rnJro])IP IDW ~ Concrete Features explores UEA's newest campus in the heart of London's financial district
UEA's independent student newspaper since 1992
Susanna Wood News Reporter After months of speculation, the University of East Anglia has announced their intention to charge the maximum tuition fee level. of £9,000 per year. The University has submitted their request to the Office for Fair
Access (Offa) to charge the maximum amount of fees for UK students for all undergraduate degree courses from 2012 onwards. The Vice-Chancellor; Professor Edward Acton, has defended the rise in fees as necessary to maintain small class sizes and excellence in teaching that ensures UEA's position as one of the top 20 universities in the country,
Win a place at this year's Pimp my Barrow by completing this issue's crossword 1n Competitions
:ruesday lOth May, 2011 • Issue 256 • Twitter: @Concrete_UEA
with UEA also stating that a third of all new undergraduates will qualify for some sort of financial support. If approved by Offa, students from lower income households will receive up to £3,000 in fee waivers, and there will be a large number of scholarships available to highachieving students. MPs voted in December to allow
fees for home students to rise to £6,000 a year; with a limit of £9,000 in 'exceptional circumstances'. UEA is not alone in its decision; according to The Guardian, almost 75% of all English universities and university colleges plan to charge £9,000 for at least some of their courses. All universities in the 1994 group, of which UEA is a part, will be
charging £9,000 in 2012. Norwich University College of the Arts is planning on charging £8,500 for its undergraduate courses. The Union of UEA Students has expressed that it is "disappointed" with the decision. Offa will announce whether or not the plan has been approved in July.
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co ncrete. news@uea.ac.uk
In this fortnight's
Concrete ...
So here it is, the fina l issue of Concrete for this academic year. I coul dn't possi bly go to print w ithout th a nkin g many of those w h o devote a tre me ndou s a mount o f time a nd effort into producing thi s newspa per. The amount of voluntary hours put in by Concrete's writers, photographe rs, proofreaders a nd s ub- ed ito rs eve ry fo rtni g ht is cons iste ntly s ta gge ring and impress ive. I have to th a nk eve rybody who has co ntrib uted to producing Concrete this year, no matter how small a role Lh ey played. I owe a tremendous de bt of g ratitud e to a few indi vidua ls without w hom there is no way the paper co uld be produced. Davina Kesby, Ouncan Vicat-Brown, Fiona Howa rd, Steph Mcl<enna and Mia Wccker have all been a bsolute ly integra l to the paper thi s yea 1; a nd ! owe them a hu ge th a nk yo u a nd probably a pint or two. I must a lso thank Greg Ma nn a nd Laura Smith for orga n isi ng the photographs that bring the pap e r to life. W he th er it's been a s tud e nt ri ot or a muddy Wednesday afternoon on Co ln ey Field, they've never failed to produce fa ntast ic photography fo r the paper. Co ncrete w ill be bac k nex t yea r in the infin ite ly capab le hands of Chri s King, who will und oubted ly do a fantastic job- eve n if he is a QPR fan ... Good luck, Chris! Finally, I'd jus t like to urge a ll of yo u to ge t involved! Concrete is your student newspaper a nd a chance to air your grievances, review your favourite band o r s howcase your s po rts club. Concrete is w ha t UEA's stud e nts ma ke it, so ge t in vo lved and hel p ma ke it eve n better!
UEA's Independent Student Newspaper Concrete Newspaper Un ion House UEA Norwich NR4 7Tj co ncrete.ed itor@ uea.ac. uk Ed itoria l: 01603 593 466 Adve rtis ing: 01603 592 507 Editor:
Da nny Co llins
Deputy Editor:
Steph Mc Kenna
Chief Copy Editor:
Mia Wecker
News Editor:
Roxanne Power Ed Leftwich
Comment and Opinion Editor:
Emm a Parrott
International Editor:
Nishavitha Murthi
Features Editor:
Adam Fenw ick
Turf Editor:
Anna Tomso n
Lifestyle Editor:
james Dixo n
Travel Editor:
Tom Hun t
Sports Editors:
Chris King Rob Schatten
Chief Photographer:
Greg Mann
Deputy Chief Photographer:
Laura Smi th
Advertising Manager:
jean Wills
Distributor:
Rob Schatten Contributors:
Sam Lewis, james Schofield, Matt Scrafton, Ruth McKeller; fan Hobbs, Car! Si lverstone, Ash ley john ston, Laurne Razavi, Laura Holroyd, Emma Ga la!, Rachel Lum, lsabelle Carty, Susanna Wood, Hester Lee, Robb ie La ird, Kayo nazz Ka lya nwala, Steph Mckenna, Alexander Ross, Matt Deane, Clair Price, Alex Ma nsell, ]ames Hughes, Rebecca Hazlewood, Rob Schatten, Emma Will iamson, Raisin LeStra nge, Will Lacey.
... and
VENUE
Current 10th May Records _
31st Mar- 8th Ma1y 20 11 :
27.2• : Langar (1959)
25.3. -OT
-8.3• : L 'nfo rd (1941 ) Today in 1503 olombus disc ered he a 'mans
•
4.5mm 19.6 mph
WED 11TH MAY
~ 9 Famous Faces
Mostly dry Nith decent sunny spells. Feeling warm.
Decent sunny spells, a risk of a sho er. Feeling varm.
THU12THMAY
FRI13THMAY
~ 5 Bri ght spells at firsl sho ers later. Cooler and blustery.
Sam Lewis sp eaks to th e lea d e r of the Green p a rty, Caroline Lu cas, on her r ecent visit.
mixture of scattered he a 1 sho ers. ith a ris of hail and thunder, on both Sat urda and Sunda .. uite breezy. &<
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OUTLOOK: 16TH MAY ~23RD MAY A fe scattered hea 1 • sho ers aside it vill be largely settled with sunny spells throughout the period and fee ling quite arm at times . Light winds.
www.concretewea
r.co.u .. ·- .
Connctc i' published hy UUEAS Co nne te Soc iety 1351-1773
<D ~OII
Co ncre te BMc.
ISSN
Lctt..:r' >ho uld he addres,cd for th e attention of the Edi tor. Danny Collins. Letter' must inc lude co ntact detai ls. hut we will co nsider anonylllous publication. We n.:serve the right to edit fur leng th and c larit y as nece"'"Y Opin ions e.xprc,sed are no1 necessaril) thm,e or the nc\\'spapcr.
Proofreaders: Ann Hartiga n, Susa nna Wood, Stacey Knapp
A note fron1 the Editor
Ashley
Johnston
asks if Pak istan im p li cated in hi d ing Osama Bin La d e n
was
No part o r th is nc11 spa per may be reproduced through any means wi th out the express permission or the Ed itor. Danny Coli ins. Printed by Archant.
ISSUE 256
www.concrete-online.co.uk
Tuesday lOth May
Evolve internship scheme launched A UEA-funded scheme has launched with the aim of increasing graduate employability in an increasingly tough job market. Evolve offers 4-12 week internships that vary from marketing to science and technology. Previous interns have worked on projects ranging from monitori ng wi ld bat species to producing short commercial films. Throughout their placements, graduates are given continuous and active support by the Evolve team who work closely with the host organisation. Evolve's Business Development Manager, julie Schofield, emphasises that the scheme is "mutua lly beneficial" for both graduates and local businesses, as internships offer a "cost effective way for businesses to inject fresh talent...whilst providing the graduate with a paid placement that offers real graduate-level experience." The scheme, which is funded by UEA, has currently found placements for 201 graduates since January 2010. 58% of those available for contact have subsequently found graduate-level employment as a result of their internsh ip. In order to apply yo u m ust be a graduate and able to work in this country. Final year students can sign up to the scheme and can start an internship when they have passed their degree. To find out more visit: http:/ fwww.uea.ac.uk/ nbs/intern Claire Price
Norwich City promoted to Premier League Carrow Road will host Premier League football next season as Norwich City Football Club have been promoted. After being promoted to the Championship at the end of the 2009/2010 season, the Canaries have seen further success this season, achieving a further pro motion. The team are set to parade through the city on lOth May in order to celebrate their promotion, just as they did when they were promoted to the Premier League in 2004. For more on this story, turn to the Sport section.
NEWS
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Acton ''convinced that UEA's position is exceptional" Danny Collins Editor Vice-Chancellor Edward Acton has insisted that UEA can meet the 'exceptional circumstances' set out by the Coalition Government to justify charging £9,000-a-year for undergraduate degrees from 2012. Speaking to Concrete after the announcement of the intention to charge maximum fees last month, Acton said: "We were struck by the phrase. [exceptional circumstances]. and took it rather seriously. We are convinced that UEA's position is exceptional." "UEA has always been amongst the top five or six for student satisfaction, vying with Oxford and Cambridge." "UEA is one of the two universities in the top 20 who have a remarkably inclusive social profile." Asked which specific University improvements the
would look to make given the increased fees, the Vice-Chancellor said: "I think the central ones are around the staff/student ratio. Almost everything in our discussions with academics and students about things we would like to improve depend upon having greater amount of academic time available for advising, tuition, academic feedback and the lifting of 2:l's to lsts." "Secondly, enhanced facilities for laboratories, the library and, yes, IT support." Concrete asked Acton what the University would do to encourage students from poorer backgrounds to overcome the daunting barrier that the fees will undoubtedly provide. "We have to make sure poor families know that they do not have to find any money up front." "We mustn't deprive countless young people of life chances by telling them that you have to find
the money up front. Then there are also significant fee waivers ." "If l was allowed two words to label this, l would say 'don't call it
a debt, call it a special tax liability'. You will have a liability to the tax man, which is who will collect it."
UEA Law students ousted from
Earlham Hall I
MattDeane News Repo rter
Law students have been left shocked by a decision to move their school to the Registry as ViceChancellor Edward Acton is set to move into Earlham Hall, which has housed the Law School since it was established in 1977. The Vice-Chancellor of UEA. Edward Acton, has announced that it is his intention to vacate the Registry building and move to Earlham Hall, providing a 'swap' for the Law School, who in turn will be able to occupy part of the current Registry b uilding. the University's During summer holidays in 2010 Earlham Hall had an emergency evacuation due to severe structural damage, leading to the bu ilding becomi ng derelict. Since then, the Law Schoo l has been 'temporarily' moved to Blackdale School, next to the
overflow car park. The move has proven to be highly unpopular with both students and teachers, with a lack of private offices, insufficient heating and the terrible location of the building only a few of a long list of criticisms, leading to one Law professor resigning in protest. Law students have an affinity to Earlham Hall, a uniqu·e 'selling point' of UEA with potential app licants. In a debate aimed to ease student's worries about the state of the Law School, current students were keen to make sure that potential students are not going to be 'tricked' into choosing UEA by not being told about the situation. Recent developments have shown that, contrary to initial beliefs, the Law Schoo l wi ll not be returning to Earlham Hall when restoration is comp lete. Speaking at the Earlham Hall
debate before Easter, Head of the Law School Alastair Mullis attempted to ease student's worries by insisting that Earlham Hall was "no longer fit for purpose, if it ever was", arguing that restoration of Earlham Hall would cost £2Smillion, providing a stumbling block due to recent cuts in Univers ity funding. This figure however, includes a 'major improvement' in facilities, which many law students would
happily sacrifice in order to keep Earlham Hall part of the Law School, especially when money seems to be available to facilitate Acton's plans. The move has anger amongst law students, who feel that it is not an action in the interest of the Law School. Acton's refusal to communicate his views to the law student's personally,further created controversy amongst UEA's lawyers.
ISSlll' 256
4
concrete .news@ uea.ac .u k
Essay coin petition worth £200 opens The 2011 Student Essay Co mpetition is now open to all UEA students. The initiative is part of UEA's Live/Learn marketing c<J mpa ign, w hi ch a ims to bring out th e University's me rits both in term s of academic and social activities . This competition, now in its fou rth year, prov ides an understa ndi ng of how st udents juggle their responsibilities at UEA. Through the in sp ir ing accou nts, it is hoped that students can develop their confidence and personal motiv<llion. This year, the first prize has been doubled to £200, a cou rtesy of the Pro-Vice-Chancellor's Fund. There wi ll aho he prizes for runne rs-up . Prize winners will he receivi ng their awards at a small ce leb ration held by the Dean of Students, and their essays will he posted on UEA's website . Those who al"e interested shou ld write an essay responding to the question: 'Live/Learn'- ) low do yo u balance yo ur studies, socia l life a nd paid work as a stud ent at U I~A"? There is a maxim um lim it o f 2000 word s. ll oweve r, s ince there is no limitat ion to the styl e of writing, students have the choice of experimenting with different styles to tell their stories. The dead line for e ntries is 20th )u ne,2 0ll. For more information regarding this co mpetit ion , contact (;:Jther ine Butcher at catherine.butcher@uea. ac.uk. Rac ha el Lum
Library experiencing record numbers
Local elections and AV referendum see Liberal Democrats lose ground • Liberal De mocrats punished by vo ters at the polls, los ing 748 coun cillo rs across England . • Voters un convinced by AV system , with referendum result being a resounding "no". James Schofi e ld News Reporter Voters across the United Kingdom went to th e polling booths la st week to C;:JSt their votes in local council elections and to decide whether the electora l system for gener;:J I electio ns in the Ul< should he changed. The Conservative party now have control of 157 councils in England, w ith Labour controll ing 57 loca l councils. The Liberal Democrats suffered heavy losses, reta in ing contro l ofjust 10 co un cil s. In Norwich, the Labour party have 18 seats on the city council, with the G1·een party bringing their tot;:J l numb er of seats up to 15. The Libe r;:J I D e mo cra t ~ have four sea ts and the Co nservat ive party lo s in g two of their counci ll ors, retaining just two seats o n the council. The rderendum posed the qu es tion to the e lectorate, "Do
AV referend um last week. up by dinosaurs, that has failed Britain" by Deputy Prime Mini ste r Ni ck Clegg. Clegg's arg ument for the 'Yes' vote attacked the estab li shed political order in the United Kingdom, denouncing the la ck of pluralism and the provision of "sa fe sea ts ". Prime Minister David Ca meron threw his weight behind the 'No' campaign, creat in g a potential rift in the coalition. li e argued that the new system would und er min e the
principle of "one person, one vote" a nd th at AV wou ld "damage our democracy permanenlly". The result is a hitter blow for Clegg, who a lso saw his p;:1rty annihi la ted in council electi ons across the country. The fa ll -out from the tu itio n fees a rgument, just one of a series of what his riv;:1ls are nlling "broken promises", has led to ca ll s for a cha ll enge to his party leadership.
