unilifeThe free magazine for The University of Manchester

May 2015Issue 7 Volume 12

A day to saythank you

Message from the President

Health and well-being are important to us all. They are also majoractivities for the University.

NewsBig head causes campus chaos

NewsUniversity launches uniqueconstruction academy

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ur University has one of the largest medicaland health Faculties in the UK, training over1,000 health professionals, including over400 doctors, each year. We are also the

home of the first School of Nursing in the country.

To complement this, we conduct research andeducation in a large number of other importanthealth-related disciplines including: dentistry,pharmacy, psychology, audiology, life sciences,sociology and social care, global health, bio-computing and bio-materials, business aspects of healthcare and the history of science,technology and medicine.

Our research is very wide ranging: coveringunderstanding of normal biology and diseaseprocesses, the identification of new drug targetsand medicines and more sustainable ways ofproducing them, diagnostic agents and predictors ofdisease susceptibility and imaging tools. It alsoembraces social and economic impacts on health,medical responses to natural disasters and conflicts,the operation of health care systems, nursing careand prescribing - to name but a few.

We have had some notable recent successes in ourhealth research including major awards from theMedical Research Council for stratified medicine,dementia, diagnostics and pathology; a significantaward from the Biotechnology and Biology ResearchCouncil for ‘synthetic biology’; funding from theEconomic and Social Research Council on languagedevelopment; and the recognition of the standing ofour cancer research by Cancer Research UK as oneof only two designated ‘cancer supercentres’ in theUK, along with Oxford.

As a University our activities in health are focussedon research, education and ‘making a difference’ tosociety - the latter through our contribution to thesolutions of the major challenges of the 21stcentury and the social and economic success of our local, national and global communities. In orderto achieve this, we work closely with many partners including the NHS, the City and GreaterManchester Combined Authority and industry todeliver health benefits.

The University is a core member of the ManchesterAcademic Health Science Centre (MAHSC), along

with our six NHS partners. MAHSC unites clinicaland research leadership and helps healthcareorganisations reap the benefits of research andinnovation to realise improvements in patient care.

Designation as an AHSC is given to partnershipsbetween universities and teaching hospitals whichcan demonstrate excellence across research,innovation, education and patient service. MAHSC,the only accredited academic health science centreoutside the South East, is chaired by Sir HowardBernstein, Chief Executive of Manchester CityCouncil. Professor Ian Greer, who will join us asVice-President and Dean of our Faculty of Medicaland Human Sciences on 1 June 2015, will becomeits next Director.

We are also part of the wider Academic HealthScience Network (AHSN) which aims to deliver astep-change in health outcomes across its region of Greater Manchester, East Lancashire and EastCheshire; and the Northern Health Science Alliance(NHSA) – the latter includes the eight leadingresearch universities across the North of England.

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Inaugurating Dr Eddie Davies CBE to the Langworthy Circle

With Rory and Elizabeth Brooks, principalfounders of the Brooks World Poverty Institute

Contact usNews and story ideas

Mikaela Sitfordtel 0161 275 2112email uninews@manchester.ac.ukwww.manchester.ac.uk/staffnet/newsDeadline 13 May 2015

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tel 0161 275 8250email uninews@manchester.ac.ukDeadline 13 May 2015

Next issue 1 June 2015

Contents2 Message from the President

4 News

7 Research

10 Features

15 What’s On

16 Making a Difference

Front cover: Andrew Gray and donor Shirley Mackay at Philanthropy Day

Photo by Tracey Gibbs Photography.

FeatureFrom the lecture hall to theheart of our community…

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NHSA is chaired by Professor Ian Greer and hasrecently secured £20 million of central governmentfunding for ‘Health North’ which will providefunding for four centres (one of which will be inManchester) known as ‘Connected Health Cities’,that will use complex data to improve treatments,health service and public health.

Partnerships with commercial organisations arecritical for the application of research outcomes. We have many such partnerships, not only withlarge pharmaceutical companies, but also withsmaller start-ups, and those in the biotechnology,medical technology, diagnostics and increasingly in the IT sectors. Professor Jackie Oldham has justbeen appointed to lead ‘Health InnovationManchester’ which aims to further improveengagement between the University, MAHSC, the City region and private organisations.

Relevant to this, a small group has been working toidentify health strengths across Greater Manchesterand Cheshire East, to include the Alderley Park sitewhich is now owned by Manchester Science

Partners. I co-chair the group with Dr JohnStageman, a member of our Board of Governors,and we will be reporting soon on strengths, gaps and priorities.

A further major opportunity for developing healthresearch, education and delivery in our region ispresented by the major announcement on 25 February this year that the NHS healthcarebudget of £6 billion per annum will be fullydevolved to Greater Manchester from April 2016.There is clearly a great deal yet to be agreed ondelivery of the newly devolved budget, which willultimately be overseen by a partnership of the localauthorities and local NHS stakeholders, but thispromises to transform the delivery of health andsocial care in our region.

The scale of this devolution, the first of its kind inEngland, will allow Greater Manchester todetermine how its health budget is spent. This isimportant given the poor health outcomes for manynorthern cities compared to those in the South-East.It is estimated that at least 40,000 more early deaths

(under the age of 75 years) occur in the Northcompared to the South of England, and the incidenceand death rates for all major diseases are higher inGreater Manchester than for much of the UK.

Another very important outcome of the devolvedbudget will be the ability to join up health and socialcare delivery, hence concentrating more on thepatient rather than the service delivery, and allowingmuch better oversight of the true cost and benefitsof health and social care provision.

The focus for The University of Manchester will, of course, remain on our core goals of research,education and social responsibility, but each of these can benefit from the exciting changes that will take place in health and social care.

