Viennese writer, filmmaker explores her Iraqi roots in forum

Iraqi-born writer Susanne Ayoub will discuss her work and her return to Baghdad, the city of her birth, as the next speaker in the College of Arts and Sciences Forum next week. Ayoub is at BGSU this semester as the Max Kade Writer in Residence in the German, Russian and East Asian languages (GREAL) department.

Ayoub’s family left Baghdad for Vienna when she was a child, and she grew up to be a novelist, playwright, poet and filmmaker. Before the current war broke out in Iraq, she returned to her native city and recorded her encounter with it in a film, “Baghdad Fragment,” and a book, Born in Baghdad: Encountering Memory. She writes, “My memories are like a mosaic that is missing a lot of stones. Again and again I reach back and retrieve an image, an object from the past.”

In her free presentation, at 12:30 p.m. Oct. 28 in 201 Bowen-Thompson Student Union, Ayoub will show an excerpt from the documentary and read from her text. A noon luncheon preceding the talk will include chicken noodle soup, salads, dessert and beverage. The cost is $7.75 plus tax and is payable by cash, check or BG1 Card.

To reserve lunch, contact Jasmine Schulz by Thursday (Oct. 23) at jgordo@bgsu.edu or 2-9606.

Ayoub’s residency is made possible by the Max Kade Foundation, GREAL, the Chapman Community at Kohl and the College of Arts and Sciences.


‘Cornucopia’ of dance presented this week

“Cornucopia,” a concert of modern dance works, will be staged at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday (Oct. 24 and 25) in the Whitney Dance Studio, located in 222 Eppler North.

The showcase features the University Performing Dancers (UPD), a pre-professional dance ensemble whose members are current dance majors or minors in the School of Human Movement, Sport, and Leisure Studies.

Kerri Canedy and Tammy Metz Starr, faculty members in the school’s Dance Program, will present several premiere works designed to display the talents of the 11-member dance company. In addition, the ensemble will preview a section of a new work by guest artist Amy Miller, artistic associate of GroundWorks Dancetheatre, an Akron-based company recently named one of “25 to Watch” by Dance Magazine.

UPD alumni will also perform, as will flutist Nina Assimakopoulos, musical arts. “Reflections,” a collaborative work combining music performance and dance, translates a flute composition into a textured sound-movement environment.

Tickets, available at the door one hour before show time, are $5 for students and senior citizens and $8 for others. Seating is limited.

For more information, contact Starr at 2-8521 or tammyan@bgsu.edu.


Canada-Ohio Business Dinner to focus on reliability of Canadian oil

Despite perceptions to the contrary, the United States relies more on Canada than any other nation for its oil and has since 1999. Our northern neighbor’s role as a secure and growing oil supplier will be the focus of the 17th annual Canada-Ohio Business Dinner Oct. 29 on campus.

Delivering the 7 p.m. keynote address in 101B Olscamp Hall will be Roy C. Warnock, vice president and general manager of the Lima Refining Company of Alberta, Canada-based Husky Energy Inc. In his address, “Canada: A Reliable Oil Partner,” Warnock will discuss security and reliability issues concerning the U.S. oil supply with a focus on Alberta oil and connections to Ohio refineries.

Canada supplies 18 percent of U.S. oil imports, compared to Saudi Arabia’s 11 percent. Canada’s top ranking isn’t expected to change because it has the world’s second largest proven reserves of oil, mostly in the Athabasca oil sands deposits in Alberta.

Husky, a leading energy producer, announced investments in refineries in Lima and Oregon, Ohio, last year. At the same time, Warnock, who joined the company in 1983, became responsible for all of its refining operations in the U.S.  

One of BGSU’s premier events for private-sector engagement, the Canada-Ohio Business Dinner provides executives from a variety of industries, government officials from Ohio and Canada and business scholars an opportunity to meet and discuss areas of mutual interest. This year’s event begins with a networking reception from 4:45-5:45 p.m., followed by welcoming remarks and dinner at 6 p.m.

Reservations are $20 per person. Individuals may register online by Oct. 23 at http://www.bgsu.edu/colleges/as/cast/page37165.html.

For more information, call the BGSU Canadian Studies Center at 2-2457. The center is hosting the event; the dinner is supported by the College of Business Administration and the government of Canada.


BGSU to host regional meeting of sports medicine association

Sports medicine experts from the Midwest will gather at the University Thursday-Saturday (Oct. 23-25) to discuss scientific advances and new techniques and directions in the fields of sports medicine and exercise science.

Dr. Craig Horswill, an exercise scientist and researcher with the Gatorade Sports Science Institute, will be the keynote speaker for the 37th annual meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine, Midwest Chapter (MWACSM). Horswill’s presentation will focus on “Water and Sodium Balance During Exercise” at 7 p.m.  Thursday in the Bowen-Thompson Student Union Theater. 

Dr. Amy Morgan, a kinesiologist in BGSU’s School of Human Movement, Sport and Leisure Studies (HMSLS) and past president of MWACSM, has organized the meeting. Nearly 300 people are expected to participate in the three-day event, which includes lectures, poster presentations and programs for students and professionals. Student activities include sports medicine “Team Jeopardy,” a Graduate Fair to highlight graduate programs at universities in the Midwest, and presentations designed to help students pursue careers in sports medicine and exercise science.

Major sponsors for the regional meeting include the College of Education and Human Development and the School of HMSLS; Wood County Hospital; the Gatorade Sports Science Institute; Physio Flow™; ParvoMedics; Human Kinetics Publishers; the University Bookstore, and Coca-Cola.

ACSM’s Midwest regional chapter, one of 12 throughout the United States, was formed in 1972. It currently has about 800 members involved in various specialties of sports medicine and exercise science. More information can be found at www.mwacsm.org.