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crowded, the average waiting time at Granville station in rush hour seems to be hours and lines in front of ticket machines go off into the horizon. The opinion about the party atmosphere and the free concerts is that it is “awesome”. The atmosphere in Down-town Vancouver is great. There are oppor-tunities to join a bunch of free concerts or, al-ternatively, to go to a sport bar and watch the games live. The pity is the line-up in front of all events, even if you only want to drink a beer in a pub. Altogether the games seem to be really good so far and are expected to be good until the end.

By: Coline & Toni The Canadian opinion? Most of the Canadians are really happy about hosting the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. Except small protests in the streets, the Olympics have created an exciting atmosphere. Having al-ready lost the last hockey game against the U.S., the Canadians fear the Yanks will win the medal race as well. They would rather see another country win the most medals. But does it mat-ter who wins the most medals? Can’t the Cana-dians or all other coun-tries be proud to win the medals that they do win? The focus on the medal race itself is more than silly. It simply doesn’t matter. Is the ticket price and the lottery system fair? The

A Snapshot of the 2010 Winter Olympic

INS IDE TH IS

I S SUE :

Olympic

Atmosphere

2

My Experience

During the

Olympics

2

After the

Umpteenth

Beer

3

Student

Study Drugs

3

Techno-maniac 4

Indigenous

progress

4

S PEC IAL

PO INTS OF

INTEREST :

• Vancouver Winter

Olympics 2010

• Students and the

politics of

studying

• How Canada is

different from my

country

• Technology

• Olympic

vocabulary

crossword

prices seem to be unaf-fordable for young peo-ple or students. Even working people think about going on a trip to Jamaica rather than spending over $1000 on a ticket. Is the transpor-

tation system well or-ganized? The answer can only be a yes, it is really well organized. On the other hand, there are problems too. We cannot deny that sky-trains are total ly

Crazy Canadian Fan

HOW MUCH IS

uring the Olympics I experienced a lot of madness. It has been an

awesome time and I think you will all agree with that. So here is my review of the winter Olympics. It all started with the terrible accident of the Geor-gian luger; that was a bit of a false start, was-n’t it? And let us not forget all the protests that were going on in and around downtown on that opening Fri-day. Still, lots of peo-ple partied on Friday night after the opening ceremony even though there was something else that went wrong. I think that is engraved in our collec-tive memory that the flame inside BC place didn’t light up. The Olympics also brought a lot of free concerts and na-tional houses to Vancouver. I went to the Holland Heineken house and experienced some Dutch madness. Everyone was dressed up orange and they partied all night long. Of course they had a reason for this because Sven Kramer won gold that day in the

men’s 5000 meter speed skat-ing. Yeah, who would be sur-prised that it was in speed skat-ing? The Dutch are famous for that. I also visited the Switzerland house, but,to be honest, in comparison to the Holland house there wasn’t much of a party there. However, it was still a good way to promote Switzerland and I support the idea of showing off what a country can offer.

P A G E 2

I saw her in the

Hallway

She had

Grammar

And I

Pronunciation

My tongue was

tied

But I thought

she tried

To ask me

To change

To Fluency

Is English a

Romance

Language?

The Olympic Atmosphere! Now, speaking about the venues where you can watch everything live or enjoy free concerts. I think most of the people who’ll read this article also wanted to go to the free concert of Deadmau5 at Livecity Yaletown . Unfortu-nately, it was already packed at two o’clock in the afternoon

and you had no chance to

get in at around five or six o’clock! Is it really that sur-prising, though? I think we all expected this kind of mad-ness to happen there. You also had Robson square and Livecity downtown where you could watch the Olympic Games on big screens. I thought that was a good idea because it brought the people together and it created a nice atmosphere. I also want to talk about the pride of Canadians during the Olympics as there was this big ‘WE’ feeling. I think it’s good to stand behind your athletes but not when all the drunken supporters keep on yelling all night long ‘Go Cananda GO’ and show less respect for the other coun-tries! Like this one time after Can-ada lost to the USA in a pre-liminary hockey game; Cana-dians where a bit frustrated. I experienced that on my way

