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Buzz Bitesize: March 2015 |
Welcome to Buzz Bitesize. Circulated monthly, Buzz Bitesize provides the latest news, views, events and opportunities from across campus. Take a look at the Buzz Facebook and Twitter accounts for the latest campus news and opportunities throughout the month.
Headlines
News
Events
Opportunities |
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Birmingham Professional Forum
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Date/time: Thursday 2 April, 2.00–3.00pm
Venue: Elgar Concert Hall, Bramall Music Building
The Birmingham Professional Forum is a termly event for all professional service staff, introduced by the Registrar and Secretary, Lee Sanders. The Forum is an opportunity to hear from colleagues on a range of topics. The agenda at this term’s Forum will include the new strategy for Life Sciences, a chance to hear from Chris Granger, the new Director of Finance, plus an update on the Higher Education Review, and an opportunity to take part in a Q&A with the Registrar. More information.
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Arts & Science Festival
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Date/time: Monday 16–Sunday 22 March
Venue: Edgbaston campus
The University of Birmingham’s Arts & Science Festival returns for its third year and we’re delighted to play host to a week-long programme of events celebrating ideas, research and collaboration across campus. This year’s festival theme is ‘Sight & Sound’ and we have a sensational line up in store. From an immersive performance in a mobile planetarium to Caroline Devine’s off-site sound installation exploring the acoustic resonances of stars, to a session exploring the links between sight, sound and mental health – there’s something for everyone. We also welcome a festival first for 2015 – the University’s MA Film and Television department have launched a one-minute movie competition to coincide with the Arts & Science Festival.
Visit the festival website for the full programme and advance booking details.
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Edgbaston Parliamentary Hustings
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Date/time: Thursday 19 March, 6.00–7.30pm
Venue: Elgar Concert Hall, Bramall Music Building
All University staff and students, as well as local residents, are invited to attend this General Election event. The University will welcome Prospective Parliamentary Candidates for the Birmingham–Edgbaston constituency to campus. The incumbent, Gisela Stuart MP (Labour) will be joined on the panel of prospective candidates by Dr Luke Evans (Conservative), Lee Dargue (Liberal Democrats), Phil Simpson (Green Party) and Graham Short (UKIP). Candidates will present their election addresses before an open debate. To register for this event click here.
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New masterpieces are firsts for gallery
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Visitors to the Barber Institute of Fine Arts will have noticed a stunning new painting in the Blue Gallery recently – Nude: Miss Bentham, 1906, by the American artist George Bellows. It’s the Barber’s first nude – and was previously owned by Andy Warhol.
The gallery is also celebrating another new acquisition and another first – a large landscape, Primrose Hill, Winter, 1981–82 by Frank Auerbach. Allocated to the Barber under the government’s AIL (Acceptance in Lieu of Inheritance Tax) scheme, it is the first ever painting by a living artist to enter the collection. Widely rated as one of the world’s greatest living painters, the old masters have always inspired Auerbach. This impressive and atmospheric painting captures the park-like landscape at dusk, lit by the last glimmers of daylight as the streetlights have just flickered into life. It can be enjoyed in the Red Gallery between masterpieces by Rubens and Claude.
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General Election: voter registration
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Are you registered to vote in this year’s General Election? On Thursday 7 May the UK general public will go to the polls to elect MPs for the next five years. For this election new voter registration rules have been introduced meaning you will need to register as an individual rather than as a household. To ensure you are registered you should contact the elections office of the local authority where you live. You can register online; the deadline for voter registration is Monday 20 April. The Guild of Students also have more information on their website.
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Extended opening hours
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The main library will be open 24–7 from Monday 9 March to Friday 5 June 2015. Access where and when needed; offering a secure, safe place to study whether night or day.
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Collaborative Teaching Laboratory plans begin
to take shape
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Plans are currently in development for a Collaborative Teaching Laboratory (CTL) facility, bringing together teaching activities across a broad range of science and engineering disciplines. Work on the physical CTL will begin shortly as a space within the Mechanical and Civil Engineering Building is transformed into a heavy engineering laboratory.
This first phase of the project will then be followed by a new purpose-built facility, anticipated to be ready for teaching in academic year 2017–18. The new build will incorporate a wet lab, dry lab and an e-lab which will be located between the learning centre and Biosciences Building. This new state-of-the-art facility, along with the heavy engineering lab, will enable us to rethink the way STEM subjects are taught. It will make more effective use of staff time and resources through the efficient use of practical teaching space, innovations in teaching delivery and the reinvention of practical classes. This will allow both undergraduate and postgraduate students to benefit from transformational teaching in a space designed to encourage and facilitate collaborative and interdisciplinary working.
