University of Essex in the press...

Below are examples of recent University press and broadcast coverage. Please note that all websites are external and will take you out of the Communications website.

Members of the University community can receive an electronic daily alert with links to press coverage by contacting the Information Systems Services Systems group (e-mail sgq@essex.ac.uk) and asking to be subscribed to presscuttings@essex.ac.uk.

An archive of recent coverage is available online. A full archive of media coverage is also held in the Communications Office.

Broadcast Digest

April 2011

BBC Radio 4 - The Today Programme
Professor Peter Lynn, ISER
Re: The alternative census
An alternative census has been created by Professor Lynn - find out more about it and take part here

Listen to Radio 4's More or Less programme today at 1.30pm and find out more about this alternative census designed by Professor Lynn

March 2011

31 March

BBC 2 Daily Politics Show
Professor Colin Riordan, Vice-Chancellor
Talking about tuition fees with Simon Hughes MP and Aaron Porter, President of the NUS
View the programme here and forward to 05:50.

30 March

BBC Essex Drivetime Show
Dr Ramaswamy Palaniappan, School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering
Re: Power of thought used to make music.
Listen here and forward to 18:28.

29 March

BBC Essex news item
Professor Colin Riordan, Vice-Chancellor
Re: Tuition fees at the University of Essex

24 March

BBC Look East
Coverage of strike action and interview with Dr Tony Rich, Registrar and Secretary
View the coverage here and forward to 17:59.

ITV Anglia
Education Emigration?
ITV Anglia reports on the growing interest in studying aboard. View the clip here.

23 March

BBC Essex
Professor Michael Sherer, Essex Business School
Re: Budget

22 March

BBC Essex
Professor Colin Riordan, Vice-Chancellor
Re: Tuition fee announcement

17 March

BBC Essex
Dr bob Watt, UCU University of Essex Vice President and Pensions Officer (Listen to the interview here - forward to 0:33:12)
Dr Tony Rich, Registrar and Secretary (Listen to the interview here - forward to 1:03:16)
Re: Strike action at University of Essex

12 March

BBC Essex
University of Essex student Masumi Ono
Re: Tsunami in Japan

11 March

BBC Essex
University of Essex student Masumi Ono
Re: Tsunami in Japan

4 March

BBC Radio Five Live
Libya and the uprising against Colonel Gaddafi
Dr Natasha Ezrow from Department of Government and author of Dictators and Dictatorships interviewed on the situation in Libya.
Radio Five Live

February 2011

28 February

BBC Radio 4 - Today programme
Professor Nick Buck, ISER
Re: first findings research from the Understanding Society project.

BBC London - Vanessa Feltz
Dr Maria Iacovou, ISER
Re: family relationships research published using Understanding Society survey

24 February

BBC Essex - Dave Monk Show
Dr Maria Iacovou, ISER
Re: ISER research into married and co-habiting couples and their happiness. Part of a larger item on various aspects of happiness

23 February

BBC Somerset
Professor Peter Lynn, ISER
Re: Measuring Homelessness

21 February

BBC Essex - Ray Clark Breakfast Show
Dr Matt ffytche, Centre for Psychoanalytic Studies
Re: University of dreams project

View all of February's Broadcast digest in the February 2011 archive

Video clips on-line

BBC
Flagship University Building open
Teaching has begun in the new flagship building for the recently created university in Suffolk. University Campus Suffolk (UCS), in Ipswich, was established by the University of East Anglia and the University of Essex last year. View the clip here.

The University of Essex in the Press

April 2011

1 April

University Campus Suffolk announces planned fees for next year
University Campus Suffolk announced plans to raise tuition fees to £8,000 for Bachelor degrees and £7,500 for Foundation degrees yesterday. Professor Mike Saks said that the increase of fees will allow them to deliver innovative initiatives to widen participation, improve support and facilities for students, and build employability into the degree courses on offer.
East Anglian Daily Times
The Independent
Lowestoft Journal
Beccles and Bungay Journal
Ipswich Evening Star
Lowestoft Journal
Great Mercury Mercury

Steep rise in university fees a gamble
Across the country universities are showing their hands in the great fees rise gamble. For places like Oxford and Cambridge charging the maximum is a no-brainer, but institutions like Leeds Metropolitan, and closer to home, Essex, are also going to charge the same. Now UCS in Ipswich has declared that it will be asking students to pay between £7,500 and £8,000 depending on the degree, to study.
East Anglian Daily Times Comment

Research Park under discussion
The University of Essex's new research park will be the topic of discussion at a networking event organised by the Essex Chambers of Commerce. It will be held in the iLab at the University of Essex.
Essex County Standard

Scientists get grant to help cancer fight
The University of Essex has been given a £205,000 grant to research the first signs of breast cancer. It has been funded by Cancer Research UK to investigate the early reversible changes detected in genes linked with breast cancer.
Essex County Standard

VAF windfall wards off job cuts
Colchester Council has revealed it has received £1.25 million from an insurance bond taken out as part of the deal with former builder Banner Holdings. Colchester Council, Essex County Council, the Arts Council and the University of Essex are contributing towards the final bill.
Essex County Standard

Essex Countrywide Business Awards: Meet the Sponsors
Essex Business School is one of the sponsors of the Essex Countrywide Business awards. The University of Essex Business School offers workforce training, business consultancy, knowledge exchange partnerships, research project collaboration and targeted business advice.
Essex County Standard

Aaron has no mercy for Ndaba
University of Essex ABC's Aaron Spencer and Danny Azeez both registered wins when they travelled to Reading.
Essex County Standard

March 2011

31 March

Academic study demonstrates how AV benefits the Lib Dems
The research was undertaken immediately after the general election by academics from the University of Essex and the University of Texas at Dallas for the journal Parliamentary Affairs. Read more about the research here.
Conservative Home
ThisisLondon.co.uk

Pillow talk
Has the UK become a nation of insomniacs? New research suggests that it has, with 26 per cent of those who work in excess of 48 hours a week sleeping for less than six hours a night. These are the findings of an Understanding Society study tracking the lives of 100,000 people in 40,000 British households, published by the ESRC. Dr Mark Bryan, Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Social and Economic Research (ISER) based at the University of Essex, who conducted some of the Understanding Society research on sleep, said one important factor in whether people slept well was job satisfaction. Read the article here.
ESRC

Cancer grant
A £200,000 grant from Cancer Research UK will help University of Essex scientists in the fight against breast cancer.
Essex Chronicle

People
Baron Currie of Marylebone, founding Chairman of Ofcom has been appointed Chair of the University of Essex's Council.
THE

Graduate internship scheme axed but Andreas gets job
Andreas Fantousi graduated with a BSc in Business Management and joined the university's graduate internship scheme. He impressed his bosses at Pacepaker so much they created a new job for him. Government funding for the scheme has now been withdrawn.
Gazette

An online course opens up a virtual world of opportunities
Kaplan is an organisation that delivers online business degrees in partnership with the University of Essex, as well as online professional business courses. "Our core market is people in mid-to-late thirties, who tend to be in full-time work," says their website developer Daniel Todd. The number of part-time students studying Kaplan's online business foundation degrees and BA top-up courses is growing year on year, and they are consequently looking to widen the number of online programmes they offer.
The Independent

30 March

When it comes to the environment, education affects our actions
The more highly educated are more likely to display their environmental credentials through what they buy rather than with actions such as turning off lights, according to findings from Understanding Society, the world's largest household panel survey, funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and managed by the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) at the University of Essex. Read the article here.
Environmental Research Web

HSBC Business Thinking: businesses join forces to take on the world
Read more about the future plans and expansion of online nutritional products supplier Sports Supplements. This company was co-founded by University of Essex graduates Adam Rossiter and Elliot Dawes in 2004. The firm has recently doubled the workforce at its Colchester premises and it expects to grow last year's £5m turnover by at least 40pc.
HSBC Business
The Telegraph

Power of thought is used to make music
A paralysed woman has been able to play a 'mini orchestra solo' using only the power of her thoughts, scientists at the University of Essex have revealed.
East Anglian Daily Times
Gazette
The Daily Mail
InventorSpot
NetIndia123
Daily India
Philippine Times
BritainNews.net
Mumbai Mirror

Back to the 1980s: V-C warning over Willetts' places plan
Professor Colin Riordan was one of six sector leaders giving evidence at the Business, Innovation and Skills Committee's inquiry into the future of higher education. Professor Riordan commented on government plans to siphon off a percentage of student places and reallocate them to universities offering the lowest fees.
Times Higher Education

