Marc Garneau left lasting legacy on Earth and in space, former colleagues say
Mission specialist Marc Garneau waves to photographers as he leaves the Operations and Checkout Building with four other crew members for a trip to Kennedy Space Center's Launch Pad 39-B and a planned liftoff on the space shuttle Endeavour in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Thursday, Nov. 30, 2000. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Chris O'Meara
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Ottawa Citizen
17 hours ago
- Ottawa Citizen
B.C. climate news: Western Canada glaciers melting twice as fast as in previous decade
Article content Here's the latest news concerning climate change and biodiversity loss in B.C. and around the world, from the steps leaders are taking to address the problems, to all the up-to-date science. Article content Article content Article content Human activities like burning fossil fuels and farming livestock are the main drivers of climate change, according to the UN's intergovernmental panel on climate change. This causes heat-trapping greenhouse gas levels in Earth's atmosphere, increasing the planet's surface temperature. Article content Article content The panel, which is made up of scientists from around the world, including researchers from B.C., has warned for decades that wildfires and severe weather, such as the province's deadly heat dome and catastrophic flooding in 2021, would become more frequent and intense because of the climate emergency. It has issued a code red for humanity and warns the window to limit warming to 1.5 C above pre-industrial times is closing. Article content According to NASA climate scientists, human activities have raised the atmosphere's carbon dioxide content by 50 per cent in less than 200 years, and 'there is unequivocal evidence that Earth is warming at an unprecedented rate.' Article content Article content And it continues to rise. As of June 5, carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has risen to 430.51 parts per million, up from 429.64 ppm last month and 427.09 ppm in March, according to NOAA data measured at the Mauna Loa Observatory, a global atmosphere monitoring lab in Hawaii. The NOAA notes there has been a steady rise in CO2 from under 320 ppm in 1960. Article content Article content Article content Climate change quick facts: Article content • The Earth is now about 1.3 C warmer than it was in the 1800s. • 2024 was hottest year on record globally, beating the record in 2023. • The global average temperature in 2023 reached 1.48 C higher than the pre-industrial average, according to the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service. In 2024, it breached the 1.5 C threshold at 1.55 C. • The past 10 years (2015-2024) are the 10 warmest on record. • Human activities have raised atmospheric concentrations of CO2 by nearly 49 per cent above pre-industrial levels starting in 1850. • The world is not on track to meet the Paris Agreement target to keep global temperature from exceeding 1.5 C above pre-industrial levels, the upper limit to avoid the worst fallout from climate change including sea level rise, and more intense drought, heat waves and wildfires. • On the current path of carbon dioxide emissions, the temperature could increase by as much 3.6 C this century, according to the IPCC. • In June 2025, global concentrations of carbon dioxide exceeded 430 parts per million, a record high. • Emissions must drop 7.6 per cent per year from 2020 to 2030 to keep temperatures from exceeding 1.5 C and 2.7 per cent per year to stay below 2 C. • There is global scientific consensus that the climate is warming and that humans are the cause.
CBC
a day ago
- CBC
Indigenous people's health tightly tied to speaking their own languages, review finds
Social Sharing A new research review out of the University of British Columbia (UBC) has found that Indigenous people experience better health outcomes when they speak their traditional languages. Researchers analyzed 262 academic and community-based studies from Canada, the United States, Australia and New Zealand, and determined 78 per cent of them connected Indigenous language vitality with improved health. Studies found positive outcomes ranged from better physical and mental health, to increased social connections and healing, to greater educational success. One 2007 study out of B.C. revealed that youth suicide rates were down in First Nations communities where larger amounts of people spoke Indigenous languages. "Part of the reason why we undertook this literature review in the first place was because almost everyone that we speak with in Indigenous communities who is working on language revitalization report that reclaiming and learning their language has played a big role in their own personal health," said co-author Julia Schillo, a PhD student in UBC's linguistics department. She did the literature review, Language improves health and wellbeing in Indigenous communities, alongside a team of UBC researchers, with help from the University of Toronto and the University of Sydney. One of their major findings was the importance of health care being offered in an Indigenous language, with proper translation. Without that, patients were at risk of being diagnosed incorrectly or misunderstanding medical instructions, and reported feeling alienation or a lack of respect. In one example, Inuit children were misclassified on cognitive tests because their testing was in English, not Inuktitut. The review found connections between language and well being run deeper than direct communication, too. For instance, Schillo says physical health improves when Indigenous people participate in traditional sports and consume a traditional diet — and that both of those activities correlate with speaking traditional languages. "Based off of the literature review, but also people that I've talked to, it has to do with how language revitalization plays into identity and feelings of belonging and connection," she said. "It has a