OCTOBER 2009

Young artists’festival showcasesgraduates’ work

issue 26

news

2 FOR MORE STORIES ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY PLEASE VISIT DMU’S NEWS HOMEPAGE AT www.dmu.ac.uk/news 2

OCTOBER 2009

Young artists’festival showcases

graduates’ work

issue 26

Welcome to issue 26 of

dmyouThree DMU graduates have showcased

their work at a prestigious arts festival.Dancer and choreographer Ozlem Tasmanand musicians Gareth Sprey and JamesKelly performed at the 2009 Biennale heldin Macedonia in September.

Find out more about their performanceson page three.

DMU was shortlisted for four LordStafford Awards and, along with researchpartner Nottingham Scientific Ltd, walkedaway with the prize for ‘Innovation inDevelopment’.

The award was given for thedevelopment of the ‘Primo’ a pioneeringsatellite navigation device which wasdeveloped as part of a knowledge transferpartnership (KTP).

More information about the win is onpage 5.

Dr Julie Fish, of the Faculty of Healthand Life Sciences, is carrying out the firststudy to look at the experience of lesbianand bisexual women suffering from breastcancer.

The study will investigate many aspectsof the illness, including the experiences andattitudes of breast cancer sufferers.

The full story is on page 7.Summer graduations took place in July

and there are two pages of photos andstories from the ceremonies.

See pages 10 and 11.This issue, the 20 questions are tackled

by Andy Rees, from the Faculty of Businessand Law. Find out what the bravest thinghe has ever done is on page 16.

The trip was organised by DMU PharmacyProfessor Joan Taylor (pictured above) and theSilver Star Appeal, a charity which campaignsto provide diabetes awareness.

The charity was founded in 2007 byLeicester East MP Keith Vaz after he was

diagnosed with the condition. Patrons for the charity now include

Bollywood stars Amitabh Bachchan and ShilpaShetty.

Silver Star recently opened an office in Goaand Shailen will travel around in one of thecharity’s Mobile Diabetes Assessment Unitsoffering free testing to people in thecommunity.

During his trip Shailen also spent some timeat the country’s largest pharmaceuticalcompany, Ranbaxy.

“I have always wanted to volunteer abroadso was ecstatic when Professor Taylor told me Ihad been chosen for the placement,” he said.

Keith Vaz said: “I am delighted that DeMontfort University has found a student soenthusiastic about increasing diabetesawareness in India. This trip will be of hugebenefit to Silver Star and to Shailen.

“As someone who was diagnosed withdiabetes during a routine test, I am certainlyaware of the importance of making testing fordiabetes widely and routinely availableworldwide. Silver Star has done some excellentwork in the UK and I am excited for thissuccess to be replicated in India.”

Professor Taylor said: “I’m really pleased thatwe have been able to find someone likeShailen who has shown so much enthusiasmfor the work that Silver Star do.”

Shailen Karia in front of one of the Mobile Diabetes Assessment Units.

Cover image: Ozlem Tasman, who appeared at the 2009 Biennale, performs one of her pieces.

APharmacy student from Leicester hasput into practice the skills he learnt as

part of his degree to assist a celebrity-backed charity with diabetes testing in India.

Shailen Karia, 20, has just finished hissecond year of study at De Montfort Universityand headed out to Goa on 20 September tospend two weeks testing people for diabetes.

Student heads toIndia to aid diabetestesting

FOR MORE STORIES ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY PLEASE VISIT DMU’S NEWS HOMEPAGE AT www.dmu.ac.uk/news 3

Professor Alasdair Blair has been awarded£199,975 to carry out the study.

Dancer and choreographer, Ozlem Tasman,and musicians Gareth Sprey and JamesKelly were selected by Arts CouncilEngland to perform at the 14th edition ofthe Young People’s Biennale event held inSkopje, Macedonia in September.

The Biennale is an internationalexhibition giving young artists ranging from18 to 30 years old, a unique opportunity toshare their talent.

BA (Hons) Dance graduate Ozlemperformed her solo choreography Step ofFaith, a rhythmical and intricate danceroutine which involves ContemporaryDancing and Street Dancing techniquesalong with other influences such as BellyDancing and Kurdish Folk Dancing.

Gareth Sprey, a graduate of the BA(Hons) in Music, Technology and Innovation,showcased his Sonic Graffiti soundinstallation, a project which he firstdeveloped as part of his final yearassessment at DMU.

James Kelly, a graduate of the BA(Hons) and the MA in Music, Technologyand Innovation, is a turntablist andcomposer who performed his composition,Transformations of the Mind, which mixesenvironmental and instrument sounds withthe use of vocal samples from philosopherJiddu Krishnamurti.

Rob Brannen, Head of the Department

of Performance and Digital Arts, said:“This is just one example of the way theexceptional work of DMU graduates isbeing recognised internationally. Thefestival is a tremendous opportunity forthese artists to showcase their workand to share exciting creativepossibilities with young people fromacross Europe.”

Laura Dyer, Executive Director of ArtsCouncil England, East Midlands, said:“The Young Artists Biennale brings greatart to everyone and is particularlyimportant to the graduates taking partat the very beginning of their career.”

Three De Montfort University graduates have represented the

UK at a prestigious young artists’festival in Europe with cutting edgedance and music performances.

Composer and turntablist James Kelly during aperformance.

Ozlem Tasman performed her solo choreography‘Step of Faith’.

De Montfort University has received a prestigiousNational Teaching Fellowship Scheme (NTFS)

project grant to identify and develop models offeedback to improve the student-learning experience.

Professor Alasdair Blair, Head of Historical andSocial Studies for the Faculty of Humanities at DMUin Leicester, was awarded £199,975 to carry out the study entitled It’s Good To Talk: Feedback,Dialogue and Learning, in conjunction with theUniversity of Warwick and London MetropolitanUniversity.

Only 10 projects were funded in this strand of theNTFS, which provides funding for institutions to buildon the expertise of National Teaching Fellows.

The project will particularly focus on feedback at asubject level by examining practice in History and

Politics and International Relations. The novelty of thisapproach is that it will allow models of feedback to bedeveloped which enhance student learning in thesesubjects as well as identifying how the practice canbe transferred to cognate disciplines.

Feedback is widely perceived by students, tutorsand in pedagogic literature, to be of enormousintrinsic value, impacting upon student learning,motivation, self-esteem and performance.

Professor Blair said: “The project places DMU atthe forefront of work in this area and confirms ourcommitment to improving the student experience.”

During the project, from August 2009 to July2012, Professor Blair will be working with SarahRichardson from the University of Warwick andSteven Curtis from London Metropolitan University.

DMU pioneers innovation in student-lecturer dialogue

news

FOR MORE STORIES ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY PLEASE VISIT DMU’S NEWS HOMEPAGE AT www.dmu.ac.uk/news 4

Roderick (Rod) Copell,Faculty of TechnologyObituary by Paul Dean

Rod started his working life at the BritishUnited Shoe Machinery Company as anapprentice engineer.

Rod spent a further seven years workingin the engineering industry where hecompleted various projects with the degreeof professionalism that he would later bringto DMU.

In 1975 he joined the staff of LeicesterPolytechnic as a Senior Technician inMechanical Engineering based in theHawthorn Building.

With Rod’s mechanical, electrical andcomputing skills there was nothing he couldnot turn his hand to. He assisted countlessstudents over the years and was involvedwith an incredible number of projects.

Outside of work Rod enjoyed manyhobbies including sailing, caravanning,gliding, railways and hiking.

Rod Copell and Jill CunniffeUniversity staff and students were saddened to hear of the deaths of Rod Copell and Jill Cunniffe recently.

