express issue 17 winter 2012

New Intranet

Introducing the new IntraBrunel

VC’s Vision

Professor Buckingham outlines her ideas

The Library

What happens behind the scenes?

Modernism

Express reviews Autumn’s public debates

WINTER 2012 :: Issue 17

Robot OlympicsFirst year students receive their own high-functioning robot to train for Brunel’s spring ‘Robot Olympics’

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3-5 Latest news from around the campus

6-7 Feature: introducing Brunel’s new and improved intranet, IntraBrunel

8-11 Student and graduate news round up

12-13 Feature: new Vice-Chancellor outlines her vision for Brunel

14-15 Staff news round up

16-19 Feature: Behind the Scenes at the Library

20-23 Research news round up

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Editor Rachel Turvey

Reporter Joe Norman

Design Andrew Hill

photography Sally Trussler, Neil Graveney

print Brunel University Press

With thanks to Brunel University Press Office

CONTaCT uS

Communications Team

[email protected]

01895 265588

Express is available to read and download on our website:

brunel.ac.uk/news/express.

Extra printed copies are available from the Communications Team.

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RECORD-BREakING TuRNOuT FOR auTuMN CaREERS FaIR

The annual autumn Careers Fair recorded its biggest ever student turnout in November as the placement and Careers Centre welcomed 2,100 students and 60 recruiters to campus.

Companies including Johnson and Johnson, Dyson, BA and Jaguar Land Rover were actively recruiting for graduate roles and for

placements, both in industry and in areas such as marketing and sales.

Eóin Lally, Marketing and Communications Officer at the Placement and Careers Centre, said: “I think the mood in terms of the economy has sharpened students’ minds about their future careers. It’s never too early to start planning your placement or thinking about your career.”

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Vince Cable addresses Urban scholars Nationwide ConferenceThe Business Secretary Vince Cable Mp and pioneering headteacher Dame Sue John addressed a major conference for leaders in education on campus in November, exploring how partnerships between government, universities and schools can help tackle the challenge of improving social mobility.

The conference was hosted by Brunel’s Urban Scholars Programme, which provides enriched learning experiences for talented students aged 12 to 18 from London schools, many of whom come from deprived areas. Over 500 students have completed the programme to date, and delegates received a toolkit to facilitate replicating the programme nationwide.

Mr Cable discussed the bursaries and scholarships available to students since the tuition fees cap was lifted to a maximum of £9,000 a year. He said: “This new generation of kids know that there are no financial obstacles in going to university, but that isn’t to say there aren’t problems which we are having to resolve.” Addressing the decline in university applications in some areas, he added: “Undoubtedly there has been an impact on adult students [and] on non-science, non-engineering subjects, and again there may be issues there that we need to pursue.”

Top 5 festive tips to help with your employability

1. Start or update your CV Work on a master copy and then tailor it for specific opportunities.

2. Get involved in volunteering and extracurricular activities Experience outside your studies is very attractive to employers.

3. Highlight the selling points of your degree Figure out what its industry-specific learning points and transferable skills are, and show awareness of your own skill set.

4. Do your research Employers notice immediately when a candidate has not done their homework in a covering letter or at interview.

5. Come to pCC workshops Check out the workshop series for the next term to enhance your skill set.

If you attended the Fair and were inspired by the opportunities available, head to the Placement and Careers Centre or visit

www.brunel.ac.uk/pcc to find upcoming events, job vacancies and help with CVs, applications, career options and brushing up your skills.

Sales of One Water fund water pump in africa

Sales of bottled water on campus have now raised enough money to fund a clean water pump in a remote part of sub-Saharan africa.

In recent years Brunel’s Catering team have been selling only One Water, from which all profits go towards funding water pumps. This summer, sales at Brunel reached the target required to fund a pump, and a village in Africa will now receive fresh, clean water courtesy of Brunel’s staff, students and visitors.

The ingenious PlayPump is powered by the movement of children playing on a roundabout, which pumps water from underground into a tank ready for use. Villagers, including children, may previously have had to walk many miles to obtain clean water, and the extra time gained means that many children can now attend school regularly.

More information will follow on the specific community that Brunel has helped.

A representative from One Water said: “Brunel University’s life-changing gift will lead to improvements in health, education, gender equality, and economic development. We cannot resolve this vast problem overnight, but with your partnership we are making a concrete difference.”


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Brunel alumnus of the Year 2012 performs in Chicago with the World Orchestra for peace

Brunel’s alumnus of the Year 2012, rising opera star Ross Ramgobin, performed with the World Orchestra for peace in Chicago in October.

Ross sung the part of baritone alongside the prestigious ensemble, as they celebrated the life and works of Sir Georg Solti, who died suddenly in 1997 and is regarded as one the Twentieth Century’s most influential conductors.

The Orchestra, which Solti formed in 1992, is comprised of musicians from many of the greatest orchestras in the world. Solti envisioned it as an ensemble where “musicians can produce a united Europe or even a more united world.”

Ross studied English and Drama at Brunel, and successfully auditioned for a University Music Award which enabled him to have individual

lessons at Brunel’s Arts Centre with Michael Sanderson and Eileen Pinkarchevski. Since graduating his career has gone from strength to strength, including performing with the Rudolf Kempe Society and the Royal Academy of Music Song Circle.

Ross is pictured with pianist Sally Goodworth before performing at a special Alumnus of the Year concert in November.

BRuNEL’S CHaNCELLOR STaNDS DOWN

Lord Wakeham pC Jp DL FCa Hon Duniv Hon phD stands down as Chancellor of the university on 31 December 2012.

Lord Wakeham has served the University since 1998, overseeing a period of immense change for the sector and of growth and success for Brunel.

He said: “I have greatly enjoyed my time as Chancellor of Brunel and have watched with pleasure and admiration its progress over the last 15 years. I am sure that Brunel will continue to forge new pathways into the future and I for one will still look on with great pride as it does so.”

Former Vice-Chancellor Professor Chris Jenks thanked Lord Wakeham for his kindness, support and counsel, and Vice-Chancellor Professor Julia Buckingham added: “We are hugely indebted to Lord Wakeham for the unfailing commitment he has demonstrated to the University over many years as Chancellor.”

Lord Wakeham’s successor will be announced in early 2013.

