LifeonCampusPhysiciansin TrainingOverheardDo it now, and do itright – Doris’s words.I fi rst heard them fromher many years ago. Iwas likely over-thinking,or perhaps, procrastinating.Doris wasn’thaving any <strong>of</strong> that.I don’t remember thedetails; they’re nolonger relevant. ButI will always rememberthe words, and live bythem as Doris has.The new Health Sciences Complex being builtat U <strong>of</strong> T Mississauga has received a landmark$10-million gift from Mississauga businessmanCarlo Fidani.The complex is currently under constructionand scheduled to open in August 2011. It will housethe new Mississauga Academy <strong>of</strong> Medicine, whichwill train 54 new family physicians annually.Students will focus on family and communitymedicine and specialties such as general surgery,general internal medicine and general psychiatry.Fidani’s gift – the single largest donation evermade to U <strong>of</strong> T Mississauga – will support the facility’sconstruction and will endow medical studentbursaries and a chair in family and community careat the Faculty <strong>of</strong> Medicine.In addition to the medical academy, the fourstoreyHealth Sciences Complex will house thegraduate biomedical communications program,research laboratories, classrooms and <strong>of</strong>fices.Lynne Wynick, <strong>of</strong> Wynick/Tuck Gallery in <strong>Toronto</strong>, paystribute to artist Doris McCarthyat her 100 th birthdaycelebration in July, co-hostedby the U <strong>of</strong> T Art Centre andthe Doris McCarthy Gallery.PollWhat activities do you plan to pursueoutside <strong>of</strong> academics this fall?43%Sportsor fitness18% 10% 29%Clubor hobbyVolunteerNoneThe <strong>University</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Toronto</strong> boasts more clubs and sports teams thanany university in Canada, but almost three in 10 students say they aren’tplanning to participate in any extracurricular activities this fall. Most saythey will have a lot <strong>of</strong> homework and just want to relax in their sparetime. Others, mostly graduate students, say they simply don’t have anyfree time during the school year.U <strong>of</strong> T students are known to study hard, but they clearly like to blow<strong>of</strong>f some steam with physical activity, too. Almost half <strong>of</strong> the studentspolled plan to join a sports team or work on personal fitness. Soccer wasone <strong>of</strong> the most popular sports cited by students – perhaps because <strong>of</strong>the recent World Cup, or because students hail from a diverse range<strong>of</strong> cultures in which the sport is played. Dragon-boat racing, dancing,cheerleading and triathlons were among the less common activitiesstudents mentioned.This highly unscientifi c poll <strong>of</strong> 100 U <strong>of</strong> T students was conducted onSt. George Campus in June.ARCHITECTURAL RENDERING: KONGATS ARCHITECTS14 WWW.MAGAZINE.UTORONTO.CA
LifeonCampusIllustration: jamie portchThe Mobile RevolutionU <strong>of</strong> T libraries and bookstoreadapt to the iPad eraStudents who arrived at u <strong>of</strong> t this fall toting an iPad, iPhoneor other mobile handset found that the university’s librariesand bookstore are <strong>of</strong>fering several new services for them,including the ability to view course readings and e-bookson their device.Peter Clinton, director <strong>of</strong> information technology servicesat U <strong>of</strong> T Libraries, says students are also able to usetheir mobile computer to find each <strong>of</strong> the university’s 40libraries on a map, check hours <strong>of</strong> operation and search thecomplete catalogue. Someone looking for Margaret Atwood’snovel Surfacing, for example, can determine which librarieshave a print copy and whether a digital edition is availableto read on a hand-held device.The U <strong>of</strong> T library system provides online access to about250,000 e-books and more than 13 million journal articles.Although the number <strong>of</strong> e-books represents only a smallpercentage <strong>of</strong> the library’s print holdings, Clinton expectsthe number to grow quickly in coming years as the marketfor tablet computers and smartphones explodes, and scholarlypublishers shift away from printing books. “I thinkwe’re at a tipping point,” he says.A survey conducted last spring found that although fewerthan 20 per cent <strong>of</strong> students reported using a smartphone,many expect to acquire one in the next year. “Mobile computingis becoming a major part <strong>of</strong> what students do,” says Clinton.While the library is moving quickly to <strong>of</strong>fer e-books,U <strong>of</strong> T Bookstore is taking a more gradual approach to sellingdigital titles. Chad Saunders, the bookstore’s manager, says thedays when students download all <strong>of</strong> their textbooks to theirtablet computer with the push <strong>of</strong>a button may still be some yearsaway. Today’s students, despitehaving grown up in the Internetera, largely still prefer to readfrom the printed page, he says.In January, the bookstoreconducted a student survey andfound that the majority want aprint copy <strong>of</strong> a textbook, even ifa digital edition is available.Given the choice between paying$50 for an e-book or $100for a digital and print version, 30per cent more <strong>of</strong> the respondentsopted to pay extra to have botheditions.What’s more, almost 90 percent <strong>of</strong> respondents said theywould want the option <strong>of</strong> beingable to print at least a portion <strong>of</strong> a digital book.To accommodate student preferences, the bookstore hasteamed up with the library to <strong>of</strong>fer a “print-on-demand” optionfor the 250,000 e-books in the library database. By clicking onan icon in the library catalogue, students are sent to the bookstorewebsite where they can buy a copy <strong>of</strong> the book that isthen printed at the store using a new “instant book” machinethat can produce a paperback in four minutes.This fall, U <strong>of</strong> T Bookstore has about 600 electronic coursebooks and supplementary materials for sale. Saunders saysdemand for e-textbooks is slack so far – and publishers are inno hurry to promote them, given what happened to the musicbusiness after MP3s became popular. “There’s a lot <strong>of</strong> concernamong publishers about file sharing,” observes Clinton. “Youngpeople seem to have a different idea about the value <strong>of</strong> contentand the rights <strong>of</strong> creators.”Apple launched its iBooks store in Canada in July – and thestore could be a game-changer. It wasn’t until Apple launchedits iTunes store that sales <strong>of</strong> digital music took <strong>of</strong>f. While textbookpublishers are still negotiating with the computer-makerover terms, such as prices and Apple’s cut, Saunders has nodoubt that a much broader and more accessible selection <strong>of</strong>digital textbooks is on the way. “Everyone’s searching for a goodsolution,” he says. – Scott Andersonautumn 2010 15