science wire

Engineering the Future
The UK needs to recruit more bright, young engineers - but what do young people really think engineering involves? Tim Minshall decided to find out.  The only time many people see the word 'engineering' is when there are delayed trains and bus replacement services.

Towards the ’holy grail’ of anticoagulant drugs
New Cambridge spin-out raises $11 million in funding to develop revolutionary new drug for thrombosis, which causes heart attacks and strokes This is the most exciting drug candidate I have see

Born to rule: two public talks look at royal births of the past
The hype surrounding the birth of a royal baby is nothing new. Two public lectures (18 and 25 June) will explore the Tudor and Stuart obsession with producing a male heir.  Henry VIII was obsessed by the need to produce a male heir and, ideally, a spare to take the ruling Tudor line forward.

Large Hadron ’insider’
In a recent talk for TEDx, theoretical physicist Professor Ben Allanach explored the research he undertook during the two years he spent working on the Large Hadron Collider at CERN in Switzerland.

Literacy, not income, key to improving public health in India
New research suggests public health in developing countries may be better improved by reducing illiteracy rather than raising average income.

Cambridge named Academic Centre of Excellence in Cybersecurity Research
No other academic institution in the whole of Europe has the mix of skills, knowledge and creative people to do this as effectively.

Cambridge unveils plans to become Retrofit City
A new network of public and private sector organisations aims to carry out retrofits across Cambridge, bringing down carbon emissions, cutting energy costs, and helping to make it the first city to meet the UK Climate Change Act carbon reduction target of 80% by 2050.

Genetic studies lead to clinical trial of new treatment for type 1 diabetes
Our aim is to use aldesleukin to rebalance the immune system so that patients can significantly reduce the number of insulin injections needed to just once or twice a week by slowing the progression of the disease. Dr Frank Waldron-Lynch from the University of Cambridge A clinical trial is underway for a potential new treatment for type 1 diabetes that could eventually mean patients are able to reduce insulin treatment from several times a day to only once or twice a week.

How to care for carers
Carers' week (10-16 June) will focus on the 6.5 million people who are carers. Many are providing palliative care for a relative or friend at home. A new tool has been developed to identify carers' needs during end-of-life care at home and enable them to work more smoothly with healthcare professionals.  In end-of-life care, carers often find themselves entering a world they are unfamiliar with - and find themselves coping with medications and equipment they know little about.

Clearing the BAR to oral vaccines
A new technology under development by an academic-industry partnership protects oral vaccines from destruction by the digestive system.

Democratising design
A new simulator could help the elderly or disabled users engage more effectively with electronic devices, including websites, smartphones and digital television.

New Centre will bring together frontier physics research and the needs of industry
A centrepiece building for exploratory 'blue skies' research and industrial partnerships in the physical sciences will be created at the University of Cambridge to investigate new approaches to fundamental science and to solving global challenges, such as natural resource demand.

Researchers to explore the role of wild birds in the spread of avian flu viruses
Knowing where bird populations fly will ultimately allow us to assess what risk might be for an avian flu virus, particularly a deadly one, in one region being taken by a wild bird as it migrates to another region in Asia.

Beachcombing for early humans in Africa
From the earliest modern humans to the present day, our species has evolved dramatically in both biological and behavioural terms. What forces prompted these momentous changes? We have many human remains - about 700 fragments - mostly dating from between 12,000 and 7,000 years ago, which match the age of this beach.

Our ambiguous world of words
Ambiguity in language poses the greatest challenge when it comes to training a computer to understand the written word. Now, new research aims to help computers find meaning. If we want the computer to really understand text, a new way of processing language is needed Stephen Clark The verb run has 606 different meanings.

Flexible opals
A synthetic material which mimics the brightest and most vivid colours in nature, and changes colour when twisted or stretched, has been developed by researchers at the University of Cambridge, and could have important applications in the security, textile and sensing industries.

MRC and Wellcome Trust invest £24m in Cambridge obesity institute
This joint initiative from the MRC and Wellcome Trust will provide exciting new opportunities to better understand the fundamental causes of disease such as obesity and diabetes and translate that knowledge into improved therapies Professor Stephen O'Rahilly The Medical Research Council (MRC) and Wellcome Trust are to invest £24m into obesity research led by the Wellcome Trust-MRC Institute of Metabolic Science (IMS).