29 March

University receives £200k charity boost
The University of Essex has been given a £205,000 grant by Cancer Research UK to research the first signs of breast cancer. The three-year project is part of a larger study conducted by Professor Elena Klenova into the mechanisms of breast cancer development and early diagnosis of the condition.
Gazette
News-Medical.net
medical News Today
mediLexicon

Why is the £5 returning to cash machines?
It was revealed last week that there will be £4bn worth of five pound notes entering circulation in the coming months. However, in the UK, card issuers have been spending tens of millions of pounds each year trying to persuade us to switch to cards and Banks have been circulating £20 notes widely which make it more difficult to spend on small items. The author of the article remembers visiting the University of Essex and there being the option from the on-campus cash machines to withdraw £5 notes, which was unusual at the time.
thisismoney

28 March

The Battle for Biodiversity: Monsanto and Farmers Clash
Does genetic modification lead to more and better crops? Or will it destroy the foundations of our ecosystems?
The introduction of agroecological techniques on smallholder plots in hundreds of projects throughout Africa studied by England's University of Essex brought an increase in crop yields of an average of 116 percent. As a means for improving resiliency and sustainability within the global food chain, agroecology is now supported by a "wide range of experts within the scientific community," said Olivier de Schutter, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to food. Read the article here.
The Atlantic

Government social services review: value or 'burden'?
A UK government review of local authority duties has raised further fears about the future of social services. Yet, against a background of harsh spending cuts, this is also an opportunity for people and civil society organisations to declare whether they believe that children and adults should be able to get the support they need. Kirsten Anderson, head of research, policy and communications at the Children's Legal Centre, pointed out that, under international law, there are “fundamental rights to which children are entitled, including the protection from all forms of violence, exploitation and abuse” and that “it is not for local authorities to pick and choose which they wish to repeal simply on the grounds that they are 'burdensome'."
Ekklesia

Rush to charge £9,000 fees opens up £1bn gap in university funding
The government could be forced to spend almost £1bn more than expected over the next four years to cover the cost of tuition fees, as a growing number of universities set out plans to charge the maximum of £9,000 a year. Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial College London, Exeter, Essex, Aston, Manchester, Warwick and Durham have all said that they will be charging £9,000 fees. Read the article here.
The Guardian

Former Home Secretary rallies Party for Election
Labour MP Alan Johnson spoke to Labour Party supporters during a visit to Wivenhoe. He described cuts of 80 per cent to teaching grants and the withdrawal of funding for arts, humanities and social sciences, as "savage", saying these moves had contributed to the University of Essex decision to charge £9,000 a year.
Gazette
Essex County Standard

£1,000 blow to pay packets in two years
Workers are more than £1,000 a year worse off on average than they were two years ago as inflation soared while incomes remain squeezed. Separate research by the Institute for Social and Economic Research found an estimated 659,000 households are already struggling with their mortgage payments, while around 117,000 people are in arrears.
Daily Mail
thisismoney.co.uk

Research undertaken by Birgitta Rabe at the Institute for Social and Economic Research features in tonight's BBC Panorama Programme.

27 March

Is David Cameron's Happiness Index your cup of tea?
She is a married, self-employed, former tennis champion and has scored an ace in the happiness stakes. Christine Janes, who as Christine Truman won the French Open in the Sixties, was recently judged the happiest person in Britain according to research by economist and behavioural expert Nick Powdthavee. He devised a happiness profile after analysing data from the British Household Panel Survey, which for the past 20 years has asked 5,000 households to rate their happiness every year. Read the article here.
Scottish Daily Express

Worlds Apart
The Kilgore News Herald profiles three East Texans who travelled to India to shoot a documentary on a man who has devoted his life to sheltering the orphaned children of his country. One of the team is Michah, who has worked as an actor and in other jobs; he now holds down three in Austin as he saves money for study abroad at the University of Essex. Read the article here.
Kilgore News Herald

26 March

University pulls together for Japan tragedy
Generous staff and students have raised more than £5,000 for victims of Japan's earthquake and tsunami. The fund-raising efforts at the University of Essex were co-ordinated by members of its Japan International Society.
East Anglian Daily Times

Cambridge agrees £9,000 tuition fee
Cambridge University’s governing body has voted in favour of a £9,000 tuition fee, it was announced last night. Imperial College London, Exeter University and Essex University have also announced plans to charge £9,000, and Oxford has said it will need to charge at least £8,000 to maintain current funding.
Yorkshire Post

25 March

Play music with your mind
A new brain-computer interface can pick up neural impulses and translate them into musical notes. This takes a little time and calibration to get right – it took two hours for a patient with locked-in syndrome, a paralysis of all but the eyes, at the University of Essex during trials. The system's designer, composer and computer-music researcher Eduardo Miranda, realized the potential for using such a device in music therapy more than a decade ago while looking into ways he could make music using brain waves.
Discovery News
Slash Gear
Discovery Channel
NewsDesignWorld
EngineerOnline

Photos: Inside a robotics testing lab
Researchers at the University of Essex are building robots capable of understanding the world around them. Inside the university's robot arena, researchers test out a variety of kit, from flying robots that track objects on the ground to mobile machines that mimic human behaviour. silicon.com visited the university's robotics lab to look at how researchers are using visual-recognition and machine-learning technologies to bring new capabilities to robots. View the photos here.
Silicon.com

Tuition fees 2012: What are the Universities charging?
Universities are starting to announce their tuition fees for students in 2012. How much are universities planning to charge? Read the article here.
The Guardian

Gauging the Well Being of Happiness Measures
The Understanding Society project in the U.K., is one of the biggest of its kind, with 100,000 interviewees, and released its first set of results last month. “I’m not sure when we designed the study we realized quite how important [happiness measures] might be,” given the increased emphasis on them by the Cameron government, said Nick Buck, deputy director of the Institute for Social and Economic Research at the University of Essex, who is responsible for the Understanding Society project.
Wall Street Journal Blogs

Lecturers on picket lines in pension row
Lecturers and academics at the University of Essex held their second strike this week after Tuesday's industrial action.
Gazette

University to charge top tuition fees from 2012
Students hoping to take undergraduate courses at the University of Essex will be charged £9,000 a year in tuition fees from next year.
Essex County Standard

Election postponed as candidates disqualified
The University of Essex Students' Union has now been postponed until further notice after candidates were disqualified after being accused of coercing students into voting for them.
Essex County Standard

Staff go on strike in protest at plans to change pensions
Staff at the University of Essex have staged two strikes as part of a national row over pensions. Members of the Universities and Colleges Union picketed the three main university entrances.
Essex County Standard

Residents fear weeks of gridlock
Concerns are growing that one of Colchester's busiest roads will be plunged into traffic chaos when work is started on a new slip road linking Clingoe Hill to the University of Essex's Knowledge Gateway Development starts next month.
Essex County Standard

Finalists look into the future
The futuristic creations of final year students in the School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering at the University of Essex were unveiled at an open day.
Essex County Standard

Family Fun
Walk in the footsteps of John Constable who painted Wivenhoe Park in 1816, discover the wildlife that lives there and build a shelter at the Family Art Day at the University of Essex on Sunday.
Gazette

Success for University
University of Essex ABC fighters Gareth Frost and Steve Onwordi were both successful in their support bouts at the annual Varsity match between Cambridge and Oxford universities in London.
Essex County Standard

24 March

Sicura Systems attend MSC Global Security conference
The Global MSC Security conference recently took place in Bristol. A highlight of the event was a ‘Question Time’ session which included panellist Dr Peter Fussey from the University of Essex. Dr Fussey is a senior lecturer in criminology with research interests that include analysis of the impact of surveillance technologies on terrorism.
Infologue.com
info4security.com

Stay in the know to enhance health
You could lose weight faster by heading outside. According to a study from the University of Essex, outdoor workouts burn approximately 20% more calories than the indoor variety because the body is forced to use more energy to keep itself warm.
Canada.com
VancoverSun
Nanaimo Daily News

Union hits out over university fees hike
Union bosses have hit out at controversial plans by the University of Essex to charge tuition fees of £9,000 a year.
East Anglian Daily Times

Identity check
In a time of unprecedented change for the UK's academy, its leaders are under the spotlight as never before. Accordingly, Times Higher Education has augmented its annual survey of pay in the sector with an investigation into our v-cs' educational backgrounds. John Morgan asks: who are these people and what do they earn? Read the article here.
THE

University's Engineering Students show off their creations
The futuristic creations of final year students at the University of Essex have been unveiled. The students showed off their inventions including a self-balancing two-wheeled robot, a computer which is controlled by hand gestures and a space trading game developed for mobile phones.
Gazette

