KEELE ASTRONOMERS FIND CARBON RICH PLANET

The Keele Astrophysics group have participated in the discovery of the first planet found to have more carbon than oxygen.  The Jupiter-sized gaseous planet, WASP-12b, was observed with NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope and found to have an atmosphere rich in molecules containing carbon but depleted in molecules containing oxygen. Keele astronomers Professor Coel Hellier, Dr Pierre Maxted and David Anderson are co-authors on the paper, published this week in Nature. 

The oxygen/carbon ratio of WASP-12b was deduced by analysing its infrared spectrum with Spitzer, and comparing the absorption features caused by carbon-rich molecules such as methane with those caused by water.

The earth's most abundant elements are iron, oxygen and silicon, leading to a crust made of oxygen-rich rocks such as silicates. The finding of WASP-12b points to planets with compositions very different from those of our own Solar System, and has started scientists wondering whether life could exist on a carbon-rich planet with little oxygen or water, but plenty of methane.

The image is an artist's conception of the hot carbon-rich planet WASP-12b orbiting closely around its host star (NASA/JPL-Caltech/R. Hurt (SSC).

WINTER GRADUATION CEREMONIES

Degrees, diplomas and certificates were awarded to nearly 700 students at graduation ceremonies in the Chapel yesterday.

Graduands and those receiving awards, and their guests, attended three ceremonies at which postgraduate degrees and diplomas, undergraduate degrees and postgraduate certificate awards were presented by the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Nick Foskett.

KEELE SIGNS AGREEMENT WITH SANTANDER

Keele and Santander Universities have signed an agreement that will set up support for students and researchers and enable the University to develop a variety of projects within the 'Santander Universities' scheme.

On the same day the University opened the new Santander branch on campus. Branch Manager Veselina Vasileva was present, with the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Nick Foskett, to cut a ribbon to mark the official opening.

The Vice-Chancellor said: "We are pleased to welcome Santander to their new branch on campus and look forward to working with them to develop new opportunities for Keele and for our students. Keele is delighted to join the 'Santander Universities' network. This is an excellent example of how universities and business can work together to promote innovation and knowledge transfer in the global higher education environment."

EC PUBLISHES BOOK BY KEELE TEAM ON ETHICS IN RESEARCH

The European Textbook on Ethics in Research, produced by a team from the Centre for Professional Ethics, has been published by the European Commission. The textbook, which results from a project funded under the Seventh Framework Programme, is designed for use in the training of researchers and research ethics committee members throughout Europe and beyond, and covers key issues in the ethics of research involving human participants, including some of the ethical issues associated with new technologies.

The textbook was co-ordinated and edited by Dr Jonathan Hughes (PEAK/RI Social Sciences) and chapters were authored by Dr Jonathan Hughes, Dr David Hunter, Professor Stephen Wilkinson,  Dr Anthony Wrigley (all PEAK/RI Social Sciences) and former PEAK member Dr Mark Sheehan. The textbook and the accompanying Syllabus on Ethics in Research are also available as free downloads from the European Commission Science in Society website at http://ec.europa.eu/research/science-society/index.cfm?fuseaction=public.topic&id=1362 or http://ec.europa.eu/research/science-society/index.cfm?fuseaction=public.topic&id=1408.

ENTREPRENEURSHIP AWARDS

Keele staff and students have received over £4,500 in funding from the HE Social Entrepreneurship Awards, a joint initiative between social enterprise charity, UnLtd and HEFCE. 

Dr Sue Read, School of Nursing and Midwifery, has been awarded £3,000 from the Catalyst Award fund to support her work with two local advocacy groups, to develop and produce an accessible bereavement resource for people with a learning disability, developed in collaboration with people with a learning disability.

Gavin Bailey, PhD student, ILPJ, and former Keele PhD student, Dr Phil Burton-Cartledge, have been awarded £1,700 by UnLtd to develop a toolkit for use in workshops on democracy and extremism. Gavin is currently on Keele's SpeedWM and EFS Student Entrepreneurship programme, based in Research and Enterprise Services and, together with Phil, is creating a think-and-do-tank that will work with public and charity sector bodies on how to deal with the 'threats to democracy' of extremism and apathy.

