MURDER VICTIMS'
BURIALS TALK TO ROYAL COLLEGE OF
PATHOLOGISTS
 Dr Jamie Pringle, School of Earth
Sciences and Geography, this week gave a talk at the
Royal College of Pathologists on his forensic geophysics
and decomposition research.
Dr Pringle, with his collaborative
colleague at Staffordshire University, John Cassella,
gave a presentation, Updates and Advances in the
Location of Clandestine Burials of Murder Victims, in
London to Home Office and consultant pathologists, who
meet once a month to discus recent advances, present
cases for opinion and take referrals from National and
International Police Forces.
The work of the Midlands Burial
Research Group was considered and placed in the context
of existing research data from abroad. This research
includes establishing base-line geophysical data
reference libraries in different environments and over
significant timescales, which will be critical to
develop forensic geophysics into a standard technique to
assist police service forensic investigators in the
rapid detection and characterisation of clandestine
shallow burials. |
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KEELE COMMUNITY
FIRST RESPONDERS
 Members of the newly formed Keele
Community First Responder Team were present at in the
Chancellor's Building for the Visit Day last
weekend.
The students have been trained by West
Midlands Ambulance Service to enable them to respond to
"999" emergency calls in and around the area on a
voluntary basis. They carry lifesaving equipment,
including an Automated External Defibrilator, which is
used to restart a person's heart following a cardiac
arrest. They can provide this and other lifesaving
treatment before an ambulance arrives.
Their on-campus accommodation, provided
by the University, allows them to be on scene at
emergencies within a very short time. At present they
cover Keele campus and the village but hope to extend
coverage to Keele Services, Silverdale and the edges of
Newcastle on busy evenings, when they have a dedicated
car. Whilst most of the volunteers are students
from the School of Medicine, the initiative is actively
recruiting students and staff from other schools and the
adminstration, with full training given. The
team is completely self-funded through donations and
ongoing fundraising efforts. For more information
visit http://system.newzapp.co.uk/GLink.asp?LID=MTk4MjA2OSw5. |
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CSI EVENT NOMINATED
FOR INSPIRATION AWARD
 Academics from The School of Physical and
Geographical Sciences have been nominated for a Best of
the West – Inspiration Award for a public understanding
of science event, "CSI: Stoke", run as part of a
regional partnership with the Potteries Museum,
Hanley, in May last year.
The awards, sponsored by Renaissance
West Midlands, celebrate achievements and reward best
practice in the region's museums and galleries and are
part of the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council's
£150million programme to transform regional museums.
The judging panel said that "CSI:
Stoke" was a "particularly excellent example of
inspiration in the West Midlands". The winners will be
announced at a regional awards ceremony on Thursday, 26
March, in Coventry.
The next "CSI: Stoke" event takes place
tomorrow at the Potteries Museum, as part of National
Science Week, and focuses on discovering the true
identify of Jack the Ripper, using modern forensic
techniques. |
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KEELE STUDENTS
CLEAN UP - IN THE LOCAL
NEIGHBOURHOOD
 Keele students rose to the challenge during
National Student Volunteering Week 2009, as 20
volunteers and staff, including Newcastle Borough
Council Neighbourhood Wardens, Mark Jones and Joanne
Morris, local Police Community Support Officers,
Newcastle Streetscene and the Community Payback team,
took to the streets of Parksite estate in Silverdale to
spend the morning cleaning up; helping to create a
cleaner, more pleasant environment for local people.
Volunteers split up into teams to collect a total of
52 bags of rubbish from residential and communal areas
around the estate, which Streetscene then disposed of
safely.
Keele Volunteer Experience Project Leader, Becky
Wardell, said: "National Student Volunteering Week is a
great opportunity to show that Keele students are
responsible and valuable members of the community, who
really do care about the local environment. It is
also a great opportunity for us to work in partnership
with organisations and community groups such as Parksite
Action Centre, which kindly provided us with a meeting
and resting place on the day."