Welsh Twitter: capturing language change in real time
A database of Welsh tweets is being used to identify the characteristics of an evolving language.

The drama of armour at the Fitzwilliam Museum
A knight on horseback in full armour will be the star attraction at an event tomorrow (Wednesday, 29 May) at the Fitzwilliam Museum which boasts one of the country's top collections of armoury. 

African Horse Sickness: mapping how a deadly disease might spread in the UK
A disease lethal to horses, until now confined to hot countries, could arrive in the UK. New research creates a picture of its possible spread and pinpoints the area that would be worse hit.  Our work demonstrates that there is no place for complacency about the ability of the virus to spread here.

Workers’ strikes and Facebook likes
Research on Egypt is looking at how to read revolution and grass roots opposition through social media.

Smart drugs - smart decisions?
What are the ethical implications for society of allowing healthy people to take 'smart drugs' to enhance their performance? Barbara Sahakian will discuss the issue at Hay this weekend.

Can you put a price on health?
As health services strive to improve quality and reduce costs, researchers study the benefits - and the pitfalls - of 'pay for performance' in hospitals.

Captain Cook’s Maori paddles: an artefact of encounter
Maori paddles presented to Captain Cook's crew on their first voyage of discovery capture the spirit of a first encounter between two cultures. they enter'd into a traffick with our people... giving in exchange their padddles William Monkhouse, Ship's Surgeon, HMS Endeavour Living in a multicultural, globalised world, it's hard to imagine the moment when different cultures first met, or a time when people's knowledge of each other's worlds was nonexistent.

The un-Limited Edition
Emerging new digital editions at Cambridge are effecting a sea-change in the nature of the scholarly edition, radicalising access to vital source materials and opening up new possibilities for research.

Shedding light on forests
By using advanced imaging technology, scientists are able to map on an unprecedentedly large scale - and in remarkably accurate detail - what is happening to these precious resources worldwide. 

South African crime-fiction wave hits Cambridge
Amid high-profile, real-life murder investigations and growing concerns about public safety, a new breed of crime fiction is sweeping South Africa, as one of its leading writers will tell the University of Cambridge this week.

Experts advocate for stronger measures to protect trees and other plants from pests and pathogens
Ash dieback, caused by the Chalara fungus, prompts re-evaluation of current protocols to protect UK trees and other plants; taskforce recommends threats to plant health be taken as seriously as animal disease The UK needs to be better prepared for threats to plant health.

Female conversion to Islam in Britain examined in unique research project
A ground-breaking report examining the experiences of nearly 50 British women of all ages, ethnicities, backgrounds and faiths (or no faith) - who have all converted to Islam - was launched in London yesterday by the University of Cambridge.

Major motion pictures from our prehistoric past
Cambridge archaeologists are illuminating some of the oldest graphic art of the past, by applying some of the most advanced graphic technology of the present.

Views of the landscape
In a talk on Monday (20 May 2013) Dr Simon Nightingale will explore how painterly interpretations of the countryside were embedded into the literature of agricultural improvement in a way that might s

What is English?
English speakers who are 18 or under use the word 'like' in conversation over five times as often as speakers who are over 70; 'because' is the most misspelled English word globally; the word 'love' is said and written over six times more frequently than the word 'hate'.

The artificial pancreas that keeps tabs on sugar
Development of a sophisticated artificial pancreas holds potential to transform the lives of patients with Type 1 diabetes.

Creativity that counts
In a digital world, literature, art and music are often the result of collaborative efforts. But who owns what, and can copyright law cope? New research aims to find out. Authorship remains an important concept in the digital age, though there is real diversity in its meaning.

Behind the curtain: a history of Russian intelligence
Ahead of his talk at the Hay Festival, Jonathan Haslam discusses his forthcoming history of Soviet intelligence organisations, revealing, among other things, just how unprepared for Operation Barbarossa Stalin was in 1941.

