Two University of B.C. researchers are among five in Canada to be awarded a 100-thousand dollar Killam Prize for their work.Sarah Otto, an evolutionary biologist, has pioneered several mathematical models to understand how and why sexual reproduction happens in nature, while Pieter Cullis helped develop the targeted delivery of recently approved drugs for cancer and gene therapies as well as vaccines including the COVID-19 vaccine.Other winners include Charles Morin, a Laval University psychology professor, Praveen Jain, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at Queen's, and Guelph

Authorities in British Columbia are investigating after 17 wild horses were shot in what Mounties are calling a "disheartening act."The RCMP say in a news release that Tk’emlups Rural RCMP received a report of several dead horses found about 65 kilometres west of Kamloops, near Walhachin, B.C., on Friday.Police say the RCMP’s Forensic Identification Section carefully examined the scene, along with a veterinarian and a livestock investigator.They say the animals appear to have been from a herd of feral horses that frequent that area.RCMP say the motive has not yet been confirmed and the inv

The Alberta and federal governments say they will work together to understand what happened around public notifications of toxic seepage at an oilsands tailings pond.Alberta environment minister Sonya Savage and her federal counterpart Steven Guilbeault discussed on Tuesday night the seepage and leak from the Kearl oilsands mine.The seepage was discovered in May, but neither politician was told about it until nine months later.Area First Nations were also not updated after initial notification of discoloured water being found on the site, about 70 kilometres north of Fort McMurray, Alta.Savage

The Transportation Safety Board says pilots in Canada need better guidelines for screening heart-related conditions. The independent federal agency says at least eight crashes since the early 2000s have been linked to heart attacks or other cardiovascular diseases among pilots. The recommendation follows the 2021 crash of an amateur-built plane in central Alberta that killed the pilot. An investigation into the crash in Lacombe, Alta., found evidence the pilot had a heart attack, but it was impossible to determine exactly when. The safety board is asking Transport Canada to routinely review an

Anyone who has been in foster care in B.C. and is at least 19 years old, will soon be eligible for a post-secondary tuition waiver. The B.C. government says the 2017 program that waives tuition fees for foster care recipients aged 19 to 26 will be expanded next August to remove the upper age cap. To be eligible, students must be undergraduates studying full or part time at a B-C public, post-secondary institution, the Native Education College or with one of 10 approved trades-training providers. Just under 2000 people have had tuition fees waived since the program launched six years ago, an

New polling suggests the majority of Canadians want the federal government to call an independent inquiry into foreign interference in the last two federal elections, but still feel the country's electoral system is safe. Market research firm Leger surveyed 1,544 people between March 10 and 12, asking a range of questions about Canada's electoral system and allegations of foreign interference. The results suggest 71 per cent of Canadians feel the electoral system is safe, while 29 per cent feel it is not. And the majority, 69 per cent of respondents, said they generally trust the results of el

Police allege the driver of a pickup truck that killed two people and injured nine others in the eastern Quebec town of Amqui acted deliberately and with premeditation.Provincial police Sgt. Claude Doiron says the 38-year-old driver will appear in court later today.Doiron said the police investigation suggests the driver swerved from one side of the road to the other over a "certain distance" to hit victims who were chosen at random and who range in age from less than one year to 77.Gérald Charest, 65, and Jean Lafrenière, 73, were killed during the alleged attack.The injured include two chi

Alberta plans to require all police services in the province to use body cameras.Public Safety Minister Mike Ellis says officers often respond to calls that are complex and make split-second decisions.He says that can raise concerns from the public about actions that have been taken and whether appropriate force was used.Ellis says the decision is transformational and would ensure all interactions with officers are objective in both large cities and smaller rural communities.He says Alberta would be the first province to mandate body cameras.The government will work with the Alberta Associatio

The Alberta government has started a second campaign aimed at attracting more skilled workers from Ontario and Atlantic Canada. Alberta Jobs Minister Brian Jean says the Alberta is Calling program is piggybacking on a similar effort announced by the government last summer. The initial campaign targeted Canadians living in Toronto and Vancouver, while this time it focuses on those living in the Maritimes and parts of Ontario, including London, Hamilton, Windsor and Sudbury. Jean says there are 100,000 vacancies for skilled workers in Alberta which has the highest wages in Canada. Jennifer Hensh