Listen to who's talking
Academics from the University of Essex are carrying out a new study into telephone calling behaviour. The research, which is being funded by BT, involves looking at the incoming and outgoing telephone conversations of 400 households around the UK.
THE

Uni must open Boundary Road
Three readers have written to the Gazette asking if Boundary Road could be opened during the roadworks on Clingoe Hill for the new Knowledge Gateway development.
Gazette

Union action on campus
Students have organised a rally at the University of Essex in opposition to £9,000 a year tuition fees and in support of lecturers who have gone on strike. The rally has been organised by the Essex Education Activist Network.
Gazette

No fees decision
Following news that the University of Essex will charge the maximum £9,000 a year in tuition fees from 2012, Chelmsford's Anglia Ruskin University says nothing will be decided on future fees until next month's board meeting.
Essex Chronicle

Bank consultancy
University of Essex economist Professor Sheri Markose has been appointed as a consultant to the Research Bank of India. She will provide expert guidance for the RBI's Financial Stability Division on how to develop large scale models to monitor the build up of financial risk.
East Anglian Daily Times

Phonological retrieval failures
Professor Rick Hanley from the Department of Psychology has had an article published in the Psychonomic bulletin & review summarising two experiments that revisit the issue of why people's names are more difficult to recall than common names such as the names of objects.
BioPortfolio

23 March

University of Essex plans £9,000-a-year tuition fees
The University of Essex has announced that it will be charging £9,000 a year in tuition fees. The University is one of a handful of institutions to announce proposals to charge the highest permitted figure.
East Anglian Daily Times
Gazette
Daily Mail
BBC News online
Daily Telegraph
Essex Enquirer
Halstead Gazette
Essex County Standard
Manchester Evening News
Echo

Lecturers go on strike over changes to pensions
Staff at the University have staged the first of two strikes this week over a national row on pensions.
Gazette
Echo
Southend Standard

22 March

Generous grants available for postgraduate courses
Postgraduate students are to be given grants to study at the University of Essex's new doctoral training centre. It is one of a network of 21 centres across the UK, funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, to support postgraduate training in the social sciences. The £18,000-a-year grants cover 21 different subjects.
Gazette
Echo

Uni election scandal as candidates are kicked out for ‘coercing voters’
Backlash for students as 37 candidates disqualified. Dozens of candidates have been disqualified from Students' Union elections at Essex University amid allegations they coerced people into voting for them. The Essex University general election has now been postponed until further notice after the candidates were disqualified.
Gazette
Essex County Standard
Harwich and Manningtree Standard Online

Success for Uni’s Frost and Onwardi
Essex University ABC Boxing fighters Gareth Frost and Steve Onwardi were both successful in their support bouts at the annual Varsity match between Cambridge and Oxford universities in London.
Gazette

21 March

Lecturers at a third of universities to strike over changes to pensions
Thousands of academics at 47 universities and higher education colleges will form picket lines to protest against changes to the Universities Superannuation Scheme pension fund. Lecturers from Bradford, Essex, Liverpool, Oxford and Birmingham universities are among those taking part in tomorrow's strike. Read the story here.
The Guardian

Concert marathon in aid of Japan
A music marathon has raised thousands of pounds for the victims of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami disaster. Japanese students from the University of Essex led traditional singing and spoke of the crisis facing their country.
Gazette

Clingoe Hill roadwork will be a 'nightmare'
Work is due to start next month on a slip road linking Clingoe Hill to the University of Essex's Knowledge Gateway development which means the dual carriageway on the hill will be reduced to one lane for at least seven weeks.
Gazette

Academy announces major cull of its staff
Staff at Colchester Academy are set to be made redundant six months after it opened because of the failed reorganisation of Colchester's secondary schools, cuts in Government funding and changes to the curriculum. The University of Essex is a co-sponsor and NHS North East Essex is a strategic partner.
Gazette

Lecturers join picket lines in pension row
Staff at Colchester Institute and the University of Essex are set to strike over changes to their pensions.
Gazette
Harwich and Manningtree Standard
Halstead Gazette
Essex County Standard

Firstsite boss Kath talks on the 12-year campaign to open Centre
Kath Wood has been involved with the gold-shelled Firstsite building off East Hill since its inception 12 years ago. As well as the main exhibition spaces, there will be space to house parts of the University of Essex's Latin American art collection - the only one of its kind in Europe.
Gazette
Essex County Standard

20 March

Clegg: I won’t use AV No vote as excuse to quit Coalition as even 'Don't Knows' creep ahead of 'Yes' campaign
Nick Clegg has told David Cameron he will not pull the plug on the Coalition Government if he is beaten in the referendum on ditching Britain’s first- past-the-post voting system, it was claimed last night. Support for the Yes campaign to switch to AV has fallen to 29 per cent, nine points behind the No campaign on 38, with the Don’t Knows making up 33 per cent, according to the British Election Study by the University of Essex. Read Professor Paul Whiteley's comments here.
Daily Mail

Snapshot of a recession
Council bosses and retailers believe the continuing lure of the seafront has helped keep Southend’s head above water, along with the growing student presence thanks to the college and university. Town centre manager Marzia Abel said a big student presence in the town was useful, particularly those from the University of Essex, who tended to be a bit older, with more spending power. Ms Abel also said a successful town centre partnership – made up of representatives from local businesses, the council, South Essex College and the University of Essex – had helped. Read the story here.
Echo
Southend Standard

Now, paralysed people can play music just by thinking about it
Scientists have conducted a trial of a brain-computer interface that allows paralysed patients to play music with brainpower alone. This computer-music system interacts directly with the user's brain, by picking up the tiny electrical impulses of neurons. Composer and computer-music specialist Eduardo Miranda from the University of Plymouth, working with computer scientists at the University of Essex, has developed the device.
BritainNews.net
and featured in 11 other news outlets worldwide

19 March

Ask the Expert - "If I breastfeed my baby, will he do better at school?"
Dr Maria Iacovou from the Institute for Social and Economic Research at the University of Essex co-authored a study on the effects of breastfeeding and she says "the short answer is most likely, yes".
East Anglian Daily Times
Kidderminster Shuttle

Sleep tight
Two thirds of people have problems sleeping and insomnia has been described as a "massive public health problem" by the Mental Health Foundation. Experts reveal what can stop people sleeping and the best ways to get a good night's rest. Last week, a study into the nation's sleeping habits found that the happier we are, the better we sleep. The Understanding Society study, found one in eight people get less than six hours of sleep a night.
Droitwich Spa
Stourbridge News
Bromsgrove Advertiser
Halesowen News
Dudley News and Country Express
Redditch Advertiser
Kidderminster Shuttle

Survey shows what makes Children happy
The key to childhood satisfaction is living in a stable, two-parent family, where Mum and Dad are married and the family communicates regularly, according to a survey funded by the British government published on February 28. “Young people do not associate their material situation with their life satisfaction,” states a summary of the Understanding Society survey’s findings. Instead, “not living with both natural parents has a greater negative impact on a young person’s life satisfaction than their material situation.” Money and things cannot make up for the lack of a happy, stable home.
News Album

18 March

Urgent Help Needed - BCCI and Freedom of Information Case
Prem Sikka, Professor of Accounting at the Centre for Global Accountability, University of Essex, has called for some urgent help in securing a report (codenamed The Sandstorm Report) that enabled the UK government to close the Bank of Credit and Commerce International in July 1991. He lodged a request for information in March 2006 and after five years of battles the matter can now finally be heard by the courts. He has about 7 days to prepare his case and is representing himself as he has not found any pro bono lawyer to act for him. He's now up against the lawyers from the Information Commissioner, the UK Treasury and the Foreign Office whose primary argument is that "disclosure of the information would prejudice the UK’s relations with another State or States". This raises enormous questions about the quality of democracy and government.
Accounting Web

Financial weapons of mass destruction still primed to detonate
The current uncorrected political course means another banking crisis is inevitable, cautions Professor Prem Sikka from the Essex Business School. Read his article here.
Tribune Magazine

Tsunami music marathon off to a flyer
A 12-HOUR music marathon in aid of the Japanese tsunami disaster has kicked off in Colchester. More than 30 bands are taking part in the free event at arts group Slack Space’s base in Queen Street. The non-stop music started at midday and will continue until midnight. The University of Essex Japanese Society is performing traditional music.
Essex County Standard
Harwich and Manningtree Standard
Halstead Gazette