Clickable history
Geographic information systems - once limited to the domain of physical geographers - are emerging as a promising tool to study the past, as researchers are discovering for medieval history. What's exciting about GIS is it allows us to move into a different dimension that frees maps from being static snapshots Nicholas de Lange Almost nothing persists to reveal the existence of Jews in the Byzantine Empire - no buildings or synagogues, coins or seals, pots or pans, charms or amulets.

’Polluted’ stellar graveyard gives glimpse of our Solar System after Sun’s implosion
Research indicates the existence of Earth-like planets in dead solar system through latest chemical analysis techniques Is there another recipe for life? The chemistry can tell us Jay Farihi By chemically sampling the atmospheres of two dead stars in the Hyades cluster 150 light years away, researchers at Cambridge and NASA/ESA's Hubble Space Telescope have discovered the building blocks for Earth-sized planets formed around the stars while they lived.

Has the nation reached its sell-by date?
Dr Malachi McIntosh, Lecturer in Postcolonial and Related Literatures, wonders what Britishness is, as Granta magazine publishes its influential, once-per-decade 'Best of Young British Novelists' list.

Climate change: can nature help us?
Hard-engineered sea walls have a limited life span. Could saltmarshes and mangroves offer a different approach to buffering against storm surges and coastal erosion? Do we really want to lose these buffers and face increasing costs of sea wall maintenance? Iris Moller Flooding, landslides, crop failure, water shortages.

Mood-tracking app paves way for pocket therapy
An Android app which keeps tabs on users' mood swings and works out what might be causing them has been developed by researchers, with implications for psychological therapy and improving well-being. Behind the scenes, smartphones are constantly collecting data that can turn them into a key medical and psychological tool.

Cinematic geographies of Battersea
Research is combining film 'archaeology' with digital technology to create a new approach to 'sites of memory' for the London borough of Battersea.

Fostering understanding between the Islamic world and the west
Frankie Martin, MPhil student in the Department of Social Anthropology will speak tonight at the showing of a documentary Journey into America: The Challenge of Islam .

I’m a glass half-full kind of person: Gareth Evans gives public talks on war and peace
In a series of public talks over the next ten days, the distinguished Australian politician and university chancellor Gareth Evans will look at some of the most pressing issues that face us in avoiding the horrors of war between and within states.

The world of Francis Willughby: the man who compiled the first ornithology
In his short life Francis Willughby immersed himself in the study of natural history yet he has been overshadowed by more famous peers.

'Dirty dozen' invasive species threaten UK
Effective management of invasive species depends on rapid detection and control Belinda Gallardo Parts of the UK are at greater risk of invasion by non-native aquatic species than previously thought, according to new research. The first to include human factors in models used to predict where invasive species will arrive and spread, the study shows the Thames, Anglian and Humber river basins are most vulnerable.

The first book of fashion
Fashion conveys complex messages.

Forging connections: digital humanities in Cambridge and beyond
To launch our month-long focus on digital humanities research, Professor John Rink and Professor Simon Goldhill - Co-Directors of Cambridge's Digital Humanities Network - explain how digital tools are transforming scholarship in Cambridge.

Crime and punishment: a 19th-century love affair
The violence of everyday life in 19th-century Europe - including murder most foul, handsome bandits, wicked women and huge crowds at executions - is being revealed in all its bloody detail by Cambridge University Library.

Pirate utopias: a history of digital distribution
How the 'Hacker ethic' almost killed the music industry, then helped save it, but might spell the end of ownership as we know it.

’Mid-sized’ firms key to UK manufacturing
A new report suggests that global production shift to Asia may have "run its course" and points to "undervalued" mid-sized manufacturing firms as essential to UK economic regrowth It is imperat

Black, white and red all over
The latest research into the emergence of printmaking technology in early modern Europe is challenging accepted thinking about the development of colour printing.

Conversations with Cornel West
Don't miss the chance to hear the controversial commentator Cornel West in dialogue with other great minds on politics, philosophy and literature, touching in particular on issues of race and identity.   Our future is greater than our past.

On the fly: African summer school on insect neuroscience
A programme created by Cambridge researchers is teaching African scientists how insects can be powerful yet inexpensive model systems in neuroscientific research.

Open Access
Introduction and background Open Access to research publications involves making them freely available online rather than charging readers to read and use them. Open Access to research data makes data more widely available for re-use by others to support research, innovation and wider public use.

