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Wednesday, may 28, 2008EngSoc Honours 2008 Paul and Paula Plummersthe iron warriornews bureauThe Engineering Society honoured eightmembers of the graduating class of 2008along with one of their former classmateson March 29th at the annual EngineeringGraduation Ball by presenting themwith the Paul and Paula Plummer Award.Commonly called the P&P Award, it is themost coveted and prestigious award presentedby EngSoc and is given to studentswho have demonstrated an overwhelmingcommitment and a commendable amountof contribution to the society during theirtime at Waterloo.Tyler Gale and Amanda Hoff, Presidentsof EngSoc “A” and EngSoc “B”respectively, announced the winnersat Grad Ball. The winners from A-Socwere Bahman Hadji, Todd Radigan, JayShirtliff, and Ruth-Anne Vanderwater, allfrom Computer Engineering, along withEvan Thor, a former classmate of theirswho withdrew from the program after their2B term. B-Soc honoured Greg FitzGeraldfrom Mechatronics, René Marchand fromElectrical, Evan Murphy from Computer,and Adam Neale from Electrical.Each of the students was nominated atan EngSoc Council Meeting by one oftheir peers during either the Fall or Winterterms, and a presentation was made atthe following meeting by the nominatoroutlining the nominee’s accomplishmentsand why he or she deserved the award.Each of the recipients was deserving inhis or her own way and made outstandingcontributions in different areas affectingEngSoc that convinced the executive toaward them the esteemed honour. Whileeach held numerous directorships andLast Thursday, WOMBaT (Waterloo OffroadMini Baja Team) proudly unveiledtheir new vehicle at the Research & TechnologyPark along with a rebirth of the previousyear’s vehicle. The Iron Warrior was ableto interview several team members duringthe event. The team started in 2001 and hasspent countless hours designing, competingand improving their vehicles. As of this year,there are two teams: the junior and the seniorteams. Both teams will be competing in theupcoming Midwest Competition being heldby SAE in mid-June.The senior team consists of around 13 fourthyearstudents who started the project last summer,and it was near completion by the end oflast August. The team has continued to workon and improve the vehicle since January. Theproject consisted of a new vehicle which wasbuilt with a new frame and air-shock suspension,and a better gear-ratio for improved acceleration.To assist their progress, two differentdesign projects from team members dealtwith the suspension of the vehicle.The vehicle was also lengthened by about4 inches, but managed to be lighter than theprevious vehicle by about 70 pounds. The currentvehicle now weighs about 400 pounds,compared to the 478-pound vehicle fromthe previous competition. Most vehicles thatfinished in the top ten last year weighed lessthan 400 pounds, so the senior team hopes thelighter weight will give them an advantage inthe competition. The vehicle also features antirollfor greater manoeuvrability, with safety inmind, as it is extremely important.The competition is in about two weeks andthe team aims to be in the top 25 this timearound. When askedabout the greatestchallenges the teamhas faced, Kader El-Fityani, a 2008 MechanicalEngineeringgraduate, said thatgetting people towork together wasvery difficult. Coordinationbetweeneveryone was veryimportant since aminor change to anypart of the vehicleshowed a great amount of dedication tothe society, they also went beyond andleft their mark on the school for years tocome.For A-Soc, Bahman was Editor-in-Chiefof The Iron Warrior (Spring 2007) and aCo-Chair of the Graduation Committee.Todd was VP Finance (2006-07) and partof the Engineering Orientation Committee(FOC) as HEADCOM in 2006. Jayran a campus-wide charity fundraiser,raising over $20,000 for the CanadianCancer Society. Ruth-Anne was President(2006-07) and oversaw such initiatives asthe successful constitutional amendmentsof 2007 that defined a relationship withthe Waterloo Architecture Students Associationand streamlined the process ofamending the constitution. Evan, duringhis two years at Waterloo, was one of themost active class representatives EngSochad ever seen and inspired his classmatesto get involved.For B-Soc, Greg was VP External(2006-07) and part of the EngineeringOrientation Committee (FOC) as a Super-Huge in 2007. Evan was one of the mostactive members of EngSoc, having beena SuperHuge on the Engineering OrientationCommittee (FOC) in 2006, Co-Chairof the Graduation Committee, and havingrun for Exec positions twice. Renérepresented Waterloo at the provincialand national levels at several conferencescomponents wouldaffect other parts.The smaller budgetcompared to otherteams in the competitionalso made thisproject quite challenging.It was alsohard to predict theterrains and loads ofthe competition sitewhich would greatlyaffect the design ofthe vehicle. El-Fiyanisays the vehicle is99% complete