THE GUARDIAN | 'Five years ago there was nothing': inside Duqm, the city rising from the sand
“Several dozen new cities are being constructed in the Middle East, mainly to transition away from the petroleum industry to a variety of other industries, including tourism, manufacturing, education and hi-tech,” says Dr Sarah Moser, a McGill University geography professor and author of an upcoming atlas of new cities. “Many oil-producing states in the Middle East are eager to globalise their economies and attract international investors, particularly in anticipation of a post-oil world
THE GAZETTE | The Right Chemistry: Environmental chemicals and children’s health
(By Dr. Joe Schwarcz, Office for Science and Society at McGill University)
GLOBAL NEWS | Invasive Zebra mussels reach Lac Memphramagog
As an invasive species of mussels begins to appear in Quebec’s Lac Memphramagog, local officials are trying to figure out just how big the infestation is.
“It’s a big concern,” said Josiane K. Pouliot of Magog, Que.’s Environment Division.
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL | Legal Gambling Can Be Good for Sports—and Even for Opera
(Opinion by Reuven Brenner, Professor, Finance/History/Political Science/Economics at McGill University)
EOS | Drones Swoop in to Measure Gas Belched from Volcanoes
A team of volcanologists, chemists, physicists, and engineers from around the world test novel techniques at Central America’s two largest degassing volcanoes.
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THE DAILY BEAST: The Next Pill You Pop Will Be Eco-Friendly
Until the early 1990s, it took six separate, chemical reactions to make the painkiller and anti-inflammatory ibuprofen. Of the ingredients that went in, only about 40 percent were found in the final product. But in 1992, the chemical producer BHC Company started using a new way to produce the drug using only three steps, utilizing about 80 percent of the initial ingredients.
THE CONVERSATION: America looks hopeless – a lot like the ‘mother country’ once did
(Opinion by JM Opal, Associate Professor of History, McGill University) A decade ago, as the scale of the disaster in Iraq began to sink in, American historians often compared the United States to ancient Rome. Both seemed to suffer from an imperial disease whose symptoms began with overreach and ended in collapse.
THE CONVERSATION: How a U.S. Supreme Court ruling could modernize Canada's tax system
(Opinion by Ivan O. Ozai, Doctoral Candidate, Faculty of Law, McGill University) In the last few months, several countries have considered the idea of levying taxes on digital companies. But because these companies can operate from virtually anywhere, a digital tax would require updating old tax rules that only allow governments to tax companies that have a physical presence in the country.
GLOBE AND MAIL | Could your diabetes medication be the next anti-aging pill?
Scientists studying metformin say the generic drug slows the ‘burn rate’ in living cells in ways that increase longevity. […] Metformin, by contrast, has both an enviable safety profile and a decades-long history of human use, said Dr. Michael Pollak, director of cancer prevention in the department of oncology at McGill University. […] Read more
PSYCHOLOGY TODAY: It’s Time to Stop Blaming Men for Their Mental Health Woes
"This is men's health week, a chance to renew thinking about men's mental health.
McGill researchers call for the creation of a global database of land prices
Improved access to data on land prices is vital for future advances in global change science and policy. Spatially explicit land price information should be a public good available to the international community. An open-access, global land price database would enable policymakers, scientists, and civic society to better grapple with the economic, social, and environmental challenges posed by global change.
CTV | Quebec government, McGill partner to study and curb post-graduate exodus
The Quebec Government is partnering with McGill University to try to stem the "Anglophone brain drain" - a phenomenon among university graduates who opt to leave the province with a diploma in hand.
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HARPERS | Rachel Cusk’s unforgiving eye
McGill English prof Merve Emre, in the June issue of Harpers, on “Rachel Cusk’s unforgiving eye”
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THE GUARDIAN | Separating sick Inuit kids from their parents is medical colonialism all over again
Opinion | In Quebec, air ambulances continue the incomprehensible practice of separating children and parents – despite no written policy demanding it. By Samir Shaheen-Hussain, a pediatric emergency physician and assistant professor at McGill University
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WASHINGTON POST: People who live in small towns and rural areas are happier than everyone else, researchers say
Heaven is wide open spaces — at least, it is for most people, according to a massive new data set of happiness in Canada.