Investigation into Union Elections after failure of voting system Alex Manse ll News Repo rter
As the exam period takes a hold on student s, the Library is expe riencing a record number of visitors. Students a re s trugg li ng to find s pa ce to s tudy, and the Library is urging users to res pect the Silent and Quiet study zo nes, so that others can revise in pe;:1ce. In addition to thi s, they have asked students to real ise th at "rese rving" stud y space, hy leaving belongings, prevents others being able to study. Nick Lewis, l.ibra l-y Director, sa id: "Library St;:J ff wi ll do th eir best to ass ist you if yo u experience problems, but we'll have more s uccess if everyone follows th e guidelines".
you want the United Kingdom to adopt the 'alternative vote' system instead of the current 'first past the post' system for electing Members of Parliament to the ll ouse of Commons'~". 68% of the electorate voted No to the referendum, with a low turnout of just 42%. The Alternative Vote (AV) syste m a ll ows voters to rank candidates in order of preference. A clear majority of over 50% is needed, with the next preference being taken into consideration if the majority is not reac hed. In co nu·as l, th e firs t past the post system gives the seat to the candidate who gains the most vo tes, regardless of the size o f the majority. The re fere ndum was held due to th e Libera l Demo cra t mandate to seek electora l reform . The first past the post system cu rrenlly used to elect MPs to Westminster has been la belled a "ti red system, propped
An investigation into the 2011 Union El ect ion s, whic h we re marred by controversy, is currently underway. The group, made up of both student office rs a nd stud e nts, is exploring the lim itations and issues which a rose as a result of some of the most controversial elections of recent years. The group will be eva lu at ing the fl awed electronic voting syste m, and how to improve it for future elect ions. The voting system came in for some criticism after approximately 970 students were not sent voting tokens, and therefore cou ldn't regi ste r their votes. This, coupled with a noth e r error which saw one candidate running for the position of Acade mi c Officer omitted from
the ballot form, lead to a voting exte ns ion of24 ho urs. The investigatio n is still on-going but Tom Dolton, Deputy Returning Officer for the election in question, said: "one such improvement for the ruture is fully integrating the vo ting syste m into Portal so students will no longer have to log into a 3rd party wehsite or W;:Jit for a voting email". This idea was in fact due to be implemented before the electi ons hut was de layed due to the campus-w id e network crashes of the 'techpocalypse'. of preferential Allegations treatment by the Deputy Returning OfTicer have been dismissed ;:Jfter findings by AI Powell, Ch ief Returning Officer, found no evidence of wrong doing. Powell stated: "having completed an investigation into both of your
concerns I am writing to inform you th <ll I am h<lppy and sat isfied with the cond uct of both th e Union ;:J nd Tom Dolton". controversy arose Further when one candidate for the NUS Confere nce position exceeded their budget, as set by the lJ n io n, a nd was removed from the election. This news added to the pressure surrounding the events of the elections, but Tom Dolton sta ted: "I do not feel that this election was run in an unfair or uneven manner so the results stand". r:urther fallout from the election has seen newly elected Academic Officer J(irsty Callag ha n decline to take up her position within the Union. Instead Kirsty has opted to study for a two-year Masters and Graduate Assistantship at the University of Wyoming, comp rising
a tuition fee waiver. On her dec ision to not take up he r position, l(irsty sai d: "this is not a decision I have taken lightly ", emphas ising th e fact that s he did not know about her award until after the elections were underway. and ca mpa igning had begun. l<irsty wen t on to say: "I learnt a great deal whi le cam paigning and was excited and hopeful about what I would work towards if elected". Th e pos iti on of Academic Officer wi ll now be recontested, a longside the other un-filled posts in a byelection due to take place from the 17th May. The other positions to be fi ll ed in this by- e lect ion are: Ethn ic Minorities Officer, Mature Stud ents' Office1; Women's' Officer and one Non-Portfolio Office1; which are all part-ti me positions.
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ISSUE 2S6
6
concrcte.news@luea.ac.uk
Students raise money for charity in 1000 mile bike
Daily Telegraph blogger defeats UEA in legal challenge •
University appeal to Press Complaints Commission ove r comm e nts made by Telegraph blo ggc r Jam es Delingpol e. Rebecca Hazlewood News Reporter
Eig h t stuuents from the University of East Anglia are participating in the Varsi ty Triple Crown Cha llenge, a 1000 mile hike ride around the Ul< over a period of 10 days . The Chztllenge raises money for !lBF The Soldiers' Charity Jnd Combat Stress, char ities set up to help those who have served in the Armed Porces. The team from Cambridge University's Officer Training Corps (OTC), of which the s t udents from UE/\ <lre me m be rs, w il l compete against their Oxford rivals in a challenge which takes them t hr o ugh a ll t h ree counu·ies of Gr·cat Britain. Departing in mid-September fro m Londo n, t he tcJm wi ll first cyc le to Edinb u rg h Castle before heading back south to Cardiff Cast le, ctnd t h en comp leti ng th e fina l s t retch eastwards towJrds London . The Chctllenge has support from t he newly-wed Royal couple, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, as well cts ot h er public figures including Olympic cyclist Chris Boctrdman MBE and London Mayor Boris jo h nson. johnson commented that he is "fu ll of admiration" for all of the participants. The students from lJEi\ participating arc Tom Belts, /\ lex Yorkc, llufsah l<han, Rich McLc llan, l<;1tie Reillis, Michael Cannon, Trevor Asian and llannah Mc l nroy Nay lor. Fina l year student ll annah co m mented that the challenge is "probably the hardest t h ing I've ever done, but a lso the most exciting." Further details on the chctllenge ca n be fo u nd Jt www. va rs i tytri p l ccrownc ha 11 enge. co.uk, where you can support and sponsor the participants.
)a m es Sc h ofie ld
UE/\ returned red fJced from the ruling of the Press Complaints Com m ission, fo llowing a batt le over the abusive comments and accusations made about Lhe Un iversity and its staff by the Daily Telegraph journalist james Delingpole in his online hlog. !\famo us cl imate change sceptic, Delingpole revelled in the events of 'climategate' last year, when the private emai ls of Professor Phi l )ones were leaked onto the intemet. The unfortunate wording of some of t he cmails provoked a worldwide whirlwind of uncertainty regarding the integrity of the research cJr-ried ou t a t the Climatic Research Unit. Delingpole has used a number of unflattering descriptions of UE/\
including calling the university a "standing joke" and saying that the CRlJ has "grotesque inadequacies". Since then, four inquiries have found no evidence of research fraud a nd lJEA's name has been cl ea red. In his blogs at the time Delingpo le descr ibed Professor· ]ones as "disgraced, FOI-breaching, em a i1-dcl eti ng, scien ti fie-method abusing". lie described UEA's scientists as "untrustworthy, unreliable and entirely unfit to wr ite the kind of reports on which governments <1 round the world make their economic and environmental decisions". To top it all he refers to the work of CRU scientists as being "shoddy" and "me ndacious". UEA brought these three pJrticular comments to the
attention of the PCC, believing them to be in breach of Clause 1 (1\ccu r·acy) of t he Editors' Code. The Commission sided with Dclingpole, on the grounds that because the comments had appeared in a hlog, readers would he perfectly aware the comments we re subjective. Purthermore, the Commission drew attention to the fact that the hlog prov ides a mecha ni sm for complainants to respond to hlogs and st<lte their views. Displaying responses and a lt er-native viewpoints of readers therefore provides readers with the full co n tex t of the dispute. Professor Trevor Davics, Pro Vice-Chancellor for research, said: "The Univers ity complained to the Press CompiJints Commission (PCC) that blog posts on the Daily
Telegroph's website by james Dclingpole were misleading, inacc u rate a nd co nt ained d isto rted information in breach of the Editors' Code. "We a re naturally d isappo in ted that the PCC did not find in our favour as we felt that Mr Delingpole vicio usly atl<rcked in div idua ls a nd over-stepped the boundaries of free speech and fair comment." De lingpo le hasn't hes itated in celebrating the outcome of the ruling. "This is a massive victory not just fo r me ~1nd Tele,qroph blogs, but for bloggers everywhere - especially those doughty souls arou n d t he world w h o a rc batt ling against estab lishment lies, bullying and cover ups to try to reveal the truth about the corrup t, mendacious Climate Change industry", blogged Delingpole.
Students dismayed by library closures Rob Schatten News Reporter Studen ts who remained on campus over Easter once again faced widespread disruption to their study effor ts as the Library, along with all other University facilities, was closed for six days over the Easter weekend. The closure meant that no-one was able to access the Library's six fl oors of books or journals, causing sizeable disruption to those still scrambling to finish dissertations or begin revision. The closure period is nothing new - it is, in fact, written in the contracts o~ University staff that they are entitled to a six-day holiday over Easter - but the lack of p rior warning of t he clos u re caught out many returning from home, who had been unaware of it in adva nce. The Academic Officer for the Union of UE/\ Students, Rachel Handforth, has told Concrete th <lt "in the future communication to students about when library
closures arc happening could be improved." Library Director Nick Lewis agrees that the period of closure can be seen as excessive. "I agree that it does inconvenience some students who wish to use our pr·int collections," he told Concrete, but felt that this had been mitigated by the fact that "much of our onlinc provision and 24-hour PC access Iwas l retained" throughout the Easter break. Mr Lewis said he had received three "formal complainls" over the issue. "I am so r-ry people have been inconvenienced.'' he added. "We will look into this further but it is important to recog n ise it as part of a wider University context." Rachel Handforth agreed that t h e prob lem s hou ld not be blamed on the library. "This is a University policy, and so there was no actual decis ion to close t h e li brary." The library staff were, however~ able to keep the building open over the bank ho liday weekend, and Mr Lewis said the library was staffed by volunteers on Friday April 29th
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Libra ry clos ures caught ou t stud ents who were and Monday May 2nd. "The bank holidays are much closer to the exam per iod a nd so we anticipated there would be more [need for the library] on
those two days," he said. "We rely on staff goodwill to volunteer, so not su r p r·is ing ly it is eas ier fo r us to obtain volunteers the week after Easter than during Easter itself."
ISSUE 256
7
Tuesday l Oth May
UEA study finds asthma pill just as effective as inhalers A new study led by scientists at UEA has discovered that an asthma pill is just as effective as using an inhaler. 650 patients were followed for two years and found that tablets called leukotriene receptor antagonists (LTRAs) managed the disease equally successfully as steroid inhalers for patients with mild asthma. Currently sold under the brand names Singulair and Accolate, the pills are currently recommended as being third or fourth in asthma management steps. However, the results of this research may see an increase in the use of tablets rather than inhalers. Professor David Price, who was the lead author of the study, said: "We hope these findings will increase the options for hea lthcare professionals when prescribing for this common but disruptive disease". This research also opens up possibilities for sufferers who struggle to use inhalers, as well as those who cannot use inha lers owing to side effects. Co-author Dr Stanley Musgrave of Norwich Medical School at UEA added: "LT RAs are easy to use a nd can help patients con t ro l th eir asthma effective ly and imp rove their quality of life". Eight per cent of t he adul t population in the UK suffer from asthma, with 1.1 million children being affected by the disease.
Employability week to take place As graduation looms for many students, the Careers and Employability centre have put together a programme of events for Employability Week, running from 6th-11th June. The events being run include: 'Pick and Mix', a series of workshops about CV's, applications, interviews, as well as international careers and networking; Global Opportu nities, which involves International companies participating in a global virtual recruitment event. In addition to this, Employability will be taking to the Square offering advice, guidance and career information in the sunshine. More information for the week can be found on Blackboard and the Careers and EmployAbility web pages.
UEA London opened • New centre aims to foster links with Government and businesses in the capital. • £120m Study Centre utilises the newest technology to facilitate learning and teaching . James Hughes News Reporter The University of East Anglia's reputation as a prestigious academic body has been further enhanced by the proud unveiling of its new franchise, UEA London. The building, which was officially opened on 4th April, is situated in the heart of London's bustling and recently renovated Spitalfields area, just outside of the financial district. UEA London is set to join the hub of top international universities that make London the highest ranked 'global university city' in t he world, accord ing to a review carried out by RMIT University, Melbourne. A statement from t he UEA website li s ts the aims of t he new campus as: "to enhance the employability of our graduates, raise the Un iversity's international p rofi le a nd foster links with in fl ue ntial Government and business commumt1es in the ca pital." Th e loca ti on of th is new centre wi ll p rovide t he University with an u npara ll e led platform from which to achieve this set of ai ms. The Ch ief Operations Officer of UEA Lo ndon, Martin Halsall, said: "I think most people would accept th a t Lo nd o n is a n extraordinary
city ... we should make sure that we make the most of what it has tO offer." The £120m Study Centre boasts state-of-the-art facilities with some of the newest and most advanced technology in its classrooms, ensuring that its students will gain the optimum from their academic experience. The centre also has its own builtin resource centre, lounge area and cafe, to facilitate out-of-classroom learning and socialising. "The idea of the centre was that the students who were predominantly in the 18-25 [age] bracket should come in and feel that the centre's a cool place to be, and I think we've achieved that", Mr. Halsall added. A variety of undergraduate and pos tgraduate courses are availab le at UEA London including Finance Management and International Dip lomacy. The centre's ma in vocation lies within the realms of business management but it does acknowledge its UEA origin s. The MBA in Strategic Carbon Management, offered by UEA London, is a world first, combin ing bus iness studies, re leva nt to that of a global city, with an environmental emphasis that has become synonymous with the University of East Anglia.
UEA takes a walk on the wild side Susanna Wood News Re porter UEA Vo lunteers has received a £9000 grant from the Big Lottery Community Wil dlife Fund to help create a wildlife trail in the UEA grounds. The trail, which will be a picturesque 2-3 mi le route alongside the River Yare and will circumnavigate the UEA 'Broad', also provides opportunities for students to volunteer for co nservation management, surveying and providing guided walks. Elaine Sherriffs, of UEA Volunteers, said: "The aim is to provide a well marked trail around the campus which informs and raises awareness of the biodiversity
and conservation management. The grant from the Lottery Fund will pay for four interpretation boards and a way marking along the Wildlife Trail." "Raising awareness of environmental sensitivity shou ld contribute to the protection of the rich biodiversity of the site ... it will be a lovely walk for UEA students, staff and the local community to appreciate all the campus has to offer." UEA Volunteers has worked alongside local community groups, such as Friends of Eaton Park and the Yare Valley Society on the project, as well as UEA's own Wildlife and Conservation Society and lain Barr, who lecturers in Ecology.