andcompetition-ready. Itshould require only afew more hours of testing.The junior team started work on its ownvehicle since last September. The team of 7second- and third-year students were workingon-and-off the project since last Fall. Thisteam did not build a new vehicle, but insteadmaintained and made improvements to lastyear’s vehicle for the upcoming competition.This allows the students to gain experiencewhile working with the guidance of fourthyearstudents. Thus, they will be able to applythis experience and knowledge when theyneed to build their own vehicle next year.Katherine Olsen, a 3A Mechanical studentsays that this team provides great experiencefor what needs to be designed, and is an excellentway to learn the design principles, themanufacturing process and the proper way tomake things. Some of the greatest challengeswould be the fact that standard parts cannotbe used, since these are prototype vehicles.This meant many parts had to be made fromand through his position as the CanadianFederation of Engineering Students Commissionerfor Complementary Education.Adam was VP Internal (2006-2007) andwas involved in bringing back the ageoldEngSoc tradition of the termly familyphoto.While every Waterloo Engineering studentcan proudly call themselves a plummerafter receiving their hardhat duringFrosh Week, only a few each year get tobe Paul and Paula Plummer. For their efforts,the winners were presented with aplaque and a mug, and their names wereengraved on a plaque mounted in the Orificethat lists winners from previous yearsgoing back to the early 90s.New UW Mini Baja Vehicle UnveiledCherry Ho1B ElectricalThe 2008 Paul and Paula Plummer Award recipients at Grad Ball. From left to right: Evan Thor, Greg FitzGerald,René Marchand, Ruth-Anne Vanderwater, Adam Neale, Todd Radigan, Evan Murphy, Jay Shirtliff, Bahman Hadji.WOMBaT is gearing up to compete in next month’s SAE Mini Baja MidwestCompetition. The team unveiled their new vehicle, above, and took it for afew test drives around Research & Technology Park.scratch. Improvements to last year’s vehicleincluded a new steering rack, and changes tothe distance of braking to comply with thisyear’s new standards. Olsen mentioned thatonly superficial things are left before the vehicleis ready for competition.Both teams are always looking for newmembers. Anyone is welcome and it’s a greatway to gain experience. For more information,visit their website at: http://www.eng.uwaterloo.ca/~baja/

Spencer McEwan2B ElectricalSpring is once again upon us. Amidstthe blossoming trees, skimpy clothingand the return of goose droppings all overthe sidewalks, there is a large void on ourcampus. It takes the shape of an ugly, sixmetre-deephole residing next to the StudentLife Centre. That hole has replacedBomber Patio; the patio attached to theBombshelter Pub in the SLC that has becomea staple of summer living for UWstudents over countless summer terms ofyears past.In preparations for the University ofWaterloo’s brand new Quantum-NanoCentre on the B2 Green, Bomber Patiowas disassembled to extend service tunnelsfrom underneath the SLC to thelocation of the new building. These tunnelswill carry heat, water, electricityand other utilities into the new building.The tunnels will be extended a certainlength towards the B2 Green, buried, andthen connected to the brand new buildingwhen the next phase of constructionbegins. Once the tunnels are finished, thepatio will be restored to its former glory.Construction began on the tunnels lastfall, and was scheduled to be finishedby May for the start of the Spring term.However, as June rolls around, the areastill resembles a hole in the ground, andnot the patio we all know and love.Bomber Patio has become a fabledplace of enjoyment for Waterloo studentspast and present. Every summer term,students congregate to enjoy the softwind and the warm sunshine as they eatand drink. Bomber Patio is the place tohang out with friends, meet new people,Where in the World is the Bomber Patio?and spend countlesshours dreamingup ideas forfourth-year designprojects. BomberWednesday isamazing with thepatio open forbusiness. Someupper-year Engineeringstudentsgo as far as sayingthat BomberPatio is the bestpart of summer oncampus. This beingsaid, we are ata loss so far thisterm. As the sunshines down onus, and the days ofsummer term startto pass us by, thereis both a hole inthe ground, and inour hearts.Students are notthe only ones whoare suffering. TheB o m b s h e l t e r ’sbusiness has alsoWednesday, may 28, 2008The Bomber Patio is currently closed for business as construction continues to extend servicetunnels from the SLC to Biology 2 to set way for the construction of the Quantum-Nano Centre onthe B2 Green. The original schedule had called for the extension to be finished by this month.been negativelyaffected from the construction. Patiodiningis very prevalent in the Kitchener-Waterlooarea. A stroll up UniversityAvenue or down King Street will yieldcountless