It has never been more important to ensure optimal collaboration between the variousorganisations and the realisation of what is anunprecedented opportunity.

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With Director of Development and Alumni Relations Chris Cox, PhD Physics scholar Nick Dann, third year English Literature undergraduateKarpidas scholar Rebecca Hardman, Oldham College 6th form student and MAP participant Bilal Chishti and Professor Brian Cox

ResearchCoalition prospects to have ‘profound impact’ on General Election

News

Will you measure upto slime mould?Children and adults alike will get a chance tocheck out slime mould and pitch themselvesagainst the curious creatures that form thesubstance at the Faculty of Life SciencesCommunity Open Day this month.

There will be the chance to get hands on withslime, using petri dishes, samples andpipettes and look at findings using ourmicroscopes. There’s also a tour of the FlyFacility, painting with maggots and activitieswith creepy crawlies, baby fish, microbes,animal-eating plants and an array of insectsand amphibians.

Organiser Natalie Liddle said: “This year wehave gone all out to make the event our mostspectacular yet.”

The Open Day will be at the Michael SmithBuilding, off Dover Street, 10am-2pm onSaturday, 9 May. Everyone is welcome to thisfree event, no need to book and free parkingis available on site.

Barnes WallisBuilding reopensAn exciting new student facility has openedon the University’s North Campus following a £1 million investment to further enhancethe student experience (pictured).

Based on the ground floor of the BarnesWallis Building, it features a 96-personcomputer cluster, a fully refurbished cafe,flexible ‘learning commons’ type learningspaces, a range of University and Students’Union support services including welfare,financial and careers advice, a staffedreception area, and a series of project andbreakout rooms, all of which will be availablefor students to use for extended hours.

Big head causes campus chaosgiant Easter Island Head caused chaos oncampus when it arrived as part ofManchester Museum’s latest exhibition.

The Museum’s doors had to be removed and thebridge to the entrance fortified in a five-houroperation involving cranes and specialist equipmentto get the 1.56 metre, 3.3 tonne statue in.

The statue, also known as Moai Hava – meaning‘dirty statue’ or ‘to be lost’ – is on loan from theBritish Museum and features in ‘Making Monumentson Rapa Nui: The Stone Sculptures of Easter Island’.

The monumental stone statues of Pacific island Rapa Nui (named Easter Island by Europeanexplorers) are some of the most widely recognisedand fascinating archaeological objects in the world.University archaeologist Professor Colin Richards hasdeveloped the exhibition following fieldwork in thearea, taking a fresh look at these impressive statues.

The exhibition runs until Sunday, 6 September,although – thankfully – Moai Hava will remain in theMuseum entrance hall for a number of years.

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Celebrating a legacy

he University is celebrating the legacy ofalumnus and first President of Israel ChaimWeizmann through new scientific discoveriesin collaboration with the Weizmann Institute

of Science in Israel, thanks to the generosity of Lord Alliance.

Weizmann made a vital discovery about acetone,increasing shell production which had a hugeimpact on the First World War, here in Manchester100 years ago.

The generous donation from the Alliance FamilyFoundation in 2012 provided funding to eight pairsof scientists to undertake collaborative research inthe fields of dementia, cancer and food security,among other areas.

The remarkable success of one of these collaborations,between Professor Werner Muller (Manchester) andProfessor Steffen Jung (Weizmann Institute), wasmarked with a further award. Their work has shedlight on how the cells in our gut respond to foreignparasites like worms and how these cells may triggerdiseases such as Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD).

Steffen and Werner were presented with ‘The LordAlliance Prize’, a £100,000 grant to continue their

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The giant Moai Hava makes its entrance

research into the biology of the immune system, by Britain’s Ambassador to Israel, Matthew Gould.

He said: “The partnership being built between theWeizmann and Manchester is about the past, thepresent and the future and I can think of no bettermodel for relations between Israel and Britain thanour world-leading scientists working together forthe benefit of humanity.”

Faculty of Life Sciences researchers also spent twodays at a research symposium building connectionswith those at the Weizmann Institute, accompaniedby colleagues from the Division of Development andAlumni Relations who also hosted a specialreception for our alumni in Tel Aviv.

(l-r) Professor Steffan Jung, Lord Allianceand Professor Werner Muller

Last year’s FLS Community Open Day

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A day to say thank you

Donors visit The Whitworth

Charlotte Powell discusses graphene

he University has launched a uniqueconstruction academy which will seeunemployed people from across Greater Manchester receive training and

potentially go on to full-time employment across its major capital developments.

The University of Manchester Construction Academywill support local people into the jobs that will begenerated by the University’s £1 billion CampusMasterplan to create world-class facilities for staff,students and visitors. The Academy is the onlyinitiative of its kind in higher education.

Victor Esteban, from Moss Side, was a constructioncompany project manager until he was maderedundant a year ago. He said: “I am really enjoying

T First intake into University of ManchesterConstruction Academy

Following the request for nominations, threecandidates have been nominated for the officeof Chancellor and a postal and online ballot ofthe electorate will open on Tuesday, 26 May.

The three candidates are Lemn Sissay MBE,The Rt Hon. the Lord Mandelson and Sir Mark Elder CBE.

Lemn Sissay MBE is an award-winning writer and broadcaster. He is associate artistat the Southbank Centre, ambassador for The Children’s Reading Fund and the first poetcommissioned to write for London Olympics2012. His Ted Talk about childhood has overhalf a million views. In 2010 he was awardedan MBE for services to literature. The first ofits kind, The Sissay PhD Scholarship for careleavers has been running for six years.

