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New STRC season seminar : “Introduction to System Testing” (22nd of August 16h at Lawrence Lecture Theatre)

It is my pleasure to kindly announce the new season of the Smart Technology Research Center Seminars.

Our first guest will be Mr. Aleksander Badura; which has extensive experience in Software System’s Testing in a wide range of projects within the international company Research & Engineering Center (REC-global).

The talk will take place next Wednesday, the 22nd of August at Lawrence Lecture Theatre at 16:00 h (please click here for a map)

I kindly encourage to researchers and PhD students interested on software systems to attend to this talk; where software systems testing will be analysed from an Industrial perspective.

The title of the talk is “Introduction to System Testing”:

“I will provide an introduction to Software Testing with focusing on Test level or System Test. We will discuss how testing within a project Life Cycle is planned and performed. To conclude I will provide an example of testing within INFER project”

Best Wishes, Emili

Emili Balaguer-Ballester, PhD

SMART Technology Research Center, School of Engineering & Computing, Bournemouth University

Center for Computational Neuroscience, University of Heidelberg

Latest BU REF Highlight Report now available

Research assessment

The latest BU REF Highlight Report (#12) is now available for BU staff to download. It covers the period from January to July 2012.

Features in this report include information about:

You can access your copy of the report from the following location on the I-drive (just copy and paste the following into Windows Explorer): I:\R&KEO\Public\RDU\REF\REF preparations\REF highlight reports

COST pilot evaluation and selection scheme for interdisciplinary proposals

COST (European Co-operation in Science and Technology) has announced the launch of a pilot evaluation and selection scheme for interdisciplinary proposals. You may remember from my earlier posts on COST, that  this is a funding source which offers support for networks centred around nationally funded research projects in fields that are of interest to at least five COST countries. And that it has had a whopping €10m boost lately.

A pilot evaluation and selection procedure for the submission to the Open Call of Trans-Domain Proposals (TDP) will be launched in early 2013. These funding opportunities offer researchers the chance to bid for funding to support future networks across wide interdisciplinary research areas. Currently all domains across the COST Open Call use a two stage submission process; the TDP Pilot will  require a single submission of a full proposal, with the aim of making the evaluation and selection procedure faster.  This means that if you want to submit a proposal you will need to pre-register;  this will most likely be from 15 February 2013 to 29 March 2013 with the Full Proposal to be submitted by 14 June 2013 and the first proposals to be approved in November 2013.

REF2014 – Dissemination of REF documents

REF Subjects, Research assessment

The University is currently preparing to take part in the first Research Excellence Framework (REF) assessment, which is a national exercise to assess the quality of research in UK higher education institutions. To ensure that the University abides by its principles of transparency, consistency, accountability and inclusivity in preparing and finalising the BU submission to the REF, the BU REF 2014 Code of Practice (v2), BU REF Frequently Asked Questions and BU REF Individual Staff Circumstances Disclosure Form have been developed and are now being formally disseminated to all BU academic staff to ensure all eligible staff are fully informed. When you have received this email, it is important that you read the information contained in these documents and you are therefore required to acknowledge receipt of this communication by sending the automatic ‘read receipt’ to the email as soon as possible.

These documents are also available on the BU Research Blog under the ‘REF’ tab.

In conjunction with the dissemination of these key documents, two open sessions have been scheduled for the autumn to give you an opportunity to ask any questions you may have prior to the collection of the first round of BU REF Individual Staff Circumstances Disclosure Forms (due to be returned by 31 October 2012):

Talbot Campus:

Date: 27 September 2012

Time : 11.30am to 1.00pm

Venue: The Wallace Lecture Theatre, Weymouth House

Lansdowne Campus:

Date: 11 October 2012

Time: 3.00pm to 4.30pm

Venue: EB306, Executive Business Centre

You are invited to attend either event – more details will be circulated in due course. If you are unable to attend but have any queries, please contact Peng Peng Ooi (Research Development Officer – REF: pengpeng.ooi@bournemouth.ac.uk).