Elina Andersson and Robert Malone, the winners of the Creative Thinking Prize.

Jill Cunniffe.

Rod knew that he was facing a battle withcancer in the year before he retired and choseto continue working until the age of 65, retiringin October 2008.

He will be sadly missed.

Jill Cunniffe, Faculty ofHealth and Life SciencesTributes have been paid to a midwife andvisiting De Montfort University lecturer whodied after a short illness.

Academicstaff election

The election of the academicstaff representative on the

Board of Governors wasconcluded on Tuesday 30 June2009. The number of votes castfor each candidate in the electionwas as follows:

Tina Barnes-Powell 47 (18.6%)

Paul D. Bremner 16 (6.3%)

Mervyn Dobbin 30 (11.9%)

Tony Gregory 103 (40.7%)

Joan Taylor 57 (22.5%)

Tony Gregory is therefore electedas the academic staff nominee tothe Board of Governors. Inaccordance with Schedule 6 5(2)of the Further and HigherEducation Act 1994, the Board ofGovernors, as the appointingauthority, is required to formallyratify the election.

Acash prize of £10,000 wasgiven to two De Montfort

University alumni at the annualCreative Thinking Awards inAugust to highlight the wealth ofimaginative innovation amonggraduates.

The awards were created andsponsored by Toby Moores,Visiting Fellow at the University’sInstitute of Creative Technologies(IOCT), who is also a consultant incommercial creativity and runs thehighly successful ideas companySleepydog Ltd.

The £10,000 prize was splitbetween two graduates: one whodesigned a prototype for ahand-held route-planning devicefor tourists and another whocreated sound illusions which trickthe listener.

The winners were ElinaAndersson, who graduated with afirst class honours degree in

Multimedia Computing thissummer, and Robert Malone, whoalso graduated this year with afirst class degree in BA (Hons)Music Technology and Innovation.

The prize was open to all finalyear undergraduate students fromall faculties undertaking a majorproject or dissertation and whoachieved the top grade.

Judges included Pro Vice-Chancellor Professor Philip Martin,Director of the IOCT Professor

Jill Cunniffe gained a BA in HealthStudies from DMU in 2003 andsubsequently taught active birth and clinicalskills for midwifery students at theUniversity.

Jill qualified as a midwife 26 years agoat the Leicester Royal Infirmary School ofNursing and Midwifery.

She was involved in Leicester’s BirthReflection Scheme which aimed to makepregnancy a more positive experience for mums.

As a result, a collection was made byher family for the Leicester HospitalsCharity which will go towards improving thepsychological care of women followingchildbirth.

Bernie Gregory, Senior Lecturer inMidwifery, said: “Jill will be sadly missed byall her friends, colleagues and students thatshe has influenced so much over the yearswith her enthusiasm for midwifery.”

Jill leaves a husband, Nigel, and childrenNic, Sarah and Laura.

Bright sparks win £10,000 forcreative thinking

Andrew Hugill, Course Leader forGraphic Design Paul Linnell andToby Moores.

Elina’s Visual Route Planner(ViRP) finds travel routes fortourists between landmarks orattractions selected fromphotographs on the internet.

Robert’s music creates auditoryillusions through the use ofinnovative sound structures,ambiguous allusions andreferences.

5FOR MORE STORIES ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY PLEASE VISIT DMU’S NEWS HOMEPAGE AT www.dmu.ac.uk/news

De Montfort University is addressing thedearth of experts who can preserve the

world’s imperilled photographic heritage with anew Masters degree long-awaited by experts inthe field.

The unique MA in Photographic Historyand Practice is already being hailed by leadinglights in the sector.

The pioneering course will educate futurecurators, historians and archivists ofphotography, as well as those working withhistoric photographs at auction houses andlibraries, and is already attracting students fromall over the UK and Europe but is expected toalso draw in those who work (or want to) withphotographic collections elsewhere around the world.

DMU is collaborating with the WilsonCentre for Photography Studies in London, andalso working with the collections of theNational Media Museum, the Central Library,

Cathy Topping is pictured with herinvention and Peter McLeod, InnovationManager at DMU.

Dr Eric Goodyer.

Birmingham, the British Library and privatecollections throughout Britain.

The MA works towards understanding thescope of photographic history and provides thetools to carry out independent research in thiscontext, working in particular from primarysource material.

Course Leader for the MA, Research Fellow and photography scholar, Dr KelleyWilder, said: “This pioneering Masters is likely to be of interest to people from a variety ofdisciplines including conservation students,archivists, historians of science and those from various fields of visual studies, forinstance visual anthropology, photography or art history.”

Students will handle photographic material,learn analogue photographic processes, writehistory from objects in collections, comparehistorical photographic movements, and debatethe canon of photographic history.

Researchers behind a pioneering navigation devicewhich can tune into different satellite networks around

the world have scooped an award for innovation.The device, known as the Primo, was developed by

researchers at De Montfort University in partnership withNottingham Scientific Ltd (NSL).

The team triumphed in the ‘Innovation in Development’category at the Lord Stafford Awards East Midlands, held onThursday, at which DMU had four finalists across two categories.

Satellite navigation receivers (commonly known as ‘sat navs’)are traditionally reliant upon one network. The Primo is the firstreceiver that can gather information from a number of sources,including the US Global Positioning System (GPS), the EuropeanGalileo system, the Russian Glonass system and similar satellitesystems currently being developed across the world.

The device uses Software Defined Radio (SDR) to decodethe incoming data from the satellite.

Dr Eric Goodyer, who managed the project, runs DMU’sTelematics Teaching Lab which is sponsored by Orange MobileCommunications and Lincolnshire based Linkwave Ltd.

Dr Goodyer said: “The De Montfort engineering team werereally grateful for the opportunity to help NSL with this excitingnew development.”

DMU was nominated in the ‘Innovation for Sustainability’category for its work on nettle-based upholstery material withCamira Fabrics.

It also received two other nominations in the ‘Innovation inDevelopment’ category for DMU spin out company Fiteris, whichhas developed software that automatically inserts metadata intovideo footage, and for the ‘Topping Chair’, an aid for medicalprofessionals developed by former midwife Cathy Topping withthe help of DMU’s ProspectIP.

Innovation award forsat nav research

Rescuing the world’s photographic heritage

Call to join unique project

De Montfort University has launchedAmplified Leicester – an experimental

project designed to boost business andcommunities by sharing bright ideas andexpertise.

The project, led by Professor of New Media SueThomas, exploreshow innovationcould be catalysedby linking the city’sdiverse groups.

“We think it’s thefirst project of itskind in the worldand we hope it’s thebeginning of a reallyexciting era whichmight see wholecommunities

working together in an entirely new way acrosssocial media like Twitter and Facebook,” saidProfessor Thomas.

The project received £116,000 fundingfrom the National Endowment for Science,Technology & the Arts (NESTA) and issupported by DMU’s Institute for CreativeTechnologies, which will be based at Leicester’s new digital media centre at Phoenix Square.

Roland Harwood, Director of NESTA’sConnect programme, said: “This experiment isdesigned to show how social media such asTwitter and Facebook can be used to connectthe city’s disparate and diverse communitiesand networks.”

Professor Sue Thomas.

De Montfort University’s series ofDistinguished Lectures are now available

to download.The audio downloads are available from

www.dmu.ac.uk/news_events/events/dls/audio

The lectures are by well-known names andrespected figures, including Lawrie McMenemy,Ken Shuttleworth and Miles Templeman.