Lord Mandelson is a former Cabinet memberand First Secretary of State, with responsibilitiesincluding higher education policy, science andinnovation. He introduced industrial policiesto spearhead collaboration betweentechnological research and development andthe private sector, and promote funding reformand widening access to universities. In his firstCabinet post, at Trade and Industry, he introduced the landmark White Paper‘Building a Knowledge-driven Economy’.

Sir Mark Elder CBE has been Music Directorof the Hallé Orchestra since 2000 and hasrecently committed to the role through to atleast 2020, which will make him the Hallé’ssecond longest-standing principal conductor.He has a strong commitment to developingyoung players, leading programmes toengage the Hallé in schools and as Presidentof Future Talent, which helps young musiciansfrom deprived Greater Manchester areasrealise their talent.

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while initiatives such as the new Manchester CancerResearch Centre, the Brooks World Poverty Instituteand the Manchester Business School are having aprofound impact on both local and globalcommunities.

Karpidas Scholar Becky Hardman said: “I’m from aworking-class family and neither of my parents hadbeen to university. The scholarship that I have receivedhas made a huge difference to my confidence andstudies at The University of Manchester.”

he University celebrated the impact ofcharitable donations on campus with a dayof special events, including Professor BrianCox discussing the importance of

philanthropy with students on stage.

He spoke of his passion for providing learningopportunities to talented yet disadvantaged youngpeople through the University’s flagship social mobilityprogramme, the Manchester Access Programme(MAP), helping them towards a future they deserve.

Other events included behind-the-scenes tours ofWhitworth Art Gallery, University Library,Manchester Museum and the National GrapheneInstitute, all of which have benefitted significantlyfrom donor support, and a philanthropy showcasegiving insights into our ground-breaking researchand other donor-funded projects.

The day culminated with a special ceremony anddinner in which some of the University’s mostsignificant donors were inaugurated into thePresident’s Circles of Philanthropy.

Thanks to our donors, we offer more undergraduatescholarships than any other Russell Group university,

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the course. I think it’s really great that the Universityis doing this, and I am really looking forward togetting back out there and earning again.”

Steve Grant, Assistant Director of Human Resourcesat the University, said: “We know that there arethousands of unemployed people, some of whomhave a background in construction, living within thetravel to work area who will benefit from engagingwith the Academy.”

University launchesunique constructionacademy

News

Academic marks 50 years at theUniversityProfessor Wes Sharrock, Lecturer in Sociologyin the School of Social Sciences, is celebrating50 years at the University this year.

Wes joined the University in 1965 as agraduate student. He then became a Lecturerin Sociology in 1968 and was awarded hisdoctorate in 1970 by Professor Peter Worsley,the first professor of Sociology at the University.

He is a seminal figure in British sociologyhaving written numerous journal articles and more than 20 books, some of them key texts in the field. His contribution toethnomethodology – the study of the methodsand practices by which society's membersmake sense of their world – is internationallyrecognised, and he was awarded the American Sociological Association’s prestigiousLifetime Achievement Award in 2011.

The art of medicineA cross-Faculty collaboration is seeing MA ArtGallery and Museum Studies studentsworking on collection management andexhibition ideas for groups of objects fromthe Museum of Medicine and Health.

The project was organised by Dr KostasArvanitis (Museology), who worked closelywith University Historian and HeritageManager Dr James Hopkins, Museum ofMedicine and Health Curator StephanieSeville and Museum of Medicine and Healthvolunteers Julie and Peter Mohr.

James said: “This project is an excellentexample of cross-faculty collaboration and hasbeen a resounding success. It demonstratedthe significant and unique contribution of the museum’s collection to enhance students’ learning.”

On the threshold of powerome of our students got their eyes on theprize for this month’s General Election whenthey visited No.10 Downing Street, afterwinning the University’s ‘Behind the

Black Door’ competition.

The competition was created by Executive Directorfor Government Communications Alex Aiken andthe University’s Careers Service as part of a specialstudents’ event, where Alex was guest lecturer.

Student teams were given two hours to prepare afive-minute pitch on ‘how to engage a studentaudience with the Government’s healthy livingcampaigns’.

The panel of judges included Alex Aiken and theUniversity’s Vice-President for Public Affairs AndrewWestwood, Head of Sport and Active Lifestyles VickyFoster-Lloyd and Director of Communications andMarketing Alan Ferns.

The two winning teams enjoyed a visit to theCabinet Office and meetings with Senior CivilServants from Public Health England and theMinistry of Defence.

Alex Aiken said: "We were delighted to host thewinning teams. I hope that the day gave them an

experience of modern government, from thechallenges of defending the realm to tackling public health problems."

Winning student Jeanmiguel Uva said: “The visitto the Whitehall and 10 Downing Street hasdefinitely one of the most rewarding and interesting experiences I've had at the University.”

Fellow winner Robert Varley agreed: “The experiencewas truly invaluable. It allowed me to gain aninsight into the foundations of British politics.”

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The Whitworth up for largest arts prize in UK

he Whitworth art gallery is a finalist for theArt Fund Prize for Museum of the Year 2015.

The nomination follows a widely-acclaimedredevelopment project by MUMA (McInnes UsherMcKnight Architects) that reconnected the gallery to its surrounding Whitworth Park and doubled thepublic space. Since reopening on the 14 Februarythe Whitworth has already welcomed over 100,000 visitors.

The coveted Art Fund Prize for Museum of the Year 2015 is the largest arts prize in the UK,

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Winning students outside Number 10 Downing Street

celebrating the very best museums and galleries and acknowledging the creative and innovativeways they bring objects and collections to life forthe public. The winning museum will be presentedwith £100,000 and crowned ‘Museum of the Year2015’ at an awards ceremony held at Tate Modern,London in July.