establishments with patio areas,where people of all ages gather to enjoyfood and drink in an outdoor setting.Many students are forgoing the Bomberin search of such venues. The loss of thepatio area has also significantly reducedthe capacity of the Bombshelter by almosthalf. With Bomber Patio open, thecapacity of the pub is roughly 500 people.The absence of the patio puts capacityat around 250 people, all of whomwould be seated inside the pub. In short,the Bomber’s business has been hurt onmultiple fronts, and the longer constructiontakes to complete, the more moneythe pub will lose.The biggest question on everyone’sminds is when our beloved Patio will finallyreopen. At this stage in construction,it looks like only time will tell.The original completion date was set forMay. At this point in time, the completiondate has been pushed back to June.As this article has been written, the holeis slowly being filled back in. However,with the Quantum-Nano Centre groundbreakingset to happen next month, it isanyone’s guess when Bomber Patio willbe open for business. For many of us,these next few weeks will be a test ofpatience. Come back, Bomber Patio. Youmean so much more to us than a hole inthe ground does.Sandford Fleming Foundation2008 John Fisher Leadership Award RecipientsCongratulations to...Bahman Hadji of Electrical and Computer EngineeringandMaria Arshad of Mechanical and Mechatronics EngineeringWinners of the 2008 John Fisher Leadership AwardThe John Fisher Award for Leadership is made to a graduating student who has shown outstanding leadershipthroughout the student’s academic career in activities that relate to Engineering Education. These leadershipcontributions can be associated with the Engineering Society, the Departments, the Faculty, the Sandford FlemingFoundation, and with other activities with a professional orientation.The award consists of a certificate, a citation and an honorarium of $1,500. Funding for this award comes fromthe engineering student contributions and depends on them for continuation.E2-3336, Extension 84008, sff@engmail.uwaterloo.cawww.eng.uwaterloo.ca/~sff

Wednesday, may 28, 2008VPF ReportChris Jamiesonvp financeSo in my time as exec, so far I havelearned a great many things but I think thetwo biggest things are most evident in mywork... well okay not work, but lack ofwork in some areas. First of all, you willnever have the amount of time you thinkyou will. Be careful of how much workyou take on. Second of all, things take waylonger than you think.The unfortunate part is that those werejust excuses for my failures in the end. Iquite simply didn’t finish the POS or planningdocument as I expected I would. Thatis not to say however, that I did nothing. Infact they are very close.Over the next month or so we will begoing through the process of adding ourVPI ReportCat HayVP InternalWelcome back to campus! We’ve wastedno time in getting the term started thisspring. Read on for more info about theevents we’ve done, what’s coming up, andmy goals for the term as your VPI.Swanky Successes- In the second week of classes we hadan awesome turnout at our B**5 Big BadB-Soc Bowling Bonanza! (Stay tuned forprize announcements at the next EngSocmeeting.)- This week started out with Genius Bowland Wheelchair Basketball.Feeling out of the loop? Check out ourweekly calendar outside the EngSoc officeor subscribe to our online Google calendar((search for “Engineering Society B”).Jubilant Just-around-the-corner EventsSome of the fantastic events we havecoming up in the next two weeks include:- Enginuity’s “A Totally Tubular Task”(May 29 @ 11:30-12:30 CPH Foyer)- Flying Circus SCavenger hUNT (May30-31)- Bandwars (May 31)- World Environment Day (June 5)- Skydiving (June 7-8)Gotta-love’em Goals1. Visit on-stream classes to discuss therole of EngSoc as a representative of thestudent body & explain the services weprovide- Current status: visited all first yearclasses during first two weeks of lectures- Next steps: 2A, 2B, 3A classesinventory information into the databasewhich will serve both the POS and the onlineimplementation. Along with this wewill be putting the system through somefinal verification testing. I would like tothank Emily Ecker and her models for takingpictures of all the items we have. Additionally,I have Jarek, one of the FinanceDirectors assisting me in this.The business planning has turned out tobe a much larger endeavour than I anticipatedas it involves university regulations,required capital, and collaboration withA-Soc. Luckily, like the POS, I have a FinanceDirector, Han, helping me out withit. We have some big ideas which we wantto work on before we reveal them.As for the direct finances of the society,the budget will be approved by council onWednesday May 28th (the day this paperarrives) and will be appearing in the nextissue. Donation proposals are being accepteduntil June 2nd.2. Enhance knowledge sharing aboutEngSoc events- Current status: prepared detailed descriptionsfor all EngSoc