Freshers enjoy an unexpected reward for their interest in volunteering

New students who visited the Brunel Volunteers stall at this year’s Freshers’ Fayre had a more material reward than they might have expected for their interest in volunteering, as they enjoyed 3,000 tubs of Haagen Dazs ice cream donated by one of the partner companies of the Hillingdon partnership Trust (HpT).

Students and staff who volunteer through Brunel have regularly fundraised on behalf of HPT, a forum for local organisations which work in partnership to support community projects. Both the University and the Union of Brunel Students are partners, alongside companies such as United Biscuits, Barclays Bank, the Chimes Shopping Centre and General Mills, who supplied the ice cream.

Brunel Volunteers Manager Priya Pallan explained the Trust’s ethos: “HPT championed corporate social responsibility long before it became the buzz word it is today,” she said. “Local people request help from the Trust, and the partners pull together to provide support and resources.”

Brunel’s involvement has traditionally been based on fundraising activities such as the annual Christmas Wrap in the Chimes Shopping Centre. This year, fundraising activities under the HPT banner during the Olympic and Paralympic Games raised over £4,000.

Chief Operating Officer Paul Thomas, who is shortly to step down as HPT’s Chair of Trustees, said: “The very kind offer from General Mills coincided perfectly with Freshers’ Week. Initially there was concern about how we would transport and store over 3,000 ice creams, but there was never any doubt that the student body would manage to consume them all!”

A number of Brunel staff support the work of HPT – Professor Heinz Wolff is its President and Professor Ian Campbell is a Trustee.

Brunel Volunteers, which has an active role on the HPT management committee, emphasises opportunities which enhance participants’ CVs in areas such as the arts, media, law, sport, health and welfare. Students can gain a gold, silver or bronze award based on the number of hours they contribute.

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Lancaster Suite bar and restaurant now open

Following its refurbishment, the Lancaster Suite is now open for business, welcoming staff and guests to its bar and dining area.

The new bar and restaurant offers coffee and pastries from 10am and a full dining menu between 12pm and 8pm Monday to Friday. The bar is open until 10pm.

The official opening ceremony for the new dining area, performed by the Vice-Chancellor on 20

November, was attended by guests and representatives from local businesses who enjoyed champagne and canapés before touring the refurbished hotel and spa facilities.

The Lancaster Suite team is keen to welcome guests to try out the new bar and dining area, whether for a meeting over a cup of coffee, a meal with colleagues or a glass of wine after work.

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IntraBrunel: introducing Brunel’s new and improved intranet

Brunel’s new intranet platform launched in October 2012, providing a hub for students and staff to access campus news, notices, events and useful information.Offering a fusion of the old news site and intranet information pages, the new IntraBrunel is being implemented in three phases. Phase one, including the news and events pages, an improved search facility and an interactive staff contacts directory and campus map, is now up and running. Phases two and three will see the migration of School and administrative intranet webpages and documents stored on shared drives, and will take place between now and 2014.

IntraBrunel appears as the default homepage on Internet Explorer, appearing whenever staff and students log in to a networked Windows computer. To visit IntraBrunel from home or if you use a different browser, visit

https://intra.brunel.ac.uk.

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It’s your IntranetIntraBrunel has been designed as an interactive website that allows all users to customise settings, upload information to a personal profile page, and easily submit content to be published to the Brunel community.

Your feedback

“What I really like about the new IntraBrunel design is that not only is it completely customisable but also the minimalist design makes it so easy to find and digest information. I especially love the rotator at the top of the page as it really brings news stories and events to life!”

Eóin Lally Marketing and Communications Officer, placement and Careers Centre

“The new IntraBrunel can play an important role in allowing our academics and staff to be part of Brunel’s vibrant intellectual community. There is excellent practice and innovation at both School and University level. This new virtual environment is a simple and efficient medium for raising awareness about such practice and innovation, and facilitates much needed synergy across the University.”

Dimitrios Giannoulopoulos Deputy Head (programmes), Brunel Law School

“The process of communicating our news with the rest of campus was made clear and easy by using the online form. It also ensures that all the relevant detail and imagery is uploaded in the clearest way possible and we have seen a marked increase in the campus awareness of our facilities.”

Matthew Ralph General Manager, Lancaster Suite

Why build a new Intranet?

The IntraBrunel project aims to create an improved user experience for staff and students by:

• Simplifying access to information via a single entry point

• Targeting content to specific user groups

• Building new tools and features such as the interactive campus

• Building a search system that searches across multiple platforms

• Allowing the creation of shared working spaces that can be accessed fromoff campus

If you haven’t explored the new IntraBrunel yet, these pages offer some ideas about how to start making the most of these improvements.

More details about the team and the project can be found at: https://intra.brunel.ac.uk/p/IntraBrunel

The project Team

The project Team has been actively involved in every stage of the project from scoping and requirements through to implementation.

paul Doyle Director of People Services

Carey Clifford Records Manager

Gareth Jones University Web Manager

andrew kendall Senior Applications Developer

andrew palmer Web Services Technical Manager

Have you tried……personalising your homepage?

Click ‘Customise this page’ in the top right hand corner of your IntraBrunel homepage to add or remove content from the homepage, and change your colour preferences.

…creating your own profile?

Go to the ‘My Links’ menu, then click ‘My Profile’ to add information about your research and work interests, skills and current projects, as well as a photo.

…using the interactive campus?

Search for a person, office or building to find contact details and a map, and find travel information for the local area.

…submitting a news item, notice or event?

Use the ‘Submit’ links on the News and Events homepages to request publication on IntraBrunel.

…creating your own bookmarks?

Go to the ‘My Links’ menu, then click ‘Manage My Links’ to add bookmarks for pages you visit regularly.

Visit the Help site at https://intra.brunel.ac.uk/p/IntraBrunel/help

New computer support service employs over 25 Brunel IT students

a new London computer support service is providing Brunel’s IT students with valuable work experience.

As part of their Employer Strategy, the Placement and Careers Centre has developed links with a local company called Student@Home, which hires IT students to carry out cost-effective expert tuition and technology support for home computer users and small businesses.

Student@Home currently employs 55 students, around half of whom are undergraduates at Brunel.

Kelly Klein, founder of Student@Home, said: “We’re really pleased to have Brunel IT students on board. They’re a great bunch and more importantly are delivering a really important service to people that might otherwise be struggling with digital technology.

