HEADLINERS

From big bosses to memory losses

Neale McDevitt

While most of us were gearing down and relaxing over the summer, McGill profs and researchers were ramping up their work. Here's a quick rundown of some of the more recent headliners.

Management never sleeps

Management professor Karl Moore
Claudio Calligaris

In terms of media hits, no one was busier this summer than Karl Moore (Desautels Faculty of Management), whose interview series with some of Canada's most important business leaders served as a regular feature in the Globe and Mail's Report on Business. Along the way, Moore got to pick the fertile brains of such heavy-hitting CEOs as Alcan's Richard Evans, CGI's Michael Roach and Canada Post Corp's Moya Greene, giving readers invaluable insights into what makes these people tick.

Where there's smoke ...

Epidemiologist Jennifer O'Loughlin
Claudio Calligaris

With the smoking ban in Montreal bars and restaurants causing a buzz over the past few months, McGill epidemiologist, Jennifer O'Loughlin, further fanned the flames with the release of a study looking at nicotine addiction among young people. O'Loughlin's work, which was widely covered across Canada in both the French and English media, explodes the long-held belief that a person needs long-term exposure to smoking to become addicted. In her study, some teens demonstrated symptoms of dependence after their first few months on the demon weed.

Everybody into the (cess)pool

A more recent hot topic here in town has been the state of our public pools, the vast majority of which failed miserably in a series of tests conducted over the course of the summer to monitor the quality of the water. Dalius Briedis, of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, waded into the debate, telling the Montreal Gazette that, while there is cause for concern, "it's more dangerous crossing Peel and Ste. Catherine than swimming in a public pool." Perhaps, but at least you don't get to the other side of the street smelling funny.

Now where did I put that estrogen?

Speaking about making waves, Barbara Sherwin from the Department of Psychology has been getting lots of press on both sides of the border as a result of a study she supervised that links a decline in a woman's estrogen level with memory loss. The findings, which were picked up by media outlets across Canada, including the Edmonton Journal, Vancouver Sun, National Post and Calgary Herald, suggest that women who undergo estrogen treatment around menopause will be protected from memory loss.