News

Essex to host major immunology conference

An international research conference on reproductive immunology will be held on campus in September.

Reproductive immunology deals with seemingly simple but very problematical questions relating to real-life clinical concerns such as infertility or recurrent miscarriages, as well as in vitro fertilisation (IVF), stem cell research and cloning.

The Conference is being sponsored by the British Society for Immunology and other European societies. It has been organised by Nelson Fernández and Richard Jurd from the Department of Biological Sciences, along with other academics from across the UK. Delegates from across Europe and as far a field as the USA are expected to attend.

The programme will include discussions, lectures and poster presentations along with technical workshops on bioimaging and confocal microscopy and immunocytochemistry. A keynote debate among experts will explore the controversial topic of immunological contraception in humans.

For further information, registration and abstract submission visit www.essex.ac.uk/bs/conferences/ESRADI5/index.htm

Alumnus of the Year announced

Essex graduate and former journalist, Ben McCarthy, has been named Alumnus of the Year.

Ben is the fourth recipient of the annual award, which aims to recognise the achievements of Essex graduates. He graduated from the Department of Government in 1989 and has gone on to enjoy a distinguished career in broadcast journalism.

Ben's career began at BBC West Midlands. He then spent two years at Sky News before moving to ITN in 1994 as their north of England correspondent. Whilst at ITN, Ben spent time in Washington, Moscow and Iraq before returning to the BBC to work on News 24. In February 2002 he moved to BBC News as Midlands correspondent and in September was appointed presenter of a new BBC1 regional programme, Inside Out.

As a correspondent, Ben covered major news stories including the aftermath of the September 11 attacks in New York, Jeffrey Archer's perjury trial, and the Soham murders, where he interviewed Ian Huntley days before his arrest.

In April 2003, Ben joined BBC3's evening news bulletin, The News Show, aimed at attracting a younger audience to television news. He also worked on BBC3's 7-O'clock News and Weekend Breakfast. In 2004 Ben left the field of broadcast journalism to take up the post of Head of Media Relations at international public relations agency Porter Novelli.

Ben will receive his award during the July graduation.

Arts students receive annual award

Recipients of this year's Alison Bower Award have used their prizes to fund a saxophone, a drum kit and a conference fee.
The 2005 award was split between three students and was presented by Dr Joe Allard of the Department of Literature, Film, and Theatre Studies, at a ceremony attended by the parents of the late Alison Bower. Each student received £200.

Ben Brooks, who is studying for a BA in Humanities, will use his prize to fund the purchase of a drum kit. Ben is currently taking drumming lessons and hopes to start his own rock band. Louisa Fox, a final year Law undergraduate, is also a budding musician and has spent her money on an alto saxophone. She is working towards re-establishing the University orchestra. The third student to receive the award was postgraduate Luke Taylor. Thanks to the award, Luke, an MA in Film Studies student, was able to attend The School of Sound conference in London which focused on the relationship between sound and music and cinema and was attended by a number of internationally renowned film makers.

The Alison Bower award was founded in 1986 following the death of Alison, a final year student. Dr Allard paid tribute to Alison: 'She was very fond of dance and music. Family and friends at the time of her death thought that a fitting way to remember her would be to establish this award and we have been very fortunate over the years to have had wonderful students apply. They were all recipients that Alison would have approved of.'

 (left to right) Ben, Louisa and Luke

Also in the printed June edition of Wyvern:

• top rating for health programmes
• High praise from Tate Director
• Volunteering action