top student cities Stockholm

Stockholm beat out Helsinki and Copenhagen, as well as several other university towns in northern Europe in a ranking of the “Best Student Cities in the World” published this week.

The list, compiled by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), is based a set of 12 criteria which take into consideration public information, population size, number of universities and their quality based on the QS World University Rankings.

According to the ranking, the Swedish capital is the 27th best student city in the world.

Nordic neighbour Helsinki came close behind Sweden’s capital at number 33, while Copenhagen was came in 39th.

Topping the list this year was Paris, followed by London, Boston, Melbourne and Vienna.

Glasgow came in last place, just after Bangkok, and Cairo.

The compilation is the first that the company has released and shows a few clear trends, most noticeably the heavy presence of European cities compared to cities in the United States.

While 21 of the top 50 cities were European, only six were based in the United States.

Stockholm's ranking is based on the city having four institutions of higher learning -- Stockholm University, the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Karolinska University, and the Stockholm School of Economics (Handelshögskola).

According to the company's rankings, the city’s top university is Stockholm University, which places 178 worldwide.

Two of Stockholm's schools charge fees which average fees are $19,300 a year, according to the ranking.

Boston, by comparison, came in third on the list and has average university fees of $39,600.

In addition, 9 percent of Stockholm's population of 1,373,000 people are students (48,900).

QS’s figures also revealed that 67 percent of domestic employers identified at least one of Stockholm's institutions as producing excellent graduates. The comparable rate for international employers was 53 percent.

While quality of living in the capital was rated as extremely high at 94 out of 100, affordability was the main detractor of the city, rated as 34 out of 100.

Ronalee "Rona" Ambrose

Ronalee "Rona" Ambrose, PC, MP (born March 15, 1969) is a Canadian politician and a Member of Parliament since 2004. She serves as the Minister of Public Works and Government Services for Canada, Vice-Chair of the Treasury Board Cabinet committee, Minister of State for Status of Women Canada and Minister of Western Economic Diversification.
In the previous Parliament, she was Canada's Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Minister of Western Economic Diversification and President of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada. She has been a Conservative member of the Canadian House of Commons from Edmonton–Spruce Grove since 2004. She is a former communication consultant and public policy consultant for the Alberta government. When the Conservative party was in opposition, she served as its Intergovermental Affairs critic.

Contents [hide] 1 Early life and education 2 Early political career 3 Cabinet minister 3.1 Minister of the Environment 3.2 Cabinet shuffles 3.3 Honours 4 References 5 External links

 Early life and education

Ambrose was born in Valleyview, Alberta and grew up both in Brazil and in Parkland County, Alberta. In addition to English, she also speaks fluent Portuguese (Brazil's official language), Spanish, and French. Ambrose has a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Victoria and a Master of Arts degree in political science from the University of Alberta.

 Early political career

Ambrose was first elected as a Member of Parliament in the 2004 federal election.
On February 16, 2005, she made headlines after making a remark in Parliament directed at Liberal Social Development Minister Ken Dryden saying "working women want to make their own choices, we don't need old white guys telling us what to do," in reference to the Liberal national child care plan.
Ambrose calls herself a libertarian and is a fan of Ayn Rand novels such as Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead.^[1] She was a member of the Trilateral Commission, as reported in Vancouver's Georgia Straight, August 24, 2006.
Ambrose was temporarily the Conservative critic for International Trade, after the defection of Belinda Stronach to the Liberal Party.

] Cabinet minister

In 2006, Ambrose successfully defended her seat in Edmonton–Spruce Grove with 66.8% of the vote in the riding. She was then appointed Environment Minister in Prime Minister Stephen Harper's government. She was shuffled out of that position on January 4, 2007, and appointed Minister of Western Economic Diversification, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs and President of the Privy Council.
On October 30, 2008, Rona Ambrose was shuffled to the Department of Labour.^[2]
On January 19, 2010, Ambrose was appointed as the new Minister of Public Works and Government Services Canada.

