UPEI staff and faculty are invited to the 2013 President's Holiday Social on Thursday, December 19 from 3:00-5:00 pm in the Wanda Wyatt Dining Hall for refreshments, music, and holiday cheer. All are welcome to attend!

On Monday, December 9, Dr. John Gordon will present "The varied roles of the ELR-CXC chemokines in health and disease” in AVC's Lecture Theatre B at 2:00 pm. Dr. Gordon received his PhD in Immunopathology from the University of Saskatchewan in 1984, and then did advanced training in immunopathology at Mill Hill, U.K. and Harvard Medical School. He returned to University of Saskatchewan in 1991 as an Associate Professor in Immunology at the College of Veterinary Medicine, where he studied respiratory diseases of veterinary and human importance and, more specifically, immunotherapeutics. His current position is Professor, Division of Respiratory, Critical Care & Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Saskatchewan. His work has led to many international patents for anti-inflammatory agents his lab has developed and to significant advances in our application of tolerogenic dendritic cell immunotherapy for immunologic diseases. All are welcome to attend.

Dr. Alan Denton, Department of Physics, North Dakota State University will present a seminar on Tuesday, December 10 at 11:00 am. Dr. Denton’s presentation is entitled “Multiscale Modelling of Screening and Crowding in Soft Materials.” The seminar will be held in the Regis and Joan Duffy Research Centre, Lecture Theatre Room 212. All are welcome to attend.

Students, staff, and faculty are advised that the master online exam schedule has been updated with information for exams that were rescheduled from Wednesday, December 4 to Sunday, December 8 due to the storm. This information, including locations and times, will also appear in all students' individual exam schedules, accessible through Campus Login. UPEI is normally closed on Sunday, however, with this revised schedule, the University has arranged for weekday services to be available. Buildings where exams are being written will be open as if it were a weekday. The Wanda Wyatt Dining Hall will be opening earlier than usual to accommodate the scheduled exam times. Doors will open at 8:15 am on Saturday, December 7 and Sunday, December 8. Samuel's Cafe, located in the Robertson Library is scheduled to open on Saturday, December 7 and Sunday, December 8 from 9:00 am - 3:00 pm. The opening time correlates with the Robertson Library's posted extended hours (http://library.upei.ca/hours).

UPEI staff and faculty are invited to the 2013 President's Holiday Social on Thursday, December 19 from 3:00-5:00 pm in the Wanda Wyatt Dining Hall for refreshments, music, and holiday cheer. All are welcome to attend!

On Monday, December 9, Dr. John Gordon will present "The varied roles of the ELR-CXC chemokines in health and disease” in AVC's Lecture Theatre B at 2:00 pm. Dr. Gordon received his PhD in Immunopathology from the University of Saskatchewan in 1984, and then did advanced training in immunopathology at Mill Hill, U.K. and Harvard Medical School. He returned to University of Saskatchewan in 1991 as an Associate Professor in Immunology at the College of Veterinary Medicine, where he studied respiratory diseases of veterinary and human importance and, more specifically, immunotherapeutics. His current position is Professor, Division of Respiratory, Critical Care & Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Saskatchewan. His work has led to many international patents for anti-inflammatory agents his lab has developed and to significant advances in our application of tolerogenic dendritic cell immunotherapy for immunologic diseases. All are welcome to attend.

Dr. Alan Denton, Department of Physics, North Dakota State University will present a seminar on Tuesday, December 10 at 11:00 am. Dr. Denton’s presentation is entitled “Multiscale Modelling of Screening and Crowding in Soft Materials.” The seminar will be held in the Regis and Joan Duffy Research Centre, Lecture Theatre Room 212. All are welcome to attend.

Please join us for a presentation by Dr. Shane Pinder, candidate for Chair of Engineering at UPEI, on Friday, December 6 at 2:30 pm in McDougall Hall, Room 246. Dr. Pinder's presentation is entitled: "Connecting Engineering Technology with the Human User: Case Studies in Project-Based Technology Development in the Aerospace and Biomedical Disciplines." Recent advances in the development of aircraft landing and takeoff performance monitoring systems have shown the feasibility of a cockpit instrument that could aid significantly in the decision making process during the most critical phases of flight, provided that the information can be effectively visualized. The design of a cockpit interface to communicate the necessary information in a timely and efficient manner has been completed. The resulting Thrust and Braking Indicator/Advisor (TABI/A) integrates a visual display with audible advice. The challenges associated with the successful development and adoption of such a device depend more on the consideration of human factors than the robustness of the underlying technology. Individuals with functional blindness must often use assistive aids to enable effective locomotion. To date, commercially available devices do not provide effective information about obstacles above waist height, or are too cumbersome to have gained widespread adoption. Audification of Ultrasound for the Detection of Environmental Obstacles (AUDEO) provides a means to enable echolocation in an unobtrusive manner. Several prototype versions of AUDEO technology have been developed and studied. Such devices provide a user with pronounced Doppler echoes obtained by direct down-conversion of ultrasound, a system that provides acoustic flow that is evident upon initiation of travel and can be used to visualize the environment and detect environmental obstacles. The first prototype version of AUDEO technology was human-tested for localization, distance estimation, and aperture passage. From this initial study, refined versions have been developed through an iterative design process including increasing scrutiny during user testing. The technology is near ready for user testing within the target community. All are welcome to attend.

