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LETTERS
Personality over a piece of paper Page 7
COMMENT
‘Slur campaigns should be banned in student elections.’ Page 11
SCIENCE
Sussex pioneers breakthrough research
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TECH
Are you addicted to your phone?
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ARTS
A one night stand with Nymphomaniac Page 14
Collapsed hearing cost £18,154 Figures expose costs of January hearing exceeds that of claimed damages while QC brands fresh tribunal a ‘devious new tactic’
Jack Williams News Editor Legal provisions for the collapsed January disciplinary hearing of four Sussex students have cost The University over £18,000 - approximately £4,000 more than it was alleged was incurred in damages by the students’ actions. The bill, issued to the University for legal advice and solicitor fees in the run up to the 17 January hearing, totalled £18,154. The hearing was dissolved on the day following allegations that the panel’s chair had a history of bias against the students. The University insisted that during the course of the autumn occupation of Bramber House, the four students committed transgressions costing up to £13,890, including both damage to property and loss of trading. These figures emerge as the University announces it will recommence its disciplinary action against the four students, who stand accused of “disruptive activities” during last term’s occupation, in a rescheduled hearing later this week. The new hearing will convene at the Brighton and Sussex Medical School on 6 March, but after initiating “Schedule A” of the University disciplinary regulations, the students will plead their case to a Head of School, and not to a three-person disciplinary panel. Each of the four students will be summoned to present evidence for 90 minutes and, if judged to have contravened student regulations, could face a maximum fine of £250. In accordance with Schedule A regulations, the penalty of expulsion if found guilty is removed from consideration, but students are barred from being accompanied by defence lawyers to argue on their behalf. Geoffrey Robertson QC, who repre-
Stefan Filby sented three of the ‘Sussex Five’ at the January disciplinary hearing, criticised what he called a “palpably unfair” decision to deprive the students of their right to legal representation. “This devious new tactic by the University is an abuse of process and places these students in double jeopardy. Instead of doing the decent thing and dropping all charges, they are trying to save face by putting them through a process that does not permit them legal representation. “This is so palpably unfair that it is a matter for despair that these people can be in charge of an important university that should be a community of scholars. Surely any sensible administration would now let bygones be bygones, drop the case and let the students get on with their studies.” Immediately following the January hearing, Robertson pledged to act as the accused students’ legal representative
again if the University embarked on another round of disciplinary proceedings. Dismissing claims that the students have had their legal right to representation withdrawn, a University of Sussex spokesman stated: “It is not the case that any right to legal representation has been withdrawn. It is a long-standing provision of the discipline regulations agreed by the Student Discipline Committee and Senate that the presence of lawyers for this level of disciplinary case is not necessary or appropriate. “Students can have support with them (e.g. a friend or a Students’ Union rep) but that person does not speak on their behalf. “This is a normal part of the disciplinary process at Sussex, and the University typically has some 15-20 cases heard by Heads of School each year.” The disciplinary hearing in January was postponed after it was alleged by several Sussex academics and the student’s
legal representatives that Michael Davies, Pro-Vice Chancellor and chair of the panel, was biased, due to an interview he gave to a local radio station on behalf of the University, condemning the Occupy Sus-
sex group. Davies resigned from chairing the panel following these allegations. Students’ Union elected officers requested an emergency meeting with University officials after the hearing collapsed in a bid to convince management to put a stop to disciplinary proceeding. Kelly McBride, Students’ Union President, said: “We have sent the University a list of questions relating to the new disciplinary. They mostly request the reasons behind the change in disciplinary process, ask why students can no longer have legal representation considering the interest in the hearing, and ask how the University will be ensuring this process is fair, given the outcome of the previous panel. I think it’s safe to say this development raises a lot of questions”. Asked whether Students’ Union representatives are intending to accompany the students to this week’s hearing, she added: “This has not yet been discussed with the students concerned, and they have not yet consulted our Advice & Representation centre, although there is certainly a willingness from Officers to attend in a supportive role”.
URF RELAUNCH SPECIAL PAGE 3
the badger
3 March 2014
in pictures • 2
In pictures: what’s happening on your campus
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Sussex Israeli Apartheid Week 2014
Editor-in-Chief Aubrey Allegretti
badger@sussexstudent.com
Deputy Editors-in-Chief Emily Sutherland badger-news@ussu.sussex.ac.uk
Cat Gough Shima Kamali
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James Bay
Football vs Homophobia
‘Sex and the Citadel’ talk
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News Editors Eduard Mead, Jack Williams, Vicky Farley badger-news@ussu.sussex.ac.uk
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Amber Roberts
Kiattisak Thepsuriya
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URF Relaunch
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the badger
3 march 2014
NEWS • 3
URF relaunches unveiling new studio, website and logo
Victoria Farley & Rosanna Dodds News Editor
University Radio Falmer (URF) officially relaunched and announced a rebrand at an event held in Falmer Bar on Monday 24 February. The relaunch included the opening of a brand new studio, as well as the unveiling of a new website and logo for the student radio station. The event was held in Falmer’s back bar, and featured musical performances from Sussex bands such as ‘No Ties’ and ‘Dancing Bear’, as well as Students’ Union societies SMuTS and the Ukulele Society. In an interview with The Badger, URF said that it was important to celebrate an event which many of the team had worked hard on for the past two years, and an event which would give URF the boost it needed to become a bigger part of daily life at Sussex, on and off campus. URF, the student-run radio station at the University of Sussex, is entirely staffed by volunteers and is one of the oldest and most well-known student-run radio stations in the country, having been established in 1976. URF is also one of the only non-play listed radio stations, giving full control to the student DJs who present each show. Talking about the impact the relaunch would have on URF’s connection with Sussex students, Paul Millar, Head of News,
said: “With a brand new studio, URF can bring students more in contact with their university; providing better quality broadcasting to bring the campus together.” The new studio was funded by £21,000 of donations made by the Sussex Fund in 2011/12, secured by 2012/13 Communications Officer Kit Bradshaw during his time as Chair of URF. The Sussex Fund is comprised of donations made by Sussex alumni, which each year provides funding for projects in the Students’ Union and the University, donations which this year included additional funding for student media equipment. Paige Smith, current Chair of the station, called the funding given “incredible”. Paige went on to thank the URF team for all the work put into the relaunch effort over the past two years, and how URF “can only go onto bigger and brighter things.” URF told The Badger that the station’s next plans now that it had relaunched were to forge a stronger relationship with the university. If accomplished this would see the station being played in all cafes and bars across campus, a step that would also see URF become OFCOM regulated, as well as plans to host a quiz designed for second and third year students at The Globe. “First years have quizzes at East Slope every Sunday, but the Students’ Union doesn’t really ever organise things like that for students living off campus,” said Millar.
Juliet Amoruso
“URF wants to host events that every Sussex student can look forward to and have fun at.” In the longer term, URF divulged plans to create a smartphone app, so students could listen to shows without needing to be at a computer. While the new URF website will not launch until next week, Millar was confident that its improved accessibility and design over the old website would help promote a richer university culture, allowing the station to promote events such as band nights, student media events, and more. With the new studio located inside Falmer House, Lewis Cockle, Head of Tech,
and Charlie Wall, Secretary of URF, told The Badger how the station had been “revived from being redundant and almost irrelevant and is now more integrated and more central with our Students’ Union. “By being more engaged with the university community, we can provide a better quality service to students.” Bradshaw recalled in a speech made at the event just how far URF has come since it’s early days: “This relaunch has been 22 years in the making, from a note written in 1992 found in a filing cabinet to the brand new studio we have today. “In the past, people would come to URF and do a couple of shows and just leave,
but with this new studio and website this is a great opportunity to bring good quality, consistent shows to Sussex. This is our way of celebrating student radio, and bring it closer to the heart of students.” When asked how the URF relaunch would strengthen student media at Sussex, Millar commented on how URF could now more effectively collaborate with fellow student media outlets UniTV and The Badger, in order to maximise resources and create a more credible and accessible student media outlet with strong relationships between all branches. Millar said: “URF is the glue that holds Sussex student media together.”
Electoral Reform Society finds Sussex student’s vote worth £1.99 Daniel Green The votes that Sussex students cast at general elections are worth £1.99, according to a report by The Electoral Reform Society. The ‘Penny for your vote’ report, as part of the Society’s ongoing efforts to “build a better democracy”, found that over £100,000 was spent contesting Brighton Pavilion at the last election, with almost 52,000 turning out to vote.
It was also revealed that the constituency is the 9th most valued in the country, being worth 14 times more than Bootle, which finished in last place with 14p spent by parties on each voter in 2010. In addition, the report also found that average spending in the top 50 ‘most valued’ constituencies, including Brighton Pavilion and Brighton Kemptown, was 162% higher than it was in the 50 ‘least valued’, and in 195 seats no money was spent on public meetings by any candidate.
In a statement, the Electoral Reform Society said: “Elections in Britain have become a postcode lottery. If you live in a marginal seat, then parties will spend money trying to attract your vote. But if you live in a safe seat – as many people do – then you will be all but ignored. “Our report shows that where parties tighten their belts, people will be much less likely to vote. The parties’ indifference to safe seats is turning people away from politics.”
The Electoral Reform Society also campaigns on other issues, including lowering the voting age from 18 to 16, making constituency boundaries fair and representative, and replacing the current first-past-the-post electoral system with proportional representation, claiming that “first past the post is bad for voters, bad for government and bad for democracy”. The report comes after the ‘Voter Power Index’ found that each voter in Brighton Pavilion actually has the equivalent of
0.232 votes, due to the constituency being larger than average and the use of the ‘first-past-the-post’ voting system. In 2011, the United Kingdom held a referendum on the Alternative Vote, which, according to the ‘Yes’ campaign, would cut safe seats’and make votes worth more, but was attacked as ‘expensive’ and ‘unfair’ by the ‘No’ campaign. The AV referendum resulted in a ‘No’ vote, with just 32.1% of citizens voting in favour and 67.9% voting against.
Unrecoverable student loan debt predicted to reach £80b
Zefira Bazoteva
Victoria Farley News Editor A report issued by a committee of MPs has accused the government of underestimating the amount of unrecoverable student debt. The Public Accounts Committee has es-
timated that the debt predicted to be paid by students is currently underestimated by around 8 percent by officials. Presently, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) estimates that the current figure of unrecoverable outstanding student debt stands at around £18 billion, 30 to 40 percent of the total
debt of £46 billion. The department also predicts that by 2042, the number will rise to between £70£80 billion from a total of £200 billion, as students take out loans to cover university course costs of up to £9,000 a year. The University of Sussex was one of the institutions to adopt the new £9000
course cost limit in 2012, to the disappointment of students, though introduced the First Generation Scholarship Scheme in an attempt to offset the higher course costs. The committee also recommended that the Student Loans Company (SLC) adopt a tougher stance in its approach to debt collecting, after it admitted to being unable to provide evidence on the whereabouts of over 368,000 UK and international students who still owed the company money as of March 2013. Along with a tougher SLC, the report also recommended that the Department for BIS publish annual forecasts of what it expects to collect in loan repayments and be able to explain when those predictions don’t match with reality. Student loans were introduced to the UK by the Government in 1998. The DFBIS is responsible for the overall system of collecting repayments, operated by the Student Loans Company (SLC) and HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). In the current system, from April 2014 a student who takes out a loan with the SLC
for university will be required to repay if they are earning £16,910 a year, or £325 a week, increasing from £16,365 a year previously, with the student paying 9% of anything earned over that threshold. However, a student loan could still be required to be repaid if the debtor is earning more than the weekly or monthly threshold during any given pay period, and if a student loan is not repaid after 30 years, the loan is cancelled. Martin Freedman, of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers, said the PAC report was “alarming”, and “paints a picture of a student loan system that is not only in a complete mess but is likely to get much worse. “With the Government freezing public sector pay increases, many graduates who go into teaching and social work and other public sector jobs will struggle to repay their loans month-to-month and will still never pay off the loan,” he added. Liam Byrne, Labour’s Shadow Minister for Universities, said it was now “crystal clear that the system ministers have put in place is unsustainable and is going bust.”
the badger
3 March 2014
news • 4
Students’ Union Full-time Officers reflect on manifesto progress Paul Millar
Three of the Students’ Union’s current Full-time elected Officers have reflected on their time in office in interviews with The Badger. Education Officer Juliette Cule, Communications Officer Imogen Adie, and Activities Officer Richard Mashiter, will all be leaving the Students’ Union in June. The Badger quizzed the trio on whether they had fulfilled their respective manifestos. Imogen Adie had promised to introduce student media apps, but shelved the idea upon taking up the role, and instead she secured £15,000 of funding for cameras for UniTV and computers for The Badger and URF. “Student media has quite an extensive budget and I even managed to secure extra funding this year for equipment for student media outlets,” she explained. “I think that the apps were a good idea but I think that the money was served better being spent elsewhere. “For example, we’re about to spend £15,000 on new equipment for UniTV and The Badger. “It’s important we spend the money first and foremost on things like computers and cameras that will make a direct and long-term difference before we spend money on other things. “I‘ve realised through my time in office that other things need to come first. We’re also in desperate need of a new website, and I’d really like to see future funds being directed towards this.” The outgoing Communications Officer, who narrowly lost to Michael Segalov in last week’s election, plans
to change the student media constitution before her tenure ends. “I think what’s more important is for student media to draw up a code of conduct which will stand as a value system,” she opined. “Before my term is up, I would like to have drafted a code of conduct which all incoming media volunteers will agree to work by.” Activities Officer, Richard Mashiter, has had more trouble fulfilling his manifesto, with his Campus Halls Cup and Saturday club night, Antics, both running into problems. When asked whether he was frustrated at this, he answered: “Yeah, sure. To an extent that is one of the issues - that you have so many ideas, and then you realise there’s quite a lot of bureaucracy and meetings you have to do. “A lot of the time, you’ve got the idea and you think, ‘Let’s just do it’. “That’s what happens in any organisation, and you can’t expect a bunch
of 20 to 25 year olds to come in and just do everything.” However, Richard insisted that he had “made weekends both fun and affordable”. On his Union experience as a whole, Richard said it had been a “rollercoaster”. Juliette Cule was upbeat when questioned on her delivery of manifesto pledges, with e-submissions looking set to be introduced, and the Union forging closer links with the University on teaching and learning. “We’ve done quite a lot of good stuff around mitigating evidence and associate tutors,” she said. “One of the things we have decided to do as a team was to build up our relationship with different schools by meeting with the heads of schools to discuss issues of teaching and learning. “I feel that’s been a massive way for the Union to make itself more involved in student’s education.