In addition to transforming practical teaching, the CTL will provide a visually stimulating and interactive environment in which to showcase science and STEM subjects to a wider audience. It will provide flexible space for outreach and business engagement activities, applicant visit days, open days, events and CPD. Input from staff
on the spaces within the CTL is currently being sought. For more details, please visit the CTL webpage or email ctl@contacts.bham.ac.uk .
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Significant donation to two University projects
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Midlands entrepreneur and former Aston Villa FC Chairman Sir Doug Ellis has donated £1.1 million to help fund two key building developments on campus. Sir Doug’s gift will support the University of Birmingham School and the Institute of Translational Medicine (ITM). School Principal Mike Roden said: ‘It’s fantastic that such a senior figure in the local community has recognised the School’s worth.’ Sir Doug also contributed generously to the ITM, a new building project that will aim to cure disease and save lives through pioneering science. Dr Tom Clutton-Brock, Interim Director of the ITM, said: ‘Sir Doug is exceptionally generous and his donation will make a substantial impact on a new world-class medical facility that will build on the city’s existing clinical trials excellence.’ If you are interested in supporting the ITM or the School, please contact Laura Fairbanks on 0121 414 8894.
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Pop-up Library
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Library Services are taking the library to the students this semester. The Pop-up Library is a series of roadshows aimed at promoting the services, resources and facilities that Library Services has to offer students in support of their studies. Funded by the Alumni Impact Fund and running until July 2015, the project will see temporary, staffed stalls popping up across campus in a variety of locations throughout the semester. For more information on the project, including details of the programme, visit the Library Services website.
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Birmingham Energy Institute Newsletter
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The Birmingham Energy Institute is driving technology innovation and the thinking required to solve the challenges facing the UK as it seeks to develop sustainable energy solutions in transport, electricity and heat. Energy lies at the heart of a national revolution driven by the imperatives of low generation and energy security. Read the latest edition online.
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A full list of events can also be found on the University’s website including performances, lectures, workshops, cultural activities and exhibitions.
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TEDx: The Road Less Travelled
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Date/time: Saturday 21 March, 10.00am–4.30pm
Venue: Aston Webb Building
Last year, the University of Birmingham welcomed TEDx to our campus for the first time and this year TEDx 2015 is building on that success. Based around the theme ‘The Road Less Travelled’, TEDx 2015 is an opportunity to be a part of a different approach to academia, one where the heart is as important as the mind. Join us to hear from some
of our leading academics, discussing everything from the effects of virtual reality on
patient rehabilitation to questioning British identity. Tickets are available from the University e-shop.
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Open Doors Weekend
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Date/time: 6–7 March, 10.00am–3.00pm
Venue: Edgbaston campus
Staff who want to take a closer look at some of the building work happening on campus will have a unique opportunity to do, as two of our building sites open their doors as part of a national construction event, Open Doors Weekend. The viewing platform at the new library site will be open to visitors, and staff from contractors Carillion will be on hand to answer questions about the work going on and careers in the construction industry. Viewing slots must be booked in advance. More information on Open Doors Weekend and details of how to book onto the library tours are available online. At the same time, Interserve will be opening up the C Block of Aston Webb Building, which is being transformed into the new student hub, for visitors to have a tour of the block and see how work is progressing.
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International Women’s Day
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Date: Sunday 8 March
Venue: Edgbaston campus
This year’s theme is ‘Make It Happen’ and to commemorate the day, there will be events taking place across campus from 9–16 March, starting with a drop-in organised by the Single Parents Network (see below for details). Other events include a celebration of Maya Angelou’s poetry and a programme of research presentations led by the School of History and Cultures. More information. The fortnight will also focus on the University's ‘It’s Not On’ campaign and encourage staff and students to sign the campaign pledge.
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Single Parents Network
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Date/time: Monday 9 March, 12.00noon–2.00pm
Venue: Concourse of Staff House
The Single Parents Network provides an informal support network for staff and students that are single parents. The Network also liaises with the University to discuss and propose protocols that promote equality. The next meeting will be in May. For further information visit the network’s intranet page or contact the Single Parents Network.
