Laudy laudy
So how much do academics really value awards and prizes? Recently overheard from one much garlanded professor, discussing the importance he placed on one particular item in his collection: "That's...
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Desert plants yield climatic secrets
Aisling Irwin and Juliet Vickery report from the British Association for the Advancement of Science in Birmingham. Secrets about ancient desert farming, which will be a new source of information...
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True intentions cannot be hidden
The joint planning group on the single agency for quality assurance in higher education wants to nationalise the universities. Its intentions are apparent all along the line in the detailed proposals...
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Labour pledge on research units
Hopes that a Labour government would rescue the Office of Science and Technology from the Department of Trade and Industry were diminished yesterday when Labour said that it would only "review" the...
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Image set for a polish
Engineering courses cannot recruit. A campaign to promote engineering as exciting, relevant and remunerative was launched last week. Engineering is regarded by many students as dull, routine and...
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Pecs win readers
A handy tip for those trying to promote science to the public comes this week from New Scientist, which displayed its front covers to a conference in Cambridge and then revealed which had sold the...
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Mothers blamed for eight-year-old dieters
Aisling Irwin and Juliet Vickery report from the British Association for the Advancement of Science in Birmingham. Children as young as eight years old are being influenced by their mothers' dieting...
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Ethical guides get into business
Philosophy graduates in the Netherlands need no longer fear for their careers, as Dutch business is turning to them to deal with everyday problems. So-called "practical philosophers" are charging big...
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Perilous waters
Next week the leaders of Britain's universities will meet to decide on their collective policy for the coming year. The Committee of Vice Chancellors and Principals will be presented by its officers...
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Tory loans U-turn
Plans for a twin-track student loans system, where private banks could offer cash in competition with the Student Loans Company, have been abandoned. The move comes as Conservative MP and former...
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Scots opt for repayment
Students should contribute towards their tuition fees, the Commission of Scottish Education has proposed. The commission, set up by the broad-based Forum on Scottish Education following the 1993...
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Ice age overdue, says vulcanologist
Aisling Irwin and Juliet Vickery report from the British Association for the Advancement of Science in Birmingham. A volcanic eruption powerful enough to trigger another ice age is long overdue, a...
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Rectors reject control on degrees
Rectors in Slovakia are fighting government plans to overrule universities in the conferment of degrees and academic titles. A joint meeting of the rectors' conference and the country's higher...
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Engineering urgent change
Complaints about the lack of engineers are not new. Similar lamentations have been heard at any time in the past 100 years and more. But that does not justify ignoring the present decline in...
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The year of filling vacancies threat
Engineering courses cannot recruit. A campaign to promote engineering as exciting, relevant and remunerative was launched last week. A sharp decline in the number of students taking engineering and...