While Juliette’s plan to introduce a subject-wide student academic journal looks set to go ahead, her project to hold joint meetings involving the Student Reps of all 12 schools remains in the pipeline. “I think I definitely overestimated how much time I would have in this job. I am planning to work with Imogen to look at holding meetings with each school during the spring term. “But it’s just an issue with timing and getting every school to agree to meet at a convenient time. Nevertheless, Juliette believed the popular Student Rep scheme has the potential to expand as she pledged it would. “It has been a struggle but I think the student reps have and will perform a vital role in acting as a median between students and departments and would still like to see the scheme expanded even further.” Meanwhile, Juliette – regarded by some as the most “politically outspo-
ken” of the Full-time Officers – vows to continue supporting Occupy Sussex and rallying against the marketisation of education. “When I first came into this job, I quickly realised that something was drastically wrong with what was happening at our institution and the direction it was heading, and the experiences that I had at University are under attack by the management. “Tutors are under increasing pressure to teach in the current climate and I think it can all be put down to the marketisation of higher education, and this University is run in an increasingly managerial way. “I became quite vocal about it quite quickly at the meetings I attended and, when pushed, outside of them when I thought they were proving ineffective. “Hopefully I will leave a legacy that encourages future Education Officers to speak out about things they find abhorrent.”
Sussex student allegedly the only person to quiz PCC Eduard Mead News Editor
A student at the University of Sussex has allegedly been the only person to question Sussex’s Police and Crime Commissioner, Katy Bourne, since her election to office in 2013. “I always read the minutes of the Police & Crime Panel (where questions are tabled) and I can only find three,” remarked Sussex student, Gabriel Webber, adding, “all three of them were from me.” A recent BBC News investigation into PCCs found that since their introduction in November 2012 just 52 questions were asked at 280 meetings. In spite of this, the Home Office claims that PCCs have a stronger mandate than the “unelected and invisible police authorities that they replace.” According to the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, PCCs are supposed to “be the voice of the people and hold the police to account.” When Bourne’s office was asked for a response to the allegations, a representative told The Badger that the Sussex PCC had taken steps to increase
the public’s understanding of her role: “The Police & Crime Panel meetings in Sussex are webcast live and provide an opportunity for members of the public to increase their understanding of my role and see my performance as their Police and Crime Commissioner being scrutinised in an open and transparent way”, Bourne claimed. “Recordings are also published online and are available to view for six months. In addition, Panel meetings are open to the public to attend. All meetings are publicised in advance and outcomes and decisions are published afterwards. “My office is also exploring using social media to broadcast live updates during future Panel meetings. This has already proved to be effective during my monthly performance and accountability meetings with the Chief Constable, which are also webcast live. “Live tweeting has helped to extend the reach to a wider audience and encourage further discussion and debate both during and after the event.” The representative added: “On a separate note, we are delighted that a number of Sussex Uni students were successful in their applications to
Photo via The Mirror
become members of the PCC’s Youth Commission.” The Police and Crime Commissioner elections were marred by poor turnout across the country; averaging around 10-20 percent in most constituencies. The turnout for Sussex was 15.82 percent. Gabriel Webber, a former Comment
Editor of the newspaper, told The Badger that his concerns went beyond poor public participation at Sussex: “My first ever Badger article, in October 2011, was about how elected PCCs would introduce new elements of political, self-serving incompetence into the police service, and reduce transparency.
“Now, more than two years later, we have 41 elected officials across Britain who are earning a fortune, appointing their chums as highly-paid deputies, and the public is taking almost literally no interest in them. “We’re stuck with this system so the best we can do is scrutinise them as we try to scrutinise other politicians.”
THE BADGER
3 MARCH 2014
NEWS • 5
Law team to attend negotiation finals History department accused
Dominic Griffin Two Sussex students have qualified for the national final of a legal skills competition. Viviana Silva, a second year LLB student, and Anouck Van Balen Walter, a second year graduate entry LLB student, paired up to take second place at the regional negotiation competition held in Guildford on 8 February, competing against twenty teams from universities around the southeast of England. They will go on to represent the University of Sussex at the national final at the end of March. Sussex sent three teams to the regional final, including the two internal competition finalist teams, with Silva and Van Balen Walter a late entry after
another university dropped out. The pair had reached the semi-final of Sussex’s internal competition on different teams, and they were selected as the two strongest negotiators to form a third team after the additional spot became available. This left them with only two days to prepare for the competition. The teams were organised by faculty member and competition convenor Jim McGregor. This year’s competition had a James Bond theme, and the day involved two separate negotiations. One focused on the sale of the artistic rights to a new Bond film, and the other on acquiring permission from local authorities for filming locations. In the competition, teams received briefings from their clients and then met to find a mutually acceptable agreement
to resolve disputes between their respective parties. The teams were judged by different panels of judges on a variety of elements, including concession management, teamwork, their ability to build an effective relationship with the opposite team, and the overall success of the negotiators in finding a deal. While Bond-style espionage between teams would be grounds for disqualification, a critical element to success was the extraction of relevant information from the other team in order to be able to draft a favourable agreement. A successful negotiation also hinged on successfully withholding damaging elements of the client’s facts, and choosing the appropriate moment to divulge information so as to influence the outcome to the client’s benefit. Silva and Van Balen Walter went up against teams from the University of Reading and Guildford’s University of Law on their way to second place. The event is sponsored by CEDR, the leading UK body on alternative dispute resolution, and it will see the 12 best teams from England and Wales compete for top honours in a continuation of the Bond theme. This year’s national final is being hosted by Northumbria University in Newcastle, The winner of the national competition earns the right to represent England and Wales in the international negotiation competition, which took place in Malibu last year.
NUS holds summit on ‘lad culture’
Victoria Farley News Editor
On the 21 February, the National Union of Students, NUS, hosted a summit focusing on the topic of ‘lad culture’ at London South Bank University. The summit followed the launch of ‘That’s What She Said’, a report into women students’ experiences of ‘lad culture’ in higher education commissioned by the Centre of Gender Studies at the University of Sussex. The report concluded to have found a pervasive culture of ‘laddism’, sexism, and harassment on campus, prompting the NUS to call the national summit, along with a consultation on lad culture in higher education, which was completed in November. Speakers for the summit included Kelley Temple, NUS Women’s Officer, Laura Bates, founder of the Everyday Sexism Project, and Izzy Young of the University’s Centre of Gender Studies, who originally aided the NUS with their research into lad culture for ‘That’s What She Said’. Temple stated at the summit that lad culture in Higher Education damaged not just the lives of female students, but also male students, and that it was everybody’s responsibility to get involved, with Young pointing out nightclubs, sports, and even lectures as being key sites for sexual harassment. Young reported that interviewees for her report confessed to being told to “calm down” in lectures, and being told that their degree wasn’t ‘serious’ if it wasn’t a ‘hard’ or traditionally male subject.
of ‘appaling’ gender inequality
Emily Sutherland Deputy Editor in Chief The History Society is urging University staff and management to address “the marked gender inequality” they feel is present in both the history course content and across the faculty more generally. An online petition organised by the society calls on the University to increase the number of lectures given by women, increase the number of studied texts written by women, and to make at least one module on Feminism or Gender Studies available to second and third year students. Currently, only 32 out of 91 - around 35 percent - of academic staff in the history department are women. Robbie Maloney, Finance Secretary of the History Society, implores as many students as possible to sign the petition, stating: “We know from our everyday interactions with all students that the present under-representation of female academics is an issue many feel extremely passionately about, and we would like to see this reflected in signature numbers.” Maloney added in an email to history students that “in signing the petition, we are sending a clear message to the powers that be that we will not stand for the appalling inequality present in what should be a progressive, equal school”. In response to the petition, and in conjunction with the upcoming International Women’s Day, the History Society will also be hosting a student led ‘day of action’ on Thursday 6 March. The day will feature a number of talks from Sussex academics, including a roundtable debate on feminism led
Juliette Cule Education Officer
Photo via The Guardian
Later in the day students were split into two groups for a No More Page 3 workshop, focusing on how national newspapers contributed to lad culture. Lucy Holmes, No More Page 3 campaigner and overseer of the workshop, said: “Lad culture has become normal,” adding that a recent graduate told Holmes that she thought university culture and lad culture were the same thing. Temple outlined NUS’s future aims for moving forward on the issue as “zero tolerance to sexual harassment, advertising campaigns, and rules around training sports captains.” In reference to the nationwide bans of Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines” in student unions across the country, Temple went on to say that unions should feel able to make a stand on controversial issues, stating: “Don’t let anyone tell you that it’s censorship.” President of NUS, Toni Pearce, rounded up the conference by announcing for the
first time plans for the NUS to launch a national strategy on lad culture, including a committee that will aim to develop objectives that would be passed on to student unions. Four places on the committee will be reserved for students, with the others reserved for student union staff. “We need to make sure we’re representing more women’s views than just mine,” Pearce said, encouraging a full range of women students to apply for the positions. The University of Sussex Students’ Union currently runs a ‘zero tolerance to harassment and discrimination’ campaign, launched by 2011-13 Welfare Officer, Indi Hicks. The campaign attributes changes such as the campus Co-Op’s cessation of the sale of ‘lad mags’, the instigation of a clear reporting system at the University for incidences of sexual harassment and more to its actions since its creation.
by Dr. Sian Edwards and a discussion titled ‘The Past, Present and Future of Women at Sussex’. The day will culminate with the presentation of the petition to the History Department. Vice-president of the Politics Society, and newly elected Education Officer, Bethan Hunt, remarked that the Politics Society would be lending their support to the campaign. Speaking to The Badger, Hunt explained: “we agree that the gender gap is disgraceful - especially as Sussex claims to be a liberal institution. “This event has prompted The Politics Society to research into our own department and if we find similar results to the History Society we will call for a similar day of action.” The History Society campaign taps in to growing concerns about the number of female academics at UK universities. University’s efforts to address gender inequality have been widely criticised after a recent study revealed that at some institutions, just one in ten professors is female. At Bournemouth University, just three out of 30 professors were women (8.7 percent), while the University of Liverpool did little better with a meagre 14 percent. Professor Morley, director for the Centre for Higher Education and Equity Research at the University of Sussex, has previously argued that universities should be banned from research funding unless they can prove they are supporting female academics’ careers. The School of Law, Politics and Sociology at Sussex has recently joined the pilot of a national scheme to improve gender equality.
Calling all postgraduates! Postgraduate students make up 23 percent of the University of Sussex student population. In 2012/13 we set up the Postgraduate Association (PGA) to represent you more effectively, and give you the attention and resource you need. The association aims to act not only as a lobbying and campaigning hub for postgraduates, but also as a social network, and as such the PGA has set up a series of events for you to come along to and meet fellow postgraduate and mature students. Wednesday 5 March, 10am - PGA meeting - Strategy Room Help to improve postgraduate opportunities and events
Sunday 9 March, 2pm - Sunday walk and roast Meet at Falmer House for a walk to Ditchling Beacon, followed by a roast at East Slope Bar Monday 17 March - St Patrick’s Day Celebrations - The Globe Join us from 8pm to celebrate St Patrick’s Day at The Globe Monday 24 March, 1:30-2:30pm - Graduate Teaching Forum for Associate Tutors (ATs) Come along to talk to key members of University staff about the issues facing ATs at Sussex, and help to address these issues.