On your marks for Games
The University of Essex's Sports Centre invited 500 people to row, run, walk, cycle, step and climb 500 metres at its new gym and fitness studio to mark the 500-day countdown to the London 2012 Olympics.
Essex County Standard

Pension shake-up: lecturers to strike
Lecturers at the University of Essex have voted to strike over changes to their pensions. Academics, lecturers, trainers and researchers from the University and College Union will join colleagues across England in a strike on Tuesday followed by action on Thursday.
East Anglian Daily Times

How AV would have changed our MPs
The Liberal Democrats would have clinched another seat in Sheffield if the first-past-the-post voting system had been scrapped at the last election, researchers claim. University researchers calculated Lib Dem council leader Paul Scriven would have been elected MP for Sheffield Central under the Alternative Vote, which could be the electoral system in the future. A simulation by The University of Essex of how last year’s General Election would have finished had it been conducted under AV shows a very different political landscape. The Conservatives would have won 284 seats – down 22 on their actual result, Labour 248 – down by 10, and Liberal Democrats 89 – up by 32.
The Star

Nero Launch Album at Uni
BBC's Sound of 2011 nominees, Nero, launch their new album at University of Essex's Sub Zero this weekend.
Gazette

University funding to be cut
Bosses at University Campus Suffolk have pledged to maintain teaching standards despite having funding cut by more than 5% for the next academic year. The University of Essex will see a 3.1% cut.
East Anglian Daily Times

17 March

Life on Earth: coral reefs
Just over 20 percent of all the life on planet Earth resides in, on and around coral reefs, stuffed into an area less than 1 percent of the earth’s surface. In the Caribbean, there is something called mass coral bleaching, which is triggered by a 1 degree rise in water temperature. That is all, 1 degree in the summer temperature and whole reefs die off and bleach in the sun. Added to that there are tourism and fishing impacts. In 1998 about 16 percent of the world’s coral reefs died, according to the University of Essex coral study group. However, that was a significant anomaly event that has fortunately lead to some optimism: The coral reefs that “died” bleached out and slowly, over time, the organisms have started to recover and, latterly, have shown increased vitality, giving hope they can recover fully in a few decades.
TCExtra.com

University funding cuts: which institutions are worst hit?
Universities across England are facing large cuts to their funding according to figures from Hefce out today. Which universities are worst affected? Read the article and view the figures here.
The Guardian

Mexico City Education Minister Named by World Economic Forum as Young Global Leader
Mario Delgado Carillo, Secretary of Education of Mexico City, has been named in the 2011 Class of Young Global Leaders by the World Economic Forum (WEF). Minister Delgado joins 190 young leaders from 65 countries around the world recognized for their professional accomplishments, commitment to society, and potential to contribute to shaping the future of the world. Minister Delgado has earned degrees from Mexico's Instituto Tecnologico Autonomo and the University of Essex. Last year, Mr. Delgado was mentioned in the highly reputable Lideres Mexicanos magazine as one of the 300 more influential people in the country.
EarthTimes.org
This story was carried by over 80 news outlets world-wide

So, do you think that it's time for a change?
Members of the 'yes' and 'no' campus reflect on the pros and cons of electoral reform ahead of the referendum on 5 May. Professor Paul Whiteley, Professor of Government at the University of Essex is interviewed. He is the Lead Researcher of the British Election Study - a study which has investigated the estimated impact of the Alternative Vote.
Gazette

It's all in a call
At the University of Essex, a project funded by BT will analyse 400 households' telephone calls. It will assess more than 1.7 million separate calls including who they called, who called them, when and how long they spoke.
Essex Chronicle

Students raise funds for Teenage Cancer Trust
University of Essex students raised £1,000 for the Teenager Cancer Trust during two days of fundraising on the Colchester Campus. The events were organised by economics student Keren Emirali.
Gazette

Gesture control: Touching the future of computing
Today, keyboards can be virtual - nothing more than a software recreation of the familiar Qwerty layout mapped out on a touchscreen. The next major leap in computing control could result in physical keyboards disappearing altogether, as gesture-recognition technology allows messages to be typed in thin air. James Cannan, a bionics researcher and PhD student at the School of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering at the University of Essex, believes people will be able to type by jabbing their fingers at virtual keys projected in front of them or on glasses they are wearing. Read the article here.
silicon.com

Grant Winners
Dr Ayse Uskul from the Department of Psychology has been awarded £79,985 to research the promotion of healthy eating using visual perspectives in mental imagery.
THE

Jack Forbes, 1934-2011
Former Visiting Professor at the University of Essex and a pioneer of Native American studies, Jack Forbes has died. Professor Forbes retired from UC Davis in 1994 after helping to expand the Native American study programme into a full academic department. However, he remained active in the department, and continued teaching up until late 2009.
THE

More Zzzs for ABC1s
Unemployed people are 40 per cent more likely to report difficulty sleeping than those in work, according to findings from the world's largest longitudinal household study. Analysis carried out by academics at the University of Surrey of early data from the Understanding Society study also found that those in routine occupations reported poorer-quality sleep than those in professional work. Overall the best sleep was reported by people with higher levels of education and by married people, the analysis found. Understanding Society, which is being managed by the Institute for Social and Economic Research at the University of Essex, is following the socio-economic circumstances in 40,000 UK households over many years, with sleep data collected regularly.
THE

Campus development plans on public view
Plans for new student accommodation for University Campus Suffolk students, shops and offices in the Waterfront area of Ipswich were put on display to the public yesterday.
East Anglian Daily Times

16 March

500 days to go! Olympics fever in north Essex
Youngsters, university students and council managers have marked the day London 2012 Olympics tickets were put up for grabs. Essex University's sports centre invited 500 people to row, run, walk, cycle, cross-train, step and climb 500 metres at its new £1.4million gym and fitness studio and outdoors at the Colchester campus.
Gazette

Delve into area's past
Essex University's centre for local and regional history is starting two ten-week courses next month. The first will look at the artistic history of Stour Valley area Art History, starting on April 28. The Second will cover the prehistoric archaeology of Essex and East Anglia, starting on April 26.
Gazette
Essex County Standard
Halstead Gazette

15 March

XMOS Announces New Advisory Board Which Includes Veterans from Semiconductor Industry
Essex Honorary Graduate, Sir Robin Saxby, joins the XMOS advisory board. XMOS designs and creates event-driven processors for digital electronics. The new board will provide XMOS with valuable business and technical guidance from some of the semiconductor industry's most experienced and successful members.
Consumer Electronics Net
Central Daily Times - Online
TMC Net
Freshnews.com

BT and Essex University to carry out phone study
Essex University academics are to join forces with BT for a six-month study about the way households talk over the phone. The study looks at the incoming and outgoing telephone conversations of 400 households across the country, compiling who they spoke to, when, for how long and how much the call cost.
Gazette
Essex County Standard
Halstead Gazette - Online

Home sweet home
The Colchester Youth Enquiry Service, a charity which helps teenagers in difficult circumstances celebrated the official opening of its first premises. Volunteers from the University of Essex will be helping with the garden and putting up outdoor fencing at the weekend.
Gazette
Halstead Gazette
Harwich and Manningtree Standard Online

Movers and Shakers
Businessman, academic and government adviser Lord Currie of Marylebone has been appointed chairman of the Council of the University of Essex.
East Anglian Daily Times

Essex: Three homes hit by fire
One of the call-outs was a blaze that started in the kitchen of a student residence at the University of Essex after oil in a pan was left unattended.
Ipswich Evening Star
East Anglian Daily Times
Harwich and Manningtree Standard
Halstead Gazette
Essex County Standard
Gazette

Research on Language and Communication
Carol Jaensch and colleagues from the Department of Language and Linguistics have published their study 'L3 acquisition of German adjectival inflection: A generative account' in the Second Language Research journal.
Science Letter

Essex Uni's Spenner wins his debut fight
There was a debut win for University of Essex ABC fighter Aaron Spenner as he cored an impressive win at Barking against Fight for Peace boxer Ryan Walker.
Gazette
Essex County Standard

14 March

Further Details Announced for Manifesta 9
The Manifesta committee has selected a curator, Cuauhtémoc Medina, and a location—Limburg, Belgium—for the ninth edition of the roving biennial. Medina has also appointed two associate curators, Katerina Gregos and Dawn Ades, for the exhibition, which will take place in 2012. Medina is an international curator, art critic, and historian based in Mexico City. He holds a Ph.D. in art history and theory from the University of Essex and Dawn Ades is a Professor of Art History at the University of Essex, a Fellow of the British Academy, a former trustee of Tate and was awarded an Order of the British Empire in 2002 for her services to art history.
ArtForum