] Minister of the Environment

On April 7, 2006, Ambrose announced that Canada had no chance of meeting its targets under the Kyoto accord and would have to set more "realistic" goals for cutting greenhouse gases. "My departmental officials and the department officials from natural resources have indicated that it is impossible, impossible for Canada to reach its Kyoto target. And let me be clear. I have been engaging with our international counterparts over the past month, and we are not the only country that is finding itself in this situation." said Ambrose. On June 6, 2006, in a speech she clarified with the following: "So we became the first and only country to publicly state that we know we will not reach our Kyoto targets. This was met by controversy. But we will not be the last. However, no one that follows this debate in any serious manner was surprised to find out that after years of no action on climate change, meeting the onerous targets negotiated under the Liberals was not a reality."
On April 13, 2006, Ambrose was accused of stopping an Environment Canada scientist, Mark Tushingham, from speaking publicly about his own novel. The science fiction novel, entitled Hotter than Hell, posits an alternate future in which global warming has made many parts of the world too hot to live in and has prompted a war between Canada and the U.S. over water resources. Tushingham was scheduled to speak in Ottawa at his book launch about his book and his beliefs underpinning it. However, he claimed an order from Ambrose's office stopped him. In response, Ambrose's spokesperson claimed that the speech was billed as coming from an Environment Canada scientist, who would appear to be speaking in an official capacity, even though his book is a work of fiction.^[3]
On May 11, 2006, before the House of Commons, she said "We would have to pull every truck and car off the street, shut down every train and ground every plane to reach the Kyoto target negotiated by the Liberals."^[4]
She continued her May 11 speech: "Or we could shut all the lights off in Canada tomorrow -- but that still wouldn’t be enough -- to reach our Kyoto target we’d have to shut off all the lights AND shut down the entire agriculture industry.
"Or instead we could shut down every individual Canadian household, not once, not twice, not three times, but FOUR times over to meet the Kyoto target the Liberals negotiated for Canada.
"Or, we could do what the Liberals thought was the answer faced with the realization that the target they negotiated meant shutting down Canada’s economy -- spend the money overseas buying international credits -- the Liberals had set aside up to $600 per Canadian household to be sent overseas in order to help reach the Kyoto target they negotiated for Canada."
Ambrose was criticized by Bill Graham, Leader of the Opposition, on May 15, 2006 for chairing a UN conference on climate change despite admitting that Canada will not meet its Kyoto Protocol targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Ambrose, who was leading the May 15 to 26 meetings in Bonn, Germany, repeated her claim that Canada's targets under Kyoto are "unachievable." During Question Period that day, Bill Graham asked the prime minister if he saw the "irony" in having someone who "despises" Kyoto to chair the meeting in Germany. At the beginning of the UN conference, Ambrose stated: "I have been very honest with Canadians after the release of our greenhouse gas inventories that we will have great difficulty in meeting those targets. We believe they are unachievable."
Ambrose told a parliamentary committee that Canada had paid its debts under the Kyoto Protocol only to have an Environment Canada official point out that the bill was still unpaid.^[5]
Continued opposition discontent over Ambrose's conduct led the NDP to table a motion in the Commons environmental committee calling for her resignation. The vote, which was held on June 21, 2006, saw the Liberals side with the Conservatives, thus defeating the motion. Had the motion passed, a vote would then have been held in the House of Commons, and, because this was deemed to be a matter of confidence, could possibly have triggered an election.
In August 2006 she stated that although the population of spotted owls in British Columbia is only 17, she does not feel they are threatened and therefore they do not merit any special protection (The Northern Spotted Owl is listed as Threatened or Endangered throughout its range in US and Canada).
On October 19, 2006, Ambrose introduced a Clean Air Act that purported to reduce the level of greenhouse emissions starting in 2020, cutting them to about half of the 2003 levels by 2050. She also introduced other regulations to industries and vehicles as well as a possible cooperation between the federal government and the provinces to create a system that would report air emissions. In an interview with the media, Ambrose denied that the Conservative government had abandoned the Kyoto Protocol despite its previous opposition to it. However, industries will have until 2010 before they are expected to reduce emissions, and the government will not have final (and voluntary) targets ready until 2020. Oil companies will have to reduce emissions on a per-barrel basis, reduction proportional to production basis.^[6][7]

 Cabinet shuffles

News stories began to appear in late 2006 of a possible Cabinet shuffle that included shifting Ms. Ambrose from her environment portfolio. On January 4, 2007, Rona Ambrose moved from environment to become Minister of Western Economic Diversification, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs as well as President of the Queen's Privy Council. The Environment portfolio went to John Baird, the former President of the Treasury Board. On January 19, 2010, Rona Ambrose succeeded Christian Paradis and was named the Minister of Public Works and Government Services. On April 9, 2010 she was also named Minister responsible for the Status of Women after Helena Guergis was dismissed from Cabinet.