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the badger
3 march 2014
Gay this day Dear Badger, Being a young LGBTQ teen is tough. No doubt. We still face name calling, ostracising, we can get treated as being ‘the other’. I still find it amazing that if I hold hands with my boyfriend round Brighton we get called ‘Faggot’. I’m sure other members of the LGBTQ community face harsh ridicule; I know members of the Transgender community particularly face ignorant abuse. But in recent times, there have been a number of high profile campaigns to eradicate homophobia and prejudice; as all the slogans say: SOME PEOPLE ARE GAY. GET OVER IT! Sadly, a t-shirt campaign hasn’t worked since, well, ever. Branding ourselves doesn’t evoke acceptance, if anything it can push people away. The problem is that being gay is still portrayed as something negative. An area of culture which particularly does this, and, as the academics say, pisses me off, is Gay-Teen literature. LGBTQ books are always about how shit it is to be gay. All the plotlines revolve around suicide, or AIDS, or bullying, or name calling, or parents kicking their children out; they all infer that being gay is so fucking awful. Now, granted, being gay even in Britain today isn’t easy. I’m lucky; my parents knew I was gay from the day I asked for an ironing board for my sixth birthday. Stereotypes aside, coming out is still hard, but not as bad as it was, say twenty years ago. So if times have moved on, why does culture only show gay lives as being crappy? Although in the United States, there are shows like ‘Modern Family’ which portray every day gay life as normal, rarely do shows portray gay youth in the same light. TV shows in the UK portray gay teen life as a secret. Waterloo Road (AWFUL, AWFUL DRIVEL) portrayed two gay male teens as these secret lovers who had to hide the fact that were gay. While homophobia should be tackled, I think it’s wrong to show gay relationships on TV (or any other form of entertainment) as always being a problem. Where are the boys who are accepted? Where are the boys who follow the usual boy-meets-girl (here: boymeets-boy) format? Also, the girls who love girls? The Transgender community? Gay love is shown as being so dramatic, so ‘issue’ based. Newsflash BBC - we can be accepted, fall in love AND be accepted by family and friends. While being a gay teen is still something of a challenge, the media assumes being gay should be shown as something to be feared. Being LGBTQ is great, and it’s time to show that, in a non-stereotypical way. By showing gay teen lives as okay, you will change perception. It would be more helpful, if a TV show portrayed a
Letters • 7 lesbian couple arguing about normal stuff (who ate the last biscuit, in my experience) rather than showing them to be in a relationship of secrecy. Sexuality is great, it’s wonderful, it’s often beautiful – why can’t culture show that?
advice is to go with the Union’s letting agents or at least one with a high rating. Don’t sit and stew in bitterness over something that could’ve been averted by not impulse and panic buying.
Louis Patel
A personality over a piece of paper
The real truth about letting agents
Dear Badger,
Dear Badger, When small talk with someone I vaguely know from my course, or through friends, or perhaps just with the kind of people that force interaction on buses and trains to alleviate boredom boroughs down to the point of awkwardness, conversation often turns to off-site accommodation (unless of course they’re a cute fresher in halls. Oh, I just want to wipe ketchup from the corner of your mouth with a spit moistened hankie like an archetypal grandmother). I assume this is due to the topic’s universal appeal: memories of panic strewn agreements and contract signing. Oh, where are you living? Right next to Brighton station, what about you? Umm, I just live off… For the most part the dialogue trundles along in this manner until muttered reasons for having to move on are exchanged. But occasionally things get more interesting. The names of letting agents are exchanged and this comes to a bone smashing halt with the realization that there’s just one name being mentioned. We’re one and the same. We’re two Vietnam veterans returning from the war with memories of napalm burned into our impressionable minds. We’re Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid about to run out into the hail of bullets. We’re Bowie and Jagger coming to the realisation that those velour shirts that we danced in weren’t such a great idea when the judgement of time came down upon us. Vociferously stories are told about ill-management: months upon months waiting for simple things to be fixed, landlords being distant, feral children running around in the attic like demented crabs (perhaps I’m just imagining that one), until heads are shaken and phrases like “it’s just not on” are spat out. But then there’s a sun arising – a new and nice letting agents, like the warm embrace of your mum when you scraped your knee as a kid and it felt like the world was about to end but she knew better. Although it might be a bit late now, my
The views and opinions expressed in this publication do not nessesarily represent those of the Student’s Union, unless explicitly stated. University of Sussex Students’ Union Falmer, East Sussex, BN1 9QF
Alex Mason
It could just be that undergraduate degrees and even postgraduate degrees will eventually become as useful as a steering wheel food tray. Although this notion is clearly exaggerated for dramatic purposes, I do not think it actually lies too far from the truth. This may not be the precise reality for the present day, but let us skip ahead to perhaps a not too distant future where receiving a higher education will be as natural and predictable as brushing your teeth in the morning. Alright, that’s enough with the cheesy similes. But such consequences will mean that future university graduates will be nothing special, at least not in the way they were 30 years ago. For our parent’s generation, university meant a very probable chance of excelling in one’s chosen career. For our generation much has altered, but not the way clichés such as, how studying Law and Medicine with automatically make you a lawyer and a doctor, are still common assumptions made by some students. This has to change. A persons’ success after they graduate will depend on many other important variables that universities wish to dismiss and this is because these are things that university simply cannot teach you. If it is that we do miraculously find a well-paying job in this economy or any job at all for that matter, it will not depend on what degree you have, but on you as an individual. Universities sometimes give out the false illusion that uniqueness and creativity, qualities employers look for, is immediately embedded into you once you graduate, but this could be further from the truth. Our creativity and what makes us stand out is based on how we choose to interact with the environment around us and what personal experiences we gain from such interaction, not from the piece of paper we’ll receive upon graduation. Furthermore, what value will a commodity have if everyone will eventually have one? The rarity of possessing a university
Correction The picture of Connan Mockasin on page 14 last week was miscredited, the photographer is in fact Tom Oldham.
degree is fading, but not the rarity we each possess as people. For now though we can’t deny that having a degree is better than not having one. We ought to make the most of it. So for the time being, party hard and study harder. As for the future, well it’s as unsure as knowing if it’s going to rain tomorrowwait, we live in England. Jemada Reygadas
Slanderous posts in the elections Dear Badger, The Occupy movement was all fair and square a year ago. It engaged both students and staff with the issue of outsourcing the services on campus, and allowed all stakeholders on campus to channel their concerns in some formation. I wrote a letter at the time to The Badger denoting the importance of The Occupation not becoming a political movement but a movement with a sole purpose, which outraged many people and made many think that I was illogical for being so ‘on the fence’ about the situation. However, with 4000 followers, no occupation and the outsourcing contracts signed, the Occupy Sussex Facebook page is still active. It was alarming to find slanderous posts about a candidate in this year’s elections in the aim of undermining his campaign. There is no debate on his capability of doing the job, or a debate over his manifesto but personal attacks on his comment articles that he wrote as an editor to The Badger. This was due to a shortage of writers willing to write an unfavourable argument. I believe this is a form of cyberbullying. I personally have been in this position, where I may not conform to the dominant group that overrules the majority view. By simply writing a letter to this newspaper at the start of my appointment as an editor, I felt pursued and personally attacked by such groups. The University should be doing more, alongside the Student’s Union, to prevent this sort of cyberbullying and the victimisation of an individual by a group. There is little wonder why so many students feel so disengaged in university life at Sussex. Yasmin Centeno
GOT AN OPINION? If you’re troubled by seagull strife, want to air a campus grievance, or want to respond to an article in the paper, send a carrier pigeon to:
badger-letters@ussu.sussex.ac.uk
RE: International students feel unwelcome Dear Badger, The comment in The Badger [24.2.14] about xenophobia towards foreign students needs some comment for balance. I took a visiting French academic into Brighton in my car and he was bemused that at a junction I waved someone out in front, he said “I must be in England, you would NEVER see that in France”. Last year I took a French TV crew around Brighton filming historic buildings, we stopped in The Goldfish Bowl in East St for a beer; the cameraman came back with a pint to the table and said -” Someone at the bar asked the barman to serve me first. Can you imagine that happening in Paris, the British are so polite.” I know a white Frenchman does not have the experience of Japanese or Nigerian students, as in your article, but not all Brits are so rude as the article suggests. Dr Geoffrey Mead [A.T. Global Studies]
#Thebadger theweek in tweets @CyclingSam1 In the longest co-op queue ever. Amazingly not bothered. A lot of people lack basic patience! #thebadger @StrictlySussex Not long till Sussex live now! Less than 3 weeks to perfect our routine... #TheBadger @dbatchelor94 Excuse me but why is there not a place to take a nap on @SussexUni campus? Seriously could use a room full of beds! #TheBadger @KaroliinaL Good luck to @unitvlive @urfofficial and @TheBadgerNews next year!! #sussexelections #thebadger @CyclingSam1 Me arguing for more runways in the UK... http://www.badgeronline.co.uk/ uk-need-runways/ … @BadgerNews #thebadger #thebigdebate Do you have an opinion like a shot of tequila, short and strong? If so, then get involved and tweet us using our hashtag #TheBadger. We want to include any Sussex/Brighton/ Univeristy related tweets that you have. You can retort to an article, support a letter or just have a rant, feel free! We want to hear as much from you as we can. The challenge, for you, is to fit it into 140 characters or less...
the badger
3 march MARCH 2014
Comment FEATURE••108
Amber Roberts
So you want to start up? This week, a recent Sussex Neuroscience graduate offers her insight into an alternative career pathway following graduation with a look at how to start your own business. We’re all going to be graduates some day, and sooner or later the reality of having to find a job or ‘starting your career’ will come upon us. The days of not really knowing what you want to do after university haven’t gone away; students with A-levels already have the chance to narrow down their options, but those coming from abroad with qualifications such as the ‘International Baccalaureate’ still have a broad subject range within which to discover which prospective career avenues might be opened to them. However there is pressure on young people now, moreso than ever, to know what your chosen career will be. The luxury of walking into your dream job after graduation is only reserved for a select few, say those studying in a niche area with high demand. But for those who don’t have much of a plan, what are you to do? Go onto a Master’s degree because you couldn’t think of anything else? Get a job at Costa? Try explaining that one to your parents now: many from the age of “Old Economy Steve” can’t comprehend the fact that 212 people could apply for a part-time barista job, but they still think you could be one of the lucky ones. But then what? Start building your career in coffee shop management? That degree in biomedicine is really starting to seem like a great investment now! The government’s progress in reducing unemployment is progressing slowly, and limited to mainly part-time,
low paid jobs with little scope for career development. In Brighton there are many successful, independent businesses popping up all the time. Fab, there is some hope! With plenty of help and advice at the University Careers and Employability centre, entrepreneurial students can put their plans in motion through different start up schemes and programmes. This is great if you can get funding, but
“It’s such a great time to be getting involved with organisations and business schemes” what about the others who want to be their own boss, who have great ideas or have huge ambitions, that aren’t so lucky? What if those students have no business background? A-ha, then off to the Job Centre you go, as they also have schemes in place to help budding entrepreneurs! But it’s well known that 95 percent of businesses fail in their first 5 years of start up. Business failure can result from many things, aside from the fierce competition fighting in the current economic climate: there may be issues of lack of support and not enough business training to keep up with the pace of change.
Personally I believe I have found something worth sharing with other students and graduates. Traditionally it would be categorised as a “high risk” business, but it strikes the perfect balance of having the control of being self-employed, but with the ongoing training and support from a larger organisation, backed up by a tried and tested product that people want and a simple yet highly effective business model to boot. The business I speak of is a large global company called Forever Living Products worth $2.8billion, the world’s largest growers of Aloe Vera and bee hive based products. In the UK, it has the prestigious Investors in People award at Gold Level (the University Sports Centre also has this, so well done to them). It is given to companies by the government for their outstanding training and support to staff and associates. For someone starting up a business with literally zero background knowledge or training, this was a huge comfort, and they certainly have delivered. The reason why I started my own business under the umbrella of Forever is because I see it as a way of opening doors for my future. It was also incredibly cheap to start up – suitable for those on a more restricted budget. Whilst at Sussex I studied Neuroscience, and found my passion in marine mammal communication and the dream of doing a PhD. Not being sure where exactly I could take this, one thing I did know was that if I wanted to
do anything with it, I would need money and time for travel, living, training and tuition. What job in this current climate would provide me with that type of freedom and flexibility? With this company I am on track to set up long term financial security for myself as I am creating a freestanding business of my own – like a mini CEO, and although it’s going to take some hard work and won’t happen overnight, the prospect of retiring at 30 seems quite nice! Think of all that time you could have to live the rest of your life: no more working a crippling stop-gap job to simply pay off your student debt. It’s such a great time to be getting involved with organisations and business schemes such as Forever. The support is there and the company has proven to be successful for many people. So if you are the type of independent person who values freedom and wants to “go it alone”, what can you do to increase your skills as an entrepreneur? Firstly, it’s about being persistent; people will say no to you and will try and crush your dream. Stick with it, it will be worth it! Get speaking to everyone and become an excellent conversationalist. If you need to expand your network, get out there and meet new people. Volunteering is a great way to do that, particularly if you share a common interest with the others. The Students’ Union has plenty of volunteering opportunities on offer both on campus and further afield with
local organisations across Sussex. You might also find another driving reason to be successful: giving back to others. Don’t be afraid to start conversations while you’re going about your everyday business and be interested in people; listen to what they have to say. If being an entrepreneur isn’t your speed, then you would still go far in using these skills, as the people you engage with may present you with great opportunities for your career progression. The Careers and Employability Centre can be found on the ground floor of the library and is open for drop in sessions MondayFriday between 11am-1pm. The volunteering centre can be found on the first floor of Falmer House. Visit the Students’ Union website for more information and to book appointments. To find out more from Emma and her business please get in touch.
