Local News
Melanie Martin (née Schachter) blazes trail for women in science
By MYRON LOVE In 1993, then University of Manitoba physics student Melanie Schachter had the honour of being one of just two Canadian students chosen by an organization called the Youth Science Foundation to represent our country at the Nobel Prize ceremonies and the 18th annual Stockholm International Youth Science Seminar that year.
Her selection was based on her academic achievements – including a $37,000 National Research Council Canada Women in Engineering and Sciences Scholarship and a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada undergraduate student research award – as well as her efforts to encourage girls in high school to consider careers in science.
Now, 25 years later after graduating from the University of Manitoba (1995) with a B.Sc. Honours in Physics, Dr. Melanie Martin – in her position as a professor of physics at the University of Winnipeg – remains a trailblazer for women in science. The daughter of the former editor of The Western Jewish News, the late Cheryl Fogel, Melanie is a graduate of Grant Park High school.
In an interview she did with the University of Manitoba’s Sherry Kaniuga in 2017 – coinciding with her being presented with the University Faculty of Science Honoured Alumni Award, Martin revealed how she became interested in pursuing a career in physics. “I actually started thinking about this career before I started university,” she said in that earlier interview, “but it was still related to the U of M. When I was in Grade 11, I found out that SHAD – then Shad Valley – had what I called ‘summer camp for geeks’.” (Shad Canada is an annual Canadian summer enrichment program for high-achieving high school students held in July.)
“I lived on the U of M campus for all of July,” she continued, “going through university classes. I was a shy kid going into an unfamiliar situation and my fellow SHADs were welcoming and I fit right in. There were 40 or 50 of us – students and professors that had the same academic interest as me. Those four weeks completely changed my life.” Following graduation at the University of Manitoba, Martin was accepted into Yale, where she has earned two masters degrees and a PhD in Applied Physics and Biomedical Engineering.
“I enjoyed my five years at Yale,” she says. While New Haven (the home of Yale) is a small town, it is close to Hartford, Boston and New York. I spent a lot of time in New York. I saw the Letterman Show live several times.”
After Yale, she continued her studies at Caltech – in Pasadena – where she was a postdoctoral scholar and associate scientist in Biology. She returned to Winnipeg – and the University of Winnipeg to join the
Science Faculty of the University of Winnipeg in 2004. She is currently a full professor as well as Director of Magnetic Resonance Microscopy Centre and Co-Director, The University of Winnipeg Brain Imaging and Metabolic Research.
“While I was away, I always returned to Winnipeg a couple of times a year to see family and friends,” she says. “At Caltech, I was a staff scientist responsible for maintaining equipment while I also helped
others with their research. The University of Winnipeg offered me the opportunity to have my own lab and do my own research. It is also nice to be close to my family again.”
One feature that she appreciates about being at the U of W is the ability to collaborate with many talented researchers at Winnipeg’s universities, the National Research Council Canada, and local industries. Her research students have gone on to great jobs with her industry partners, so she can see firsthand her research making a difference in the world.
In her research, Martin focuses on the uses of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to study anatomical changes in living tissues.
“We are working at the microscopic level,” she explains. “We have been able
to detect structures in images of the brain that no one has ever seen before. We can detect axons (nerve fibers) that are smaller than the width of a spider’s web. We are looking to determine whether
individuals with schizophrenia have fewer brain axons than people without this disorder and whether people with autism have more.
“The question we really want to answer is whether people are born with the condition or whether the increase or decrease in axons happens just before the symptoms of the disorder appear. We are still developing our base lines. Once we understand the timing, we can learn how best to assist these individuals.”
Martin reports that her research team generally consists of undergraduate students, graduate students, post-doctoral scientists and a technician.
“It has been challenging managing my personnel in light of the pandemic restrictions,” she notes. “We are only allowed four people in the lab at the same time, yet everyone wants to come in.”
