I have heard it called a “filing cabinet for researchers work”, and a “store for old dusty books”.  I suppose the first description is slightly more accurate, but leaves a lot to be desired. 

 I would describe it as an online database that stores researchers work, including previously published journal articles, book chapters, conference papers and much more.  It allows anyone with access to the web the opportunity to read this work for free, benefiting many via the transfer of knowledge, creating possibilities for collaboration and showcasing the university’s research. 

 As for storing old books, some of the work has been published within the same month, in journals that you have to subscribe to, so it also contains very current research.

 By monitoring the statistics we know that the repository is being accessed by people from all over the world, and many are taking advantage of the chance to download the full text articles with one simple mouse click, all for free. With 52,450 downloads in the past year, this helps to enhance the authors research profile and publicise their work.

 All the work on our repository is authored by our staff, peer reviewed and many entries offer full text versions (the others all link to the publisher’s website where the work can be purchased).

 Take a look at the site here http://epubs.glyndwr.ac.uk/ the good news is that it grows each day, and is one of a number of “open access” research repositories not just in the UK but throughout the world.

By: Misha Jepson, Graduate School and Research Services Co-ordinator, Glyndŵr University

Bournemouth University (BU) acknowledges that research is a vital component for underpinning a high quality curriculum and for maximising our contribution to regional and national economies. Building on our research strengths and research potential, we have several Centres of Research, focused on specific areas of interest, already gaining national and international recognition. These centres are multi-disciplinary, professionally-related areas embodying the BU spirit of cross-school collaboration and support and eight of our subject areas produce research recognised as world-leading. 

Research at BU is organised around eight society driven research themes, which bring together our outstanding research talent to tackle some of society’s key challenges and enrich the world in which we live. We have extensive experience of working with local, national and international organisations, businesses, and communities, to find bespoke solutions to real challenges.

We are keen to work with organisations and businesses to understand the challenges they face, and through our research themes, provide the opportunity to access our entire portfolio of expertise, services and facilities.

We offer a range of services to support organisations, including consultancy, research and development, training and professional development, student placement opportunities, and facilities and equipment for hire. To find out more about BU research, take a look at our award winning blog: http://blogs.bournemouth.ac.uk/research/.

“Dr Caroline Lyon, Professor Chrystopher Nehaniv and Dr Joe Saunders have carried out experiments as part of the iTalk project with the childlike iCub humanoid robot to show how language learning emerges. Initially the robot can only babble and perceives speech as a string of sounds, not divided up into words. After engaging in a few minutes of “conversation” with humans, in which the participants were instructed to speak to the robot as if it were a small child, the robot adapted its output to the most frequently heard syllables to produce some word forms such as the names of simple shapes and colours.”

The full article can be read here.

This programme comprises of two funding competitions.

The competitions

1. The Technology Strategy Board, in partnership with Defra and BBSRC, will invest up to £15 million in major R&D projects that increase the efficiency, sustainability and competitiveness of the food processing and manufacturing sector, focussing on increasing efficiency and reducing supply chain waste. Applications open in June 2012.
2. Defra and the Technology Strategy Board are also launching the Innovate for Growth competition, providing up to twenty £25k grants for innovative SMEs across the farming, food and drink industries. This funding will support the rapid development of an innovative idea and demonstrate its practical feasibility. The competition will open in April, with results announced in the summer.

Regional Workshops – Get help with your application

To promote both these competitions further, the Biosciences Knowledge Transfer Network (KTN) is organising a series of regional workshops in March and April 2012 around the UK.

20th March – Belfast:
http://regional-innovation-workshop-belfast.eventbrite.co.uk/
22nd March Edinburgh:
http://regional-innovation-workshop-edinburgh.eventbrite.co.uk/
27th March – Leeds:
http://regional-innovation-workshop-leeds.eventbrite.co.uk/
28th March – Peterborough:
http://regional-innovation-workshop-peterborough.eventbrite.co.uk/
29th March Reading:
http://regional-innovation-workshop-reading.eventbrite.co.uk/
3rd April – Exeter:
http://regional-innovation-workshop-exeter.eventbrite.co.uk/
4th April Cardiff:
http://regional-innovation-workshop-cardiff.eventbrite.co.uk/

These workshops will help delegates to get a better understanding of the scope of these competitions, as well as the competition process, rules and how to apply. Biosciences KTN representatives will be on hand to help with any queries related to the competition and to explain how the Biosciences KTN can help applicants with the process. Delegates will also be able to give a short presentation outlining their areas of expertise and interest to potential partners.