Down but not out
Most business start-ups fail. But countless failed entrepreneurs go on to establish further enterprises.

On the fly: summer school in Africa teaches insect neuroscience
A programme created by Cambridge researchers is teaching African scientists how insects can be powerful yet inexpensive model systems in neuroscientific research.

New conceptions: single mothers by sperm donation
Sophie Zadeh, a PhD candidate in the Centre for Family Research, is contributing to a new study of the well-being of single mothers by sperm donation and their children.

New device could make diagnosing disease as simple as breathing
A range of diseases and conditions, from asthma to liver disease, could be diagnosed and monitored quickly and painlessly just by breathing, using gas sensing technology developed by a Cambridge spin-out.

From EDSAC to Raspberry Pi: 75 years of "computers that work"
Cambridge's Computer Lab marks its 75th anniversary this month, celebrating a spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship that has taken it from the age of vast mainframes to its modern day place at the heart of silicon fen.

’My dear old friend’: Darwin the man revealed as 40-year correspondence published online
The 40-year friendship of Charles Darwin and Joseph Hooker, the most significant and scientifically important of Darwin's life, can now be explored by anyone in the world with access to the Internet. No single set of letters was more important to Darwin, or is more important now, than those exchanged with Hooker over 40 years.

Salmonella colonises the gut
Researchers plan to use data collected to develop vaccines to control Salmonella in animals and humans Salmonella is a major cause of human diarrhoeal infections and is frequently acquired from chickens, pigs and cattle, or their products. Around 94 million such infections occur in people worldwide each year, with approximately 50,000 cases in the UK per annum.

New system to combat online banking fraud
A security solution which protects against the most serious threat to online banking customers, responsible for millions in annual losses, is being rolled out across Europe by a Cambridge University spin-out.

Resurgence of endangered deer in Patagonian ’Eden’ highlights conservation success
New research shows that collaborative approaches to conservation can give hope to endangered species such as Chilean national icon the Huemul deer.

Life on the divide: the Buriad people and the world’s longest border
A major project - Where Rising Powers Meet - looks at life along the border that separates Russia, China and Mongolia.

Click to save the nation’s digital memory
Billions of web pages from millions of websites, as well as public Facebook posts and tweets, will be preserved for time immemorial from tomorrow by Cambridge University Library and five other major libraries.

Language Sciences: a strategic initiative
Unified Administrative Service The purpose of the UAS: To support and enable the University's mission to contribute to society through the pursuit of education, learning and research at the highest international levels of excellence.

New system to improve DNA sequencing
A sensing system developed at Cambridge is being commercialised in the UK for use in rapid, low-cost DNA sequencing, which would make the prediction and diagnosis of disease more efficient, and individualised treatment more affordable.

Facing up to cancer
Gavin Garland's experiences of confronting cancer as a teenager influenced his choice of career as a molecular biologist working on the mechanisms of lymphoma.  Now he's running the Virgin London Mara

Last letter of Captain Scott finally revealed in full - 101 years on
A letter written by the dying Captain Scott - one of only two remaining in private hands - can be revealed in full for the first time after being acquired by the Scott Polar Research Institute at the University of Cambridge.

Low-cost LEDs for saving energy and improving health
Gallium nitride has been described as "the most important semiconductor since silicon" and is used in energy-saving LED lighting.

David MacKay appointed Regius Professor of Engineering
Acclaimed author of "Sustainable Energy Without The Hot Air" will be first holder of Royally-appointed engineering post at Cambridge.

The Criminal Defence of Marital Coercion
Dr Findlay Stark examines the defence of marital coercion, which recently hit the headlines with the trials of Vicky Pryce and former Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change Chris Huhne for perverting the course of justice over an attempt to transfer penalty points for a speeding offence.

Lessons from history: how Europe did (and didn’t) grow rich
The Industrial Revolution is seen as the spark that lit Europe's economic prosperity.  In her analysis of markets over many hundreds of years, economist Dr Victoria Bateman presents a compelling argum

Thatcher Archive reveals deep divisions on the road to Falklands War
The Falklands War - the conflict that defined much of Margaret Thatcher's political career and legacy - dominates the release of her personal papers for 1982 at the Churchill Archives Centre from Monday (March 25).