Huge maoi stones from Easter Island go on show at the Captain Cook Birthplace Museum
Captain Cook’s Polynesian Easter Island is perhaps best known for moai, the large stone statues carved from the ash of extinct volcanoes between 300 and 900 years ago. Now eight of the monoliths have made it Middlesbrough. “Before this exhibition there were only two moai in the whole of the UK, at the British Museum and in Marton,” says Dr Ian Conrich, a Fellow at the Department of Literature, Film, and Theatre Studies at the University of Essex and the curator of the show. Read the article here.
Culture 24

Confusion over consultation on child protection duties
Children's social care groups are worried and confused by a government consultation on whether to ditch a council's legal duty to investigate child protection concerns. Kirsten Anderson, Head of Research, Policy and Communications at the Children's Legal Centre, said: "We cannot understand why the government would want to review certain local authority duties, such as the duty to investigate and respond to complaints of child abuse contained in section 47 of the Children's Act 1989. Read the article here.
CommunityCare.co.uk

Lecturers to strike in pension dispute
Lecturers at the University of Essex have voted to strike over changes to their pensions. Academics, lecturers, trainers and researchers from the University and College Union will join colleagues across England on strike on 22 March.
Gazette
Harwich and Manningtree Standard
Halstead Gazette
Essex County Standard

Seeing the big tsunami was just terrifying
Masumi Ono, a language and linguistics student from the University of Essex managed to contact her family who live in the Ibaraki district, about 50 miles from the quake.
Gazette

Breast–feeding boosts mental ability until secondary school
Babies who are breast–fed have a head start in the classroom, according to research that shows it raises a child's IQ. The most comprehensive British study of breast–feeding to date shows that it continued to have an effect on a child's mental ability through to secondary school. Researchers at Oxford University and the Institute for Social and Economic Research at the University of Essex came to their conclusions after "pairing up" children who in all major respects, such as family circumstances and maternal IQ, were identical.
The Telegraph
This story has appeared in over 85 news outlets worldwide

Hollywood star to a high-profile feminist: Other Essex trailblazers
Forty years ago, a group of women from the University of Essex hurled eggs and flour bombs at comedian Bob Hope to protest again the sexism of the Miss World competition.
Gazette

Bookworms' dream as festival launched
Essex’s Book Festival has been launched. Now in its 12th year, the successful month-long event was opened at Chelmsford Library on Thursday by the chairman of Essex County Council Rodney Bass. One of the speaker's will be Professor Jules Pretty from the University of Essex who will be at the Essex Record office on 28 March.
Chelmsford Weekly News
Brentwood Weekly News

The Monday page - Tides and time
Whitby-born Peter Frank, a retired Professor of Russian politics at the University of Essex had written a biography of The Life and Work of JR Bagshawe (1870-1909), the founding secretary of the Staithes Group of painters.
The Northern Echo

Target Welsh speakers with business advice, says Prof
Business advice should be targeted at the Welsh speaking population to encourage more start-ups and develop businesses already up and running, an academic said yesterday. A paper by Dylan Jones-Evans, from the University of Wales, Piers Thompson from Uwic, and Caleb Kwong from the University of Essex, studied whether Welsh speakers acted like members of ethnic minorities when it came to setting up businesses. Read the article here.
Wales Online
The Western Mail

Researchers provide new data on Community Health
Professor Amanda Sacker and colleagues from the Institute for Social and Economic Research have published their study on 'Social influences on trajectories of self-rated health: evidence from Britain, Germany, Denmark and the USA' in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.
Health and Medicine Week

13 March

Politicians need to get off the fence about marriage
Prince William and Kate Middleton continued their tour of the provinces flipping pancakes and eliciting public support ahead of their grand jamboree on April 29, only to be silently undermined by the prince's cousin Zara Phillips, whose wedding has been confirmed in Edinburgh on July 30. With three out of four recent royal marriages ending in divorce, both weddings are a triumph of hope over experience. Evidence shows that marriage provides the best framework for raising children. Even unmarried couples in stable relationships come second to married couples when it comes to the general wellbeing of children. While there are plenty of excellent unmarried parents, the British Household Panel survey shows that families where the parents cohabit are four times as likely to break down as families bound by marriage.
The Sunday Times

Science little help in lightening load of pregnancy myths
In Britain, the Department of Health recommends that if pregnant women choose to drink, they should have no more than two drinks once or twice per week to protect a baby's health. Yvonne Kelly, an epidemiologist at University of Essex analyzed data from more than 18,500 families with children born between September 2000 and July 2002. "Children born to light drinkers don't appear to be at any increased risk for difficulties compared to women who chose not to drink in pregnancy," says Kelly of the finding, published in October in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.
Los Angeles Times

Making a meal of family time
Food is the key to happy families, according to a new survey. Sitting down and eating a family meal together at least three times a week builds strong bonds between parents and their children. On the other hand, if the family breaks up, the impact on a child will be worse than living in poverty. The study is part of a larger UK government survey called Understanding Society, which is examining the attitudes of 100,000 people in 40,000 households.
Herald.ie

12 March

East Anglian's coast's clarion call delivers a luminous message
Steven Russell from the East Anglian Daily Times speaks to Professor Jules Pretty about his forthcoming book The Luminous Coast and his 500-mile journey around the Essex, Suffolk and Norfolk coast. Read the article here.
East Anglian Daily Times

Former Dundee student Mark Roberts gets monster chance with Frankenstein role
East 15 Acting School graduate Mark Roberts has gained a top role in Frankenstein with the National Theatre in London. Mark is playing alongside Benedict Cumberbatch of TV's Sherlock fame and Jonny Lee Miller, who first burst on to cinema screens in Trainspotting.
Courier and Advertiser

Incoming administrator called 'a perfect fit'
It's been a while since Alan Harrison was in Kingston, but he's excited to be returning as the new provost and vice-principal (academic) at Queen's University. A PhD graduate of the University of Essex in England, Harrison is an accomplished teacher and researcher and currently holds the same appointment at University of Calgary
Kingston-Whig Standard
Queen's Journal

11 March

Students' play is a study of the life in the Berlin Wall years
A specially commissioned piece of theatre will look at the history of Berlin, from the construction of the city's infamous wall in 1961 to its destruction in 1989, in a new play written for East 15 students. The play is being put on by students on the BA Acting and Stage Combat course.
Echo

Picasso's genius explored by neuroscience
A popular science book by British neuroscientist Professor Christine Temple about the artist Pablo Picasso is the first acquisition by Jamie Joseph for Constable & Robinson's new psychology list. Professor Temple, from the University of Essex, has performed research into exceptionally talented individuals. She also happens to be an avid art collector, and it was on buying some of Picasso's original prints that she realised that Picasso displayed all the neuroscientific markers of genius, including adult playfulness and the ability to make links between seemingly unrelated subjects. Picasso's Brain, which Temple has taken a sabbatical to write, will explore the artist through the prism of her scientific discipline, bridging science and the arts. Walsh praised Temple's "clear, crisp" style, calling her "a great find".
The Bookseller

Game events kick off PAX East
The massive gaming conference PAX East, starts today in Boston. One of the speakers will be Richard Bartle from the University of Essex in the UK.
Mass High Tech

Funding boost for university's postgraduate research students
Sixteen talented postgraduate students will be funded to study at the University of Essex each year for the next five years within its prestigious new doctoral training centre. Essex is one of a network of just 21 centres across the UK funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) to support postgraduate training in the social sciences.
Essex County Standard

£10m hotel school visit
Colchester Institute, the University of Essex and education foundation Edge invited Colchester Council's deputy mayor Helen Chuah, hoteliers, restaurateurs and teaching experts to the Edge Hotel School's launch in Wivenhoe.
Gazette
Halstead Gazette
Harwich and Manningtree Standard

All aboard for another round of student carnage
More than 1,000 students are set to take to the streets of Colchester for another organised pub crawl next week. Advertising for the event, organised by Carnage UK, has been banned from the University of Essex.
Gazette
Essex County Standard

The new 'sixth sense'
A Kuwaiti Masters degree student has devised a wireless device which he believes will change the way athletes look at sports. University of Essex student, Mohamed Al-Mulla devised the iSense device, which in his own words can work as a personal trainer. The iSense device is a system or tool which uses algorithm and provides a prediction of muscle fatigue, thus giving a predictive signal that enables the user to note his or her muscular ability to perform weightlifting or other exercise. Read the article here.
Kuwait Times

