42
WEEKS TO GO
CANADA: NATURAL SOURCE OF PRIDE SINCE 1867 Canadian treasures
Quiz TEST YOUR CANADIAN KNOWLEDGE
SNOLAB: Unravelling the deep, dark secrets of the universe
QUESTION 1: Which Canadian funny-man is famous for being the voice of Shrek?
understanding what’s actually going on in the universe—why atoms are able to form planets and stars, and what holds everything together— is hidden, scientists think, in dark matter. But before physicists can start studying dark matter, they need to find it. That’s where DEAP-3600, a giant, spherical, alien-like contraption nestled inside SNOLAB, comes into play. The DEAP-3600 experiment is one of eleven currently underway at SNOLAB. The device, whose goal is to detect dark matter in hopes of unravelling its mysteries, is the most sensitive of its kind in the world. Researchers hope to start collecting and ana- lyzing data from the experiment in 2016, but no one really knows what results, if any, will this ambitious endeavour yield. One thing is certain, however: Canada is a leading contributor to the complex field of particle astrophysics, and DEAP-3600 has a strong potential for groundbreaking discovery. The Sudbury Neutrino Observatory, precursor of the DEAP project and SNOLAB as a whole, provided crucial insight into the behaviour of neutrinos—a milestone ad- vancement in the field. Queen’s University physicist Arthur McDonald co-won the 2015 Nobel Prize in physics for his work on the SNO. His efforts helped pave the way for what is now, some believe, humanity’s best chance yet of finding the missing piece in an incredibly complex puzzle.
Far beneath the streets of Sudbury, On- tario, scientists from a dozen North Ameri- can universities are hard at work inside the deepest clean room facility in the world. Their mission: to figure out why we exist, no less. And SNOLAB—named after the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO), the experiment for which the two-kilometre- deep facility was originally built—provides an ideal setting to crack the case. As part of their daily commute, SNO-
QUESTION 2: The world’s northernmost permanently inhabited place is in Canada. What is it?
LAB employees must take an ear-popping elevator ride down a mineshaft at a speed of ten metres per second, followed by a long stroll through the dark tunnels of Vale Creighton mine. Then, it’s shower time: entering the lab re- quires stripping down, washing up, and finally zipping into clean room attire. Why so deep? To shield the lab from cosmic rays, of course! Simply put, the experiments performed at SNO- LAB use equipment so sensitive that the normal amount of radiation and particles found on Earth would render it useless. Imagine trying to weigh a single snowflake during a blizzard—and then imagine that the snow is also invisible. This is also why extreme cleanliness is required of anyone who steps foot inside the lab. Particle physics and its related fields are astoundingly complex, but their main goal boils down to explaining how our world works at the most fundamental level. The key to
QUESTION 3: One of the healthiest and most widely consumed plant-based oils was first bred in 1974 at the University of Manitoba. What is the name of this yellow-flowered plant?
QUESTION 4: In which city can you visit Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame?
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
ART, LITERATURE AND ENTERTAINMENT
Where are we from? THE 52 LARGEST GROUPS IN CANADA’S MULTICULTURAL MOSAIC
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY
SPORTS AND LEISURE
infO Canada THE STORIES BEHIND OUR SYMBOLS
Canada’s Slovak community
Slovak people have been in Canada since the mid-1800s. A first wave of immi- grants from the Central European region now called Slovakia settled in Alberta and Saskatchewan, where farmland was so abundant that newcomers were promised 60 acres of free land. Following a lull during the First World War, im- migration resumed, but the 35,000 Slovaks that arrived in Canada during this period largely settled in mining areas rather than farmland, forming large com- munities in Northern Ontario and Quebec.
NEW BRUNSWICK
Tree: Balsam Fir
The balsam fir (Abies balsamea) became New Brunswick’s arboreal emblem in 1987. This tree is an important part of the province’s history of pulp and paper production. The wood is also used for lumber. These conifers make beautiful Christ- mas trees and 97% of holiday pines grown in New Brunswick are in fact balsam firs.
A later wave of immigration saw some 13,000 highly educated Slovaks flee their homeland following the Warsaw Pact and subsequent invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968. Many of them became celebrated academics in Canada. The Canadian Slovak League is themost important Slovak organization in Canada. Founded in 1932, the league hosts social and cultural events that aim to keep Slovak heritage and traditions alive in Canada. Painters Ladislav Guderna and Tibor Koválik, musician Antonia Mazán and filmmaker Ingrid Veninger are a few Slovak Canadians who made an impact on the country’s cultural scene. In the sports world, notable Slovak Canadians include NHL players StanMikita and the Stasny brothers, as well as former Edmonton Eskimo Mike Volcan.
If you find yourself near the city of Oshawa, Ontario, pay a visit to the Slovak Canadian HeritageMuseum to learnmore about this vibrant community. Na zdravie!
CONCEPT CREATED BY:
Proudly sponsored by: www.editionap.ca VOS JOURNAUX EN LIGNE ONLINE NEWSPAPERS T H E N EWS . VISIT OURWEBSITE / VOYEZ NOTRE SITEWEB
The Journal Cornwall
7
Wednesday, September 14, 2016
Made with FlippingBook HTML5