For further information about up andcoming speakers, other events and bookinginformation please visitdmu.ac.uk/news_events/index

DistinguishedLecturesonline

news

FOR MORE STORIES ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY PLEASE VISIT DMU’S NEWS HOMEPAGE AT www.dmu.ac.uk/news 6

Phonebox is world’ssmallest gallery

An old-fashioned, red telephone box thoughtto be the world’s smallest gallery opened

in July in the North Yorkshire town of Settle. After restoring the decommissioned box

with the help of the local council, a group oflocal residents decided to create an art gallerydedicated to the art of the postcard.

Gallery curator, Roger Taylor, who is DeMontfort University’s Professor of PhotographicHistory and one of the world’s leading expertsin the subject, lives near the telephonebox/gallery.

He said: “We are very excited to see such acreative use of the phone box and it’s great tohave a bit of fun as well as involve the widercommunity in a contemporary art andphotography project.”

University business adviserchampions enterprise

Amember of staff at De Montfort Universitywas shortlisted for a national award for his

contribution to enterprise activities withstudents and graduates in Leicestershire.

Retail Management

More than 140 delegates from localgovernment, housing, education and the

health sector heard former London Mayor, Ken Livingstone, speak at De MontfortUniversity in July.

Ken Livingstone was guest speaker at theLeicester Business School Annual Public PolicyDebate – ‘From Recession to Renewal:understanding the impact of the financial crisison the public sector’, organised by DMU’sPublic Policy department.

Ken Livingstone gives talk on financial crisis

Leicester Business School, one of thelargest providers of business and

management education in the UK, based atDe Montfort University, launched a newundergraduate degree in September.

The three year BA Retail Management(Hons) course (four years with a placement)adds to the University’s existing retail buyingcourses and covers subjects including peoplemanagement, customer research, visualcommunications, decision making techniquesand greener business.

Retail Management students benefit fromthe Business School’s links with leading UKretailers and recent Business School graduateshave been employed in management roles atNext, Tesco, House of Fraser, Arcadia andDixons Stores Group.

Course leader, Phil Garton, said: “Retailersare increasingly looking for graduates who canadapt and have the skills to meet thechallenges that this fast paced and dynamic

industry poses. Our Retail Managementdegree has been designed by staff with actual experience of retailing to help graduates of DMU maximise their employmentprospects.”

Former DMU student and AssistantMerchandiser on Womenswear at Next Plc,Rebecca Locker, said: “I studied Marketing andManagement at DMU for four years including acommercial placement. The support of theUniversity was amazing, with relevant industrycontacts and the opportunity for paid workexperience.

“In my final year I studied Retail Marketing,which was based on real companies andcertainly improved my critical abilities - thisidentified a clear career path for me.”

Leicester Business School students cancomplete an optional paid placement year withemployers such as M&S, Toys-R-Us, BlacksLeisure, Faith Shoes, Avon, Sainsbury’s andSportsworld.

Former Mayor of London Ken Livingstone.

Mr Livingstone’s opening speech outlinedthe key issues for the public sector in aneconomic downturn. He said that theGovernment should put forward clear policiesto help the country tackle the effects of therecession. These included the reduction ofmilitary spending, progressing largeinfrastructure projects and greater investment,as well as strengthening Britain’s relationshipwith rapidly growing emerging marketeconomies, such as India and China.

Professor John Seddon, from CardiffUniversity and Managing Director of VanguardLtd, reinforced the need for an efficientgovernment in his speech on systems thinking.He called for cuts in central governmentbudgets instead of cutting local services.

He said: “Politicians should be cutting theWhitehall specifications industry, not publicservices; it’s a simple but elegant solution. Ifthey did this, there would be huge savings andlocal services would improve dramatically.”

Professor Lawrence Pratchett, Head ofPublic Policy at DMU, chaired the event. Hesaid: “This has been a highly successful debateincluding some interesting and innovativesuggestions on the impact of the financial crisison our public sector.

“This seminar has shared debate withcolleagues that our students hear on a range ofour courses in the department and the annualpublic policy debate at DMU in 2010 willcontinue to look at challenging issues thataffect us all.”

Stuart Hartley, (pictured above) who isProgramme Manager for Business Incubationand Enterprise in the Incubation Team atDMU’s Innovation Centre, was put forward forthe Champion of the Year Award at the UK’sfirst annual National Enterprise EducatorAwards and was named runner up in thecategory.

The awards were organised by EnterpriseEducators UK (EEUK) and the NationalCouncil for Graduate Entrepreneurship (NCGE)to reward those working as enterpriseeducators and supporting student and graduateentrepreneurship in higher education.

Stuart, an entrepreneur himself, havingsuccessfully set up and sold a marketingbusiness, is a qualified business adviser withover five years experience of supporting andadvising pre and early start up businesses. Hemanages campus enterprise opportunities (ceo)at DMU, which offers business support andadvice and is dedicated to creating anenterprising environment at the University.

7FOR MORE STORIES ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY PLEASE VISIT DMU’S NEWS HOMEPAGE AT www.dmu.ac.uk/news

DMU announces awardsfor excellent teachingDe Montfort University’s lecturers

celebrated another year of success atthe Teaching Excellence Awards in June.

Staff were presented with their awards byVice-Chancellor Professor Philip Tasker at aceremony held in the Trinity House Chapel.

Professor Tasker said: “These awards are away of recognising and celebrating individualswho have made an exceptional, positive impacton student learning. DMU prides itself on itsinspirational and innovative methods ofteaching, so it is wonderful to see so manymembers of staff acknowledged for theircontribution and achievements.”

This year, six Teacher Fellow Awards werepresented to: Claire Orwin, of the Faculty ofArt and Design (AAD); Rachel Grimley, of theFaculty of Business and Law (BAL); Pippa

Cornelius and Angela O’Sullivan of theFaculty of Health and Life Sciences (HLS);William Curtis of the Faculty of Humanities(HUM); and Lucy Mathers of the Faculty ofTechnology (TECH).

12 members of staff were presented withVice-Chancellor’s Distinguished TeachingAwards. This year over 150 students nominatedlecturers they felt deserved to be accredited fortheir dedication to student learning.

The awards were presented to: DellaSwaine (AAD); George Lambie (BAL); JennyKing (BAL); Miles Weaver (BAL); PhilipWilson (BAL); Momodou Sallah (HLS);Sandra Hall (HLS); Andrew Mousley (HUM);Katherine Burrell (HUM); Nichola Philips(HUM); Sally Doughty (HUM); and KennethClegg (TECH).

Recipients of the Vice-Chancellor’s Teaching Excellence Award.

University givesDHL specialist HRtraining

De Montfort University has won a contract todeliver bespoke human resources (HR)

management training to HR staff at internationalexpress and logistics company, DHL UK.

The training programme includes masterclasses followed by a postgraduate diploma inManagement of Human Resources, which willlead to graduate membership of the CharteredInstitute of Personnel and Development (CIPD),and forms part of DHL’s HR Academy,Advanced Level Programme.

DMU staff will deliver four master classesto HR managers at DHL sites, in Daventry,Bedford and Milton Keynes. Topics include:Assessing the Impact of the HR Function,Building Effective Employee Engagement in theWorkplace, Recognising and Rewarding Peopleat Work and Cultivating Talent in theOrganisation.

Stephen Peak, Head of CorporateDevelopment at DMU, said: “We are delightedto be working with DHL to help enhance itsHR team’s knowledge of HR processes andequip them with the tools to make them moreeffective and efficient at their role.”

DMU marks BenHur anniversary

De Montfort University marked the 50thanniversary of Ben-Hur with the fourth

Annual Association of Adaptation StudiesConference at the British Film Institute inLondon.

Organised by DMU – the leading institutionin the UK on the subject – the conferencesought to broaden the scope of the study ofadaptations, in particular focusing on filmadaptations of literary texts.