Anyone interested in volunteering or finding out more
about the trail should drop into the EmployAbility office in the Square.
ent
Issu e 256 Tuesday 1Oth May
Osama Bin and gone With the attack and execution of Osama Bin Laden in his hideout in Pakistan, questions have been raised about the role of Pakistani military. Was Pakistan helping to cover the tracks of the world's most wanted man? Ashley Johnston discusses
Ashley Johnston On the 1st of May, 2011, a pproximate ly 8:40pm BSl a ft e r a fo rty minute fire fi g ht, Osama bi n Lade n, architect of th e Septe mber 11th terrorist attacks, was killed with a s ingle shot to th e head by US s pec ia l forces team, Seal Tea m Six. Afte r month s o f preparation, Osa ma was found in t he city of Abbottabad, jus t 35 mil es no rt h of the Pakistani ca pital, ls la maba d. On Monday, Pres id e nt Obama addressed the world to co nfirm tha t Bin Laden had bee n kill ed. Th e fin a l ra id on Sunday wa s attentively watched by the White House inner circle, comprised of the Pres ident's most senior aides. Presid e nt Obama is alleged to have said, 'We got him' after the news had been a nnoun ced that the a i-Qaeda chi ef had been kill ed. Bin Lad e n was id e ntifi ed us ing DNA a nd facial recogmtwn techno logy before a fun e ral se rvice
was he ld a board USS Car! Vinson. Th e body was washed a nd s hro ud ecl in acco rd a nce with Is la mi c law be fore finally be in g buri e d in th e North Ara bi a n Sea. After the news of Bin La de n's death was a nnoun ced, sce nes of reve ll ers in New Yo rk City and Was hington DC cele brating hi s d ea th were broadcast ac ross the world. Placards a nd flags were waved in jubilation and eve n fir ewo rks were set off, as thousa nd s gathe re d a t the s ite of Ground Ze ro and went on celeb ra ting a nd drinking into the early hours of the mo rnin g. Despite a ll the a tro citi es that Bin Laden has co mmitted a nd all the inn ocent civili a n lives he has taken, th e re is still so mething so mewh at ignoble a bout rejoicing in hi s killing. Th e reports a nd images published in newspapers a nd shown on news cha nnel s globa lly, portray scenes of partying, in contrast to the Aljazeera news channe l in which reporters' accou nts of the d ea th were mad e in a so le mn a nd so mbre ma nn er. One American reporter eve n high-fivecl a eo-reporter on
a ir which cou ld be d ee med as inappropriate a nd unn ecessa ry, es pecia lly give n the seve rity of the s itu atio n.
"Despite all the atrocities that bin Laden has committed there is still someth ing somewhat ignoble about the rejoicing of his killing." Th e fa milies of th e Septe mbe r 11th victims have reportedly sa id their d eaths have bee n ave nged. Nevertheless, the s ta rk reality of the s itu a tion is tha t nothing w ill possibly be a ble to reco mpense th e loss of a love d o ne or give clos ure to the haunting prospect of further terroris t attacks. Oba ma has sa id tha t, the d ea th of Bin Laden mea nt the world was 'a safe r place'. Des pite this critica l developm e nt in the fight against Terro ri s m, it still remains tha t the fight aga ins t ai-Qaeda, h oweve 1~ is not over. Th e Daily Telegraph reported that a radical Briti s h
Muslim, Anjem Choudaru, claimed that "Britain is mo re like ly to face a 7/7 today than ever". Spea kin g to Th e Tim es jac k Straw a lso said that, 'the killing of Bin Lade n does not of itself make the world a sa fe r pl ace .. .. In th e s ho rt term, the ri sk of terrorist re pri sa ls has probably in creased'. The threa t of terror a ttacks is mo re a ppare nt tha n ever as rea lised by the heighte ned security checks. For the mean time, th e US a nd th e UK mu s t re main vigilant for th e threa t of lon e wolf reve nge a ttacks whil st the co mputers, do cuments a nd ha rd drives se ized from th e co mp o und in Abbottabad arc metic ulou sly poured over in order to assess th e pote ntial threa ts from a i-Qaeda. Press ure to re lease th e ph o tograph s have, for th e mom ent, bee n curbed, as President Obama s ta ted th e re was s uffici e nt evid ence through DNA test res ults a nd his own jurisdicti o n of the photographs to know that, "it was him" and th e re was no need to release them. Obama was wary of th e incite me nt to violence the photogra phs might ca use, saying: "We don't trot out
this s tuff as trophies". Obama late r stated th e photographs a re not to be used as a ' propaga nd a tool' a nd for now the world is to trust hi s judgement. Arguably, at some po int th e photos will undoubted ly s urface, a nd until o ur curiosity is cu re d, more co nspiracy s tori es wi ll unfold. More relevant to th e s itu atio n as a whole is pe rh a ps Pakistan's invo lve me nt a nd Pres id e nt Zarcl a ri of Pakistan's claim that, "B in Lade n was not anywhere we ha d a nti cipate d he would be". For a nation whi ch appears to be in denial a bo ut the extremi s m in their mid s t, the political unres t a nd their sy mpathy a nd a llegiance to Osa ma, I find it incredibly dubious to believe that Pakista n was completely unawa re that it was hou si ng the world's mos t wa nted man. Surely t he decision to keep Pakistan's Inte r-S e rvi ces Inte llige nce o ut of th e loop is e nough to s ugges t th e US feared they mi ght already have ties to Bin La d e n a nd might tip him off?
UEA2011/2012: Some suggestions As another academic year draws to a close Carl Silverstone takes the opportunity to voice some ideas on what could be improved for next year
Carl Silverstone 1. Block Facebook in the library- it would take fiv e minutes for IT staff to impl e ment, and would improve efficiency of s tudy mass ively. The maj o rity ca n't resist a pea k at their news fe ed _ If UEA want a more financially viabl e way of rising in the league tables than hiring new lecturers or building a new lab, just cha nge the library firewa ll. The Big Issue seller on campus's dog is ca ll ed Iss ue, so wh e n he s houts for his dog every two minutes, he's killing two birds with one stone. Tha t's th e type of efficiency we ca n look to ac hieve in the libra ry nex t year.
2. The foo d ava il ab le o n camp us is OK- emphasis on medio crity. Cafe Direct would not s urvive in a rea l co ns um e r ma rket. Put Cafe Direct in the heart of Norwich and see how lon g it lasts_ Less tha n a clay. Put Starb ucks on campus a nd look how long the queue would be. Around th e lake. Girls love Frappuccino's - which a re, I rece ntly discovered, jus t a milks hake by a s tupid na me. I'm digress ing. I'm not e nco ura ging putting a hi gh s treet coffee shop o n campus. My po int is this; how ha rd is it to make a Starbucks, Costa, what e v e 1~ co ffee? it's flavour ed milk. Copy what they do, buy id e nt ica l mac hin es a nd produce the sa me product. Put so me prete ntious wafe rs by the tills, hire so me younger, quicker s taff. and we're cooked - the free Wi -Fi is already in pl ace (but don' t name the drinks grande, tall and ve nti ; ridi culous names for idio ts).
"The Big Issue seller on campus's dog is called Issu e, so when he shouts for his dog every two minutes, he's killing two birds with one stone. That's the type of efficiency we can look to achieve in the library next year"
High stree t coffee s hop brands have evo lved to be a co nsum er drea m. Copy them identi ca lly. Cafe Direct is a poor imitatio n. 3. At th e Union Elections, s tud e nts blast posters a nd banners on eve ry inch of the square for a week; it loo ks like a facto ry producing pictures o fn erdy looki ng s tud e nts has blown up on campus. Most peopl e rea lly don't care who th e new Fin a nce Office r is. But, wh e n I put up posters for the KAOS fashion s how o r my UNICEF even ts (both raising money for dying kids), security claim poste rs a re str ictly prohibited. Surely so me mispl aced pri or iti es? 4. Anoth e r charity ca ke sa le in the Hive - rea lly? If you're in primary schoo l a nd still wet the bed, then a lack of originality in fundraising concepts is und e rstandable; fair dos, bake a cake a nd se ll s lices for 20p in the playground (farcica lly,
the ingred ie nts ofte n cost more than th e price o f the ca ke). This s imply co ns titutes rai s ing a wareness, and s uggests that ra is ing awa re ness is th e most impo rta nt objective for s tud e nt cha riti es . There is a n expression, 'tea rs d on't save lives' - which is to say, so what if eve ryo ne is 'aware' o f a current disaster. To th e pe rso n s uffe rin g a nd in need of a id, the fact that so me middle cl ass peopl e a re now 'awa re' of their pred icam e nt is nei th e r relevant no r he lpful is it? Mon ey, howev e 1~ is relevant; provision of medi cin e or whateve r it is that the cha rity de live rs is of genuine importa nce. And ironica lly fundraising eve nts normally rais e mo re awareness tha t so called aware ness ones. So, charities of UEA (with ce rta in rare exception s), drop baking ca kes and a wareness campaigns. Ra ise some money write a cheque not a recipe.
ISSUE 256
9
Tuesday lOth May
The Debate: The Royal Wedding What were you doing on Friday 29th April20ll? Were you part of the 24.5 million people who tuned into the BBC and ITV coverage of Kate and Will's big day? Or did you decide to do something better with your day off?
fOR Em ma Parrott Let's guess. You heard there was a wedding on. You checked out the bride, reckoned she looked okay if a little, you know, bor.ing. Heard you got a day off. Figured 'I'm a student, makes no difference to me.' Day before, someone mentions 'Prince William's marrying that bird tomorrow' and you grunt back. After all, there's nothing interesting about the Royals; they're there for the tourists, right? Nevertheless, come Friday 29th April 2011, everyone seemed to give in. I for one found myself putting up Union jack bunting. making cupcakes and painting my nails red, white and blue. At one point I was even caught out having a little sob as she walked up the aisle (admittedly I once cried at a Tetley tea advert but the sentiment remains nevertheless).! even found myself not wanting to be violently sick at the sight of David Cameron going out to shake hands with campers on The Mall.
"Come Friday 29th April 2011, everyone seemed to give in. I for one found myself putting up Union Jack bunting, making cupcakes and painting my nails red, white and blue." So how comes we all ended up getting so carried away with it? Why did people travel from across the world to camp on the streets of London? Why did millions of us spend our day off sat in front of the TV watching Huw Edwards attempt to fill hours of broadcasting time? The truth is we all enjoy a love story, a fairytale. Yes, Kate
Middleton was hardly Cinderella, but she's no blue blood. Her family's journey is reflected up-and-down the country; as Cameron calls them, 'the sharp-elbowed middle classes'. Then there was the look on William's face as he said to his bride "You look beautiful." You'd have to have the heart of Piers Morgan to not be warmed by that. And let's face it, Kate must really love him if she's willing to take on his nightmare of a family... Yet the day even managed to give the Royal Family a human face. There was the younger brother making cheeky remarks and eyeing up the fit, younger sister of the bride. Then there's the young, grumpy bridesmaid who looks in constant need of a pee. The grandfather who is always just seconds away from making a racist joke or patting your sisterin-law's bottom. The grandmother who turns up with a blanket over her lap. Not interested in the soap opera, romance or the pageantry of it all? Well, here's an oldfashioned idea. Patriotism. National pride. Not just of the football variety but real, actual pride in all that is British. I'm normally the first one to scoff at silly Royalists, dismissing them as BNP supporters in denial. Yet what was clear on 29th April 2011 was that us British, we love a good party, be it on the streets of London or anywhere else. I myself could be found drinking champagne on my village green and dancing with my OAP neighbours that evening. I have never even spoken to my neighbours before. That is the beauty of days that bring the nation together. Oh, and don't talk to me about wasting taxpayers' money; last year the Royal Family cost each taxpayer just 6 7 pence. Put your hand up if you lost more than that the last time you were in the LCR ... If I still haven't managed to convince you then here's my parting shot. My Nan cracked open the bubbly at llam and we were all still drinking into the night. Any excuse, right?
The Royal Wedding: some numbers Following the service there was a 2,400 MW power surge -cup of tea anybody?
There were 5,500 road closure requests for street parties
Kate's dress train was 2. 7 meters longDiana's was 8 metres
!AGAINST Alexander
Amongst the pomp, circumstance and careful posturing of Prince Charles' son's wedding, Chris Hollis - one of a team of BBC journalists considered to have hit Ferne Cotton's lofty levels of superstardom - found yet more interview-worthy campers amongst the throngs of loyal royalists in Hyde Park. "She looked like a princess" said the seven-year-old girl subjected to the BBC's rigorous interview techniques, "and it looked like her dress was floating." There is an unwritten rule in television that dictates that one should never work with children or animals. And yet, in speaking to an entirely unprepared schoolchild most likely unable to recite her four times tables (N.B. I do not judge her for this), Hollis unwittingly uncovered the truth behind the royal "ordeal this girl's punditry, infantile and vacuous as must be expected, was no less mature or insightful than any other. The blanket news coverage that dominated every media outlet for the days and weeks approaching the event, nauseating as it was, has had to be questioned and ridiculed. UEA's own Arthur Smith gave voice to the sentiments of the 35% of the nation who 'couldn't care less' according to polls - "What I hate most is the assumption that I care, when in fact I very much do not." That even the BBC chose to ignore the twelve Libyan rebels gunned down by friendly fire on the morning of the wedding was not unexpected (I'm as sure as anyone that their final regret was not getting to see 'that dress'.) But such extreme focus seemed out of touch. This was, after all, the first Royal Wedding of a celebrity-dominated 21st Century
and to the average observer, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge or Cornwall or Camberwell or whatever, are no more important than the cast of The Only Way is Essex or Chelsea or Camberwell or whatever. The difference is that, unlike celebrity news, the Royal Wedding was able to escape the inner pages of Heat and the Daily Star and unleash itself upon the front page of every newspaper in the country. Instead of a seven -year-old's opinion, punditry was deferred to paid journalists who told us how 'sensational' the day was and how 'elegant' the bride looked, taking for granted that, of course, all any girl really wants is a big fairytale wedding with a prince. The sevenyear-old would have told us that for free.
"That even the BBC chose to ignore the twelve Libyan rebels gunned down by friendly fire on the morning of the wedding was not unexpected (I'm as sure as anyone that their final regret was not getting to see 'that dress'.)" But for all of the time-wasting soul-sapping round-the-clock coverage, the Royal Wedding boiled down to a matter of relevance and modernity. Inevitably, if we condone and promote an outdated institution like the Royal Family and promote their rituals, we condone their outdated moral code - the subjection of women, the consent of dictatorial regimes (how the invitation of dignitaries from Zimbabwe, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain slipped under the radar is baffling) and the idea of God-given superiority. Seven-year-olds can be forgiven.
Iss ue 256 Tu esd ay LOth M ay
Finding faith amidst Malawian multitudes Laura Holroyd gets a hands-on taste of life in th e heart of a n African comm u ni ty, discoveri ng the imp o r ta nce of re ligio n in o ne of t he wo rld 's poorest, yet m ost precio us, co untri es, Malaw i.
