March 2006 ISSUE
Gary Wicentowich
STUDENT COLUMNS
Take a Pie in the Face for Charity
BY GARY WICENTOWICH
University of Alberta
Student Contributor (Engineering)
Since 2003 the University of Alberta Engineering Students’ Society has held Pi Throw, a charity event designed to help raise funds and awareness for Habitat for Humanity.
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Starting March 13, you will be able to send a whipped cream pie to anyone in the Edmonton University of Alberta campus or downtown area for $10. Tell us who it goes to, where to find them and when they will be there, and our volunteers will track them down. Once found, the recipient has four options:
1) Take
the pie in the face for free!
2) Redirect
the pie to another person for $10.
3) Buy
a real pie for $(Pi)3 — about $30.
4) Choose
not to participate, since Pi Throw is a voluntary event.
The event is held in conjunction with various engineering schools from across
Canada, and is a great way to help out the community and have fun at the same
time. In the last three years, over $5,000 has been raised for Habitat for Humanity,
which provides housing for low-income families.
For more information on Pi Throw, or to learn how to place an order, please visit
www.ess.ualberta.ca/events/
pithrow.
Editor’s Note: U of C’s Pi Throw is already complete. Results appear on Page 20.
Students Show
Oratory Skills
“Which is better: linoleum, carpet, or hardwood flooring? Describe from
the viewpoint of your feet.”
“Nanotechnology and biomedical engineering are becoming new programs here
in the Faculty of Engineering. In 50 years, which will have made the bigger impact
on society?”
These are samples of questions asked at the U of A’s first annual National Engineering & Geosciences Week Speech Competition, held recently to give students a chance to show off some of their softer skills in front of a crowd.
Over a couple hours, engineering students from all disciplines came out for the chance to prove that they had the right things to say. Each competitor was given a random topic.
Participants were given a few minutes to prepare, and then had three minutes
to present their thoughts. Judges marked the speeches based on poise, interest,
idea, structure and other factors.
The event was a success, and left participants and judges alike impressed with
the capabilities displayed. Dr. Roger Toogood, P.Eng., an associate professor
with mechanical engineering and one of the judges, enjoyed the event. “It
was a lot of fun to hear the students speak off the cuff like that. They had
a lot of poise, humour and adaptability,” said Dr. Toogood, an APEGGA Board
of Examiners member.
“There’s no way I would have done that when I was an undergraduate student.”
The winner of this year’s speech competition spent his three minutes discussing the easiest profession — which he concluded was the high school gym teacher.