Exchange January/February 2015

EXCHANGE News and views from around the University

Issue 81/ January/February 2015

Death of art to Doctor Who Exploring popular culture Art: Shepard Fairey/obeygiant.com

Sir Martyn Poliakoff Knighthood for Professor of Chemistry and YouTube star.

Strumming stories An interactive guitar takes bards into the digital age.

Small Change, Big Impact Your pennies can help improve lives of people with dementia.

Feeling perky Are extroverts better at fighting off infections?

What’s inside 4&5

7 8&9

12&13

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P3 University knights Professors Sir David and Sir Martyn are honoured by the Queen.

P4&5 Recording stars Computer scientists embed a guitar with a digital life story.

P6 High ideals International recognition for Architecture students with vision for sustainable high-rise societies.

P7 Learn, think, be entertained Celebrating LGBT History Month.

P8&9 Art and war Two exhibitions mark the 70th anniversary of the Second World War. P10 Spotlight News round-up.

P11 Crowd sourcing A lecture series explores popular culture.

P12&13 Sharing knowledge How the University is encouraging inter-disciplinary research and data analysis.

P14 Researchers of the year Accolade for the team behind cornea discovery.

P15 Small Change, Big Impact Salary scheme is backing research into dementia.

P16 Chewing the cud New insight into how cows communicate with their calves.

P17 I feel fine Are there links between personality and health?

P18&19 Making headlines Media-savvy tips for academics.

P21 Events P22&23 What’s on

Contact Rob Ounsworth Exchange magazine, The University of Nottingham, Pope Building, University Park, Nottingham, NG7 2RD e: robert.ounsworth@nottingham.ac.uk t: 0115 7484412 Photography: Lisa Gilligan-Lee, Andrew Hallsworth, Campbell-Rowley Design: Rob Ounsworth

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18&19

Contributors: Charlotte Anscombe, Tara De Cozar, Sofia Nazar-Chadwick, Rob Ounsworth, Emma Rayner, Emma Thorne Read Exchange online at: www.exchangenottingham.org.uk

The University of Nottingham has made every effort to ensure that the information in this magazine was accurate when published. Please note, however, that the nature of the content means that it is subject to change from time to time, and you should therefore consider the information to be guiding rather than definitive. © The University of Nottingham 2015. All rights reserved.

News

Knight of the periodic table Professor Martyn Poliakoff was knighted in the Queen’s New Year Honours 2015.

Professor Poliakoff received the honour for services to chemical sciences in recognition of his contribution as a global leader in green and sustainable chemistry.

The honour also reflects his work as an ambassador for UK Science as VicePresident and Foreign Secretary of the Royal Society, a role that illustrates the esteem in which he is held by his fellow academics.

Professor Poliakoff is a familiar face to millions – he is a star of the Periodic Table of Videos, a YouTube channel dedicated to every one of the 118 chemical elements which has been viewed more than 80 million times.

In 2011 the videos earned him the Royal Society of Chemistry’s prestigious Nyholm Prize for Education.

As well as inspiring would-be scientists and chemistry enthusiasts through a range of exciting experiments showing the properties of all the chemical elements, Professor

Poliakoff has picked up his own band of faithful followers who has been charmed by his eccentric hairstyle and outlandish chemistry-themed ties.

Arise, Sir David

Sir Martyn said: “I feel both honoured and somewhat overwhelmed.

Professor Sir David Greenaway was knighted by Her Majesty the Queen at Buckingham Palace in November.

"I see the award very much as recognition of all the work being done in green and sustainable chemistry in the School of Chemistry by my colleagues, by my research team and by our technical staff whose efforts underpin so much of our research.”

Professor Sir David Greenaway, ViceChancellor of The University of Nottingham, said: “What a richly deserved accolade. Sir Martyn contributes so much as a research leader, educator and communicator of science to the wider public.

"He will receive this honour with his customary modesty, but will be surprised at how widely applauded it is. We are very proud to have him as a colleague.” CA

The Vice-Chancellor was honoured in recognition of his achievements in higher education and public service.

Sir David, who was accompanied by his wife, Susan, sons, Stuart and Dan, and daughters-in-law, Caroline and Georgina, told the Nottingham Post after the ceremony: “It was very inspiring and uplifting, superbly well organised.

It was great to share it with my family and so many others who received their awards for work they have done in the voluntary sector.

“The Queen asked a little about my career as economist, about the University, how it was doing and I assured her that it’s in pretty good order.”

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Research

Carolan, the talking guitar Bob Dylan’s Fender Stratocaster, Willie Nelson’s ‘Trigger’ and Neil Young’s ‘Old Black’ Gibson Les Paul: if guitars could talk ... imagine the tales they could tell.

Scientists at Nottingham have teamed up with a master craftsman to create a beautiful interactive acoustic guitar that can digitally capture and chart its own life history.

The project uses unique technology to hide digital codes – like QR codes – within the decorative patterns adorning the instrument. These can be scanned using an app on a mobile phone or tablet to unlock or upload information via the internet. And so the guitar and its players can build and share a digital footprint of its lifetime.

The finished instrument is dubbed Carolan after the composer Turlough O’Carolan, the last of the great blind Irish harpers and an itinerant musician who roamed Ireland at the turn of the 18th Century. Professor Steve Benford, a computer scientist in the University’s Mixed Reality Laboratory and keen amateur guitarist, is leading the project. He said: “Like its namesake, Carolan is a roving bard; a performer that passes from place to place, learning tunes, songs and stories as it goes and sharing them with the people it encounters along the way.

“Making this interactive guitar has been an incredibly difficult challenge, involving an unusual meeting of minds between a traditional craftsman and computer scientists.

“This is just the beginning of the journey. We're going to learn so much when our guitar finds its way into the world to gather stories and songs from players and audiences.”

The computer scientists teamed up with Liz Jeal, a freelance graphic designer and teacher, who created the Celtic-inspired patterns. Using a new technology called Aestheticodes, the scientists embedded the codes within the designs.