In addition to her responsibilities at the University of Winnipeg, she is also an adjunct faculty member in the University of Manitoba Departments of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, also Physics and Astronomy, and a Core Member of the Biomedical Engineering program.
As well, she continues to encourage young women to consider careers in science. “There are two women this year in our Honours Physics class,” she notes. “As it happens, they are the only students in the class this year. I am also seeing more women in my larger classes.”
In the past, she has also served of co-conceiver and co-organizer of an event for the International Day of the Girl. In conjunction with the provincial government the program brought to the Manitoba Legislature female high school students from across the province together with female scientists from the three main universities in Manitoba to celebrate science and encourage the students to pursue science careers.
Another program in which she is playing a leadership role is in the Winnipeg chapter of the Canada Indigenous Science and Engineering Society (CAISES).
“Ours was one of the most active chapters last
year and we received the Stelvio J. Zanin Chapter of the Year award,” she reports. “I am amazed at what our students have accomplished.”
In recent years, Martin has been in demand worldwide as a speaker. These days, obviously, the presentations are all virtual, she notes.
And it looks like another generation of Martins will be following in the field of science. Martin’s 12-year-old son, Nate, is showing an interest in plant science. “He is doing a junior high project measuring
changing moisture levels in the soil,” she says with pride. “He has turned our entire house into a farm,” she says jokingly.
She adds that will be representing Manitoba at the 2021 Canada Wide Science Fair.
Local News
Nakba exhbit at CMHR – you can see it right here and make your own assessment
By BERNIE BELLAN (Posted June 26, updated July 19) The Nakba exhibit at the Canadian Exhibit for Human Rights opened to the public June 27. The morning before the exhibit was set to open to the public, (it had a private opening for invited guests the evening of June 26) we received a press release from the CMHR. That press release gave a very detailed description of what was in the exhibit, along with photos (supplied by Annie Kierans of the CMHR).
There is also a link right at the beginning of the press release that will allow you to watch the same videos that anyone attending the exhibit can watch. We reprinted what was sent to us without making one edit. We leave it to you to form your own opinion as to whether the exhibit is fair in its presentation, and whether it is lacking “context” – which is an accusation that has been levelled at the exhibit’s organizers by some representatives of Jewish organizations.
We have received many emails in reaction to the exhibit. If you have an opinion and would like to see it published on this website, you can send it to jewishp@mymts.net, but please indicate whether you would be willing to have it published on this website.
Here is what we received the morning of June 26:
Winnipeg, MB — June 26, 2026 — The Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR) will open a new exhibit tomorrow that explores human rights violations related to the ongoing forced displacement of Palestinian Canadians.
Palestine Uprooted: Nakba Past and Present will be on display in the Rights Today gallery on Level 5 until 2028. Featuring personal stories told through artifacts and video testimonies, the exhibit presents Palestinian Canadians reflecting on their ongoing struggle for human rights. The small exhibit reveals enduring patterns of loss and resilience, helping visitors understand more about this contemporary human rights story.
Palestinian Canadian stories are now included alongside many other stories of forced displacement and human rights violations featured in the Museum’s galleries. Each of these stories contribute to our visitors understanding of human rights and help the Museum fulfill its mandate to foster reflection and dialogue.
Exhibition highlights
Personal stories and artifacts: Experience firsthand accounts from Palestinian Canadians sharing their journeys of displacement and memory through a series of five artifacts. Cases display artifacts like property deeds, house keys, and a traditional Palestinian embroidered dress, accompanied by short videos that deepen understanding of the impacts of displacement.
Powerful artworks: In her painting Bound Together in Gaza, Malak Mattar, a Gazan artist, captures the struggles and resilience of her generation shaped by conflict. Her work pays homage to Guernica, Picasso’s powerful masterpiece depicting civilian suffering during war.
Curfews and Closures, by Rajie Cook, bears witness to life under military occupation during the 2000–2005 Palestinian uprising, when curfews and closures were expanded and further limited basic rights and freedoms.
