“Here lie the remains of those who, in the interests of their fellow man, donated their bodies to health education and research,” reads an epitaph in the University of Toronto section of St. James cemetery. The tombstone marks the final resting place of cadavers used in UofT anatomy labs.

Last September, Toronto’s Black Creek Historic Brewing Company set out to grow all its ingredients for a new beer within a square mile of the brewery. By using techniques and machinery that settlers in Ontario would have nearly 150 years ago, Black Creek plans to put a truly local beer on shelves this November.

In an effort to curb high rates of narcotic use, the Ontario Ministry of Health has removed OxyContin from the list of publicly funded drugs. As of Wednesday, March 1, the pharmaceutical company that produces OxyContin, the brand of oxycodone typically prescribed to relieve moderate to severe pain, will stop distributing the drug in its current form to the Canadian market.

“Education is a right. We will not give up the fight,” chanted thousands of students, gathered at the University of Toronto King’s College Circle on Wednesday for the National Day of Action. That morning, students rallied outside Sidney Smith Hall calling for a reduction in tuition fees and a higher quality, more accessible post-secondary education.

Day 13 of the Advent calendar means it’s time to prepare for more than just the second coming of a failed mark in PHY101. It’s also the last chance before the New Year to show our appreciation for some special members of the U of T community. The following people have made this publishing season possible and deserve our recognition.

Protests in Yemen continue, following President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s agreement on Wednesday to shift power within 30 days to the country’s Vice President. “All promises are for the media, not for action,” said Khaled Al-Hammadi, a Yemeni journalist who operates out of a tent as a makeshift office in the middle of what is known as Sanaa’s “Change Square.” The encampment near university grounds in Yemen’s capital is the epicentre of the Arab Spring’s longest running protest, which began this February.

Last week, University of Toronto professors released the first report to provide a comprehensive gender equity analysis of Canadian interuniversity athletics. Professors and students at the University of Toronto Centre for Sport Policy Studies collected and analyzed data from the 2010-2011 academic year in an attempt to produce an unbiased gender ratio on Varsity and interuniversity teams.

As this month marks the 40th anniversary of former Prime Minister Trudeau’s official multiculturalism policy, the Canadian system of immigration is put into question as an effective model. Scholars provide answers.