Many thanks for your cooperation in this and hopefully this information is useful for you.

Get involved in an ICT consultation

The EC is exploring future developments for 2 of its Joint Technology Initiatives on electronic components and embedded computer systems under Horizon 2020 (Artemis and Eniac). There is a consultation currently open which will end in October; it has been suggested that the two initiatives should be merged as they cover similar elements. Have your say on what should happen by joining in the consultation.

Dementia

News from the PVC

Most of us know someone touched by dementia – a friend, relative or loved one.  As the average age of our population grows ever older, the chances are some of us will be affected.

As such dementia is emerging as a new strategic priority for BU, with investment from our HEIF funds to create the Bournemouth University Dementia Institute, or BUDI as the team like to call it.  The team is growing rapidly working on a range of funded dementia projects with more in the pipeline. Working with the Director of BUDI Anthea Innes, Lee-Ann Fenge, Sue Barker, Vanessa Healsip, Michele Board have recently completed a review of Higher Education Dementia Curriculums on behalf of the Higher Education Dementia Network.  Work that reflects Anthea’s previous experience leading masters and undergraduate programmes in Dementia Studies and the dementia focus of social work and nursing colleagues within the School of Health and Social Care.  A number of research and knowledge exchange projects are underway including:

  • An ongoing programme of work funded by Bournemouth Borough Council involves the BUDI team delivering a range of activities via two different programmes; a ‘cupcake club’ and a technology group.  The evaluation report isn’t due until February 2013 so a lot is happening over the autumn months.
  • A BU Research Development Grant enabled an early collaboration between the Schools of Tourism and Health and Social Care.  This project led by Anthea Innes (HSC) and Stephen Page (Tourism) is currently being written up for publication and dissemination.  It is the first study to conceptualise ‘Dementia Friendly Tourism’ as an area worth investigation to try and improve the leisure opportunities for those with dementia and their families; but the project will also produce recommendations to  help advise tourism and leisure providers to enhance their provision to promote inclusion of those with dementia.
  • An international study GRIID (Gateway Rural International Initiatives in Dementia), involving partners from Australia, Canada, India, Sweden and the UK is also in the writing up stages following a policy synthesis and survey of Alzheimer Disease International (www.adi.co.uk) members.
  • European work is on-going too, focused on Malta where Anthea has long established links working on improving the quality of care offered in Maltese hospital wards
  • A multi-site NIHR project has just commenced exploring site loss and dementia for people who continue to live at home.  This is a collaboration between the Universities of York, BU, Cambridge, Worcester and consumer organisations; the Housing and Dementia Research Consortium (HDRC); Pocklington Trust supported by the Alzheimer Society and the Macular Disease Society

But this is just the start with money being committed by many of large funding agencies this is a societal theme of the moment.  BU is part of a large FP7 grant application currently first reserve for funding, and BU is coordinating a multimillion ESRC grant application with 12 other institution due for submission this autumn.  Working locally is also very much on the agenda.  Staff in BUDI are working for example in partnership with commissioners and clinicians across Dorset to secure funding via the NHS South of England Dementia Challenge fund with BU as the evaluator for a number of innovative local projects proposed by those delivering dementia care every day.

BUDI launched 16 May 2012 just three months ago and the progress is impressive, but there is also a long way to go to achieve its objectives of making a real contribution to improving the lives of those with dementia and those who provide support whether they be family or paid clinicians and carers.  This is not just an initiative launched from HSC but a cross BU one and I am delighted to announce the secondment of Samuel Nyman (Psychology, DEC) to BUDI to strengthen its work force and continue his existing collaboration with Anthea which includes a match funded BU PhD Studentship with Anthea Innes and Marilyn Cash which is looking at the role of gaming technology to support older men with dementia in rural areas.  BUDI is looking for staff who wish to engage from across BU and is truly multidisciplinary in its approach and reach.  There may be other who are interested in similar secondments and I would encourage them to get in touch with Anthea.  DEC and Tourism are already involved with BUDI contributing staff and time but there is huge scope for others to get involved for example in the Media School.  Why not drop Anthea a line and get in touch?