The event featured 22 panels coveringtopics ranging from comic book adaptation, toBritish television and classic novel adaptations.

James Russell, DMU Senior Lecturer in FilmStudies, presented a paper entitled Exhilarationand Enlightenment: Ben-Hur and American Belief

at one of the conference’s pivotal sessions,Ben-Hur 50 Years On.

Mr Russell, said: “Although most peopleremember Ben-Hur as a 1950s movie featuringCharlton Heston and a spectacular chariot race,it has actually been a key popular text over thelast 130 years of American history. It was thebestselling American novel of the 19th Centurydespite only being published in 1880, it wasadapted as a massively successful silent film in1925 and the 1959 version we will celebratingthis year was one of the most commercially andcritically successful historical epics of all time.”

Breast cancer study focuses on lesbian and bisexual women

Aresearcher who isexamining the experience

of breast cancer amongstlesbian and bisexual women isurging those affected to comeforward and take part.

Dr Julie Fish from DeMontfort University is lookingfor lesbian and bisexualwomen who have, or have hadbreast cancer to take part inthe study, the first of its kindin the UK.

The study will investigatethe experiences and attitudesof breast cancer sufferers,knowledge and beliefs ofbreast cancer, views of factorswhich may increase risk andthe sources of informationand support available.

The research is aiming topromote better understanding

about lesbian and bisexualwomen’s experiences ofbreast cancer and the findingswill inform policy development.

Recommendations will alsobe made to cancerorganisations and otherfacilities to help improveservices.

Dr Fish said: “Currentlylittle is known about breast

cancer amongst this group ofwomen and they seem tohave been overlooked inhealth information and cancerservices.

“I am hoping that thisstudy will help shed somelight on the experiences ofbreast cancer amongstlesbian and bisexual womenand that it will contribute tohelping provide a highstandard of healthcare topeople in this group.”

The research is funded bythe NHS Cancer Action Team,a national team that facilitatesthe implementation of theNHS Cancer Plan and worksclosely with the Departmentof Health, Strategic HealthAuthorities and various cancernetworks and charities.

Dr Julie Fish.

FOR MORE STORIES ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY PLEASE VISIT DMU’S NEWS HOMEPAGE AT www.dmu.ac.uk/news 8

newsDirector ofSustainableDevelopment

Professor Paul Fleming has beenannounced as De Montfort University’s

new Director of Sustainable Development. Hehelped establish the Sustainable DevelopmentTask Force two years ago and will now lead theUniversity’s pioneering work on implementingthe Sustainable Development strategy. This willfocus on the key areas of Teaching, Research,Built Environment, Health and Well Being, andCommunity Engagement.

Reporting to Professor Vivien Lowndes, ProVice-Chancellor (Research), Professor Flemingwill work with staff in faculties, researchinstitutes and support departments to positionDMU as an internationally leading university forsustainable development.

The University has already made muchprogress with its energy, transport, waste andfair trade policies as well as its teaching andresearch. A staff survey is currently underway,sustainable development featured duringfreshers’ week and work with the NationalUnion of Students Aiming Higher programme isabout to start.

The University is also working with keypartners in the city (through the LeicesterPartnership) to make progress towards the“one Leicester vision” of Leicester being one ofthe UK’s most sustainable cities.

For more details seewww.dmu.ac.uk/sustainability

Holography developedto aid student speechtherapists

The hologram is able to capture andillustrate mouth and tongue shapes for eachsound variation that therapists need torecognise. This can then be played back andviewed from a number of different angles.

It allows students to see the exact shape ofthe mouth as it produces each sound and isparticularly useful for sounds which are madeat the back of the mouth and are hard to see.

Development of this 3D tool is a hugeimprovement on the 2D diagrams that arecurrently used in both training and clinicalsettings.

Pip said: “Student therapists must be ableto identify and transcribe over 100 speechsound variations and this tool is a great way tohelp students visualise the different movementsthe mouth and tongue make when we arespeaking.”

Students gainessential e-skills

De Montfort University is one of a handfulof universities taking part in a national

scheme to help IT students gain essential skillsthrough internships.

‘e-skills internship – the professionalplacement programme’ aims to transform theway young people think about internships andmake it easier for students, employers anduniversities to get the most from them.

The scheme is organised by e-skills UK, theSector Skills Council for Business andInformation Technology, and was designed withinput from universities and employers.

The Placement Unit in the Faculty ofTechnology will organise the internships.

Suki Clayer, Placement Manager at the Unit,said: “Students who take part in the e-skillsinternship will stand out, not only for havingundertaken a placement year, but for havingmet a nationally-recognised level that isspecific to the IT industry.”

Anew programme of professorial lecturesstarted in October, featuring speakers

who will talk on subjects ranging frommanaging change to live music.

The first lecture, The Importance of Powerin Managing Change and Changing

Management, was by Professor Bob Carterfrom the Faculty of Business and Law andtook place on 15 October.

Professor Mohammad Ibrahim, of theFaculty of Technology, will talk onUnderstanding the Dynamics of Creativity – A

Media Technology Perspective on 29 October.On 19 November, Professor Jannet

Wright, of the Faculty of Health and Life

Professorial Lecture Series continues

Professor Bob Carter Professor MohammadIbrahim

Professor Jannet Wright Professor SimonEmmerson

Aunique holographic teaching resourcewhich captures mouth shapes in 3D

has been developed by experts at DeMontfort University and could become avital tool for speech therapists.

Pip Cornelius, Senior Lecturer in Phoneticsand Phonology, and Professor MartinRichardson, Chair of Modern Holography, havebeen developing the tool to improve howstudents are trained in phonetics.

Phonetics is the study of speech soundsand is a crucial part of the training for studentsstudying the Speech and Language Therapydegree at the University.

Speech and Language Therapists work withpeople who have a range of communicationdifficulties and can include children born withcleft lip and palate, mouth and throat cancerpatients and stammer sufferers.

Sciences, will give a lecture entitled It’s More

Than Just Enunciation: Working Together to

Support People With Speech Language and

Communication Problems.Live Music is Dead! Long Live Live Music!

is the subject of Professor SimonEmmerson’s lecture on 3 December.Professor Emmerson is from the Faculty ofHumanities.

All lectures take place at 6.00pm in theQueens building.

For more information or to book a placeon one of the lectures contact the EventsOffice on eventsoffice@dmu.ac.uk or byvisiting www.dmu.ac.uk/events

9FOR MORE STORIES ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY PLEASE VISIT DMU’S NEWS HOMEPAGE AT www.dmu.ac.uk/news

Coaching coursefor managers asuccess

Anew coaching course launched by DeMontfort University has achieved national

recognition.The Postgraduate Certificate in Coaching

(PCC) taught through DMU is now arecognised course by the Association forCoaching. It is one of just a few university-based, distance-learning qualifications incoaching in the UK, and provides an affordableway to train managers with minimal disruptionin the workplace.

The first cohort of students on the part-timePCC course has recently graduated followingthe successful completion of web-basedlearning, tutor-led, skills-development days andself-study.

On completion of the course students canidentify coaching opportunities, supportindividuals and teams to achieve results anddevelop plans to fit the needs of theirorganisation. Coaching is part of a range ofexecutive leadership and managementeducation provided by the University’s LeicesterBusiness School.

DMU triumph inenvironmentalsustainabilityreport

De Montfort University has scored topresults in a report which benchmarks

environmental and corporate responsibilities inhigher education.

This ‘Universities that Count – EnvironmentIndex’ report assesses the extent to whichuniversities from across the UK integrateenvironmental responsibility into their strategicand operational activities.