The gallery has also been named North WestBuilding of the Year at a top architectural awardceremony. The building won the Royal Institute ofBritish Architects North West gong last month.

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Professor Wes Sharrock (l) talks to Dr David Calvey

Whitworth Central Exhibition, photo by David Levene

Student JoelFagan with aninhaler catheterfrom the 19th century

Research

he experience of coalition could have a‘profound impact’ on the electoral successof Ukip, the Greens and the SNP –according to new research from the

University’s British Election Study (BES).

BES Directors Professor Jane Green and Professor EdFieldhouse say if voters expect a hung parliament ora coalition, then they are much less likely to supportLabour or the Conservatives.

Among those expecting a hung parliament, theLiberal Democrats and Greens double their support,Ukip add a third and the SNP see a quadrupling.

Around 41% of a sample of 16,000 people,surveyed online in March 2015, think neither theConservatives nor Labour will win a majority.

Professor Green said: "These findings reveal whichvoters are likely to be disappointed by differentcoalition negotiation outcomes, and what thosenegotiating parties might therefore take intoaccount when anticipating the electoralconsequences of their actions".

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House of Commons

Discovering newantiquities in Iraq

niversity of Manchester archaeologists havedefied the efforts of Islamic State militants to‘culturally cleanse’ Iraq of its ancient relics bymaking significant new discoveries near the

ancient city of Ur.

The Manchester team – one of only two operatingin non-Kurdish Iraq – has just returned from threemonths of fieldwork there.

Among other things, the team, directed by Dr JaneMoon, Professor Stuart Campbell and Dr RobertKillick, discovered 50 new documents, written inBabylonian, and evidence for a scribal school datingto around 1500 BC.

Before returning to the UK, they deposited 300 newartefacts in the Iraq Museum and set up a temporaryexhibition in Baghdad as well as visiting universitiesthat teach, or are planning to teach, archaeology.

Dr Moon said: “What we can do is make newdiscoveries to be proud of and help our Iraqicolleagues and the rest of the world to understand and appreciate what the antiquitiesactually tells us.”

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Food securityfundingThe University has been awarded funding toboost research into food security – to addresskey global challenges in food security,including sustainable food production andresilient food supply chains – in collaborationwith the N8 Research Partnership.

HEFCE awarded N8 a grant of £8 millionthrough its Catalyst Fund to develop its Agri-Food Resilience programme. Manchesterwill get £1 million of that with a further £1 million in match funding to enable workon agri-tech research.

Dr Bruce Grieve, Director of the e-Agri SensorsCentre in Manchester’s School of Electricaland Electronic Engineering, said: “We havebeen working closely with industrialcolleagues and international Foundations over recent years to bring micro-electronicsand sensors research into the forefront oftackling food supply challenges.”

The whole tooth?New research from the School of Dentistryconcludes that there is limited evidence toshow that xylitol is effective in preventingdental cavities in children and adults.

Xylitol is a popular sugar substitute in sweetsand it is already known to cause less damageto teeth than sugar. It has also been suggestedthat the addition of xylitol to products mayhelp to prevent tooth decay by stopping thegrowth of decay-producing bacteria.

However, according to the new evidencethere is little high quality evidence that it isbeneficial in the fight against tooth decay,which affects up to 90% of children andmost adults worldwide.

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Coalition prospects to have ‘profound impact’ on General Election

Professor Stuart Campbell analysingBabylonian occupation deposits in Iraq

e-Agri Sensor

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Research

Sea slug helpsanalyse brain data

Using data from sea slugs, Dr Mark Humphrieshas found our brains aren’t as complicated as we once thought.

The team, working with scientists in Chicago,mapped how neurons fired in the brain of the large sea slug Aplysia (pictured) while itmoved. The research, published in the journalNeuron, demonstrates how Aplysia’s complexlocomotion circuit can be dramaticallysimplified and interpreted.

Dr Humphries says: “This research introducesnew methods for pulling apart neural circuits toexpose their inner building blocks. Our methodscould be used to help understand how brainnetworks change in disease states and howdrugs act to restore normal brain function.”

Squaring thesnowflakeSnowflakes can become square – with a littlehelp from graphene, first isolated here atManchester.

University researchers have found that anatomically thin layer of water freezes at roomtemperature to form square ice with symmetrycompletely alien to water molecules (pictured).

The breakthrough findings, reported in thejournal Nature, allow better understanding ofthe counterintuitive behaviour of water andare important for development of moreefficient technologies including filtration,desalination and distillation.

Nobel laureate Sir Andre Geim, who co-wrotethe paper, said: “This study was stimulated byour previous observations of ultrafast flow ofwater through graphene nanocapillaries. Weeven speculated that this could be due totwo-dimensional square ice … but seeing isbelieving. Water is probably the most studiedsubstance ever but no one thought that icecould be square.”

Cutting violence in Panamachool of Psychological Sciences researchershave piloted a parenting trial which aims toimprove child behaviour in Panama City – theplace with the eighth highest murder rate in

the world.

To mitigate problems with gang crime, the UN andthe Panamanian government have prioritisedinvesting in children to keep them away from gangsand drugs.

The researchers recruited 108 parents of childrenaged 3-12, who had been selected by their schools, and divided them into two groups. One group was acontrol which received no intervention and the otherattended a session called ‘dealing with disobedience’.

One parent, the mother of boy aged ten, said: “Nowif something happens, I take action. I find a solution.Before I would turn away and leave, because I thought there was no solution. But not anymore.”

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he largest single high definition map ofmysterious dark matter has been produced,with the help of Manchester scientists. And it could reveal more about how galaxies

formed in our Universe.