home on the Canada line be-cause all the Canadians started yelling Fu** U.S. GAY, Fu** U.S. GAY. That went on for about 15 minutes. I thought that was annoying and showed a lack of respect to the Ameri-cans. Anyways, the city partied a lot. We all saw that because of the large number of people dur-ing the night on Granville street and Robson street. But what I found really ridiculous was the closure of the liquor stores on that particular Friday night when Canada lost to the U.S.. I think it’s inevitable that there will be drunk people on the streets, but at least having the

stores open would have encouraged these people to spent money like drunken sail-ors, so why the closure of the liquor stores? Maybe the offi-cials wanted to be to cautious . After the Gold medal hockey game, Canadians were really proud of their national team. Crosby was suddenly a hero when he shot that puck past Ryan Miller. Afterwards the atmosphere on the streets was just awesome. Everybody was happy and relieved that they won their most precious gold medal ever, winning against the US was just magnificent!

I think the Olympics were good and bad for the city; bad as a financial disaster with all the money that was spent, and good as a good welcome to the world, putting Vancouver on the map. I’m still not con-vinced if it was such a good deal to bring the Olympics to Vancouver, but at least we all had fun and I think that is the important thing to remember!

Louis Vynckier

Louis.Vynckier@NewFirst.com

Need a place to eat with your friends?

Tired of dropping pizza on your lap?

Take a walk past Jon’s office and there you are!

Spanish Banks IS the Student

Lunch Room

A student lunch room just for

tion of crowd. Just moving from one block to another can take up your entire day, but at least you will have enjoyed some shows (jugglers, acrobats, live music). Alright, the city is crowded, but the atmosphere is absolutely euphoric.

Standing in line, a hundred

people cheering for...Curling.

Vancouver has changed, trans-formed its streets

(Granville) and prepared itself to welcome the

world. By taking the responsibility to host the Games, Vancouver has sent a strong message to the world: We will be ready, snow or not, the city will be ready. And my opinion of all this is that, Vancou-ver did not lie. The city is ready and the world answered in a positive way by coming en masse to join in. A lot of activities have been proposed for tourist to truly enjoy the Games. Alright, the tickets were expen-sive, but if you have the money to

come with your family in Van-couver for the Olympics, then you can probably afford some tickets for the Games. But Van-couver did not just focus on those with tickets. A lot of free activities are programmed. Tourists and Vancouverites alike can enjoy the live sports on big screens all around the city and

pubs of course. Indeed, even if people have to stay in line for more than an hour and a half to enter the Livecity areas or the different Pavilions, people do not get angry, but instead stare at the big screens in awe of the Olympic athletes. I have even been surprised to see a hundred people, from all around the world cheering for curling while standing in line. This represents the

whole atmosphere of the Games. Canadians are very friendly and very proud to host the Games and finally have a gold medal won in Canada. Tourists in gen-eral are pleased to enjoy the Olympiads in such a good at-mosphere. So far, the Olympics have been a blast. And I tell you something, snow has not come and is proba-bly not coming, but the atmos-phere in Vancouver is too warm right now to allow snow to cover the mountains.

his is it. The heart of the Olympics is beating inside

Vancouver. Ever since I arrived in the city in September, I had been hearing about the Olympics every-day. How it was going to look like? Who was going to be here? Would we have enough snow? The whole city was preparing for the Games, everyone was talk-ing about it. But six days ago the burning issue and all the questions, became reality. Last Friday at BC Place, Michelle Jean, the general governor of Canada proclaimed the 2010 Olym-pic Games in Vancouver open.