Fifty five institutions took part in thebenchmarking exercise, with DMU achieving anoverall score of 75 per cent – well above theHigher Education sector average score of 62per cent.

DMU scored particularly well in theEnvironmental Performance & Impact sectionwith 92 per cent, achieving very high scores forwaste management and our self-selectedimpact area of staff and student travel.

Karl Letten, Environmental & SustainabilityOfficer, said: “Environmental and sustainabilityissues are now very important topics within theHE sector. Exercises like the EnvironmentIndex are an excellent way of seeing how DMUis progressing with these important issueswhen compared with other universities acrossthe country.”

Based on the fantasy novels by PhilipPullman and adapted for the stage by NicholasWright, His Dark Materials Part 1 took theaudience on an epic adventure through worldsfamiliar and unknown.

Lauren Sulley, 21, Clive Keene, 21, and KielO’Shea, 22, joined more than 80 members ofthe Leicestershire community to work on theproduction.

All three played significant parts in the play.Lauren was cast in the central role of LyraBelacqua, with Clive performing alongside heras Lyra’s friend Roger, while Kiel took the roleof armoured bear Iorek Byrnison.

Three members of staff from DMU alsoappeared in the production – Jacky Bingley,from ISAS, who played five parts including MrsLonsdale; John Kearns, of the Faculty of Artand Design, who played Tony Costa, and LukeCooke, from Academic Registry, who amongother roles played Iofur Raknison, king of thearmoured bears.

Rob Brannen, Director of the Centre forExcellence in Performance Arts, said: “We aredelighted that three of our drama studentshave been recognised in this way. They havedone exceptionally well to meet the demandsof the final year of their degree and thedemands of the production.”

Drama graduates take part in epic adventure

Students became real life CSI agents inJuly when they took part in a forensic

search of a Leicester house during acourse run by crime experts at De MontfortUniversity.

Year 10 and 12 pupils from CountesthorpeCommunity College and Longslade CommunityCollege, Birstall, donned white suits and visitedthe house to comb the place for samples andfingerprints to help solve a murder mystery.

They took their samples to DMU chemistrylabs on campus to use electron microscopesand other specialist equipment to put all theclues together before naming their suspect.

The Crime Scene House sits in the middleof a terraced street in Leicester city centre andwas bought by the University to help withtraining of Police Officers from theLeicestershire and Nottinghamshire forces.

live the CSI life

DMU trains officers from the two forces on its foundation degree in policing and alsoLeicestershire’s Police Community Support Officers.

Not only is the house used during each course to set up lots of different scenarios police may come across in their day-to-day job, it is also utilised by DMU for the training of its forensicscience students.

The day-long student event at the University, which took place in July, was sponsored by theRoyal Society of Chemistry to encourage more people to study the subject under the schemeChemistry: The Next Generation. Members of Leicestershire police were also on-hand to offerrecruitment advice to potential scenes of crime officers.

Students

Children taking part in the event at DMU’s Crime SceneHouse. Photo courtesy of the Leicester Mercury.

The students take part in a rehearsal for His Dark Materials.

Three final year drama students from DeMontfort University took to the stage at

Leicester’s state-of-the-art Curve Theatre inJuly, for the production of His Dark Materials

Part 1.

graduationnews

FOR MORE STORIES ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY PLEASE VISIT DMU’S NEWS HOMEPAGE AT www.dmu.ac.uk/news 10

The University congratulated and marked the successes of its graduates in July at a host of ceremoniesat Leicester’s De Montfort Hall.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Philip Tasker, said: “Our graduation ceremonies are a fantastic way of acknowledging

the achievements of our students who have put so much effort into accomplishing their goals.

“They are the highlight of the year and it is a privilege to celebrate in their successes, as well as to commend the

staff who have been a dedicated and constant support.”

A week of celebrations –De Montfort University students graduate

Gary Lineker. Bill Maynard. Gurinder Chadha.

Bridget Riley.

Mo Ibrahim. Claire Bertschinger.

Over the week, nine honorary degrees werealso conferred on people who represent some of the highest levels in their respectivefields.

Gary Lineker, Leicester City and Englandfootballing legend, was presented with anhonorary Doctor of Letters. The awardcompleted a hat-trick of honorary achievementsfrom the trio of Leicestershire universities.

Entrepreneur and UK and Ireland Presidentof PepsiCo, Salman Amin, was also awardedthe honour.

A Companionship of DMU was conferredon Bridget Riley for her contribution to theworld of art. She is most renowned for hergeometrical black and white paintings whichbecame synonymous with Op Art during the60s and 70s.

Meanwhile Mo Ibrahim – mobile phoneentrepreneur, philanthropist and one of TimeMagazine’s 100 most influential people in the

world – was awarded an honorary Doctor ofTechnology.

Leicestershire actor, Bill Maynard, receivedan honorary Doctor of Arts following agenre-spanning acting career in theatre, TV,radio and film.

Bend It Like Beckham director, GurinderChadha celebrated her honorary Doctor of Artsby visiting Leicester with her husband and twosons, whilst Henry Doyle, the former Presidentof the Leicestershire Law Society, was given aMaster of Laws.

In recognition of her work as anInternational Red Cross nurse during Ethiopia’sfamine of 1984, Claire Bertschinger was therecipient of an honorary Doctor of Science.

And following his donation of Kodak’simportant library of photographic journals toDMU, former Director of the Kodak EuropeanResearch Centre, Sam Weller, was given anhonorary Doctor of Arts.

11FOR MORE STORIES ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY PLEASE VISIT DMU’S NEWS HOMEPAGE AT www.dmu.ac.uk/news

Thousands of studentsreceived their degreesduring the summer

graduation ceremonies.Here we take a look atsome of their stories.

Marina BoorBA International Marketing and Business

Marina’s career in the world of PRis off to a flying start.

She netted the employer awardfor Exceptional Performance in aPlacement Role as well as BestInternational Marketing andBusiness Student and receivedfirst class honours.

She now works for advertising and PR agency, Unsworth SugdenAdvertising Ltd, following a placement year with the company.

Kirstin JacksonFoundation Degree in Hearing Aid Audiology

As the first student to complete the degree in the UK, Kirstin can now countherself a fully fledged practitioner inHearing Aid Audiology after gaining a passin the subject.

She already worked at Hidden Hearing Ltd,but wanted to further her career in the fieldso requested to begin training at DMU.

Andrew JohnsonBSc Industrial Design

Andrew graduated this year with a first inthe subject, having seen his ‘Folli Watch’showcased at the annual New Designersexhibition in London.

The watch, which releases caffeine into theblood to help redress the causes andeffects of driver fatigue, was one of his finalyear designs.

Following a successful placement year with Milton Keynes company,NiftyLift Ltd, Andrew began working with the company following his graduation.

Jessica WatersBA Contour Fashion

Jessica rounded off her degree with a 2:1and saw her work showcased on DMU’send-of-year catwalk.

Her final 80s and pop culture-inspiredswimwear collection, ‘Acid Reign’, featuredbright neons, lycra material, bold straps, herown signature print and zips.

She said: “I am really looking forward to thechallenges that lie ahead now that I haveleft DMU.”

Phillip BottBA Advertising and Marketing Communications

Phillip not only achieved a first inhis degree at Leicester BusinessSchool, but was also namedwinner of the Institute of DirectMarketing (IDM) Award.

Looking ahead, Phillip hopes tostudy an MSc in StrategicMarketing and Consulting at theUniversity of Birmingham.

“The course was intellectually stimulating and encouraged studentsnot just to solve problems but to do it creatively,” he said.