Roads could help rather than harm the environment
Many roads are causing irreparable damage to nature but properly planned roads could actually help the environment It's 'location, location, location'.

Big ideas in small packages
A video project demonstrates how academic research can be communicated in an engaging format that puts across complex ideas in a nutshell.

Face of the future rears its head
Meet Zoe: a digital talking head which can express human emotions on demand with "unprecedented realism" and could herald a new era of human-computer interaction.

Mammals vs. dinosaurs
Were dinosaurs really the most exciting and interesting creatures ever to roam the planet? Zoologist Nick Crumpton tells the Cambridge Science Festival that it's high time other prehistoric animals stepped out from the shadows.

The land of make-believe
Children with autism are often described as visual thinkers, so by externalising the mental image somewhere else in their reality, it may help them pick up the concept of imaginative play Zhen

A portrait of a banking calamity
For many years Paul Kosmetatos worked in the City of London's financial sector, where he became fascinated by the unfolding of periodic crises.  Today he's doing a PhD at Cambridge University, looking

Ancient worm provides unexpected evolutionary link in our early history
Fossils of a creature that lived on the ocean floor 505 million years ago have been identified by scientists as those of a previously-unknown marine worm, now named as  Spartobranchus tenuis .

Plants and patterning: how shapes are made
A Cambridge Science Festival lecture on Wednesday (13 March 2013) will look at how plants grow through repeating patterns and discuss what we can learn from them in developing smart materials.  

Cambridge in Sharjah: Building the foundations of research
Parody as resistance, religious broadcasting in the Arab world and China's relationship with the Gulf will all come under scrutiny as academics from Cambridge's Centre of Islamic Studies gather in the Gulf on March 10.

From shape-shifting to therapy
The latest research into the intricate processes that let substances into and out of cells will help to lay the foundations for the next generation of therapies for major diseases. Multidrug transporters are responsible for producing chemotherapy resistance in cancers and pathogenic micro-organisms.

Darwin’s ’forgotten women’ celebrated on International Women's Day
Forgotten female correspondents of Charles Darwin; women who all made substantive contributions to nineteenth century society, are to be brought from the shadows to global attention in celebration of International Women's Day today (March 8).

7,000BC: The dawn of cinema brought to life at Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology
Some of the world's oldest engravings of the human form - prehistoric rock art from the Italian Alps - have been brought to life by the latest digital technology at Cambridge Unviersity's Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology.

Building a better battery
A new battery technology provides double the energy storage at lower cost than the batteries that are used in handheld electronics, electric vehicles, aerospace and defence.

Totalitarianism, violence and the silent majority
The 'horrifying genius' of Soviet totalitarianism and its ability to control and quell protest will be examined tonight by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Anne Applebaum.

Are we ready to meet ET?
Once only science fiction, astronomers are now finding hundreds of planetary systems beyond our own. Given recent discoveries through space exploration, it is entirely feasible that we may soon discover the existence of extra-terrestrial life forms on other planets.

Mongolian life stories database launched online
An online database launched today, 5 March, provides an oral history of Mongolia, as told by 600 Mongolian citizens who look back over their lives during the nation's turbulent recent history.

Acts of creativity, audiences and us
A conference in Cambridge next month will explore the notion of performance as a dynamic means of looking at the complex interactions between works of art and audiences -  both real and imagined, past and present - in a digital age.

Re J - Uncertain Perpetrators in Child Protection Cases
In Re J (Children) [2013] UKSC 9 the Supreme Court considered a child protection case involving a mother who had previously been suspected of causing significant harm to her child, and was now looking after different children in a new relationship.

Energy efficiency and human behaviour
Dwellings are heterogeneous. A decarbonisation strategy that works well for one may not work for another." —Scott Kelly Improving the energy efficiency of the UK's existing building stock is vital to meeting the UK's climate change mitigation targets. Currently at least 30% of all end use Green House Gas (GHG) emissions are from the UK residential sector.

Cities and how we live in them
Richard Sennett argues that learning how to live in cities made up from disparate groups represents the biggest challenge facing society today." There is debate about which of the world's cities is the largest because it all depends on the criteria you decide to use.

