UBC News Digest

The UBC News Digest is a weekly summary of news stories about UBC people, research, learning, community, and internationalization initiatives. News Digest past issues are also available on-line.

May 7, 2004

• Dental Health Program Serves New Immigrants
• Privacy Expert Richard S. Rosenberg Releases Third Edition of The Social Impact of Computers
• Students Applying To Computer Science May Win Laptops
• UBC Will Hold Its Annual E-Strategy Town Hall On June 15

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Dental Health Program Serves New Immigrants

The Canadian Dental Association has announced that the Healthy Teeth: Happy Children program, coordinated by UBC associate professor and pediatric dentistry chair Rosamond Harrison and Dr. Tracy Wong, has received this year’s Oral Health Promotion Award. The award recognizes individuals that have improved the oral health of Canadians.

Dr. Rosamund Harrison and Dr. Tracy Wong have coordinated the Healthy Teeth: Happy Children program since its inception in 1994. It was developed to address the needs of preschool Vietnamese children, who were found to have extensive dental treatment needs. Through the program, lay health workers provided one-to-one counselling to Vietnamese mothers during regular well-baby visits. Healthy Teeth: Happy Children has since been made available to mothers from other cultural groups.

Harrison and Wong were honoured at an awards luncheon on April 23, 2004, during CDA’s annual general meeting in Ottawa.

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Privacy Expert Richard S. Rosenberg Releases Third Edition of The Social Impact of Computers

UBC Department of Computer Science professor Richard S. Rosenberg has had the third edition of his book, The Social Impact of Computers, published this month by Elsevier Academic Press.

This edition includes issues related to downloading music and video files, attempts to control controversial content on the Internet, increasingly dangerous viruses and worms and security issues following the terrorist events of September 11, 2001, as well as the anti-trust proceedings against Microsoft.

Computer applications in business, medicine, education and government are also critically reviewed with respect to their social implications. And, there are some interesting chapters on how computers are impacting women, the changing nature of work, and other Internet crime issues related to child seduction and virtual communities.

The book has grown by about 40 per cent with each publishing and approximately 5,000 copies of each edition have sold in the U.S. and internationally in countries such as Ireland and Sweden.

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Students Applying To Computer Science May Win Laptops

For the first time this Fall, The UBC Department of Computer Science will award 35 Toshiba laptops to eligible students who have applied to a computer science degree program between September 2003 and July 2004.

The laptops will be awarded to students whose previous academic standing in high school or university would indicate their potential for succeeding in one of the programs. Eligibility for the laptop awards is automatic upon admission to one of the computer science degree programs and is open to transfer students, current UBC undergraduates and high school students who have met UBC admission deadlines for the Fall. (Students majoring in interdisciplinary programs such as the Combined Majors and Cognitive Systems Program are also eligible). In addition, 15 laptops will be given away as part of a random draw.

The prizes will be adjudicated by August 2004 and recipients will be notified at that time. The Department of Computer Science has a formal admissions process that accepts applications year-round. However, to be eligible for these awards, current UBC undergraduates and new transfer students are encouraged to apply on or before June 1,
2004.

Visit www.cs.ubc.ca/prospective for more information.

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UBC Will Hold Its Annual E-Strategy Town Hall On June 15

Faculty, staff and students are invited to the fourth annual e-Strategy Town Hall at the Forest Sciences Centre on June 15. The Town Hall is an annual event for the university community to come together and discuss the role of technology and e-Strategy at UBC.

This years theme is “UBC e-Strategy: Enabling People to Excel,” and will explore the ways technology enables learning, research, and community, and the role these initiatives and e-Strategy play in furthering UBC's strategic goals. Highlights will include:

• An opening address by President Martha Piper, plus more than 30 presentations on e-Learning, e-Research, e-Community, Connectivity, e-Business and more, including
• “Becoming the Change: Linking e-Strategy to Educational Values,” by Dr. Tom Carey from the University of Waterloo.
• An interactive panel on e-Research, examining how technology enables opportunities in research and learning at UBC.

Register online at http://www.e-strategy.ubc.ca/townhall/register.html.

Visit the Town Hall web site at http://www.e-strategy.ubc.ca/townhall.

E-mail: e-strategy@ubc.ca.

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