Ruth Chenai Mushambadope BA Public Policy, Government and Management

After netting a first class degree,Ruth also scooped one ofLeicester Business School’s topawards for Best Public Policy,Government and ManagementStudent.

She balanced her full time degree,a job and raising her twodaughters and is now looking toher future career which she hopeswill be in a top civil servant job.

Sam BrunyeeBA Contour Fashion

Sam’s final year ‘Original Sin’ lingeriecollection gained her a place on the LondonFashion Week catwalk, as well as a 2:1 forher final degree mark.

The collection featured classy fetish wearaimed at a high end market, with inspirationtaken from Gothic architecture in churchesand window designs.

Marina receiving her awards.

Andrew Johnson with one ofhis designs.

Ruth Mushambadope at the awards ceremony.

Jessica Waters

Sam Brunyee

Kirstin Jackson

Phillip Bott is presented with his award.

news

FOR MORE STORIES ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY PLEASE VISIT DMU’S NEWS HOMEPAGE AT www.dmu.ac.uk/news 12

The work of a Police Community SupportOfficer (PCSO) is splitting into two

different and distinct roles, according toresearch at De Montfort University.

Jonathan Merritt, Law academic at DMU,has studied how the job of PCSOs isdeveloping in the UK and the likely futuredirections of their roles and responsibilities.

Evidence suggests that PCSOs are eitherworking as a kind of assistant constable,‘Junior Enforcers’, or as mediators between thepolice and the public, ‘Bridge Builders’.

The ‘Junior Enforcer’ role is shaping thePCSO into someone with a level ofenforcement powers who ultimately operatesas a support to the police.

The role of the ‘Bridge Builder’ provides alink between disconnected communitymembers and each other and between thecommunity and the police.

Mr Merritt believes that these two roles are

very different from one another but each playan important part in today’s society.

He said: “There appears to be a definitetrend towards the ‘Junior Enforcer’ but it isimportant to note that where the role of ‘BridgeBuilder’ is being undertaken, the PCSOsappear to be highly valued in the communityand the evidence suggests that people comeforward with information to PCSOs who mightnot have done so to a police constable directly.

“Having said that the enforcement workPCSOs undertake can also help addresscommunity concerns, increase policeproductivity and build public confidence in thepolice.”

The research was funded by the SocioLegal Studies Association and is based oninterviews and focus groups with officers ofvarious ranks, including PCSOs, Constables,Sergeants, Chief Constables, a Chief Inspectorand a Superintendent.

Police CommunitySupport Officer rolesidentified

STRL celebrates‘50th anniversary’

The Software Technology ResearchLaboratory has celebrated its 50th PhD

student successfully completing their degree.To mark the occasion in July, Professor

Hussein Zedan, Head of the research group,held an event which was attended bydignitaries from Saudi Arabia, (the cultural andmilitary attaches) Libya (the cultural counsellor)and China (the minister councillor) as well asDeputy Vice-Chancellor Professor David Aschand Pro Vice-Chancellor for ResearchProfessor Vivien Lowndes.

Professor Zedan said: “I am very proud that50 PhD students have completed their degreeswith us.

“It is a great achievement and is testamentboth to their hard work and to that ofcolleagues within the STRL.

“We look forward to working with the next50 students.”

Leicester firm’s£15k donation tonew building

ALeicester law firm has pledged £15,000support to De Montfort University’s efforts

to nurture some of the best talent in thecountry with a donation to the new Business &Law Building.

After liaising with DMU’s DevelopmentOffice, Harvey Ingram LLP gave the initial sumtowards the Hugh Aston Building, theUniversity’s new £35m landmark adjacent tothe Magazine.

In addition, the donation will support a£1,500 first prize in the annual DMU BusinessVenture Competition, three annual £500bursaries for students who develop the beststart-ups in the Campus Enterprise OpportunitiesProject and an annual £500 scholarship for theLaw School’s Legal Practice Course.

Nigel Gregory, Head of the DevelopmentOffice, said: “The Development Officeestablishes relationships that the University feelsare supportive of our vision and our students.When we approached Harvey Ingram it becameclear that there was a raft of opportunities toengage them in the life of the University.”

National award for virtual lab

An academic from De Montfort Universityhas scooped a national award for her work

in creating a virtual lab.

learning resources in the science field, inparticular for the creation of The VirtualAnalytical Laboratory, which helps studentsstudy science at degree level.

Dr Rolfe, who is also eLearning Championin the University’s School of Allied HealthSciences, said: “I’m absolutely delighted andamazed to win this award from the Associationfor Learning Technology.

“A few years ago I couldn't animate somuch as a stick man walking, and to be in aposition where my scientific animations aregaining national recognition is now trulyfantastic.

“The Virtual Analytical Laboratory supportsstudent transition to science at university, andthis award will help promote this freely-available resource to a wider audience.”

The judges commented: “The panel wereparticularly impressed with Vivien’s multimediaVirtual Analytical Laboratory, a substantialonline resource that supports students in theirtransition to studying science at university.”

The award was presented to Vivien at theALT’s annual conference on 9 September inManchester.

ALT’s Learning Technologist of the YearAward is now in its third year of operation andis open to individual members of ALT, and toindividuals and members based in ALT memberorganisations.

Dr Vivien Rolfe was selected as a jointwinner of the Association of LearningTechnology (ALT) Learning Technologist of theYear Award.

The awards are designed to celebrate andreward excellent in practice and learning.

Vivien was given the award for her work onthe creation and evaluation of multimedia

Dr Vivien Rolfe, who has received a national award for her work.

Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor David Asch, Pro-ViceChancellor Professor Vivien Lowndes and Professor HusseinZedan pictured with some of the visiting dignitaries.

13FOR MORE STORIES ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY PLEASE VISIT DMU’S NEWS HOMEPAGE AT www.dmu.ac.uk/news

Professor Simon Dyson’s research intoSickle Cell Anaemia and its effect on

schoolchildren was featured on BBC Radio 4while the Green Parent covered news ofDoreen Crawford’s revised Little Red Book toencourage breastfeeding.

DMU’s STINGresearch into nettlefibres was covered by BBC Radio Leicester,theecologist.org,Yorkshire Post and24dash.com.

A pioneering satellite navigation devicedeveloped by DMU and Nottingham ScientificLtd won at the Lord Stafford Awards and wascovered by the Leicester Mercury,Nottingham Evening Post, 24 Dash andMidlands Business News. The Universityreceived four nominations this year and therewas widespread regional coverage about thenominated projects before theawards took place.

Dr Brian Brown commented inthe Leicester Mercury on thewettest July in record and thepsychology behind pandemicsfollowing the swine flu outbreak.The Leicester Mercury alsointerviewed Dr Tim Watson on

DMU’s Local Governance Research Unit(LGRU) worked with the Centre for Citizenshipand Democracy at the University ofSouthampton on the year-long study for theDepartment of Communities and LocalGovernment (DCLG).

The study explored and developed evidencefrom over 3,500 reports, to aid theGovernment’s successful implementation ofpolicies for communities in the future.

The project aimed to identify when, whereand how the Government can most effectivelyengage with communities to give people moreof a say in shaping the priorities of their localcouncils on matters such as health, educationand crime prevention.

Community empowerment is defined byGovernment as enabling citizens to have the

skills, confidence and power to shape whatpublic bodies do for or with them.

The key findings of the research havealready contributed to the Government’s‘empowerment’ White Paper to create greateropportunities for community and individualinvolvement in local decision-making.

Dr. Catherine Durose, Research ProjectManager at the LGRU, said: “Communityempowerment is going to be an importantpriority in the coming decade as policy makersrealise that people often don't want to be toldwhat to do, but rather they want to be askedand sometimes involved in the decisions thataffect their everyday lives. This researchprovides evidence-based lessons of how toeffectively empower individuals andcommunities.”