“I’m also aware of high unemployment rates and the difficulties that graduates face when trying to get their foot on the employment ladder, so it is great to be able to offer students struggling for work experience an opportunity to gain employment.

“Working with the Placement and Careers Centre at Brunel has made starting my new venture that much easier. Brunel has put forward trustworthy and talented students who are doing a great job. I look forward to continuing to build on this relationship as Student@Home grows.”

To apply to work at Student@Home and to find out more visit

www.studentathome.co.uk or contact the Placement and Careers Centre:

www.brunel.ac.uk/pcc.

Brunel shortlisted for Fundraising Team of the YearBrunel made the shortlist for Fundraising Team of the Year 2012 for the university’s efforts in support of the international development charity ChildReach International.

The charity, which was widely supported by students and staff during the last academic year, nominated Brunel for their outstanding efforts which resulted in a total donation of over £100,000, more than double the figure raised in the previous year.

ChildReach International was a nominated charity for RAG (Raise and Give) and for student trips to the Great Wall of China and Kilimanjaro, the latter of which alone raised £67,000. The Kilimanjaro team raised the fourth highest amount of any one team in the UK.

As well as the nomination, Childreach is offering the opportunity for students to apply for a two-week work placement at their headquarters.

The Union of Brunel Students’ Vice-President for Student Activities Gary O’Brien said: “ChildReach has helped change the lives and futures of over 300,000 children in the last year and it’s nice to know that Brunel, and other UK Universities, has been central to this.”

Gary himself has scaled Kilimanjaro twice, and Brunel students will again be summiting the mountain this year as well as undertaking a 520km endurance bike ride from Vietnam to Cambodia.

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Brunel graduate Chris Marien was named runner up in the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers Graduate of the Year 2012 Award. Chris, who now works for the construction, property and design consultancy calfordseaden, received a £500 prize from the Rumford Club, a professional club for members involved in all aspects of building services engineering. Finalists were challenged to give a five minute presentation addressing the topic: ‘How will I help to engineer better communities?’

A new book edited by Dr anwer al-Dulaimi during the course of his PhD in Cognitive LTE Radio Systems will be published in January 2013 by IGI Global Reference. Self-Organization and Green Applications in Cognitive Radio Networks considers how to make mobile communications more intelligent and how to save power while improving service

for the end user. Anwer handled chapter proposals and different rounds of the review process while in the final stages of his PhD, working with contributors from countries including Canada, France, the UK, Sweden and India.

Students in the Law School will have the chance to moot – or participate in simulated court proceedings – in the highest court in the land, the Supreme Court. The School secured the Court as the location for its internal mooting competition final in February 2013. In addition to the finalists, forty Law students will be given the chance to visit the Court and to be in the audience for the moot.

Brunel’s Music awards holders for 2012 played their first solo concert in November. The Awards recognise the fact that many students at Brunel have skills in fields other than those they choose to study for their degrees, and successful students receive funding to continue their musical studies through Brunel’s Arts Centre.

Mathematics with Computer Science student Gus Manu has been shortlisted as the UK’s Best Placement Student for the National Placement and Internship Awards 2013. Gus spent his placement year with the multinational computer storage and data management company NetApp.

Student wins £1,500 for best novel manuscript

Will Wells has won this year’s Curtis Brown prize for the best Creative Writing: the Novel Ma dissertation manuscript. The prize, awarded by the leading literary agency each year, includes a cash award of £1,500.

Will’s novel, entitled A Very Old Enemy, concerns the complex relationship between the protagonist Mark and his grandfather, who are forced to share a semi-squalid, cramped flat.

Will drew upon his background in biology to give the novel’s darker elements plausibility: “I looked at forensics and toxicology to find plausible ways for the characters to poison each other and to discover what side effects certain chemical agents would induce. That was the hardest part of the story to write, as I have to inform the reader about a scientific world they may not know.”

Karolina Sutton, literary agent for Curtis Brown, described the novel as ‘disarming and brilliant,’ highlighting the quality of the dialogue.

Will is now forging a career as a copywriter while finishing the novel, as well as seeking inspiration for future stories by working for a small fairground.

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‘Robot Olympics’ beckon as new SISCM students receive their own robotForget Rio 2016 – the next Olympics set to brighten Brunel’s calendar will involve not elite athletes but high-functioning robots, programmed by first year students in the Department of Information Systems and Computing (DISC).

The Robot Olympics in Spring 2013 will form the culmination of a revolutionary new pilot initiative. All first year undergraduates who enrolled on a Business Computing or Computer Science course in 2012 have been loaned one of 230 USB-powered robots, known as a Finches, which were specially designed by a team at Carnegie-Mellon University in the USA to develop students’ computing skills and keep them engaged with their studies.

At Brunel, the project is run by lecturers Dr Stephen Swift, Dr Allan Tucker, Dr Tim Cribbin and Dr Stasha Lauria alongside Systems Manager Jeremy Baxter.

Martin Shepperd, Professor in Software Technologies and Modelling at Brunel, explained the appeal of the robots for learning and teaching: “They’re tangible – the difficulty with software and computer science is that we’re dealing with subjects that are intangible. It’s useful to have devices such as robots to visualise the behaviour of software.”

The Finch can be programmed to perform a variety of actions, including moving in different directions, sounding a buzzer, changing the colour of its ‘beak’, detecting its orientation using an accelerometer, using infrared sensors to detect obstacles and determining ambient temperature using a thermocouple.

The Robot Olympics, scheduled to be held in the Sports Hall in Spring 2013, will form part of the students’ assessment. “The bonus of these Finches is that they provide instant feedback, so the student can see whether they are responding as intended and make changes accordingly,” explained Professor Shepperd. The most able students are already pushing the boundaries of the Finches’ capabilities, such as enabling them to navigate previously unseen mazes and produce intricate geometric artwork using an attached pen, and programming them to receive commands via Twitter using a ‘backpack’ made from a Raspberry Pi (a credit-card sized computer).

The simple but high-functionality teaching robots, purchased at a bulk cost of just £80 each, have been loaned to all students and teaching assistants for a year.

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Edward Woodhouse is a second year Computer Science student

The attraction of the course for me was to gain a deeper understanding of programming, leading to the creation of new software and tools.

I believe that the most satisfying activities are those driven by progress – both in the personal and practical sense. The Finch is a physical example of this as it produces a real life outcome in response to creativity. It embodies the harsh realities of coding: at its best a spinning, buzzing success but at times motionless!