Next, Nick Perez, a luthier (guitar maker) and teacher at the Newark School of Instruments and Crafts, built the guitar. The design features a striking soundboard which mixes decorative Celtic knotwork with multiple soundholes to create a scannable pattern.

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The Aestheticode designs were etched on to the flamed maple of the body, then carefully inlaid by Nick with Indian Rosewood – the result is a crisp, clean design that can be scanned from some distance away, perhaps through a shop window or even at a concert.

The decorative patterns each reveal an aspect of the guitar’s life story. The headstock of the guitar, which traditionally features the maker’s logo, links to a digital version of the maker’s label while the soundboard tells how it was made and where it has visited.

The soundboard plays back tunes that have been recorded on the guitar and will allow players to upload their own recordings.

The back of the guitar is reserved for its unofficial history – a public blog on which people can comment or post photos, videos and recordings wherever they encounter it.

Finally, a small pattern discreetly located unlocks hidden content for the truly dedicated fan clever enough to find it.

The project is funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) through Professor Benford’s Dream Fellowship award, the Horizon Centre for Doctoral Training and the Fusing Semantic and Audio Technologies (FAST) project.

The full story of the Carolan has been documented via a blog, which also features videos of the etchings being made on the body of the instrument.

Visit carolanguitar.com for videos and more on the project. ET

“Making this interactive guitar has been an incredibly difficult challenge, involving an unusual meeting of minds between a traditional craftsman and computer scientists.�

Professor Steve Benford

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News

Top of the world 空气净化塔

CLEAN AIR TOWER

Students from the world’s only university qualification in high-rise architecture triumphed in an international design competition.

PHYSICAL MODEL

Nottingham took the first two prizes – and four of the top 10 places overall – in the prestigious Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) 2014 Student Design Competition, which attracted 288 submissions from almost 50 countries.

Alex Balchin led the field with his Clean Air Tower, which combines vertical architecture with industrial air-cleaning technologies and self-generated power to clean 8,500,000m3 of air a year for residents and office workers in Tianjin, China. Second place went to Matthew Humphreys for his Vertical Farm Project in Singapore. Alex won $6,000 and Matthew $4,000 in prize money and stipends to travel to China.

Course Leader Dr Philip Oldfield is delighted at the international recognition for Nottingham’s Masters of Architecture Sustainable Tall Buildings studio.

“For me, this demonstrates that the work our students are undertaking at Nottingham is at the forefront of tall building design and research internationally, and that we’ll see our graduates leading the construction of such radical architecture in the future,” he said.

Alex returned to Nottingham for a Masters in Architecture after working in Shanghai and Singapore for two years, gaining experience in the design of skyscrapers. He is now negotiating a job offer in New York after he graduates later this year.

He said: “It was my pleasure to present my high-rise design to a jury of whom many had been a profound influence on my work in the past. Winning the competition is a high point in my career and I'm excited about the opportunities it has brought me.”

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Alex’s model of his Clean Air Tower project and, below, Matthew’s Vertical Farm.

Matthew, who is now working for Pomeroy Studio in Singapore, said: “I was absolutely chuffed to have come second in a competition with such worldwide appeal; it is a great accolade. It was a privilege to attend the CTBUH Shanghai conference as a finalist.

To have the opportunity to rub shoulders and learn from the leaders in the field was a fantastic opportunity and experience.”

Dr Oldfield said Alex and Matthew’s projects demonstrated how tall building design was evolving in the face of the global challenges of population growth and urbanisation, while also answering criticism that the tall building was inherently unsustainable, both socially and environmentally.

“There is a growing consensus that tall building design needs to evolve so it makes a more positive impact on the cities of the future,” he said.

“Alex and Matthew demonstrate how the tall building typology is evolving from the air-conditioned glass towers that we currently see in cities around the world, to challenging new ideas for innovative forms and functions, such as vertical farming, or even taking advantage of the stack effect to clean polluted air.” RO

News

The University is marking LGBT History Month with a series of events celebrating its LGBT staff and research.

Film screenings, music and poetry readings, panel discussions and public lectures will explore the diverse aspects of LGBT culture and history – from local musicians and poets to debates on the public image of bisexuality and the participation of trans people in sport.

Events include: • Call Me Kuchu screening, New Art Exchange, Thursday 12 February The documentary Call Me Kuchu examines the lives of LGBT men and women – ‘kuchus’ – in Uganda, in the shadow of the country’s strict antihomosexuality laws. A talk by Bisi Alimi – Nigerian gay rights activist and HIV/LGBT advocate – follows the screening • Read Hear, Nottingham Central Library, Saturday 21 February LGBT musicians and poets will give short performances at Nottingham Central Library at this free family event • Bambi screening, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, Monday 16 February Dr Karen Adler and Dr Onni Gust introduce and discuss a screening of the documentary Bambi. The film profiles Marie-Pierre Pruvot, an Algerian-born trans woman who had a long career as a dancer and showgirl in Paris in the 1950s and 60s • The Enigma Problem: Alan Turing and the British Establishment, Jubilee Campus, Wednesday 25 February Dr Max Biddulph, Chair of the LGBTQ Staff Network and Associate Professor in the School of Education, and Professor David Brailsford, of the School of Computer Science, examine the life and work of Alan Turing in this public lecture

Bambi, the story of trans woman and Paris showgirl Marie-Pierre Pruvot.

LGBT: Plenty to celebrate

The programme is a collaboration between the University’s HR and Professional Development departments, the LGBTQ Staff issues, culture and history, challenge and Network, and schools and departments. debate their current thinking, and to be entertained.”

Dr Biddulph said: “LGBT History Month is a great opportunity for the University to celebrate and highlight both our LGBT staff, and our research. We hope to give people a chance to learn more about LGBT

Many of the events will be live tweeted on Twitter from @UoNresearch. Follow the account at www.twitter.com/uonresearch

For more information, email claire.henson@nottingham.ac.uk or visit the University’s LGBT History Month blog, for a full programme and blog posts from staff whose research touches LGBT culture, history, politics and health.TdC

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News Feature Falling Warrior 1956-9 by Henry Moore.

