What is the value of being human? And what are the costs of letting that go?

These big questions are what originally inspired UWindsor professor Jeff Noonan to study philosophy, so he was happy to explore them in his book, Embodiment and the Meaning of Life, which will enjoy a public launch Wednesday, April 18.

“I wanted to write a philosophy book that tries to get beyond the present moment,” he says. “I think I got out what I was trying to say.”

In it, he tackles two competing schools of thought — a pessimistic view that it is wrong to bring sentient life into existence because birth inevitably produces suffering, and a more recent development that he terms “technotopianism,” which proposes to escape sickness and death through radical human-enhancement technologies.

In fact, says Dr. Noonan, these are mirror-images of each other

“They both despise what makes mortal life good,” he says.

He argues that having to confront illness and mortality forces humanity to find the goodness in the finitude of life.

“An essential part of what it is to be human is having to cede one’s place,” Noonan says.

The book is timely, he believes, since technology is now approaching new frontiers: “I think we’re becoming seduced by the illusion that what is essentially human can be downloaded into machines. The book tries to show why we cannot.”

The launch event is free and open to the public, Wednesday from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Sandwich Brewing Company, 3230 Sandwich Street.

Friday’s grand opening of the Clinical Neuropsychology Service Clinic at the University of Windsor’s Psychological Services and Research Centre (PSRC) drew a large community crowd, with everyone from UWindsor president Alan Wildeman to community partners and potential clients on hand to check out the program’s new space.

The clinic provides neuropsychological assessments to individuals ranging from preschoolers through very elderly adults, and works with individuals who have known or suspected neurological, medical, or neurodevelopmental disorders across the lifespan.

Services, which are open to the public, are provided by graduate students under the supervision of faculty member neuropsychologists who are registered psychologists and members of the College of Psychologists of Ontario. Fees are charged on a sliding scale based on family income.

Clinical neuropsychology faculty member and area co-ordinator Carlin Miller said the clinic provides another alternative to people in the community waiting for assessment services.

“Today was a wonderful opportunity to make personal connections and reach out to members of the community who may need our services for their clients,” said Dr. Miller. “The University’s commitment to this program is vital to ensuring that these assessment services are more readily available and affordable to people who need them the most.”

For more information on the clinic, visit http://www.uwindsor.ca/neuropsychology-clinic/.

UWindsor staff, faculty, and alumni will encounter some new faces when they interact with the Office of Alumni Affairs and Donor Communications.

Nicole Broderick has taken over the portfolio of overseeing the Annual Giving Program, and grad Rob Janisse (BA 2009) is the newly-minted alumni co-ordinator of special projects.

The Annual Giving Program raises funds in support of a variety of on-campus causes, including student scholarships and awards. Broderick co-ordinates campaigns to appeal to alumni, retirees, faculty, and staff.

She says the best part of her job thus far has been working with students on the phonathon to reach out to grads.

“I also really appreciate how welcoming everyone has been,” says Broderick.

Janisse’s position is new, inaugurated with his hiring in February. He is responsible for creating and administering a volunteer management program to increase engagement with alumni.

“I’m excited to be back at the University, experiencing a different side of the institution,” Janisse says. “Having alumni and friends join in community projects will help us to build a sense of belonging, right from the time you’re a student.”

Senior students of psychology and disability studies will discuss what they learned in their practicum placements, in a display of poster presentations on Tuesday, April 17, in the CAW Student Centre Commons.

The drop-in exhibit runs 3 to 6 p.m. and features work by students in three courses:

• Community orientation to disability issues,
• Practicum in psychology, and
• Practicum in developmental psychology.

It is free and open to the public.

The University of Windsor’s Promise campaign has been recognized with a silver award in the 33rd annual Educational Advertising Awards. This year, over 2,250 entries were received for the U.S.-based competition from over 1,000 colleges, universities and secondary schools.

Gold awards were granted to 307 institutions, silver awards were awarded to 207 institutions, and bronze awards were awarded to 159 institutions. UWindsor was one of only four Canadian universities recognized by the competition.

PROMISE@uwindsor.ca launched in the fall of 2016 and was developed with the Toronto-based marketing company ScottThornley+Company (STC) after a lengthy consultation with UWindsor students, staff, and faculty.

The campaign is based on the belief that we all have within us the promise to be someone better, the promise to show that we are more capable than we or others might believe, and the promise to contribute to making the world we live in a better place. STC and the University of Windsor also created and launched a capital campaign, Place of Promise, which expanded on this premise.

Judges for the Educational Advertising Awards consisted of a national panel of higher education marketers, advertising creative directors, marketing and advertising professionals, and the editorial board of Higher Education Marketing Report, a publication for U.S. professionals in the field.

The Educational Advertising Awards is the largest, oldest, and most respected competition of its kind in the U.S. The complete listing of the Educational Advertising Awards winners can be found at http://educationaladvertisingawards.com/.