The application of computing spans across every subject. As computers integrate into society, they are proving capable of shaping our existence in a way that nothing in history has done before. It is this promise of a future where outputs of the binary domain could transcend their creators’ inputs which makes this subject so enticing and essential.

Creative Writing students curate their own Twitter account Head of Subject Max kinnings has established a student-curated Twitter account for Brunel’s undergraduate Creative Writing courses, giving students the opportunity to micro-blog about writing, literature and reading.

The account, @BrunelWriter, is curated by a different student each fortnight and covers a range of material including writing advice, literary events and avenues for potential publication.

The project was inspired by the @Sweden account, set up by the

Swedish Government to promote tourism, which allows real Swedes to tweet to 65,000 followers about their lives and experiences. Building on this model, Kinnings envisioned the feed as a platform where students could tweet about popular culture and writing, but also about their own studies and student life. “Rather than the rather dry Twitter feeds that are sometimes provided by schools, colleges and universities, this will have a unique slant,” he explained.

“It will be an ever-changing voice from the world of Creative Writing, which I hope will attract followers from across the subject area.”

Curating the account also provides practical experience in an employment environment which increasingly values social media expertise. Hilary Nouwens, one of four students to have curated @BrunelWriter so far, described how she became more confident in using Twitter: “I would thoroughly recommend it to other students,” she said. “It doesn’t take up too much time, it’s a great way to get into Twitter if you’re not already a member, and it’s something different and perhaps impressive to add to your CV.”

@BrunelWriter launched in October 2012 and will expand to include postgraduate creative writers in early 2013.


alumna gets into a winning habit with University Gospel Choir of the Yeara Brunel alumna who was inspired by the film Sister Act 2 has received two national awards for founding the university Gospel Choir of the Year (uGCY) competition, as well as appearing on the hit TV show The X Factor.

Lorraine Wright was named Community Champion in the 2012 Ghana UK Based Achievement Awards (GUBA), which celebrate excellence in the British Ghanaian community. She also received the Performing Arts Award from the London-based social enterprise Black Youth Achievements (BYA), which aims to challenge negative stereotypes of young black people.

Lorraine was inspired to create UGCY during her time as a Brunel student, while watching the 1993 film Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit.

The competition, which launched in 2011 for universities in the South East and opened to national entrants in 2012, is backed by the Mayor of London, and Lorraine describes its purpose as “providing choirs with a platform and bringing the community together through gospel music.”

This year’s finalist choirs have supported four shows of The X Factor, and will appear in the final at Wembley Arena. “Seeing how everything works backstage is an eye-opener,” said Lorraine, “and working with the contestants is humbling. You see how hard they work and how genuine they are.”

Alongside winning the BYA and GUBA awards, Lorraine was nominated for the South London based Our Heroes award 2012. Last year she featured in Powerful Media’s ‘future leader’ list of bright and promising graduates.

As well as singing in the University gospel choir at Brunel and receiving a first class degree in Information Systems, Lorraine stood on the committees for both the African Caribbean Society and Brunel Entrepreneurs. She now combines running the competition with her job as an Associate Director – Project Manager at the investment bank UBS.

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New Vice-Chancellor outlines her vision for Brunel University professor Julia Buckingham took up her appointment at Brunel university on 1 October 2012. She explains some of her ideas for a new direction for Brunel, focusing on building reputation, improving access, and continuing to provide a research-led education to train tomorrow’s leaders.

“Brunel University has an enormous amount going for it,” remarked Professor Julia Buckingham, Brunel University’s new Vice-Chancellor and Principal. “It’s research intensive, it attracts good students, it is climbing the league tables and it has a fabulous campus – what surprises me is that very few people seem to know much about it!”

The former Pro-Rector for Education and Academic Affairs at Imperial College London is a Professor of Pharmacology and chairman-elect of SCORE, a non-politically-affiliated partnership of learned societies that aims to improve science education in schools by advising on education policy. She admits that her sights are set on raising Brunel’s profile in terms of its achievements in research and education and its image, and she intends actively to engage in the drive to raise educational standards in schools and improve the transition between school and university.

One of her plans for Brunel is to develop its research portfolio, building up areas in which the university is internationally competitive and developing the careers of young researchers.

“Where there is clear added value, I am interested in sharing our expertise by building strategic partnerships with other universities at home and overseas, with the commercial sector and the not for profit sector.”

She is also interested in developing educational partnerships with overseas universities to enhance the student experience, and in increasing Brunel’s population of international students as

the broad cultural mix helps to prepare students for careers in a rapidly evolving global economy.

Would she look again at courses that were closed at Brunel in the late 1990s and early 2000s, such as Biology, Physics and Chemistry?

“I think any university should keep its portfolio of degree programmes under review to make sure that it is in line with student demand and the changing needs of society and the economy,” she responded.

“There has been a significant increase in interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) subjects in recent years which, as a scientist, I’m thrilled to see, and I shall want to see how Brunel can benefit from it – the UK badly needs more scientists and engineers.”

She added: “But I shan’t be looking at STEM to the exclusion of other subjects. It’s important to have a mix which reflects the expertise of the institution and one of the things that attracted me to Brunel was the broad subject mix. However, I wouldn’t want us to offer degree level courses in subjects in which we lack research expertise – in my view, research and education feed off each other and the teaching we offer should be both research-informed and research-led.”

Another of Professor Buckingham’s plans is to broaden the skillset of all students, whatever discipline they are studying. “The University has a responsibility from the moment the students set foot here to begin to prepare them for their future careers.”

“One of things I shall be looking at very early in my time at Brunel is how we can develop a co-curriculum which will broaden students’ education beyond their discipline and help them acquire the broader skills sought by employers.”

On the agenda is the possibility of encouraging more internships and placements and the introduction of University-wide programmes that enable students to broaden their intellectual horizons and gain an appreciation of how individuals from different disciplines approach and solve problems.

As Brunel’s first female VC, and one of just 17 in the country, Professor Buckingham is an advocate of equal opportunities and a passionate supporter of widening participation. About a third of Brunel’s student

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population comes from diverse communities: “It’s critically important for UK plc that the most talented students are able to benefit from a university education irrespective of their background,” she stressed.