Stortford jobseekers out to improve their prospects with new image
To help jobseekers stand out from the competition, Stortford agency RecruitAbility, is offering a new course advising people on how to match their image with their experience and qualifications. University of Essex History graduate William Plummer was one of the first to sign up. William is hoping to land his first job since graduating from the University of Essex last year. A volunteer at a charity book, William would like a career in publishing but first needs some general office experience under his belt. Read the article here.
Herts and Essex Observer

Moving the goalposts on public pensions
Professor Prem Sikka from the Essex Business School is one of the contributors to a letter in the Guardian about public pensions.
The Guardian

Sun-Kissed Fitness: 5 Great Places for Outdoor Exercise
A study conducted by Jo Barton of the University of Essex in England found that "green" exercising—bicycling, hiking, running, gardening, fishing, horseback riding—has the most positive effects. If you happen to live near a lake or beach, the payoffs are even better:Dr. Barton found "a significant increase in people's self-esteem and mood, particularly when they exercised in the wilderness or by water. Historically we are drawn to water to surivive, and it is in our genetic makeup to be at one with nature." No wonder spending a few hours cooped up in a stuffy gym doesn't sound too alluring after spending all day cooped up in the office.
TakePartBlog

10 March

Student's horror at cashpoint mugging
A University of Essex student chased two armed robbers to stop them stealing more of his money from a Colchester cash machine. The student was threatened with a knife, and handed over the cash and his card. He then changed his mind and chased the two robbers.
Gazette
Harwich and Manningtree Standard
Essex County Standard
Halstead Gazette

Still time to see stars at Essex Book Festival
There are still Essex Book Festival events taking place and some highlights are lectures on local history by various community groups and even talks on the environment by academic staff from the University of Essex in Colchester.
Mercury

IDP Education Announces First Two Clients in United Kingdom Expansion
IDP Education, the world's leading provider of student placement services, today announced it had secured agreements with two well respected institutions - the University of Essex and the University of Kent - representing its first client universities in the United Kingdom (UK). Read the article here.
WallStreet online
PR Newswire Europe
Sys-Con Media
SOA World Magazine
FinanzNachrichten.de
fr.sys-con.com

A flock of scholars
Scientists and creative writers are to gather on 12 March to explore the unique inspiration provided by birds in their respective fields. A Conference of Birds, organised by the University of Essex's department of literature, film and theatre studies, will hear creative writing lecturers reading from selected works by authors including John Clare, the 19th-century English poet. There will also be screenings of the Monty Python sketch Albatross and scenes from the 1926 animated silent film The Adventures of Prince Achmed. The conference will also consider an Essex-based initiative to preserve avian habitats.
Times Higher Education Online

Charity support for asylum families
Children of failed asylum seekers will be able to turn to Barnardo's for support while they are being held in new centres for up to a week before being removed from the UK, the Government said. The children's charity will provide help and support to families in the centres while they prepare for their return, the Home Office said. However, the Children's Legal Centre say that the centres "appear to be detention by another name".
This story has appeared in over 140 local papers across the country

9 March

Sleep Better – Job satisfaction associated with sound sleeping
The employed and self-employed enjoy much better sleep than those out of work, according to Understanding Society, the world’s largest longitudinal household study. Those who are unemployed are over 40 per cent more likely to report difficulty staying asleep than those in employment (having controlled for age and gender differences). However, job satisfaction affects the quality of sleep with 33 per cent of the most dissatisfied employees report poor sleep quality compared to only 18 per cent of the most satisfied.
Star Global Tribune

Politics: Battle of the baffling abbreviations - FPTP v AV
It's the obscure political battle of the baffling abbreviations: FPTP v AV. On May 5, voters will be given the choice in a referendum on whether to replace the current First-Past-The-Post electoral system with the Alternative Vote. A simulation by the University of Essex of how last year's General Election would have finished had it been conducted under AV shows a very different political landscape. The Conservatives would have won 284 seats (down 22 on their actual result) Labour 248 (down by ten) and Liberal Democrats 89 (up by 32). The University's researchers concluded this outcome would have "radically changed" the arithmetic of the post-election coalition talks. Crucially, the Lib Dems would have been able to form a majority coalition with either Labour or the Conservatives.
Yorkshire Post

First win for Azeez
Essex University ABC fighter Danny Azeez registered his first win in spectacular fashion at the Winter Gardens in Ramsgate, stopping the home club's Stead in the first round.
Gazette

Website shows poor air quality on streets
Detailed plans are being drawn up to combat congestion and pollution in Colchester town centre. A new website has been launched offering Essex residents the chance to find out about air quality outside their homes.
The website - essexair.org - was created by King's College in London, the Environment Agency, Essex University, Essex County Council and district councils, including Colchester.
Gazette
Harwich and Manningtree Standard
Halstead Gazette
Essex County Standard

8 March

Health staff honoured
Two staff from North Essex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust have been appointed honorary fellows by Essex University.
Paul Keedwell, director of operations and nursing, and Vickie Glass, clinical lead in older people's care, have been recognised for their outstanding contribution to improving mental health care in the region.
Gazette

Project collects dreams of uni staff and students
Sigmund Freud claimed dreams represent wishes you don't want to share with anyone, even with yourself.
But, the University of Essex is bucking that theory as a team of staff and academics based at the three campuses in Colchester, Southend and Loughton have been gathering the dreams of staff and students. Read the article here.
Gazette

Bank of Greece Governor profile
Bank of Greece Governor George Provopoulos is considered a pragmatist on monetary policy issues on the traditional dove-hawk divide. -- Having served as chief executive at two of Greece's big banks. After studying economics in Greece, Provopoulos went to Britain on a scholarship, obtaining his master's and PhD degrees from Essex University and becoming a professor in 1979. Under Professor Angelos Angelopoulos.
Sharenet

Economist Alan Harrison will become Queen’s next Provost and Vice-Principal (Academic)
Dr Alan Harrison will be next Provost and Vice-Principal (Academic) at Queen's University in Canada.
Dr. Harrison is currently Provost and Vice-President (Academic) at the University of Calgary. He is a PhD graduate of the University of Essex in England and an accomplished teacher and researcher. He spent a year at Queen’s in the mid 1970s in the Department of Economics.
Kingston Herald

Dundee College hails successful graduates
Lecturers at Dundee College have been toasting the success of former theatre student Mark Roberts, who has adopted Armstrong as his stage name and is working with the company of Frankenstein at the National Theatre. Mark graduated from East 15 Acting School.
Press & Journal

7 March

Do be quiet dear! It's men who suffer from sleepless nights due to their snoring partners
Women have long complained their husbands’ snoring is so bad it forces them to sleep the spare room.
But latest research shows that men are far more likely to complain that their sleep is disturbed by their partner’s snoring than women.
The latest findings from the University of Essex study of 14,000 couples found that 30 per cent of men complained that they were kept awake by their partner’s snoring or coughing compared to just 20 per cent of women.
MailOnline
Medical News Today and several other news outlets

The UK Maintains A Positive Outlook, Despite The Recession
A survey of households across the UK taken at the height of the recession in 2009 show 67 per cent of people in full-time work were living comfortably or doing all right and that unemployed people were broadly optimistic about their future prospects.
Almost two-thirds of the unemployed stated that they expect their financial situation to improve in the next year, compared with 30 per cent of those in work and 25 per cent of the economically inactive.
More than 15,000 adults of working age took part in the survey for Understanding Society, the world largest household panel study funded by the Economic and Social Research Council and run by the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) at the University of Essex.
Web Newswire
RedOrbit

Why The Speed Dating Rush Doesn't Last
When it comes to choosing romantic partners, the more potential mates a person meets, the more his or her decision is influenced, concludes a new study.
A number of studies in recent years have looked at what happens to humans when faced with extensive choice - too many kinds of chocolate, or too many detergents to choose from at the grocery store.
Psychological scientist Alison Lenton, of the University of Edinburgh, and economist Marco Francesconi, of the University of Essex, wanted to know if the same was true of mate choice.
Medindia.com (or.net)
Top News Arab Emirates
Toronto Star Online

Why are we too afraid to give teens their independence?
New research reveals that teenagers feel they are being overprotected by their parents and resent being wrapped in cotton wool. More than 12 per cent of the 12 to 15-year-olds surveyed said that they were unhappy with the amount of freedom that they had and the lack of control that they had over their lives.
There is no minimum age for leaving a child at home on their own, but parents can be prosecuted for wilful neglect if they leave a child unsupervised "in a manner likely to cause unnecessary suffering or injury to health". According to the Children's Legal Centre, that effectively means that, if you left a ten-year-old at home for a couple of hours and something went wrong, social services would definitely become involved and you could well be prosecuted.
The Times