events, including:event description, date, time, location,cost, age/student/transportation restrictions,contact info for appropriate VP anddirectors (available at the front desk of theOrifice)- Next steps: work with whiteboard directorto complete giant felt calendar ofevents (to be located in CPH foyer)3. Work with Class Rep Advisor to supportEngSoc class reps- Current status: first class rep workshopheld May 13, summary of council meetingminutes sent to all class reps- Next steps: develop biweekly/monthlyworkshops on topics requested at firstmeeting4. Improve regularity of event calendarthroughout term- Current status: All internal events arespread out throughout the term to avoid“crunch week” in July when most studentsare already busy with course work- Next steps: Work with directors to ensurenecessary timelines are met throughoutterm5. Improve executive transition materials- Current status: developed comprehensivetransition document outlining the rolesand responsibilities of VPI, term timelines,copies of all forms, detailed descriptions ofdirectorships from a VPI perspective (includingpreviously granted budget values),and a start-of-term checklist- Next steps: review/organize existingfiles on exec driveHow to Win with P**5Sasha Avreline, PeterKelly, & Sylvia WuP**5 DirectorsGreetings! Your Spring 2008 P**5 Directors--SashaAvreline, Peter Kelly, andSylvia Wu--would like to welcome youback to school with 3 huge high fives anda ridiculous amount of cash to be won!What cash you ask? The class thataccumulates the most P**5 points willreceive a prize of $500! The runner-upclass wins $300 and the class that comesin 3rd gets $150! This could be the startof a class trust fund, or be blown awayat Molly’s in one night... the possibilitiesare endless!P**5 (pronounced P to the Fifth) standsfor Paul and Paula Plummer ParticipationPoints. You can win P**5 points bydoing virtually anything: attending anEngSoc meeting, helping out with Eng-Play, sending photos and articles to theIron Warrior, buying shirts at Noveltieson laundry day, etc. Again, the possibilitiesare endless! To see a complete list ofpoint sources and the constantly-updatedranking list, visit http://engsoc.uwaterloo.ca/www/p5.phpThe P**5 coupon will be the main wayto submit points for your class. You getthese at certain events (such as MOT),and they can be deposited into the SexyBox, which is either present at the eventor in the Orifice. It is highly recommendedthat your class elects a P**5 Rep tokeep track of miscellaneous points, suchas varsity participation. These points canbe emailed to bsoc_p5@engmail.uwaterloo.ca.Any questions can also be sent tothis address.We will be holding bi-weekly conteststhis term, prizes are of course P**5points! The contest to kick start the termis: Best Story from the Work Term.Send in your class’s best story (or stories)from the Winter 2008 work term for1000 points each. The winning class willbe announced at the next EngSoc meeting(June 11), and it will receive an additionaloutrageous bonus!We also have a term-long contest:BEST VIRAL VIDEO. It must be filedand produced by your class. The resultwill be announced at EOT.Rules for participating in the P**5race:- Do not cheat. Your class will lose theamount of points that you try to cheatfor.- Do not vandalize the Sexy Box.- Do indicate your name and class oneach coupon and at every event registration.If we cannot identify you, we willnot award points.The main change to this term’s P**5rules are:- Points for class parties are nowawarded according to the percentage ofclassmates in attendance.- BONUS Points will be awarded tothe class (not in top 5) with the greatestjump in rankings each month.Have fun battling for cash!Your P**5 Directors: Sylvia Wu, Sasha Avreline & Peter Kelly.Look out for them at an EngSoc event near you to win some cash prizes!Big Bad B-Soc Bowling Bonanza Makes a ComebackAnnaLafoyiannis3A EnvironmentalOn May 15, 2008 a bowling competitionof immense proportions was held.With creative names such as Sex Panther,Car Ramrod and DUSHED (DrinkUnSuspecting Small House of EricaDry), it was clear the competition wouldbe fierce. Despite any tomfoolery and/orBEvERage-affected antics that may haveoccurred, the Big Bad Bowling Bonanzawas a tough contest.The first game was pretty calm. Mostplayers tried to take the time to hometheir bowling skills and help each otherout. For one player, a very successfultrick was aiming through the legs of anotherplayer. By game two, the playerswere confident and ready to play someaggressive bowling. Not only did theyimprove their own game, but learned thevalue in bringing down their opponents’games.The night had to come to an end whenWaterloo Lanes decided to kick out theseruckus engineers (or “close” as theycalled it). The scores were tallied andthe winner was decided. It was close, butwith the help of bowling extraordinairePatt Gillis, team DUSHED was declaredthe winner.Erica Waugh and Cat Hay represented the B-Soc Exec in fine form.

