Budding engineers go to market
Richard Barry argues for axing engineering faculties that accept students with low A-level points. I disagree. The purpose of education is to change minds, and the purpose of engineering is to change...
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A great thinker but an ordinary man
When Ann Oakley sat down to write a biography of her father, social thinker Richard Titmuss, she discovered that like many men of his generation much of his public success had been based on the...
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Catch in tax dodge
I read with interest your report of the Profit Related Pay scheme (PRP) at the University of the West of England, whereby an element of salary will be paid as a tax-free "profit" distribution. No...
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Benn on Blair
Tony Benn fires another salvo at New Labour in a review of Brian Brivati's biography of Hugh Gaitskell on page 24. He rejects perceptions of Gaitskell as an early Blairite moderniser, presenting him...
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Mash to mush
Montreal's Concordia University had a slithery little ceremony two weeks ago as the recycling coordinator introduced a vermiculture programme to turn vegetable matter into rich, garden-ready compost...
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Disney on madness
Images of madness in Walt Disney films, such as the mother in Dumbo and father in Mary Poppins perpetuate stereotypes of mental illness as a condition that can be violent and needs confinement,...
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Taking the air
(Photograph) - Composer Andrew Downes (left), head of composition and creative studies at Birmingham Conservatoire, has composed "Towards a New Age" for the 150th anniversary of the Institution of...
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Small is beautiful for Scots
The Disability Discrimination Act aims to encourage institutions to provide a better service for students with disabilities. Scotland's compactness has allowed the Scottish Higher Education Funding...
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Women chart ocean cycle
Yachtswomen racing around the world for nine months will record details of sea sickness and menstrual cycles to help scientists understand motion sickness. Michael Gresty's team at the Medical...
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Unions flex muscles over pay rise retreat
Australia's main academic union plans to adopt a more aggressive industrial stance towards wage rises and job security. The decision comes as vice chancellors face growing pressure from the...
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Budding engineers go to market
Richard Barry's hope that a cull of so-called weaker engineering faculties, as defined by input standards alone, will produce candidates who will take up training to be skilled engineering craftsmen...
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When the quality of mercy is strained
In the wake of the judiciary's decision not to pursue a second Maxwell trial because of the level of public prejudice, Michael Levi asks if it is time to replace trial by jury in cases of fraud. The...
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Debt hits former polytechnics hardest
Debt levels are rising among higher education institutions, with the former polytechnics carrying the largest burden, according to a new financial guide to the sector. This reinforces funding council...
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Silent partner
This week's alumnus to be proud of is unlikely to reach for his learned friends on the basis of what follows. Neil Hamilton, the former minister who this week abandoned a legal action against The...
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Cut engineering, say employers
Graham Mackenzie, director general of the Engineering Employers Federation, has called for a shakeout of engineering courses in universities. He says that there is "certainly overcapacity" in...