Cuts in number of international students spell disaster
Vice-Chancellor Professor Colin Riordan is among a group of vice-chancellors who have written a joint letter expressing their “profound concern at the damage that would be caused to the UK economy and to our universities if the government's proposals to reduce the number of international students coming to the UK are implemented”.
The letter stated that universities were fully aware of public concern about abuse of immigration rules.
“Any abuse must be tackled robustly and Universities UK will co-operate fully in ensuring that cases of abuse are minimised. But evidence shows that international students in universities overwhelmingly do not abuse the system.”
They said without international students, many university courses, particularly science and engineering ones, may no longer be viable.
The Guardian
The Observer

Beattie Communications opens a new Essex Marketing and PR office
Beattie Communications, the UK's largest independent public relations agency, is to open a new office in Essex.
The new Essex marketing office will be spearheaded by Southend local, Louise Toms, who went to the University of Essex.
24-7 Press Release Online

Amnesty International's Alex Neve to speak at Cathedral Arts event
Alex Neve, Secretary General of Amnesty International Canada, will be the speaker at the Cathedral Arts next Dinner Lecture in Ottowa. Mr Neve is a lawyer with a Master's degree in International Human Rights Law from the University of Essex.
CNW Group

Woman’s Weekly Wellbeing: Boost your mood
Tips to boost your mood include exercising outdoors. Exercise and being close to nature are both known to improve mood and reduce stress - put the two together and you get a winning combination, according to evidence from the University of Essex.
Goodtoknow.co.uk

Shedding new light on our coastline
Jules Pretty spent a year rambling and meandering around the entire East Anglia coastline on a personal odyssey of exploration with his discoveries featuring in an enriching book This Luminous Coast, published by Full Circle Editions.
Eastern Daily Press

4 March

Why the West should not intervene in my country
A Libyan student living in Colchester has urged Britain and other Western powers not to intervene militarily in the affairs of his home country. Abdoo Irhema, 26, is one of 38 Libyan students at Essex University and anxiously watching TV for news of the popular uprising against leader Colonel Gaddafi.
Gazette

University sets gateway on roads of grand tradition
Leading figures who helped to shape Essex University are to be honoured in its latest development. New roads on the university's Knowledge Gateway research park will be named after three luminaries who played a key role in shaping the Colchester campus.
Essex County Standard

Watersports club to launch
A new watersports club is being launched by the University of Essex. It is investing £15,000 to upgrade its clubhouse and boatyard, which have fallen into disuse, to house Brightlingsea Waterside Yacht Club.
Gazette

Call for more patrols at campus as two more students attacked
A student was stabbed and another suffered head injuries following an attack at the University of Essex.
Essex County Standard

Mayor announces single new promotion agency for London
Essex alumnus Danny Lopez, currently a group director at the London Development Agency, who will act as the interim chief executive of Promote London to manage the amalgamation of Think London, Visit London and Study London into a single agency. Danny holds a BA in Economics and a Masters in International Economics and Finance from Essex.
Web Newswire

Profile of Head of Kosovo's Team for Negotiations With Serbia
Head of Kosovo's team for negotiations with the Serbian authorities, Edita Tahiri, is a seasoned politician and senior member of Kosovo's new government. She studied telecommunications at the University of Essex in the early 1980s.
World News Connection

3 March

Duo hit road to adventure
A travelogue with a difference is the next show by acclaimed theatrical duo Lone Twin. It draws together their body of work during that time, 700 shows inspired by people and places they encountered on their adventures.
Gazette

People
De Montfort University has appointed Andy Downton as Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Learning and Teaching).
THE

A muscular reminder
A wireless device called the iSense has been devised by a team at the University of Essex that is capable of predicting and detecting the status of muscles during training and can be adapted to any sport.
THE

Why speed dating may not work
Psychological scientist Alison Lenton, of the University of Edinburgh, and economist Marco Francesconi, of the University of Essex, wanted to know if having too many mates to choose from meant that people were unable to choose as they were too overwhelmed by choice. It should surprise no one that choosers generally preferred people who were taller, younger, and well educated - attributes that could be judged quickly.
Asian News International
Times of India
Daily Mail Manchester
NewKerala.com
DNA India
Smashhits.com
WebIndia 123
Hindustan Times
Andhra News.net
Newstrack India

In pursuit of a global fee-for-all
Prem Sikka, a Professor of Accounting at the University of Essex was commissioned by the BBC to examine the accounts of WGA in Bahrain. Read his comments here.
The Australian

2 March

Council ordered to support teenager
Children's rights campaigners have welcomed a groundbreaking Court of Appeal ruling which forces East Riding of Yorkshire County Council to provide support for a severely autistic teenager once he turns 18. Three senior judges said on Wednesday that the council, which currently funds the boy's £150,000-a-year place at a specialist boarding school, must also help him to "enter adult life". The Children's Legal Centre welcomed the ruling.
Guiseley Today
WharfValley Today
CommunityCare.co.uk
24Dash
Children and Young People Now
Local Government Lawyer

Mobile Research Conference, London
The Mobile Research Conference, organised by Globalpark, takes place in London from 18 - 19 April 2011 in London. An impressive list of keynote speakers includes Dr Nathan Eagle of txteagle; Bruce Hoang of Orange Advertising Network; Paul Berney, Mobile Marketing Association CMO and managing director (EMEA); and Peter Lynn, Professor of Survey Methodology at the University of Essex. Professor Lynn will provide practical guidance on how to demonstrate the advantages of quality mobile research to clients.
Mobile Marketing Magazine

Beckenham actor in Corrie!
Former East 15 Acting School student, Lucy Thackeray says she feels like an imposter performing in Corrie! – a Beckenham girl playing some of the nation’s favourite Northern characters. The 26-year-old actress who plays Vera Duckworth and 10 other characters performs with five other actors in the successful nationally-touring show.
Bromley Times 24

Tech-savvy kids need lo-tech summer camp
It's not surprising that according to a research by the Kaiser Foundation, kids ages 8 to 18 spend an average of six and a half hours a day absorbed in some type of media. The survey concluded that most of that time was spent in solitary activities. At summer camp, kids are encouraged to interact with something other than a keyboard, an mp3 player or game controller. According to recent study conducted by the University of Essex in England, nature can help people recover from pre-existing stresses or problems. The research indicates that nature also has an immunizing effect that offers protection from future stresses and helps people to concentrate and think more clearly.
South Florida Sun

100K for a new study
Essex University's history department has won a £100,000 grant from the Leverhulme Trust to investigate a key moment in the build-up to the English Civil War. Professor John Walter will visit every records office in the country and archives in Scotland and the USA to look at papers detailing who took an oath of loyalty to the King and Parliament, introduced in 1641.
Gazette

Norway trip advances human rights in China, Mexico
Arizona State University's William Simmons addresses Chinese human rights researchers gathered in Oslo, Norway, while Todd Landman from the University of Essex takes notes. The objective of the meeting was to teach the researchers multidisciplinary research methods meaning to help them consider human rights from a variety of perspectives and methodologies. Read the article here.
Arizona State University

1 March

Student stabbed in attack at Essex uni
A student was stabbed and another suffered head injuries in an attack at the University of Essex. He was released several hours later after treatment to minor back injuries.
Gazette

Volunteers think big in Community Centre revamp
Students, residents and football players have joined forces to give a community centre a revamp. They decorated Greenstead Community Centre as part of the Big Project, a volunteering scheme set up by the University of Essex Students' Union and Colchester United Football Club.
Gazette
Harwich and Manningtree Standard - Online

Lyon brothers roar to success at finals
The finals of the Active Tendring Junior Squash Festival were held at the University of Essex - a culmination of a three-days series of tournaments held at Harwich sports centre, Brightlingsea sports centre and the University, as party of Tendring District Council's ActiveTendring half-term sports programme for children.
Gazette

Move to improve
Talk a walk in nature and double the benefits. According to studies at the University of Essex (UK), a walk surrounded by nature reduces depression by tapping into our instinctive enjoyment of nature.
Shape Magazine

February 2011

28 February

Device takes the strain out of training
A wearable device that senses how close muscles are to fatigue could help athletes train harder while avoiding injury. A prototype system has been devised by Mohamed Al-Mulla, in PhD research at Essex University's School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering.
The Engineer