Other events organised by Keele students during the
week were Afternoon Tea for Keele village residents in
the Hawthorns Restaurant, including a special
performance from children of St John's Primary school,
and a social evening in Keele Village Hall. |
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 PUPILS IN THE
DOCK
Widening Participation and Life Long Learning
Division's Events Team hosted a Crime and Punishment KS4
day on campus this week. Fifteen young people from
Brownhills High School were 'put on trial' in front of
'judge' Dr Chris Harrison, explored the history of crime
and punishment with Jo Turner and delved into the world
of fingerprinting and CSI with Amy Cowles and Vicki
Hill. Keele undergraduate student mentor Jenny Trubshaw
rounded the day off with a campus tour. The day gave the
students an in depth look at Forensics, criminology and
history, whilst aiming to raise aspirations of the local
young people. An enjoyable and insightful day was
had by all. |
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THREE COUNTIES PHOTO
WINNERS
 John Rogers, Professor Emeritus of the History of
Philosophy, and Dr Bernard Beech, School of Nursing and
Midwifery, were among the prize winners at this year's Keele
University Three Counties Open Photography Competition.
John won the The Focal Point Prize of £250, offered by the
competition sponsors, Hulme Upright Manning, for his untitled
work. Bernard's photograph, Winking Man Rock Formation,
Staffordshire, was selected for a Magazine Prize, which will
see his work used as a front cover of the Staffordshire County
Magazine.
Photographers entered nearly 455 photographs for the
competition, which provides a showcase for their work and runs
until 1 April. A total of 128 works were selected for
the exhibition, which was opened by Simon Morris, University
Secretary and Registrar. |
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KEELE SCIENTIST'S TALK ON
PREVENTING HEARING LOSS
Dr
Dave Furness, of the Research Institute for Science and
Technology in Medicine and the School of Life Sciences,
gave a major talk to the Staffordshire Freemasons last
week. Dr Furness was invited to give the talk on his
research, which is aimed at preventing age-related
hearing loss, by the Freemasons, who have been funding
his project via the Grand Charity and Deafness Research
UK.
In a very well received lecture, Dr
Furness explained his novel strategy for using stem
cell/replacement cell therapy in an attempt to arrest
deterioration of the hearing organ of the inner ear, the
cochlea. The idea is to prevent loss of certain
'housekeeping' cells that normally maintain the
cochlea's internal fluid balance but in certain forms of
deafness degenerate leaving the cochlea vulnerable,
eventually leading to deafness.
After the
talk, Dr Furness gave an interview on BBC Radio Stoke's
Breakfast Show where he and a representative of the
Freemasons, Peter Atkins, explained the project and how
it is funded. |
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EXPERT ADVICE ON
PAY
Dr Carole Thornley, Keele Management School and the
Research Institute for Public Policy and Management, was
invited to offer expert advice to a Forum meeting at
Cardiff University this week to assist the National
Assembly of Wales in formulating an Equal Pay Duty for
Wales. The Forum included senior policy makers,
practitioners and academics and the debate was lively
and constructive.
FACULTY OF HEALTH TASTER
DAY
The Faculty of Health Schools and College Liaison
Group recently held a taster day attended by 48 students
from five schools and colleges in the region. The event,
at the Clinical Education Centre, University Hospital of
North Staffordshire, featured a talk on the Faculty's
programmes and life at Keele from Dr Paula Roberts, and
a range of talks and demonstrations from schools in the
Faculty. The event was very positively evaluated by both
students and teachers who attended.
PHYSICS GRADUATE MAKES PHYSICS
REVIEW
Aoife O'Brien, a 2008 Physics-with-Biology graduate,
has had her final year Physics dissertation poster
published in the February 2009 issue of Physics Review.
Aoife's dissertation topic was Magnetic Resonance
Imaging.
The "centre spread" in the February 2009 issue of
Physics Review, a journal aimed at A level students, is
based on Aoife's poster.
Aoife is now studying for a PhD in
'Structure-property relationships in novel Lead-free
piezoelectrics' at Warwick University, where she is
using MRI in her PhD studies.
REGIONAL ROADSHOW AT
KEELE
The British Heart Foundation held a Regional Roadshow
for their shop managers at Keele Hall this week. More
than 100 staff attended the meeting, which included a
wide range of presentations as well as opportunities to
talk about their work. |
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