The art of war As the 70th anniversary of the end of the Second World War approaches, two exhibitions at Nottingham Lakeside Arts bring together artists whose creativity and experiences were shaped by the conflict and its aftermath.

Lee Miller’s War focuses on one of the least recognised episodes in the iconic model and photographer’s remarkable life. In 1944, while working as a freelance photographer for Vogue, Miller became the only female combat photojournalist in Europe.

The exhibition includes 40 photographs from the Lee Miller Archive. Her photographs of the liberation of Paris and the Buchenwald and Dachau concentration camps serve not only as historical records but are also as powerful images in their own right that sear into the memory. Described by a fellow photographer as “never afraid of what the evil men do”, it was this that allowed her to keep on photographing, despite witnessing some of mankind’s worst acts of inhumanity.

The second exhibition, In the Shadow of War, is showing alongside Miller’s photographs and features a generation of artists who rose to prominence in post-war Britain. The 40s-50s was a period of recovery and reconstruction, marked by austerity and the newly drawn battlelines of Cold War politics. In the arts, as in life, the shadow of the war loomed large until well into the 1950s; the paintings and sculptures in this exhibition contain numerous references to the trauma of the conflict.

Francis Bacon’s anguished subject matter contained veiled references to Nazi propaganda while Graham Sutherland made direct use of photographs of the victims of concentration camps to portray his tortured figure of Christ on the cross.

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Throughout the 50s, the Jewish émigré Frank Auerbach and his friend Leon Kossoff dedicated themselves to a series of paintings of London’s building sites, many of which had been caused by bombing raids during the Blitz. Merlyn Evans made direct references to his own wartime experiences in the painting The Execution.

A spirit of despair described as the ‘geometry of fear’ was seen to be the hallmark of a group of young sculptors including Lynn Chadwick, Bernard Meadows and Reg Butler. Elisabeth Frink’s childhood experiences of living close to an airfield during the war influenced a series of bronze warrior birds made in the 1950s that are an explicit statement of aggression.

Head of Visual Arts Programming at Lakeside, Neil Walker, who curated the exhibition said: “The late 40s and 50s was an incredibly fertile period in British art but the work of figurative artists has tended since to be overshadowed by American-influenced abstract painting and the birth of pop art. This exhibition brings together many of the names who were to seen at the time to be at the vanguard of modern art in this country.”

Other artists in the exhibition include: John Bratby, Prunella Clough, Robert Colquhoun, Derrick Greaves, Lucian Freud, Josef Herman, Patrick Heron, LS Lowry, Robert MacBryde, Edward Middleditch, John Minton, Eduardo Paolozzi, Ceri Richards, Jack Smith, William Turnbull, Keith Vaughan.

In the Shadow of War and Lee Miller’s War continue at Djanogly Art Gallery, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, until Sunday 22 February. For more information and opening times, visit www.lakesidearts.org.uk SNC

Clockwise, from top left: Lee Miller in Hitler’s Bathtub, Munich, Germany 1945. Lee Miller with David E Scherman; Horse 1954

by William Turnbull; Cruxifixion 1946 by Graham Sutherland; Figure in a Landscape 1945 by Francis Bacon.

Bacon’s Battles Lecture: Bacon’s Battles Martin Harrison, Wednesday 18 February 6pm-7.30pm, Djanogly Art Gallery Lecture Theatre Admission free. To book, please call the Box Office on 0115 846 7777.

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Media

Spotlight

For the very latest University news, follow us on Twitter: @UniofNottingham, @UoNStudentNews and @UoNPressOffice.

Sir Andrew Witty, left, presents the award.

Medal for fire crews who who fought Jubilee blaze

Professor Chris Rudd.

The University has officially thanked Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service for keeping the community safe during the fire at Jubilee Campus.

exceptional response to the fire and for helping to prevent the loss of any other buildings and ensuring no loss of life. We are also extremely grateful for their thorough investigation and subsequent report which will allow us to proceed with rebuilding and to continue with our ambition to complete this landmark development.”

As Pro-Vice-Chancellor for External Engagement, Professor Rudd has brought many Chinese corporates into UK partnerships and taken technology transfer missions to China – focusing on energy, aerospace, automotive, food and drink, creative industries, pharma/healthcare and financial services.

The Chancellor, Sir Andrew Witty, presented the Chancellor’s Award to Deputy Chief Fire Officer Wayne Bowcock in recognition of the outstanding work by firefighters in containing September’s huge blaze at the GlaxoSmithKline Sustainable Chemistry Laboratory.

Sir Andrew is pictured presenting the award to Notts Fire and Rescue’s Deputy Chief Fire Officer Wayne Bowcock, with, from left, Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Karen Cox, Group Manager Jo WoolerWard and Operations Commander, Station Manager Phil Revill.

He is Professor of Mechanical Engineering and has worked extensively to build long-lasting partnerships that benefit both countries – meeting China’s needs for technology and talent and the western need for new markets.

It is the first time the medal, which was created to recognise exceptional contributions to the University, has been given. As well as the award and certificate of recognition, £20,000 has been donated to The Fire Fighters’ Charity.

Professor Chris Rudd takes the lead in Ningbo

Mr Bowcock said: “It’s a great honour to receive this on behalf of the service. It’s an absolute tragedy to lose the building and the crews were aghast when they got there and we realised there was little we could do to save it. The priority then was people’s safety and there were some significant challenges for us to protect the surroundings and keep people safe.”

Dr Paul Greatrix, Registrar at the University, said: “We would like to show our appreciation to the Fire Service for its 10/ Exchange/ Issue 81 January/February 2015/

Professor Chris Rudd is take over as Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Provost at The University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC).

He succeeds Professor Nick Miles OBE, who is returning to the UK after five highly successful years in charge of UNNC. He oversaw an expansion of the student body, developments in research capacity, new collaborations with business and government, and growth of its infrastructure. UNNC has just celebrated its 10th anniversary.

