News in March
- Inaugural Bristol Forum launches to turn ideas into action 29 March 2019 City leaders gathered today [29 March] with academics, businesses, community groups, students and others from the public and private sector to lay foundations for solving some of the city’s most pressing challenges.
- Untangling the evolution of feeding strategies in ancient crocodiles 29 March 2019 Ancient aquatic crocodiles fed on softer and smaller prey than their modern counterparts and the evolution of skull shape and function allowed them to spread into new habitats, reveal paleobiology researchers from the University of Bristol and UCL.
- Researchers awarded €4 million in European Research Council grants 28 March 2019 Two senior researchers from the University of Bristol have been awarded over €4 million in European Research Council (ERC) Advanced Grants in recognition of their ‘excellent science’ and potentially ground-breaking research.
- Bristol selected to advise energy industry on safety of nuclear equipment 28 March 2019 The University of Bristol has signed a Memorandum of Understanding to work with major national and international players in the energy market to ensure that all nuclear equipment meets required standards.
- Medieval myths: the story behind Walsall’s wonderous wooden wands 28 March 2019 The mysterious origins of the Bayard’s Colts – a collection of 17 ceremonial wooden clubs dating back to the 1400s – will be explored at the Walsall Leather Museum on Wednesday 3 April (7.30pm-9pm).
- Bristol part of new National Centre of Excellence for IoT Systems Cybersecurity 28 March 2019 The University of Bristol is to work alongside other leading universities and industry partners as part of a new government initiative to position the nation as a world leader in tackling cyber threats.
- New Max Planck-Bristol Centre for Minimal Biology launched 27 March 2019 Building stripped-down versions of life using protocells, genome delivery systems and synthetic cytoskeletons comprise some of the groundbreaking research due to take place at a new Centre launched at the University of Bristol today [Wednesday 27 March]. The Max Planck-Bristol Centre for Minimal Biology, a partnership between the University of Bristol and the Max Planck Society for the Advancement of Science (MPG) in Germany, aims to advance the future of health and medicine by understanding the fundamental nature of life.
- ‘Nightmarish’ antlions’ spiral digging techniques create effective and deadly traps 27 March 2019 A team of biologists and physicists, led by the University of Bristol, have uncovered new insights into how antlions – one of the fiercest and most terrifying predators in the insect kingdom – build their deadly pit traps.
- Bristol academic discovers ancient royal charter of King John 26 March 2019 A rare, original royal charter from the first year of King John’s reign has been discovered in Durham by a medieval historian from the University of Bristol.
- Landmark £1 million donation to boost Bristol’s research in Africa 22 March 2019 The University of Bristol has received a landmark £1 million donation to further its research activity and impact in Africa.
- Volcano cliffs can affect monitoring data, study finds 22 March 2019 New research led by the University of East Anglia (UEA) and co-authored by the University of Bristol reveals that sharp variations of the surface of volcanoes can affect data collected by monitoring equipment.
- Half a billion-year-old fossil reveals the origins of comb jellies 21 March 2019 One of the ocean’s little known carnivores has been allocated a new place in the evolutionary tree of life after scientists discovered its unmistakable resemblance with other sea-floor dwelling creatures.
- Ambitious plans for digital technologies awarded seed funding 21 March 2019 Plans for a world-leading cyber innovation network and a new creative media hub are one step closer to reality after a successful funding bid led by the University of Bristol in partnership with the region’s universities, businesses and community organisations.
- Risk of miscarriage linked strongly to mother's age and pregnancy history 20 March 2019 The risk of miscarriage varies greatly with a woman's age, shows a strong pattern of recurrence, and is increased after some pregnancy complications, finds a study led by the Bristol Medical School and published in The BMJ today [Wednesday 20 March].
- Child and adolescent anxiety could be linked to later alcohol problems 20 March 2019 New research led by the University of Bristol has found some evidence that children and adolescents with higher levels of anxiety may be at greater risk of developing alcohol problems. However, the link between anxiety and later binge drinking and later frequency and quantity of drinking was more inconclusive.
- How religious reformers justified, but ultimately overthrew, the ‘empire of hell’ of penal colonies 18 March 2019 A fascinating new book which explores, for the first time, how religion was used to justify the creation of penal colonies, attempt reforms and ultimately overthrow the transportation of British and Irish prisoners is published next month.
- Bristol students take on burrito-biking, all-night badminton and 24 hours of tennis 18 March 2019 This week, University of Bristol students will be taking on 10 hours of non-stop sporting activities for the annual Ignit10n fundraising event. The heart of the Clifton campus will be jam-packed with a carnival of sporting challenges to raise money for local charity, Above & Beyond.
- Bristol provides first long-term look at predictors of suicide attempts 14 March 2019 Academics at the University of Bristol have taken the first long-term look at potential factors that could lead to suicide attempts in high-risk young people.
- 'Orchestrating the Orchestra’ 5G enables musicians to perform across locations 14 March 2019 The public are invited to experience musicians perform a fully synchronised concert across venues in Bristol and London, using 5G Orchestration Technologies on Saturday 16th March.
- New partnership with LV General Insurance advances data science capabilities 14 March 2019 The University of Bristol and LV= General Insurance (LV=GI), one of the UK’s largest personal insurers, have today announced a new partnership with the aim of working together to make advancements in the field of data science by sharing knowledge, skills and opportunities.