Exciting times in Egypt Emma Galal Travel Writer
alaw i is not exactly a tourist destin ation ; ye t vo lunteer in g oile rs travel lers an inval uab le insight into a unique and vibra nt way of life. Stayi ng with <.1 Ma lawia n family :1nd becoming part of th e local co mmunity en<Jb les yo u to deve lop a true understa nding of how people ca n struggle to provide for th ei r famil ies whilst still maintaining a genero us and open s piril. Ma i;Jw i is the seve nth poorest co untry in the wo rld, food pri ces are hi gh a nd wages are low. Publ ic se rvi ces suffer from a gener<J I lack of fun di ng and a1路e therefo re find ing it difTi cult to provi de a n adequate leve l of serv ice. This mea ns that foreign aid, whi ch s upports many of th ese in stitution s, is cru cia l to the deve lopm ent of industry a nd welfare of th e peo pl e. /\!though it is in no way co mpa rable to th e hards hips fa ced by ordinary Mal;1wians, as a Westerner, ada pting to life in such an under-deve loped cou ntry ca n be a challenge. Despite th e fa ct that they listen to American music and have s_o me of their clothes imp orted from China, MaiZlwi ans ultimately have th eir own uniqu e culture Lh<ll is essentia lly cut oil from the Western world. One esse nti al aspect of the Ma lawia n way of life is rel igion. The chu rch provid es a very im portant mea ns of s upp ort an d enco ura ge me nt for th e lo c;1l com munity. In Malawi, eighty perce nt of th e popu i;1Lion arc Chr istian
M
and regula rly attend chu rch serv ices. La st yea 1; I stayed w ith th e Reveren d's family in th e sma ll vill age of Mtuntha ma. As a n ag nostic Wcs lc rncJ; it was ha rd to adapt Lo the fa ct that religion had beco me <1 funda menta l pa rt of da ily life. Th e Reve rend conducted a three hour lon g se rvi ce in Chichewa in si de the s ma ll a nd stuffy church, which was crammed w ith eage r wo rshippers. Ma law ia n church se rvi ces a re uplifting, and di s pl ay a tota l
"Mal awian church se rvic es are upliftin g ... quite unlike a nythin g you would find in th e Church of En gla nd" devotion Lo God through s inging and dancing, quite unlike anything yo u would fi nd in th e Church of i~ n g l and . /\n exam pl e of ho w Malawi ans find fulfilm e nt through th eir faith is the ce le bra tion of Good Friday. In the small village of Mtunthama, at five in the morn in g, th e Angli ca n Reve re nd <~nd hi s famil y were preparing for th e co ming ce lebration s. Th e congrega ti on of J\11 Sa ints Anglican church was to walk for three hours in the blistering su n in order to re- enact th e cruc ifixion of Chrisl. Throughout this ardu ous W<llk, the re wou ld be reg ula r pauses in order to kn ee l a nd pray on th e sLJ路cel,
<lnd it was imposs ibl e not to stand out amongst a sea of kn ee ling and dedica ted worshippers. On reachin g ou r destination, the Pass ion plZly co ntinu ed as peo pl e pu shed th e ir way Lo the front in order to get a bette r vi ew. The wome n a nd those chi ldre n who were Loo tire d to atte mpt to join in fell down in an ex hausted hea p und er th e trees, relieved to have made it. The women goss ip ed in Ch ichewa, whi lst th e children crowded around th e 'Mazungu' (a term mea ning 'w hi le pe rson' in Chichcwa and other Africa n la ngu agcs ). r:ascin<lted by my 'white' sk in a nd my in abi lity to s peak Chichewa th ey bega n to pull an d tug, begging for stories and songs. it would see m that being a Westerner in Ma lawi ma kes you into so me kind of biza JTe pied pip er or chi ld ren ta mer. They delighted in bei ng able Lo use th eir broken Engli sh, e ndl ess ly repeating th e greeting 'Mazung u, how a re you'~' until they beca me so e nthused th at it was imposs ibl e to reply to th e incessa nt cha nting as it left no room for res pon se. Ma lawi is an incredib le place, hu tyo umu sl be awa re th at it is also a la nd tee ming with paradoxes. Your experiences in the co untry may not always be positive a nd it is ofte n ha rd to deal with the cultural differences. Overall, though , the ex pe ri ence is imm ense ly va luabl e and those encounters with th e Ma law ian s wi ll always rem ain preciou s.
In light of the vio lent po litica l protests that e rupte d ear lier thi s yea r it may seem stran ge to be encouraging travel into the depth s of Egypt. ll oweve r, as the f-"ore ign a nd Commonwealth Office have deemed th e co untry to be a relati ve ly sa fe place to trave l o nce aga in, many are retur nin g to the Sa haran su nsh ine, <~nd it is not difficult to see wh y. f-"or the s un seeke rs in sea rch of relaxa ti on and ni ghtlife, Sharm cl She ikh is the pl ace to be. Yet Sharm is the Vegas of the Middle East a nd d oes not refl ect th e a bund a nce of experie nces that thi s nat ion holds. The hustle and bu stle of the Caim st reets a nd so uks prop e ls its wanderers into an ec lec ti c melt in g pot of cult ures, re li gio ns, fa s hi on a nd food. lt goes wit hout saying that th e Giza pyra mid s a nd the ancient Sp hin x, are int eg r <~ l parts of <lilY trip here <~ nd <1 jo urney a long th e Nile in a trad it ional fc luce<l boa t is equ a lly unmi ssah le. Yet ju st cas t of th e ca pital hid es a paradise in the form of seve ral desert oases <~ m o n gsl vast
st retc hes of untouched la nd sca pe. In pl ace of th e pitfall s of touris m, these a 1路cas have olive groves, natmZl l s prings and sa lt lakes that a re rea chabl e by ca me l, qu a d bike or se lected tours for th e less brave- hea rted. With diving expe ri e nces co mpa rab le to those of the Great Barri er Reef it is un s urprising that water lovers flo ck to th e Reel Sea res orts of ll urgh ada, Taba a nd Marsa /\lam in o rder to ob tain their adve nture fix. The port of Alexandria offers an in s igh t into t he future of a modernised Egypt while a trip So uth to Luxor provides s piritu a l esca pe. Des pite the rece nt turmoil, Egyptians co ntin ue to welco me touri sts with th ei r re now ned hosp itality in a cou ntry attempting to move towards a new era w hil st retaini ng its vibra nt p<~st.
The rise and rise of Singapore Tom Hunt Travel Editor With a pl eth ora of childhood memori es sto red up, returning to Singa pore after a deca de away was a del ight rat her tha n a d isa ppo intment. For a tiny Iittl e island supporti ng four milli on people, depe nd ent entire ly upon their fri e nd ly neighbour Ma lays ia for esse ntial wa ter suppli es, Singapore is adamantly ind epe nd ent, but is fa st outgrowi ng itse lf. !\ perp etu al con struction site in 2000, it remain s so today, as s parkling twenty-s torey a part ment bl ocks replace their squ atter six-storey predecessors. Everywh e re cra nes Lowe r above half-fini shed hi gh-ri se hom es, the brightly-coloured leavin g authenti c Chinese shop -houses far be low. it is in th ese s maller streets that th e sa me old s pi1路it lives on. Wrinkl ed wo men heave wobbling sla cks of damp ca rdb oa rd dow n the roads on trolleys, puffing a nd pa nting in th e seve re humidity. Thmu gh open doorways th e sweet waft of joss stic ks drifts out, a pleasa nt antidote to th e fi shy stenc h
of th e Wet Ma rket and the rows of pri ck ly duri<1ns; a trop ical fruit so pungent it is banned on all public tra ns port. t::els s lith er to and fro, trying to avo id th e clubs of th e vendors a nd fearful frogs croak <Js men rea ch clow n fo r them, then, grasping the lips, literally turn them insid e-ou t in a fla s h, as non chalantly as if ro llin g up a pa ir of socks. Tax i drivers may grumbl e about "much cha nge, mu ch cha nge", but esse ntially th e city is mu ch the sa me, if a little ta ll er a nd more de nselypac ked. it h;1s <liways had farreaching ambition s, which, des pite its di sa dva ntages, it co ntinu es to ac hi eve, proudly hosti ng th e first Youth Olympic Ga mes in 2010. ll ea din g for its fiftieth birthd ay in 2015, Singapore, th e bi za rre ex periment laun ched by Lee l<u an Yew, co ntinu es Lo ho ld toget hc1; proving its success des pite th e odds.
Issue 256
TRAVEL 11
www.concrete-online.co.uk
Tuesday lOth May
Open the Chinese treasure Chest of Jinan, 'City of Springs' Lauren Razavi checks out China on the trip of a lifetime, spending three weeks in Jinan, with the Study China Programme, a cultural immersion experience open to all UK undergraduates. Known as the 'City of Springs', Jinan is a travellers' treasure-trove of art, heritage and natural beauty, begging to be explored inan, known as 'the city ofsprings:
I
is the capital of the Shandong
province in Eastern China. This markable location - small by Chinese standards, but much larger than the average UK city - combines a mish-mash of traditional Chinese heritage with the ever-growing Western cultural influences that put a Starbucks and a McDonalds on every street corner. Located just a few hundred miles from the Chinese capital of Beijing, Jinan has largely escaped the throngs of tourism that has encapsulated many of Asia's neighbouring notable cities like Shanghai and Hong Kong, as well, of course, as.Beijing itself. While Western brands and businesses are undoubtedly there in Jinan, the city still seems to be secure in its own identity, demonstrating perfectly the subtle conflicts being encountered 路 in modern China today; it's as if a tangible deal needs to be struck between the contemporary and the ancient to establish the boundaries of both. In Jinan, however, such peculiar issues don't seem to be affecting everyday life too much. The locals are overwhelmingly friendly; from the smiling street sellers to the excitable young children who'll gasp and grin their way through an encounter with you. Though a Westerner will be subjected to blatant stares from the
older generation, it takes nothing more than a simple 'nl hao' to break the ice and elicit a chuckle (the chuckle itself probably due to the intrinsically terrible Englishspeaker's pronunciation of their Mandarin greeting). The staring, of course, is not something to be taken personally; it's easy to forget as you walk the streets of such a vast and urbanising metropolis that China's borders have only been open to any kind of foreign visitors - let alone gawping, liberal tourists - for twenty years.
'1\scending the 7,200 stone steps up to the mountain's peak is viewed by locals of all ages as something of a pilgrimage ... taking days to complete" Jinan has historically boasted the title of cultural centre in China and is notable for housing many influential artists over its long and vibrant history. For more than 4,000 years, the Shandong region of China has been infamous for its Black Pottery, a particular style of traditional folk art that produces beautiful handcrafted sculptures and pottery. Additionally, Jinan flaunts its own unique variety
of delicious cuisine, one of the historic Eight Culinary Traditions of China. Jinan's food emphasises freshness, crispness, tenderness and aroma, and fish is frequently offered, given the proximity of the Yellow River, running directly through the city of Jinan. This foodie heritage is apparent in the never-ending stream of weird and wonderful street food on offer through the day as well as the vast array of tucked away restaurants offering all kinds of delicacies. The downtown district of Jinan - primarily known as a shopping area - reveals the reason that Jinan has earned the title 'city of springs' over the course of its history. Central Jinan is home to the Darning Lake, a picturesque and seemingly infinite lake that marks the meeting point of Jinan's seventy-two Famous Springs. Surrounded by grassy park areas and featuring an array offresh, hyperactive water tlows, the natural beauty of the area contrasts confusingly with the KFC-covered streets just a few hundred yards away from the Darning Lake's entrance. Nearby is the Baotu Spring Park, once declared "the first spring under heaven" by the Emperor Qian Long in the eighteenth century, and regarded as one of the prominent tourist attractions in Jinan. As well as housing the Baotu Spring, the Park houses other members of the seventy-two Famous
Springs collection, and this gushing and foaming scene is complimented by various bamboo pavilions and pagodas erected in the accompanying Bamboo Gardens. With springs and lakes thrown haphazardly into the city centre, this strange landscape of old and new seems to represent the pattern noticeable in much of China in 2011. There's an inherent spiritual quality to daily life in China, showcasing the important heritage of the everyday local. A morning walk through the popular park areas of Shandong University's Jinan campus
will provide a perfect picture of this; serious-looking professionals and elderly OAPs drop their bags to the ground and sychronise themselves into a beguiling waltz-like practise ofT'ai Chi. Such a scene is incredibly humbling, but the whole ritual seems almost uncomfortably uninhibited to the average Western visitor - at least compared to the rat-race of London or Manchester, perhaps. A three-hour drive away from Jinan is the breathtaking Mount Tai, located just north of the bordering Shandong city of Tai'an. The mountain is one of Five Sacred Mountains in China, and residents of Eastern China have regarded it as a place of worship for more than 3,000 years. Central to the spiritual aspect of Mount Tai and its history is the Dai Temple, sometimes called 'The Temple of the God of Mount Tai' and located at the foot of the mountain. Erected during the Qin Dynasty (221206 BC), its design is a rep1ica of the imperial palace, making it one of only three able to claim such features. Ascending the 7,200 stone steps up to the mountain's peak is viewed by locals of all ages as something of a pilgrimage, sometimes taking days to complete and incorporating a unity-building camp-out somewhere on the way up. Stories of watching the sun rise or set from its peak are spoken about with a wild, spiritual mysticism that suggests it's an experience like no other. Just moments after such a vivid and meaningful description, tour guides and friends rejoice in explaining that the most popular 9rand of beer in the Shandong province is named after the transcendent Tai mountain. For more information and to submit an application, please see www.studychina.org uk.