Professor Rudd said: “UNNC is a unique and exciting place and I really feel honoured to be asked to help steer it through the next phase of its evolution.”

Professor Rudd created Nottingham’s Asia Business Centre and led Nottingham’s presence at the 2010 Shanghai World Expo. He chairs the Nottingham Confucius Institute and is a Board Director of the China Britain Business Council and a guest Professor at Jilin University.

Professor Miles has been Pro-ViceChancellor and Provost since 2010 and will hand over formally to his successor on August 1. He said: “It has been an honour to have had this opportunity to lead UNNC through the past five years and to work with such great people.”

News

Doctor’s orders What can zombies and Doctor Who tell us about genetics or vegan ethics? Find out at the Popular Culture Lecture Series at Nottingham.

Mathieu Donner, postgraduate researcher and teaching fellow in the School of English, who organised the lectures, says: “Popular culture is what we live by, breathe in, and — often literally — consume every single day, from our phones to the radios of our cars, from the circus to the stage, the street or the big screen.

“These lectures offer the chance to explore a new perspective or angle from your favourite novel, TV series, movie or comic book with experts from across the University. I’d encourage anyone with an interest in popular culture to come along. Everyone is welcome.”

All lectures are at 5.30pm, Wednesdays, B13 Physics Building, University Park. A 30-40 minute lecture is followed by a 20-minute Q&A. Programme includes: 18 February Timo Schrader, School of Cultures, Language and Area Studies, slam poetry, verbal combat and the “death of Art” debate.

25 February Kate Stewart, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, and Matthew Cole, Open University, “I need fish fingers and custard”: the irruption and suppression of vegan ethics in Doctor Who. 4 March Sean May, School of Biosciences, zombie genomics; or the didactic dead.

11 March Keith Bound, School of Cultures, Language and Area Studies, “do you like scary movies?”: defining the anatomy of cinematic suspense and viewer anticipatory patterns.

18 March Catherine Johnson, School of Cultures, Language and Area Studies, selling The Hunger Games: the digital infrastructure of blockbuster promotion.

25 March Lynn Fotheringham and Stephen Hodkinson, School of Classics, “This is Sparta!”: ancient Greece in film and comics.

29 April Susannah Lydon, School of Biosciences, travels in deep time: evolution and extinction in classic Doctor Who. 6 May Nathan Waddell, School of English, Wyndham Lewis, the thriller, and the popular. TdC

Art by Matt Ferguson

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Feature

Speed-dating for researchers Imagine speed-dating where the familiar questions ‘what do you do’ and ‘what are you looking for in a partner’ can lead to some less predictable and potentially exciting conclusions.

Nottingham encourages its academics to do just this at ‘sandpits’, where researchers meet to share ideas, find collaborative partners and apply for funding.

Bringing researchers from across the spectrum of schools and departments together in this way to promote inter-disciplinary projects is a key strategic aim of the University.

Such events are hosted by UNICAS – The University of Nottingham Interdisciplinary Centre for Analytical Science – which offers funding for research projects that bridge gaps between disciplines and also encourages the sharing of equipment and analytical science.

Professor Andrei Khlobystov, the chairman of UNICAS, says the sandpits are indeed a little like speed-dating: “It’s informal, with quick presentations from participants – my name, what I do and what I hope to achieve, what I can offer, what I’m looking for in terms of input.”

Researchers form groups united by a scientific challenge or a technique. They also pool expertise and share resources, such as analytical equipment.

They can then make an application to UNICAS for funding to help get their research project off the ground. To qualify for the University-funded grants researchers must draw in collaborators from at least two different disciplines. Postgraduate applicants can apply up to £5,000 and academics and research staff can be awarded up to £15,000.

As Professor of Nanomaterials and Director of Nottingham Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Centre, Andrei can himself point to a collaboration made possible by UNICAS. He joined Dr Graham Rance from Chemistry and the Nanotechnology and Nanoscience Centre’s Dr Michael Fay in working with Dr Lyudmila Turyanska and Professor Amalia Patanè of the School of Physics and Astronomy.

“Graham is working on quantum dots and carbon nanotubes and at a UNICAS sandpit he met Lyudmila and Amalia and discovered they were interested in similar things,” said Professor Khlobystov. “We are able to investigate the physical properties of these nano materials thanks to the fantastic instrumentation they

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have in Physics. Hopefully it will lead to some important applications – these structures could be used for photocatalysis: using light to promote auxiliary chemical reactions, which is very topical as we look at light as a sustainable source of energy.”

By funding such small-scale collaborations, UNICAS opens the way for larger external grant applications.

Ginny Birney, UNICAS Project Manager, who is based in Research and Graduate Services, said that between 2012 and 2015 the project will have awarded around £220,000 to inter-disciplinary collaborative research projects. UNICAS-funded projects in 2012 went on to apply for over £1m in grants from funding bodies including BBSRC, MRC, Leverhulme and EPSRC. Dr Rachel Gomes says the data and outputs from UNICAS collaborations are vital to securing such funding. The Assistant Professor in Chemical and Environmental Engineering and the School of Pharmacy’s Professor Dave Barrett were awarded £15,000 from UNICAS to develop methods for determining pharmaceuticals during wastewater treatment.

Dr Gomes said: “This has led to an EPSRC First Grant in BIOTRANSFORMICS: Bioanalysis to engineer understanding in wastewater treatment, which would not have been achieveable without the UNICAS funding. UNICAS is a key part of the University’s strategic aim of increasing inter-disciplinary cooperation and is an exemplar of proactively bridging gaps between multi-disciplinary research projects.”

The project also maintains the Kit Catalogue, a register of analytical equipment available for research collaboration at https://equipment.nottingham.ac.uk Ginny added: “We have state-of the-art equipment across the University that is available to researchers from other schools and departments. In many cases such equipment is not in use all of the time and researchers may not be aware that it is available or can be applied to their field. Such equipment – and the expertise of staff trained to use it – can be made more widely available through UNICAS. “We are enhancing Nottingham’s research capacity in cutting-edge analytical science and in the long term we want to bring in our campuses in Malaysia and China and make this interdisciplinary approach international.”