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the badger
3 MARCH 2014
Comment • 10
Roy Hodgson’s World Cup midfield selection dilemma Russell Crowter It’s at about this time in the footballing calendar that the race for coveted places in World Cup squads heats up. Players begin to step up their performances in a bid to take part in world football’s biggest tournament, no doubt leading to sleepless nights for international managers around the world. Indeed, the selection decisions of our very own Roy Hodgson are likely to make or break his England managerial career. So who exactly should Hodgson take to Brazil? Which group of players would provide the best chance of success for a widely written-off nation? The focus of this piece is going to be on Hodgson’s midfield, simply because I feel that this position has the most scope for debate and many places up for grabs. With normally around 8 of the 23 World Cup spots allocated to the midfield, there is little doubt that some big names will be missing come June. For me, there are just two players who have all but already secured a place in England’s midfield: Steven Gerrard and Jack Wilshere. This year, Gerrard has shown he can still compete at the highest level, churning out solid performances for the inform Liverpool. Jack Wilshere, for the most part, has also impressed with his performances for Arsenal, showing us glimpses of why he was labeled the ‘next big thing’ a couple of years ago. It is for these reasons that this pair should not only be on the plane, but should also make Hodgson’s starting XI. As for the other 6 places in the England midfield, there is much debate and differing of opinion. Staying with the competition in central midfield, there seems to be a further 4 or 5 realistic contenders battling it out for a spot in this crucial position. I would say these players are Frank Lampard, Michael Carrick, Tom Cleverly and Jordan Henderson.
Although I expect many will disagree with this, the only player I would take to Brazil out of these four is Jordan Henderson, and here’s why: Both Tom Cleverly and Michael Carrick have not found any sort of form this season, and this is reflected in Manchester United’s league position. Their lack of creativity, and general ability (particularly Cleverly), is exactly what England do not need. In contrast, Henderson has been a key component to Liverpool’s success, racking up 3 goals and 6 assists, compared to a combined 2 goals and 0 assists from the Manchester pairing. This leaves Frank Lampard, whose experience and goal threat would no doubt greatly help the English cause. However, Henderson offers something that Lampard does not; energy and stamina. With matches set to be played in searing heat and high humidity, the importance of attributes such as these will definitely come into effect. And it is for this reason, combined with the lack of game time that Lampard is getting at Chelsea, that I would choose Jordan Henderson out of the two. From central midfield, we move on to the wingers, which I regard to be the most up-for-grabs position in Hodgson's team. No player has really made a claim strong enough to guarantee themselves a squad number on either the left or right hand side of midfield. Firstly, we have to rule out the likes of Ashley Young and Aaron Lennon, who simply have not performed consistently enough during the last season and a half. This leaves us with options such as Southampton star Adam Lallana, speedsters Raheem Sterling, Andros Townsend and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, as well as Sunderland’s key man Adam Johnson. The standout name on this list for me has to be ‘the Ox’, who suffered an injury setback early on in the season, but has come back to fine form, already hitting the back of the net 3 times. This com-
bined with his international experience and indeed goals, suggests that he has to make the cut. Adam Lallana is another player whose consistently impressive performances should earn him an England call up. For much of the season, he has been Southampton’s star man, even attracting interest from Premier League giants Manchester United. He also carries an added goal threat which is much welcome in a team that has often struggled to score in major competitions. Another option of course would be Adam Johnson, who's recent form has thrown him right into contention for a World Cup spot. However, I am unconvinced that he has what it takes to perform on the big stage, and he has still not proved that he can sustain a run of good performances. For these reasons, the Adam I would take to Brazil would be Lallana instead of Johnson. This leaves a place for either Raheem Sterling or Andros Townsend. Although Townsend has admittedly shone in recent international matches, scoring a crucial goal against Montenegro, at this stage of the season, I would have to lean towards the 19-year-old Sterling.Sterling’s recent performances for Liverpool have been outstanding, providing real pace and direct attacking intent, and he has managed to bag himself 5 goals. The lightning pace of Sterling could prove to be very effective, particularly coming off the bench and facing ageing and fatigued defences such as that of Uruguay, who face England in Sao Paulo on 19th June. In contrast, Townsend’s season has fizzled out after suffering an injury setback and falling out of favour with new spurs manager Tim Sherwood. Going on current form, Hodgson has no option other than to pick the Merseyside youngster. Manchester City midfielder James Milner is the next man on my list. Although his game time at his club has been limited, this has not affected his
performances, particularly shining against European champions Bayern Munich. Milner will do what is asked of him, and what’s more, he will do it well. He also adds versatility to the squad, being able to play any position throughout the midfield. This model professional will not let Hodgson down, and therefore has to be a safe bet to make the trip. This leaves just one space left up for grabs. And in my opinion, it should go to Everton’s rising star Ross Barkley. Barkley has been one of the highlights and surprises of the season, creating havoc in opponents’ defences with darting runs and electric determination. He also provides something that England have not had in the past, which is a creative midfielder playing just behind the strikers. This was seen to be so effective in the
last World Cup with the likes of Wesley Sneijder and Mesut Ozil playing big roles in their respective countries successes. Being one of England’s brightest future hopes, it can only do Barkley good if he makes Roy’s 23. This squad provides youth, stamina and much talent, with the kind of creativity that hasn't been seen in past England squads. It is obvious, from the limited success in major tournaments that avid England supporters become accustomed to, that a change of tactics is needed with creativity being at the centre. A midfield consisting of Gerrard, Wilshere, Henderson, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Lallana, Sterling, Milner and Barkley has the best chance of doing this, and therefore providing England with a real chance of World Cup success.
We aren’t there yet: Education equality at Sussex and beyond Miriam Steiner I had the pleasure of running in the student elections last week to be a candidate for the NUS Conference. At a pre-election briefing, I met the only candidate who applied for NUS’ black students’ conference. Four places are available from the University of Sussex to go to this conference, for any student who self-identifies as black, yet only one student applied. All seven of the people who applied for the national conference, including myself, were white. Two were women, and five were men, but that’s only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to under-representation in education. For the LGBT conference, only three candidates applied for four places, whilst for the disabled students’ conference, only one student
applied despite the availability of four places. There was no competition for the women’s conference either, as only four women applied and thus all automatically gained places at the conference. After I won, I got messages of congratulations. Some were lovely, but others included calling me “beautiful” or “gorgeous”. I question whether any male winner, in any position, got these sorts of congratulations. Indeed, I wonder why anyone feels it’s appropriate to make these sorts of remarks in academic or political matters. We really have not achieved equality yet, by any standards. Something is clearly wrong here. Major groups of society and student life are under-represented in the Union, and in education overall. Conferences like NUS’ can create the policy and the pressure groups that create change, and we need to
change the acceptance of the current way. Despite legal education equality, there is still a massive gap between people from minority backgrounds and the socio-economically disadvantaged getting in to Further and Higher Education, and that gap is widening. Our Union elections are a mirror of that. As a university, and as a society, we need to recognise that and take action. Education inequality is something I care deeply about and was the focus of the manifesto that got me elected. Statistically, I should not have obtained GCSEs, let alone make it into university. I understand the essential need for societal support to bring people away from deterministic routes, and I want to encourage the University to do that more. We need education equality more
than anything: it lifts people from poverty and deprivation to flourishing members of society and benefits us all. People need opportunities, not roadblocks. Our Students’ Union, and all of us as a student body, need to be more active in this. To do this, we must encourage those who are disadvantaged when it comes to education to take a stand for what they need, because they know best what would make a difference to them. Young people, in and out of education need people to tell them they can succeed, but they need the apparatus to do it. They need financial and academic support from outside organisations, at times when existing frameworks such as families and schools cannot provide it. They need a fairer schooling and application system that does not
discriminate based on pot-luck of areas, local authorities and rankings. They need school tests that are not culturally biased, and they need a university system that is willing, with open arms, to admit that it is flawed, that it needs to do more and will promise and act to do so. I really hope I can encourage more people to sign up to run in the Students’ Union elections next year. You do not need an abundance of confidence, but you do need to be passionate about positive change. I want to see as many people who think that inequality needs to end doing their part, big or small. Volunteer in underperforming local schools, volunteer in your home communities, mentor, and do not forget that we are lucky to be at university. So many people deserve to be here just as much as we do.
THE BADGER
3 MARCH 2014
COMMENT • 11
Slur campaigns should be banned Paul Millar Cyberbullying has been in the spotlight this week both on campus and off of it. Australian television personality Charlotte Dawson, a name alien to most Brits, committed suicide last week. She was 47. A fierce campaigner against online trolling, her controversial style meant that some people decided to launch an ‘online campaign of harassment’. Dawson had also previously tried to commit suicide in 2012. Her death should send out a clear message that groups attacking individuals online can be very dangerous indeed. In last week’s Students’ Union elections, I believe I myself was the victim of an ‘online campaign of harassment’. Luckily this was to a much lesser extent, with our Sussex campus being the bubble that it is. Apparently I’ve “rallied for greater protection for fucking paedophiles”. Most insane of all, I’ve been branded “transphobic” for daring to raise doubts that introducing gender-neutral toilets would improve life for the trans* community on their own. I believe my originial assertion, that these should have been unveiled following a campaign which engages the wider campus community creatively in the contested concept of ‘gender’ itself, was acceptable and strong. While I intended my feminist and Page Three piece to strike as satire, the views I endorsed are ones that exists in the real world outside of the Sussex
bubble. I was a naïve first year, a big fan of alternative comedy, and wrote the piece on the basis that I was quite amused by the fact the existence of feminism was being debated at such a left-leaning university in a newspaper run by the Students’ Union. But much to my surprise, the Comments Editor loved my piece; perhaps he should’ve rejected it. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but the 2012-2013 Badger editorial team, which printed something about Occupy Sussex in every edition, decided to run it. If I was running The Badger now, I’d ensure satirical writing became more clearly signposted so as not to mislead readers. Italicising the name of the author, whether that author uses a pseudonym or not, could be one way. Feminism was the only topic of debate I’ve written in which I’ve been purposely satirical throughout. Most of the Page 3 article does contain
points I agree with but I made room for a silly joke. But enough with the boring stuff about me defending myself. I shouldn’t have had a picture of SS Nazi officers that was sent to me by a housemate who believed their faces resembled our close-knit friendship group. That was the ‘joke’, but it was offensive as it was – accidentally I might add – available for public view. My Facebook friends know me well enough to know I’m no Nazi sympathiser, even if somebody has drawn a Hitler tach on an A3 poster of the election results in Falmer House (see right). The Nazi business was a gaffe, and I could’ve been the architect of my own downfall in that regard. But, I won in the election for Media Development Officer with 50.7% of the vote. But I digress. I like and support the Students’ Union’s idea of the re-opening of nominations (voting for ‘RON’). I like and support the principle of RON campaigns. However, the ‘Vote RON for Media Development’ campaign, set up anonymously on Facebook, certainly included elements of online harassment and I think extra votes should be given in such circumstances in the future. Memes were made and photographs of me were shared. I didn’t mind so much, as I don’t take student elections as seriously as some others do. While I thought the Returning Officer overseeing the fairness of the elections did the best he could within the rules, I believe the Students’ Union should change its rules to discourage such vicious and potentially libel-
Sometimes paying little helps Eduard Mead News Editor The debate surrounding welfare reform in the UK is about as illinformed as they come, with both sides presenting poor, in some cases false, arguments with specific intent to manipulate public opinion in their favour. It appears to be working. YouGov have found that, of the people they surveyed, the majority believed that 40 percent of the welfare budget was spent on Job Seeker’s Allowance. In fact, the true figure is closer to 3 percent. The report also found that respondents felt that 27 percent of the welfare budget was claimed fraudulently, a figure the government itself has found to be closer to 0.7 percent. Vague statements from government officials have only added to the confusion; and on one occasion, fell afoul of policy consultant Declan Gaffney: “Only about 6 percent of the figure is explained by increased spending on working age benefits prior to the crash.” Gaffney pointed out that, in the 10 years prior to the financial crash
of 2008, welfare spending actually stabilised – even in the face of an ageing population and greater welfare generosity – having never deviated more than 0.2 of a percentage point from its average of 10.7 percent. The real problems lie in the ‘hidden welfare state’, where Governments are indirectly subsidising the profits and wage-bills of enormous corporations. In a recent BBC Newsnight investigation, Paul Mason asked Jane Bevis, former Corporate Affairs Director of British Retail Consortium, whether the message from the big four was to ‘be grateful you’ve got a job, and it’s not our problem if you can’t live on the wages’. The Greater London Authority has calculated that any London-based worker earning less than £7.25ph will be living in poverty. The average supermarket worker earns £6.83ph. The Government is directly subsidising the wage-bill of four supermarkets whose combined pre-tax profits in 2011 totalled £4bn. In effect, the Government is propping up the profits of large, established and, above all, profitable companies. Working Tax Credits cost the
taxpayer over £20bn each year, a proportion of which is paid to supermarket workers. Exact figures are hard to attain given the culture of secrecy imposed by the supermarkets themselves (Tesco’s forbid their workers from discussing Tesco matters with outsiders.) Nevertheless, it is near certain that, if the Government insisted firms paid a ‘living wage’, the tax payer would be ultimately better off – even if the supermarkets took a hit to their multi-billion pound profits. Without the availability of the aforementioned tax credits, working for a supermarket on the current wages would not be a viable career choice. In other words: if left to the free market, employees would not earn enough to live on. Those who argue that it is not up to the government to dictate the pay of company bosses and workers beyond ensuring they are above the minimum wage must appreciate how wages that require topping up are unsustainable. That isn’t free market capitalism; that’s an industry dependent on state support.