Cambridge unites to promote energy reduction

Retribution and restoration: Bosnia on trial
In the current social reality, perpetrators enjoy many more benefits offered by the judicial system than the victims." —Representative from the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia.

Schools Liaison Officer Diary: Selwyn in Scotland 2013

World first for fly research
Until now a comprehensive teaching programme to guide students through the often daunting first few steps has been surprisingly absent." —John Roote The first ever basic training package to teach students and scientists how to best use the fruit fly, Drosophila, for research has been published.

Meet a flawed hero in Greek drama brought alive
—Professor Patrick Boyde A dramatisation taken from one of the greatest stories of all time - Homer's Iliad - is to be performed next week at St John's College.

Breakthrough study models dying stars in a lab
If a fridge magnet with this strength was sitting in the Science Museum in central London, everyone with a pacemaker would have to move outside the M25." —Matt Pang A team of scientists has successfully reproduced conditions in one of the most hostile environments in the galaxy, enabling them to find out more about how atoms behave in these extreme settings.

39 new US Gates Cambridge Scholars selected

Tool predicts incidence of psychosis
Early intervention is one of the most effective ways to help young people with these types of mental health disorders." —Dr James Kirkbride from the University of Cambridge's Department

Out of the ashes of Empire
—Dr Barak Kushner Barack Obama's resolution to kick off foreign policy for his second term with a tour of the Asia-Pacific region, at the end of 2012, was testimony not only to that area's growing economic importance, but also to the  increasing significance of its politics.

Cambridge named one of Wellcome Trust’s Centres for Global Health Research
The strengthening of Africa's indigenous scientific research base is crucial to the identification of its disease control and public health priorities, to the discovery and successful application

Global economic institute creates partnership with Cambridge economists
The support which went into the setting up of the institute is recognition of the quality and importance of our research." —Sanjeev Goyal Economists at the University of Cambridg

Pembroke College Summer Programme: Writers and Spies and the New City
In summer as in term time, Pembroke will provide the elegant and serene context for exceptional and exhilarating conversations." The summers of 2013 and 2014 will see three exciting additions to Pembroke College's already impressive portfolio of summer programmes.

The worm that turned east
We believe the crusaders brought the parasite with them when they travelled to the eastern Mediterranean with fish tapeworms in their intestines." —Dr Piers Mitchell When the crusaders of the Order of St John first built a 35-latrine toilet complex in the medieval city of Acre in the Kingdom of Jerusalem, they could scarcely have considered that researchers would be sifting through its contents 900 years later.

Historic rivals join forces to save 1,000 years of Jewish history
In the late 19th century, Oxford's Bodleian Library and Cambridge University Library were rivals in trying to acquire materials from the Cairo Genizah.

Cambridge’s first hands-on science centre opens

Natural killer cells played a vital role in human evolution
Humans were subject to particular selection pressures that prompted the immune system to find a compromise between immune defence and reproduction." Scientists suggest that genetic adaptations to the human immune system contributed to the success of early humans in migrating out of Africa around 800,000 years ago.  An opinion article, published last month , argues that a genetic signature of these adaptations is evident in modern human populations in the form of a wide diversity of receptors in the natural killer (NK) cells which are a vital component of the immune system.

Women trafficked into crime in UK are imprisoned without support or protection
I did not understand what was going on. I was crying... I just wanted to be able to tell them everything - I wanted them to listen and understand." —Victim of sex trafficking Most foreign national women trafficked into the UK and forced to commit offences are given custodial sentences without help or support if arrested – despite being victims of often horrifying crime and abuse themselves, says a Cambridge-led report.

Jesus College Choir to bring music to some of India’s poorest children

Cambridge University to host free teachers conference this April

Honorary Degree nominations for 2013

Finding malaria’s weak spot
The focus of many vaccine efforts is the molecules on the surfaces of both parasite and red cell that are instrumental in recognition and penetration." —Dr Teresa Tiffert After over a decade of research into malaria, biologists Teresa Tiffert and Virgilio Lew at the Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience found their efforts to observe a key stage of the infection cycle severely hindered by the limits of available technology.