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Resistance: Film Screening
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Date/time: Monday 9 March, 5.30pm
Venue: Leonard Deacon Lecture Theatre, Medical School
The University will screen a film about antibiotic resistance followed by a debate on the subject. The film, Resistance, looks at the devastating impact of antibiotic resistance and asks: ‘do we need to save antibiotics to save ourselves?’ A debate will follow with a panel chaired by Professor Alice Roberts and comprising Professor Laura Piddock (scientist), Dr Matt O‘Shea (an infectious diseases physician, who has visited Sierra Leone to help to tackle the Ebola crisis), Ananth Srinivasan (fourth-year medical student), and Sharon Brennan (a patient). The panel will invite questions from the audience to discuss: ‘are new antibiotics the only way to solve this crisis?’ The event is jointly hosted by the University, the British Science Association and Antibiotic Action on behalf of the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy. More information.
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Creative Minds at Birmingham: Poet Laureate
Carol Ann Duffy
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Date/time: Thursday 12 March, 5.30pm
Venue: Barber Concert Hall, Barber Institute of Fine Arts
The School of English, Drama and American & Canadian Studies is proud to host Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy on campus. Carol Ann has written for both children and adults, and her poetry has received many awards, including the Signal Prize for Children’s Verse, the Whitbread and Forward Prizes, and the Lannan and E. M. Forster Prize in America. Join us as one of the UK’s most acclaimed authors reads from, and discusses, her work. Attendees will have the opportunity to meet Carol Ann following this talk during a complimentary drinks reception and book signing. Booking is required for this event, please book online.
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Civic Science – Civic Life: Oliver Lodge and Birmingham
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Date/time: Monday 16 March, 12.00noon–12.50pm
Venue: Lecture Theatre G15, Muirhead Tower
Join speaker Dr James Mussell, Associate Professor at the University of Leeds, for a look at the life of Oliver Lodge. Refreshments served afterwards in Muirhead atrium. More information.
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The Edward Cadbury Lectures 2015
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Date/time: 16–21 March, 5.00–6.30pm
Venue: Lecture Room 1, Arts Building
The School of Philosophy, Theology and Religion is pleased to invite all academic and professional services staff, students, alumni and members of the public to this year’s Cadbury Lecture series. The theme for 2015 is ‘God Over All’, which will include a series of lectures given by Professor William Lane Craig, Research Professor of Philosophy at Talbot School of Theology and Professor of Philosophy at Houston Baptist University. The events are free and open to all but registration is essential as a limited number of seats are available for each event. Further information.
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Hydrogen energy – using materials to purify, compress and store H2
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Date/time: Wednesday 18 March, 5.15pm
Venue: Large Lecture Theatre (S02), Poynting Building
The College of Engineering and Physical Sciences invites you to attend the Inaugural Lecture of David Book, Professor of Energy Materials. David will discuss how hydrogen has the potential to help store low-carbon energy, to transfer energy to where it is needed, and how it can be combined with oxygen from the air in a fuel cell, to produce electricity, with only water vapour as the exhaust gas. His talk will describe Birmingham’s work on new types of hydrogen absorbing materials, which may help to solve some important technical challenges. More information.
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From surface to structure: exploring the molecular world
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Date/time: Wednesday 18 March, 5.15pm
Venue: Lecture Theatre G33, Mechanical Engineering
The College of Life and Environmental Sciences invites you to attend the Inaugural Lecture of Helen Cooper, Professor of Mass Spectrometry. Proteins are molecules that perform all the functions required for life. They also find uses as drugs and in consumer products. To gain insight into the various and specific roles of proteins in life processes, or to determine the efficacy of protein drugs, or to establish the environmental fate of protein additives in consumer products, we need to analyse proteins at a molecular level. How best to get maximum information about protein molecular structure? And how to link that molecular information to biological environment? More information.
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Visualising Sound: Art and Music Workshop/Sound Tour
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Date/time: Friday 20 March, 2.30–5.00pm
Venue: Barber Institute of Fine Arts
Explore sound and instrumental technique with leading professional musicians Jack McNeill and Ulrich Heinen, as you create graphic interpretations of paintings that will, in turn, be used by the musicians to create a unique and original ‘sound tour’. Timings: Workshop: 2.30–4.00pm and Sound Tour: 4.00–5.00pm. No prior musical or artistic knowledge is necessary. McNeill and Heinen perform the compositions produced in the workshop, creating a sound tour of the Barber’s collection. The sound tour is open to all – you do not need to have participated in the workshop to attend. The event is free, but booking essential. More information.
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All you ever wanted to know about spinning out a University company but were too afraid to ask!