Rob son S t r e e t o r h ow

t o do 1 0met e r s i n

1 5m in…

The Olympics are in town, fi-nally, and we can now answer all the questions that were asked before the Olympics. No, there is not enough snow and the cancella-tion of the snowboard men’s half pipe is a good example of how the weather can determine the success or failure of the an Olympic Games. Today it is 12 degrees with a bright shinny sun. But even if the snow is missing, the success of the Olympics may subsist in the fact that a lot, no wait, a lot of people came to Vancouver for the Games. The city is absolutely crowded , with Robson Street be-ing a good illustration of the no-

Adrian Maury

Adrian.Maury@NewFirst.com

My Experience During the Olympics!

P A G E 3

After the Umpteenth Beer

I think you will agree that nothing is better than a cold beer on a hot summer day, or to celebrate the victory of your country at the Olym-pics, with friends. And maybe after a couple of cocktails it’s easier to ask the beautiful girl, or boy, "hey, do you want to dance?” or “Can I borrow your phone number? I lost mine!”. Alcohol has been, since memora-ble time, part of our everyday lives and for some people alcohol is a loyal friend who helps to pass a night in mirth. Pity about the side effects which last until the evening of the following day ... Although alcohol is widely accepted, it can affect our behaviour more than we can imag-ine. The average effects on the population are de-scribed in the following chart: Many are surprised at the fact that even modest amounts of alcohol can strongly affect our behav-iour, but by paying attention to the chart, it is easy to see that a few glasses are enough to reduce our reaction times and our perceptions of reality significantly. Of course, the data are just indicative because the ab-sorption of alcohol in our body de-pends on many factors such as gender, weight, constitution, age, etc. But let's see what happens when we drink. 20% of the alcohol is ab-sorbed by the stomach wall, and the rest very quickly by the intes-tine. Upon absorption it enters the bloodstream and is transported throughout the body, mostly to the brain and liver, in quantities and times, as we said, that are influ-enced by weight, age and body

composition. After reaching the brain, alcohol acts on several parts of it interfering in this way the interaction between the brain and other body parts. This causes all those effects that occur and that everyone, or al-most everyone, knows about. It is when the brain is sur-rounded by the fumes of alcohol that you start to say phrases like: "Me?" I am not drunk, I can hold my liquor! " This is when you begin to demonstrate your sobri-ety, trying to stand on one leg or trying to touch the knee with the tip of your nose. And it is when you find yourself in that state where you are

extremely hun-gry, and you begin to eat as much as you would eat in a whole week. And then the next day you wake up and you find yourself on the floor, or worse still, in the bathroom with your skin marked by blue and black signs that you probably obtained when you were trying to show your friends that you were still able to stand on that one stupid leg. And then that long, long hangover, which lasts until the following evening and which blows your whole day after. But after all this is gone you begin to think: “What’s up for next week-end?”.

Is there anything you can do to limit the ill effects of alcohol? One thing that is often said is that with sweet drinks such as cocktails, you must pay attention because you always seem to feel well and then all of a sud-den, you find yourself crawling under the table without knowing why. This happens because al-cohol takes a while before giving the "desired effect ". This period of not noticing is the time it takes the alcohol to reach your brain. The absorption rate varies de-pending on the alcohol contained in the drink and on your stomach contents.

On an empty stomach, the alcohol is absorbed in times ranging from about 35 min-utes for spirits, to about 50 minutes for beer and cham-pagne. When the stomach is not empty, food delays alcohol absorption and the time it takes to get drunk increases. So, you are better off eating when you drink. I hope that after reading all this you have a more

precise idea about what hap-pens when you enjoy one of those wonderful and unforgetta-ble evenings. So maybe these tips are a bit use-less because, after the umpteenth

beer, who can un-derstand what happens inside us.

P A G E 4

Luca Foletta

Luca.Foletta@NewFirst.com

P A G E 5

Alcohol rate in grams per liters

Condition Depending on your size, you can reach it with about …

Effects

0.4 Low intake 1 beer, 2 glasses of wine, 1 shot of spirits

Slight euphoria. Decrease in lateral view.

