Monday, December 10, 2018

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• Nobel Prize Ceremony viewing party this morning
• Diary of a Nobel Laureate - the journey to Sweden
• International students stay in residence this winter holiday break
• Monday's notes

Nobel Prize Ceremony viewing party this morning

Join the University of Waterloo community in celebration as Professor Donna Strickland receives the 2018 Nobel Prize in Physics at a ceremony in Stockholm, Sweden, which will be broadcast live around the world.

There's still time to register to attend the event, which takes place in the University's Board and Senate Chambers in Needles Hall room 3407. Refreshments will be served. 

The event begins at 10:30 a.m. local time on Monday, and Professor Strickland's section of the proceedings is anticipated to take place around 10:40 a.m.

If you can't make it to the official viewing party, be sure to follow along online. The ceremony is being streamed live on YouTube as well as the Nobel Prize website.

Follow along on social media with the hashtags #UWaterlooProud and #NobelPrize.

Watch this highlight video that celebrates Professor Strickland's Nobel Prize journey:

Watch video on YouTube

Diary of a Nobel Laureate - the journey to Sweden

The following are the latest entries in the Diary of a Nobel Laureate article available on Waterloo Stories - keep checking back for updates!

December 4

After a 10 hour flight delay, Strickland is finally off to Stockholm to receive her prize. She has great company for the long flight - her husband, Doug Dykaar.

December 6

All the Nobel Prize 2018 winners were invited to meet one another at the Nobel Museum.

Strickland donated one of the laser rods she used in her research at the University of Rochester. Afterwards, she was invited to sign one of the chairs at the museum's Bistro Nobel.

Strickland was also invited to the Kista Science City to give a physics lecture to students from the Stockholm Science and Innovation School.

December 7

Professor Strickland arrived at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to address the world's media. She was joined at the press conference by all the Nobel Prize 2018 winners for physics, chemistry and economic sciences. There, Strickland provided an interview for Swedish TV in front of a statute of Alfred Nobel.

December 8 

Strickland delivered her Nobel Lecture at Stockholm University. Watch the full lecture on YouTube.

Later that day, Strickland attended the Nobel concert with her husband Doug at the Stockholm Concert Hall. The next time Donna will be here will be for the rehearsal of the Nobel Prize Ceremony.

Check Waterloo Stories for more updates.

International students stay in residence this winter holiday break

This December, Waterloo Residences will be keeping its doors open over the 10-day long winter break for international students currently living in one of its residence communities.

As university operations slow to a halt every winter, students in residence typically go home or visit friends and family over the break. For some international students who do not return home, this often means finding short-term accommodations off-campus.

To better support the needs of our growing international undergraduate population, a Winter Holiday Stay Program will run from December 22, 2018 to January 2, 2019. International 4- and 8-stream students currently living in Waterloo Residences have received an invitation to participate in the program. Winter Holiday Break students will be placed together in one of the Waterloo Residences communities with access to full kitchens, supplies, and lounge spaces. They will be supported by Residence Life Dons, a Residence Life Coordinator and holiday-themed programming.

Questions about the Winter Holiday Stay Program should be directed to the Waterloo Residences Office (housing@uwaterloo.ca).

Monday's notes

There's still time to participate in the University Christmas Project. The project, run through Co-operative Education, involves departments and units across campus taking on families to sponsor for the holidays. Home Care Services has provided a list of over 300 children from low-income families in Waterloo Region, and for each child, the project co-ordinators are given a list of clothing that is needed and toys they would like. There are still several children without a sponsor this year. Anyone interested in sponsoring a child is invited to contact Shannon Taylor by sending an email to smtaylor@uwaterloo.ca. Wrapped and labelled gifts can be dropped off at the Tatham Centre until Friday, December 14.

The Human Rights, Equity and Inclusion Office is pleased to have Ela Smith present a two-part Indigenous cultural sensitivity workshop entitled “You Don’t Know What You Don’t Know,” which takes place on Tuesday, December 11 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 pm in Federation Hall’s Westmount room and on January 8, 2019 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. in NH 3318.

Ela has identified the following learning objectives for this two-part workshop:

• Increase understanding of historic and current realities for First Nations, Metis and Inuit peoples in Ontario/Canada and how the resulting cultural genocide:
  • Affects current and future generations of Indigenous people
  • Affects how Indigenous people are received and treated in institutions, including post-secondary institutions
• Increase understanding of Indigenous culture and Indigenous ways of knowing
• Increase awareness of local urban First Nations, Metis, and Inuit communities
• Promote self-reflection to further an understanding of the impacts of colonization and racism experience by Indigenous peoples

The gap between the two sessions is to allow a period of reflection for the workshop participants. Please register on the Human Rights, Equity and Inclusion Office website.