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Issue 256 Tu esd ay 1Oth May
SPOTLIGHT ON
London is as a building as 1t IS a co ncept. Stand ing on the very cusp of London's financial heartland, it stands some 36 stor ies tall, rivalling in stature the buildings within its vicinity, many of which house t he capital's most illustrious business names. lt is a s tatement of intent for UEA's ambition to cement itself a place at the top table of the higher education system; and becoming the first non-London university to establish a campus in the city is a bold indication of this intention. After its officia l opening last month in a ceremony attended by Vice-Chancellor Edward Acton, alongside a host of MPs, ambassadors and dignitaries, Concrete vis ited UEA's new London location t o find out more about the University's newest campus. The campus' location is a melting pot of diversity within London, on the border between the banking district surrounding Liverpool Street, and t he highlyfas hionable Shoreditch. Student
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accommodation is provided in Bethnal Green and Whitechapel, now incr eas ingly affluent areas a far cry from the pove rtystricken image of them por t rayed in a GCSE students' Jack the Ripper coursework. The main accommodation block, however, comes with the Nido Tower, a 36-sto ry building situa ted directly behind the main teaching facility. These modern rooms may lack some of the character of Norfolk Ter race, but for what they miss they make up for with location, design and comfort. This said, with t he cheapest accommodation in t he tower coming in at £220, it is mouth wateringly expensive compared to the price of accommodation in Paston House or Nor folk Terrace. The main teaching building is situated just two minutes' walk from Liver pool Street Statio n, and on its doorstep sees Petticoat Lane Market bring a throng of shoppers past the campus' doors every weekend. h) an agreement between UEA and City University, London. UEA teaches City's students in excha nge
for use of City's library. sport and social facilities; it is an agreement which currently sees 580 City and UEA students work a longside one another presently, with 90.0 expected by September. and 1500 when the campus is running at ftill capacity. Those students will also have access to a Fitness First gym, which is situated in t he baseme nt of the bui:ding. . The rwge of courses that the campus cffers is symbolic of an academic modernity that stays true to UEA's motto of 'Do Different'. The obv1ous business benefits that can be gained from a base in th ~ capitol have been allied with UEA's traditional strengths: an MA in Strategic Carbon Management sees a combination of the Nor wich Business School and the renowned Envir onmental Science School; Creative Entrepreneu rship aims to instil an e nt repreneurial s pirit into UEA's creative minds. St udents at the building have access to ~ome of the most modern teaching facilities in the country today, w ith computers installed into des:<tops and interactive
whiteboards in every classroom. However, despite this, the campus did not escape t he effects of UEA's 'techpocalypse' com puter crash back in December, with both the phone and computer networks also going down. That UEA was able to fund such a project at the heart of one of the world's m ost expensive cities du ring a recession is actua lly a result of t he financia l cr isis itself. A dramatic decline in demand for property in the banking district gave UEA the opportunity to acquire the UEA London premises. This opportunity to set up a base in London w ill provide many possibilities for UEA in fu ture, as Dean of UEA London, Dr Richard Harvey explains: "Firstly, UEA London will educate students to a very high standard, a nd that will be its primary focus." "Secondly, it gives adva ntages in relation to influential people and companies. It's a lot easier to drop into London, and to an extent Norwich is fairly impracticable. UEA Londo n will be very effective a t also act ing as shop window for
the University." "[At the o pening] ambassadors of developing countries were talking to UEA academics. It was fantas tic to see. We've had vis its from MPs, diplomats and the London Chamber of Commerce" Of course, though, despite the obvious benefits of the new campus, the University will face challe nges in a djusting to life in the capital. Dr Harvey said: "UEA London will have to be run reasonably close to capacity to maintain costs." Whatever the challenges it will go on to face, UEA London is indicative of the University's ambition to fu rt her enhance its reputat ion. Where· it faced criticism and derision in the direct aftermath of t he 'Ciimategate' scandal last year, the subsequent invest igation and vind ication put UEA in the global spotlight as a n institut ion of real world-class pedigree. It will, then, be hoped that the University's ar r ival into the City of London will continue to showcase UEA's credentials for years to come
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ISSUE 256
Thursday 10th April
with
Norwich Fa ous ~ ~ ~ \1!,(0~ ~ wfifu ~ ~ Thl.n1 ~ ~}}®Jf~c {fuat~~~)]ffi)~~~ 00\m ~ {ft@ ~ ~ ~ firO:S!INfuloo ~ ~ dltltOi~Iillir~;JiC~ aroline Lucas certainly. has a lot on her shoulders. Not only is she Leader of the Green Party of England and Wales but she also stands as the only Green voice in Westminster. Lucas admits, during her visit day to Norwich ahead of the local elections, "it can get a bit lonely in Parliament, although I am on my own it does feel that l 'can still get things done by working with others on a case by case basis. The balance is working together with other parties but. also keeping your integrity - that is where the Lib Dems might have overstepped the mark!" When Lucas joined the Green Party in 1986 it was a minor; leftfield party centred on environmental concerns. The picture couldn't be more different today with a growing presence in the European Parliament and on local councils. The Greens have shed their image of only being a single-issue party and are currently
campa1gnmg for political reform, saving public services and abolishing tuition fees. Lucas has had a highly successful career within the .party, working as a press officer, councillor in Oxford and then MEP for South East England before she was elected MP for Brighton Pavilion in May last year. She explains her transition into politics stemmed from her growing political understanding and concern. This was crystallised during her time studying English Literature at Exeter University, where she became involved in local anti-nuclear campaigning: "It was a consuming passion because at that point in the mid 1980's it really did feel that the future of the planet was literally at stake due to the spread of nuclear weapons. And indeed in many ways it still is:· Speaking to the Spring Conference justa few months ago, Lucas referred to her party as the real opposition to
the coalition. When asked to describe to UEA students what this meant, she said: "When you look at some of the worst of the coalition policies, whether that is to do with tuition fees or the privatisation of the J':lHS, or what they are doing with schools, actually the beginnings of all this happened under Labour - they are deeply compromised to the extent to which they can provide a rigorous opposition because they are so contaminated by their own history in that res[pect:' The Greens have a strong voice in Norwich, and remain the largest opposition party on the Council following last week's local elections with 15 seats. Deputy Leader, Adrian Ramsay, also doubled his vote share when he stood as a parliamentary candidate for Norwich South in the 2010 general election, and Lucas puts money on him joining her in Parliament in the near future.
Earliest memory: Being in a pushchair in the garden and smelling freshly mown grass.
time.
Proudest moment: It would have to be winning Brighton. It was very much a collective moment as it really felt this was the culmination of so many years of work by so many people. It was winning when the whole system was stacked against us.
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In another life I'd be: 1 would love to be a human rights lawyer for people who are really struggling and left out of the justice system. The best thing a bout university was: Friendships. The worst thing a bout university was: Missed opportunities. I felt quite unprepared for university and didn't find out about lots of the things it had . to offer until it was too late. Favourite film: Life is Beautiful starring Roberto Benigni. T~is is a controversial film set in a concentration camp that has you laughing and crying at the same
Most important lesson life has taught me so far: That the majority isn't always right Most treasured possession: Photograph albums. lfl could pass a new law tomorrow it would be: It would have to be internalising environmental costs. Guilty pleasure: Eating far too much chocolate and drinking a bit too much wine. Of all the places I have been to in my life I would recommend: Can I have three? The beaches of Anglesey in Wales, Arezzo in Tuscany; and Brighton because it really does have everything. I feel so lucky to be representing it of all the places.
My most overused word or phrase is: Sorry I' m late!
In the year 2050 I expect or hope to find : That humanity has woken up to the fact that there are some real opportunities in the years ahead to get our relationship with the plant and each other right I hope that I realise in 2050 that we took that opportunity; rose to the moment and didn't just let it pass. If it does pass and we don't tackle climate change the year 2050 could be extremely bleak
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ISSUE 256
www.concrete-online.co.uk
Tuesday lOth May
LIFESTYLE
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Evening meals for spring satisfaction Jerk chicken accompanied with coconut rice and
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Emma Galal Lifestyle writer
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4 Chicken thighs 4 Garlic cloves 2 Onions 2 Red Peppers Pineapple Chunks in juice 2 teaspoons each of Sugar, Salt and Pepper Jamaica n Jerk seasoning 1 Tube of tomato puree 1 Pint of water Jamaican Jerk Seasoning All Spice Soy Sauce Cinnamon Nutmeg Ginger Rice Coconut Mi lk
1 Tin of kidney beans or beans of your choice Marinade the chicken for at least four hours before cooking in order to let the spices to fully infuse the chicken pieces. Heat a pan with two tablespoons of Olive Oil and fry the coarsely chopped garlic and the onion together. After two minutes, place the marinated chicken into the pan and brown on either side for four mi nutes. Throw the sliced peppers and any other vegetables of your choice into the pan along with a combination of the marinade spices. When the peppers have softened a little bit, squeeze three quarters of a tube of tomato puree into the pan along with a pint of water and the juice from the tin of pineapple. Keep the dish on a
~dney
Brie and caramelised onion tart
beans
simmering heat, continuing to season with the herbs, salt, pepper and sugar At this point you can add some scotch bonnet peppers if you desire a fiery dish. Leave the pan to simmer for thirty minutes. Proceed to boil two cups of rice and four cups of water in a pot with a tin of kidney beans including the brine. When the rice has almost absorbed all of the water, add the coconut milk and a sprinkle of pepper. By now, the jerk chicken should have a shallow layer of dark oil and residue at the top of the dish,: remove as much as possible with a spoon. Finally, put the pineapple chunks in the pan and allow them to cook through in the heat of the mixture. Serve the rice and chicken together with fried plantain to complete this staple Caribbean dish!
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Emma Williamson Lifestyle writer
Ingre di e nts 200g of ready made Puff Pastry 140gofBrie 6 Onions 2 cloves of Garlic SOg Butter Fresh Thyme In a large pan heat the butter. Dice both the cloves of garlic and peel and slice the onions into segments, adding both to the pan along with the thyme. Cook the onions and garlic on a gentle heat for half an hour, or until they are soft and caramelised, stirring regularly. Preheat the oven to 220°(. Roll out your puff pastry until
it is roughly a centimetre thick. Carefully place the pastry onto
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a baking tray and score a border
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around the pastry about 2cm for the edges. Prick with a fork and blind bake for ten minutes. Once the onions and pastry are cooked, spread the onions and garlic out over the pastry leaving the border free . Brush some of the remaining oniony butter from in the pan around the border. Cut the brie into pieces and scatter over the onions. Sprinkle over some thyme leaves and season with salt and pepper. Cook the tart in the oven for roughly 15 minutes or until the pastry is golden . Slice and serve hot or cold.
Unchained adventures into the erotic Roisin LeStrange Lifestyle writer From your childhood crush on slave Princess Leia (in that bikini!) to the moral quandary as to whether to clear your search history after looking at saucy images of Dita Von Teese on Google, you've probably subconsciously dabbled in the sordid world of sadomasochism more than you first thought. Fact of the matter is that pop culture has been just as dirty. The last 12 months have seen HMV's shelves awash with album covers swathed in PVC clad broads that wou ld usually be sold in a paper bag. Whether it be Christina Aguilera or Rihanna, it's obvious it's not just
a select few who whips and chains excite. lnanagewhereexperimentation is en vogue however, the practice of flagellation, electro-masturbation and erotic humiliation are still somewhat frowned upon. You never saw Carrie Bradshaw and her contemporaries discussing safe words over eggs benedict. Thing is, for all the metaphorical beating around the bush, the actual action of beating around the bush is still very much illegal in the UK. So, why do consenting adults put their records at risk in the pursuit of that illicit orgasm? Blindfolded and cuffed to a bed whilst a trusted sex partner has their nasty way with you, you could
easily forget you were in your grimy Unthank bedroom. And that, my prospective disciples of deviant debauchery, is what it all boils down to. The apparent freedom to be whoever you want in your day to day life is stripped away when you are, however momentarily, forced to live in your escapist fantasies. You are devoid of the many selves and paranoias that make up your everyday thoughts and are instead allowed, in fact forced, to entirely give yourself up to the moment. The prospect of giving yourself over to absolute pleasure may at first cause you to baulk. We spend our time managing every moment of our lives and the idea of giving up that control when
you're at your most vulnerable may seem strange. However, when the boundaries demand complete presence in the moment, you are free from all the personas of your societally conditioned se lf; your hang-ups, your insecurities, bank loans and electricity bills are subservient to an altogether more
primal version of you. At a time when you're meant be growing up and working out who you are, taking a moment to get to know the altogether more primitive you may be no bad thing. He ll, if nothing else you're almost guaranteed a happy ending.
Issue 256 Tuesday lOth May
A volunteered hand will clasp one in return Concrete looks at th e various opportunities available to stud e nts in the volunteering sector during the summe r month a head
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vo luntee rin g is a good way to build s kill s a nd get so m e expe ri e nce. Th e re wil l be opportun iti es to Summ e r is a lm os t he re. As m ee t new peo pl e a nd he lpin g me mo ri es o f freezing mor nings w ith a co ns tru cti ve proj ect, e ith e r s tamp ing throu gh s now di sso lve soc ia l o r e nvironm e ntal , s hould be into a pl easa nt haze of ba by bunni es, rewardin g in a n a ltrui s ti c way. a g limm e rin g lake an d a coo l ci d er Hcga rdin g vo luntee rin g, there in th e Squ a re, Uf-:1\ has o nly a few . a rc three paths t ha t ca n he taken weeks to go before practically four fo r a stud e nt on th e ir lon g s umm e r month s of fr eedom . break. Firs lly, th e re is th e opt io n As lo ng as the prospect of of ove rseas volunteering. This has doing nothin g is prelty a pp ea lin g th e a dd ed glamo ur of being abroa d during the tim e the exa ms <~ r e go ing a nd prac ti ca lly o n a holiday (a lb e it on, the long unive rs it y s umme r a wo rkin g one). Th e down s id e m ay be that you wi ll proba bly have to break is a lso a n o pportunity to do so m e thing a bit differe nt. Of pay a s m a ll fee to th e o rga ni sa tion co urs e, the re are a lways those runnin g your trip, though it is li ke ly lucky so ds who ma nage to kee p that food and acco mm od at io n will be provided. themselves perpetually occup ied a nd are je ttin g off so m ew he re "Doing so me exc iting or ha ve la nded them se lves volunteering could so m e s nazzy inte rn s hip. Ye t, for those who didn't get th e ir s umm e r actually be seen as a planned out ages ago - i.e. mos t of long-term inves tm ent" us- there are sti ll lots of option s to ga in a bit of ex pe ri ence, pa rti cu lar ly UEA Vo lun teers curre ntly has <1 in t he vo luntee r sector. wide ra nge of vaca ncies in a ll so rts Apply in g for a job where yo u of ove rseas ca pac iti es, rangi ng know you are n't going to ge l pai d from BUNAC vo lunteer p rojects see ms like a bit of a no -b ra in er for whi ch co uld take yo u as far a fi eld as the ave rage s tud e nt, ye t doin g so me Afri ca or So uth eas t As ia, to s ummer vo lunte e rin g co uld ac tu <J IIy he see n ca mp vo luntee rs in s unny Spain. as a long-term inves tm e nt. With Anoth e r option is to go a broa d with s umm er jobs ha rd to co m e by, an d a n o rga nisat io n s uch as WWOOF gra duate pros pects looking bl eak, (World Wid e Opportuniti es on Susanna Wood Lifesty le w rite r
I'm a concerned student at UEA. My female housemate recen tly received a present from us for her birthday. As a joke we bought her a sex toy. I am now concerned because we can hear her... using it... frequently. She has started spending less time with us and I feel like I am losing my friend to an object. P l ease Clive. Tell me how to wean h er off. Worried student
Is thi s for real? lt so unds like a storyline fro m Eastenders! lt certainly so unds like your joke backfire d! May I sugges t t a lking to yo u r friend and exp lain yo u would like more q u a lity time t oge ther. Perh aps m ore socia l ac tivi ty may b e n ee d ed ! Go o d lu c k a n d t a ke care.