A University team, led by Professor Sarah Bridle, has spent the last two years measuring the shapesof galaxies used to construct the map.

Researchers at the Dark Energy Survey (DES) have released the first in a series of dark mattermaps of the cosmos. The map, created with one of the world’s most powerful digital cameras, is the largest contiguous map created at this level of detail, and will improve our understanding ofdark matter’s role in the formation of galaxies.

“It is amazing to see a map of the dark matter oversuch a large region of the sky”, said Professor Bridle“and the full Dark Energy Survey mass map will bemore than 30 times bigger still!”

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Anilena Mejia delivers a session to parents

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Dark matter mapped out

Sunset on campus

Core Technology Facility

Viagra not ‘cure-all’Viagra and other related drugs are not auniversal ‘cure-all’ for impotence, accordingto research from the Cathie Marsh Institute.

An abundance of studies has demonstratedthe effectiveness of oral phosphodiesterasetype 5 inhibitor (PDE5i) drugs, which havebecome the first-line medical treatmentoption for sufferers of erectile dysfunction(ED). However studying the responses ofmore than 2,600 English men aged 50-87years, suggests that restoring EDpharmacologically is not a ‘cure-all’.

Lead author, Dr David Lee, found that oldersufferers of ED who had used Viagra orsimilar drugs still expressed concern ordissatisfaction with their sex lives.

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esearch in the Faculty of Life Sciences hasrevealed that the colour of light has a majorimpact on how our body clock measures thetime of day.

The team began by recording electrical activity fromthe body clock while mice were shown differentvisual stimuli. They found that many of the cells therewere more sensitive to changes in colour betweenblue and yellow than to changes in brightness.

The scientists then used measurements of thechanges in the colour spectra taken from the top ofthe Pariser Building, to construct an artificial sky whichrecreated the daily changes in colour and brightness.

Mice were placed beneath the sky for several daysand their body temperature was recorded.

As expected for nocturnal creatures, the highestbody temperatures occurred just after night fellwhen the sky turned a darker blue – indicating thattheir body clock was working optimally.

When just the brightness of the sky was changed,with no change in the colour, the mice becamemore active before dusk, demonstrating that theirbody clock wasn't properly aligned to the day night cycle.

Dr Timothy Brown led the research: “What’s excitingabout our research is that the same findings can beapplied to humans. So in theory colour could be used to manipulate our clock, which could be usefulfor shift workers or travellers wanting to minimise jet lag.”

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Telling the timeby colour

deas generated by our researchers have thepotential to save lives, improve health,increase efficiencies in industry and theenvironment, and otherwise enhance society

and make positive contributions to our economy.

UMIP, the University’s agent for intellectualproperty commercialisation, helps us to do just that.

This and our Innovation Centre (UMIC) areoperating divisions of The University ofManchester’s Innovation company, UMI3 Ltd.

Since the merger in 2004, it has seen more than 30 spin-out companies have been created,800-plus licences and assignments brokered,£280 million invested by venture funders inUniversity spin-out companies and over

In biomedical areas such as diagnostics, imaging,novel drug design, therapeutics and dermatologythere is C4XD, recently floated on the LondonStock Exchange’s growth market AIM.

Our social businesses include HiSolar, aninnovative solar powered light for Hammams and social housing.

And the story continues with recent spin-out 2-DTech, helping industry unlock the potential of graphene, being acquired by Versarien plc. They are busy forging partnerships with thecommercial world and have become a partnerof the National Graphene Institute (NGI).

• For more information, visit: umip.com orfollow on twitter @umipnews

£75 million generated through the sale of shares inspin-outs, licensing income, IP grants and contractsand translational awards activity.

UMIP brings the University’s ground-breakinginventions and software into the commercial worldby attracting entrepreneurs, investors and corporateventure partners to campus and then, throughengagement with academic colleagues, licensing orspinning out companies.

University spin-outs include technologies withcommercial applications, from quantum dotmanufacture at Nanoco Technologies to thetreatment of radioactive waste at Arvia Technology.

Unlocking our potential

Nanoco Technologies

HiSolar LED light

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Feature

From the lecture hall to theheart of our community…Student volunteering helps theUniversity achieve two of its threegoals – outstanding teaching,learning and student experience,and social responsibility. But morethan that, it brings together ourstudents and the community theylive in; it’s a relationship thatmakes a lasting difference to all of their lives. Here UniLifelooks at how…

University of Manchester students are an altruisticbunch; an increasingly positive influence on theirlocal communities.

Every year around 5,000 volunteer throughUniversity sponsored schemes, including ManchesterLeadership Programme (MLP), The Students’ Union,Sports Volunteers and the Legal Advice Centre.

Between 2005 and 2014, MLP students alonevolunteered a staggering 294,779 hours.

Close to 500 charities and not for profit groups arenow registered with our Volunteering andCommunity Engagement Team.

It designs opportunities around both the needs ofthe organisation and the student experience andover the last 12 months has worked on 170 one-dayevents, 35 short projects and 12 long-term schemes.

It helps the University achieve two major goals.Outstanding teaching and learning, producinggraduates distinguished not only by their intellectbut also their ability and ambition to contribute tosociety; and social responsibility, encouragingstudents to play an active part in the economic andsocial success of their community – be it local,national or international.

Student volunteering is an important part of theUniversity’s ‘Students as Good Neighbours’approach which aims to help students engagepositively with local residents and which forms partof the University’s emerging Community Strategy.

Students themselves describe volunteering variouslyas enjoyable, eye-opening, addictive and rewarding.

It forces them out of the ‘bubble’ that student lifecan sometimes create for itself. It’s their chance,they say, to ‘give something back’.