Cultural heritage: Discover traditional Palestinian embroidery called tatreez. Tatreez motifs and colours are tied to place, family history and regional identity. Patterns are associated with particular towns, villages or areas of Palestine. In this way, tatreez is a form of storytelling: a way of preserving memory, sustaining identity and expressing resilience across displacement and exile.
Poetry and reflection: Engage with Mahmoud Darwish’s evocative verses, inspiring personal reflection on exile, voice, and responsibility. Visitors can take a card containing Darwish’s poem and add a personal note, fostering ongoing dialogue beyond the exhibit.
Contemporary context: Witness striking images of current events in Gaza and the West Bank, connecting past displacement to ongoing struggles.
Quotes:
“No force can silence the truth we carry. Growing up in Canada, my children lived the Nakba through our stories. And now we watch it happen again, live, on our phones. When I see the images coming out of Gaza, I am not watching the news. I am watching my history repeat itself.” -Fouad Sahyoun, a Palestinian Canadian featured in the exhibit
“We developed this exhibit with a clear awareness that Palestinian Canadian voices have too often been marginalized, silenced or spoken over — and that anti-Palestinian racism affects whose stories are heard and whose suffering is recognized. That is why we intentionally centred Palestinian Canadian voices throughout the exhibit.” -Isabelle Masson, Curator of Palestine Uprooted
“Human rights matter precisely when they are inconvenient, when the question of who deserves the dignity of having their rights recognized is genuinely contested. These are the moments where having a national museum for human rights is most important.
There are people who believe this exhibit should not exist in its current form. There are people who believe it should have existed sooner. There are people who will visit this exhibit and feel that it does not say enough, and others who will feel it says too much.
We have listened to every one of these voices. We have reflected. And we have renewed our resolve to continue the difficult, sometimes contested, and often controversial work of building understanding about human rights. We are a museum grounded in Canada’s human rights framework, whose mandate requires us to bear witness to the full complexity of the human story. We are proud to open this exhibit because the story it tells will help achieve that mandate, and because this story belongs in the collective memory of Canadians.”
- – Isha Khan, CEO
Local News
A photo that’s being circulated on the internet about me
For those of you not familiar with nutjob Michael Kalo – the psycho who created the notorious “$hitler’s List” years ago and the same psycho who went after Ben Carr, well – now he’s obviously taken a strong disliking to the stance I’ve taken on the Nakba exhibit at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. (You can read elsewhere on this website how I simply posted the entire exhibit as it is – and asked readers to form their own opinions.)
Kalo likes to send out emails to various individual using phony names – such as Frank Ostrowski. When people ask me (or asked Ben Carr) why we don’t take action against him, my answer is: What’s the use? He only basks in the attention.
So Michael – enjoy the attention you’re receiving. I know how much of an embarrassment you are to your wonderfully talented daughters.
Local News
Ami Hassan returning as owner of Falafel Place
By BERNIE BELLAN In a surprise move – and after more than a six-year absence as owner of Falafel Place (Corydon at Wilton) the legendary Ami Hassan has decided to return as owner of one of Winnipeg’s most famous eateries.
Long known for his sometimes irreverent attitude to his customers, e.g., “If you’re finished, get out!”, Ami decided to return to running Falafel Place after having retired years ago (or so he thought) from running the Corydon Avenue restaurant.
We asked Ami whether he’ll be sending a special invitation to Julia Roberts to come visit him at Falafel Place. He asked again: “Who’s Julia Roberts?” (Just kidding – he really does know how Julia Roberts is.) Read the story how Ami told her to leave the restaurant and come back later at Julia Roberts turned away from Falafel Place
Ami did note that when customers saw him inside the restaurant one recent day as he was getting it ready for the reopening Monday, August 10, over 20 of them came in asking him if he was open already.
We asked Ami whether the menu will be the same as it was when he last ran the place and he said everything will be the same.
Falafel Place will be open 7 days a week from 7 am – 2 pm. Remember, if you’re finished – get out!