Fa rm s). Parti cul a rl y Organic popu la r with s tudents, WWOOFers work on orga ni c or eco logical ly so und fa rms in exc ha nge fo r food a nd board with th e farm e r. Being a vo luntee r e ns ures fl exi bility, a nd m a ny countr ies parti cipate in WWOOF sc hem es. Hun ga ry, Lithuania a nd Po la nd a lso offer free me mbers hip, so it's wo rth checking out w ww.wwoof.org to see wh<Jt is ava il a bl e. A seco nd opt ion fo r s umm e r vo luntee rin g is through a Ul< work ca mp. These a re often o n co nservation s ites s uch as those o rga ni sed by the Natio nal Tru st. You ca n s ign up to work for a w ee k or lo nge r on a pa rti cul a r p ro ject, br<J nd ed as a work in g holid ay, an d they often ta ke pl ace in th e
mos t pi ctu 1路es qu e pa rts of th e Briti s h co untrys id e. Exa mpl es of ca mps av<lil able to s ig n up to at the moment o n th e EmployAbil ity websile are co nse rvatio n projects in hi s to ri c loca ti o ns in Sco tl a nd , a nd o ppo rtuniti es to work o n cana l resto ra tion in England. Alternatively, vo lun teers are needed in ho li day ca mps for di sa dva ntaged childre n. Stay in g in th e Ul< is a chea p a lte rn a tive to go ing a broa d . Once agai n, it is norm a l to p<1y <1 s mall regist rc1Lion fee, but acco mm odation a nd foo d is usu a lly provi d ed. Th ere is a lso th e option of volunteering locally in Norwich or even in you r hometown. One website, www.doit.org, lists a ll the vo lun teeri ng o rga ni satio ns co untry wid e a nd has <1 se<1rch
fac ili ty to he lp find vaca ncies. While it may not see m as excitin g as go in g <Jbro <lll or wol'i<ing on a cam p, li ving at home is a further way of s<Jv in g money whi le a lso e nj oy in g the be nefits of vo lunteering. it is a lso poss ib le to ta ilor yo ur volunteering to s uit a future career. A good pl ace to sta rt for a nyon e w h o is interes ted in vo luntee rin g is the Empl oyAb ility job s ho p in th e Sq ua re. F. la ine She rriff is ava il ab le durin g ope n ing ho urs We dn esd <Jy-forid ay to give a dvi ce on volunteering sc hemes in UEA, Norfolk an d fw路ther afield. There is also <ln eve nt ca lled Th e Edge in Jun e w h ich is specifica lly des ign ed for gra du <Jtes lo ok in g for vo lunta ry work, hut may a lso feature so m e vo luntee rin g for the up co min g s umm e r.
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Issue 256 Tuesday lOth May
Metamorphosis or meltdown1 Following the revelation that environmental activist group Climate Camp are shutting down Hester Lee reports on the changing face of the green movement
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Hester Lee Turf Reporter
The emissary note from Climate Camp on the 27th February, 2011, declaiming its cessation of national activity is footed by a quote from Lao Tzu, the ancient Chinese mystic who is embraced by many antiauthoritarian movements. The quote reads, "When storms come, some build walls, some are thrown by the wind, others build windmills". So which of the three has the Climate Camp movement heeded? lt would seem at first glance that they have opted for the second, thereby undoing their own rhetoric, for in their own words, 'anything but co-ordinated action is doomed to fail' (although lack of adequate materials might have hindered their ability to build windmills). Why then, disassemble the largest grassroots climate activist group in the country? If anything. the movement needs such a body to help co-ordinate and discuss in the face of testing international times. There are many reports from within the movement that the decision surrounding the deconstruction of the camp was embroiled in controversy and in-fighting unbecoming of the
consensus decision-making process, culminating in the unauthorised publication of their statement of 'metamorphosis' on the internet. Many attribute this to unwillingness on the part of its creators to see a cherished and idealised image of the camp, and its aims, evolve into something new. For projects such as this it is imperative that there is a continuing discussion of motive and tactic, and if the original model does not suit the situation then it must be moulded to fit, not thrown in the trash. This leaves us the question : had a National Climate Camp really run its course? The fact that, in an almost reactionary fashion, a regional climate camp has been set up in a disused school in Lewes, Sussex seems to suggest not. There are, however; differences in the way the Climate Camp in Lewes has been run. Local issues of green spaces, permaculture and workshops relating to sustainable living have been prominent, and while direct action was planned at the culmination of the week, it did not become such a divisive element. The Climate Camp in Lewes is, at the time of writing. hoping to stay at St. Anne's School and create a
radical action group Climate Camp really run ts course? community space that promotes a sustainable, anti-capitalist and welcoming way of living. This holistic approach combines aspects that a temporary climate camp never could; it has already held meetings with the local council and residents to discuss a plethora of issues, and although being a regional camp, has attracted workshops from activist groups nationwide, with regards to both direct action and
positive grassroots action. The impact of Climate Camp undoubtedly lives on . Inspiring actions at Heathrow and Drax power station are indelible, and give courage to all involved. It will be hoped, then, that without the shaky infrastructure of Climate Camp to coordinate such actions in the face of continuing and growing climate crises, events like these will continue to happen.
Is Climate Camp still relevant and needed? The answer lies in the cutting of the Marine Renewable Energy Subsidies by the Coalition, in the renewed investment in nuclear energy, and in the multiplicity of stark warnings that humans must curb their excesses. So long as climate change continues to be ignored or belittled there will be a need for radical action.
Your river needs you!
Next year...
UEA Boar Club's Robbie Laird encourages you to get involved with a RiverYare clean up this month
Union Environment Officer Will Lacey looks forward to next year's environmental challenges
along with other UEA students and the Norwich river community will Turf Reporter be doing their bit to keep our city a fine one (to paraphrase Stephen What would you normally be doing Fry) by staging a big clean up of the on a sunny day in May? Stressing River Yare. about exams? Stressing about not The river is part of the beauty stressing enough about exams? and charm of Norwich that is part of Or perhaps curled in bed with the the reason that many of us decided curtains closed wishing you hadn't to spend 3+ years of our lives here celebrated quite so hard the fact that and it is enjoyed by students, local you don't have to stress about exams people and tourists all the year for another year or even ever again? round. Unfortunately, there's always If this all sounds a bit too familiar those who don't respect areas of and if in a fit of inspiration brought natural beauty and dump rubbish on by yet another record breaking 路 and waste into the river which heat-wave you have decided to get endangers wildlife and people alike. outside and make the most of it, then The river runs through the heart why not come and do something of Norwich, all the way to Great Yarmouth and the North Sea. Don't worthwhile. On May 21st the UEA Boat Club, worry though, we're only going to be
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Robbie Laird
cleaning a s mall part of it near the football stadium known as the new cut, near Yarmouth Road. Everything you need to help the clean-up will be provided and hopefully we'll have some drinks and food available for you after all your hard work. We'll be starting off from the boat house on the river at 10:30 am and finishing about 1 pm . For further details you can find us by searching Yare River Clean-up 2011 on Facebook. So come on UEA, let's get our wellies on, pull on some gloves, grab a litter-picker-upper-thing and head off to the pub at the end of it all with a warm fuzzy feeling. a Norwich that's a little bit more lovely and a touch of light sun burn to show for our efforts.
Will Lacey Environment Officer
As the year draws to a close the Union looks to the future of the environmental movement on campus and what plans are in store for next year. Continuing on from the progress we made this year our focus will be on four main areas: Firstly we'll make UEA Clean Up better organized and more effective. There are already plans in motion to use vehicles to rescue everything. from kitchenware to clothes to books, that is thrown away in the big end-of-year halls clear out. Secondly we'll make being sustainable easy. No one coming to university wants to be told what to do so we'll be working to make
things easy, so that being green isn't an inconvenience. Watch this space for news on the brand new sustainability plan we have been developing. Thirdly, we'll be bringing the Union into your life. Emails don't do it anymore (did they ever?) so it'll be great to see people face to face and make what we do real and important. Finally we're going to make your Union more sustainable by developing new and better policies. A couple of years ago I was doing A-Levels. Now, as a 2nd year student, I've been elected by my peers to once again have the opportunity to shape a multi millionpound organization. I won't waste it!
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Iss ue 256 Tuesday l Ot h May
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Celebrating Refugee Britain
At the start of the academic year, m<Jny postgraduate s tudents will recall receiving a spo ntaneo us gift from th e Universi ty - a free co py of 11is h am Mala r's In Lhe Cuunlry uf Men. In the weeks that followed, a number of e vents were he ld, from reading g roups to discu ss ion s with Matar himself, as a platform for academic discuss ion and a way to meet new peopl e on campus. In the wake of the nove l's s uccess- which was shortlis ted for the 13ooker Prize and trans late d into 22 la nguages - ll isha m Matar is returni ng to Norwich in June to launch the publi ca tion of hi s new work, Ana tomy uf a Disu ppeoronce. In a fantastic evening of readings at the Playhouse, Matar will be joined by Tahmima Ana m (author of the A Golden 1\,qe, The Good Muslim) an d lntematio na l Cities of r~cfuge writer Philo lkonya lo ce lebrate Norwich's co mmitment to Iile rary ach icvement
for ditfere nl group lo engage with and relate to each othe1~" This is achieved through a large and varied cross-arts education program, that extends from closed sessions within local sc hool s Lo more open even ts for th e general public. !I islorically, No r wich has been hom e to a range of people from all over the world. We had the largest concentration of refugees in 1:3rilain in the 16th and 17th century, Jnd many or today's popu lation are descendents of thes e individuals known JS the Strangers. The media has had a huge impJct in warping conceptions of refugees a nd asyl u m see kers in llritain. These groups have met with increasingly hostility from memb ers of the general public, who do not realise the full extent of their situation . Refugees seek flight from their own countries often because th ey ;1re in danger from war, totalitarian regim e or human rights abuses; and it is much more difficult to seck and m <lintain permanent
and fre e dom of s peech, as well as its status as England's only City of
residency in the UJ< Js people mJy believe.
Refuge. The evening ~1 l so comes as part of a wider network of activities a nd events that will he taking place in June across the city, in ce lebration of national Refugee Week. Jt is undoubted ly a little known li1cl in th e student community th at Norwich is named as a City ofRc fu ge; we arc ext reme ly proud to say Lhal alter joining the Interna ti onal Cities of Refuge Network (!CORN) in 2006, we remain the only city with this title in the United J<ingdom. The aims of the pmgr<lmme ;11·e lo "p romote cross-cultural tolerance, dialogue and understanding; gencrJle a hc ller understa nding of issues fa ced by asylum seekers and refugees; and c rea te opportunities
Le <Hiing many of the local arts education events is the Writers' Centre Norwich, a lil er<l ry deve lopment orgJnisaton that focuses on the artis tic and social power of creative writing. IL is their belief that writing Jn d storytelling is an inspiring and successful way for people Lo come together and hellcr their understanding of one another. Writers are ollen forced Lo become Jsylum seekers and flee their home countries from persecution: in 2 00 8, C.uobiao Jiao becam e the first Norwich writer-in-residen ce, and was allowed Lo seck res id ency in the city whilst co ntinuing with the writing of his novels. This was <llso an oppo rtunity for Guobiao lo
Steph McKenna Deputy Editor
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showcase hi s work lo the general public in an environment that wJs tree from censorship and harm. All year round community proJects such as school eve nts and workshops held by The Writers' Centre are used as a pl <1 tform for exiled writers, which forms part of a wider aim Lo raise awareness of refugees J nd asy lu m seekers. Coming toge ther with schools, libraries, m useums and other local institu tions, Norwich hJs proved itself lo be one of the most open and consc ie ntious cities in th e country. As summer approaches and
WANT TO GET INVOLVED?: Refugee Wee l< http:/ /www.refugeeweek.org. uk/
Sha hraza d : http:/ jwww.s hah razadcu .org/
Simple Acts: ht t p:/ /www.rcfu gccweek.org . uk/simple-acts/
campus life begins to wind down, a huge V<lriely of exc iting (<md often free) activit ies will he Laking piJcc across the city lo celebrate Refugee Week. Refug ee Week, which 1·uns from 20-26th Jun e this year, is a Ul(-wide progr·am of eve nts which helps lo connect different soci<~l groups and celebrate the positive contributions that asylum see kers have nwde in Britain. f-ew people may realize the huge developments and profits that have been made thanks Lo such people: from big companies s uch as Ma rks <lnd
Spencers' ;md 13urtons, lo hislorie<ll icons from Alhert Einstein <llo Sigmund Freud. Since its conception in 1998, Re fug ee Week h Js ga ined hu ge national success with over 450 events being held throughout th e UJ< in 2010. This yeJ rs' focus is '60 Years of Contribution' in celebration of the 60th <lllniversary of the Refugee Convention, the first inlcrn <llional l<lW that outlined the term 'refugee' and defined how th ose seeki ng asylum shou ld be treated. In addition to 'World Voices for Refugee Week', Norwich will <llso pl <lY host lo a in sp iring range of free events Lhal are open to th e gener·a l public: from talks by war correspondent Ja cques l<alume, Lo 'One Small Suitcase' (A Simple Act) and food lasting events featuring cuisine from around the Cine ma globe. City will Jlso be screening 'Welcome', an immigrJnt dramJ, on Monday 21st June.
W h i I s t <l r range Ill c nl s for the events are st ill underway, organisers Jre keen to find volunteers from the student co mmunity who
would like to contribute towards raising the profile of this impor·L<l lll event. Opportunities include helping lo mainl;1in the national websile, managing the ti1cebook page and helping to distribute Refugee Week progrJmmes arou nd t he city and on campus.lfyou arc interested, please e mJil Pa Musa at pamusJ@menler. o rg.uk for more detai ls. Tickets are availahle for 'World Voices for Rej[tgee Week with 1/isham Mot(lf; Tahmimu !\nom & Philo JkonyCI ' now. 22/06/201 I, Bp m, Norwich l 1i11yhouse. E7 jES cone. !lvailah/e online ot www. writerscenlrenonvich.utg.uk or at the UE!\ Box Office.
