2010 Vancouver Olympic & Paralympic Super-Thread - Page 134

GeeCee · #**2661** Posted **Mar 11, 2010, 10:07 PM**

This might cause some heads to explode..

VANOC CEO John Furlong receiving UBC honorary degree

Quote:

VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) - VANOC CEO John Furlong is one of 12 distinguished Canadians being recognized by UBC with honorary degrees this year. Comedian Rick Mercer, writer Douglas Coupland and astronaut Julie Payette are also receiving degrees.

The honorary degrees recognize people who have made "substantial contributions to society the provincial, national and/or international levels". The degrees will be awarded during the Vancouver campus Spring Congregation (May 26 to June 2) and Fall Congregation (Nov. 24 to Nov. 26).

Furlong, who came to Canada from Ireland more than three decades ago, was also the President and COO for the Vancouver 2010 Bid Corporation. Rick Mercer is a Canadian comedian, TV personality and political satirist, but he's also co-chair of the Spread the Net campaign, which provides bed nets to protect children in Africa from malaria. Mercer is also an advocate for the environment and people living with HIV/AIDS.

Douglas Coupland is a Vancouver-based writer and artist, perhaps best known for his first novel, Generation X, which became a major cultural phenomenon after being published in 1990. Julie Payette flew aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery in 1999, and Endeavour in 2009. Payette helped carry the Olympic flag during the Opening Ceremony of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver.

Other Vancouver campus recipients, in alphabetical order:

Dr. James C. Hogg, founder of the Pulmonary Research Laboratory at St. Paul's Hospital (renamed in 2003) and a member of the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame
Maria Klawe, a former Dean of Science at UBC and the President of Harvey Mudd College in California
Alanis Obomsawin, a distinguished documentary filmmaker and advocate for Aboriginal filmmaking
Louis Nirenberg (Fall recipient), an exceptional mathematician and committed educator
Dal Richards, the leader of the Dal Richards Orchestra, which has performed at the Pacific National Exhibition for 70 consecutive years
Ian Wallace, an artist, theorist and scholar who has taught and mentored some of Vancouver's most noteworthy artists
Ibrahim Gedeon, Chief Technology Officer at TELUS Communications Inc.
Dr. Nora Volkow, an internationally recognized leader in addiction medicine and Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
UBC's Okanagan campus holds its Convocation ceremony on June 11, and will award an honorary degree to Dr. Samantha Nutt, founder of the humanitarian organization War Child Canada.

http://www.news1130.com/news/local/artic...hn-furlong-receiving-ubc-honorary-degree

Yume-sama · #**2662** Posted **Mar 11, 2010, 10:15 PM**

Well, I can think of a few who might, and we would be better off for

So, does this mean UBC isn't an ultra-left anti-everything University?

SpongeG · #**2663** Posted **Mar 12, 2010, 1:46 AM**

no its just ultra west

Prometheus · #**2664** Posted **Mar 13, 2010, 4:40 AM**

State of the world 12 days after the Vancouver Winter Olympics conclude:

1) Three feet of fresh snow on Cypress.
2) Canadian alpine skier Eric Guay (shut out of a podium finish in every event at Whistler) becomes World Cup Champion.

The Fates toy with us.

SpongeG · #**2665** Posted **Mar 13, 2010, 4:44 AM**

haha

I didn't know the opening ceremonies of the paralympics was going to be on TV and i missed it

was it any good?

Waders · #**2666** Posted **Mar 13, 2010, 6:00 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Prometheus

State of the world 12 days after the Vancouver Winter Olympics conclude:

1) Three feet of fresh snow on Cypress.
2) Canadian alpine skier Eric Guay (shut out of a podium finish in every event at Whistler) becomes World Cup Champion.

The Fates toy with us.

Well, may be Nature is trying to tell human who is the master.
The mild weather caused havoc to the Winter Olympics game.
Now the "extreme weather" may threatens Paralympic competitions.
Source: http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Extreme...ralympic+competitions/2677176/story.html

SpongeG · #**2667** Posted **Mar 13, 2010, 7:45 AM**

cypress says the new snow is unstable and there is an "extreme" avalanche alert

johnjimbc · #**2668** Posted **Mar 13, 2010, 8:55 AM**

Are any Paralympic events slated for Cypress? I thought all of the Paralympic outdoor events were to be held at Whistler Creekside or in Whistler Olympic Park (Callaghan Valley).

Granted Whistler has also received tons of snow, so the new snowpack there may also be hazardous at the moment. If so, I imagine that situation can be managed rather in the next few days. It is the Winter Olympics, after all.