Also starting in September is Patricia McParland as BUDI Project Manager or Engagement Consultant, a post-doc appointment is pending, PhD student Ben Hicks will start soon and we will be advertising for an Associate Director for BUDI soon.  BUDI has the full support of UET and is receiving strategic investment to make things happen quickly; dementia is of the moment as illustrated by the Prime Minister Dementia Challenge launched earlier this year and it’s for BU to cease this moment.  BUDI offers the opportunity to have a real impact, to make a difference in our society, to develop practice and research and to do it quickly.  Please get involved and get in touch with Anthea or myself directly.

 

Displacement, Orwell & Academic Prose

News from the PVC

Displacement is a wonderful thing!  I have millions of pressing emails, a paper to revise and several strategy documents to perfect but I have had the pleasure this evening of hunting my book shelves for a lost book, well four in fact.  The books in question are penguin editions of the George Orwell’s Collected Essays, Journalism and Letters.  I found the first three quickly, but the fourth was elusive lost behind a double stack of paperbacks ranging from a Quiet Flame, Solo, Trinity Six, Death Zone, Outliers, Frozen in Time amongst many others, which gives just a hint of the lack of order on my shelves and the eclectic nature of my reading habits.  Most of my shelves are double, or in some cases triple, stacked with book cases in the living room, bedrooms, on the landing and in my office in the roof!  So why the fuss about Orwell’s collected essays?  Well my mother – a former English teacher, turned academic – set me reading Orwell’s journalism (which is far better than his more famous novels in my humble opinion) in my late teens as a model of good written style.  With titles like Boy’s Weeklies, The Decline of the English Murder, Death of an Elephant, Good Bad Books and What is Science who could resist?  The piece I was actually looking for was Politics and the English Language in which Orwell spells out his rules for good prose, basically five simple rules to good style.  Sadly, and to my amazement, you can find these rules on the Internet now; in fact on the British Council web site as guidance for foreign students wanting to write good English!

I have always consciously, and now largely unconsciously, followed these rules when I can and they are pasted at the end for those who are interested.  Any way I was put in mind of these rules last week while on leave and reading a book entitled Stylish Academic Writing by Helen Sword published by Harvard University Press.  The book is a classy piece of work on writing good academic prose and is based on an exhaustive survey of over a thousand academic papers across ten disciplines and amusingly a survey of leading academic style guides and self-help books.  This thought provoking book provides useful information for social scientists, scientist, lawyers and psychologists; in fact all flavours of researcher.  The central thesis is about choice; the choice of academics in the matter of style, to challenge the stifling prose of academic convention!  Off course this is going to appeal to me and is elegantly summed up by ‘choice is the stylish writer’s best weapon against the numbing forces of conformity and inertia’ (p. 30).  I think you get the idea that I quite like this book and I would recommend it to both seasoned and novice academic writers, but in truth Orwell’s rules will always reign supreme with me!

  1. Never use a metaphor, simile or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
  2. Never use a long word where a short one will do.
  3. If it is possible to cut a word-out, always cut it out.
  4. Never use the passive where you can use the active.
  5. Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
  6. Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.

George Orwell, Politics & the English Language, p169 Collected Essays, Journalism & Letters Volume 4, Penguin 1970

More Fall-Out from Gold Open Access?

Publishing

Following the Finch Report, the Government’s endorsement of its recommendations and the statement of policy from RCUK, Gold Open Access (OA) and its implications are at the forefront of many minds.

To refresh memories: Green OA is where a pre- or post-print of a traditionally published article is placed in a publicly accessible institutional or subject repository, often with an embargo period of 6-12 months; Gold OA is where the author or institution pays the costs of publication (of the editorial and peer review process, etc.) of an article, known as the article processing cost (APC). Gold is now the preferred option of Government and the Research Councils.