Issue 256
19
Tuesday lOth May
Mile Cross Speaks
Kayonaaz Kalyanwala Media and International Development Group Over the last 5 months, a group of postgraduate students studying Media and International Development at the University of
East Anglia have been working with Future Radio, Norwich's local community radio station, to bring a wider range of local voices to the radio. After spending time in a local community centre in the Mile Cross area talking to residents about their views and opinions of
Norwich, students produced a sound documentary and various short sound bites reflecting the voices of local people that are soon to be broadcast on Future Radio. In July 2010 Future Radio was officially re-launched on a new frequency. Working out a way to reach new audiences was one of the
'I've been lucky enough to travel the world but Norwich always draws me back'
main tasks that the students at UEA decided to undertake. The group of students working on this project is extremely diverse. It consists of people from all over the world - China, France, Germany, India, Nepal, Thailand, Uruguay, USA as well as right here in the UK - and also from a range of backgrounds - including media professionals, photographers and people with development experience. Echoing this thought, Ana Libisch said: "it was an interesting experience that challenged our capacity to work as a heterogeneous group with different skills and expectations." With an entire range of experiences behind them, each contributed something unique to the project. A lot of thoughtful planning and endless cups of coffee later the team came to the decision to go into the community and see what it thought of the radio and its role in the community. While interviewing people, they asked them what they felt about Norwich, what they'd like to see changed and what they would want a radio station like Future Radio to do for the community. While most
of the interviews took place at the Norman Centre, some others were taken on the streets of Norwich. Through something as simple as sound bites, the project has managed to simultaneously increase promotion for the radio by raising awareness about it to its new audiences and has also brought the audience to the radio. It also serves as research, for the station gets to hear people's views on what is expected of them. Ratherthan letting the opinions collected go unheard and turning into just another piece of research which is of no interest to others, the final product was a short sound documentary collating these sound bites which provided material for the radio and also for the Future Radio website. The fact that the people will be able to hear themselves on a radio goes one step further in including the audience in the radio. "It's great to be able to get a whole range of different voices heard, it closes the gap between radio and its community" said Amy Richardson, one of the students working on the project.
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路Issue 256 Tuesday I Oth May
The great language barrier? From accents to dialects and pronunciation to slang, Concrete International explores the challenges the English language presents for an international student at UEA
A question of dialects Rachael Lum Internat ional Writer
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A s in gle language can be shared by a nation and yet be vastly differenti ated w hen s poken. No doubt this is a cultu re s ho ck most people find when th ey enter a foreign cou ntry. Rega rdl ess of whether one is f~nniliar with the lan guage, be in g introduced to a world where a language is shaped hy different cultura l h~1ckgrounds can be rather confusing. This is one of the strange things about language. From the acce nt a person s peaks in, it ca n he easy Lo locale roughly where th ey arc from, where they have bee n or eve n wha t they have bee n exposed to . Hriti s h F.ng lis h and American Engl ish a rc two forms of the lan guage that have become widespread from the in crea sed
exposu re in mass media and social mobility. Nowadays, il is not so much the use of different words, since people ge nerally understand that 'e levator' and 'lift' work in the same way. IL is the way the sa me wo rd s a re pronounced differently that gives an accent that d isti nguishablc qua l ily. That, ho wever, is no more perplexing than th e regional d ialecls of a co untt y l~vc n within the sa me nati on, the lang uage is painted by a s pe ctrum of local co lours. All il takes is one conversation to disclose where a person is from. Th e res ult of' thi s can be baffling. Take as an examp le the evening meal at around 6pm . Is it called 'Lea', 'dinn er' or 'supper'? In coun tri es like Australia, New Zealand and even the northern regions of th e Ul<, 'tea' is considered the proper term. 'D inn er' is used in co untries s uch as Ma lays ia a nd Singapore
as well dS other region s of the Ul< while al Limes 'supper' might he used interchangeably, as in Canada ;md the Philippines. In the UK, two individuals reading out a simi lar sentence can soun d ent irely different. Ask several people Lo pronounce the word 'castle' and you might find yourself caught in an endless debate between the Northerners and Southerners. Un less you are in a forma l situatio n, there are usually no right or wrong ways of speaking the language. On the bright side, this shows how unique each country is. Often th e local co lours arc borrowed from th e palettes of other languages. The hybrid of accents a nd languages create the s langs that become exclusive Lo a group of people. In many ways, they work as lingui stic in-jokes of the community.
The evolution of English Jsal belle Carty In ternationa l Writer The English language has evolved _. greatly from it<> humble beginnings as fragments and fusions of other languages ,md dialects. The language has gone Lh rough many phases with inf1uenccs from Germany, Scandinavia, France, the Netherlands and Denmark along with borrowings from l.<1 tin and Greek. Through invasion, invention and global expa nsion, English has now become th e most widely spoken language in the world. it is now l'efcl'l'l'd lo <lS the fill,(j!/0 ji"OIJCC/ or alternatively. the language used to make com muni e<llion poss ibl e between peo ple not sharing a mother tongue. Due Lo the signil icanl assimi lation of the aforementioned Europe<lll languages, modern English consists of a very large voe<1hulary. The Oxj(ml ~路nglish Dictionary lists over 250,000 distinct words <llld this count does not include either technical or colloquial terminology. Over time, the l,mguage has been shaped by hoth people and location. For cx~11nplc, American English can he quite different Lo 11ritish English,
specifica lly with regards to the spoken (rather than written) language. Th ere is not only a difference in accent or th e pronunciation of words hut many American phrases simply do nol translate Lo 13ritish English ;md vice versa. Still, there arc many phrases that have stood the Lest of Lime. Certain Shakespeare<ln phrases, for example, arc frequently uttered without the rea lisation that this is indeed what they arc since they arc now so ingrained
liThe Oxford
English Dictionary lists over 250,000 distinct words ... " in everyday language. If your lost property has "vanished into thin air", if you are "Longue"tied", if you insisted on "fair play", suspected "fo ul play" or had "too much of a good thing", you a1路c co ntinually quoting Shakespeare. In a similar mannc1; other inlluenlial texts and authors have also left their mark on the English language. From one generation to the next there arc evident changes in the spoken English language. Most
recently, the advent of intcrnet or 'text speak' has resulted in the creation of a type of shorthand composed of frequent abb reviations and acronyms that can require some getting used Lo. For those learning English as a second language, it can be quite difficult si nce direct translation from their mother tongue Gln he nonsensical and accent~ can be difficult to dcciphe1~ Still, the same can undoubtedly be said for any language 路 but there arc certainly benefil-; to learn ing English. Books, magazine~. and newspapers written in English are available in countless countries around the globe and English is th e most commonly used language in the sciences, with up Lo 9S 0;b of <111 scientific articles being written in l ~ng li sh l'Ven though only half of them ca me from authors in Englishspcaking countries. Ultimately, English is a language that will co ntinue Lo evolve by inco rporating and absorbing aspects of cultures from around the world, making it more than just a commonly -;poken language and more of a way Lo merge cultures and countries allowing for a sense of unity and global communication.
Is this a carstle or a cassle? Dinner, supper or tea?
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ISSUE 256
Golf loses a true master
I
James Schofield Sports Correspondent
The golfing world mourned the loss of a true great on Saturday with the passing of Seve Ballesteros, at the age of 54. The Spaniard was diagnosed with cancer three years ago. During an illustrious career that spanned 31 glorious years, Ballesteros won five majors and 87 titles overall. He made his first mark at The Open in 1976 where, aged just 19, he finished second, tying with golfing great jack Nicklaus. He won the Masters in 1980, the first European to do so and the youngest man to don the green coat until Tiger Woods in 1997. Repeated successes in the Ryder Cup brought him fans and support across the world. Seve was respected throughout the world of sport as a fine sportsman and as a charismatic, charming figure. Tributes have flooded in for him from across the world of sport. Current world number one Lee Westwood described the loss of"an inspiration, genius, role-model, hero and friend. Seve made European golf what it is today." Ballesteros' fellow Spaniard, Rafael Nadal, currently tennis's world number one, also had high praise for Ballesteros. "Seve was great, a model for all Spanish athletes who had the good fortune to meet him and play golf with him." A minute's silence will be held for Seve Ballesteros-during the third round of this weekend's Spanish Open.
Ballesteros, who passed away ' 'IT" r''"v suffered from brain cancer
SPORT 21
www.concrcte-online.co.uk
Tuesday lOth May
Final hurdle awaits United ISports correspondent Matt Scrafton looks ahead to a European battle royale at Wembley Stadium I Both Barcelona and Manchester United won their first European Cup at Wembley the home of English football. The two giants will return to London on the 28th May to contest the high-profile climax of this season's Champions League. Manchester United reached the final following a 6-1 aggregate win
over a disappointing Schalke side. The fixture was virtually as good as over following United's first leg 2-0 victory in Gelsenkirchen, despite the best efforts of Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer. The first leg was far from a typical cagey encounter. Sir Alex Ferguson's men carved out chance after chance and it looked
as though the team in red might endure a frustrating night without a pivotal away goal. Yet United's patience finally paid off, as Ryan Giggs and Wayne Rooney scored within quick succession of one another just after the hour mark. The second leg appeared a formality, and Ferguson seemingly agreed as he produced a line-up that wouldn't have looked out of place in a 3rd round Carling Cup tie. However, his side didn't let him down, running out comfortable 4-1 winners. Yet it was Barcelona who first made it to the final, following their 3-1 aggregate win over rivals Real Madrid. Similarly to the other semi-final encounter, the tie was almost as good as over following the Catalans 2-0 first leg win in the Bernabeu. Madrid sat back and contained their opponents in an attempt to counter Barcelona's incisive, patient tika-taka football. However, Mourinho's plans were thrown into ruins when Pepe was sent his marching orders
following a dangerous lunge on Dani Alves. The sending off allowed the visitors to utilise the space more effectively, predictably allowing the majestic Lionel Messi to grab two goals; the second of which was amazingly similar to that great goal scored by his compatriot Diego Maradona. Despite Messi's brilliance, the game was blemished by distasteful antics from both sides that one can only hope won't be repeated in the final. Fortunately, the second leg was played in a more appropriate spirit, with the two sides playing out a 1-1 draw that allowed Barcelona to progress to their third final in six years. Now Ferguson has the small task of conjuring up a game plan to counter the brilliance of Pep Guardiola's sparkling side. In f'.;, order to claim his third Champions League trophy with United, his side will have to come up against perhaps the most daunting opposition of all time.
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Concrete Sport's Danny Collins and Chris King debate the big sporting issue of the past month: Did Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho get his tactics right in the Champions League, and can his subsequent comments be justified?
The special one is not so special any more, the critics will tell you. He's especially defensive, especially controversial, even, but not special. Jose's star is supposedly in the decline. That seems to be the media consensus following Real's drubbing at the hands of Pep Guardiola's brilliant Barcelona side. Criticised for approaching the two-legged game with a defensive attitude that led to a dismal affair lit up only by the brilliance of Leo Messi, the critics rounded on the man who dared to try and undermine Barca's 'total' football. Why they rounded on him is altogether ridiculous. Mourinho is a pragmatist of the highest order. He understood that to stand toe-to-toe with Barca was to be ripped apart Barcelona are one of the greatest sides to have played the game. Real could not compete in a game of flair. Mourinho was criticised because it didn't work. this time. Had Real nicked a goal, it was perfectly feasible that they would have won. It worked in the Copa del Rey a week before, when they defended to within an inch of their life, and then Ronaldo stole a goal at the end. Had Muhammed Ali lost to George Foreman in 1974, his 'rope-a-dope' tactics would have been widely derided. As it was, he won, and it became a glorious victory. Had Mourinho ground out a victory, it would have been lauded as a masterpiece of defensive, counter-attacking footballing football. The line between derision and acclaim is fine, and Mourinho.fell the wrong side this time, for once. The truth was that Barcelona were too good. Even a manager as gifted as Mourinho cannot compensate for Lionel Messi.
Jose Mourinho: unquestionably one of the greatest managers of the past decade. However; I hold him primarily responsible for his side's calamitous night in the Santiago Bernabeu. His tactics were a triumph of the mentality of the modern game; rather than attempting to win the match, Mourinho not only tried to ensure his Real side didn't lose it, but if anything seemed content with keeping the score down to avoid overt embarrassment. Herein lay the source of Madrileiios' shame; at home, in the penultimate stage of the most prestigious cup competition in world football, with a team boasting infinite attacking potential, and costing over £400 million to assemble, Mourinho was willing to cede defeat before the match had even begun. Many have pointed to Barcelona's dominant possession statistics - 73% opposed to Real's 27% - but this has never been a guarantee of victory. Indeed Arsenal, with a trophy for six years, are a testament to this. By utilising Pepe as an anchor in midfield Mourinho essentially carried out a 'vote of no confidence' in his team's ability to attack, and seemed to be caught up in the 'Barcelona myth' of this unplayable, indestructible team we should all admire. What made the dismal first leg worse was Mourinho's attitude, searching around for anyone to accept culpability but himself. Personally. his five match UEFA ban vindicates my view, and I can't help but feel that they perhaps should slap another game on to punish the Madrid boss for robbing us of what ought to have been the greatest game of the season.