DMU study helps put communities in control

Prisoners of war

ADe Montfort University academic hasreceived a British Academy Research

Grant to study the history of the captivity of allGerman prisoners of war in Britain duringWorld War I.

Panikos Panayi is Professor of EuropeanHistory in the Department of Historical andSocial Studies. He has published 15 books andmore than 60 articles.

His latest book has been commissioned byManchester University Press and is entitled:Prisoners of Britain: German Civilian, Military and

Naval Internees, 1914-1920.The grant will enable him to visit the

National Archives of Germany in the cities ofBerlin and Coblenz as well as the archives andlibraries in London to carry out research.

By the end of the war there were more than500 places of internment in Britain housingmore than 100,000 prisoners.

Professor Panayi says: “This is an excitingproject, which will lead to the first history of theimprisonment of Germans in Britain during thewar in 1914-1920.”

Professor Panikos Paniyi who is researching German prisonersof war in Britain.

keeping personal details safe after passportinformation was found in a punch bag.

Contour Fashion graduates’ finalcollections were covered in the LancashireEvening Post, Wigan Evening Post and ahost of other local papers, whilst RosettaLau’s storage design went international onthe Business Wire in China, News NowHong Kong and Reuters.com.

Mo Ibrahim, who was made an honoraryDoctor of Technology this year, was featuredin a double page spread in The Voice. Otherhonorands including Gary Lineker, BillMaynard and Claire Bertschinger werefeatured in Hello, Match of the Daymagazine, the Weekly News and NursingTimes. Elsewhere, business graduatesMarina Boor and Ruth ChenaiMushambadope hit the Leicester Mercury.

Research from the Faculty of Business &Law into the split roles of Police Community

Support Officers was covered bykey trade publications, Jane’sPolice Review, Metropolitan Lifeand Police Life.

Last but not least the new MA in Photographic History &Practice was featured in theTimes Higher Education andCNBC.com.

DMU IN THENEWS

Students switch off

Students living in Bede and New Wharf hallswill be competing against each other in

The Student Switch Off this academic year.Prizes will be given out to encourage

students to save energy and do their bit totackle climate change. The prizes willspecifically be given to students who sign up tobecome Eco-Power Rangers – residents whopledge to use their energy carefully andencourage their friends to do so as well.

Prizes on offer include tickets to nights outin Leicester, Ben & Jerry's ice cream, NUSExtra cards and energy-saving gadgets. Thewinning hall will receive a celebratory end-of-year party.

The actions encouraged by the StudentSwitch Off are simple, but are those that cansometimes get neglected when you're living inhalls. They include switching lights andappliances off when not in use, not overfillingthe kettle and putting on an extra layer ofclothing rather than turning up the thermostat.

Aground-breaking study developed by De Montfort University staff is being used to help the Government in its attempts to increase the power and influence of people

and communities.

Dr Tim Watson.

Research into nettlefibre at DMU.

news

1414 FOR MORE STORIES ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY PLEASE VISIT DMU’S NEWS HOMEPAGE AT www.dmu.ac.uk/news

Nursing andmidwifery reunion

Acelebratory reunion for nurses andmidwifes who studied at De Montfort

University took place at the Charles FrearsCampus in September.

The event was an opportunity for past andpresent students to meet with colleagues andold friends to enjoy a celebration of theirprofession.

It was open to anyone who studied atLeicester’s Brookfield House or DMU’s CharlesFrears Campus.

Christine Hancock, former GeneralSecretary of the Royal College of Nursing, gavean address to the guests, telling stories abouther time as a trainee nurse.

Interactive displays had been set up toshow a retrospective of nursing and midwiferythrough the past five decades, from pre-NHSdays all the way through to the 1990s.

More than 200 people attended the event,which was held in the gardens of CharlesFrears.

DMU closer to Fairtrade status

DMU has taken a step closer to becoming a Fairtradeuniversity by adopting a Fairtrade Policy.

The policy, agreed by the Vice-Chancellor’s Group andsupported by De Montfort University Students’ Union, sets outthe University’s commitment to increase the use of Fairtradeproducts across its campuses and to actively promote Fairtradeto students and staff.

The policy is one of five keys goals which are required tobecome a Fairtrade university, a status awarded by the FairtradeFoundation.

The other goals include: Fairtrade foods being available inshops, cafes, and restaurants; Fairtrade foods being served atmeetings hosted by the University and the Students Union; acommitment to campaign for Fairtrade and the formation of aFairtrade steering group.

DMU expert awardedprestigious nationalart museum postOne of the world’s leading photographic history

experts from De Montfort University has beenawarded a prestigious professorship from the NationalGallery of Art in Washington D.C., US.

The National Gallery of Art’s Center for Advanced Study inthe Visual Arts (CASVA) has awarded the 2010 Edmond J.Safra Visiting Professorship to Roger Taylor, Professor ofPhotographic History and Senior Research Fellow.

During the role, Professor Taylor will work with the Galleryto build close connections between curatorial staff and visitingscholars to CASVA.

He will also research the memorably-named LinnaeusTripe – a British photographer he came across whenresearching his Impressed by Light exhibition.

Professor Taylor said: “It’s an unexpected privilege to beoffered this professorship.

“I’ll be researching Tripe’s background in the MadrasInfantry, and his innovative role as a documentaryphotographer. His large format pictures are wonderful andwere mostly taken in Burma and India during the 1850s, but there’s never been a major exhibition dedicated solely tohis work.”

A recent national review of research in the UK by theResearch Assessment Exercise classified the University’sphotographic history research as ‘world leading andinternationally excellent’.

Gerard Moran, Dean of Faculty Art and Design, added: “It’smarvellous that Roger’s visiting professorship at the NationalGallery of Art should come along to cement the trulyinternational reputation of DMU’s work in this way.”

Professor Taylor will spend four months at CASVA,beginning from 19 January to 19 May 2010, where he willalso be conducting a seminar on the Gallery’s collections.

Ian runs ultramarathon inmemory of dad

Agruelling race along 56 miles ofcountryside paths was no match for

DMU’s Dr Ian Murdey, who tackled an ‘ultramarathon’ in memory of his father.

He completed the race in 10 hours 10minutes to finish in an impressive 16th placeout of 244 runners.

Dr Murdey, who is DMU’s transport co-ordinator, ran from London to Brighton to raisemoney for the hospice where his father Lawriereceived treatment and care before his deathfrom cancer earlier this year.

The race was held on 20 September and DrMurdey estimates that he has raised roughly£800 for the hospice by taking part in the race.

Dr Murdey, who is married to fellow runningenthusiast Jill and has two children, Ysa, five,and Danny-Ray, three, has run a total of 13marathons and one ultra marathon in the past.

As part of his training for the event, he raninto work and back each day.

He also recently completed a 120-milecycle ride up four mountains in the Alps.

Dr Murdey said: “My legs and joints seem tohave recovered well so far. I think my familyhave got used to me trying these sorts ofthings by now. They think I am mad but I alsothink they are quietly proud.”

Roger Taylor has received the 2010Edmond J. Safra VisitingProfessorship from the NationalGallery of Art’s Center forAdvanced Study in the Visual Artsbased in Washington DC.

Dr Ian Murdey pictured during his 56-mile race.

15

diary

FOR MORE STORIES ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY PLEASE VISIT DMU’S NEWS HOMEPAGE AT www.dmu.ac.uk/news

peopleCONGRATULATIONS TO:

Bernd Stahl who has been made a Professorof Critical Research in Technology in the Centrefor Computing and Social Responsibility, basedin the Faculty of Technology.