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Date/time: Wednesday 25 March, 12.00noon
Venue: BizzInn, Birmingham Research Park
For academics considering the commercial potential of their research, the option of setting up a company as a spin-out from the University is often at the back of their mind. Being involved in a spin-out can be a very exciting and rewarding experience, but it is also very challenging and involves significant efforts from all concerned. This seminar is led by David Coleman, Head of Spin-out Portfolio at the University. David will give you a ‘warts and all’ walk through the process of spinning out a company; how the University validates the viability of a new spin-out, and how some of the key challenges, including funding, can be addressed. Pizza lunch provided, registration essential. Book online.
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Premier Squash League
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Date/time: Tuesday 31 March, 7.00pm
Venue: Munrow Sports Centre
The final match of the Premier Squash League takes place in March. A top-of-the-table meeting between leader Benz Bavarian Duffield and the second-placed Birmingham Lions, this match is likely to be a hard-fought battle to secure or steal the top spot. Tickets are £10 for adults and £6 for students and under-18s. More information.
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Professor Yotis Senis, Inaugural Lecture
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Date/time: Wednesday 1 April, 4.30pm
Venue: Leonard Deacon Lecture Theatre, Medical School
Professor Yotis Senis, School of Clinical and Experimental Medicine will be speaking on platelet tyrosine phosphatases in haemostasis and thrombosis. In his research he takes a multidisciplinary approach to elucidate how protein tyrosine phosphatases regulate platelet production and function, with the overall objective of identifying novel therapeutic targets for the treatment of thrombosis and bleeding disorders. More information.
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Enterprising Birmingham Innovation Completion – the Final Showcase
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Date/time: Wednesday 22 April, 12.30pm
Venue: Birmingham Business School
All University staff are invited to the Enterprising Birmingham Showcase, the culmination of the University’s Biennial Innovation Competition. The Showcase promises to be an exciting demonstration of some of the University’s brightest commercial projects and entrepreneurial spirit as the finalists battle for a £15,000 prize in front of a panel of expert ‘Dragons’. The Enterprising Birmingham Innovation Competition is aimed specifically at research staff and academics that have research-based ideas for creating new enterprise. The competition is intended to help nurture and develop innovative ideas and reward enterprising researchers. Book online.
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Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses of Diagnostic Test Accuracy
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Date: Wednesday 1–Friday 3 July
Venue: Edgbaston campus
This three-day course is organised jointly by faculty from the Universities of Birmingham and Amsterdam. The course is designed for individuals undertaking health technology assessment, health service researchers and healthcare professionals interested in understanding key issues in the design and conduct of systematic reviews and meta-analyses of diagnostic test accuracy (DTA) studies. Course fee including materials, lunches and coffee is £650. More information.
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National Badminton League
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Date/time: Monday 23 March, 7.30pm
Venue: Barclaycard Arena
The National Badminton League (NBL) returns to the Barclaycard Arena for the final home match of the season. The event promises to be an evening of intensely competitive sport hosted in one of Birmingham’s iconic venues. The five events: men’s singles, women’s singles, mixed doubles, women’s doubles and men’s doubles are consistently fiercely played, often coming down to the final event to decide a victor. The Birmingham Lions include some of the best national and international badminton players including alumna Alyssa Lim and England’s no.1 singles player Fontaine Chapman. Don’t miss out on the chance to experience world-class players competing for the inaugural national title in the fastest racket sport! Read more.
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Birmingham 10k – University Challenge
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Date/time: Date: Sunday 3 May
Venue: Birmingham city centre
The University is delighted to join the Morrisons Great Birmingham 10k University Challenge. Why not register a team with your colleagues to see if you can rise to the challenge and be crowned the fastest university team in Birmingham! Entry to the race is £25 per person. To find out more and register your team visit the Great Run website. There is also still time to register for the London2Paris cycle race to raise money for vital leukaemia research as part of the 'Birmingham. Let's Cure Leukaemia' campaign, a collaboration between Cure Leukaemia and the University. More information.
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Join a Summer Language Course and experience
a new culture
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Languages for All is offering short six-week courses in Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese and Spanish.
- Courses run from 11 May to 19 June 2015
- Beginner, Near Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced levels
Fee: £60 with no set textbook to buy. Enrol online.
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Current Universitas21 (U21) opportunities for staff and students
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There are currently a number of opportunities to apply for funding to support travel to our U21 partner universities for both undergraduate and postgraduate research students:
- U21 PhD Scholarships of up to £1,500
- U21 Graduate Research Conference at the University of Auckland, three £1,500 bursaries available
- U21 Undergraduate Research Conference at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, three £1,000 bursaries available
The deadline for all applications for all of the above is Sunday 29 March. For more information and/or promotional material please contact Matt Clulee, International Relations.
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