Wednesday, may 28, 2008The University of Waterloo is famous fortheir high tech and engineering students andgrads, it’s sometimes known as the MIT of thenorth. This distinction makes it obvious thatcompanies from all over the world want co-opand graduate students working for them. Howdo they get people to become excited abouttheir company? Well this issue is open to debateas some companies play it low-key andhave a lunch time session with free lunch andpamphlets. Some companies play it up a littlebit and have a fancier lunch and a free giveawayor two, as well as some free swag available.Some offer free dinner with multiple rafflesand bikini-clad recruitment officers, okaymaybe not the bikini part but many companiesspend a great deal of money trying to get you,the students of the University of Waterloo towork for them.This past week had a double header of hightechhip companies offering free beer and apromise of great opportunities. First up was theNuvation presenttion on Wednesday offeringgood food and free beer as well as a draw foran Asus Eee PC. In talking to the President andCEO Michael Worry (UW Electrical Class of‘97 and the genius who persuaded Mary Blandto come to Engineering from Math), I gainedperspective on what these companies expect togain from these recruitment events. “We wantpeople to come away from this presentationthinking that we are the Engineering SWATteam, any tough challenge we will take it instride.” In listening to questions after the presentationit was clear that many people had neverheard of the company and are now intrigued andUWAFT Places Fourth Overall in Challenge XEquinox Covoy in D.C.Continued from Page 1Michael Seliske1B computerOur vehicle was also showcased along withthe other teams at Tavern on the Green in CentralPark where the media was to come andtest out the vehicles around a 1.8 mile trackthrough the park. We had quite a showing witha significant line up of people waiting to trythe only fuel-cell series electric-hybrid vehiclein the competition.We then prepared for a long rally from NewYork to Baltimore. Unlike the other teams inthe competition who have all taken numerousroad-trips with their vehicles, ours hasonly strayed off of Ring Road or North Campusa handful of times, and those times weretypically just for dynamic testing or for thecompetition in previous years. Unfortunately,hydrogen refuelling stations were few and farbetween which means that our adventureswere always limited to day-trips. This is thefirst time that we’ve actually tested the Equinoxin real life situations, hence the air of concernas we prepared for departure.Even more troubling was the fact that itwas raining. At last year’s competition we discoveredthat rain inside the engine bay couldcause problems if all of our wiring or electricalcomponents were not properly waterproofed.Since that time we’ve done considerable workto counter these problems but again, testing athighway speeds has been non-existent.We completed the rally with our two coteamcaptains, Chris Haliburton and CharlesHua, driving for 6+ hours. Making it to Baltimorewas a huge confidence builder for usas we have never driven that far before orthrough such bad weather. We completed therally by driving to Washington, D.C.In Washington, D.C., we had the pleasureof visiting the Canadian Embassy. The CanadianEmbassy is the only embassy located betweenCapitol Hill and the White House. Wewere met by Minister Kevin O’Shea who tookour Equinox out for a spin. We even got a surprisevisit from the Canadian ambassador tothe US, the Honourable Michael Wilson, whowas very interested in the vehicle and posedfor several pictures.Awards were handed out later that eveningand UWAFT faired quite well taking away 3rdplace in the National Instruments Award forPhil Lockhart’s presentation about his graphicaluser interface programming which is thebrain behind our in-console touchscreen. Wereceived 3rd place in the MathWorks-sponsoredaward for Charles Hua’s presentation onour use of MatLab in the vehicle design 1stplace for Media Relations, as well as 1st placeoverall for Outreach. Some of the other keysuccesses were gold medals for emissions,well to wheels petroleum energy use, controlstrategy presentation and the AVL drive.Most importantly however was the announcementthat UWAFT placed 4th overall for theentire competition!The finish line event on the last day of ChallengeX took place right beside the US Departmentof Energy building. The convoy ofEquinoxes arrived, paraded and were parkedon display for the media to see all 17 completedcars of competition. The top three overallteams were announced by Ambassador Wilson,Beth Lowry (GM VP of Environment& Energy) and the US Secretary of EnergySamuel Bodman. Third place went to OhioState University, second place went to theUniversity of Wisconsin Madison, and finallyfirst prize to Mississippi State University all ofwhom had built biodiesel electric-hybrids. Allof the top three used the same 1.9L GM dieselengine and applied different control strategiesto manage the power draw between theturbo or supercharged engine and the batterypack as well as employed different methodsof cleaning-up the exhaust. Mississippi Statewas actually able to increase the fuel economyby 38% and even beat the stock vehicles’quarter-mile time, which goes to show you thekind of improvements that can be made withexisting