- University of Bristol wins three South West Fair Trade Business Awards 13 March 2019 The University has been awarded three Silver awards in the South West Fair Trade Business Awards 2019, in the categories of Best Fair Trade University or College, Best Fair Trade Café or Restaurant, and Best Fair Trade Accommodation or Conference Centre, respectively.
- ‘Get engaged to save planet’ Sir David Attenborough urges young people as he receives a Lifetime Achievement award 13 March 2019 Sir David Attenborough has urged young people to ‘get engaged, come together and do something’ about the threats facing the natural world.
- Professor John Nye (1923-2019) 13 March 2019 Emeritus Professor John Frederick Nye, internationally renowned physicist, died on 8 January 2019, a month before his 96th birthday. His colleague Emeritus Professor Michael Berry offers this tribute.
- Driverless car project researches advances in vehicle connectivity 12 March 2019 The £5.5m FLOURISH driverless car project has successfully completed the latest phase of its investigations into the requirements of the cyber-physical infrastructure of the future.
- Is my child seriously ill? 12 March 2019 Parents generally tend to consider their child more unwell than GPs and use different factors to judge symptom severity, according to researchers at the University of Bristol’s Centre for Academic Primary Care in a study published in the British Journal of General Practice today [Tuesday 12 March].
- Mindfulness found to improve mental health of students 11 March 2019 Mental health amongst university students could be improved by introducing mindfulness training. These are the findings from the first UK study, published in Education Research International, to measure the efficacy of mindfulness based cognitive therapy (MBCT) on students.
- Senior Researcher wins Hind Rattan award, 2019 8 March 2019 Celebrating International Women's day we spoke to Dr Narinder Bansal who explained the work that led her to win the prestigious Indian award.
- Staff and students gather to celebrate International Women’s Day 2019 8 March 2019 Students and staff came together outside the Wills Memorial Building today [Friday 8 March] for a photo shoot to celebrate the increasing role played by women across the University of Bristol.The event was part of International Women’s Day (IWD), led by the United Nations to showcase the social, cultural, economic and political achievements of women across the world.
- Domestic violence against women: giving friends and relatives the keys to help 8 March 2019 Today [Friday 8 March] International Women's Day [IWD 2019] is celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women but worldwide, domestic violence and abuse (DVA) is still experienced by almost one in three women. It has become a major public health issue, with profound physical and mental health impact. A research project by the University of Bristol, funded by AXA Research Fund, aims to develop resources that will help informal groups, such as friends and family, support women who experience domestic violence.
- First images of fuel debris fallout particles from Fukushima Daiichi 7 March 2019 A joint UK-Japan team has used innovative visualisation techniques to analyse forensic materials in order to understand the sequence of events of the Fukushima nuclear accident.
- Bristol engineer to take his research to Parliament 7 March 2019 Huan Doan, PhD student from the University of Bristol, will present his engineering research to Parliament on Wednesday 13 March for the annual STEM for BRITAIN awards.
- Wide ranging reforms needed to how authorities approach FGM safeguarding 7 March 2019 Mothers, fathers and young Somali adults have expressed a pervasive sense of disempowerment, traumatisation and victimisation at the hands of statutory services, feeding into a new report that urges authorities to change their approach.
- Bristol shortlisted for ‘best city life’ in national university awards 7 March 2019 City life in Bristol is up there with the best in Britain, according to students who have voted for the University of Bristol in the latest Whatuni Student Choice Awards 2019.
- Breakthrough research using quantum cryptography addresses security in 5G networks 7 March 2019 New research has demonstrated a ground-breaking solution for securing future critical communications infrastructures, including emerging 5G networks.
- Fossilised palm leaves give new insights into the geographical landscape of prehistoric central Tibet 6 March 2019 A team of scientists from the UK and China have uncovered new evidence, using recently-discovered 25-million-year-old fossilised palm leaves, that Tibet’s geography was not as ‘high and dry’ as previously thought.
- Dinosaurs were thriving before asteroid strike that wiped them out 6 March 2019 Dinosaurs were unaffected by long-term climate changes and flourished before their sudden demise by asteroid strike, new research, co-authored by the University of Bristol, has found.
- Scientists put ichthyosaurs in virtual water tanks 6 March 2019 Using computer simulations and 3D models, palaeontologists from the University of Bristol have uncovered more detail on how Mesozoic sea dragons swam.
- Step into the historical world of Bristol’s secret garden 5 March 2019 Starting this April, the public will have the rare opportunity to immerse themselves in the natural beauty and rich heritage of one of the city’s hidden gardens.
- Could genetic breakthrough finally help take the sting out of mouth ulcers? 5 March 2019 A large breakthrough has been made in the genetic understanding of mouth ulcers which could provide potential for a new drug to prevent or heal the painful lesions. Mouth ulcers affect up to 25 per cent of young adults and a higher proportion of children. Previous research has shown that mouth ulcers are partially heritable, but until now there has been little evidence linking specific genes or genomic regions to mouth ulcers.
- Subjects at the University of Bristol are world-class, new league table confirms 5 March 2019 Many of the courses taught at the University of Bristol are among the best in the world, according to a new international league table.
