The Canadian Dissident

Exhibit at the University of Alberta Rutherford Library, March 3, 2023 The University of Alberta is hosting a small exhibit honouring students who were killed in Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Called " Unissued Diplomas ," the exhibit is also on display at the University of Toronto and Saint Mary's University in Halifax. The display includes pictures and short biographies of dozens of university and college students killed in Ukraine since February 2022. Some students enrolled in the military after Russia's invasion and were killed in action. Some were civilians killed in their homes by artillery strikes. Some were trapped under buildings or struck by shrapnel. Most of the students pictured were in their early 20s, but some were as young as 17 when they were killed. The exhibit is co-organized by the Ukrainian Canadian Students’ Union.  It is on display at the University of Alberta Rutherford Library until March 10. 

Hidden in the basement of the Earth Sciences Building at the University of Alberta are an array of dinosaurs: Gorgosaurus, Stegoceras, and Pachycephalosaurus, to name just a few. The University of Alberta's museums are free and open to all, but due to nonexistent advertising and limited hours, they sit empty and silent most days. The Earth Sciences Building is home to two small but impressive museums. The Paleontology Museum showcases a variety of fossils, including dinosaurs, trilobites (cute little sea bugs that went extinct 251 million years ago), and the huge sea monster Dunkleosteus (pictured below).  If you've ever wanted to touch dinosaur bones, this is your chance! There's a table of fossils you can touch, including a dinosaur leg bone. Just down the hall is the Mineralogy and Petrology Museum , home to a large collection of rocks and minerals. Over 1000 specimens are on display, from diamonds to meteorites. The dinosaurs are probably the most popular exhibit at th...