Building Bridges with HE Partnership

New Master elected for Downing College

Sleeping sickness by stealth
This may finally be one route to penetrating the stealth cloak of Trypanosoma brucei." —Professor Mark Field Stealth is a well-known concept in military tactics. Almost since the invention of radar, the hunt began for counter-technologies to hide aircraft and missiles from detection - most successfully by modifying the composition and shape of surfaces to confound detection.

Cambridge uncovers the mysteries of science – with a little help from Sherlock Holmes

Dig into archaeology with actor and presenter Tony Robinson

HE+ consortium launched in Herefordshire

After the flood: harnessing the power of mud
Both types of approach to coastal defence can be brought together to reduce risks and provide a long-term and robust response to the threat of catastrophic coastal flooding." —Tom Spenc

2013 Slade Lectures unveiled

A new chapter opens in the study of the Assyrian empire
There is a huge amount to be learnt about the Assyrian civilisation from investigation of the thousands of Assyrian sites in north east Iraq, which was the hub of the empire." —Dr John

‘switch’ that turns on aggressive infection in superbug
Many people with cystic fibrosis will develop Pseudomonas aeruginosa during their lives and it can cause chronic infection, which reduces lung function and therefore life expectancy." —Dr Janet Allen, Director of Research at the Cystic Fibrosis Trust University of Cambridge researchers have discovered how an antibiotic-resistant superbug exploits oxygen-limited conditions in the lungs of patients with severe respiratory disease to thrive.

University Sermon on ‘Epiphanies of the Human: Faith and Migration’
Rowlands, who is currently Lecturer in Theology and Ministry at King's College, London and also a Research Associate of St Edmund's College, works at the interface of Political, Moral and Practical Theologies.

University gives approval for the first phase of the North West Cambridge development
The governing body of the University of Cambridge, the Regent House, has given formal approval for the commencement of the first phase of the North West Cambridge development.

Europe pledges one billion euros on graphene as platform for emerging technologies
The integration of these new materials could bring a new dimension to future technologies, creating faster, thinner, stronger, more flexible broadband devices." —Andrea Ferrari T

Researchers join forces against infectious disease
" Combating infectious diseases remains as important as ever. A combination of basic and applied research has led to some extraordinary success stories, such as the eradication of smallpox.

New Principal for Homerton College
Ward is currently Vice Principal for Students and Staff at Royal Holloway College, University of London where he previously served as Dean of Arts.

CASTEP achieves $30 million in sales
When CASTEP came along, for the first time you could learn something about the system before the system is even made." —Mike Payne CASTEP, based on the research of Mike Payne of

Graphene: Taking the wonder-stuff from dream to reality
—Sir Leszek Borysiewicz The Cambridge Graphene Centre will start its activities on February 1 st 2013, with a dedicated facility due to open at the end of the year.

Potted histories
The vitrines are meant to be happened upon as you come and go....

Cambridge Enterprise announces 2012 results
The amount of follow-on funding raised demonstrates the market's confidence in our portfolio companies, and also shows the importance of the early-stage support and funding which Cambridge Enterprise provides." —Tony Raven Cambridge Enterprise works with University inventors and entrepreneurs to get young, high-risk companies to the stage where they can attract outside investment, through mentoring, planning advice and seed funding.

The lost library of Eleonora Duse
The first time I set eyes on Eleonora Duse's books in the library of Murray Edwards I realised I had struck gold" —Dr Anna Sica, University of Palermo With her beauty and talent,

How do smallholder farmers fit into the big picture of world food production?
Small-scale sustainable agriculture may offer a better route out of poverty as well as a path to food sufficiency." —Dr David Nally, University of Cambridge On Monday 28 January

High stress levels found in monkeys forced to spend more time foraging
As forests are fragmented, the howlers become cut off, isolated on forest 'islands' that increasingly lack the fruit which provide an important component of their natural diet." —Jacob

Intel wishes Stephen Hawking a microscopic “Happy Birthday”
This is a very special gift for a very extraordinary scientist and an extraordinary man" —Professor Martin Curley At a ceremony at the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology where Haw

Lord Williams of Oystermouth admitted as Master of Magdalene College

Entries encouraged for Peterhouse Essay Prizes

University repeats success in equality survey
The 2013 Stonewall Workplace Equality Index, the results of which were announced yesterday, ranks the University joint eleventh, the highest placed higher education institution (HEI) ahead of Liverpo