She is concerned about a general lack of understanding among some teachers, parents and prospective students of the student loan system. “We need a much stronger campaign to clarify to young people exactly what the situation is. It is up to us to identify disadvantaged children with the intellectual skills and motivation needed to benefit from our courses, to help them understand what our entrance requirements are and to encourage them to apply.”

Nationally, she is a supporter of the GSCE-level English Baccalaureate (the Ebac) and the A-level standard International Baccalaureate which is growing in popularity in the UK. “One area where I think universities can be hugely influential is in helping with the design of the new A-levels and ensuring that they equip students with the knowledge and skills necessary for independent learning and thinking at university,” she explained.

Professor Buckingham also looked ahead to the university’s 50th anniversary in 2016. “It’ll be a great opportunity to involve the alumni and develop our relationships with them,” she commented.

“Alumni can help in so many ways, particularly by mentoring and encouraging our current students, and there is much we could do to benefit them.”

INTRODuCING BRuNEL’S NEW CHapLaIN Brunel’s newly-appointed chaplain and inter-faith advisor, the Reverend Sally Hitchiner, is one of the youngest incumbent female priests in London. an enthusiastic social media user, she has recently been prominent in the media as a campaigner for the ordination of women bishops, “or bishops, as I like to call them”, as she pointedly tweeted.

“I’m the girl-next-door who happens to be ordained,” she told Express. “I watch The X Factor, I know what’s on TV, and I buy clothes at Top Shop.” She is looking forward to working with Brunel students: “I’d like to change the image of the student chaplain,” she said.

A Liverpudlian, Sally studied theology at Oxford and was ordained two weeks after her 22nd birthday. Before coming to Brunel, she was the curate of St John’s Church, Ealing, where she helped to support the community during the summer 2011 London riots.

Aside from her involvement in the campaign for women bishops, Sally is also active in peace and reconciliation work. She said: “I love the idea of bringing people together who are outside faith communities and the world of the Church.”

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Course data review team develops new feedback collection methodology

Brunel’s JISC-funded course data review initiative has achieved one of its key deliverables – the development of a new technique for collecting feedback from Brunel staff about the approval in principle course review process.

The creation of a composite feedback collection methodology is a key milestone for the CDATA project, which involves staff from Brunel’s Registry and SITS and Learning Technology teams in collaboration with 62 other UK institutions. The technique combines Appreciative Inquiry, which focuses

on positive perspectives such as what works and future aspirations, with an understanding of potential problems and reasons for caution. It has therefore been named ‘ApprecHATive Inquiry’, with reference to the ‘black hat’ symbol representing discernment in Edward de Bono’s book on the psychology of group thinking, Six Thinking Hats.

The technique was implemented in debriefing sessions for Panels and Boards of Examiners in 2012, receiving positive feedback from the Brunel staff involved, and the team will present it

at the 2013 Association of University Administrators Conference.

The CDATA initiative project board is chaired by the Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Strategy, Development and External Relations Professor Dany Nobus.

Find out more

[email protected] www.cdata-project.com @cdataproject

The team would like to thank stakeholders for their contributions over the last few months.

starters and Leavers

Express welcomes some new faces, and says goodbye and good luck to some of our colleagues who left Brunel in September and October 2012.

Welcome to… Dr Catherine Meads Reader, HERG | xiao xu Senior Web Systems Officer, Computer Centre | professor Mark Williams Subject Leader, Sport Sciences | Dr Matthew Seligmann Reader, History | Sanchia alasia Equality and Diversity Manager, HR | adam Bell Head of Contracts and Intellectual Property, RSDO | professor Clive Seale Professor of Sociology | professor Shyama Ramani Chair, Entrepreneurship | professor Haifeng Wang Chair, Power Systems Engineering | Matthew Ralph Deputy Head of Conference, Hotel and Retail Office

Farewell to…Jo Lakey Research Impact Manager, Planning | piotr Olczak Planning Officer | professor Guy Fitzgerald Chair, Information Systems | Dr Qiang Ni Reader, Electronic and Computer Engineering | Emily Danvers Academic Skills Manager, Library | Stephen Exley Head of Security and Emergency Planning | professor andrew Choo Chair, English Law | professor Julian kaplunov Professor of Mathematics | Sheila Egan Head of Media Services

Congratulations to……HERG Manager Nicky Dunne, who celebrated 25 years with the Health Economics Research Group in October

Creative Writing lecturer publishes ‘definitive’ biography of Prince

Brunel lecturer in Creative Writing Matt Thorne has published a new and definitive biography of the pop star prince.

Entitled simply Prince, Thorne’s book provides a three-dimensional portrait of the artist as a musician, referencing every phase of Prince’s 35 year career in the studio, on stage and on screen.

Notoriously reticent, Prince is one of the few remaining 80s superstars who remains an enigma. His classics such as Purple Rain, Sign o’ the Times and Parade regularly feature in Best Ever Album polls, and although recent releases have been modestly successful at best, his influence on urban music, and RnB in particular, is inescapable.

Thorne intended the book to be both a comprehensive account to be read alongside the music, and also an entertaining stand-alone read. Extensively researched over the course of seven years, it features a number of exclusive interviews including with members of Prince’s band The Revolution and with studio engineer Hans Martin Buff, which gave Thorne a unique and authentic sense of the artist’s creative process.

The book includes Thorne’s own experiences of attending Prince concerts, but despite being a self-confessed Prince fan, he is clear that his book is “a fan’s account but also a writer’s account”. Having published six novels including the Man Booker Prize-nominated Cherry, Thorne describes the transition from novelist to biographer as “incredibly hard”. “I spent the first two years coming up with a voice that was detailed enough, but that also could stand back and make jokes at times,” he explained.

Describing the book’s genesis, Thorne admits: “I wanted to write a non-fiction book for a while, but didn’t know what I was going to write about, or who I was going to write about. Prince represents a kind of Andy Warhol figure in a lot of ways – I was able to talk about his star-making qualities and his use of different media. Few artists have all of those factors.”

“I hope that this is a book that will increase people’s pleasure when listening to Prince – one that gives them a steer to his career, taking people deeper into the music.”

Thorne’s Encore award-winning novel Eight Minutes Idle was recently made into a film for which he co-wrote the screenplay, and which was screened at the Bath Film Festival in November. He is also the author of three books for children and has co-edited two anthologies.

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sTaFF NEWs :: eXPRess MAGAZINe

Behind the scenes at…

The Library Brunel university Library sits at the heart of campus and, for many students, at the heart of their university lives.

