News Briefs

Chelse mckee and magally zelaya, Staff

Elders and traditional teachers gather at the U of M

The seventh annual Elders and Traditional Teachers Gathering was held at the university over the weekend of March 7 and 8 on the second floor of University Centre.

Workshops, traditional games, crafts, Inuit throat-singers, aboriginal dancers, Métis jiggers, a pipe ceremony, a celebration of International Women’s day, a feast, and several notable speakers made up the two-day gathering.

The theme of this year’s gathering was “Seven Generations,” and both locals and visitors led teaching circles.

Featured guests included Arvol Looking (Lakota), keeper of the Sacred White Buffalo Calf Pipe, who has spoken to the Dali Lama, Bill Clinton, Desmond Tutu, and before the United Nations, according to his biography, in the gathering’s program.

The celebration and exploration of traditional aboriginal knowledge was open to all and was sponsored by the Aboriginal Student Centre, the native studies department, the Aboriginal Student’s Association, and by Bear Paw Security Services.

Manitoba government grants virtual reality

On March 10, Jim Rondeau, Minister for Science, Technology, Energy and Mines, announced that the Manitoban government will provide $100,000 annually for the new Virtual Reality Applications Fund.

The fund is designated to assist companies financially that wish to use the Virtual Reality Centre, which is located in Smart Park near the University of Manitoba’s Fort Garry campus.

Virtual reality allows users to interact in a computer-simulated environment and has been developed for such enterprises as scientific research, gaming and prototyping.

Manitoba Hydro used the Virtual Reality Centre during the preliminary design stage of their new downtown location to see how the building would appear in 3D form.

Another company that used the centre was the Canadian Science Centre for Human and Animal Health, which used virtual reality to research techniques in training personnel in its facilities.