Vol. 2 No. 1 (2007)
About MSURJ:
mSURJ, the McGill Science Undergraduate Research Journal, is a student-founded, student-run initiative that benefits the McGill University research community. Our mission is to encourage, publish, and promote student research in all scientific disciplines.
Though the journal officially began in September 2005, this issue marks our re-launching as one of the first undergraduate journals in North America to select articles on a competitive, peer-review basis. Selection criteria include clarity, organization, and style; presentation and interpretation of results; motivation of the study based on literature; and contribution to advancing the field of study. The mSURJ editorial board handles the peer-review process by selecting one suggested reviewer and one anonymous reviewer, and adding its own review.
In addition to the journal, mSURJ boasts a variety of other forums to support our mission, including public lectures, writing and editing workshops, and information resources on-line.
Beginning next year, mSURJ will publish issues twice annually. Prospective student contributors and student editors are encouraged to contact the editorial board or visit our website – msurj.mcgill.ca – to learn more.
On the Cover:
‘Proportion Manifesto’
Designed by DEBBIE GELTNER
This composition portrays Leonardo Da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man over a nautilus shell pattern. The Electron micrograph and microscope slide of spirochete-like cells in blood culture were provided by Dalius J. Briedis, Associate Professor in Microbiology and Immunology. The spiral reflects both the Golden Ratio and the Fibonacci sequence simultaneously, symbols of proportional perfection present in countless aspects of the known universe.
