewan from an environmental and Aboriginal perspective, while Miller is examining how churches and the federal government have attempted to make amends with residential school victims.
Graduate and doctoral students will also be able to launch new studies because of the SSHRC funding. For instance, Merle Massie (history) is using her scholarship to examine the history of Métis and First Nations people who lived in Saskatchewan’s transitional region between prairie and boreal forest. Being raised in the region, she brings an intimate understanding of the land and its peoples to her study.
A full list of successful U of S projects is available at http://www.usask.ca/research/news/read.php?id=815&newsid=1.
About SSHRC: SSHRC is an independent federal government agency that funds university-based research and graduate training through national peer-review competitions. SSHRC also partners with public and private sector organizations to focus research and aid the development of better policies and practices in key areas of Canada’s social, cultural and economic life.
About the U of S: Located in the heart of Saskatoon, the U of S is one of the leading medical doctoral universities in Canada. With 58 degrees, diplomas and certificates in over 100 areas of study, the University is uniquely positioned in the areas of human, animal and plant studies. World-class research facilities, renowned faculty and award-winning students make the U of S a leader in post-secondary education.
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For more information or to arrange interviews, contact:
Cameron Zimmer
Research Communications
University of Saskatchewan
(306) 966-2427
cam.zimmer@usask.ca
www.usask.ca/research
Eva Schacherl
Manager, Media and External Relations
Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council
(613) 992-7302
Cell: (613) 222-6103
eva.schacherl@sshrc.ca
Capture and Handling May Have Long-term Effects on Bears-U of S-Led Study
Posted August 29, 2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – Wednesday, August 20th
2008-08-01-WCVM
A University of Saskatchewan-led study published this week in the Journal of Mammalogy suggests capture and handling of animals in their natural habitats can affect study animals for weeks or more, rather than for a few days as previously thought.
“We hope this study will increase awareness among researchers and help raise the bar on how we use wild animals in research,” said Marc Cattet, a research associate and adjunct professor with the Western College of Veterinary Medicine.
The retrospective study led by Cattet compiled data from two independent research projects to assess the long-term effects of capture and handling of bears in two geographically distinct areas—grizzly bears in Western Alberta and American black bears in the Pisgah Bear Sanctuary of North Carolina.
“While wildlife researchers have made some great strides in addressing animal welfare concerns by using minimally obtrusive capture and handling techniques, we found that some commonly used procedures still have potential to cause injury, change normal behavior, or more generally affect health in a negative manner,” said Cattet.
The study of a total of 340 black and grizzly bears found that blood analysis results from six of every 10 captured bears showed abnormally high values for muscle enzymes, indicating muscle injury which could be caused by the stress and extreme exertion of bears struggling to escape capture.
Injury was particularly evident in bears captured by leghold snare, a technique widely regarded as an acceptable method of capture for bears and other large carnivores. Enzymes were also high in one in five grizzly bears darted from helicopter and in one in five grizzly or black bears captured by culvert trap.
The team also found that regardless of the capture method used, bears moved less through their territory after capture, with effects lasting three to six weeks on average after capture.
“This finding warrants more detailed investigation of specific and cumulative effects of other stressors that bears may be exposed to during and after capture, for example, sample collection, marking, and carrying radiotransmitters,” Cattet said.
The team also found that bears captured multiple times tended to lose body fat or gain fat at less than normal rates. “This finding is particularly important because as body condition fades, so too does an animal’s potential for growth, reproduction, and survival,” he said.
Cattet says these findings likely also apply to other wild animals commonly studied through capture and release.
“Not only do researchers have a role to play, but so do government wildlife agencies and funding agencies in supporting research to improve capture procedures and validate alternative techniques to capture,” he said.
Also, government wildlife agencies and groups such as the Canadian Council on Animal Care will need to consider revising guidelines and standard operating procedures followed by animal care committees in granting approvals for field research procedures, he said.
Other members of the research team included B.C. statistician John Boulanger, Foothills Research Institute project manager Gordon Stenhouse, North Carolina State University zoologist Roger Powell, and Powell’s former graduate student Melissa Reynolds-Hogland.
Full text of the article is available at: http://www.allenpress.com/pdf/mamm-89-04-03_973_990.pdf
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For more information, contact:
Marc Cattet
Professional Research Associate and Adjunct Professor
Western College of Veterinary Medicine
University of Saskatchewan
(306) 966-2162
Kathryn Warden
Research Communications
University of Saskatchewan
(306)-966-2506
August 15, 2008
Major Commitment to the Future of Health Sciences in Saskatchewan
Posted August 15, 2008
August 15, 2008
The Government of Saskatchewan today announced an additional $100 million in funding for the University of Saskatchewan's Academic Health Sciences project.
For further information, please see:
http://www.gov.sk.ca/news?newsId=e34df335-3976-450f-89ee-501cdc8b92c1
Academic Health Sciences Project Background
To view a video of an architectural rendering of the Academic Health Sciences Project click here:
.avi format (Windows)
.mov format (Mac)