Highly commended at the THE Awards in November 2012 for its Outstanding Student Support, the Library offers a total of 397,892 items, 1,000 study spaces, 400 networked PCs and almost 190,000 eBooks and eJournals. But there’s more to it than just books – Express went behind the scenes to find out more about the full range of services that the Library provides.

FEaTURE :: eXPRess MAGAZINe

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DID YOu kNOW…

n …that it isn’t just for students?

All members of staff can also join the Library – just bring your University ID card and contract of employment to the Help Desk. Then you can start using the facilities immediately, even if it’s just to rent one of 4,678 DVDs!

n …that you can use the Library 24 hours a day, Monday to Friday during term time?

A dedicated group of staff keep the Library open through the night, when the main desks are closed.

n …that there’s a dedicated space for researchers?

Staff and postgraduate researchers can access the Research Commons on the third floor, which includes the Special Collections, 14 valuable archives on topics such as working class biographies, cult films and contemporary poetry. Watch out for news on wider access to this facility.

n …that students’ satisfaction with the Library has increased for the last four years in a row?

This year’s National Student Survey showed that satisfaction with the Library’s services rose from 81% to 91% in 2012 (according to scores published by the Society of College, National and University Libraries (SCONUL)).

n …who carved the wooden sculptures in the central stairwell?

English painter and sculptor Joe Tilson, described as the ‘long-forgotten king of British Pop Art’, created these wooden murals in 1973.

kEEp IN TOuCH…

ask a question using Libanswers: http://libanswers.brunel.ac.uk

Visit the Library website: www.brunel.ac.uk/library

Follow on Twitter: @brunel_library

‘Like’ on Facebook: www.facebook.com/bruneluniversitylibrary

Read the blog: http://bookmarkdaily.wordpress.com

To find out more about how the Library works, Express spent a two-hour shift on the ground floor, watching the team in action and getting a taste of some of the issues that the Library handles every day.

When 2-4pm, 23 November 2012

Front Desk team Nigel Buckley, Jo-ann Nash, Trish Southby

top Five issues Fine queries; lost items; opening times; joining the Library; help locating items

“Last week one guy lost his shoe in the library,” says Graduate Library Assistant Nigel Buckley casually, before turning to take an enquiry from a student.

“He was hobbling around trying to find it.” Nigel assures us that the average questions handled by the staff are a little more mundane: “We get around three USB sticks handed in per day. Sometimes phones, chargers and even whole laptops.”

While we’re at the Help Desk, Nigel helps grant access to members who have forgotten their ID cards – the Library charges a £2 fee for the day – provides campus directions, and explains the joining procedure to potential Library users.

Later, Trish and Jo-Ann explain the purpose of U-shaped Enquiries Desk. “Here, we handle enquiries about student’s library accounts,” says Jo-Ann. “It’s mainly investigating fines and helping people locate books or place holds, but we’re ready to answer anything.”

Since the Library’s recent refurbishment, the ground floor also features the Computer Centre Help Desk and a Pod for subject-specific enquiries. “The Pod takes the meatier, more academic enquiries,” says Jo-Ann, “and having the Computer Centre here has made a big difference. Students now don’t have to leave the Library and go to the John Crank Building to sort out issues such as print accounts.”

A huge number of people are served, but many visitors are clearly very happy with the service they receive. “Thank you so much, that was really helpful,” says one student sincerely, even though the request – “what time does the library close on a Friday?” – is a straightforward one.

Finally, a man hands in a set of translucent red rosary beads that were left on a seat. He smiles and dashes off again. There is a brief lull, before: “Excuse me…”

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248,240checkouts of physical items to staff and students

entries to the Library1,065,200

searches on the Library database, Summon

1,134,207

students seen by the academic Skills Service (aSk)9,504

overdue notices sent! 49,920

full-text downloads from Brunel university Research archive (BuRa)

2,148,836

key figures for the Library over the academic

year 2011-2012

The Library: Who’s Who?


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Katie Falconer – specialist special Collections Librarian Special Collections, housed in the Research Commons on the third floor of the Library, is home to archived collections including Poetry Now, the Shakespearean Collections, the National Jazz Reserve Collection and the Cult Film Archive. Katie is the first librarian at Brunel to have been hired as an archive specialist.

“I do a bit of everything: promotion, outreach, cataloguing, preservation and conservation,” says Katie.

“My role is to make people aware of this fantastic resource. Undergraduates don’t have access to the Research Commons but they can make an appointment to use Special Collections, and a lot of the collections tie in closely with postgraduate courses.

“The archives are so varied. We’re hoping to use the South Asia Diaspora Literature and Arts Archive in our work to raise aspirations

for higher education in schools. Transport History is the largest archive – some retired volunteers from Great Western Railway help us to catalogue it, and people come to look at the timetables, maps and tickets. Most enquiries, however, are about the Burnett Archive of Working Class Writing, many from researchers outside of Brunel.

“On a day-to-day basis, I work with two assistants, listing and cataloguing, promoting the collections, and conserving the archives for example by storing entries in acid-free containers and training staff to handle the books. We never use gloves – they make you lose dexterity – yet it’s shown on lots of TV programmes!

“Outside of work, I’m part of a band of librarians who knit, and I run my own knitting group.”

dr Courtney Hopf – acting senior academic skills (asK) advisor “A large part of my job is making and maintaining connections with academic Schools, and performing embedded skills training,” says Courtney. “We also run one-to-one student appointments, spending around 25 hours a week with individual students.

“The challenge is trying to balance all our tasks sustainably – when ASK was formed it was a general service for providing advice on academic writing, but demand has gone through the roof! The team now has eight members, all connected to a School. I put them in touch, managing times and schedules and providing resources to lecturers.

“We’ve just finished ASK week, which was so busy! I spent it attending meetings, publicising initiatives, teaching workshops and running one-to-one appointments. It’s quite a schizophrenic job, but I love the variety and the chance to encourage students at all levels. We work with a lot of mature students, maybe because there may have been a gap since they were last in education, or maybe because they’re more confident about approaching people for help.

“I’m trained as an academic, and I research 20th and 21st Century Literature. I also enjoy hiking and skiing, especially in California.”

Meet some of the staff who keep the Library running smoothly, day in, day out.