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• ISSU " 256
22
Few w ill bla me Ipswi ch Tow n s upp o rte rs this s umm e r as th ey sta re jea lo usly up th e 1\1 4 0, wa tchin g wi th e nvy as their Old r a rm ne ighbours celebrate promotion to th e Pre mi e r League. Co ntras ted w ith the Ca na ries' fa iryta le chase fo r a double p rom oti o n, Ipswich's ninth seaso n in Engli s h fo otba ll's seco nd ti e r co nt inu ed to s how li ttle early prom ise fo r a return to th e Pre mier League. After a s tro ng firs t two months, a protracted s lump be twee n
co ncre te.sport@ uea.ac.uk
Octo be r a nd Ja nu a ry saw Tow n lose 12 o f 17 league ga mes, a nd res ulted in th e de pa rture ofR oy l<ean e. The o ne positive und e r l<ea ne this season was Ipswic h's run to th e se mi fin a ls of th e Leag ue Cup. Followin g a 1-0 upset of West Bro m in th e q ua rte r fin als, t he Tracto r Boys enjoyed a gla mo rous two- leg se mi -fin a l w ith 1\rsena l, in w hi ch th ey took a famo us 1-0 win a t home before ru nn ing out of steam at th e Emi ra tes Stadi um . Und e r Pa ul Jewel!, Ipswich have see n s ignifi cant improveme nt in
the ir a pproach a nd style of play. The tea m have moved co mfo rta bly clear of th e relega ti o n s tru ggle durin g th e s pring, a nd in eig ht ga mes over th e last four weeks Tow n have s ummed up th eir season a nd their recent Cha mpi o ns hip his tory - by w in ni ng th ree games o ut of four; the n losing three o ut of th e fina l fo ur to creep to the end of the seaso n. Connor Wickh am an d David No r ris provid ed th e goa ls in a 2-1 triumph a t 13 urnl ey on
Rising star Trumped Cht·is Tea le Spo rts Co rres p o nd e nt
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Rece ntl y, th e re has be en a di s tin ct lac k o f e nthu s ias m s urroundin g t h e s port of s n ooke r, a nd its rece n t Wo rld Ch a mpi o ns hip s a t th e Cru cibl e in Sh e ffi e ld. ll o w eve r, now th a t th e tourn a m e nt is a t a n e nd, s no o ke r a pp ea rs t o have fou nd a n ew r ising s t a r~ w ho ma ny ho p e will h e lp b r in g th e ga m e to a n ew, yo un ge r a udien ce. judd Trump, a 2 1-yea r o ld from Bri s to l, ha s b ee n a pro fess io nal s in ce 20 0 5, bu t th is yea r h as see n th e m a n to u ted as snooke r' s n ext se nsa ti on ri se <1 lm os t o ut o f now h e re to th e u pp er ec h e lo ns of t he wo rld ra n kings. Trum p firs t beca m e no ti ced a ft e r w inn ing th e Chi na Open in ea rl y 1\p ril , cli mbing into th e to p 1 6 in th e wo rl d ra n kin gs a nd ea rnin g qu a lifi ca ti o n fo r th e Wo rl d Champion s h ips . So on, Trump wa s making reguiM <lpp ea ranc e on the 1313C, w it h suc h lege nds of s nooke r as Jo hn Virgo a nd Ste ve Dav is toutin g him as a sta r o f th e fu t ur e. Wh e n he was d raw n to face Aus tra li a n Ne il l{o be rts on, th e 2 0 I 0 c hampi o n, ve ry fe w gave Trump mu c h o f a c ha n ce. ll oweve r, Trump's 10 -8 v ict o ry ga ve th e bes t di s pl ay ye t o f hi s co n s id e ra bl e ta le nts a nd a n agg ress ive s ty le of pl ay th a t is ra r e a t prese nt. Wh a t fo llowe d was e ve n m o re unpre cedente d , as Trump kn oc ke d out Ma r t in Go uld , Gra em e Dott a nd th e highl y-ra te d Chin ese p laye r Ding Junhui in
s ubseque n t ro und s as he earned a pl ace in t h e fin a l, to face t he t h en w o rld num be r o ne Jo hn lli gg in s . In a n enthra lli ng final, Trump w as e ve ntu a ll y und o ne by lli gg in s by a score o f 18- 15, as th e yo un gs te r 's mi sta kes were puni s h e d by a pl aye r d esc rib e d by St e ve Da vi s as ' th e b es t s no o ke r p laye r I' ve e ver see n in my life'. T h e fi rst t wo sess ions of p lay in th e fin a l w e re pul sa tin g, a nd sa w Trump o p e n up a 10- 7 lea d a ft e r tw o ce ntury brea ks a nd e nj oye d very hi g h ra tes o f s uccess in b o th hi s potti ng a nd sa fety s h o ts. T h e fo ll owing d ay, Tru mp was
in t he lead by 12-9 before lliggins bou n ced back a n d won five co nsec uti ve fra m es . lt w as T rump's turn t o fi g ht bac k, a nd th e m o m e ntum s wun g h is way agai n a few frames la te r as t he yo un gs te r leve ll ed th e ma tc h a t 14- 14 . Ho w eve r, t he youn g Bri s to lian ma d e a numb e r o f er rors, a nd lli gg in s sca le d v icto ry by a fin a l m a rgi n of 1815. ll o w eve r, thi s di s pl ay a nd h is prev io u s v icto ri es h ave s h ow n Jucld Trump to be a tru e s ta r in th e m a kin g, a nd h o pe full y o ne tha t wi ll he lp brin g th e game o f s n ooke r to a ne w a udi e nce .
Benefits of el;( perience: ve tera n Higg ins held hi s nerve on the fina l day
Apri l 2, before a Josh (arson double fired the Tractor Boys past Crys ta l Pa lace. Foll owing a thrilling 3-3 draw w ith Middlesbrough, Town recovered th eir form to edge past Bristol City w it h ano ther goal from Carson (pi ctured), the lates t exciting ta len t to e merge fro m the club's la ud ed yo uth acade my. But the n, of cou rse, th e most
seaso n the d is ma l anni hilation at ho me lo No rwic h. The dr ubb ing admin istered by coup led absol u te ly Ip s wi c h
performance, and wi ll su rely live lo ng in th e me mo ry of Suffolk foo tb all fa ns. ll ce rta inly see med to haun t th e tea m, as Ipswich went on to lose two of their three final games of t he season, a 2- 1 wi n ove r relega ted Pres to n sa nd wiched betwe e n 4- 1 an d 4-2 away de feats, to Swa nsea an d Leiceste r respecti ve ly. T he re, is, however, ho pe fo r th e future. Th e seco nd ha lf of th e seaso n has see n very ge nuin e prog ress und e r jewe ll's new syste m, a nd th e e nd -of-season ha mmerings we re m iti gated by Town's crip pli ng in jury prob le ms over the las t month. With a strong s umm e r in th e tra nsfe r ma rke t, a revita lised Town have the potentia l to cha llenge fo r the play-offs next year - provi ded they s how more me nta l toughness than has been th e ir rece nt ha ll mark.
Testing tillles ahead for England's new elite Sam Tomkinson Sports Co rres po nd e nt Thi s su mm er cou ld be a toug h o ne fo r Engla nd 's cri cke te rs, as th ey welco me th e num ber one test na tio n a nd Wo rl d Cup wi nn e rs Indi a. Befo re this clas h Engla nd w il l a lso meet Sri La nka, w h o de m olis hed th e m a t th e World Cup in Ba ng la des h las t mo nth . Engla nd w ill be go ing into th e ir test se ri es bu oya nt, th o ug h, afte r a n e mph a tic /\s hes victory. Sri La nka s ho uld pose a straightfo rwa rd cha ll e nge; despi te boasting a stro ng batt ing line up headed by Mah e la )aya warde na a nd l<uma r Sanga kkara, th e lack of howli ng optio ns is a severe wea kness . The re tiremen ts of wo rl d reco rd w icke t taker Mulli a h Mura litha ran a nd fas t bowle r Las it h Ma linga have left s ig nifican t ho les w h ic h have no l been filled. England, on the other ha nd, have a prob lem of too many op ti ons. The ba ll ing order picks itself, wi th th e o pe n num ber s ix spo t und e r imm e nse co mp e titi o n from s uch e m e rging pl ayer as Eo in M01·ga n, Rav i Bopa ra a nd Ja m es Hil dre th . Thi s will he a d iffi cult cho ice for th e se lectors. Althou gh Bopa ra turn ed d ow n th e mo ney-s pinnin g Indi a n Pre mi e r League to pl ay firs tclass cri cke t, h is mo d es t ave rage sugges ts th at he has no t fou nd th e fo r m he needed to s ho w. Mo rga n, in choos ing to p lay in th e IPL, has lost so m e integri ty a nd a lso s om e form - as he regul arly watche·; o t he rs sco re run s while
wa it ing for infreq uent a p peara nces. llilclre th, too, has had a qui e t s ta rt, but as las t seaso n's second -hi g hest run sco re r and co min g o ff a hi g hly s uccess ful winter w ith th e Engla nd Lio ns, he is see n by many as th e li ke ly choice. The bowling de pa rtment has in credibl e co mpetiti on, p rovi di ng th ey s tay fit. Grae me Swa nn is a n obv io us choice, but p ick ing a seam a ttack w ill be incredibly di ffic ult. 1\1 1 bow le rs p layed a s ig nificant rol e in 1\ustra lia, wi th Tim 13res na n a nd Chris Tre ml elt provi din g a mpl e cove r fo r Stuart Broad a nd Step hen Finn. Th e fo rm of Chris Woa kes s ho uld no t be ig no red ; he s hot into pro mine nce wi th 6-45 in a recent 00 1 agains t Aus t ra lia. 1\fter a poo r Wo rl d Cup, james And e rso n w ill be loo kin g rein s ta te himse lf 3 rd in th e Tes l s id e. India wi ll provide a n inc redibly ste rn cha lle nge fo r w hoever Engla nd c hooses. W it h a n experi enced a nd brill ia nt ba lling lin e up co mpl e m e nted a savvy bowling a ttack Engla nd w ill have th eir wo rk cut o ut. Eve n th o ugh Engla nd has th e po te ntia l to win both test se ri es, in OD Is th ey go in as firm und e rdogs. Afte r a po o r di s pl ay in Au s tra lia a nd a n e rra ti c Wo rl d Cup Engla nd have go ne thro ug h a cha ng ing o f th e g ua rd as Ali s tai r Cook lea ds ·a tea m w ho ore s triv ing to find a ba la nce th a t w o rks for them . Qu estion ma rks loo m over Coo k as a pe rfo rm er in s ho rter forma t, howeve r; his fi g ures a re pro mi s ing a nd h e led th e tea m w ell in Ba nglad es h.
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Tuesday lOth May
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lan Hobbs Sports Correspondent
Norwich City reached the promised iand of the Premier League after an extraordinary 20 months at the club. The club's turnaround in fortunes since that 7-1 hammering on the first day oflast season has been sensational. Following that fateful day, Norwich appointed the master of their downfall, Paul Lambert, and the Canaries have been soaring ever since. Lambert was a relative unknown in management circles before his appointment, but was an accomplished player who won the 1997 Champions League with Borussia Dortmund - notably marking one Zinedine Zidane out of the final. Norwich's promotion charge to the Premiership really gathered pace at the start of April with a fantastic 6-0 win over Scunthorpe, with Grant Holt and Simeon Jackson both grabbing majestic hat-tricks. The only real blips in their charge were a defeat at Swansea and a draw to away at Watford. The real highlight of April for Norwich fans and players alike was the 5-1 demolition of Ipswich Town at Portman Road. lt had been expected to be a close encounter but Norwich always looked in control and were 2-0 up at half-time thanks to a neat finish from An drew Surman and an unfortunate own goal from Gareth McAuley. The lethal display of counter-attacking football saw Norwich add another three goals thanks to jackson, Russell Martin and on-loan Liverpool star Dani Pacheco. As if that astonishing win wasn't enough to get pulses racing, the Canaries managed to stay ahead of closest challengers Cardiff with a 3-2 win over Derby County. It was all square until the 96th minute when man of the moment Jackson completed his second hat-trick of the month with a fortunate but vital goal. If results went their way Norwich could seal automatic promotion with a win away at Portsmouth in their penultimate game of the season. This hinged upon Cardiff losing at home to the pride of theN orth, Middlesbrough. Fortunately the Welsh side choked, as they have done in many previous seasons, meaning that just three points were needed to secure a return to the top tier of English football for the first time in six years. Norwich fans would've been biting their
nails as their side missed some guilt-edged chances early on, but Championship player of the month jackson once again grabbed the winning goal by heading in David Fox's beautiful cross shortly after half time. The 1-0 win brought delight to Lambert, who described the Canaries' back-to-back promotions as a 'miracle'. In the final game the party atmosphere at Carrow Road was fantastic as Norwich finished the season with an enthralling 2-2 draw against Coventry City.
intro t1 latest City legend Most managers, if they are lucky, become club legends after years of loyal service and perhaps one or two promotions. What Paul Lambert has achieved at Carrow Road in two years is nothing short of inspirational; not only was he the Colchester United manager at the time of that thrashing, but he has made Norwich the Pride of Anglia once again. Manager of the Season last year; I doubt anyone would object if that were repeated. A tremendous effort.
. Concrete Sport veteran and lifelong Norwich fan llmllBiiiflifl;y; selects his players of the season 1) Grant Holt- Undoubtedly a deserved player of the season. Having scored 21league goals and leading from the front as captain, his hat-trick against fiercest rivals Ipswich Town gave him a place in Canaries folklore. After starting his career in the Unibond Premier League, he'll finally get a chance to play in the top tier of English football. 2) Russell Martin -The right back has played every minute of every league game for City, another who wasn't expected to be a top performer in the Championship but has lived up to his nickname of the 'Norfolk Cafu'. He has come on leap and bounds since last season, scoring five times in the process, including vital goals against QPR and Cardiff. 3) Andrew Crofts- My only differing opinion to that of the official fans player of the year; I have gone for Andrew Crofts over Wes Hoolahan. He's been an unsung hero and always works tirelessly, never giving up on any lost cause and chipping in with a few goals from midfield. His fantastic season has earned him a place in the Welsh national side.
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EI Farcico' fallout
Masters Snooker
Criticisms and defences of Jose Mouri n ho's tac ti cs have appeared all over the media recently. Concrete Sport wades into the mire ...
Risi ng star Judd Trump caught eyes aplenty on his run to the Masters final at the Crucible
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• Norwich City return to the Premier League after a six-year absence after securing second spot in the Championship • Simeon Jackson's winner caps incredible season for the Canaries, and guarantees back-to-back promotions
Athletics finish with a flourish I Ruth McKellar
Sports Correspondent
During Easter UEA Athletics competed in the ann ua l BUCS Outdoor Championships at Bedford. A fa ntastic perfo rmance saw the most successful event in years, w ith seven semi-fin alists and two fin a lists. The outstanding performance of the weeke nd came from the men's 4x400m tea m w ho ran a fast and tactical race to ensure their place in the final as we ll as brea king the club record on their way. They continued this strong perfo rma nce in the fina l to
run even quicker and finished 5th. Steve Garrett and Oli Palmer competed in the 400mH, both reaching the sem i-fi nals. Pa lmer ran a gutsy first half to put hi m in contention in his semi -fin al but was greatly affected by the stro ng headwind in the home stra ight w hereas Garre tt ra n even quicker to brea k the club reco rd for a seco nd time to earn his place in the fin al, where he fini shed 6th. It was also a busy weeke nd fo r fres her Cha rlie Roe w ho broke the high jump club record and a lso competed in four other events. Ama r Sa ngha ra n we ll in the 4 00m to q ualify
for a semi-final and Chris Blandford was u nlucky to miss out on javelin qualification. The dis ta nce ru nners also ran we ll but qu ick heats and strong winds meant they missed out on qua lification. More competitions next term wi ll give athletes many chances to hone their techniques. It was a small team for the girls but Lydia Growns go t UEA off to a great start by qualify ing for the l SOOm semi-finals. Ruth McKella r qualified for semi-finals in both the l OOm a nd ZOOm, maki ng it he r most successful championships to date.
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UEA's Charlie Roe leapt to a huge 6.47m in the Long Jump