 Honours

Ambrose has the prenomial "the Honourable" and the postnomial "PC" for life by virtue of being made a member of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada on February 6, 2006.^[8]
In 2008, Ambrose was #17 on the Western Standard's "Liberty 100" top Canadian "pro-freedom activists, journalists, think-tankers and partisans."^[9] The Hill Times named Ambrose "Sexiest Female MP" in 2008 and 2009.^[10][11]

 References

1. ^ "Rona Ambrose a promising pick for Harper". CTV.ca. 2006-01-20. http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060118/elxn_rona_ambrose_060120/20060120?s_name=election2006&no_ads=. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
2. ^ "Harper shuffles cabinet to create 'right team for these times' - Canada - CBC News". Cbc.ca. 2008-10-30. http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/10/30/cabinet-shuffle.html. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
3. ^ [1]^{[dead link]}
4. ^ "Salle des médias d'Environnement Canada - Environment Canada's Media Room". Ec.gc.ca. 2003-08-27. http://www.ec.gc.ca/minister/speeches/2006/060511_s_e.htm. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
5. ^ "Canada forks over $1.5 million in green funding for developing countries". Canada.com. 2007-12-13. http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=c8c637d2-d6a4-4417-ab3f-8f7a1e7cb4f1&k=64420. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
6. ^ "Clean Air Act receives rocky reception from MPs | CTV News". Ctv.ca. 2006-10-20. http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20061018/environment_act_061019/20061019?hub=TopStories. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
7. ^ "Rien de concret avant 2010 | Politique". Radio-Canada.ca. http://www.radio-canada.ca/nouvelles/Politique/2006/10/19/001-loi_environnement.shtml. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
8. ^ [2]^{[dead link]}
9. ^ Posted by westernstandard on January 2, 2009 (2009-01-02). "The Shotgun: Western Standard’s “Liberty 100” Top 25 for 2008". Westernstandard.blogs.com. http://westernstandard.blogs.com/shotgun/2009/01/western-standards-liberty-100-top-25-for-2008.html. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
10. ^ [3]^{[dead link]}
11. ^ [4]^{[dead link]}

External links

• Campaign Site
• Rona Ambrose MP official site
• Profile at Parliament of Canada
• Parliamentarian profile at ParlInfo
• Speeches, votes and activity at OpenParliament.ca
• Voting history at How'd They Vote?
• Ambrose announces it will be 'impossible' for Canada to reach Kyoto targets
• CBC article - Ambrose stops book talk by Environment Canada Scientist
• Video of Ambrose on the Rick Mercer Report on YouTube
• "Ambrose feels heat for heading UN climate-change meeting" - CBC Article
• "One on one with: Rona Ambrose" (Interview with Chatelaine magazine)

Canadians’ constitutional knowledge lacking: survey . Do you know what day the 1867 Constitution Act came into force

Do you know what day the 1867 Constitution Act came into force?
According to a recent survey conducted by the Canadian Constitution Foundation, only 54 per cent of respondents knew the answer. (The correct response is July 1, of course.)

With the 30th anniversary of the 1982 Constitution Act quickly approaching, several groups are doing what they can to spread awareness.

The CCF designated March 29 as “Constitution Day” in an effort to improve Canadians’ understanding of the act. The date was chosen to align with the constitution acts of 1867 and 1982, which both received Royal assent on that day. The official anniversary is April 17, as that was the day Queen Elizabeth II signed the Constitution Act of 1982.

Chris Schafer, CCF executive director, says the survey results show that Canadians’ constitutional knowledge is lacking. For example, only nine per cent of respondents knew the Charter doesn’t include protection for private property.

Bruce Elman, a constitutional law professor at the University of Windsor, agrees that there’s a general lack of awareness among members of the public. He recalls much discussion about the Constitution leading up to 1982, “but I don’t think there’s much talk of it now . . . even in terms of whether or not the court is getting the balance right,” he says.

Naturally, Elman is a strong supporter of education. During his time as Windsor law’s dean, he would speak to high school students about what they should know about the Constitution. “Unless you understand our Constitution, you don’t fully understand democracy,” he says.

“[The Constitution] really informs how we operate as citizens. Even something as simple as which level of government is responsible for what. In order to be an informed voter in the province of Ontario, you sort of have to know what is actually the responsibility of the provincial government and what’s the responsibility of the federal government,” he adds.