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Leslie Bolsover – senior Information assistant (acquisitions)“I supervise the Library acquisitions work, under the direction of the Collections Services Manager,” explains Leslie. “Every year we get new stock and replacement copies, including books, journals, CDs, DVDs, and eResources, as well as donated items. This year we ordered almost 14,000 items, and we’ve replaced all the videos with DVDs.

“Quality control is part of my job. For instance today we’ve discovered that the suppliers seem to have dropped coffee on the books! We get a tremendous amount of emails, so I maintain email communication with suppliers on a day-to-day basis. There are also special email boxes for reading lists, collections services, and inter-library loans that have to be maintained.

“My role is split between the collection, ordering and arrival of new stock, supporting and training staff, and working on the Help Desk each day. The senior staff run refresher courses to maintain the skills of our staff members

– we don’t get the opportunity to practise everything regularly as lots of work is seasonal.

“Using new technology is one of the most enjoyable parts of the job. Using my smartphone I can scan a barcode on a book – this creates a reference in my referencing software which I can import into our reading list software.

“Outside of work, I watch lots of films, particularly silent film. My favourite is The Hunchback of Notre Dame. I also enjoy hiking, and we’re very ecologically-minded at home.”

sarah Wolfenden – subject Liaison Librarian (school of social sciences)

“I’m one of eight subject liaison librarians (SLLs), one for each School,” says Sarah. “I provide training for students at all levels on how to search for good quality information effectively.

“I get lots of queries from students, either at the Pod, via email, via phone and sometimes by referral from the Help Desk. They vary immensely – one minute I’m investigating micro-finance in Bangladesh, the next I’m looking at the correlation between household income and educational attainment, then onto searching for psychological assessment scales. This can be incredibly interesting

as I love finding out what students are researching and helping them find the information they need.

“My days vary enormously: sometimes I’m at my computer all day working on spreadsheets and sending messages to students via the Social Sciences Librarian Twitter account ( @bsslibrarian); other days I’m running from one teaching slot to another with meetings, Pod shifts and staff-student liaison committees in between. Later in the year we work on assessing the usefulness of our resources.

“Outside of work, I’m bit of a fair weather runner. Yoga keeps me sane – as does chocolate!”

Brunel to drive £60 million National Research Centre for Structural Integrity

Brunel has been awarded £15 million of funding from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) as part of a £60 million initiative to establish a National Research Centre for Structural Integrity. The award represents the largest single award for research that Brunel has ever received.

The balance of funding, £45 million, will come from Brunel’s lead co-partner, the technology engineering research and consultancy organisation TWI Ltd, and from major companies from the rail, marine, aerospace and energy sectors as well as University College London, the University of Cambridge and the University of Manchester.

The purpose-built Centre, which will be based in Cambridge,

will provide 100 postgraduate taught and research students and 50 staff with the most up-to-date facilities for engineering and materials research in the UK.

Brunel’s Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research Professor Geoff Rodgers explained that when structural integrity management fails, the results can be

‘catastrophic’. He said: “All types of products and plant are at risk if designers, manufacturers and users do not understand how to build safe structures.”

Teresa Waller, Director of Research Support and Development at Brunel and co-ordinator of the successful proposal to HEFCE, added: “This Centre will build a national research capability which will support economic growth by carrying out application-led

research programmes. It will also provide exciting postgraduate training opportunities to address the UK’s future skills requirements for engineers in this multidisciplinary field.”

Just seven new university and business partnerships were awarded funding, taking the total number of winning bids from the UK Research Partnership Investment Fund (UK RPIF) to 14.

university welcomes £12 million award for energy efficiency research centre

The Government and key stakeholders are investing £12 million in a new research centre to support energy efficiency in the food sector.

The Centre for Sustainable Energy use in Food Chains will be led by Brunel, partnered by the Universities of Manchester and Birmingham, and is one of five new End Use Energy Demand (EUED) Research Centres that will investigate how energy can be both saved and used more efficiently.

Half of the funding for the Centre will come from the Engineering

and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), and the remainder from the three university partners and from industry.

The Centre will develop innovative approaches, processes and technologies for energy demand reduction in all stages of the food chain: production, distribution, retail and consumption.

Centre Director Professor Savvas Tassou, Head of Brunel’s School of Engineering and Design, said:

“This new interdisciplinary centre will bring together internationally leading researchers to address

energy reduction and resource efficiency from farm gate to plate. We will work with key stakeholders to ensure that the research not only addresses the needs of the food industry and Government targets for reduction in energy use and carbon emissions, but also addresses consumer needs and well-being.

“This will make Brunel one of the key universities internationally for energy and food sustainability related research, and we look forward to accelerating progress in the resource efficiency of the food sector.”

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“The Centre will bring together

leading researchers to address resource efficiency from farm

gate to plate.”

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This Autumn’s public debates explored the theme of Modernism, an artistic movement that flourished in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In his introduction to the first event, Professor Dany Nobus reminded the audience that, despite assertions that we are now ‘postmodern’, recent novels such as Will Self’s Umbrella have been described as ‘modernist’.

“It seems that Modernism is in the air,” Professor Nobus concluded.

For the first debate, Self was joined by John Carey, Emeritus Professor of English Literature at Oxford University. Carey’s 1992 book The Intellectuals and the Masses is an influential account of the impact of Modernism on English language writing, and Self described Carey as an example of “what we desperately need – public intellectuals.”

Carey explored Modernism in relation to contemporary English literature, stating that “the story of Modernism is not a single story,”

but “a set of developments that took place in the arts in the 20th century in the West, opposed to industrial development.” Carey and Self’s opposing views on the definitions, relevancies and politics of Modernism resulted in a high level of critical debate, sparking discussion about Modernism’s relationships with Romanticism and the First World War.

For the second event, Self was joined by Iain Sinclair, a distinguished author, poet and filmmaker. Sinclair’s books such as London Orbital (2002), like many of Self’s, are often associated with the genre of ‘psychogeography’ which explores the effects of the lived environment on the human psyche.

Self and Sinclair engaged in a wide-ranging discussion of Modernism, as well as of the themes in Sinclair’s work. Sinclair described Modernism as his “teenage event horizon”, and commented on how Modernist works, like his own,

take in aspects of the modern city such as transport and signage. He also regaled the audience with some of his strange and macabre experiences while living in London, which helped to shape his writing.