0.5

Elation

1.5 beers, 3 glasses of wine, 2 shots of spirits

Euphoria, diminished attention and underestimation of danger, influence on the balance. 30% slower reflexes of about

Between 0.5 and 0.8

2 beers, 4 glasses of wine, 3 shots of spirits

Difficulties in verbal expression and coordination of movements, loss of balance and loss of sensory percep-tion

Between 0.8 and 1.2

3 beers, 6 glasses of wine, 4 shots of spirits

Blurred or double vision, staggering gait, overconfidence leading to defy danger

Between 1.2 and 2

Drunkenness

Higher doses than the previous ones

Uncoordinated movements, drowsi-ness and nausea, dizziness or ag-gression, mental confusion

Between 2 and 3

Massive doses General intoxication and passing out

Above 3 Possibility of ethyl coma. Risk of death.

Students should be free to take study drugs

Today students have to stand a high level of physical stress and competitive pressure. Drugs that can help us stay awake, focus for longer, and boost our memories are now being used by students and academics. Most common are Modafinil and Ritalin, both prescription-only medications to treat neurobehavioral conditions. These analeptic drugs are used for the treat-

ment of narcolepsy, shift work, sleep disorder, and excessive daytime sleepiness. Today, these medications are being illegally traded on campuses all around the world. Officially banned, today an estimated 25% of students are using cognitive drugs to get better grades. But is taking these drugs ethically different than other options available to students? Even a double espresso or a diet can have an influence on our learning and concentration abilities. Where is the line between morally ac-ceptable and morally condemnable? It may be difficult to prove which option is acceptable and which should be considered cheating. One big criticism about study drugs is that they are unnatural. But what is really natural in our environment? Is the food we eat, the clothes we wear or the homes we live in natural? A lot of the things we use to improve our work are not natural, such as laptops or cell phones, but they are widely accepted. In my opinion is that chemically enhanced study methods shouldn’t be banned or forbidden at univer-sities. This opens even a bigger market for illegal trade and criminality. The best way would be to control the usage rather than to ban it. Our society today has changed. One hundred years ago the knowledge of an average would fit inside of a newspaper. Nowadays, with the internet and access to huge libraries of knowledge, the availability of knowledge is higher and the competition stronger than it was in the past.

P A G E 6

Indigenous Progress

We are in a modern world, where everything changes so fast around us that sometimes we don’t notice the important things that we have left behind. Some of them with a value so large as legacy. What do I mean by that? Well around the world we have different cul-tures, customs, and beliefs, but while society is “progressing”, there are groups, small but com-plex societies, that don’t fit with the standards of contemporary society, I’m referring to indige-nous populations around the globe. They have to confront di-verse issues associated with their status and interaction with other cultural groups and changes in their inhabited environment. Some other issues these people deal with are land rights, owner-ship and exploitation of natural resources, political determination and autonomy, environmental degradation and incursion, pov-erty, health, and discrimination. Throughout history, the relation-ship between indigenous and non-indigenous people has been tumultuous, but the circum-stances of native people are im-proving in some countries, while in other places in the world their human rights continue to be abused. You may ask where I am heading with these pieces of in-formation. Well, here is the an-swer: I want to expose a contrast between two particular situations occurring in the Americas. First let’s take a look at Canada, a

country that has achieved so much. Among those achievements is the state of their relationship with their aboriginals. In Canada, they have progress so much on this is-sue. For example, they are not ac-knowledges “ Ind ian s” o r “Eskimos” anymore. They are now referred to as First Nations. There have been various laws and treaties throughout Canadian his-tory to make the fine situation that aboriginals have now possible. I mean, all kind of benefits like health care, free higher education, and exception from taxes. Today they have a strong influence on the Canadian national culture while preserving their own identity.