Kelly McBride President
One World Week at Sussex One World Week aims to celebrate the different cultures we have on our Sussex campus, to develop our understanding of global issues, highlight international opportunities for personal development, encourage community engagement and develop a sense of global citizenship. We’re celebrating at Sussex with a whole series of events throughout One World Week, including talks and debates, competitions, sports and activities, displays and performances. On Monday 10 March you can join us for our official launch that includes performances from the Chinese Students and Scholars Association, free language taster seslous activity in future. It is not in the spirit of the Unions’ values. RON campaigns should only be permitted under the conditions that they criticise policies rather than assassinate an individual’s character. Otherwise it lays an alarming precedent for students who genuinely do have an unorthodox opinion, and are scared of expressing it.
sions, and a film screening of ‘Pot Luck’. Later on in the week, on Tuesday and Wednesday, we have inspirational TED talks, sign language workshops, and a performance of ‘Henrik’s Feast’, amongst lots else. The week rounds off with our annual Holi event, a basketball competition, and lots of other exciting events. Find out more and get involved at sussexstudent.com/oneworldweek
What would happen to a member of the Conservative Society who wanted to run for Ethical and Environmental Officer next year? With a group of students planning to block the Universities and Science Minister David Willets from giving a speech on campus in a fortnights’ time, I shudder to think. Democracy must be heard.
We are all as ideological as Michael Farthing and VCEG Sam Jackson Comment Editor So many people profess to not be ideological. I’m calling bullshit on that one. Readers might, at this point, think ‘Sorry, what? I think I know that I’m not.’ The thing is, in this regard, it means I know you better than you do. Everyone is ideological. A pretty bold claim, but I’m making it. Many frequenters of our delightfully situated campus suggest, as I am sure you have noticed, that the Vice-Chancellor’s Executive Group (VCEG) are privatising/ outsourcing (call it what you like, it’s sort of both) campus’ rich array of services on no other basis than ideology. It’s a kind of implicit, “They have no grounds to do this, the lunatics!” And yeah, VCEG’s moves are ideological. But then so is, say, an opponent’s take on proceedings. Or an onlooker’s neutrality, and so on. Critiquing someone for being ideological is ridiculous. By all means critique the ideology that they have, but to critique ideology in itself is a complete nonsense and the height of an unrealised hypocrisy. Ideology is everything and anything that an individual, or a group, thinks. Outlook, perspective or Weltanschauung (for those of you that love little known loan
words); simply, anything that one does – either conscious or unconscious – is an ideological manoeuvre. To boil my point down to the most mundane level of everyday drabness, even crossing the road falls within the bounds of everyone's new favourite 'i' word. When to cross, what distance to leave for an approaching car, the extent that perceived car speed is integrated into thoughts on whether it’s safe or not to proceed, are, innately, as ideological as being staunchly capitalist or communist. Wherever one falls on the political spectrum, even falling off the political spectrum – it’s ideological. Those capitalists think inequality doesn’t matter. Communists, meanwhile, think capital doesn’t matter. The ‘I’m not ideological’ crowd think one of two ways; either that ideology is something ludicrous for the sole preserve of politics nerds, or a thing to condemn someone for holding. The crucial word here is think. Capitalists think, communists think, and the ideology-less crowd, whichever way inclined, think. Ideology is thought. Nothing more, nothing less. An opinion, a lack of an opinion, a strong counter-opinion, or even a weak counter-opinion: All are ideological. Claiming not to be ideological is like claiming not to be alive. You’d be wrong.
the badger
3 March 2013
SCIENCE • 12
Sussex makes breakthrough in Ash-Dieback
Fungal infection threatens ash trees with estimates of up to 99% that could be affected
James Hope Alongside scientists from the world renowned Sainsbury laboratory in Norwich, the University of Sussex is pioneering a breakthrough response to the extreme threat posed by a process known as ‘Ash-Dieback’. The disease itself is caused by the unprecedented growth of Chalara fraxinea; a vigorous fungal infection first identified in the UK in October 2012. Thus far the disease, initially recognized in Norfolk, has spread exponentially and subsequently killed thousands of tress across the eastern region. Whilst concerns over ash-dieback may not be amongst the most pressing matters commonly affecting our day to day lives, it would be foolish to utterly disregard just how dangerous the scope for devastation this disease could provide. Some 80 million ash trees are under threat across Britain, after the disease previously wrought havoc in over 90 percent of the species in Denmark Since allegedly penetrating the East coast of England due to being blown across the North Sea, the disease has already inflicted noticeably prominent desolation amongst forests in Essex,
science factoid of the week
Suffolk and Kent. Moreover it is estimated that the fungus could overall very likely destroy up to 99 percent of the UK’s native ash trees. It must be stressed that ash-dieback could possibly have far wider ecological implications. Since the species forms a substantial contribution to the country’s wildlife, many species of animals, insects and plants are under serious risk, with ash-dieback attacking their natural habitats, as well as much of their food supply. Hence this fungus should definitely not be undermined nor underestimated. However, considering this potential threat, it is certainly exciting to see the University of Sussex at the very forefront of combating what is a clearly volatile disease. The University of Sussex’s Professor Tony Moore has created a fungicide that may prove to be vital in quelling the otherwise incessant and concerning spread of the disease. The fungicide treatment targets and suppresses an enzyme known as the ‘Alternative Oxidase’ (AOX). Professor Moore’s innovative compounds prevent the enzymes functionality, and could also, if developed further, enable longer lasting results, with less frequent usage. This latter point is very important, as
Some papers are recalled because of researchers fixing results, be it in their images or analysis. However, over 120 papers were recently retracted due to a french researcher discovering that they were all computer generated rubbish. Cyril Labbé of Joseph Fourier University in Grenoble catalogued computer generated papers and then informed the publishers. There is software that can create manuscripts, first created through amusement to see if conferences would accept “nonsense papers”. Just goes to show you shouldn’t believe everything you read...
Photo via The Telegraph
purposes. These AOX fungicides could not only protect crop yields from infection, but it is believed they may also do so with less expense on the environments behalf. Ultimately this research is of particular interest for everybody associ-
ated with the University of Sussex as it could very well prove to be a treatment of profound global importance. It will therefore be very exciting to see exactly what the broader possibilities for this groundbreaking research conducted right here in the South East could be.
Do neurons like art? Max Millner
Papers withdrawn after discovery that they are all nonsense
excessive usage of fungicides is known to spoil the natural processes of other beneficial fungi’s that enable healthy growth and provide fundamental nutrients for the tree species. Thus, less interference is understandably better, and this means the application of Prof. Moore’s new discovery are twofold: an effective treatment, at a lower ecological cost. The AOX fungicide is currently undergoing rigorous trials at the Sainsbury Laboratory, in order to determine its long term effectiveness in overcoming this worrying, deadly disease. Should it be successful, the future prospects of the treatment are hugely promising and could very well save countless trees from otherwise nearcertain destruction. Thus far the results have been promising, and it is understood that when combined with other more traditional fungicides, Professor Moore’s treatment is showing very encouraging signs. Of even greater significance is the potential Moore’s research may have in the future. It is hoped that these AOX fungicides could become commercially hugely viable, and the University is currently working alongside the Sussex Innovation Center in an effort to market these treatments for a wider range of
As a biology student and a rationalist, I am often confronted by friends and family who find my way of thinking sad and abstruse. My point in a recent conversation was that theoretically, all human thought and emotion, that creates so much complexity and wonder in this world, must be nothing but a product of biology. If it were possible to zoom in on the brain and observe at a molecular level every connection made, every stimulation and de-stimulation that neurons undergo when we talk, laugh, cry, think, plan, learn and create, then it must be possible for these very ‘human’ emotional qualities to be modeled in purely mechanical terms. This concept is difficult to many people, and I do understand why. The depth of human thought and feeling, and our remarkable achievements - from language to space travel to the internet - are so great that it is troubling to think that it could all be delivered from billions of individual, unthinking entities interacting with each other via nothing but electrical charge and chemistry. This is a major reason why so many otherwise rational people struggle to accept human consciousness as totally devoid of the mystical or unexplainable. Here’s an analogy. Think of the brain and its biological components as hardware, and the mind and consciousness as software. The software develops and
warps, as the hardware develops and warps, and with years the software intensifies in complexity. Your brain is your hardware. It is affected by its environment; sensory reactions triggered by sight, smell, hearing, and touch, ignite small changes in electrical or chemical charge in some or many of the billions of individual cells that make up your brain. Your hardware can wirelessly interact with other peoples’ hardware and is affected by daily interactions throughout life. Billions of individuals, from the past to the present, contribute to the development of your hardware, via their contribution, both small and large, to a human software network. I believe that this explanation - as a direct product of brain structure and function - is the only logical explanation of human consciousness. I think that to suggest otherwise would be to introduce the necessity of an external force. From our current scientific understanding, we can begin to explain how we experience complex emotion or thought. When I see for example an effective piece of art, neurons inside my brain will fire and become ‘excited’. Other neurons will strengthen in firing intensity, form new connections and networks, and release chemicals in a complex rhythm to bring about the emotion I feel. This emotion will be ultimately connected to my previous life experiences. Memories, formed by my senses, having
Amber Roberts
previously built their own bridges and networks inside my brain, will re-ignite, and change, bringing me feeling, and through these new networks, will pave the way for future experiences. To see human consciousness in this light does not detract any wonder or beauty from what it is, nor does it render
life cold or dark. Rather, to understand the brains complexities, and to ultimately be able to model how ‘hardware’ creates ‘software’ will be - as the American science educator Bill Nye eloquently describes – a grand and unintended accomplishment of the universe to understand itself.