For more information on UNICAS, contact UNICAS Project Manager Ginny Birney e: ginny.birney@nottingham.ac.uk RO

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Research

Dr Simon Kerridge, of the Association of Research Managers and Administrators, (right), presents Professor Dua and colleagues Dr Dalia Said, second left, and Dr Lana Fara with the award. Guest Jack Dee looks on.

Cornea team are researchers of year Nottingham picked up Research Project of the Year at the Times Higher Education Awards 2014.

Scientists from the University identified a previously undetected layer of the cornea, the clear protective lens that sits in front of the eye.

Ophthalmology, was the discipline’s most downloaded paper on the ScienceDirect website over the next three months. Collaborative work with researchers in Italy, Egypt, Lithuania and Wales is building on the breakthrough.

Professor Saul Tendler, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for The researchers, led by Professor Harminder Dua, found Research, said: “I’m delighted to see this outstanding a distinct layer deep in the corneal tissue that plays a work recognised by the Times Higher Education judges. vital role in corneal transplant surgery.

This is exciting research that is helping to improve patient care and having a real impact on day-to-day Professor Dua said: “Winning this award is fantastic treatment of patients around the world.”

– but the real winners are my team, The University of Nottingham for the support and the environment it The Times Higher Education Awards judges described provides, and my NHS colleagues who have always the discovery as truly ground-breaking. encouraged and facilitated my research.”

Shearer West, head of the Humanities Division at the The discovery has been named Dua’s Layer in his University of Oxford, said: “The discovery of a new layer honour. He carried out the research with Dr Dalia Said, of the cornea by Professor Dua has been one of the Dr Lana Faraj, Trevor Gray and James Lowe. most exciting recent developments in ophthalmology, Having identified this new and distinct layer deep in the with the possibility of revolutionising the treatment of tissue of the cornea, doctors are exploiting its presence corneal diseases.” to make operations much safer and simpler for patients.

Nottingham was also shortlisted in the category of Outstanding International Student Strategy for its The discovery has also sparked a flurry of research questions about its role in diseases of the eye including innovative support of international students, including immigration surgeries given by a leading law firm, glaucoma, the world’s second most common cause of interactive online sessions with applicants and onblindness, which is a result of defective fluid drainage. campus police registration all year round. CA Professor Dua’s research, published in the journal

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In for a penny...

News

Sign up to the Small Change Big Impact payroll giving scheme to support dementia research Small Change: Big Impact – which enables University staff to donate a few pence from their monthly pay packets to an Impact project – is this year raising money for research into dementia.

The scheme works by asking staff to round down to the nearest pound their monthly salary. Collecting these surplus pennies generates an average of £300 a month in donations.

Last year the 650-plus staff signed up to Small Change: Big Impact raised £4,190 for Children’s Brain Tumour Research in Nottingham.

In 2015, money from the scheme is already helping the University’s vital research into dementia. Over 800,000 people in the UK have dementia; one in three of us is said to have a family member or close friend who is affected.

Nottingham pioneered MRI scanning and Small Change: Big Impact will be supporting another world first when new clinically enhanced MRI technology, thousands of times more sensitive than standard scanners, will be used at the Queen's Medical Centre to research ways of diagnosing dementia earlier and improving its

treatment. This offers real promise for advancement in our understanding of and ability to treat neurodegenerative diseases.

Dementia is characterised by a decline of the brain and its abilities, causing effects such as memory loss and personality changes. It cannot be prevented and current treatments merely delay the inevitable decline.

Staff already signed up to Small Change Big Impact need take no action as their pennies will automatically be redirected to dementia research.

If you wish to sign up for Small Change Big Impact, or to find out more about the supporting the Impact Campaign, please visit www.nottingham.ac.uk/ impactcampaign/staff Small Change Big Impact supporters receive a donor pin and Jen Wickham, Community Fundraising Manager, said: “Please wear your donor pin with pride throughout 2015 to symbolise your support for the University. We hope this will inspire others to give by increasing awareness of the value and pleasure of giving to Nottingham.” RO

Life Cycle 4 raises record £750,000 Last summer’s Life Cycle 4 raised a record £750,000 for Children’s Brain Tumour Research.

The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sir David Greenaway, and his team cycled more than 1,400 miles, each riding in honour of a child who has battled the disease.

Thanks to their efforts and the generosity of supporters, the University expects the UK’s first intraoperative MRI scanner of its kind to be installed at the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham this spring.

This will have a direct impact on saving and improving the lives of young brain tumour sufferers and their families in the UK and globally.

To find out ways of continuing to support Children’s Brain Tumour Research, please visit www.nottingham.ac.uk/ impactcampaign/cbtr

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Research

Researchers have been eavesdropping on ‘conversations’ between calves and their mothers – using detailed acoustic analysis for the first time to measure how cows communicate.

The team from The University of Nottingham and Queen Mary University of London spent 10 months studying carefully examining acoustic indicators of identity and age. They identified two distinct maternal ‘calls’. When cows were close to their calves, they communicated with them using low-frequency calls. When they were out of visual contact, their calls were louder and at a much higher frequency.

Calves called out to their mothers when they wanted to start suckling. And all three types of calls were individualised – it was possible to identify each cow and calf using its calls.

It has long been thought that cows use individualised calls to communicate with each other, but this study confirms the theory – and identifies particular types of mother-offspring contact calls in cattle.

The researchers studied two herds of free-range cattle on a farm in Radcliffe-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire.

Recordings were made using highly sensitive equipment, gathering so much data it took a further year to analyse.

Dr Mónica Padilla de la Torre lead the research at Nottingham’s School of Life Sciences. She said: “The research shows for the first time that mother-offspring cattle ‘calls’ are individualised – each calf and cow have a characteristic and exclusive call of their own. Acoustic analysis also reveals that certain information is conveyed within the calf calls – age, but not gender.”

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Do you speak cow?