technology and where we could be inexcited about them. When questioned about theopen bar, he said that food and beer are always agood way to persuade people to come. He said itwasn’t for the company image, just a good wayto persuade people into showing up. A largenumber of people came up after and introducedthemselves and when asked about whether aface-to-face meeting improves your chances ofgetting a job he said, “Sure, but make sure youlet me know by throwing a little comment inthe email.” The open bar was taken advantageof, but most people did not seem to notice it asmuch as the amazing presentation, one attendeementioned that “it blew [his] mind”.The very next day was the termly event puton by Sandvine at the Bomber with a slightlydifferent atmosphere to be had. In talking tohead of recruiting Dan Williams, and co-founder/VP-EngineeringBrad Slim, it was apparentimmediately that they didn’t believe ingoing over the company finances or doingvery technical presentations about thecompany because the best way to learnabout a company is to chat with the peoplewho work there. “People are our biggestassets, and although technical skillsand making money is important, peopleare always our top priority.” These eventsstarted a few years ago when they wantedto answer the question “Sandvine who?”and what a better way to do it then beerand food. When asked about what kind ofan image they are trying to portray, “Wework hard, we play hard; and that it’s notan idea, it’s a belief system. People needto love what they do and we try and providethat atmosphere.” They believe thatif they have a boring recruitment event,the company will come off as boring andthey don’t want that, “I want to have funtoo.”Amongst the food and beer, there wasUWAFT’s Challenge X vehicle at the Maryland Science Center.just a few short years.After the Challenge X wrapped-up we wentacross the street to where they were announcingthe accepted entrants to the next challenge– Ecocar. Ecocar is another competition similarto Challenge X, but the vehicle will now bethe Saturn Vue with differences in rules andcriteria. After the announcement it was confirmedthat Waterloo would no longer be thesole Canadian representation as the Universityof Victoria and the Ontario Institute of Technologyin Oshawa would also be competing.So here’s to the future and the exciting innovativetechnologies to come. Stay tuned forthe developments with Ecocar.Open Bar: The New Trend in Campus Recruitmentalso a great deal of information exchangeand career/job hunting going on as well.This year all attendees were required tobring a resume and when asked if theywill actually be looked at Mr. Williamssaid, “Absolutely, we will have all ofthese [résumés] looked at by tomorrowmorning and people we are interested inwill be getting calls or e-mails from usletting them know we are interested andencourage them to apply.” The event ingeneral is a win-win for all who wereinvolved as the employees got to havesome fun and talk to eager young students andthe students got to network and have some funwhile doing it.Both events despite having an advertisedopen bar were slightly different atmospheresbut both seemed to work in that company’s favour.One event tried to portray their amazingtechnical knowledge and amazing accomplishments,where the other wanted to show how funit was to work there. Judging from reactions byattendees, both companies accomplished whatthey set out to do.

10POINTBryan Sachdeva4A ComputerThough many of you may not think ofWaterloo as the most exhilarating city inCanada, there is good reason for you beinghere. Undoubtedly, you chose to cometo UW not for its promise of scintillatingsocial life, but rather for the benefits itwould afford you in terms of your career.And what exactly are those benefits? Reputation,academics, and most importantlyjob experience. The question before you,however, is whether or not to reap thesebenefits through JobMine and CECS. Putsimply, the status quo is that most studentsdo use JobMine, and for good reasons.First and foremost, you should be usingJobMine and CECS because you payso much for it. Your co-op fee is there foryou to have access to industry-leadingcompanies that are looking to hire. You’repaying for the privilege and the reputation.CECS at the University of Waterloois one of (if not the) best co-op offeringin the country. It makes no sense for you,a mere student, to think that you have theability to do better than this well-establishedsystem.The very concept of JobMine shouldbe reason enough for you. The fact is thatemployers registered with CECS are lookingto hire. They have positions availableand actually want students to fill them.Point vs. counterpointShould Students Rely onCECS to Find a Co-op Job?If you’ve ever tried to knock on the doorof a company outside of JobMine, you’llknow that you have to do the convincingto get them to want to hire you. JobMineemployers are already convinced, all youhave to do is sell yourself.If you’re reading or have read the counterpointarticle, you may have been giventhe impression that this is “babying” us,something along the lines of giving aman (or woman) a fish rather than teachinghim (or her) to fish. But the analogyhere is more like: give a man (or woman)a fish and then he (or she) will know whatfish tastes like. The key is to get you thejob experience and a feel for the industryyou’re