THE BADGER
3 MARCH 2014
TECH • 13
The addiction of mobile apps and games James Hope
It is difficult to understand how we, as children of The Digital Age, possibly functioned without the usage of powerful miniature computers in the palm of our hands. The smart phone has weaved its way into the fabric of everyday life to such an extent we barely even acknowledge anymore just what an immense achievement of electronic majesty it truly is. Rather than revelling in the plentiful array of possibilities that the significantly more powerful machines offer us, we dedicate hours to swiping and tapping at simple, mini 2D side scrolling video games more reminiscent of the archaic experiences found on the games consoles of old. At the height of its short lived supremacy atop the App marketplaces, Flappy Bird, arguably the most notorious technological landmark of 2014 thus far, was earning its developer a mind blowing 50,000 dollars a day. To contextualise just how incredible this is, not only was Flappy Bird free to download and play, it allegedly took its developer a mere day to create and was far from an original idea. So profusely and intensely did the addictive support for this mobile phone app arise, that upon its infamous removal, reports emerged of smart-
phones containing pre-installed versions of the app selling for four figure sums. The mobile app market has been flooded with effective Flappy Bird clones. More humorously a rip off involving Miley Cyrus, hammers and wrecking balls. You get the picture. General intrigue, word of mouth and the fast-spreading memes that mock these apps across social media, mixed with the ability to instantly get these micro pieces of software is what draws people in. It is intriguing why unoriginal, cumbersome and intrinsically repetitive apps such as Temple Run or Candy Crush, the ‘King’ of all brain-blending games, have become both mainstream successes and become financial goliaths. After all, we are talking about very cheaply made and distributed mobile games which, technologically speaking, owe their design to a by-gone era of gaming. Nonetheless, some of these apps are so devastatingly important to their audience that, in extreme situations, their captivated customers have reportedly neglected to pick up their children from school. Personally I couldn’t care much for supposedly addictive mobile phone gaming. My only crucibles are social networking apps, and due to its increasing necessity, the gargantuan-valued
WhatsApp. Aside from these opportunities to administer my narcissistic requirement for social gratification, I never understood the allure in games such as Angry Birds, which have such a strong influence and ability to retain its users in coming back for more self-confidence crippling frustration and inevitable defeat. Yet, when one considers Facebook’s recent capture of WhatsApp for a staggering 19 billion dollars, it is evident to what extent the mobile phone app has made its mark and the mobile app market is predicted to become a 25 billion dollar market by 2015. Estimated values of apps like Snapchat (4 billion dollars) just show what a ludicrous commodity these apps are. Psychologists have weighed in on what makes mobile phone apps so addictive, and using Candy Crush as a case study, assessed why it is that so many individuals cannot put these games down after one menial play through. Potential explanations for Candy Crush’s successful irresistibility have been theorised as their fundamental requirement to make you wait to play. Other games such as The Simpsons: Tapped Out work on the same basis. To either accomplish something in the game or progress further, you must endure not being able to play for a certain time period. If you lack such patience, you have
the option to pay to skip these waiting periods. It essentially relies on the primeval human desire that we always want what we cannot have. These games take the enjoyment away from us for short periods of time, and therefore, we crave to play even more. On the same level it could perhaps be the sense of worthlessness which drives us on. After all, who wants to be defeated by a tiny cartoon bird, because they couldn’t navigate it between two static pipes? As soon as you realise the difficulty of Flappy Bird, you understand that without the required perseverance and mental strive to get better at this game, it has beaten you. With each setback, we vehemently push for success and fulfilment and until we achieve a respectable high score, we battle on lest this flappy bastard humiliate us. It is essentially the same story with Candy Crush, reassuring us that we are performing to a ‘sweet’ or ‘delicious’ standard. It taunts us and dangles the opportunity for sustained enjoyment in our faces before throwing it away and demanding either our money or patience. Emotionally many people cannot cope with this status quo. Whether it is a near-impossible obstacle or agonising time delay, our minds cannot accept the notion of embarrassing, crushing
Google X Labs: Changing the world Hayley Leibson
Imagine being able to get perfect directions to an item on a shelf in a store, or being able to capture the dimensions of your home before you go shopping for a new sofa. Imagine taking a game of hideand-seek to an unprecedented level with imaginary opponents straight out of your favourite video games and movies. Now imagine being able to do that all with just your smartphone. These are all possible future applications of the recently announced Project Tango. Google X, a semi-secret facilities run by Google striving to make considerable technological advancements, revealed Project Tango this month. “The goal of Project Tango is to give mobile devices a human-scale understanding of space and motion,” stated Johnny Lee, the head of Google’s Project Tango team, in a video on the project site. “Our current prototype is a fiveinch phone containing customised hardware and software designed to track the full 3D motion of the device, while simultaneously creating a map of the environment. These sensors allow the phone
to make a quarter of a million 3D measurements every second, updating it’s position and orientation in real-time, combining that data into a single 3D model of the space around you,” Lee stated. The Project Tango prototype uses a combination of robotics and computer vision in order to merge the physical and digital worlds. It aims to copy how humans use visual cues to interact with their environments. Google already has 16 Project Tango partners ranging from Movidius, a Silicon Valley start-up dedicated to developing chips that can interpret data from sensors and cameras, to OmniVision; a corporation that designs and develops digital imaging products and currently provides Apple with the black-illuminated CMOS sensor found in the iPhone 5S. Google X is reportedly working on a long list of ambitious science fiction-like technologies such as a self-driving car, augmented reality glasses called ‘Google Glass’, and contact lenses that monitor glucose levels in tears, amongst other bleeding edge technologies. The team at Google X behind Google Glass are researching and developing an augmented reality head-mounted display. This would
Shima Jalal Kamali defeat by the agonising autocratic dictatorship of sweeties. Thus lies the crucial reason you can’t stop playing; there is no end and no matter what leaps and bounds you may make, you will never get to taste nor savour the flavours of full, unequivocal victory. At least not until you’ve mindlessly invested in the solutions to overcome them, lost your mind in the despairing chasms of oblivion, emptied the contents of your bank account or eventually tossed your phone at a wall. Frankly, I would recommend the latter as the only true means of escape.
Tech Bytes of the week •
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Xiangxiang Gong allow users to see information on the web presented on a hands-free visual platform and allows users to interact with the Internet and their phones via voice commands. Another creation from Google X is Project Loon. This project involves Google creating an internet network of balloons flying through the stratosphere. This is the layer of the earth’s atmosphere extending to about 32 miles above the earth’s surface. Project Loon has the overall aim of bringing an internet connection to people in hard to reach places. More specifically where Internet Service Providers (ISPs) have not yet laid down the necessary infrastructure due to costs and geo-
graphical problems. The world no longer views Google as merely a valuable search engine, but rather as having real potential for creating incredible futuristic technologies such as Project Tango, Google Glass and even self driving cars that can and will become an intrinsic part of our everyday lives in the coming decades.
Fancy writing about Tech? Get in touch and e-mail badger-tech@ussu.sussex.ac.uk to get involved with The Badger!
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Samsung unveils second generation smart watches at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Apple fixes gaping security flaw in iOS and OSX. Popular Bitcoin exchange website Mt. Gox abruptly shut down sparking concerns for the future of the volatile currency. Nokia launch an Android phone despite being owned by Microsoft. Xbox One gets a price cut to fend off PS4 competition.
the badger
3 MARCH 2014 ARTS • 14
ARTS A ONE NIGHT STAND WITH NYMPHOMANIAC AT the DUKE OF YORK’S Film
Nymphomaniac parts I & II + Q&A Duke of York’s 22nd February
Jacob Engelberg Lars von Trier’s Nymphomaniac has been a long time coming. At von Trier’s last Cannes film festival before being declared a persona non-grata, he seemed to joke that his next film would be a porn film. Over the next two years, it emerged that his next feature would indeed be called Nymphomaniac. During this period, many cryptic kinds of publicity were released, including the fifteen provocative photographs of actors simulating the moment of orgasm, as well as the release of eight mysterious excerpts from each of the film’s chapters. Reaching the UK last week for a special nationwide one-off advertised as the Nymphomaniac onenight stand, which l saw at the Duke of York’s Picturehouse. At over four hours (and this is the short version), Nymphomaniac sees its protagonist Joe reflect on her sexual history from cradle to middle age. Her chronicle is told to Seligman, a man who finds Joe wounded on the street and nurses her in his home. Joe is convinced that she is a bad person but Seligman does not believe that such people exist, so Joe goes on to detail her whole sexual past, something which she is certain will convince Seligman of her depravity. Joe’s past is a fascinating and variegated one, filled with as much humour as poignancy and as much poetic dialogue as explicit sex. Her life as a self-professed “nymphomaniac” has not been a salacious series of steamy escapades but a set of experiences that have been sites of loneliness, absurdity, danger, titillation, and ennui. Similarly, the presence of real sex in the film works in the tradition of films like Catherine Breillat’s Romance, Nagisa Oshima’s In The Realm of the Senses, or even von Trier’s earlier film The Idiots. These arthouse features challenge viewers’ understandings of unsimulated sex, rearticulating the act as ambiguously complex rather than proscriptively arousing. Similarly in Nymphomaniac, scenes of unsimulated sex flow seamlessly with the film’s aesthetic, failing to fulfil the promise that such “pornographic” images may suggest. One of the most impactful elements of the film is its striking and
Nymphomaniac still, photo by Christian Geisnaes experimental cinematography. This feature varies from unblocked scenes shot with handheld cameras that zoom without restraint, to carefully crafted sequences, such as the triple split-screen effect used to create a moving triptych of three men Joe has slept with. The composite aesthetic this creates ultimately creates an astonishing audiovisual experience, complimenting the heterogeneity of the narrative episodes. One of the film’s features that has polarised viewers is its engagement with women’s oppression. In the live Q&A that followed, one audience member asked if the film was von Trier’s “feminist manifesto”, while another asked if the director used female oppression as nothing more than a theme. These questions have been asked of von Trier previously and the moot point is whether his films represent the suffering of women under patriarchy or problematically aestheticise it. This is an issue that deserves much more attention than I can give it here, but I do believe Nymphomaniac will be an essential film in understanding von Trier’s complicated history with female representation, whether one ultimately deems his work abrasively feminist or sadistically misogynistic. On the whole, while Nymphomaniac can be challenging to watch, it is not a film to shy away from but should instead be considered an illuminating voyage out of one’s comfort zone. Its vast range of stories, styles, and characters make for an immersive spectatorial experience which affirms von Trier’s status as one of the most innovative directors working today.
Q&A: Bombay Bicycle Club Last week in breezy Brighton, Arts Editor Will Fortna found time to have a quick chat with the boys from Bombay Bicycle Club, here’s what he found out: The production on your records has gradually gotten more and more complex and eclectic. How important is the studio to your sound and to the composition process? Unlike your first few releases, the newer songs don’t sound like they were written with just a guitar and voice. Your records seem to draw inspiration from everything from 60s Folk to Afrobeat to Hip-hop sampling. What were the main sonic influences for this record? You are completely right! All the songs on this album started off as instrumental dance or hiphop tracks, the vocals and guitars came later on. The challenge on this album was making these early demos Bombay Bicycle Club songs. It was a consistent conversation between Jack and the rest of us to get the songs into the shape they are in now. I can’t really pinpoint a main sonic influence or any particular artists that inspired this album. I think the biggest influence was in the way we made the tracks.
The production is very similar to dance music and as I said above the way the songs were written was always in this style. What is your live line-up going to be for your upcoming tour? Any percussionists or additional singers? It took quite a while to work out how to play this record live as the large majority of it is played on synths and drum machines. We decided to strike a balance between what we had been doing at our shows before and what was played on the record as we thought it would be dull to watch 5 guys playing samplers. We have a girl called Liz Lawrence touring with us this year. Her voice is the perfect balance for Rae Morris and Lucy Rose! We also have our usual touring member Louis Bhose. He is probably the busiest person at our shows as he is playing samplers percussion and singing in every song. I was wondering how you saw the band’s career arc. Some bands and singers seem to follow a pretty linear progression in sound and style, until eventually they reach a certain successful point, and from then on more or less stick to it. Others dip in and out of different styles, and go back and forth from different sounds, with less of a linear, sonic ‘narrative’. Do you feel like you fit into either of those categories? I guess we fit into the second category as every album has been considerably
different to the previous one. I don’t think we would ever stick with a sound or style because people liked it, if that was the case we would still be making alternative guitar music like our first album. I personally find it quite boring when bands make the same record again and again...It must be dull for the band too. I think we will continue to progress and try new things, even at the risk of people not liking it. This new album has certainly divided people! And a couple Brighton questions. Favourite memory of playing or visiting the city? In 2007 we played the Brighton Barfly as part of the Great Escape festival (I think it has closed down since then). This was a long time before we had any fans and I can guarantee that the show was awful but it was an amazing feeling to be asked to play outside of our home town. It felt like we were getting somewhere. Favourite pub/bar/place to eat? Quite a few of my friends went to university at Brighton and Sussex. Whenever I went down to visit them we would always go to Pompoko before going out. I guess its classic student food... cheap, plentiful and delicious. Bombay Bicycle Club’s latest album So Long, See You Tomorrow is out now.
the badger
3 March 2014 ARTS • 15
Reviews
art
Edmund Clarke Arts & Politics Talk
Tuesday 25th February Lotte Brockbank A full room of students and staff greets Edmund Clark, eager to hear his thoughts on work that links history, politics and representation. Clarke is a former History student at Sussex and the first of four contemporary photographers hosted by the Arts Society this spring. His recent projects, Guantanamo: If The Light Goes Out (2010) and Control Order House (2013) are the subjects of discussion. Ed begins by showing us a short film, Section 4 Part 20, a gently disorientating 7 minutes of spoken word and image. Layered voices talk over a reel of steadily changing pictures; English landscapes dissolve into rural scenes, lambs, flowers and a kitten. Such sweetness is at odds with the aural information overlaying it. A robotic, female American voice lists the conditions of detainment for a new prison inmate. Processes, items, and assessments blur as her voice is looped into two simultaneous tracks. An Arab male voice appears, describing a violent incident; he is tied up, and assaulted by a woman. As the voices blur it becomes harder to hear either, and I witness myself
struggling to reconcile what I see with what I hear. The words “…cut off my clothes…” come with the gradual appearance of a cat’s ears behind flowery wallpaper, and the images become strangely menacing in their slow transformation. It turns out that these images are few of the unmediated postcards and photographs from Clark’s series, Letters to Omar, a community project gone global in which thousands of people wrote letters to UK resident Omar Deghayes during his six years of captivity at Guantanamo Bay. The female voice reads from the Camp Delta procedure manual, leaked from Guantanamo via Wikileaks. The male voice reads a testimony from a detainee’s experience with a female interrogator. Clark explains that the disorientation of the viewer was deliberate, constructed to evoke the sensory disorientation process undergone by inmates of Guantanamo Bay. As described in the Camp Delta manual, such a process is designed to ensure the total dependence of the inmates on their interrogators - what Clark calls a “classic” interrogation method. The title of Clark’s award-winning photographic series, Guantanamo: If The Light Goes Out is a reference to the enduring repercussions of that disorientation; “When you are suspended by a rope you can recover, but every time I see a rope I remember. If the light goes out unexpectedly in a room, I am back in my cell.”
