University Updates
23 October 2009
Business news
VC urges British businesses to engage and invest more effectively in HE
Vice-Chancellor Glynis Breakwell this week told a national summit of politicians, business and education leaders that the ‘health of our universities is vital for our economic and social regeneration’. Speaking at the Confederation of British Industry higher education summit in London, Professor Breakwell said that the crucial question is how to pay for university provision in the future with limited expansion of public funding for higher education planned.
New Director of Bath Ventures appointed
Ron Humphreys has been appointed as the new Director of Bath Ventures. His appointment coincides with the announcement of plans to expand the Innovation Centre based in Carpenter House to provide additional space for local entrepreneurs as well as conference and meeting facilities.
Invitation to attend Continuing Professional Development (CPD) launch event
All staff are invited to attend the CPD@Bath launch event which will take place on Wednesday 4 November at 1.45pm in 3WN 2.1.
The launch event, to be opened by Vice-Chancellor Glynis Breakwell, will celebrate the approval of the CPD academic framework and will showcase activity across the University as well as the newly-established support mechanisms.
Record number of new starters for Bath Knowledge Transfer Partnerships
September saw four new members of staff join the University as Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) Associates and another join at the beginning of October. KTP is Europe's leading programme helping businesses to improve their competitiveness and productivity through the better use of knowledge, technology and skills that reside within the UK knowledge base. The University has been running KTPs for over 20 years and in that time has helped more than 150 companies and public sector organisations to benefit from the application of the University’s world leading research and development.
Research
Academic wins £600k Fellowship to research pain
Candy McCabe (School for Health) has won an estimated £600,000 National Institute for Health Research Career Development Fellowship. Her research will focus on understanding the role of central mechanisms in the development and perpetuation of pain and the development of therapies to relieve pain arising from this route.
£375k grant awarded to fund new nuclear magnetic resonance facility
A major biomedical research equipment grant worth £374,890 has been awarded by the Wellcome Trust to Tim Woodman and Barry Potter of the Medicinal Chemistry Group (Pharmacy & Pharmacology). The new grant entitled “A 500 MHz NMR Spectrometer to Underpin Biological and Medicinal Chemistry Research in the Department of Pharmacy & Pharmacology” will facilitate replacement of ageing spectroscopy equipment to produce a state-of-the-art facility boosting research productivity and enhancing the competitiveness of one of the premier medicinal chemistry groups in the UK.
Are US and European plovers really birds of a feather?
The Kentish-Snowy Plover, a small shorebird found in the US and Europe, is suffering from an identity crisis after scientists at the Universities of Bath and Sheffield found genetic evidence that the populations are, in fact, separate species.
Learning & Teaching
Launch of Student Services Centre
The new Student Services Centre in 4W was opened on Wednesday 21 October by Vice-Chancellor Glynis Breakwell, at an event attended by staff from across the campus. The Centre is designed to integrate and improve the support for UK and international students and to increase the help given to all staff who are supporting students.
Completion of Library refurbishment project
The Library refurbishment was a project undertaken by BUCS, Estates and the Library. It was completed to budget and in time for the start of the new 2009 academic year. The three project leaders - Rod Angood, Director of Computing Services;Gavin Rea, Deputy Librarian; and John Still, Estates Client Project Manager - called the project "a triumph for inter-departmental collaboration" and would like to thank everyone who was involved. It was an excellent example of a well-organised effort. Well done!
Academic writing coaching now available to all students
The University now has two Royal Literary Fund Fellows, Trevor Day and Jeremy Seal, who can assist students on a one-to-one basis, by helping them to analyse and craft their writing so that it communicates with greater force, clarity and precision. Although students have priority, time-permitting, the RLF Fellows are happy to work with staff members on a confidential basis to address their own writing issues.
Pilot Sabbatical Leave Scheme - call for applications
Individuals wishing to apply for sabbatical leave should submit an application for sabbatical leave via their Head of Department/School by 27 November.
Students
Business student gives children’s charity a fresh new look
Louise Billington used the rebranding skills she’d learnt on her Women into Enterprise business course to help revamp the website of a children’s charity.
Eco Ironman shows that being green doesn’t have to slow you down
Jon Alexander, who is studying a part-time MSc in Responsibility & Business Practice, has completed the world’s first Eco Ironman triathlon - and in a very good time. He competed in his first Ironman riding a second-hand bamboo bike and wearing a limestone-based wetsuit and eco running shoes made from recycled fibres.
Chem Eng students win engineering challenge
At the end of September a team of Bath Chemical Engineering students beat participants from Exeter, Cambridge, Imperial, Nottingham, Surrey, Loughborough and Birmingham to win first place in this year’s ExxonMobil Engineering Challenge (south). Tom Kolaczkowski, Zoe Wood, and Lars Lückoff were awarded first prize and brought home £500 for the Chemical Engineering Students Association (CESA), as well as a trophy and a cuddly ExxonMobil tiger.