There are currently just over 28k peer-reviewed journals; of these only 3k, or 13%, are open access; some others will of course be hybrid, combining Gold OA with subscription. But the subscription model, which has been with us for 350 years, is still dominant. If the Finch Report’s recommendations are followed, the next few years will see an upheaval in the mechanisms and funding of scholarly communication as we switch to Gold OA. The research-intensive institutions stand to pay far more, the research-light ones to save. Decision-making on where to publish will take account not only of impact factors but also of the new metric of APCs. Provided that universities can gain access to this information, publishers will increasingly be challenged on the combined metric, and not on subscription price.

It is in this context that the recent acquisition of Atira by Elsevier is of such interest. As we all know, Elsevier is one of the major scholarly publishers, which also has Scopus in its stable. It thus has a major interest in two ends of the scholarly publication chain: the citation data on which to judge a journal as a target for publication (Scopus) and the journals publishing the research outputs. The middle link of the chain is the research management system, of which Atira is one of the leading providers.

The acquisition can therefore be seen as a clever, perhaps aggressive, move by Elsevier to offset potential fall in revenue from subscription journals by controlling more of the publication chain and the information it contains, thus influencing decision-making.

Good luck & Congratulations!

Awarded & submitted bids

Congratulations to Alessandro Inversini (School of Tourism) for securing funding from the EC Lifelong Learning Programme, Mark Dover (Applied Sciences) for securing funding from Dataloft, Phillipa Gillingham (Applied Sciences) for her funding from the Environment Agency, Bronwen Russell and Jonny Monteith (Applied Sciences) for their funding from the East Coker Preservation Trust, Martin Smith (Applied Sciences) for running the Temporary Mortuary short course to cover Mass Graves Cancellation, David Osselton (Applied Sciences) for running the Forensics for Lawyers short course series.

Good luck to Anthea Innes (Health and Social Care) for her application to the TSB KTP, Jonathan Parker (Health and Social Care) for his application to the Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation, Genoveva Esteban (Applied Sciences) for her application to Sempcorp, Roger Herbert (Applied Sciences) for his application to the Joint Nature Conservation Committee.

Best wishes

Matthew

Funding available for tourism services

The EC has funding (€250,000 over 15 months) available for a mapping and performance check of the supply of accessible tourism services available as a tender. You will need to:

•assess the presence and performance of accessible tourism services and facilities along the tourism supply chain;

•assess the effectiveness of existing best practices and tools to foster tourism accessibility;

•analyse the results, propose recommendation and prioritise actions;

•disseminate and validate results.

The closing date is 09.10.12; see the TED website for more details.

Dementia Cupcake Club – research in the community

Throughout July and August 2012 BUDI (on behalf of Bournemouth Borough Council) have been delivering a series of sessions called the Cupcake Club at a local care scheme for people with dementia. For six weeks participants have been taking part in a variety of fun activities such as decorating cupcakes, arts and crafts, gardening and playing the Nintendo Wii. The purpose of the Cupcake Club was to provide a fun and informal environment for people with dementia to be creative and active over the summer period. The Cupcake Club has provided BUDI with a wonderful opportunity to go into the community and meet a group of interesting, funny and charismatic people. The sessions were thoroughly enjoyed by both the participants and the research team and apart from providing a lot of laughter, the sessions have shown that people with dementia are as capable as anyone else and that they are also quite good at Wii bowling!

A second Cupcake Club group has now started and analysis of the evaluation data from both Cupcake Clubs will begin in the Autumn. All findings will be drawn together in an evaluation report for Bournemouth Bourough Council towards the end of the year. In the meantime there is a lot of fun for the BUDI team faciliating these sessions in the community and for the participants.