Alternative vote could have changed results of the last general election
The Cameron-Clegg coalition may never have been born if the AV system was used in the last election, some experts believe. Although many people dismiss AV as a minor tweak – Nick Clegg himself called it a “miserable little compromise” – the evidence suggests it would significantly change the result. An analysis of the 2010 poll, by the University of Essex, found the Conservatives would have won 283 seats (down 22), Labour 248 (down 10) and the Liberal Democrats 89 (up 32).
Liverpool Daily Post
Daily Post

China in the World: Regional Responses
Distinguished Visiting Scholar Dr. Emil Kirchner, an international leader in the research and teaching of European and German politics, will participate in this roundtable discussion about how the world looks at China. Dr. Kirchner is the Jean Monnet Professor of European Integration and coordinator of the Jean Monnet European Centre of Excellence at Essex University in the U.K.
Suffolk University, Boston

Women are more vulnerable to climate disasters
A recent study conducted jointly by the London School of Economics, the University of Essex and the Max-Planck Institute of Economics, analysing natural disasters between 1981 and 2006 of 141 countries reveals evidences of socially constructed gender specific vulnerability of women built into everyday socio-economic patterns that leads to the relatively higher female disaster mortality rates compared to those of men.
Financial Express Bangladesh

Sun Spot
Students are being urged to upload their dreams to a special website as part of a study into subconscious campus life at the University of Essex.
The Sun

Happiness is...living and eating with your parents
Children who grow up in a traditional two-parent family and regularly eat an evening meal with their parents are more likely to be happy with their lives, according to a landmark report published today. Read the article here.
Daily Telegraph
The Observer
Mail Online
NewKerala.com
TopNews United States
Newstrack India
This story was featured in over 100 news outlets worldwide

We'll battle on to clear our names of claims
Students disqualified after an election amid claims of foul play have vowed to clear their names. Formal complaints were made against their campaign and upheld by the National Union of Students which carried out an independent investigate and ordered them to stand down.
Gazette

27 February

Date success for Take Me Out girl
University of Essex student, Krista Pettit enjoyed a date to the magical Isle of Fernando's after being chosen on the ITV dating show 'Take Me Out'. Krista Pettit, 21, starred on three of the Saturday night shows hosted by Paddy McGuinness.
Bucks Free Press
This is Local London

Images Evolve at Hygienic Art
University of Essex graduate Carl Dimitri from Rhode Island in the United States is showing work in the galleries at Hygienic Art. Carl moved to Los Angeles to work as a musician-songwriter in the early 90's. After three years in California, he enrolled in a graduate program in literature at the University of Essex, England. Carl returned to Rhode Island in 2000, where he taught, wrote, and worked.
The Westerly Sun

26 February

UCD Native American scholar Jack Forbes
Jack Forbes, acclaimed author, activist and professor emeritus of Native American studies at UC Davis, died last week. Jack Forbes extended his academic career beyond the United States and as well as periods in Universities across Europe, he was a senior Fulbright scholar at the University of Essex, England from 1985-86.
Daily Democrat
UC Davis

25 February

Charity attracts runners' help
A chance meeting between charity representatives and an University of Essex student has resulted in not one volunteer for next month's Colchester half-marathon, but six.
Essex County Standard

Students' Union reps disqualified in fraud claims
Newly-elected officers at the University of Essex Students' Union have been disqualified amid allegations of fraud. An independent returning officer from the National Union of Students was called in to investigate complaints
Gazette
Harwich and Manningtree Standard
Halstead Gazette
Essex County Standard

A truly inspired Passion
Bach's St John Passion received an intensely focused and highly dramatic performance delivered by the University of Essex Choir. The reviewer said it was a 'truly inspired account from talented performers'.
Essex County Standard

180 years of setting the Standard
The Essex County Standard celebrates its 180th anniversary and the University of Essex is featured in the special supplement, with comments from Professor Colin Riordan, a short piece on the building of the University and Sir Albert Sloman's vision for the University's future and a mention of Pink Floyd performing here in 1967.
Essex County Standard

Skeletons found in car park may be missing link
Excavated human remains could help provide the genetic link between modern-day Colcestrians and the residents of Camulodunum 1,700 years ago. Historian Jess Jephcott's hoped further studies could be based on the findings of two University of Essex scientists 13 years ago and is commissioning DNA testing for volunteers to build up a record of Colchester people's haplogroup.
Essex County Standard

New Chairman for university council
Lord Currie of Marylebone, a former chairman of regulator Ofcom has been appointed chairman of the University of Essex Council.
Essex County Standard

Delight for doctor as he is made honorary alderman
Dr Chris Hall has been recommended to become an Honorary Alderman, an historic title reserved for upstanding members of the community. As well as his medical and political careers and interests in groups such as the Lexden Choral Society and the Colchester Rovers Cycling Club, he is now studying german at the University of Essex.
Gazette
Essex County Standard
Harwich and Manningtree Standard

Bank card thief made up stories
A University of Essex student has been told to pay compensation to a fellow student after stealing £600 from her. She has also been ordered to do 100 hours of unpaid work.
Essex County Standard

No carnage - Police praise behaviour of 1,500 students on pub crawl
The Carnage UK event - which had sparked police concerns over marshalling and was subject to an advertising ban at the University of Essex - went off well, with no arrests made.
Essex County Standard

Scrap theft cost £300
The theft of scrap metal from the University of Essex, which the thief sold for just £12, has cost him £300 after he appeared in Court.
Essex County Standard

24 February

In search of a pink Viagra
Sex and Lies and Pharmaceuticals reviewed by Linsey McGoey from the Department of Sociology. The full review can be viewed here
Globe and Mail

Speakers announced for Gaming Conference
Dr. Richard Bartle will be a keynote speaker at the Third Annual MIT Sloan Business in Gaming Conference
Daily Herald
Digital Game Developer
Marketwatch
PR-USA

23 February

No chaos...But quite a crawl
Students were praised for their behaviour during an organised pub crawl in Colchester. About 1,500 youngsters descended on the town centre for the Carnage UK event. Similar pub crawls run by the company sparked controversy, prompting Colchester police to draft in extra officers and Essex University's Students' Union to ban advertising of the event on its premises. Essex University student, Nikki Atkinson, 18, said: "We had a good night and enjoyed talking to people".
Gazette

22 February

Former government adviser wins Essex University appointment
A former chairman of regulator Ofcom has been appointed chair of the Council of the University of Essex. Lord Currie of Marylebone, a businessman, academic, and government adviser, will replace Bill Gore on 1 August.
Halstead Gazette Online
Gazette Online

MorganFranklin Corporation Appoints Hanif Lalani, OBE, to International Corporate Advisory Board
MorganFranklin Corporation announced the recent appointment of Honorary graduate Hanif Lalani, OBE, to the company. Lalani holds a BA in mathematics, operations research, and economics from the University of Essex.
Digital Producer
News Zone

Handbook of Alcoholic Beverages: Technical, Analytical and Nutritional Aspects
Alan J. Buglers is the author of a new report of John Wiley and Sons Ltd's. Handbook of Alcoholic Beverages is a comprehensive text that describes the science and technology involved in the production of the world s alcoholic beverages. Alan J. Buglers graduated with a PhD from the Chemistry Department in 1972.
Business Wire
WABC-TV online

Wanted: Students' dreams
The dreams of students and staff at Essex University are being gathered as part of a unique project. Under the University of Dreams project, run by academics in several departments, participants are invited to write about their dreams on the university's internal internet system.
Gazette
BBCnews.co.uk

Tale of grief...actors in dark tale at Lakeside
Fractured memories and a startling discovery unravel a tragic tale on Thursday at the Lakeside Theatre. Influenced by real-life stories, Beachy Head explores the lives of the people left behind after a man jumps to his death from the infamous suicide spot, near Eastbourne. The performance uses 3-D animation to original music, object manipulation and text and physical performance to tell the story.
Gazette

To view the full February coverage please look in the Archive

Further Information:

About the University

For information about the prospectus, advertising and other University publications, see the Marketing Office website

Colchester Campus guide (shows the physical location of most departments, centres and services)

Guide to room numbering

Directions for travel

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BBC Radio Five Live Libya and the uprising against Colonel Gaddafi Dr Natasha Ezrow from Department of Government and author of Dictators and Dictatorships interviewed on the situation in Libya. Radio Five Live

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BBC Radio Five Live
Libya and the uprising against Colonel Gaddafi
Dr Natasha Ezrow from Department of Government and author of Dictators and Dictatorships interviewed on the situation in Libya.
Radio Five Live