The Biology Department will host two student presentations as part of the Human Biology & Environmental Sciences Seminar Series on December 6 at 12:30-1:30 pm in the Duffy Science Centre, Room 204. Catherine MacNeill, MSc-ESC, Biology will present “Youth Livelihood strategies and environmental decision-making in Cameroon;” and Brendan McKeown, MSc-ESC, Biology will present “Magnolol causes a Go/G1 cell cycle arrest in human prostate cancer cells in vitro.” Everyone is welcome to attend.

If you have questions or concerns about snow removal on campus, please refer to the updated Snow Removal Policy on the Facilities Management website at: http://www.upei.ca/facilities/policies Thank you Facilities Management

The School of Business invites members of the campus community to attend a public presentation by Dr. Susan Graham, a candidate for a tenure-track position in marketing. "Branding Islands Using Characteristics of Islandness" will be presented on Monday, December 9 in McDougall Hall room 243, the David & Doris Scales Family Lecture Theatre from 1:30-2:30 pm. All are welcome to attend.

Sally Rockwell, long time employee of Chartwells at the Courtyard location, will be retiring this Friday, December 6. The staff of Chartwells would like to invite everyone to stop by the Courtyard Cafe at 10:00 am for cake and to wish Sally well on her retirement. Thank you, Angela MacKenzie, Food Service Director, Chartwells

There are still tickets available for the Annual Sugar Plum Luncheon being held on Wednesday December, 18! To purchase your tickets, please contact Marc Doiron at 628-4370 or email him at catering@upei.ca. Thank you and happy holidays! Angela Mackenzie Chartwells Food Service Director

If you have questions or concerns about snow removal on campus, please refer to the updated Snow Removal Policy on the Facilities Management website at: http://www.upei.ca/facilities/policies Thank you Facilities Management

The School of Business invites members of the campus community to attend a public presentation by Dr. Susan Graham, a candidate for a tenure-track position in marketing. "Branding Islands Using Characteristics of Islandness" will be presented on Monday, December 9 in McDougall Hall room 243, the David & Doris Scales Family Lecture Theatre from 1:30-2:30 pm. All are welcome to attend.

Sally Rockwell, long time employee of Chartwells at the Courtyard location, will be retiring this Friday, December 6. The staff of Chartwells would like to invite everyone to stop by the Courtyard Cafe at 10:00 am for cake and to wish Sally well on her retirement. Thank you, Angela MacKenzie, Food Service Director, Chartwells

There are still tickets available for the Annual Sugar Plum Luncheon being held on Wednesday December, 18! To purchase your tickets, please contact Marc Doiron at 628-4370 or email him at catering@upei.ca. Thank you and happy holidays! Angela Mackenzie Chartwells Food Service Director

Please join us for a presentation by Dr. Shane Pinder, candidate for Chair of Engineering at UPEI, on Friday, December 6 at 2:30 pm in McDougall Hall, Room 246. Dr. Pinder's presentation is entitled: "Connecting Engineering Technology with the Human User: Case Studies in Project-Based Technology Development in the Aerospace and Biomedical Disciplines." Recent advances in the development of aircraft landing and takeoff performance monitoring systems have shown the feasibility of a cockpit instrument that could aid significantly in the decision making process during the most critical phases of flight, provided that the information can be effectively visualized. The design of a cockpit interface to communicate the necessary information in a timely and efficient manner has been completed. The resulting Thrust and Braking Indicator/Advisor (TABI/A) integrates a visual display with audible advice. The challenges associated with the successful development and adoption of such a device depend more on the consideration of human factors than the robustness of the underlying technology. Individuals with functional blindness must often use assistive aids to enable effective locomotion. To date, commercially available devices do not provide effective information about obstacles above waist height, or are too cumbersome to have gained widespread adoption. Audification of Ultrasound for the Detection of Environmental Obstacles (AUDEO) provides a means to enable echolocation in an unobtrusive manner. Several prototype versions of AUDEO technology have been developed and studied. Such devices provide a user with pronounced Doppler echoes obtained by direct down-conversion of ultrasound, a system that provides acoustic flow that is evident upon initiation of travel and can be used to visualize the environment and detect environmental obstacles. The first prototype version of AUDEO technology was human-tested for localization, distance estimation, and aperture passage. From this initial study, refined versions have been developed through an iterative design process including increasing scrutiny during user testing. The technology is near ready for user testing within the target community. All are welcome to attend.

The Biology Department will host two student presentations as part of the Human Biology & Environmental Sciences Seminar Series on December 6 at 12:30-1:30 pm in the Duffy Science Centre, Room 204. Catherine MacNeill, MSc-ESC, Biology will present “Youth Livelihood strategies and environmental decision-making in Cameroon;” and Brendan McKeown, MSc-ESC, Biology will present “Magnolol causes a Go/G1 cell cycle arrest in human prostate cancer cells in vitro.” Everyone is welcome to attend.

Due to the campus closure, the chili lunch will now take place on Thursday, December 5 and Friday, December 6. At the Chaplaincy Centre, thoughts are with the students during exam time, their success, and yes, of course, the chili dinner. On the first two days of exams -Thursday and Friday December 5 and 6 -between 11:30 am–1:30 pm, a chili dinner is served at the Chaplaincy Centre, free for the students. About 300 students show up each day with smiles and conversation on this busy week. If you are able to volunteer some time, sign up here: http://bit.ly/1brACv4