Alumni
University donors thanked at Charter Day celebrations
Last Saturday, the University held its annual Charter Day, to recognise all those who have so generously made gifts to the University during the past year. More than 1,000 alumni, friends, former staff, companies and charitable trusts were invited.
Alumni get behind the scenes tour
A group of twenty Bath alumni recently got the opportunity to have a special private tour of Bath Masonic Lodge, a beautiful listed building tucked away in Bath’s historic centre. The Alumni Office organise a number of special events for Bath graduates every year.
Dean meets Bath alumni in Shanghai
As part of a week-long trip to China, Gary Hawley, Dean & Medlock Chair of Engineering, hosted a reception for alumni in the vibrant city of Shanghai. Over 40 alumni gathered to hear news about the University and the latest research taking place here. Other alumni reunions took place in Hong Kong and Beijing.
Electronic & Electrical Engineers 40th Reunion
The Vice-Chancellor, Glynis Breakwell, took the opportunity to meet 26 alumni, former staff and their guests at the Saturday night dinner held at the Francis Hotel during a recent alumni reunion weekend. Several attendees - both alumni and former staff - indicated over the weekend that they intend to contribute to the Hertzian Fund which provides scholarships for Electronic & Electrical Engineering students. Previous generous donations of alumni have to date funded seven undergraduate scholarships.
Thank you to the MBA Class of 1990
When a group of MBA graduates came back to campus this summer to celebrate the 20th anniversary of starting their course in Bath, they decided to fund a scholarship to help a new full-time MBA student.
Launch of new University of Bath alumni marketing group
Richard Elliott, Professor of Marketing and Consumer Research and Dean of the School of Management, welcomed senior marketing professionals to the first meeting of the University of Bath Marketing Alumni Group in London. Bath alumnus Nick Hynes presented 'Online marketing: from zero to hero', which tracked the rise of internet advertising. The group is planning how to share best practice in the future.
Information
Swap Shop wiki - save on your departmental budget!
Does your department need to get rid of something that might be useful to another department? Why not use the Purchasing’s Swap Shop wiki to swap it (or possibly just give it to them!)
Printing and photocopying in your department
The University is currently reviewing departmental printing and photocopying. Please could you complete a short five-minute survey sharing your views about current provision. This will provide an opportunity for your input into future requirements.
Private flu vaccinations for staff
The University Medical Centre (UMC) is able to offer private flu vaccinations at a cost of £15 to University staff who do not automatically qualify for a vaccination for free from their registered GP. Flu Clinics will be held on various dates throughout October and November. Please note the jabs are only available to staff who are not registered patients of the UMC.
Research volunteers wanted
- Judge how well six scenarios describe privacy (5-minute survey)
- School for Health researcher David Moore is offering £5 to all staff and students who volunteer to participate in an experiment which takes no more than one hour and involves computerised reaction time tasks, questionnaires, and a mildly painful heat or pressure sensation.
- Want to vent about a privacy violation that kept you up at night? Fill out our 10-minute survey and tell us how you feel!
Jobs
Vacant posts: www.bath.ac.uk/jobs
In the media
- Chris Budd (Mathematics) appeared on BBC4's TV show, It's only a theory, explaining the mysteries of chaos theory with the aid of a double pendulum and took questions from the panel of comedians about it.
- Roger Eatwell (ESML) was quoted in article about the BNP in The Times and then was interviewed on BBC Radio 4's The World Tonight and News Hour on the BBC World Service, about Nick Griffin's appearance on Question Time.
- Yukteshwar Kumar (ESML) recently had an article about 'Chinese society and corruption' published on Sify.com, a popular Indian news web site.
- Leon Watts (Computer Science) talked about the way indivdiuals and organisations communicate via computer in an article about Google Wave in New Scientist.
- RepRap, the 3D printer (Adrian Bowyer, Mechanical Engineering) was mentioned in an article about gadgets in The Independent.
- Clever car - Compact Low Emission Vehicle for Urban Transport - Mechanical Engineering) was described at length on cartoday.com, South Africa's leading motoring website.
Training & development
- VAT - the basics 30 October
- Intellectual property 4 November
- Project Management (limited spaces) 13 November
- Extra date for GTA/PGR intensive teaching course 24 November
- ILM Level 2 team leading award January-February 2010
- CMS training courses
- Staff Development programme | Download PDF to print
- e-Learning staff development programme
- Monthly learning & teaching paper lunches
Forthcoming lectures & conferences
Public lectures programme
The new programme of free lectures open for staff, students and the general public is now available online.