Incredible Edible

Volunteers at Incredible Edible, a ‘Clean City’project, plant food and herbs for local people and,at the same time, transform neglected plots of land.

The team has just taken over a dilapidatedwheelchair garden and now plans to build agreenhouse at Platt Fields Park, using 2,000 recycledwater bottles.

Second year midwifery student Daisy Tudor, 22, saidshe “liked the thinking” behind the scheme—“freefood for those who may not be able to afford tobuy fresh.

“We created a community orchard at St Chad’sChurch, planting pear and cherry trees. The localpeople were brilliant, so welcoming, they couldn’tdo enough for us.

Abbey Forster, Mariam Antwi-Boasiako, Amelia Reed and Emma Williams deliver a health awareness workshop to year 10 pupils at Ladybridge High School

Charlotte Merricks-Mulligan

Lauren Rowlands

Any surplus donations are sent to a nearby foodbank or cooked up for ‘community meals’.

Team leader of Ivy Fallowfield Nick Duffy, thecommunity lead on the scheme, believes the mealscould spark a revolution in the dynamics betweenstudents and residents.

“They help people access friendship as well as food,”he says. “They break down barriers. Homelesspeople, residents, students and local councillors all sit down together to eat and share stories.

“I’ve enjoyed working with the students massively.They have energy about them, they dream aboutwhat could be and there are no restrictions. Theyjust go for it!”

Sociology student Charlotte Merricks- Mulligan, 21,says it’s personally gratifying but it has also improvedher organisational skills and hence her employability.

Language graduate Olli Davis, 22, said it made him“feel good” tackling such a huge issue as foodpoverty: “Just one person who is helped is oneperson more.”

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“They cooked us an amazing lunch – not from thefood we’d planted, that’ll take a while yet! But atleast I now know how to plant a bulb.

“For many students, Manchester isn’t home butinvesting in the local environment like this makes itfeel more like home and helps build bridgesbetween us and the permanent residents.”

Manchester City Council’s Customer and CommunityEngagement Lead Sarah Hawkins says integratingstudents into community life is one of the aims.

“We hope that when they move into independenthousing in these areas they already feel part of it.

“The feedback students got when they cleared aparticularly overgrown plot on Moseley Road wasfantastic.

“There was a real sense of satisfaction foreverybody. It gives students and the localcommunity a massive boost.”

Fallowfield Foodshare

Fallowfield Foodshare sees students collect for localhomeless shelters by persuading supermarketshoppers to fill brown paper bags with groceries or toiletry items.

Customers pay for them at the check-out alongwith their own goods, and then drop the bag in a crate as they leave.

Partners, Sainsbury’s, were so blown away by thesuccess of the pilot collection, which brought in 30 crates full, they invited the team back on a busier day – and saw it rise to 55.

For Leila Mekki, in her final year of neuroscience, it has sparked a general love of volunteering

“You feel like you’ve given a bit of something back.It brings you into the real world and puts things inperspective.”

Heartstart

Heartstart, supported by the British HeartFoundation, is a nationwide initiative providing freeCPR and lifesaving skills classes to schools, gyms,community centres and workplaces.

A team of second year Nursing students are part ofthe University’s arm of the scheme, teaching thebasics of CPR, the recovery position, and how todeal with choking, bleeding and heart attacks.

The group have already trained over 200 people inhands-on skills – and all free of charge.

One of them, Lauren Rowlands, currently onplacement in a hospital A&E, knows how vital firstaid knowledge can be on a daily basis. “We seehow important fast CPR is when someone has had a cardiac arrest. Often when they get to theemergency department it’s too late,” she says.

“It’s very rewarding being out in the communityseeing all walks of life and it’s a great teachingexperience. I particularly enjoy working with children– they love the sessions.”

One class for eight to 13-year-olds was at Mahdlo, a charity and state-of-the-art youth zone in Oldham.

Volunteer and Training Coordinator, Sazida Begum,says it’s confidence-building for the youngsters andbeneficial to the community at large.

“Hopefully we will get a generation of youngpeople coming through who are able to better dealwith life-threatening situations and have a greaterknowledge and understanding of lifesaving skills.

“We also hope it will raise the confidence andaspirations of young people when they see thateven at eight years old, we can learn to save lives.“

Students created the book ‘Times Gone By’ from the memories of older people like Dorothy from the Openshaw Centre

Daisy Tudor

Students help the Children’s Air Ambulance toencourage businesses to have their collection tins

MLP student Mary Kyei helps ‘green up’ Heathfield Centre for disabled adults in Newall Green

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Feature

lick on your light switch and your roomilluminates in an instant, as if by magic.Turn on the heating and you’ll warm upwithin minutes. Need to be somewhere

else? Simply get into your car and turn theignition key.

The energy on which we depend travels a longway before it reaches our fingertips. The waysin which energy is generated, transported andconsumed are all steps in this journey.

At The University of Manchester we have over600 academics and researchers answering thebig questions about energy. Are our energysources sustainable? Do we transport energyefficiently? Can we meet demand whileminimising the effects on our environment?

Can we make homes and cities smarter in howthey use energy? Can we address the socialinequalities that underpin energy use?

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Global challenges,Manchester solutions – in energy

We test equipment used on the high-voltage transmission system of England and Wales to ensure electrical energy can be transported efficiently and reliably

The Dalton Nuclear Institute plays a key role inproviding the knowledge and skills needed to delivera low-carbon future through nuclear energy.

The University hasidentified five ‘researchbeacons’ where we have aunique concentration ofhigh-quality researchactivity and are at theforefront of the search forsolutions to some of theworld’s biggest challenges.These are: industrialbiotechnology, advancedmaterials, cancer, energy,and addressing globalinequalities.