(left and right) From ‘Guantanimo: If the Light Goes Out by Edmund Clarke - Binyam Mohamed, Prisoner #1458. Clark’s series, perhaps unexpectedly, depicts not the prisoners but the spaces they inhabit. Sparsely Cat filled and unforgiving, all but one of the frames are void of people. However, it is this very emptiness that allows Clark’s documentation of the trauma and secrecy of Gauntanamo to be deceptively full. There are three sets of “homes” photographed in the series; that of the American community at Guantanamo’s naval base, the camps themselves, and the homes of former detainees, mostly British and Afghan. These three notions of ‘home’ form an unsettling narrative, and this is exactly the response Clark had hoped to engineer. He is emphatic on the point of context, “[the Guantanamo pictures] have to be seen in the context of
these other homes. That’s the point”. In response to a question about this decision, Clark states that photographing space was simply a way of “getting round the idea of otherness”. Rather than another “toxic” image of a bearded Arab male he says, “when I photograph these rooms I am photographing all our rooms”. Clark’s use of space is ultimately a way of re-humanising these experiences of Guantanamo; a way of placing these people, prisoners in particular, in a literal setting that we all share in. But these photographs do not fit the bracket of mere political statement; as one listener rightly acknowledges, it is Clark’s aesthetic decisions that make up these images, and they are beautiful for it. In one particularly unnerving image, an arrow on the floor of a group
dance
music
Brighton Dome
The Old Market
TOY
Tap Factory
Tuesday 18th February
Wednesday 19th February
Eleanor Walsh
Sophie Swithinbank This production uses the simple human understanding of rhythm to create a plethora of dance, acrobatics and incredible percussion. I have just got back from the show and am absolutely buzzing with beats from head to toe. Even the rhythm of my fingers on the keys as I type now is giving me a bit of a buzz. I have never seen anything like this before. One thing that astounded me was the stark absence of recorded soundtrack, orchestral or band music, which is usually unavoidable in dance shows. The eight performers relied solely on their own sounds and rhythms to carry the show forward. Even without music or much of a plot, the show had an incredible arc to it. The show opens, the audience becomes silent and one tapper tackles intricate beats on centre stage. Six drummers wait behind him on a two-storey structure, their mus-
Tap Factory Press cle-padded forearms defined by the back lighting. The audience listens and watches and breathes as one, as the tapper attacks the floor with double time shuffles, one-legged wings and about 100-heel beats per minute. I have to say; my one disappointment was realising it was an allmale cast. There are so many fantastic, female tap dancers around - I wanted to see some impressive lady action. But this did not bother me for very long as most of the cast were topless at one stage or another and it was a fabulous treat for my eyes. There was an incredible street dancer, who closed his sequence with seven one-handed back flip/ cart wheels; a breath-taking acrobat, who performed an aerial straps routine that required strength and control I previously thought impossible; and a contemporary dancer, who moved as if his body was made of delicious jelly.
But my favourite dancer was Dorel Surbeck, eight times World Champion of Tap Dance, and a real cutie. He presented a tap routine, so intricate, demanding and long, that it had the essence of ‘dancing oneself to death’, as seen in Vaslav Nijinsky’s The Rite of Spring. In that controversial ballet the Chosen One must dance herself to death as a sacrifice to the Earth; to the ground beneath her feet. Dorel’s performance seemed to be a relentless pounding on the strength of his legs, in conjunction with the concentration exercised to keep up the rhythm and not tire. I held my breath for most of the routine, and awarding him with my loudest and shrillest possible wolfwhistle, which, after all that, made me feel quite lightheaded. If you’ve got rhythm and/or love tap and/or have always wanted to try it, check out Open Space Dance, where I train.
The Old Market in Hove is certainly the most impressive venue I have visited since moving to Brighton. Its wide arches are graced with a yellow-blue light and the acoustics of the large room turn distorted guitar into majestic, throaty, screaming sounds. It’s much more appealing than I am leading you to believe; the atmosphere inside suffices without seeing bands you’re excited about. Luckily though, there were bands. Prince Vaseline are more sophisticated than their name suggests; it is their third gig in Brighton but there is a certainty about them. This comes as no surprise, being a side project of the ‘supergroup’ (as BBC Radio 6 Music describes them), Milk and Biscuits. The hoarse vocals of the lead singer are complimented by the delicately soft notes from the moody Rapunzel keyboardist/guitarist. Prince Vaseline are relaxed, confident and come equipped with a slow and sultry beat that may cause an
prayer room points to Mecca, but also unwittingly to the iron ring to which prisoners may be shackled. It is these kinds of observations, like many others in the series, that mark Clark out as an artist, rather than simply a historical witness. It occurs to me while he speaks, with the kind of rational passion that belongs to a rare breed of intellectual artistry, that perhaps it is only an artistic approach that can yield this kind of result. Clark’s is the kind of work that slips quietly past the eyes of a military official looking for provocation, yet makes all the noise, if you know where to look. The Arts Society’s talks continue with Melanie Friend on the 19th March, and Mishka Henner on the 26th.
abundance of subtle hip swaying. The Proper Ornaments proceeded, and were perhaps my favourite band of the night. Visually they represent neopsychedelia; double denim can only be pulled off by a select few with Les Pauls for companions and scruffy bowl cuts for hats. Their music is strangely difficult to listen to online. Sonically they are comparable to a more subdued and relaxed Tame Impala, which is only emphasised by the dreamy quality of The Old Market’s acoustics. Finally, TOY were on the stage. Perhaps it was the venue’s doing, but the variety within the audience was warming. I have always admired the determination of softly spoken middle aged men to be excited by young musical talent, bringing their daughters along to see a band they bond over. This image was somewhat disrupted by a lairy, greying bloke with short man’s syndrome, ready to knock the fuck out of an excitable young woman who had perhaps indulged in more smokey, oaky cider than this serious gig goer could tolerate. Perhaps I had too, but the musical influences seemed to transform from darkened psychedelics into post-punk, the kind that we have heard Savages invoking, into a noisy and experimental, scuttling spider, Sonic Youth inspired climax.
the badger
3 March 2014 ARTS • 16
LIFESTYLE
YouTube Vloggers: a new breed of celebrity Jack Bailey A new type of celebrity is emerging. They have infiltrated our homes through laptops, smartphones and tablets with an uncanny ability to be both adored and accessible. They are YouTube vloggers. YouTube has enabled people to find fame, as well as financial reward, by talking on camera about anything from FIFA to beauty products and everything in between. For those not in the know, vloggers are people who film themselves and post the videos onto YouTube, looking to inform, educate and entertain viewers on a range of topics. They offer not only their own opinion, but also new levels of interactivity and intimacy for the audience. Though this is not a new phenomenon, the stardom and financial rewards have increased along with the exposure and sponsorship. Some have even made the crossover to more traditional media, such as KSI’s appearances on BT Sport. Here in Brighton we have our very own Alfie Deyes who, along with a strong and growing community of other Brightonbased YouTube vloggers, is one of the most viewed in the country. In 2011 Alfie became fascinated with the way vlogging let you follow someone’s life and decided to give it a try. He began ‘Pointlessblog’, a blog which, as its name suggests, isn’t about anything in particular and does not follow a specific theme but simply entertains.
Sponsored Chemistry Research
Jeff Miller
Alfie Deyes However ‘pointless’ it may be, Alfie undoubtedly has a talent, notching up over 1.9 million subscribers and being listed as 43rd on the Telegraphs list of Britain’s most influential tweeters, ahead of the likes of Richard Dawkins, Cheryl Cole and Russel Brand. But are there any downsides to having to constantly update your Twitter, Tumblr and YouTube accounts? Alfie certainly doesn’t think so, seeing his social media presence as a way of giving back to the fans who gave up their own time viewing, subscribing and retweeting him. He enjoys the interaction and couldn’t remember the last time he didn’t update something within 24 hours. Though it suits Alfie, this perhaps
wouldn’t be everyone’s cup of tea and there certainly is a level of privacy which you give up with social media, especially when it’s on such a large scale. Perhaps one of the best, and creepiest, examples of this is the fanfiction written about Alfie and other vloggers, often with a very raunchy edge to it. This kind of veneration is nothing new to celebrities, and though the fanfiction may apparently not bother Alfie, it certainly is a form of admiration which sits on the extreme end of fandom. Some of it even contains references to his girlfriend and fellow blogger Zoella (known together as Zalfie). Wanting to know everything about a celebrity and to feel as close as possible to them is nothing new, but having the
level of interactivity from the very start might be. It isn’t clear if this brings with it more obsessive fans, but as programs like channel 4’s ‘Crazy about One Direction’, social media can certainly play a role in making fans feel ‘closer’ to their idols. In people like Alfie Deyes we can see another strand of celebrity, a strand not just harnessing social media to further their celebrity, but whose celebrity is social media. Part of their appeal is their normality and the relaxed nature of the videos. But before you think it might be easy to be the next YouTube star, don’t forget the hours spent planning, editing and producing, before any fame or fortune might be found.
Year Abroad: Mexico is bloody great Amy Colville Oh, Mexico – there’s so much to be said for the country! It’s such a cool place, but not cool because it’s risqué and has loads of coke and house music and people are all wearing Vans and denim shorts and crop tops and American Apparel hoodies. It’s cool because anything goes. No importa as they say here. You can do what the devil you want and there’s always something going on. Last night I tried to go to a salsa class but ended up learning how to juggle! Never a top priority of mine in England, but everyone makes old-fashioned fun here and just teaches themselves stuff. Quite cool. And the people are nuts friendly. When I lost the directions to my hostel on the first night I got here, my taxi man bought me tacos as he didn’t want me to go to bed hungry. When I ended up walking miles and miles to a waitressing job in the middle of nowhere and got lost, a nice couple
JOBSWORTH
Amy Colville picked me up, rang my boss and drove me to where I was meant to go. When I went to the beach and ended up taking three buses instead of just one (getting there at 2am), a nice Mexican family let me and a friend sleep in their tent with their kids. It might all sound a bit weird - especially the last one - but people do just genuinely want to help you here. And they’re so generous!
You just walk past a food stand and have a peer at what the hell it may be and someone offers you a bite (with retrospect, this may or may not have been the way I managed to contract two parasites within six months). You obviously can’t trust everyone, especially not the dudes on the street who shout “WHITE GIRL!” at you in Spanish. And there is a bit of a theft culture
Amy Colville here. I’ve had to say goodbye to a certain bag, a BlackBerry, a camera and a bike. Buuut, everyone told me I was nuts for going to Mexico and I’ve still not been kidnapped, delimbed or made into a drugs mule (touch wood). So don’t believe what they all say or everything you read in the papers (apart from this one of course). Mexico’s bloody great!
Rosie Briffitt
CarmelH
What would you do with your summer break? A holiday? Not me! After finishing my third year exams, I cashed in the summer sunshine for an 8 week sponsored project in the Sussex Chemistry Department to gain some experience before I started my research-intensive fourth year. After talking to the lecturer I wanted to do a project with, we sent off an application detailing the work we planned to do. After a few weeks of waiting, I got an email to say that my application had been accepted! My first day was a flurry of forms and other formalities; I was introduced to the research group and set up at my very own desk. After being supervised pretty closely for most of my undergraduate labs, it was an odd moment when I was left to my own devices to run experiments, but as the weeks went on I became more confident until I swear that I could do them in my sleep! But I also made my fair share of mistakes. My most memorable was probably realising that I’d labelled all my samples incorrectly and I definitely found that being at university does not mean that you break any less glassware than at school or college! Before I knew it, the 8 weeks had whizzed by and it was nearly time for term to start again. I gained enough knowledge over the two short months to hit the ground running as soon as term started and as part of the sponsorship I even got paid for the privilege.
the badger
3rd March 2014 ARTS: sussex showcase • 17
Showcase - Brighton’s People
Peter Desmond
Daniel Hadley
Cesca Rampley
Amber Louise Roberts
Karoliina Lehtonen
Ruppert Daly
Jonnathan Griffin Next theme is
RAINFALL Send your creative pursuits and theme ideas to frampley@gmail.com by 11th March Zefira Bazoteva
Kimberly Edwards
and check out the new improved online page at www.badgeronline.co.uk/arts/sussex-show-
the badger
3 march 2014 Arts •18
Arts Gigs
The agenda This week’s cultural highlights that you must see ALTERNATIVE Trans The Green Door Store Saturday 8th March, 7pm £6
ALTERNATIVE Haim Brighton Dome
Friday 7th March, 7pm SOLD OUT
Following the huge success of their debut album, Days are Gone, the LA trio of sisters return to Brighton with their mix of country and R’n’B. Having played at The Haunt just over a year ago, performing at the Dome shows just how their fanbase has rapidly grown. So much so, you’re lucky if you’ve got a ticket!
Former member of Suede Bernard Butler has teamed up with fellow 90s indie-rocker Jackie McKeown to take indie in a new direction. With no aims of releasing albums or going on big tours, it is clear that these guys are not seeking approval. Doing exactly what they want and how they want, it’ll be interesting to see where this’ll lead the pair.
FILM Clocktower Cinema: Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas The Quadrant
Club
5th March - 6th March, 8pm £8
Monday 3rd March, 8pm FREE
Hitch a ride across America on this adaptation of Hunter S. Thompson’s psychedelic classic. Expect plenty of weird and wonderful drug-induced adventures.
CLUB Boogie Wonderland The Green Door Store
Film
With free entry all night long, there’s no excuse not to head down to The Green Door Store for the usual mix of funk, soul, groove and disco. Perhaps best to leave the flares in Beyond Retro though.
Theatre
FILM Sebastiane Duke of York’s
Thursday 6th March, 7:30pm £10
ART The Megamunden Show No Walls Gallery Runs until 22nd March FREE
Only just opening the doors to their new location, the No Walls Gallery’s inaugural show celebrates the work of illustrator Oliver Munden, aka Megamunden. Taking inspiration from American and Japanese tattoo styles, this exhibition follows the increasing success of a local artist.