in. This brings us to the third andfinal reason for going through JobMine,gaining industry knowledge and a goodfeel for different positions.As the counterpoint article suggests, youcan try to figure this out yourself and getstuck with whatever handout you can getyour hands on. Or, you can interview withseveral employers and get to know yourindustry. That way, when you do graduate,you’ll have interview skills as well asknowledge of what to expect in terms ofemployers and what they’re looking for.To sum up, everyone is already usingJobMine for good reasons and you shouldtoo. While looking for a job in the realworld is not quite this easy, securing thejob takes serious industry knowledge andexperience. Getting these tools is exactlywhat you pay for.Editor’s Note:Point Vs. Counterpoint is a feature meant to stimulate discussion on thoughtprovokingtopics. The views and opinions expressed here do not necessarilyreflect those of the authors, The Iron Warrior, or the Engineering Society.aKANKSHA vYAS1b cOMPUTERYour years at university are said to the mostfun years of your entire life. Some say it’s becauseof all the newly-acquired freedom, orit may be because most of us are finally oldenough to drink. I, however, feel it is becausethey are the last years of your life when youcan afford to be irresponsible; messed-upeating habits, lack of sleep and many moremistakes that are crucial in each of our lives.Beyond the math and crazy physics, the mostimportant lesson we learn in university is theability to survive in the world that awaits usafter graduation. We learn how to supportourselves in a world where there are no parents,and the most essential part of survival isfinding employment and earning a living.Co-operative education is an educationalmodel that formally integrates academic studieswith relevant work experience. It gives ushands-on experience in our chosen-fields, allowingus to practically apply what we learnin class. But more importantly, it teaches ushow to look for employment and being ableto earn a living is the point of the five yearswe spend here, is it not?Though being a wonderful system that allowsstudents to conveniently look for jobswithout overburdening them greatly, theCECS system disillusions students to believethat getting a job is actually that easy.The world after graduation does not have aJobMine. Apart from the few who stick touniversity placements for the rest of theirlives, the rest need to learn how to find jobsfor themselves. How to approach companies,sell ourselves on the strength of ourskills, and make contacts. We need to makeWednesday, may 28, 2008COUNTERPOINTa place for ourselves in the industry - not foror through our universities but for ourselves.Going through JobMine does not equip uswith any of the skills we require to survive inthe corporate world.JobMine restricts us to the system. Thiscan be disadvantageous to us in numerousways. Not everyone’s perfect. Some of ushave excellent work-term evaluations butawful grades. Others may end up in jobs theydo not particularly like and have evaluationsthat are not that good, in spite of absolutelyoutstanding grades. Life is about presentingyourself in the best way you can without beingdishonest to anyone. JobMine forces usto stick to the system, which can compromiseour futures in the respective companies weapply to. Some students, mainly in artisticfields may want to submit portfolios of theirwork to prospective employers. In today’sworld, portfolios can play a great role in convincingemployers of our credibility. Mostimportantly, in the real world we have theoption of declining an offer if we do not wanta job. This insures that we do not get stuckin a job we don’t like. JobMine doesn’t allowthis, which can, in numerous cases, landus jobs we don’t like, or keep us back froma dream job. Thus, in spite of being a verygood system, going outside JobMine to finda job may be better for students today.The “point” article would have you believethat JobMine is the only place where employersactually want to hire students, and thatis untrue. Job fairs are a good place to lookfor employment outside JobMine. Many topcompanies have a separate section for aspiringinterns. Despite what the “point” articlemay have you believe, industries today arevery open to hiring students, and we shouldembrace the opportunity and make a placefor ourselves in the industry.Sexist Comments in University of OttawaEngineering Newspaper UnacceptableLouis Desgrosseilliers’08 ChemicalIt’s an often-ignored truth about engineeringas a profession in Canada, but some engineersand engineering students still think that it isright to propagate sexism, hatred, and evenviolence. A recent article (now withdrawn,thankfully) published by the University of OttawaEngineering Students’ Society’s newspaper,called Oral Otis, thought it amusing topublish a mock sex advice column relating toanal sex and pedophilia in the sense of rapeusing aggressive and graphic language. RobArntfield, vice-president of social affairs forthe Engineering Student Society, remarked onan online CBC article on the topic that the columnwas meant to be funny, but he also confirmedthat the column had received a flood ofcomplaints and that the issue had to be pulledfrom the campus stands.The column was strongly criticized by Prof.Kathryn Trevenen of women’s studies at U ofOttawa as being in