In this, the fourth of fivefeatures, we look at how our experts are pioneeringthe energy systems of the future so that we can continue to heat our homes, light our buildingsand travel.

At a glanceEnergy research in Manchester

• Our projects are worth £75 million,covering energy generation, storage,systems and use.

• We have the only 400kV-capable high-voltage lab of any UK university.

• We recently received a £3 millioninvestment in energy storage facilities.

• Dalton Nuclear Institute is the UK’s mostadvanced academic centre for nuclear R&D and high-level skills development.

• We have three Centres for DoctoralTraining in energy areas including nuclear,power networks, and oil and gas.

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Research from generation to usage

Research at Manchester is making a difference at allpoints of the energy journey: generation, transport,storage and eventual usage.

Our expertise is enhancing the efficiency andviability of sustainable energy sources such as solar,wind, tidal and bioenergy. It’s supporting partners inthe bridging fuel sectors, such as oil and gas, toensure we continue to meet demand, and deliveringinnovation for the low-carbon nuclear sector.

We’re helping to ensure energy gets to the point of need efficiently, providing UK network partnerswith the knowledge to deliver it reliably andsustainably. Renewable sources of generation tendto be more intermittent – so we’re working onsystems that will help keep supply levels constant,finding more effective ways of storing energy and of persuading people to use energy at the besttimes to even out demand.

We work closely with our local region on projectssuch as the UK’s largest ever trial of heat pumps.We’re finding out more about how today’s urbansociety uses energy, blending expertise fromengineering and the social sciences to learn moreabout demand and how it can be met.

Nuclear expertise

Our experts are guiding the UK’s industrial strategyfor the civil nuclear sector via our Dalton NuclearInstitute, the UK’s most advanced academic nuclearresearch capability. Here, we undertake researchacross the entire nuclear fuel cycle – from innovativemanufacturing techniques to waste management.

Research activities at Dalton, including the five-yearNew Nuclear Manufacturing (NNUMAN) programmethat is funded by the Engineering and PhysicalSciences Research Council, support the competitivegrowth of the UK nuclear industry through researchand innovation.

A living laboratory

Leading facilities – from the 2MV high-voltagelaboratory at our Manchester campus to our £20 million Dalton Cumbrian Facility – help both us andour industry partners to develop solutions to our energychallenges. The University campus itself is a livinglaboratory, with our 339 buildings supporting ourresearchers in developing tomorrow’s energy systems.

A world-class, interdisciplinary network

Energy research at the University is a diverse areathat reaches across our Faculties and Institutes.Manchester Energy is a University-level network thatsupports researchers across the energy discipline.

With access to major experimental facilities, thisnetwork provides unparalleled resources to supportworld-class research and teaching that will lead to thedevelopment of more sustainable energy solutionsand the education of the energy leaders of tomorrow.

“The size of this University and the sheer range ofknowledge we have here allows us to bring peopletogether from a huge range of research areas. Thishelps us to find innovative ways to tackle some of thebiggest energy challenges facing industry and society,”comments Ian Cotton, Professor of High VoltageTechnology and Director of Manchester Energy.

“Whether it’s extending the lifespans of nuclearreactors or influencing the energy policies ofgovernments, we draw on expertise ranging fromelectrical engineering to the humanities to produceresearch that has a positive impact.”

To get to tomorrow’s homes, energy wil l have totravel new routes, going further and faster, leavingno carbon footprint. At Manchester we’re makingsure the systems are in place for this journey tohappen across a mix of energy sources.

Ian Cotton, Professor of High Voltage Technology and Director of Manchester Energy

Laser processing equipment at Dalton Nuclear Institute’sManufacturing Technology Research Laboratory

The National Grid Power Systems Research Centrehouses the largest and best equipped high-voltagelaboratory of any UK university

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What’s On

The WhitworthLittle Painting Challenge at theWhitworth

Amateur artists have taken the opportunity to have their workdisplayed at the prestigiousWhitworth, Manchester's gallery in thepark, during a special exhibition in May.

The Big Painting Challenge has beenbringing art to primetime BBC One on Sunday evenings. The programmefollowed ten artists as they competedto be crowned Britain’s best amateurpainter. Over six weeks, theycompeted in a series of art challengesand faced critiques of their work fromthe expert judges until in the finalweek, winner Paul Bell was chosen.

To complement the series, BBCLearning launched The Little PaintingChallenge, a UK-wide competition toencourage anyone and everyone tohave a go. Participants were invitedto simply create an artwork on apostcard – and thousands of peopletook up the challenge. Thecompetition closed 2 April 2015.

The Whitworth is showcasing of thebest entries including the winners, inan installation in its newly refurbishedGrand Hall. The Little PaintingChallenge exhibition opens Friday 1 May and runs until 22 May 2015.

To see this and other events, visit:manchester.ac.uk/whitworth

Manchester MuseumManchester After Hours

Thursday 14 May sees ManchesterMuseum join in with other museums,galleries and libraries for a one-night,city-wide social. Manchester AfterHours is a mix of odd couplings andmusical mayhem across the citytaking in the places and spaces youdon’t often get to after dark.

Poet laureates and soundscapes:video jamming with steam engines;secret gigs amongst medievalbookstacks; traditional Warli art andcontemporary music are just some ofthe ways in which artists will take anew look at Manchester’s historiccollections and spaces.

Local record labels will up-sticks fromthe boho Northern Quarter (NQ) tocut a disk in the serious surrounds ofa music library, while the city’s musicensembles will cut a shine in theNQ’s fashionable music, vintage andcreative nightspots. Knitting together

an evening of creative genius andmadness is a live literature walkingtour and a host of curious events atevery turn.

