U of T already has a student-developed iPhone app, but now we also have a handy tool for searching for U of T courses online. Created by psychology student Ammar Ijaz, it allows you to search by course code, term, professor, date and time, enrollment indicators, enrollment controls, and whether or not there is a waitlist. Ammar says:

Don’t you hate trying to find courses to take? Using the timetable and calendar books is bad enough, but the archaic website is even worse! I hate searching for courses, too, so I decided to create a website to make the task easier. Looking for 3rd year psych courses? Just put in “PSY3″ as a course code and hit “Show me!”

Check it out!

You’ve seen him do the Soulja Boy in his underwear and you’ve seen him in a banana costume. This time he’s running through the U of T campus, New Ho King, and a grocery store dressed as a chicken. Why?

I believe being confident or cocky is a personal characteristic that’s developed over time. Being confident has nothing to do with one’s race.

By now, a lot of you have probably seen the video of this crazy Asian guy dancing in public all across Toronto, groovin’ to Soulja Boy, in his underwear. The purported reason for the video is to break the stereotype that Asians are shy. Are Asians shy? How does this video break that stereotype? Over at blogTO the video has already been receiving some heated comments, from applause, to critique of his dance moves, to some pretty critical commentary on Sexy Dragon as a person.

Well, we at blogUT figured the best way to understand the reason behind this madness was to go talk to the man himself! After all, he’s a U of T Electrical Engineering student. So, what’s his story? Read on to find out! (more…)

After three days of voting, the UTSU 2010 Election results are in. “Stronger Together” won five out of the five executive positions with “Change UofT” winning 7 BOD spots. Approximately 16.4% of the 44,000 undergrads who attend the University of Toronto voted (which is a lower turnout than the 2006 municipal election in my home town of Whitby Ontario). President-elect Adam Awad received 58.24% of the votes cast for President which means only 9.3% of U of T students voted for him.

With this in mind, let me be the first person to arrogantly prescribe a complete overhaul of the political system here at U of T. Here, in no particular order, is what I would change:

Scrap 90% of the EPC:

If the University of Toronto consistently gets one thing right, it’s treating us like adults. The UTSU Elections Procedures Code does the exact opposite. The EPC assumes that voters at the best University in the country won’t be able to recognize false information on a poster or punish candidates who have annoying literature. It lets Adam Awad and Steve Masse run on their records but denies either campaign the ability to question their opponent’s past performance. Before the next election, the UTSU should remove the prohibition of pre-campaigning, allow for negative campaigning and unfetter the candidates. The institution of the University is built on a philosophy of intelligent and honest debate. The EPC’s definition of “fair play” is so narrow that candidates are prevented from really interacting with each other,  segregating their ideas and stopping them from entering the political sphere.

The UTSU can keep the rules that facilitate the actual casting of votes but should remove all of the rules that get in the way of what. While this doesn’t require a completely libertarian UTSU electoral process, new rules can and must be brought in as the status-quo is rigid and counter-democratic.

Formalize official UTSU Political Parties:

If you want to engage students in the political process, make it openly partisan. In the 2010 election various clubs picked sides and both sides engaged in behind-the-scenes negative campaigning. If pre-campaigning was no longer prohibited opposition groups would actually have a chance at winning (there has been a 100% incumbency rate over the last five years) and it would make the UTSU visible all year, not just during the elections. The EPC has very strict spending rules, which are intended to level the playing field. If political parties were formalized (they already sort-of exist but only in the shadows) and students fund raised (limited to donations from U of T students only) it would further increase interest in the political process. Members of the UTSU executive are visible and get to campaign-without-really-campaigning in office. If political parties existed (with rules prohibiting affiliation with any outside political party) every candidate would be incentivized to have a full-fleshed out platform with a website that exists all year (I’d like to clarify that I am not anti-point form but ST/Change could have done a lot better) instead of creating a website in a rush, from scratch with low site-traffic.

Political parties will level the playing field, engage more students all-year-round and  raise the level of debate to one appropriate for the University of Toronto.

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A quick scan through Ulife’s list of campus organizations show that student-run groups at U of T run the gamut from ethnic-based associations to academic networks, from student government unions to politically motivated affiliations, and from environmental and advocacy groups to faith communities. With all of these organizations trying to capture the student population’s attention, it’s pretty easy to get lost and blend into the background but there are a few out there that really deserve some recognition. One such organization is that of Peace by Peace, a student-run organization with chapters at York, Glendon, and of course, U of T. With the aim of empowering kids with the ability to prevent, manage, and resolve conflict in their everyday lives, students at the three aforementioned university chapters deliver an eleven week conflict resolution curriculum to Grade 5 students all across the Greater Toronto Area. By using interactive games and stimulating group discussions, youth members of Peace by Peace guide children through daily problems that will help them to develop valuable conflict resolution skills.

Every year the organization hosts what they like to call the Peace Bowl, a bowling tournament with funds going directly to PxP initiatives. Last year, they raised $10,000 and they’re hoping to up that amount to $12,000 this year on Sunday, February 29th. The students working behind this organization are so committed to their vision and goals, so much so in fact that,  Liisa Hyyrylainen, U of T Chapter President, vows to get a tattoo of their logo, the puzzle piece, if they hit that $12,000 mark (no turning back now, Liisa!). Proceeds from the Peace Bowl will go not just to the schools that cannot afford to fund PxP programs but also to the Peace Festival, a whole day’s worth of fun and games celebrating the culmination of the nearly three month program. Grade 5 students all over the GTA will get together this year on April 6th at Rexall Centre to enjoy a day especially for them, a day meant to commend and reward them for their hard work and effort. But PxP needs your help to ensure that the day goes smoothly so if you would like to volunteer for the event, contact them at pbyptoronto@gmail.com or drop by their office at 21 Sussex Clubhouse, Rm. 531.

Peace by Peace, in its 10th year of operation now, is undoubtedly an organization worthy of praise and encouragement. Run by university students for elementary students, it’s a sign that our generation is headed towards the right direction. Just their name says it all…

If you missed the last Overheard on Twitter, you can check it out here.

• @Lisa_Dunn: “U of T just called me to ask for money for students to be able to sleep over in Robarts library. Ew!”
• @scarletqueen: “if U of T taught Buffyology (aka Buffy studies, i mean we have women studies, why not?) i would totally major in that shit. MAKE THIS HAPPEN”
• @hughdashhyphen: “I am the urinal cake to U of T’s disintegrative parabola of piss.”
• @otakupeter: “family.utoronto.ca is a REALLY BAD IDEA, I will PERSONALLY deliver letters explaining why to David Naylor’s house if you give them to me”
• @carmisandiego: “i hate when people say “UFT” instead of “U of T”. please tell me what the F stands for. fools.”
• @moepickles: “This reading “week” is only going to make me procrastinate more. #UofT“
• (more…)

The U of T Film Festival celebrates the University of Toronto’s rich contribution to the arts through its student and alumni film and video makers. Now in its ninth year, the festival also welcomes films and videos from all emerging and established filmmakers, through we have not lost our focus on student work. For the 2010 edition our special guest will be Babak Payami.

The types of submissions the festival is looking for are:

• short films and videos of any length, genre and topic
• “Super 8″ films that are silent and played with live music
• 1-minute long “Shitty Films” for the annual Shitty Film Contest
• installation art, including site-specific proposals
• film and videos of any length that address social justice issues, especially social entrepreneurialism, providing innovative solutions to social problems.

The deadline is February 8th, and the festival takes place March 13 but early submissions encouraged. For a submission form and details, go to www.uoftfilmfest.ca or send an e-mail to info@uoftfilmfest.ca.