bad taste and demeaningtowards women. She paraphrased that, “Theybasically say, ‘Don’t let her get away. Thisisn’t over until you say it is,’” as an analogyto rape. And this is where it gets even worse.Instead of realizing the mistake and apologizingfor said ‘humourous’ jokes, Mr Arntfielddenied the real impact and implications of thecolumn. In defence of the outright derogatorynature of the column, he stated that “[Engineers]have taken a lot of flak for being engineers,”such as jokes implying that engineersdon’t often interact with women or ‘get laid’.He even went so far as to say, “I believe thatwhen we take this sort of thing in stride andthat sexual harassment, if we dish out a little bitof our own, who’s to say who’s more right?”Rob, you couldn’t be any more wrong!The use of language, and even worse actions,to elevate yourself over others is exactlywhat feminism aims to abolish, for womenand men alike. People, including engineers,may criticize feminists, but that is most oftenwithout understanding the real issues, andmerely dismissing them as ‘man-hating dykes’– pardon my use of this despicable term. In mybooks, I see fighting for equality and the abolitionof exploitative or sexist institutions andbehaviours as a good thing!The issue that remains in engineering is thatdemeaning comments and jokes toward femaleengineers like the one printed in Oral Otisare tolerated and treated merely as comedythat pushes the limit. Women are the target ofcomments that objectify their bodies and engineeringcampuses are no exception to that. Todismiss female membership in engineering bysaying that all engineers get flak and ‘sexualharassment’ on the pretence of never gettingattention from women is bringing us back tothe dark ages of gender relations and assumingthat we are all men! Engineering is not a pettylittle men’s club where we dish out trash onwomen and feel it right to joke about violenceand sexual aggression.The Editor-in-Chief of the Oral Otis, ZacBrunet, has outright rejected said columnand published an apology in its place, so let’schange our perspective like he has and moveon from our dark past and perhaps even embracechange and feminism in engineering.WHEN: FRIDAY MAY 30 – SATURDAY MAY 31HOW: SIGN UP FOR $20/TEAM OR $5/PERSON @ENG.SCAVENGERHUNT@GMAIL.COMInclude: Team Name, Number of People & Contact Name

12The Iron Cryptic CrosswordCrossword CluesWednesday, may 28, 2008rob graham4a ComputerAcrossDown1 Pace was rearranged like Superman’s apparel3 The winner surrounded a vowel6 Firstly, geese never anticipate winter11 Part of a scorpion eerily walking12 Initially, I made a good impression; never emotional13 Combining parts of a gentlemanto make a representative14 Winter except ending being picked off15 Sounds like understood joinedwith part of stable edema18 Content rearranged limes20 Fir strain conceals foremost21 To start, some elephants never stop eating.Luckily, elephants seek solitude22 Sugary joining has part a medium26 Teacher and students categorize27 Mars’ ingredient scrambled Howard’sstart and created a place to chill28 Starting Orion, sacrifice endedit, producing an aperture29 Eat this by initially removing price30 Beam or joist scrambled rusts31 Pit or bulb reverses dees1 Crunch team leader2 University teacher rearranged spoofers withRudolph’s beginning4 Beginning with hearing instrument, containing manystraight entities concluding with the start of Saturday5 Japanese lunch ends along with when this starts7 Sounds blend eosin8 Sparring while the swealter is modified9 Slight damage from the end of Neptune’s stick10 Outdoor sport hidden by goal across entrance16 Cleansing space as lavatory17 Combining a threat, starting ousted19 Concluding a biter while removingvisual from not being lazy20 A big accomplishment with that girl over there22 Freeze mashed sendups24 Scare grinding pain along withwhat sounds like salty water25 First off, a character that Oliver resembles26 Financial organizing iconChessrob graham4a ComputerBe the first to complete the Cryptic Crossword or the Chess Puzzle and win 50 P**5 points for your class!Submit completed puzzles to the P**5 box located inside the Orifice after being time-stamped by Betty.ArisenRafee Ameen4A MechanicalBlack mates in three. Hint: Force ths issue.Yes, you can also win P**5 pointswinning the caption contest!Submit your caption to iwarrior@engmail.uwaterloo.caBe sure to put “Photo Caption Contest” as the subject,and include your name, program and term.Seen in a fever dream,a vicious mirage;a cruel, captivating hymn,arisen in fire, in napalm,in the shattering of atoms.And my, what sharp,kohl-dark eyes you haveand what scorn they whispereven when you smile.Vicious, captivating mirage:hurt me, and I’ll hurt you back(promise, promise, promise).Just let me drown in the desert.In fire, in napalm, in betweenthe shattering of atoms.In the sharp, kohl-dark eyesJust the once.THEIRON INQUISITIONMichael Seliske, 1B ComputerWhat do you think aboutcompanies that hold open barrecruitment events?Kiri Neufeglise3T Chemical“They are thedefinition of TheMan.”Sarah PattersonWesternEngineering“I’d like to seetheir Christmasparty before Isign a contract.”Dustin Verhoeve3A Electrical“Amazing.”Mark Barrington Little2N Computer“It shows the company is hip and stillfun, they remember what it was like to bea student.”Andrea Lam3B Architecture“Where do I signup?”