To access the competition documents, please make sure you are a member of the Sustainable Agriculture and Food Innovation Platform group on connect.

March 2012

In January 2012 HEFCE published REF 01.2012 ‘Panel criteria and working methods‘. The publication sets out the final panel criteria and working methods for the assessment, which were refined in light of the consultation responses summarised in this document.

Core Technology Areas
The TSB are seeking projects in the fields of

• Advanced materials and nanoscale technologies
• Biosciences
• Electronics, photonics and electrical systems
• Information and communications technology

Who can apply
The competition is open to small and micro companies only, working either singly or in collaboration with one partner.

Project Details
Projects can last up to four months and are eligible for grants of up to £25,000. Total project costs must not exceed £33,000. Successful projects must start on 1 August 2012.
 
Application process
This is a single-stage competition. It opened today – Monday 12 March 2012 and the deadline for receipt of applications is at noon on 11 April 2012. 
Click here for further information and to access the briefing documents:

Briefing Event
A briefing event for potential applicants will be held in London on 20 March 2012. Click here to find out more and register for the briefing event.

 FP7UK

 Cognitive Systems and Robotics: Forthcoming EU research funding

An Informative event to be held at Department for Business Innovation and Skills Conference Centre 1 Victoria Street, London

Friday 2nd December 2011 from 10:00 to 16:00

This Information day will address the Cognitive Systems and Robotics research challenge described in the FP7 ICT Workprogramme, Objective 2.1, which is scheduled to open with an 80M€ budget in ICT Call 9 on 18 January 2012.

The principal speaker will be Libor Kral, Head of Unit “E5″ of the European Commission’s DG INFSO based in Luxembourg which is responsible for the Cognitive Systems and Robotics research challenge in the current ICT Workprogramme.

The agenda for the day will address the three sub objectives featured in this call:-

Cognition and control in complex systems;

Gearing up and accelerating cross-fertilisation between academic and industrial robotics research;

Speeding up progress towards smarter robots through targeted competitions.

Delegates will obtain a good briefing on these research opportunities, guidance on finding partners and support in proposal creation. Speakers from Commission funded projects in this domain will share their experiences and future aims. In addition early views of future Commission plans will be voiced.

Delegates from the UK, all Member States and beyond are welcome. There will be ample opportunity for networking, information gathering and one to one dialogues.

This workshop takes place on the Friday of EU Robotics week during which a major wide appeal event will be taking take place at The Science Museum in Kensington, which is just 30 mins away on the underground.

Registration

To register for this free event please click the following link which will take you directly to the event registration page on Survey Monkey:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/CLP6LM5

Please note that spaces are limited. Following receipt of your completed registration form, confirmation of your booking will be provided.

The event is presented and organised by: The UK ICT National Contact Point, BIS, and the

Technology Strategy Board

Further copies from http://tinyurl.com/ict-2dec11

• HEFCW Annual Public Meeting – Aberystwyth
• Date:  Thursday, 8 December 2011

Aberystwyth University

The Cinema, Aberystwyth Arts Centre, Penglais Campus

9:30 am – 11:00 pm
(Tea and coffee from 9:00) 

Please register by emailing info@hefcw.ac.uk or phoning 029 2068 2225.

This meeting, which is open to the public, will be an opportunity to reflect on recent developments in higher education in Wales and discuss future issues affecting universities in Wales. This follows a similar meeting in Cardiff in October at which we launched our latest Annual Report.

HEFCE Annual Conference 2012

This is an invitation-only event for heads of HEFCE-funded higher education institutions and representatives of HE stakeholder organisations. Next year’s event will be a one-day non-residential conference and dinner held in London. Invitations will be sent in mid-February 2012. Programme details will be published in early 2012.