Faculty Meetings in 2012/13
All FST committees and meetings for 2012/13 are now listed on the Faculty website, complete with links to add them directly to your calendar: http://www.lancs.ac.uk/sci-tech/committees/
REF Impact Evidence Gathering Team Start Work
10 interns have now been recruited to work with impact case study authors in order to collect evidence to support the development of REF impact case studies. The interns bring with them a range of disciplinary expertise alongside a wider set of skills and experiences. The picture below of the interns during their recent training programme should help put names to faces, as they start to contact colleagues over the coming weeks. The team is managed by Chris Lowerson. The interns, working individually and in groups will work with impact case study authors to seek and collect evidence for their case studies. This will be a very diverse range of activities and could include:
Left-Right: Hannah Gray, Chris Lowerson, Bryce Malton, Jeremy Birch, Liam Fielder, Alexander Fletcher, Anna Edwards, Dean John, Jess Werrell, Alexander Adiele, Ben Eccleston
- Arranging workshops and one-to-one meetings with key stakeholders (government departments, public bodies, companies) between July and October to explore the nature, evidence and significance of the impact of research.
- Bibliometric web-based research to identify research output citations in grey literature and the context of use to support existing case studies.
- Sourcing of third party economic impact evaluations relevant to case studies.
- Market research with purchasers of technology/equipment based on Lancaster research to establish use and impact of technology.
- Desk-based research to quantify the context/environment in which impact is being case studied (e.g. sourcing data on the size of a particular market, quantification of the extent of a social problem in some way e.g. levels of unemployment in a particular age group).
- Commissioning/reviewing of bespoke surveys and Google analytics to quantify the reach and significance of impact, particularly in relation to public outreach-related impact case studies.
- Checking case studies to ensure formal compliance with specific panel guidance (recognizing the variation between panels and considerations raised by cross-referral).
- Making arrangements for granting of appropriate permission to use proprietary material (communication of confidentiality polices, liaising with external organisations to gain permissions).
- Creation of evidence files for each case study to ensure all evidence is appropriately cited and available for review as required by HEFCE.
Business Partnerships and Enterprise
Honorary Degree Awarded to Waitrose Chief Executive
Mark Price, Managing Director of Waitrose, has been awarded an Honary Degree. Mr Price is an alumnus of Lancaster University and heads up the UK supermarket chain which has worked with the Lancaster Environment Centre over the last ten-years of a collaborative programme of research and training. Through the Waitrose Centre, a joint initiative between the University, Waitrose and its supply chain for fresh produce world-wide, Waitrose gain best practice global food production via collaborative R&D, professional training and the Waitrose Innovation Forums, which bring together expertise from Lancaster with that from other institutions and industry from the UK and overseas.
Graduate wins Scholarship to Babson Entrepreneurship Program
Ric Derbyshire, an MSc student in Cyber-security (School of Computing and Communications), has been selected from six applicants by the Vice Chancellor's Office to receive a scholarship to attend the Santander Universities Babson Entrepreneurship programme for students. Babson College is consistently ranked No. 1 in the world for entrepreneurship education. Since 2007, Babson College and Banco Santander have co-sponsored several projects including Symposia for Entrepreneurship Educators, entrepreneurship seminars, internships, and consulting field experiences. Ric will fly out later this week.
Ageing Research Conference at Lancaster
Lancaster University's Centre for Ageing Research (C4AR) are holding an international conference - Ageing: Moving Beyond Boundaries - from 5th to 7th September. Themes will include: active ageing; mental wellbeing in older people; ageing in residential settings; dementia and brain ageing; and age-related diseases. C4AR would be delighted to see colleagues from the University attend for some or all of the sessions.
News
Recent stories from Science and Technology:
Intelligent Systems Researcher to Chair Three World Leading Conferences
Dr Plamen Angelov, who is coordinating the Intelligent Systems Area within InfoLab21, has been invited to chair three prestigious conferences:
Better Water Research in The Tropics Needed In Order to Protect People, Says Lancaster Researcher
Research published in Nature Climate Change has highlighted how the water systems in the humid tropics are on the cusp of rapid change which is likely to put the people living in the region at greater risk of flood and contamination of their sources of drinking water.
Significant Reduction in Pollution Achieved by creating Green Walls
Scientists at the Universities of Birmingham and Lancaster (UK) argue that by 'greening up' our streets a massive 30% reduction in pollution could be achieved, according to research published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology.
Farmers and Researchers Share 'More Crop Per Drop' Horticulture Techniques
New techniques which are helping UK farmers and growers keep food on the table in a time of population growth and climate change, will be shared at a special conference this month.
Lancaster Scientists launch new Research and Innovation Centre in China
Scientists from the Lancaster Environment Centre (LEC) were in Guangzhou last week to launch a new International Research and Innovation Centre for the Environment (IRICE) in partnership with the Chinese Academy of Sciences Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry (GIG) and Xiamen Institute of Urban Environment (IUE).
Lancaster Success at Pervasive Computing Conference
Researchers from the School of Computing and Communications have taken two of the top prizes at Pervasive 2012 - this year's International Conference on Pervasive Computing.