The photograph shows from left to right: Dr Phil Burton-Cartledge, Gavin Bailey and Dr Sue Read.

THE THEORY OF CULTURE

Professor David Shepherd, Cultural Theory, this week delivered the fourth lecture in the University's programme of Inaugural Lectures for 2010/11.

The immediate academic context for the lecture, "The Theory of Culture and the Culture of Theory",   was one in which it has become commonplace to assert the 'end' of theory, or the dawning of a post-theoretical phase in the study of literature and culture, and in which some scholars have suggested that a 'culture of theory' has led to a failure by the humanities to justify their place in the world. With reference to the work of the Russian cultural theorist/philosopher Mikhail Bakhtin, the lecture argued that in fact cultural theory remains an expression of the humanities' enduring post-Enlightenment spirit of critical inquiry. The lecture was framed by reference to recent developments in government higher education policy (in particular the proposal that the teaching of humanities and social sciences should be funded almost entirely from graduate contributions).

The other lectures in the series are:
Tuesday 18 January 2011, Professor Nadine Foster, Primary Care Health Sciences, "Challenges and Choices: Musculoskeletal Health in Primary Care"; Tuesday, 22 February 2011, Professor Gordon Ferns, Medicine, "A fire that burns within: the impact of free radicals in health and disease"; Tuesday, 15 March 2011, Professor Clare Holdsworth, Social Geography, "'A degree isn't enough anymore': Student experiences and orientation to HE"; Tuesday, 10 May 2011 Professor Krysia Dziedzic, Primary Care Health Sciences, "Best evidence for best therapies in osteoarthritis".

MEDHEADS TOP PODCAST

A free podcast by Keele Medical School students is topping the charts – just behind BBC 4's 'Medical Matters' programme, the Lancet and the BMJ podcasts.

 
The 'Medheads' podcast is in 3rd position in the top 200 medical podcasts chart and it is also ranked 37th in the science section, which houses tens of thousands of podcasts.

They have also been featured in the 'Noteworthy' section in both the science and medicine areas of the iTunes Podcast Store after their first episode attracted more than 1,300 downloads.
 
They have an editorial team of seven and they have five student presenters on the project. So far they have published two episodes. A total of 4.2 million people in the UK listen to at least one podcast every week, 70% of those podcasts are accessed via the iTunes software.
 
The Medheads podcast can be found here or by searching "Medheads" on the iTunes store.

RADIO INTERVIEW ON BANK BAILOUTS

In an interview with BBC Radio Stoke, Professor Costas Milas, Keele Management School, responded to the criticism that British banks were bailed out by the British taxpayers and that have managed to get away with it all.

He pointed out that the banking system accounts for up to 10% of UK's GDP which implies that any shock to the banking system risks bringing the whole economy down. In that sense, the UK had to step in and support the banks.

Professor Milas also stressed that it was in our interest to provide financial aid to debt-stricken Ireland because UK banks are heavily exposed to Irish debt. He said failure to bail out Ireland would have been catastrophic for UK banks.

EFS FUNDING FOR NEW INDIAN FOOD BUSINESS

Gurpreet Grewal-Kang, marketing officer in Research and Enterprise Services, has launched her own Indian food business thanks to £8,500 funding from the Enterprise Fellowship Scheme (EFS).
 
She got the inspiration for her business, Masala Tiffin, during a trip to India, where she was so disturbed by the poverty she saw that she decided to find a way to make a difference. 

She found a gap in the market for a fresh authentic curry sauce and decided it was the perfect product for the modern consumer juggling work-life balance.

A donation will be made from each pack sold to benefit charities and community projects in India and across the world.

The sauces will soon be available online from www.masalatiffin.com and in stores.

The Scheme, funded by the European Regional Development Fund, is open to recent Keele graduates, members of staff and current students, with an idea that is technologically innovative or which would benefit from the extra money available under EFS.

FROM THE ARCHIVES

10 December 1993

This week 17 years ago - 

Mr Charles Strasser officially opened the refurbished lecture rooms in the Chancellor's Building.

The suite has been given a £100,000 face-lift thanks to the generosity of the former head of the Newcastle-based photography company, Photopia Ltd.