I still don't understand from where this idea came that Winter Olympic events must never be rescheduled or affected by the weather. I can't recall ever seeing a winter Olympics where some events weren't rescheduled due to weather conditions.

Also, while Cypress provided plenty of angst for the Games last month, the reality is all events scheduled there were completed. It seems that would qualify as a success rather than a failing

. Frankly the snowboard events there were some of the most exciting of the Games. Cypress looked great on camera, especially during sunny day events in that second week. I imagine the visuals were everything the planners had hoped.

Delirium · #**2669** Posted **Mar 13, 2010, 2:29 PM**

there are no paralympic events at cypress. there's only two events in vancouver and they are both indoors. sledge hockey and wheelchair curling.

i believe there are 4 alpine events at Whistler. it's a pretty small affair - just 6 events in total.

SpongeG- they are replaying the opening ceremonies today (11am i think). i watched some it last night. it was ok. seemed more geared towards youth.
i lost interest after half an hour to be honest... but great crowd at BC place!

Prometheus · #**2670** Posted **Mar 13, 2010, 6:00 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by johnjimbc

Also, while Cypress provided plenty of angst for the Games last month, the reality is all events scheduled there were completed. It seems that would qualify as a success rather than a failing

. Frankly the snowboard events there were some of the most exciting of the Games. Cypress looked great on camera, especially during sunny day events in that second week. I imagine the visuals were everything the planners had hoped.

Absolutely. Every honest observer of the Games discovered that Cypress ended-up being the site of the most dramatic and exciting competitions of the entire Winter Olympics; that not a single event there was postponed; that the venues looked really great; and that the athletes praised the courses in their post-competition interviews.

I joked about the snow only because of the fact that there was so much angst and such a big media-generated kerfuffle about it. It's kind of funny that after all of the flutter and tumult about lack of snow during the Games, Cypress now has so much snow that it is under avalanche warning.

Prometheus · #**2671** Posted **Mar 13, 2010, 6:25 PM**

Right now NBC is devoting an hour's coverage to the opening ceremony.

They just showed the best ever aerial skyline shot of downtown Vancouver. It looked incredible.

Yume-sama · #**2672** Posted **Mar 13, 2010, 6:34 PM**

CTV Ontario is replaying it in its entirety now. If you have satellite / digital cable

The aerial shots are amazing~

johnjimbc · #**2673** Posted **Mar 13, 2010, 8:27 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Prometheus

Absolutely. Every honest observer of the Games discovered that Cypress ended-up being the site of the most dramatic and exciting competitions of the entire Winter Olympics; that not a single event there was postponed; that the venues looked really great; and that the athletes praised the courses in their post-competition interviews.

I joked about the snow only because of the fact that there was so much angst and such a big media-generated kerfuffle about it. It's kind of funny that after all of the flutter and tumult about lack of snow during the Games Cypress now has so much snow that it is under avalanche warning.

Hey Prometheus, I didn't mean to sound like I was poking at you

(or anyone for that matter). It was just my observation on how the weather situation was covered during the Olympics.

hammergirl · #**2674** Posted **Mar 13, 2010, 9:17 PM**

If you want to see one of the rooms in the Athlete's village "in use," Canadian figure skater Patrick Chan, (5th place) did a video tour.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiAeea25Now

Prometheus · #**2675** Posted **Mar 13, 2010, 10:42 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by hammergirl

If you want to see one of the rooms in the Athlete's village "in use," Canadian figure skater Patrick Chan, (5th place) did a video tour.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiAeea25Now

The rooms were not good enough for Patrick, however. He moved out after a couple of days, complaining about the light from his window at night, I think.

Locked In · #**2676** Posted **Mar 14, 2010, 12:58 AM**

For those who hadn't heard, the cauldron at the Convention Centre is burning again. I jogged by today around 1pm and there was a ~3 minute line to view the cauldron from the elevated viewing area. It's amazing how close you can get and how much more awesome it looks when it's not behind chain link. Great for photos too (though for once I didn't have my camera).

Canadian Mind · #**2677** Posted **Mar 14, 2010, 3:51 PM**

Might be a dumb question... but is it staying there as a legacy of the games?

Locked In · #**2678** Posted **Mar 14, 2010, 5:46 PM**

Yes - the cauldron is permanent, and will be lit occasionally for special events, celebrations etc.

Yume-sama · #**2679** Posted **Mar 14, 2010, 7:39 PM**

Assuming it's not scrap metal the day after the fence is removed.

Spork · #**2680** Posted **Mar 14, 2010, 7:40 PM**

I wonder if the crazy protestor/terrorist squad will attempt to deface it after the Olympics are over.