Austerity Britain: it’s déjà vu all over again
The size of the current task most closely resembles that of 1931, when the cuts fell principally on the unemployed." —Duncan Needham, Centre for Financial History In May 2010, Br

Dr Alan Reece 1927 – 2012

Natural disasters, infrastructure and the “new normal”
The talk will examine the threat posed by potential future earthquakes to the water supply of Southern California, or that of hurricanes to New York City." Some of the worst natural disast

“Hello. My name is Joe. I’m 12 years old. I’m standing outside my new placement.”
The young people have given us a unique and personal insight into the emotional impact of entering the care system." —Valerie Dunn The film, which forms part of a new training co

The Sainsbury Laboratory names a new Director
—Ottoline Leyser Leyser, formerly the Associate Director of the Laboratory and also a Professor of Plant Development at the Department of Plant Sciences, said: “This is a really exciting time to be a plant biologist.

The next generation of plastic electronics

Piety in the Renaissance Home
—Abigail Brundin The ground-breaking interdisciplinary project 'Domestic Devotions: The Place of Piety in the Italian Renaissance Home' will aim to demonstrate that religion played a key

Naked Scientists return to the radio this Sunday
We're really looking forward to getting our teeth into this new series.

Food industry giants call for pitches from University inventors
Cambridge and other UK universities are a rich source of innovation and ideas, which have applications across a wide range of industries." —Dr Tim Minshall, Institute for Manufacturing

VetCam 2013 opens for applications

Bella Italia: an Englishman’s adventures abroad
He was also forthright and disputatious, famously arguing that the Odyssey was not the work of Homer but of an unknown female author from Sicily." Samuel Butler (1835-1902) was a man who d

Smarter infrastructure
Wireless sensors are one way to better look after infrastructure, and it's something that industry is interested in doing, but batteries are always the sticking point." —Kenichi Soga

Museum of Zoology wins Heritage Lottery Fund support

Leading the battle to protect the Amazon
" England's wettest year on record. Severe heat waves in Russia. Droughts in the US. The past year has been characterised by extreme weather across the world.

Botanic Garden names new Director
The Botanic Garden is a central and much-loved part of both the University and the wider community." —Beverley Glover Glover, currently Reader in Evolution and Development in the

The remarkable notebook of a 19th-century naturalist
Jenyns used his vicarage at Swaffham Bulbeck on the edge of the Cambridgeshire fens as a base for studying the flora and fauna of the region, as well as its meteorology." The University Mu

Reaching for the stars with Realise Stargazing Evenings
The Institute of Astronomy welcomed the aspiring astronomers to join in their winter programme of observing and talks on 28 th November and 19 th December.

Applications open for Homerton College 2013 Summer Schools

Unlocking nature’s quantum engineering for efficient solar energy
Some of the key issues in current solar cell technologies appear to have been elegantly and rigorously solved by the molecular architecture." —Alex Chin Certain biological systems living in low light environments have unique protein structures for photosynthesis that use quantum dynamics to convert 100% of absorbed light into electrical charge, displaying astonishing efficiency that could lead to new understanding of renewable solar energy, suggests research published today .

New Year recognition for Cambridge people

Can your phone double up as your life-coach?
If the ubiquitous phone in your pocket can also assist with better living in general it's a win/win situation." —Dirk Trossen On January 1 st , millions of people will wake up with their sore heads full of New Year resolutions to achieve more fulfilling, less stressful lives.

The world inside a Spanish globe
The planetarium is sized to fit a child's hand, with instructions designed to be read aloud." —Seb Falk Object Wh.5892 in the University's Whipple Museum of the History of Science is something of an enigma.

Having a Polar Christmas
Looking back at accounts of Christmas celebrations, the diaries of explorers are full of salacious details about the food and drink served on Christmas Day, focusing especially on the quality of

Higher Education – for or against? Exploring the answers with HE Partnership
—Helen Colbran, Ormiston Bushfield Academy "But there's no such thing as a typical student," protests one of the girls from the back of the Jane Harrison Room, Newnham College.

Advice and encouragement delivered by Magdalene College in North Wales