Calvin Chan

Alberta

Writer and Editor at Freelance

Journal Development Specialist at Canadian Science Publishing : Canadian Journal of Chemistry

Journal Development Specialist @cdnsciencepub + freelance science writer | Thinks geek is chic, but isn't 🔬 Cell biology PhD 🦠 #scicomm

Articles

Review: 2025 Toyota GR Corolla DAT

2 weeks ago | canadianautoreview.ca | Calvin Chan

Now is your opportunity if you are pining for a GR Corolla but can’t drive stick. New for 2025, amongst a flurry of meaningful updates, is an optional 8-speed automatic transmission explicitly built for this rally-bred hatchback. This is Toyota’s Direct Automatic Transmission, or DAT, and it costs $2,220 on top of the Premium trim, bringing its sticker price just shy of $60,000. That’s a lot of coin for such a small car but the GR Corolla is unlike any hatchback that has come before it.
Review: 2025 Land Rover Defender 110 P400 X-Dynamic SE

3 weeks ago | canadianautoreview.ca | Calvin Chan

Defender is one of the most diverse ecosystems with various body shapes, powertrains, and optional extras. Hopping onto the configurator is like peering into the proverbial box of chocolates. Your build might output a two-door Defender 90 with mudflaps, a side-mounted gear carrier, and a smooth inline-six engine mated to an efficient mild-hybrid system. Or what about a permutation with a conventional four-door layout and a small but stout four-cylinder? Need to carry around more cargo?
Protect the organ scholarship, protect Oxford’s traditions

1 month ago | cherwell.org | Calvin Chan

Should the organ scholarship be abolished? At the time of writing, 23 of the 43 colleges in Oxford offer organ awards. These consist in a mixture of funding, housing privileges, and symbolic perks such as the right to don a scholar’s gown. It is no secret that those who secure the scholarship are likely to have been educated privately.
Review: 2025 BMW M2

1 month ago | canadianautoreview.ca | Calvin Chan

The G87 BMW M2 was one of our favourite sports cars of 2023. We swooned over its peachy turbocharged engine, craved the playfulness of its chassis, and appreciated how easy it was to explore its performance envelope. And luckily for the Bavarians, the M2 continues to swim in an empty lake devoid of true competitors.
Review: 2025 Land Rover Defender 130 V8

1 month ago | canadianautoreview.ca | Calvin Chan

Leave it to Land Rover to keep the supercharged V8 alive. Where else would you find a fiery off-roading SUV with the calm and collected road manners of a Mercedes? Pair the Defender with an air suspension, two-speed transfer case, locking differentials, and a spare tire mounted on the rear, and you’ve got a Landie that stands head and shoulders above the Ford Bronco and Jeep Wrangler.
Review: 2025 MINI JCW Countryman ALL4

1 month ago | canadianautoreview.ca | Calvin Chan

John Cooper Works, or JCW for short, adds spice, performance, and rowdy exhausts to the latest MINI Coopers including the largest of the lot, the Countryman. You can think of it as the M to BMW, or AMG to Mercedes. Equipped with the same 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine as the Countryman S, power has been uprated to 312 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque, up 11 hp from the last JCW but it’s curiously down 36 lb-ft of torque, and three-tenths slower from 0-100 km/h (5.4s vs 5.1s).
Review: 2025 BMW M3 6MT

2 months ago | canadianautoreview.ca | Calvin Chan

Rev, shift, repeat. Whoever said the manual gearbox was dead needed to wipe their lenses, as the coveted three-pedal layout is making a comeback. Celebrated by enthusiasts for its added level of engagement and the way it melds machine and driver, rowing your own gears has become a lifestyle and some automakers have been keeping it alive longer than others. Mazda, MINI, Lotus, Subaru. Even the new Porsche 911 Carrera T is a manual-only game.
Fatherhood as Sanctification: How Parenting Transformed My Marriage, Mindset, and Faith

2 months ago | medium.com | Calvin Chan

Calvin Chan·Follow6 min read·--The Unexpected Call to Fatherhood: Why We Took the LeapFatherhood wasn’t something I actively sought. My wife and I were perfectly happy in the first five years of our marriage — just the two of us, fully immersed in each other’s company, building our careers, traveling, and enjoying our time together. Life was comfortable, fulfilling, and uncomplicated.
Review: 2025 BMW M5 Sedan

2 months ago | canadianautoreview.ca | Calvin Chan

For decades, the BMW M5 has been the quintessential sports sedan crammed with innovations that inspire awe, excitement, and even controversy, but it has always been at the forefront of technology. The F90 M5 was the first to add all-wheel drive and the first to bump its power output above 600 horses. The E60 M5 used a V10 engine for the first time, developed with Formula 1 minds, and it shrieked to a banshee-wailing 8,250 rpm. The E39 M5 was the first M car with a V8 engine.
Worship Leading Is Not a Performance, But an Invitation

2 months ago | medium.com | Calvin Chan

Calvin Chan·Follow4 min read·--Worship in modern churches often comes with big lights, emotional build-ups, and polished stage presence. While these elements can enhance the experience, we must ask ourselves — are we leading people into God’s presence, or are we just creating a great atmosphere? The difference is subtle but significant:A performance moves emotions. An invitation moves hearts. A performance fills the room with sound. An invitation fills the room with the Spirit of God.