Elman says there needs to be a greater emphasis on teaching students about the Constitution and the Charter within the Canadian education system. “I think the most obvious way to give the public an understanding of their rights and about constitutional values more generally is first of all in the schools. I think the easiest way to do it is to get young minds thinking about these issues,” he says.

The CCF also aims to educate and spread awareness of the Constitution. It has even created a web site dedicated to “Constitution Day.”

Windsor law students recently launched the Charter Project to encourage Canadians to start discussions about the Charter. Among their various initiatives, they have produced public service announcements featuring Canadian celebrities and video interviews with legal experts.

As former dean, Elman supported the project from the very beginning. “I’m a huge supporter of anything that will get constitutional issues — Charter or otherwise — out into the public square as opposed to the rarified realm of law firms and judicial forums,” he says.

Air Canada maintenance... what they aren't telling us before we board

Aveos Fleet Performance Inc., the heavy maintenance company in charge of Air Canada's fleet maintenance, recently filed for bankruptcy in Canada.  That is tragic because it puts a lot of highly skilled people out of work.  The company claims the reason behind it's bankruptcy in Canada is due to the fact that Air Canada kept rescheduling major maintenance work on it's fleet causing the maintenance company to go into the red. 

The issue that has been swept under the carpet by the media is the question of what kind of major maintenance Air Canada kept rescheduling.  If you keep rescheduling maintenance, eventually it will cause a major safety concern.  I, for one, would not like to be concerned about maintenance at 30,000 to 45,000 feet.  I would also like to know how long Air Canada has been deferring work that is required on their fleet.  If an airline does not get the heavy maintenance work done, it can result in catastrophic failure of safety and control systems possibly leading to a fatal accident.  For the record, Air Canada has an extremely good safety record - it's last fatal accident was in June of 1983.  That said, if you skimp on the maintenance, a serious accident such as Alaska Airlines Flight 261 in 2000 which involved insufficient lubrication of flight control systems sent the plane spiralling into the Pacific ocean killing all on board.  I am not saying that will happen to Air Canada or any other Canadian airline for that matter, but flight 261 is a good example of how something as simple as insufficient lubrication of nuts, screws and assemblies will lead to a plane going down.  Upkeep of control systems are considered heavy maintenance because you have to disassemble large parts of the aircraft in order to get to the parts.

I feel the media should ask the question regarding possible maintenance lapses and the increased likelihood of a critical incident occurring because of it.

Notes about the author of this post:

• I do not work for an aviation maintenance company or airline in any capacity
• I do not work for any aviation regulator  ie  Transport Canada, FAA etc.
• I am not part of an aerospace union
• I am not part of any trade organization
• I am not part of any media organization
• I study aviation accidents, safety and performance issues as a hobby

Popcorn Served by the bucket-load, dripping in butter, popcorn was once seen as little more than junk food for peckish cinemagoers. But lately the snack has undergone a radical makeover, forging a name for itself as the low-calorie alternative to crisps for weight-conscious office workers

Served by the bucket-load, dripping in butter, popcorn was once seen as little more than junk food for peckish cinemagoers.
But lately the snack has undergone a radical makeover, forging a name for itself as the low-calorie alternative to crisps for weight-conscious office workers.
And now scientists have discovered that popcorn is not only good for the waist – it’s brimming with more antioxidants than your average serving of fruit and vegetables.
New research has revealed that popcorn is made up of just 4% water so the antioxidants are less diluted than in fruit and vegetables, which can be made up of up to 90% water.
The study found that one serving of popcorn contains up to 300mg of antioxidants - known as polyphenols – nearly double the 160mg found in a serving of fruit.
The researchers also found the crunchy hulls of popcorn (those bits that have an annoying habit of sticking in your throat) have the highest concentration of antioxidants and fibre.
Researcher Jo Vinson said: “Those hulls deserve more respect. They are nutritional gold nuggets.”
Describing popcorn as “the perfect snack food”, he added: “It's the only snack that is 100 per cent unprocessed whole grain.

“All other grains are processed and diluted with other ingredients, and although cereals are called 'whole grain', this simply means that over 51% of the weight of the product is whole grain.