The Australian four-piece, fresh from supporting the likes of Depeche Mode and the Pixies bring their dark twist on ethereal pop to Brighton’s Concorde 2. Front-woman Hayley Mary’s dancing is not to be missed.
THEATRE Weightless
Brighton Dome
Wednesday 5th March, 8pm £10
PREVIEW: Bangin Lemz East Slope Bar, Friday 7 March. Free Entry, 9pm
Victoria O’Donnell Arts Editor
Victoria O’Donnell Arts Editor
Created as a project encouraging an open forum for poets, artists, designers, singers and generally anyone who has an interest in the arts, The A and The E comes to Sussex tomorrow night. Built around the ash symbol (made up of a lower case “a” and a lower case “e”), this project is concerned with opening
When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Or in this case, make your way to East Slope Bar this Friday night for the launch party of Bangin Lemz. Showcasing the talents of a number of local DJs and MCs, this free night of music will be playing Hip Hop, Garage,
As part of Pink Fringe, a celebration of Queer culture in Brighton, Lucy Hutson will be exploring what femininity means to her. The performance features accounts from women in her family alongside Hutson’s own personal experiences of not ‘being a not-quite-woman’.
A collaboration between Yael Flexer and Nic Sandiland, this performance addresses questions of history and what it means on a personal and aesthetic level. Mixing witty writing and a musical score, there is also a post-show discussion.
PREVIEW: MVC presents The A and The E Meeting Room 1 Falmer House. Tuesday 4 March, 8pm new and insightful discussions about race, gender, sexuality, religion and science. The group’s philosophy centres around the support of artists who believe in applying new modes of critical thinking to their work as well as fellow creative enthusiasts with which they can share their talents. A great opportunity to meet like-minded folk.
THEATRE If You Want Bigger Yorkshire Puddings You Need a Bigger Tin Marlborough Theatre Friday 7th March, 7:30pm £5.50
Tuesday 4th March, 11am £6.90
alternative The Jezabels Concorde 2
Influenced by a radical method of treatment for psychosis that has practically eradicated schizophrenia in Western Lapland, Ridiculusmus bring this innovative piece of theatre where dialogue has the possibility to change your life.
Thursday 6th March 11pm FREE
Art
In memory of Derek Jarman, a restored version of his first feature exploring desire, religion and duty will be shown. A discussion of the director’s work will follow the screening.
THEATRE The Eradication of Schizophrenia The Basement
House and Techno. Alongside the free music, the night also promises free lemons which should make for an interesting evening if you’re curious as to how these lemons will be put to use. Definitely an alternative to East Slope Bar’s usual events, why not stay on campus this Friday night and support local talent.
watch, write, review Get involved in the Arts team by joining us at our writers meetings or searching on Facebook for : “Badger Writers” See submission guidelines on the Badger website
Fairtrade Fortnight kicks off on Monday 24th February through to Sunday 9th March and this year the campaign is going BANANAS! by focusing on trying to get a fair price to farmers for their produce.
Fairtrade Fortnight events on campus include;
Over the past 10 years the price of a non-Fairtrade banana has halved, whilst the price of production has doubled. This is clearly unfair, and this year the Fairtrade Foundation is leading the campaign to get Vince Cable to investigate unfair supermarket pricing practices, and act to protect the producers of the UK’s favourite fruit. You can help by signing the petition at http://foncho.fairtrade.org.uk/
Thursday 27th February 6pm-12am Fairtrade Cocktails, Falmer Back Bar
Sussex has been a Fairtrade University since November 2007, and across campus this year there are a wide range of events and promotions taking place and being offered across all shops, cafes and bars. Events are conveniently spread across mornings, afternoons and evenings so hopefully everyone should have a chance to attend at least one event. There’s also a lot going on across Brighton and Hove, with a main Fairtrade exhibition running throughout the first week of Fairtrade Fortnight in the Jubilee Library foyer, by the Pavillion. It is open during usual library opening hours, starting Monday 24 February, and on display will be various Fairtade exhibits showing how Fairtrade is alive and kicking in the City of Brighton & Hove!
Monday 24th February sees the start of Fairtrade fortnight highlighting the campaign for better prices, decent working conditions, local sustainability and fair terms of trade for farmers and workers in the developing world. The Students’ Union supports this with events running across the two weeks.
Come along to Falmer Bar and sip on a Fairtrade Mojito for a special Fairtrade cocktail night. 2 cocktails for £6 before 9pm, or all night for table bookings of 10 or more, email events@sussexstudent.com to make a booking.
Monday 3rd March 6pm Fairtrade Wine Tasting, Falmer Back Bar
Sussex Wine Society and the Students’ Union are hosting an evening of Fairtrade Wine tasting and socialising in Falmer Back Bar.
Tuesday 4th March from 8.30am Pancake Day Pop Up Outside Arts Cafe under the bridge.
Fillings will include delicious Fairtrade ingredients including chocolate and bananas.
Wednesday 5th March 3pm-5pm Fairtrade Tea Dance, Falmer Back Bar
Come along to Falmer Back Bar for an afternoon of dancing, finger sandwiches, cakes and Fairtrade tea and luxury coffees served straight to your table.
Thursday 6th March from 10am Free Coffee & Fairtrade talk The Creativity Zone, Pevensey III, Room C7
Do you like FREE Fairtrade coffee? Have you ever been to The Creativity Zone? Peros - SussexFood’s Fairtrade suppliers – are offering free coffee to everyone passing through. What’s the catch? Well Peros want everyone to gain a deeper appreciation of what Fairtrade actually means today. So whilst the coffees are flowing, Louise from Peros will be showcasing images and talking about her experiences of Fairtrade farms in the foothills of Mount Elgon in Uganda. Look out for offers on Fairtrade products in both East Slope and Falmer Bar throughout Fairtrade Fortnight! There are also a range of promotional offers and discounts across Fairtrade products in the Union Shop in Falmer House, and some great offers on Fairtrade clothing, with a Flash 2-Day SALE with 10% off all clothing on the 27th & 28th February! You can also receive a free Fairtrade cotton tote-bag at any time throughout the fortnight, when you spend over £20 on Fairtrade clothing (while stocks last).
the badger
3 march 2014
SporTS • 20
SPORTS Sussex football tackles homophobia Megan Franklin & Jess Di Simone
Megan Franklin
Kiattisak Thepsuriya
Keeping it wheel Lyndsay Burtonshaw “There is nothing, absolutely nothing, quite so worthwhile as simply messing about on bikes” – Tom Kunich. The University of Sussex Cycling Club (USCC) has experienced bolstered membership following the launch of sister society RE:CYCLE Bike Hire Co-Op in September 2013. The Co-op team work with Freewheelers bike maintenance society to give access to cheap commuter bikes. Nearly 40 rescued street-bikes have been hired out. With the new Lewes Road bike path opening in the same term, commuting to university by bike is now much easier and infinitely more enjoyable. USCC, Freewheelers and RE:CYCLE have been offering bike confidence sessions in library square and around campus. Bicycle mechanics workshops have also been provided and it is hoped that the bike-based activity on campus doesn’t stop here, with talk of a bike sound-system workshop potentially running soon! For the lycra speed-demons out there,
weekend training rides are now back. On Sunday, USCC braved the February chill and (lack of) winter fitness to ascend Devil’s Dyke, laughing in the face of blustery winds. As spring arrives, there will be longer rides to Eastbourne, Surrey Hills, London and beyond. There is also talk of an end-of-term touring/camping jaunt to France, which would involve catching the ferry to Dieppe, and along the Avenue Vert to Paris. Get in contact via Facebook if you are interested in the 3rd USCC Velodrome trip – the Club is always happy to welcome new members, and for trips such as these, someone who can drive is always useful! USCC will be running social rides when the weather gets warmer. Find the Club on Facebook for updates on relaxed social rides to Glynde Cider Farm, the countryside and the sea, Wimmin’s Rides, reggae rides with the mobile sound-system and pub rides with the Real Ale Society. RE:CYCLE bikes will be available to hire on a termly-basis from September 2014.
Saturday 22 February saw the annual ‘Football vs Homophobia’ 7-aside tournament take place at Falmer Sports Complex on a delightfully sunny day. Over 130 players of all abilities took part as 17 mixed teams battled it out to be crowned 2014 champions. It was great to have University sports teams involved including a team from Women’s Football, Women’s Hockey, the American Football team ‘Norfolk-in-chance’, and surprise performers Sussex Volleyball who played fantastically to reach the quarter-finals. The tournament was also attended by the Brighton Panthers, and a team from the Brighton Lesbian and Gay Sports Society, to ensure that the event stretched beyond the University and into the wider community. In a climate where people are still discriminated against for their sexual identity, notably in Russia where the Winter Olympics took place, it is fantastic that so many people were willing to take part on Saturday in raising awareness for such an important issue. In the morning, teams were split into three groups to play each other, with the top two teams progressing to the finals in the afternoon. ‘Synergy FC’ knocked-out their close friends ‘The Others’ in semi-final one, and were joined in the final by the un-
defeated ‘Real Madrid FC’ who beat ‘Team Hollingbury’ in semi-final two. ‘Real Madrid FC’ went on to win the final in a nail-biting penalty shootout, and were crowned champions for the second year in a row, following success in 2013. The finalists all received a medal and a trophy to bring some class to their student homes. This tournament is renowned for its laid-back and pleasant atmosphere and Saturday was no exception. Every team had a good time regardless of the outcome of their games. ‘Prestonville Famdem’ were awarded a festival trophy for their enthusiasm and participation, with their team sporting matching gold and green kits from the 1980’s. Every player enjoyed free refreshments, fruit and sweets with over 200 Mars bars given out on the day. The tournament was supported by the Mars Just Play initiative which emphasises the importance of playing sociable and casual football, in contexts such as this. The FA-endorsed international campaign ‘Football vs Homophobia’ was launched in 2010 to tackle homophobia and prejudice in football, and to create opportunities for the LGBTQ community to engage with football. ‘Football vs Homophobia’ draws particular attention in LGBTQ History Month (February) with football festivals in support of the campaign, like ours, taking place all over the
country. In addition to raising awareness for ‘Football vs Homophobia’ and promoting equality in sport, Saturday’s tournament raised in excess of £270 to be given to a local LGBTQ charity, the Allsorts Youth Project. Allsorts supports LGBTQ young people in the community in the fight against prejudice and discrimination. The organisers of ‘Football vs Homophobia’ would like to say a big well done to every team that took part and a particular thank you to Hannah Newton and Mohamed Al-Rabaa for their help in refereeing the matches. It is hoped that next year’s tournament in February 2015 will be even bigger and better, with the possibility of extending the campaign against discrimination and prejudice in sport to other sporting competitions!
CONTACT BADGER SPORT If you or your club would like to write for us then please get in touch via the email below. Match reports, upcoming events and candidates for future player profiles are all encouraged. badger-sports@ussu.sussex.ac.uk Or find us on Facebook at ‘Badger Writers’
Sussex Swim make waves at BUCS
Stephen Byrne
The University of Sussex Swimming team were on spectacular form at the British University and Colleges Sports long course national finals last weekend. The event, held at the exquisite Ponds Forge International Sports Centre in Sheffield, attracted the highest calibre of British swimming, with numerous London 2012 Olympic heroes participating. The long course format saw swimmers do battle in the 50 metre pool, rendering fitness essential given the reduced number of turns. Team Sussex got off to a superb start in the Friday evening session in both the men’s and women’s 4x100m freestyle relays. The men’s team, comprised of Chris Smith, Stephen Byrne, Martin Schellert and James Thornton, managed to shave a whopping 13 seconds from their entry time. The feat perhaps even more impressive as the time was achieved
despite relay anchor and team captain Thornton struggling with a shoulder injury picked up in training. Not to be outdone, the women’s team, comprising Cecilia Valeri, Zofi Betker, Steph Din and Caitlin Colman, put in a stellar performance in their event clocking a time of 4.52. Saturday saw the beginning of the individual events and it was a tale of personal best times falling across the board for team Sussex. First up were Cecilia Valeri and Martin Schellert in the 50m backstroke, both swimmers completing the event in just 34 seconds. Zofi Betker put in an excellent performance in the 50m breaststroke, gaining a time of 45.79 while Chris Smith sped to the finish in a time of 40 seconds in the same event. Saturday evening saw Steph Din and James Thornton take just 34 and 30 seconds respectively to complete the 50m freestyle, while Stephen Byrne managed a personal best
time in the 200m breaststroke. The final heats session was held on Sunday morning and saw Caitlin Colman compete in both the 100m freestyle and the 50m butterfly clocking 1.09 and 36 seconds respectively. Club president Ciara Luscombe (1.39), Zofi Betker (1.47) and Stephen Byrne (1.19) all impressed in the 100m breaststroke. Finally, Cecilia Valeri crowned an excellent weekend for the team with her 1.13 performance in the 100m backstroke. A successful weekend for the young club who return to training this week at Brighton College swimming pool, preparing for their intervarsity meet against arch rivals Brighton University in April. If you would like to find out more about the University of Sussex Swimming team, go to www.sussexstudent. com/swimming or email them at swimming@ussu.sussex.ac.uk. Alternatively you can search ‘Swim Sussex 13/14’ on Facebook.