4Th World Conference of Science Journalists

4th World Conference of Science Journalists

4-8 October 2004 – Montréal

Track D: Science in Canada

Tuesday, October 5
2–5:15 pm (Ballroom)

Session 108 - Polar Science Blossoms in Canada
(this session will be presented in two parts)

Moderator: Karen Kraft Sloan

Polar regions are already experiencing the strongest impact of global climate change. Tracking these effects was a prime focus of the inaugural scientific voyage of the Amundsen, Canada’s new Arctic research icebreaker. We’ll hear some of the first findings from the year-long expedition that will have just ended. And a leading polar bear expert looks at how these magnificent creatures are sentinels of the environmental upheaval that is sweeping across their frigid range.

SPEAKERS FOR PART 1:

Louis Fortier, Professor of Biology, Université Laval, Québec, Canada

Ian Stirling, Canadian Wildlife Service, Environment Canada, Edmonton, Canada

Terry Prowse, Project Chief, Aquatic Ecosystem Impacts Research Branch, National Water Research Institute, and professor, University of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

3:30 pm Refreshment break

4–5:30 pm (Ballroom)

Session 108 - Polar Science Blossoms in Canada
(continued)

Moderator: Karen Kraft Sloan

In the second half of this session we’ll hear from Canada’s foremost researcher into polar ice about new insights available from sophisticated remote sensing techniques and also get the latest news from a leading researcher about the seemingly inexorable spread of chemical contaminants throughout the once-pristine Arctic. Another researcher will describe new field work tracking climate change in Antarctica through the sediments of shallow ponds.

SPEAKERS FOR PART 2:

David G. Barber, Canada Research Chair in Arctic System Science, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada

Derek Muir, Research Scientist, Environment Canada, National Water Research Institute, Burlington, Canada

Marianne Douglas, Professor of Geology, University of Toronto, Canada

Tuesday, October 5
2–5:15 pm (Cartier C)

Session 109 - Transportation Research: Social Sciences in Real Life

Moderator: Chris Dornan (invited)

Do people act to keep risk in daily life at a constant level? Make anti-skid brakes mandatory and taxi drivers close the gap in traffic until they have just as many rear-end collisions as before. Experts debate this risk homeostasis theory. Another speaker talks about his efforts to duplicate road rage in a driving simulator.

Jacques Bergeron, Professor of Psychology, Université de Montréal, Canada

Barry Pless, Director of Developmental and Epidemiologic Research, Montréal Children’s Hospital, Canada

Gerald J.S. Wilde, Professor of Psychology, Queen’s University, Kingston, Canada

Wednesday, October 6
10:15–11:45 am (Ballroom)

Session 204 - Aboriginal Research – By, For and About

Moderator: John Medicine Horse Clealls

Native people in Canada are being buffeted by unprecedented environmental and social forces. Some outward signs are epidemics of diabetes and alcoholism. But population health research is looking at the whole picture.

Eric Dewailly, Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec, Québec, Canada

Jeff Reading, Canadian Institutes of Health Research – Institute of Aboriginal People’s Health, Toronto, Canada

Pierre Haddad, Professor, Department of Pharmacology, Université de Montréal, Canada

Wednesday, October 6
4–5:30 pm (CartierAB)

Session 210 - Mind Reading: What Do We Know About the Brain?

Moderator: Harvey Leifert

Recent studies have shed light on the neurological basis of primary activities, such as praying, learning a language, and the forging of gender identity. These new approaches promise to bring a revolution in the way we understand ourselves. Researchers at the forefront of these fields will talk about their latest work

Ravi Menon, Professor of Neuroscience, Robarts Research Laboratory, London, Canada

Rémi Quirion, Scientific Director, DouglasHospital, Montréal, Canada

Oakley Ray, Professor of Psychiatry and Psychology, Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Nashville, USA

Thursday, October 7
4–5:30 pm (Cartier C)

Session 309 - Genetics of Common Diseases

Moderator: Anie Perrault

Asthma, allergies, prostate cancer, osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease all appear to have multigene origins. The heads of leading institutes for genomics research will present an overview of their research, and highlight emerging areas of interest to journalists.

Tom Hudson, Director, McGill University and Genome Québec Innovation Centre, Montréal, Canada

Fernand Labrie, Director, CHUL Research Centre, Québec, Canada