At the Museum, taking up the themeof ‘odd couplings’, are Brighter Soundwith partners A Fine Line. They bringtogether composer and vocal sculptorJason Singh, and virtuoso guitaristGuiliano Moderelli in the neo-Gothicsurrounds of the museum. The duospent an exhilarating three weeks inthe company of India’s Warli painters,Ramesh Hengade and Jivya SomaMashe, and on this night, against a backdrop of Warli canvasses andimages, Jason and Giuliano perform a sonic account of their journey.

The Manchester Museum event isfree and runs from 6-9pm.

For full details of events city wide,see: creativetourist.com/manchester-after-hours

Jodrell Bank Discovery Centre‘First Light’, a Lovell Lecture atJodrell Bank Discovery Centre

Our Lovell Lectures provideAstrophysics academics with aplatform to connect visitors withtheir recent research. Next up in thispopular and successful series isProfessor Jim Dunlop, of TheUniversity of Edinburgh’s Institute of Astronomy.

Professor Dunlop will talk about howrecent advances in observationalastronomy, especially therefurbishment of the Hubble SpaceTelescope, let us look back to within500 million years of the Big Bang,and directly observe the emergenceof the first galaxies (known in thetrade as ‘First Light’).

Following the Big Bang, the Universeexpanded and cooled until gravitycaused the most dense regions ofthe universe to collapse and form thefirst stars and galaxies.

Professor Dunlop will also describehow the next generation of facilities,including the long awaited JamesWebb Space Telescope, will shed newlight on how today’s highly-structuredand beautiful Universe emerged fromthe initial chaos of creation.

Attendees can make a night of it andbook a pre-lecture dinner in ouraward-winning Planet Pavilion Café,with sittings beginning at 6pm.

For details on how to book andinformation on other events, visit:jodrellbank.net

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The John Rylands LibraryWhat’s The Weather Like Today?

As a nation we’re obsessed with theweather. It fascinates us so muchthat we have conversations about iton a daily basis; but just how muchdoes the weather affect us?

The Library’s Special Collectionscontain many riches from around theworld, but you may be surprised tolearn that the very ‘British’ subject of the weather is well covered andillustrated. Dr Peter Nockles, LibrarianRare Books and Maps, and JulieDel’Hopital, Visitor EngagementAssistant, have researched and drawntogether stories from the Library’scollection for this vibrant exhibition.

‘What’s the Weather like Today?’explores the impact of the weatheron everything from literature, art,language, science, to urbanManchester. Compare the past with

the present using John Dalton’sdetailed readings of Manchesterfrom 1791, or learn how theweather can predict our behaviourwith the Spirit of Laws, byMontesquieu (1689-1755).

The exhibition also includesdescriptions, reflections, memoriesand stories based on experiences ofthe weather, and invites visitors toquestion their own relationship withthe weather.

On Thursday 14 May, join thecurators for a tour of the exhibitionand find out how the exhibitioncame about, the role the weatherplays in literature, and how artistsdescribe the weather to portray theemotions of their characters.

To see this and other exhibitions, visit:manchester.ac.uk/library/rylands

What’sOn

For events and exhibitions at other venu es, visit:

Martin Harris Centre – martinharriscentre.manchester.ac.ukInternational Society – internationalsociety.org.ukGig Guide – manchesteracademy.net

Feature

Next Issue 1 June 2015

M1304 04.15 The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL Royal Charter Number RC000797Created by the Division of Communications and Marketing

Cert no. SGS-COC-3059

teve McCabe has not had a ‘main’ holiday forover ten years – he spends his annual leavetaking children with special needs on apilgrimage holiday to Lourdes.

Volunteer carers pay their own fare, which leaveshim with no money for a ‘big’ holiday.

But Steve – Estates Designer in the Division ofCommunications and Marketing – doesn’t mind.

“The Lourdes experience is a happy and fun one,”he says. “The week passes in a haze of laughter,smiles and song.

“Amongst the chaos there is reflection too and anunderlying sadness as Lourdes is where weremember those children in our group who havepassed away. At the grotto we light candles forthem and their families.

“The experience in Lourdes is so profound, it forgeslifelong friendships.”

Steve has volunteered for HCPT – The PilgrimageTrust for 20 years.

As well as volunteering on the annual trips, he helpsprepare for and fund them. He has designeduniforms, banners and other items; he makes thingsfor the trips; his skills as a graphic designer haveseen more than £65,000 raised from posters, photoalbums and other initiatives that he has created.

But his favourite role is group photographer,capturing special moments from the trips andcreating photo albums that become treasuredkeepsakes for the children. This is especiallyimportant for the families of children who cannot communicate and say they had a good time, and poignant for the ones whose childrens’lives are short.

The work has a direct impact on the lives of some of the most vulnerable children in society. Whatever the role or task, from pushing heavywheelchairs uphill to handling all the holidaybaggage, and from painting the childrens’ faces to being a pallbearer, Steve is there to help.

Hard-working, caring, creative and innovative,adding colour and distinction to the group, Steve isalso unassuming: “It’s a privilege; it is very humblingand inspiring at the same time and the experienceputs my life into perspective.”

A powerful pilgrimageSteve McCabe with one of the children, Michael

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Lighting the forget-me-not candle

The University's strategic plan,Manchester 2020, lists one of ourgoals as contributing to the socialand economic success of thelocal, national and internationalcommunity. Through ourengagement campaign, theUniversity collects stories of howour staff, students and alumni aremaking a difference to society,and here UniLife shares some ofthose stories with you…

• For more information about HCPT – The Pilgrimage Trust, visit: www.hcpt.org.uk

• To read more inspiring stories visit:http://makeadifferencemcr.tumblr.com