Sounds fantastic, doesn’t it? But unfortunately, not all the Americas have the same condition for their indigenous. Now let’s see how the issue is going in my coun-try, Chile. This will sound kind of absurd or contradictory. Chile now is one of most stable and prosper-

ous nations in Latin America, leading in human development, competitiveness, quality of life, political stability, globalization, economic freedom, low percep-tion of corruption and compara-tively low poverty rates, But how come after all these advances, we are still having such a struggle with our aboriginals, who have given so much to our national culture and pride? The most im-portant of these aboriginals groups is the Mapuches. They successfully fought off defeat in the first 300–350 years of Span-ish rule during the Arauco War. Re-lations with the Chilean Republic were good until the Chilean state decided to occupy their lands. Nowadays there is a whole Mapuche move-ment looking for greater autonom., They want the govern-ment to listen; they want recogni-tion of rights and the recovery of their land since the Chilean tran-sition to democracy. Conflict over Mapuche land rights con-tinue until the present day abd is getting worse and worse. If we don’t do something soon, the situation is going to get really ugly. But not everything is that bad, the governments have made efforts to improve the situation, but it’s not enough yet. There is much more hard work to do. I hope that this article open peo-ple’s eyes, and encourage us all to look for solutions to finally achieve peace and harmony be-tween the two communities.

Gerardo Moraga

Gerardo.Moraga@NewFirst.com

B Y : G A B R I E L M E J I A

Techno-Maniac?

P A G E 7

It’s really difficult to explain how technology

has be-come ad-

dictive and necessary

for people’s lives.

A few years ago it was like ‘Oh my god! Look at that! It’s a mobile phone’ and everyone was run-ning like crazy for a mobile

phone because it was the in-vention of the century.

Today, when

you go on the

streets and you

see a 10 year old

kid with a mobile

phone, using it as if

he has been using it

since he was born. But when

you give a mobile phone to a

grandpa and they will say

‘what it this thing’?

They won’t

even know

how to use it

because it

never ex-

isted for

them or they are

barely aware that they are in

use nowadays.

I’ve been here since January

and I don’t have a mobile

phone. It’s difficult to know

first of all, where they are,

what they are doing, where

we are going to meet, or later

on, if they need to talk to me

or I need to talk to them about

something it’s impossible

because I don’t have a mobile

phone. Now if I have this

kind of problem, can you

imagine a real big company

I would like to see someone

sur- vive without his or

her mobile phone

just for one day

and how they are

going to com-

municate with-

out it. I al-

ready did that

test on my-

self, and it’s

really hard because you

can’t contact your friends.

that doesn’t have any kind of

mobile communication?

Maybe they

have office

telephones,

but without

mobile

phones? I

think they

won’t make it

in business

nowadays. It’s impossible to

live without technology.

their laptops because they have to do work, listen to music, have a good time surf-ing the internet, or who knows what.

The thing is… Can you

imagine yourself without all

the technology that we have

right now? I mean, it’s im-

possible, at least for me, to

survive even one day with-

out technology. I would not

make it even if I found some-

thing else to do without tech-

nology. I wouldn’t make it

because I know that technol-

ogy is sometimes better than

reality and so it might be-

come addictive. I know I can

control it, but sometimes

there is nothing to do so it

starts consuming my time

and myself and I can’t stop

it.

You can see people in coffee shops or in some other places where they have Wi-Fi (a local area network that uses

high frequency radio sig-

nals to

transmit

and receive

data over

distances of

a few hundred feet using

ethernet protocol – or in

other words, a wireless

internet connection) using

“If you are

reading this, it

means that

you have

nothing else to

do… Or

maybe you will

go to the

bathroom”

Across: 6 luge, 9 Paralympics, 10 anthem, 11 spectator, 13 patriotism, 16 Ovechkin, 19 security, 20 rings, 21 Canada, 23 host, 25 podium, 26 banned, 27 injury Down: 1 qualify, 2 Crosby, 3 medal, 4 competition, 5 United States, 7 Sweden, 8 nationality, 12 Sochi, 14 postpone, 15 victory, 17 Greece, 18 torch, 19 stamina, 22 doping, 24 snow

Silvano Lieger silvanolieger@newsfirst.com