“One serving of popcorn will provide more than 70% of the daily intake of whole grain.
“The average person only gets about half a serving of whole grains a day, and popcorn could fill that gap in a very pleasant way.”
He added: “Air-popped popcorn has the lowest number of calories while microwave popcorn has twice as many calories as air-popped."
The findings were revealed by scientists from the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania at a meeting of the American Chemical Society in San Diego.
But the researchers warned that popcorn should be seen as a supplement to your five-a-day, not an alternative, as it doesn’t contain the vital vitamins and nutrients found in fruit and vegetables.

Swedish Parliament voted in favour of the government's proposal that Sweden shall adhere to the Convention on Cluster Munitions," parliament

Swedish lawmakers voted Thursday in favour of ratifying a treaty that bans the use of cluster bombs, the UN Convention on Cluster Munitions.

"Parliament voted in favour of the government's proposal that Sweden shall adhere to the Convention on Cluster Munitions," parliament said in a statement.

Sweden signed the treaty in November 2008, several months after the convention was adopted at a conference in Dublin earlier in the year.

Sweden's initial delay in signing up to the treaty prompted criticism from peace advocates, who accused that the government of Fredrik Reinfeldt of foot dragging on an important disarmament matter.

Some 109 countries have signed the convention, which entered into force in 2010, and which requires signatories to stop the use, production and transfer of the deadly weapons.

Cluster munitions split open before impact and scatter multiple – often hundreds – of submunitions, or bomblets, usually the size of a tennis ball, over a wide area.

Many of them fail to explode and can lie hidden for years, killing and maiming civilians, including children, in explosions, even decades after the conflict is over.

China, Israel, Russia and the United States are among countries that have not signed the convention.

Those powers are thought to hoard and manufacture the bulk of the munitions, although the data is secret.

Air Canada pilots challenge back-to-work law : Law breaches charter rights, pilots say

Air Canada pilots are challenging the federal government's back-to-work legislation, asking Ontario's Superior Court to rule that the law breaches their charter rights.
A court filing by the pilots union says the legislation, which forces them to fly, conflicts with their legal obligations under the Canadian Aviation Regulations. The regulations prohibit pilots from flying if they have any reason to believe they are unfit to properly perform their duties.
"A right to strike is a necessary incident for employees to meaningfully exercise their freedom to associate in the workplace including their right to collective bargaining," the pilots' application said.
"The right to strike may only be restricted in the case of essential services where a work stoppage endangers the life, personal safety or health of the population. The right to strike is also an essential means by which employees convey information and raise awareness of the various issues in dispute between the parties. The impugned provisions limit both the liberty and 'security of the person' of pilots in a manner inconsistent with the principles of fundamental justice."
Labour Minister Lisa Raitt introduced the legislation March 12. It passed through the House of Commons and Senate and became law on March 14.
Raitt also referred the matter to the Canadian Industrial Relations Board, asking it to evaluate what a work stoppage would mean to Canadians' health and safety. Referring an issue to the CIRB bars the union and the airline from any work stoppage while the board investigates.
The pilots' application to the court says union members "have been under a significant amount of stress" due to the dispute and "Parliament’s removal of their only means of engaging in meaningful collective bargaining." But the back-to-work legislation means they can be prosecuted for refusing work if they feel unfit, the application says.
Raitt said Tuesday in Sudbury, Ont., that both parties can continue bargaining as they wait for an arbitrator to be assigned to conduct final offer selection, under which the sides submit offers and the arbitrator chooses between the two. She said the pilots were in talks for 18 months and had an agreement the union's members wouldn't ratify.
"The problem is at some point, and it would be this point, the Canadian public interest does come into play," Raitt said.
"I understand what is being said with respect to collective bargaining rights, and I understand that there's going to be challenges to it. And that's all appropriate, and that's going to happen. But as far as we're concerned, Air Canada is flying, there are no work stoppages, and the Canadian public interest has been satisfied."

Public servants advised against legislation

The government also used back-to-work legislation during Air Canada's contract dispute with customer service and sales staff last June.
A secret report obtained by The Canadian Press under federal Access to Information laws shows an appeal last summer from federal bureaucrats to use back-to-work legislation only as a last resort appears to have fallen on deaf ears.
The Department of Human Resources and Skills Development advised the governing Conservatives to use the powerful legal measure sparingly after the airline's customer-service and sales staff walked out last June.
In it, senior officials urged the Tories to save the back-to-work law for emergencies.
The bureaucrats were not convinced the walkout by customer-service agents constituted anything more than a nuisance to air travellers.
The Conservatives threatened back-to-work legislation to end labour unrest between Air Canada and unions representing customer-service agents and flight attendants.