Dr Alan McElligott, of Queen Mary University of London, said: “This is the first time that complex cattle calls of have been analysed using the latest and best techniques. Our results provide an excellent foundation for investigating vocal indicators of cattle welfare.”

By investigating vocalisations in behavioural contexts outside of mother-offspring communication, further research could reveal vocal indicators of welfare – and influence change in animal care policies.”

This study was funded by The National Council of Science and Technology, Mexico (CONACyT). The paper is published by the journal Applied Animal Behaviour Science and is available online at http://tiny.cc/UoNScienceDirect. TDC

Research It’s long been thought that some aspects of personality may be linked to health and wellbeing – from how much we sleep, to how we cope with illness and even how long we live.

Now researchers believe extroverts may have a healthy edge – by being better at fighting off infections.

Health psychologists at The University of Nottingham and the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA) asked a group of 121 ethnically diverse and healthy adults to completed a personality test and found that outgoing people may have stronger immune systems.

The study did not find any results to support theories that negative emotions such as depression or anxiety can lead to poor health. But it suggested differences in immune cell gene expression were related to a person’s degree of extroversion and conscientiousness.

Gene expression analysis was carried out at the Social Genomics Core Laboratory at UCLA and microarray technology examined relationships between the five major human personality traits – extroversion, neuroticism, openness, agreeableness and conscientiousness – and two groups of genes active in human white blood cells (leukocytes): one involving inflammation, and another involving antiviral responses and antibodies.

Leading the research, Professor Kavita Vedhara, from Nottingham’s School of Medicine, said: “Our results indicated that ‘extroversion’ was significantly associated with an increased expression of pro-inflammatory genes and that ‘conscientiousness’ was linked to a reduced expression of proinflammatory genes.

“In other words, individuals who we would expect to be exposed to more infections as a result of their socially orientated nature (ie, extroverts) appear to have immune systems that we would expect can deal effectively with infection. While

Extroverts: a healthy advantage? individuals who may be less exposed to infections because of their cautious/conscientious dispositions have immune systems that may respond less well. We can’t, however, say which came first. Is this our biology determining our psychology or our psychology determining our biology?”

In the remaining three categories of personality, ‘openness’ also trended towards a reduced expression of pro-inflammatory genes and ‘neuroticism’ and ‘agreeableness’ remained unassociated with gene expression.

The biological mechanisms of these associations need to be explored in future research but the data may shed new light on the long-observed associations between personality, physical health, and human longevity.

Personality and gene expression: Do individual differences exist in the leukocyte transcriptome? by Kavita Vedhara, Sana Gill, Lameese Eldesouky, Bruce Campbell, Jesusa Arevalo, Jeffrey Ma and Steven Cole, is available online at http://tiny.cc/ScienceDirect in Psychoneuroendocrinology, an Elsevier journal. ER 17/ Exchange/ Issue 81/ January/February 2015/

Feature

Making the headlines ...or why sharing your research with the wider world via the broadcast media may be less daunting and more rewarding than you think

BBC and Sky veteran Jeff Randall shares his broadcasting tips with academics.

“Sitting in your office, in glorious isolation, may well be safer and easier, but there’s a reason for that: it’s very dull.”

So said Philip Cowley, Professor of Parliamentary Government and seasoned blogger, broadcaster and tweeter, at a workshop aimed at encouraging his fellow academics to share their expertise with the wider world.

There may be risks – “we all fear our work being distorted or corpsing on live TV” – but he believes the benefits far outweigh them.

The Making the Headlines workshop, hosted by the University’s Communications team, heard that these plusses include sharing research findings as widely as possible, raising the University’s profile, and becoming a better communicator. And, not least, it may be fun.

Phil was joined by two fellow academics who shared their experience of working with the media.

Dr Sandra Corr, of the Vet School, spoke about operating on a gorilla at a sanctuary in Africa – with the BBC, ITV and the Daily Mail in tow. Her talk on the dos and don’ts of dealing with the media was summed up: “don’t do anything you wouldn’t normally do”.

Virologist Professor Jonathan Ball spoke of his journey from media sceptic to believer: “I was once Phil Cowley’s archetypal sulky academic, sulking in his 18/ Exchange/ Issue 81/ January/February 2015/

room.” Jonathan – as a British Science Association Media Fellow spent eight weeks embedded with the BBC, learning what it’s like to be a journalist. And over the last few months he has worked tirelessly talking to the media about Ebola. After his presentation he disappeared to talk HIV to BBC Newsday, BBC Wales, the News Channel and BBC Nottingham. He's quoted on BBC Online, and there’s a feature from him about ‘HIV: Why is the virus so ‘successful’? on the BBC website.

The media workshop was rounded off by Jeff Randall, a Nottingham alumnus (BA Economics, 1979) and former BBC business editor, Fleet Street veteran and Sky TV presenter, who is a member of the University Council.

Jeff is also a champion of the Media Hub, a purposebuilt studio on University Park that allows the world’s broadcasters to access expert commentary from our academics: if journalists require insight on a news story, our experts can record interviews or broadcast live via a fixed camera and ISDN line to TV and radio programmes around the world.

In the spirit of Professor Cowley’s 20-point guide on engaging with the media (you’ll find it on the blog Ballots & Bullets, itself a masterclass in how to make research topical and accessible), here’s some of the insights shared at the workshop:

“You only need two thoughts for an interview – a big one and a little one in case you forget the big one.”

Jeff Randall

1

Fill the void. Putting yourself in the spotlight and offering expert insight can make a difference and influence policy-makers: compare the misinformation surrounding the MMR vaccine with the more measured and informed response to the Ebola outbreak.

2 3 4 5

It’s good for Nottingham. Everyone wins by raising the profile of our institution and its research.

If you’re worried about looking old/fat/silly, don’t watch yourself.

Sandra Corr says the BBC are more generous in getting the beers in than ITV or the Daily Mail.

Be prepared to say no. If it’s not your area of expertise, say so, and suggest a colleague who better fits the bill.

Dr Sandra Corr operating on Shufai the gorilla.