They discussed the influence of Cubism and how Modernist writing manipulates time and space, with Self highlighting Sinclair’s preoccupation with the concept of Deep Time – a regression through the various phases of history and pre-history.

The audience’s questions covered topics including the relationship between Modernism and popular culture, fascism and other art forms.

The quality of the debates was exceptionally high, providing valuable insights for students interested in the arts both as part of their studies and in their spare time, as well as an opportunity for the University community as a whole to learn more about this complex and controversial area.

professor of Contemporary Thought Will Self welcomed leading literary figures to the campus in October and November for two public debates, held in association with the Southbank Centre. English Literature phD student Joe norman reviews two lively and engaging evenings.

Public debates examine the relevance of modernism

IN BRIEFInteractive tool helps local authorities measure return on investment of helping smokers quit A new interactive tool developed by Brunel’s Health Economics Reseach Group and the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence will help local authorities to understand the cost of tobacco-related health problems in their communities, and to balance this against the effectiveness of tobacco control strategies.

The spreadsheet-based Tobacco Return on Investment Tool allows local authorities to mix and match intervention packages to see which provides the best value for money.

To calculate the economic cost of tobacco, the spreadsheet takes into account not only hospital admissions but also indirect aspects such as loss of productivity due to staff absenteeism, smoking-relating fires, and cleaning up cigarette butts. This is measured against the cost of therapies and the provision of support and advice for smokers.

Research into athletes’ performance in aiming tasks could improve health Subject Leader in Sport Sciences Professor Mark Williams is working with the GB archery team to identify the behavioural and biological mechanisms underpinning elite performance in aiming tasks.

Alongside colleagues from the Universities of Oxford and Birmingham, Professor Williams is investigating how the skills and physiology of elite athletes differ from those of the rest of the population. The results will not only help improve training for athletes, but will also provide information about how best to help people who have lost everyday skills due to ageing or disease.

The project has received £542,000 in funding from two research councils and UK Sport as part of a £1.4 million programme to investigate athletes’ vision and movement.

Research linking music and sporting performance results in unique track for GB team captainReader in Sport psychology Dr Costas karageorghis worked with music producer Redlight to produce a unique, personalised track for Olympic hurdler Dai Greene in the months leading up to the London 2012 Games.

Dr Karageorghis, who specialises in the psychology of music and sporting performance, conducted psychological profiling of the world 400m hurdles champion to establish the rhythmic qualities and musical themes that would create the right pre-race psyche. The final track, entitled Talk to the Drum, also embraced Greene’s own musical preferences.

Dr Karageorghis said: “I’ve often been asked by athletes to create playlists for them or worked with record companies to produce pieces of music or compilations, but to work with a top producer to create a bespoke track for an athlete of Dai’s calibre was a hugely enriching experience for me.”

The project was funded by Red Bull, who sponsor Greene. Speaking as part of the Red Bull Performance Track documentary, Greene emphasised the importance of small margins in sport, which can make the difference between a gold medal and eighth place: “Music is so important during the warm-up for a big competition, which is where the idea from Red Bull came in to try and get that extra 1% from my performance using the power of music.”

Greene, who captained Team GB’s athletics team at the Games, finished fourth in the finals of the 400m hurdles and 4x400m relay.


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World-renowned psychologist steven Pinker launches international seminar seriesSteven pinker, professor of psychology at Harvard university, argued that we live in the most peaceful period of history experienced so far at a public lecture at Brunel in October.

Pinker’s lecture was the first of an international seminar series entitled The Evolution of Moral Cultures, run by Brunel’s Centre of Culture and Evolutionary Psychology, and focused on his latest work The Better Angels of Our Nature: A History of Violence and Humanity (2011).

The book outlines the ways in which violence has declined, drawing upon evidence from sources such as records of pre-historical society, ethnographical statistics from wars throughout history and capital punishment

records, to contrast contemporary societies with those of pre-historical anarchy.

Pinker explained how his research has shown that the decline in violence is ‘a persistent historical development’. Large-scale violence such as the World Wars and recent genocides are ‘spikes’ in the data, he claimed, and still part of an overall marked statistical decline in violent events.

Despite this trend, Pinker suggested that humanity will never fundamentally change from its inclination towards violence. He said: “I doubt that a utopia will be reached because I believe in human nature.” Instead, he claimed that we have learned to utilise the ‘better angels of our nature’, namely self-control, empathy, moral sense, and reason.

These values are the foundation of what Pinker describes as the Humanitarian Revolution

– brought about by a general increase in affluence, a higher value placed on life, and growing literacy rates resulting from the spread of industrialisation, scientific enlightenment, and cosmopolitanism – and the Rights Revolutions, focusing on racial equality and equal rights for homosexuals, women and animals.

Described by Brunel’s Professor of Psychology Michael Price as “the world’s best-known evolutionary psychologist,” Pinker was named American Humanist of the Year in 2006 and one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential scientists and thinkers in the world in 2004.

supporting breastfeeding could save the NHs £40 million a year, says Brunel co-authored reportacademics from Brunel’s Health Economics Research Group (HERG) have co-authored a uNICEF-commissioned report into the economic impact of low breastfeeding rates in the uk.

Dr Subhash Pokhrel, Nicky Dunne and Professor Julia Fox-Rushby were part of a multi-university team assembled to investigate how increasing the adoption and duration of breastfeeding could save the NHS money, by reducing illness in both mother and baby. Calculations involving some of the conditions in which evidence for the health advantages of breastfeeding are the strongest suggest that potential annual savings to could top £40 million.

The research centred on five illnesses – breast cancer in mothers, and gastroenteritis, respiratory infections, middle ear infections and necrotising enterecolitis (NEC) in babies – and investigated the impact of only a moderate increase in breastfeeding rates.

The report, entitled Preventing Disease and Saving Resources: Potential Contribution of Increasing Breastfeeding Rates in the UK, recommends that health services put appropriate legislation and investment in place to give mothers a more positive experience of breastfeeding and help them to breastfeed for longer. This could provide a return on investment in as little as one year.

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THE GaLLERY

More than 3,500 people attended Brunel’s biggest ever fireworks display on Monday 5 November.

Staff, students and members of the local community were joined by the Mayor of Hillingdon for the 20-minute display, which was accompanied by a variety of film theme tunes.

alongside the bonfire and fireworks, Radio Brunel and fire dancers from Brunel Circus Society kept the crowds entertained.

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express issue 17 winter 2012

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