Assisted dying: rights, choices and palliative care
Lord Joel Joffe CBE will present the first lecture in a new series of open events addressing major global issues and challenges. The lecture will take place on Tuesday 27 October. Free tickets: S.D.Willmott@bath.ac.uk
Public Lecture: The Painted Garden
Gardeners and art lovers are invited to look at the history of gardening through a virtual tour of some of the greatest art galleries in the world in a public lecture on Wednesday 28 October.
What's on
More details - www.bath.ac.uk/whats-on/
Monday 26
13:15 PM Effective applications
13:15 PM Mars presentation
17:15 PM Numerical reasoning test only
18:30 PM Deloitte presentation
18:30 PM Mott MacDonald presentation
Tuesday 27
10:45 AM Academic Assembly Chair's Coffee Time
12:15 PM Mid week Eucharist/HC Service
12:45 PM Oxfam lunch
13:15 PM How to write a good CV - advice/clinic
18:15 PM Research in the World: open lecture and discussion
18:30 PM Aptitude tests
18:30 PM IBM presentation
19:15 PM Films: Views of contemporary Latin America
19:30 PM Frank Lloyd Wright: American superstar architect
Wednesday 28
13:15 PM Interview skills, applications & inter-personal skills
13:15 PM Psychology Postgraduate Research Open Day
17:15 PM The painted garden
17:30 PM Procter & Gamble presentation
18:00 PM Wooden horse race charity fundraiser
19:30 PM Of time and the city
19:30 PM Personal elegy & the spirit of the age
Thursday 29
12:15 PM The final year of a PhD
13:15 PM Law for non-lawyers
13:15 PM Training & Development Agency for Schools (TDA) Presentation
13:15 PM The Bath Award - information session
16:15 PM Global uncertainties & security seminar
17:15 PM Verbal reasoning test only
18:00 PM Re-Readings - workshop for instrument players
18:30 PM Metaswitch Networks presentation
Friday 30
13:15 PM E-tray skills for assessment centres
13:15 PM UBS placement presentation
14:15 PM CV workshop
20:00 PM Latin Dance Party
Saturday 31
10:00 AM Making large scale work - 3-day course
19:30 PM BUSU Arts Societies - Show in a Week!
Arts
Full details: www.bath.ac.uk/icia
Concerts and Performances:
Vauxhall Pleasure | ICIA Arts Theatre | Saturday 24 October
A multi-layered piece, Vauxhall Pleasure features a live chamber ensemble, recorded sound and visual projections, and is inspired by one of London’s busiest road junctions which stands on the former site of Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens.
BUSU Arts Societies - Show in a Week! | ICIA Arts Theatre | Saturday 31 October
Put together over the course of one week, this is a spectacular themed showcase of the various talents of the Students' Union's arts societies.
Films:
Of Time and The City (12) | Lecture Theatre 3WN 2.1 | 28 October
Terence Davies returns to his native Liverpool and to his filmmaking roots to capture a sense of the city today and its influences on him growing up in the late 40s and early 50s. ( Dir Terence Davies, UK 2008, 74 mins)
Exhibitions:
Lucy Harrison - Remains ICIA Art Space 2 | Wednesday 14 October - Friday 18 December
Remains is a new body of work which explores demolition sites and brings together material from East London, East Germany and the University of Bath campus. Harrison’s work combines photographs, observations and chance encounters with published documents.
Workshops:
Re-Readings University Hall | Thursday 29 October, 6pm-8pm
Composer Paul Whitty leads the second of two sessions introducing the ideas and processes involved in the making of Vauxhall Pleasure on 24 Oct. A workshop for instrumental players exploring how pre-existing music scores can be used as stimulus for experimentation, improvisation and composition.
Samba Drumming | Studio 1, ICIA Arts Complex | 28 October & 4 November, 6pm-8pm
A fun activity for everyone. Learn the infectious rhythms of Samba using drums and other percussion.
Making Large Scale Work | Studio 2, ICIA Arts Complex | 31 October, 1 & 14 November, 10am-4pm
Use hand-building techniques to produce large pots or sculptural pieces for the garden or interiors.
Sport
Global search begins for new Director of Sport
The University is recruiting a new director following the departure of former head Ged Roddy MBE to take up a role with
the Football Premier League.
Adverts detailing the high profile role have been placed as far afield as Australia to ensure the best possible candidates are found for this crucial position.
Funeral service for David Burnside
A funeral service for David Burnside, who was Head of Football Development at TeamBath until his retirement in February, will be held in Downend on Wednesday 28 October.
Versatility Netball - Join the league!
People of all abilities are invited to play in the Versatility Netball League, for men and women, this winter. Matches will run continuously on Monday nights throughout the winter. Versatility netball means that anyone can play any position they choose by swapping with another member from their team.
Kids invited to join the Tribe this half-term
A wide range of fun TeamBath Tribe half-term holiday camps are available at the Sports Training Village next week.
Almost 5,000 spectators watched last week’s feast of top-flight international sport at the University. Thanks to all staff involved in looking after our 'guests'.