6

13

7

14

Don’t accept a false premise. If the interviewer asks the wrong question, take them down the road you want to travel. “Arthur Scargill was the master of this,” says Jeff Randall.

If live interviews are too daunting, go for recorded ones. “If you are unhappy with what you’ve said, swear so they can’t use it,” says Phil Cowley. “This approach isn’t advisable on live broadcasts.”

Be prepared to say no #2. Use your common sense, says Sandra Corr, who kept the cameras at bay in Cameroon when she felt filming was inappropriate.

Don’t waffle. Prioritise what you want to say and take Andrew Marr’s advice to Jeff Randall: “You only need two thoughts for an interview – a big one and a little one in case you forget the big one.”

15

Find the time. Over the course of a career, says Phil Cowley, surely you can sacrifice completing one or two papers for the chance to share your research with millions.

16

It’s you they want. The Communications team offer training, support and advice and can help you build relationships with the media. But it’s you the journalists want.

17

Find the time #2. If a big story breaks and you’re in demand (see Professor Ball and Ebola) be prepared to clear your diary.

Professor Ball broadcasting from the Media Hub.

18

Find the time #3. The Media Hub has made it easier for broadcasters to access expert commentators. You no longer have the excuse of not having the time to traipse off to a TV or radio station.

8

19

9

20

That first live TV appearance is terrifying. But you’ll get over it. Remember you are working with professionals, says Jonathan Ball – it’s in their interest to put you at ease.

Watch the birdy. If asked to look down the camera for link to a remote interviewer, keep your eyes still and not darting off-camera. Otherwise, like Phil Cowley recalling his first time on Sky News, you’ll look like a hyperactive Nookie Bear.

10

Consider applying for a British Science Association Media Fellowship. Jonathan Ball had a six-week placement with the BBC.

11

Think like a journalist. What type of stories are the media interested in? How can you contribute?

12

Sign up for our online Media Expertise Guide, which features 500 experts. So far this year, it has had 160,000 views from journalists looking for academics to add substance to their stories.

Don’t sit back and wait for a journalist to call.

See points 9, 10, 11, 16, 18. If you are interested in working with the media or using the Media Hub, contact Communications: t: 951 5765 email: communications@nottingham.ac.uk And remember – it could be fun. RO

Ready to make an impact?

The Press and Media Relations team is organising a second event, Making an Impact, for academics and researchers interested in working with the media.

Dr Caroline Ogilvie, of the BBC/Open University Partnership, will explain how to pitch programme ideas to broadcasters.

The half-day seminar is from 1pm on Wednesday 29 April at Highfields House. Look out for an EventBrite invitation.

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Bulletin

Bulletin board

Email any school/faculty news to: robert.ounsworth@nottingham.ac.uk, marking your email bulletin board.

Dr Matthew Goodwin.

Study of the radical right is political book of the year A book co-written by a Nottingham academic has won the prestigious Political Book of the Year award in the Paddy Power Political Book Awards 2015.

Since its release in March 2014, Revolt on the Right: Explaining Support for the Radical Right in Britain, by Nottingham’s Dr Matthew Goodwin and Manchester’s Dr Rob Ford, was reviewed in almost every national newspaper, described in The Spectator as “one of the most important books on British politics for years” and in The Times as “the book to arm yourself with for those dinner parties when the talk turns to politics”.

It was mentioned in more than 170 national newspaper articles on British politics and was also cited in speeches by the Leader of the Opposition, Ed Miliband, and the two Conservative Members of Parliament who defected to UKIP, Douglas Carswell and Mark Reckless.

Goodwin and Ford were also awarded the Political Studies Association Communicator Prize for their efforts to share the research findings widely.

Dr Goodwin said: “I am delighted to receive this award, with my co-author Robert Ford.

We wanted to deliver a book that was 20/ Exchange/ Issue 81 January/February 2015/

Ed Hancock at New Theatre.

anchored in rigorous research but which is also accessible to a wide audience. I would like to thank both The University of Nottingham and Routledge for their support throughout the project.”

New Director for the Institute of Mental Health A new Director has been appointed to run the Institute of Mental Health, a partnership between Nottinghamshire Healthcare and The University of Nottingham.

Professor Martin Orrell is currently Professor of Ageing and Mental Health at University College London. He also works as an Honorary Consultant and Old Age Psychiatrist and is Director of Research and Development at the North East London Foundation Trust.

The IMH was launched in 2006 to help change the understanding and treatment of mental health.

Professor Orrell will take up his post in March. He replaces Professor Nick Manning, who retired as Director of the IMH earlier this year.

Professor Orrell said: “The Institute of Mental Health is one of the most important and exciting developments in mental health research of the last 20

years. This remarkable achievement, which is based on a close collaboration between The University of Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Healthcare, shows what can be done when the NHS and academia work well together.

“The aim of the Institute is to carry out ground-breaking applied research which is useful in mental health practice to make a difference to millions of people across the UK and abroad.”

New Theatre poster boy Ed makes a happy return Nottingham alumnus Ed Hancock returned to his old stomping ground to catch up with the current crop of student thespians. Ed, who was starring in the National Theatre tour of One man, Two Guvnors at the Theatre Royal, has enjoyed a successful acting career after leaving Nottingham, with roles in regional theatre and television.

Ed, (Law, 2008) caught the acting bug at Nottingham New Theatre, the only studentrun theatre in England. “It brought back great memories,” said Ed. “Especially seeing posters of shows I was in. It was amazing to see the extent to which New Theatre has been improved. It’s held in very high esteem and the University and students should be very proud of it.”

Events

Events Inside Out of Mind Tuesday 24 February to Saturday 28 February, various times, Djanogly Theatre, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, University Park. Admission is £15, £13 concessions, £11 restricted view Following its successful world premiere here in 2013, Meeting Ground Theatre Company and Nottingham Lakeside Arts are proud to welcome the return of Inside Out Of Mind as part of a national tour.

This darkly comic and insightful play by Tanya Myers enters into the experience of dementia care. Touching minds and hearts, nurses and patients search for love, rhyme and reason on ‘the ward with no name’.

