Announcements

The Petitto team in The Star

A wonderful article on the research of Laura-Ann Petitto titled "Learning Language is Child's Play" apppeared in the Ideas section of The Toronto Star on July 12, 2008. The two-page spread includes a picture of Laura-Ann, with her lab manager Karen Lau strapped to the fNIRS machine. Click here to read more . . .

Neuroscience student Michael Misch wins Governor General's Silver Medal.

Michael Misch, a neuroscience student who worked under the supervision of Suzanne Erb in the Department has been awarded a Governor General Silver Medal. This most pretigious award was recognized at UTSC Honours & Awards Ceremony for Sciences where it was mentioned that Michael has maintained a perfect GPA of 4.0 throughout his undergraduate studies.

UTSC student Kimia Honarmand wins best presentation award.

David Nussbaum wrote the following about one of his undergraduate thesis student's, Kimia Honarmand:
"She was awarded the prize for Best Undergraduate Presentation at the Southern Ontario Neuroscience Association, 28th Annual Meeting held in London (ON) on Friday, May 9th. The poster was entitled Subclinical psychopathic traits, affective states and neuro-active hormones influence decision-making under risk. The work was conducted in my lab at UTSC and substantially involved her undergraduate thesis."

Five of our Department's instructors among finalist in TVO's best lecturer competition.

The Department of Psychology at Scarborough continues its very strong showing in TV Ontario's best lecturer competition. Three of our faculty members (Gerry Cupchik, Marc Fournier, and Mark Schmuckler) and two of our sessional instructors (Oren Amitay and Joan Forder) are among the finalists in this year's competition.

Steven Pinker's talk a sold-out success.

Steven Pinker's visit on the evening of November 5 was a resounding success. Steven is as gracious as he is brilliant and all those who came to the event were charmed, edified and titillated. Book sales after the talk were strong and the lineup for getting books signed by Steven appeared endless. There were many smiles on people's faces that evening, an evening that served as a celebration of the coming of age of the Department of Psychology at UofT Scarborough. Pictures of Event.

Steven Pinker accepts the Department of Psychology's invitation to give a talk at UTSC on Monday November 5, 2007.

Thanks to Laura-Ann Petitto's compelling invitation, Steven Pinker will be giving a talk at 7:30pm in the ARC theater on Monday November 5, 2007. Steven Pinker, Johnstone Family Professor of Psychology at Harvard, is one of the most sought after contemporary authors. His latest book The Stuff of Thought: Language as a Window into Human Nature, just came out and is receiving a lot of press. The Department of Psychology at Scarborough is very proud to be hosting this event which will bring many visitors to our campus. Admission is by pre-ordered ticket. Please see Steven Pinker Talk

Inaugural Faculty Meeting Held on September 6, 2007.

Attendance was strong at the inaugural meeting of the Department of Psychology at Scarborough. The highlight of the meeting was the introduction of the following new additions to the Department: Maryam Ali (Secretary to the Chair), Melody Berens (Post Doc), Kevin Dunbar (Professor), Lorine Jung (Financial Officer), Hanan Kayyali (Course Support and Program Advisor), Stephen Livingston (Assistant Professor), Laura-Ann Petitto (Professor) and Franca Placenza (Assistant Professor).

Space was a ubiquitous topic of discussion. Plans for the new Science Building were discussed along with those for the Balcony Enclosures on the fourth floor of the S-Wing. Both projects are slated to finish in late summer 2008.

Professor John Bassili Appointed Chair of the New Department of Psychology at U of T Scarborough

On May 30, 2007, Professor Ragnar-Olaf Buchweitz, Vice-Principal (Academic) and Dean wrote:

"Professor John Bassili has been appointed Chair of the Department of Psychology, for a five year term ending June 30, 2012. The newly created Department of Psychology will benefit greatly from Professor Bassili's energetic leadership. Since joining the Department of Life Sciences in 1976 he has been a committed citizen and a tireless advocate for psychology. His highly organized, decentralized leadership style will ensure that members of the Department are involved and engaged in a focused, dynamic manner. His deep commitment to students is evident in the many years that he has taught psychology's popular first year course, always receiving excellent teaching evaluations from the students. Professor Bassili's administrative experience and commitment to U of T Scarborough is evident in his extensive service, which ranges from membership on Search Committees, serving as Associate Chair of his department and chairing governance committees. His appointment has my enthusiastic support. I have high expectations for the Department under his leadership."