The Media Coverage Summary is compiled from media clips Monday to Friday by UBC Public Affairs. Sign up for other Public Affairs e-mail services at http://news.ubc.ca/media-resources/digital-subscriptions/.
International/National
Globe & Mail: Federal government, UBC, dentist face lawsuit from First Nation band
Globe & Mail: Can small businesses afford to pay employees a living wage?
Science Mag: Why do our cell’s power plants have their own DNA?
Science News: Missing gut microbes linked to childhood malnutrition
Across Canada
CBC News: Thunder Bay ‘very interesting’ location for proposed safe injection site, says researcher
Local News
Global BC: Chinese investors buy Vancouver’s Bentall Centre
Vancouver Sun: Seaspan donates $2M to UBC for naval architecture, marine engineering
24 Hours Vancouver: Study may spot heart issues early
News 1130: Doctor wonders why access to Suboxone is still restricted
Vancity Buzz: Design revealed: 18-storey UBC residence to be world’s tallest wooden building
Vancity Buzz: UBC and SFU among schools with most sugar babies in Canada
International/National
Globe & Mail: Federal government, UBC, dentist face lawsuit from First Nation band
The Skidegate Band, a B.C. First Nation in Haida Gwaii, has filed a lawsuit against the federal government, UBC and a former university faculty member, The Globe and Mail reports.
The lawsuit relates to dental clinic contracts and “third-party billings”. Globe & Mail
Globe & Mail: Can small businesses afford to pay employees a living wage?
A small bakery in Ontario has increased the wages of its staff to a living wage and they’ve found that productivity has gone up.
UBC economics professor tells the Globe and Mail that conventional wisdom suggests that if businesses raise wages, they will get beaten out by their competitors and will have to lay off staff. Research, he says, shows the opposite and when wages go up, business are less likely to layoff workers. Globe & Mail
Science Mag: Why do our cell’s power plants have their own DNA?
A new study suggests a promising reason for why mitochondria, small structures in our cells that provide energy to the cell, have their own DNA, reports Science. Keith Adams, a biologist at UBC who was not involved in the research, says the study is innovative because it uses mathematical modelling to tackle the problem. Science Mag
Science News: Missing gut microbes linked to childhood malnutrition
New research shows that children suffering from malnutrition may be missing the right mix of gut microbes, reports Science News. Brett Finlay, a microbiologist at UBC, says that the research is exciting because it offers hope for treatment options.
“People used to think if you just fed the kids they’d be fine,” he said. “But that didn’t work….We know what causes malnutrition, and maybe now we can do something to fix it.” Science News
Across Canada
CBC News: Thunder Bay ‘very interesting’ location for proposed safe injection site, says researcher
Thunder Bay, Ontario is conducting a feasibility study for a safe injection site. Dr. Thomas Kerr, a professor of medicine at the University of British Columbia who has spent years studying safe injection around the world, speaks to CBC about Thunder Bay’s unique situation.
“That’s why it’s a good thing the feasibility work is being done in Thunder Bay because when the population is kind of spread out over a large area, it’s not clear whether a single facility in one place would work well,” said Kerr. CBC News
Local News
Global BC: Chinese investors buy Vancouver’s Bentall Centre
Vancouver’s Bentall Centre has been sold to Chinese investors in what could be a deal worth $1 billion, reports Global BC.
“Vancouver’s tax code punishes work and rewards investment in property with low property taxes and high income taxes,” said Tom Davidoff, a professor at the UBC Sauder School of Business. “As long as you combine that with this flood of demand for parking cash from other countries into Canada, we’re going to see people who live and work here get displaced by people who are primarily buying to invest.” Global BC
Vancouver Sun: Seaspan donates $2M to UBC for naval architecture, marine engineering
Seaspan Shipyards has donated $2 million over seven years to UBC’s naval architecture and marine engineering progrmas, The Vancouver Sun reports.
The donation will fund two new chair positions in both programs. Vancouver Sun
24 Hours Vancouver: Study may spot heart issues early
Researchers at UBC Okanagan may have discovered a quicker way to detect heart problems in breast cancer patients.
The researchers found heart abnormalities in post-chemotherapy patients while they exercised. The abnormalities went undetected when the patients were rested.
“If you can identify pre-clinical cardiovascular issues, I think the next step of the research is to utilize this to identify people who may be at more risk than others,” said Neil Eves, associate professor in the School of Health and Exercise Sciences. “If you can identify them, then the next question is: What can we do about it?” 24 Hours Vancouver
News 1130: Doctor wonders why access to Suboxone is still restricted
Suboxone is a new medication to help treat opioid addiction but doctors need to seek special permission to prescribe it since it falls into the same regulatory category as methadone, reports News 1130.
“There’s just an irony that doesn’t make sense that we can have physicians prescribing opioids that have the potential to be so toxic and yet they can’t provide treatments without a pretty big loop-hole to jump through,” says Dr. Evan Wood, a UBC medical professor and the Medical Director for Addictions Services for Vancouver Coastal Health. News1130
Vancity Buzz: Design revealed: 18-storey UBC residence to be world’s tallest wooden building
UBC’s tall wood building, a new student residence, is discussed in a new Vancity Buzz article.
The $51.5 million building currently under construction is slated for completion in summer 2017. Vancity Buzz
Vancity Buzz: UBC and SFU among schools with most sugar babies in Canada
Vancity Buzz reports UBC is the ninth most popular school in Canada for sugar babies, relying on data from Seeking Arrangement, a website that helps facilitate relationships between young people and wealthier, older people. Vancity Buzz