lot to do with healing from trauma, and intergenerational trauma that's related to the Indian residential school system." Those findings hold true for Chantu William, a young Tsilhqot'in language speaker and second generation residential school survivor who says learning her language growing up supported her mental health and identity as an Indigenous person. William, who wasn't involved in the study, is an early childhood educator and a policy analyst in her nation. She's working on language handbooks to give to parents at the local daycare, "for the language to stay inside the home." She co-developed language curriculum with her mother, as part of the Youth Empowered Speakers Program, with the First Peoples' Cultural Council. William says the idea for the language handbooks came from Māori relatives in New Zealand, who have similar programming that started in the 1980s, and are strong language speakers. "I feel so honoured to be able to teach and learn [Tsilhqot'in] with my preschool and day care kids and the youth in my life. I feel so grateful that I'm in this space, in our community sharing the language." William says hearing youth and elders speak the language with each other makes her happy, and that for her, "it gave direction in life." Johanna Sam, who is also Tsilhqot'in and an assistant professor at UBC in the department of education, says that if governments want to support Indigenous health, language revitalization needs to be part of the conversation. "Indigenous languages are so much more than words; they carry our laws, our stories and our knowledge systems that have sustained our nations since time immemorial," she said, noting that some words in Indigenous languages cannot be translated to English. Sam says she didn't have a lot of opportunity to learn her language being a first-generation residential school survivor, but she grew up hearing older generations in her family speak it and that uplifted her pride and identity. She wants to see more investment in Indigenous language curriculum and more options for health care to be provided in Indigenous languages. It's something the review's researchers are also calling for. They're asking all levels of government to provide long-term funding for Indigenous language revitalization and to recognize speaking the languages as a social determinant of health.
CBC
a day ago
- CBC
Sudburian builds fleet of Star Wars droids as a hobby
Sudbury man makes Star Wars droids as a hobby 5 days ago Duration 1:37 Social Sharing If you're a Star Wars fan in the Sudbury, Ont., area, these might be the droids you're looking for. Since 2019, software engineer Patrick Ryan has embraced the art of building droids, the robot characters from Star Wars. His creations have grown in complexity, and now he brings them to multiple conventions each year, letting fans interact with real-life versions of their favourite fictional characters. "I just love the aesthetic of them," said Ryan. "Kids especially, they just think it's real." Ryan's creations have grown in complexity since his first build in 2019. His first project was an MSE-6 repair droid—sometimes called a 'mouse droid'—which was built on an old remote control car. But his signature piece is a BB-8 droid, a much more complex creation from 2015's The Force Awakens. The main body of the droid is the rough size and shape of a soccer ball, but a floating 'head' piece rests on the top of the robot as the ball rolls freely underneath. "It doesn't look like it should work. It does look like magic," Ryan said. A lifelong passion for electronics Ryan uses 3D printing to create the parts for his droids and hides an array of electronic components inside the robots to enable their various functions, from movement to sounds. He estimates the BB-8 cost more than $1,000 to build, a process which lasted a year and a half. However, he didn't have to develop the blueprints from the ground up. An online community of droid-builders share their plans so others can recreate and upgrade their own droids. Ryan developed an improved circuit board to reduce the mess of wires inside, and also add an MP3 audio player to reproduce the droids' sound effects. He then shared those board designs back to the group so future builders could benefit from his work. Ryan studied electronics in college after growing up tinkering with gadgets of all kinds. He now works as a software developer. Having grown up in the 1980s, Ryan said he has always been exposed to Star Wars, but it was the 2015 sequel trilogy that reignited his passion for the franchise. That's what linked him back to his passion for electronics. Droids more advanced than movie props Ryan's latest creation is known as a B2EMO. He said the build process was similar, since other builder-groups exist with pre-made plans that he could 3D print and program. However, this unit is a relatively new addition to the Star Wars franchise, so few other models exist. An added challenge is that, during the filming, the droids were often not functional at all. Instead, puppeteers manipulated the robots and were edited out of the shot in post-production. "In the case of BB-8, there was never one that was operated, like you see with mine. It's just, it's so complicated," said Ryan. "Anytime it encounters a bump, the head falls off." However, the film team did complete a functional, remote-controlled BB-8 prototype in time for the film's red carpet premiere. As someone with a successful build, many people take notice of Ryan and his BB-8 at fan conventions. The puppeteer who worked on the set of Star Wars met Ryan at Toronto Comicon, and used Ryan's droid for fan photos. Ryan also has a photo with his BB-8 and television personality Adam Savage. Ryan said he knows of two other droid-builders in the Sudbury area, but he suspects more may exist. Although Sudbury's Graphic-Con is often the best way to see Ryan's droids in person, the event was cancelled this summer. The next chance for the public to meet Ryan and his creations will be at Fan Expo in Toronto in August.