Professor Stahl leads the ETICA projectwhich involves a number of organisationsacross Europe. The team aims to predict thetechnologies that will enter common usage inthe next 10 to 15 years in a bid to tackleethical pitfalls before they become a problem.

He is a De Montfort University TeacherFellow and serves as Chair of the FacultyHuman Research Ethics Committee andCoordinator of the Information Society DoctoralProgramme.

OTHER NEWS:

Posters win prizesDe Montfort University students won three outof a total of nine prizes at a recent researchcompetition.

The final for the Vitae Midlands HubRegional Poster competition for researchstudents took place on 7 July. More than 80posters were entered into the final from 13universities across the Midlands.

DMU students won the second prize, theResearcher’s Choice and Best Poster Summaryfor non-specialist audience prizes.

The Vitae Midlands Hub is one of severalregional ‘hubs’ run in partnership with Vitae.

The Midlands Hub supports universities andsupervisors in the Midlands to develop thepersonal and professional skills of researchersin the region.

Zoe helps rehabilitation ofNepalese childrenPhotography Lecturer Zoe Childerley spentten weeks volunteering with the EstherBenjamins Trust (EBT) in Nepal. It was hersecond visit to the remote, inhospitable area inthe south west of the country, where sheprovided vocational training and education toNepal’s stigmatized children; deaf children,victims of child-trafficking into Indian circuses,street children and the homeless children ofprisoners.

EBT is a registered children’s charity thatdeals with the rescue and rehabilitation ofNepal’s forgotten children. There are currentlymore than 130 children receiving full-time careat its refuges in Kathmandu and Bhairahawa.

If you would like to submit a story for dmyou People, please email jbreens@dmu.ac.uk or call ext 8353.

Bernd Stahl, Professor of Critical Research in Technology.

Zoe Childerley in Nepal.

Zoe first volunteered in Nepal in 2008,spending two months at the workshop inBhairahawa, helping children to develop theirmosaic-making skills. She found the work sorewarding, she returned to Nepal this summer.In addition to providing support with the makingof mosaics and ceramics, she provided tuitionin English and maths.

UNIVERSITY EVENTS

Distinguished LecturesProfessor Lord Patel of Bradford

6.00pm 11 November

Contact Events Office for booking andfor more information

Professorial LecturesProfessor Mohammad Ibrahim,Faculty of TechnologyThursday 29 October

Professor Jannet Wright, Faculty of Health and Life SciencesThursday 19 November

Professor Simon Emmerson,Faculty of HumanitiesThursday 3 December

For full details see page 8. All lectures startat 6.00pm.

To book, contact the Events Office ateventsoffice@dmu.ac.uk

LEICESTER EVENTS

Halloween HorrorsAbbey Pumping Station

Thursday 22 October, 11.00am to3.00pm. Admission £1.70

Mask making and a hunt for spiders andbats will be among the activities.

More information is available by emailingmuseums@leicester.gov.uk or by calling(0116) 299 5111.

DE MONTFORT HALLLiterature at Lunchtime

Edith Wharton’s‘The Age of Innocence’Thursday 29 October at 12:30

Shakespeare’s‘The Tempest’Thursday 26 November at 12:30

Tickets £5

Dr Jane Mackay discusses classic literature.

All lectures are held in the Victoria Suite andlast approximately one hour.

More information from the Box Office on(0116) 233 3111.

20:Q1. What is your name?Andy Rees.

2. What is your role at DMU?Head of the Department of Strategy &Management and Faculty Head ofUndergraduate Studies.

3. How long have you been with us?Since September 1978!

4. Describe your average working day…Emails, meetings, seeing students, emailsagain… and some teaching.

5. What interests you most about yourwork?Working with students.

6. What do you do in your spare time?Cooking, gardening, supporting Leicester CityFootball Club and spending time with my family.

7. What is the best piece of advice youhave been given?‘Never ignore a problem, face it today’.

8. What is the first thing you think ofwhen you wake up in the morning?Molly our dog. She’ll need to be let out.

9. Who would you like to see playing youif a film was made of your life, and why?Peter Kay – he’s from the North like myself andwould make me appear funnier.

10. What was the first record youbought?The Times They Are A-Changing – Bob Dylan

11. What has been your mostembarrassing moment?Taking my three-year-old daughter to the toileton a crowded train. The lock stuck whencoming out and she started screaming.

12. What scares you most?Crossing high bridges when driving.

13. What single thing would improve thequality of your life?Fewer emails.

14. When you were a child, what did youwant to be when you grew up?A scientist, like my father.

15. If you were stranded on a desertisland who would you most like to bestranded with?Ernest Shackleton – he’d get me home.

16. What frustrates you most in life?Not much, although slugs attacking my dahliascomes close.

17. What’s the bravest thing you’ve everdone?Jumped into a river to help save one of ourstudents, someone else got him out!

18. What did you do on your lastbirthday?I share my birthday with my wife and Ronaldo.The two of us (not Ronaldo) spent the night atThe George Hotel in Stamford.

19. What is your most annoying habit?Refusing to miss The Archers, no disturbances.

20. If the world were to end tomorrowwhat would you do today?Stay at home, have two glasses of my bestwine and walk the dog with my wife.

Editor Julia BreensStaff writers/Editorial Assistants Ruth Davies Nicola GodwinEmail news@dmu.ac.ukContributorsDavid Alder Jo HughesVictoria Burton Chris JohnstonJo Crozier Elizabeth Mattock

Published by De Montfort University, The Gateway, Leicester LE1 9BH.

Copy should be sent to dmyou, Press and Public Relations Department, 0.02 Portland Building, Leicester.

Website www.dmu.ac.ukIntranet http://intranet.dmu.ac.uk

Photographyhollisphotography.comMark BarnettJim BoultonNigel EssexMark MakelaNorthams Photography

INFORMATION FOR CONTRIBUTORS Copy submitted for dmyou is included in the magazine at thediscretion of the editor and may be edited for reasons of length or style.

Please send any articles you wish to be considered for publication to jbreens@dmu.ac.uk Thank you

Software re-engineeringkeeps oldcomputers working

ADe Montfort University SeniorResearch Fellow has won nearly

£100k to fund a groundbreaking researchproject into software re-engineering.

The project, undertaken by the Facultyof Technology’s Dr Martin Ward, was one ofjust six to be awarded a Royal SocietyIndustry Fellowship and he has received agrant of £98,006 to work directly withindustry.

During his four years as a namedFellow, Dr Ward will work with SoftwareMigrations Ltd. on the titled project,‘Industrial Strength SoftwareRe-engineering Approach’ (ISSRA).

After years of research on logic, hefound infinitely-long formulae which showwhat will happen for any eventuality withina computer program. Its application meanscompanies will no longer have to struggleto keep old computer systems running byadapting older languages.

Instead of throwing out these oldsystems and creating new ones at a hugecost of time and money, Dr Ward will workwith Software Migrations Ltd. to use hisFermaT transformation system indeveloping an application for practical use.

The ‘high-level code’ he has inventedtakes any old code which is specific to aparticular system and translates it intosomething which is much easier to read,understand and modify. Most importantly, itruns on any machine and will stand thetest of time as computer softwarebecomes more advanced.

Dr Ward said: “This Fellowship gives methe opportunity to undertake a sustainedpiece of research and bring the results allthe way into a practical application.

“The project sounds a bit like thePhilosopher’s Stone, turning lead into gold,but it really does work and I am excitedabout the prospect of the next four yearsworking on it.”

Royal Society Industry Fellowships areawarded twice a year, with six on eachoccasion selected from all scientificdisciplines across all universities.