Around campus

Images of greatness

One of the greatest military minds in history, Alexander the Great, never lost a battle. When he died, he had conquered just about the entire world known to the ancient Greeks. Needless to say, there are plenty of nifty works of art depicting the Great One. As part of the Open House activities on Jan. 27, David G. Mitten, James Loeb Professor of Classical Art and Archaeology, Harvard University, will deliver the lecture "The images of Alexander the Great," in which he will explore the uses that rulers throughout history have made of images, especially in the wake of Alexander the Great's personality and career.

The images of Alexander the Great; Jan. 27; 3:00 p.m.; Redpath Museum auditorium; 859 Sherbrooke Street West. Admission: free, all welcome. For more information contact Ingrid Birker at 514-398-4086 (ext. 4092#).

Musical tribute

On Jan. 27, Opera McGill and the Schulich School of Music will pay tribute to Dixie Ross-Neill, the former Director of Opera McGill who died last year. Growing up in North Carolina, Ross-Neill’s family was so poor that they ate meat only once a week in order to pay for her education and music lessons. Completing her university studies magna cum laude at the University of North Carolina Greensboro and the University of Texas Austin, Ross-Neill went on to amass extensive experience and expertise as a vocal coach, teacher and collaborative artist in the world of opera. Her repertoire included well over 150 operas in addition to a vast amount of vocal concert and recital music in many languages and styles, spanning more than four centuries and encompassing a huge amount of the traditional music, together with more than thirty American and world premieres by some of today’s most distinguished composers. Formerly a member of the musical staff of the New York Metropolitan Opera, Ross-Neill prepared operas for many major companies, including among others, Chicago Lyric Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Washington DC, Boston and Amsterdam.

"Remembering Dixie" promises to be an afternoon of music and memories as maestro Timothy Vernon, former Director of the McGill Symphony Orchestra returns to the university to conduct the MGSO, along with a star-studded cast of McGill alumni.

"Remembering Dixie"; Jan. 27; 3:00 p.m.; Pollack Hall; Schulich School of Music; 555 Sherbrooke Street West. Free admission. Information: 514-398-4547

Major researcher headlines Mini Beatty

On Jan. 25, Dr. John Coffin, American Cancer Society Research Professor and Distinguished Professor at Tufts University will deliver the Mini Beatty Lecture "Retrovirus Evolution." Coffin, a world-renowned expert on retrovirus genetics, genome structure and evolution, distinguished himself early in his career at Tufts when he revolutionized the study of retroviruses like HIV by uncovering a critical part of the mechanism that enables them to dictate their host cells’ development. In his lecture, Coffin will discuss co-evolution of human endogenous retroviruses and old world primates; the effect of an antiviral host factor—APOBEC 3—on evolution of endogenous viruses in mice; and how some retroviruses have evolved the ability to evolve to us different cell surface receptors for entry and infection.

Mini Beatty Lecture; "Retrovirus Evolution"; Jan. 25; 2:00 p.m.; Duff Amphitheatre; Duff Medical Building; 3775 University Street. Public is welcome; free admission. Info: Shan-Lu Liu at 514-398-4582 or shan-lu.liu@mcgill.ca; or Lisa Bedard at 514-398-3912 or lisa.bedard@mcgill.ca.

Open House: Rolling out the (McGill) red carpet

When you're considered one of the best universities in the world, your annual Open Door event is going to draw a crowd—just look at the 2007 OD installment that attracted an estimated 5,000 visitors. On Jan. 27, thousands of prospective McGill students and their friends and families will pass through the famed Roddick Gates as they tour the university and learn about what McGill has to offer, both inside and outside the classroom. Once again, a free bus service will bring visitors to the city core from outlying areas including Sainte-Foy, Hull and Granby. On top of the information sessions hosted by friendly staff, faculty and current students, a number of special activities are on tap, including short plays staged by English and drama students and a display of animal bones unearthed at the recent dig at Parc Safari (see Oct. 11, 2007 issue of the McGill Reporter).

Open House; Jan. 27; 10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.; downtown campus. For more information and to register, go to www.mcgill.ca/openhouse.

Shojo think you know your manga, eh?

ISTOCKPHOTO

Once a staple of Japanese pop culture, the melodramatic storylines and the impossibly doe-eyed heroes and heroines of manga (comic books) and shoju (animation) are just as much a part of North American thanks largely to the crossover success of such animated shows as Sailor Moon and Dragonball. On Jan. 25 and 26, Professor Thomas Lamarre of the Department of East Asian Studies will host "TransculturELLE: How Girls Cross Cultures," a workshop on shoujo anime and manga. Short academic papers on gender, genre, and culture will be presented by the likes of Frenchy Lunning, Toshiya Ueno and Ian Condry with the goal of stimulating discussion around a specific set of issues related to cultivation, culturalism, and 'transculturalism' or 'transculturalation.'

TransculturELLE: How Girls Cross Culture; Jan 25-26; Friday sessions run from 11:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. at Bronfman 451. Saturday from 9:30 a.m.-11:30 p.m; 3424 McTavish, room 302.

Ashes to ashes, sawdust to sawdust

Owen Egan

While most of us will be spending late January burrowing into downy comforters and dreaming of warmer climes, the Mac lumberjacks and lumberjills will be braving the elements as they try to chop, climb, saw and throw their way to victory during the 48th annual McGill Woodsman Competition. On Jan. 26, some 180 lumberjacks and lumberjills from Eastern Canada and the U.S. will square off in such events as pole climbing, log rolling, snowshoeing, axe throwing, and, ever the crowd-pleaser, water boiling. While the Mac men’s team has won five straight national titles, their female counterparts are enjoying a stellar season of their own. So bundle up the kids, head over to the Mac campus and cheer for the home team to cut down the competition.

Macdonald Campus Woodsman Competition; Jan. 26; 8:00 a.m.—4:00 p.m.; Watson Field; Macdonald Campus; 21,111 Lakeshore Rd; Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue. Admission free. For more information go to www.agrenv.mcgill.ca/society/athletic.