Based on rigorous participant observation on dementia wards, Inside Out Of Mind is part of The University of Nottingham's dementia research and awareness programme, which is supported by charitable donations through Impact: the Nottingham Campaign w: www.lakesidearts.org.uk t: 0115 846 7777

Playing Around: Taking Theatre to Communities Across the East Midlands Until Sunday 3 May, Monday-Friday 11am-4pm and Sunday noon-4pm, Weston Gallery, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, University Park. Admission is free Playing Around explores the history of two local theatre companies, New Perspectives and Roundabout, Nottingham Playhouse’s Theatre in Education company.

Using theatre posters, teachers’ packs, programmes and photographs, together with press reviews and recollections from company members, this exhibition celebrates both companies and their use of theatre to entertain, intrigue, teach and develop different communities over the past 40 years. w: www.lakesidearts.org.uk t: 0115 846 7777

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Listings

What’s on

Arts, music and lectures – expand your mind on campus.

See www.nottingham.ac.uk/events for comprehensive listings.

Public lectures

Exhibitions

Music

Bambi Part of LGBT History Month. Join the Department of History for a screening of Bambi, a 2013 film about a trans woman who had a prominent career as a showgirl in 1950s and 1960s Paris. The screening will also feature an introduction and Q&A with Dr Onni Gust and Dr Karen Adler When: Monday February 16, 7pm-9pm Where: Djanogly Theatre, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, University Park Admission: Free. To book, email claire.henson@nottingham.ac.uk

Tristram Aver The notion of ‘Britishness’ is explored in Aver's reinterpretations of 19th-century salon paintings using contemporary cultural and commercial references.

When: Until Sunday 15 February, MondaySaturday 11am-5pm, Sundays noon-4pm Where: Angear Visitor Centre, Djanogly Art Gallery, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, University Park Admission: Free

English Celebration Orlando Consort, Fitzwilliam String Quartet, Philharmonia and Viva Voce When: Saturday 21 February, 7.30pm Where: St Mary’s Church, Nottingham Admission: £16, £14 concessions, £6 UoN students

Gay rights in the US: the promise of perils and patriotism Part of LGBT History Month. This event will feature a talk by Simon Hall, an introduction by David Edgley of Nottinghamshire Rainbow Heritage, and a public conversation with Tom Bishop.

Followed by wine reception and viewing of the Nottingham LGBT Sites and Heritage exhibition.

When: Tuesday, February 17, 6.30pm-8pm Where: A01/A02, Highfield House, University Park Admission: Free. Book at http://rainbownottingham.eventbrite.co.uk For details of more LGBT History Month events, see page 7.

Formed A rare opportunity to see a collection of diverse and stimulating ceramic work by 10 leading European makers. All works are for sale When: Until Sunday 15 February, MondaySaturday 11am-5pm, Sundays noon-4pm Where: Angear Visitor Centre, Djanogly Art Gallery, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, University Park Admission: Free Let the Chinese Dream Fly Facsimilies of Chinese state campaign posters issued under the leadership of Xi Jingping to promote a spirit of national rejuvenation, patriotism and innovation When: Until Sunday 22 February, MondaySaturday 9am-5pm, Sundays 10am-5pm.

Until 11pm on performance evenings Where: Wallner Gallery, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, University Park Geoff Diego: Litherland Drawing upon traditional genres of abstraction and science fiction surrealism to create parallel worlds that seek to question our perception of, and relationship to, nature.

When: Saturday 21 February to Sunday 10 May, Monday-Saturday 11am-5pm, Sundays noon-4pm Where: Angear Visitor Centre, Djanogly Art Gallery, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, University Park Admission: Free

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The Cajun Roosters World When: Wednesday 18 February, 8pm Where: Djanogly Theatre, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, University Park Djanogly Theatre Admission: £16, £14 concessions Denis Kozhukhin Chamber When: Thursday 19 February 7.30pm Where: Djanogly Recital Hall, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, University Park, 7.30pm Admission: £16, £14 concessions Dead Symphony: Apartment House Contemporary A fusion of social documentary, art, biological science and music played by the internationally renowned ensemble Apartment House. Programmed to complement Lakeside’s production of Inside out of Mind (see page 21) When: Wednesday 25 February 7.30pm Where: Djanogly Art Gallery, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, University Park Admission: £10, £8 concessions Gould Piano Trio Chamber When: Thursday 26 February 7.30pm Where: Djanogly Recital Hall, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, University Park Admission: £16, £14 concessions The Arco Ensemble University Where: Djanogly Recital Hall, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, University Park When: Friday 27 February 5.30pm Admission: £4

Theatre and Dance The Three Wise Monkeys Hiccup Theatre When: Sunday 15 February, 1pm and 3.30pm Where: Djanogly Theatre, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, University Park Admission: £7.50 The Reduced Shakespeare Company Present the Complete History of Comedy (Abridged) When: Tuesday 17 February, 8pm Where: Djanogly Theatre, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, University Park Admission: £16, £14 concession, £12 restricted view Inside Out Of Mind Meeting Ground Theatre Company and Nottingham Lakeside Arts See page 21 When: Tuesday 24 February–Saturday 28 February, various times Where: Djanogly Theatre, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, University Parkk Admission: £15, £13 concessions, £11 restricted view

Andrew Motion: The Customs House Presented In Partnership With The School Of English The Customs House is a stunning new collection from the former Poet Laureate.

The book is in three sections, and opens with a sequence of war poems, Laurels and Donkeys, which draws on soldiers’ experiences from the First and Second World Wars, through to the recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

When: Wednesday 4 March 7.30pm Where: Djanogly Theatre, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, University Park Admission: £13, £11 concessions, £8 MMM HMMM Verity Standen In Association With Tobacco Factory Theatre NottDance Festival 2015 When: Thursday 5 March, 9pm Where: Djanogly Theatre, Nottingham Lakeside Arts, University Park Admission: £12, £9 concessions, £6 restricted view

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