Transversal funding announced

The EC has announced funding is available under the Transversal Programme. The aim is to promote European cooperation in fields covering two or more sub-programmes, and promote quality and transparency of member states’ education and training systems. The following relevant to BU staff are available and all have a deadline of 28.02.13

•KA1 multilateral networks: which support the creation of transversal networks to promote mutual policy learning and exchange of information on good practices and critical factors for the development and implementation of coherent and comprehensive approaches towards lifelong learning – funding is worth €200,000 per year over two or three years, but overall funding will not exceed €400,000;

•KA2 multilateral projects: which support promotion of language awareness and access to language learning resources – EU funding is worth a maximum of €200,000 per year over three years, but overall funding will not exceed €400,000, plus €25,000 for all third country partners combined;

•KA2 multilateral networks: which support contributions to promoting language learning and linguistic diversity – funding is worth a maximum of €150,000 per year over a maximum of three years, plus €25,000 for all third country partners combined.

•KA2 accompanying measures: which promote the objectives and results of languages projects – funding is worth a maximum of €150,000 over one year.

•KA3 multilateral projects:  which support the development of innovative ICT-based content, services, pedagogies and practices for lifelong learning – EU funding is worth a maximum of €200,000 per year over three years, but overall funding will not exceed €400,000, plus €25,000 for all third country partners combined.

•KA3 multilateral networks: which support the building of partnerships and the networking of learning communities with a view to exchanging ideas and experiences related to ICT for learning – funding is worth a maximum of €150,000 per year over a maximum of three years, plus €25,000 for all third country partners combined.

 

Benefits of research-led learning on the student experience and NSS scores

Guidance

The results of the 2012 National Student Survey are due to be made public shortly and we will be able to see how BU compared to other institutions and the sector average. The NSS data is based on the opinions of final year undergraduates on a number of issues such as how the students rate the universities’ learning resources, quality of personal development support and how intellectually stimulating their courses are.

Traditionally Russell Group universities have had lower response rates but scored more highly (85% satisfaction rate compared to a sector average of 81%). Often these higher scores are attributed to these institutions having a culture of research-led learning where enquiry-based, independent learning in a world-class research environment is at the heart of the student experience. Students report finding research-led learning exciting, and they also help produce graduates who are highly sought-after by employers.

The University of Cambridge’s Undergraduate Research Opportunities Programme (UROP) enables students to work with academics on live research projects as fully participating members of the project team. UCL is increasing opportunities for undergraduate students to take an active part in research-led learning. There are a number of ways in which undergraduate students can be exposed to research including:

  • Learning about others’ research (research-informed learning)
  • Learning to do research (research skills and methods)
  • Learning in a research mode such as enquiry-based learning

There is a growing body of evidence showing that research-led learning offers significant benefits to the student experience and student development, including:

  • the motivation and development of students as a consequence of exposure to expert subject matter
  • promoting the value of enquiry and deep approaches to learning
  • helping to develop transferable skills through engagement in research tools and processes

Many universities are now taking steps to ensure that all students are taught by research-active academics throughout their studies. There are numerous benefits of being taught of research-active academics including:

  • academics are at the cutting-edge of their field
  • they teach more relevant and up-to-date material
  • they gain enthusiasm for their subject from being research-active
  • they teach from their immediate research experience
  • they offer students a unique experience

Rather than seeing teaching and research as separate activities there are huge benefits to students of combining the two to ensure that teaching and learning are research-led and research-informed. Research-led learning lies at the heart of BU’s concept of Fusion which underpins the BU2018 strategy. If you are already research-active then be creative with your teaching! Encourage students to be involved in your live research projects and use examples from your research findings and experience in your lessons and teaching materials. If you’d like to be research-active then consider joining the University’s Grants Academy which will enable you to develop the skills and knowledge required to embark on a research career.

For more ideas and examples on research-led learning see this report – Research-led learning: the heart of the Russell Group university experience

Rufus Stone scoops 2 awards at the prestigious Rhode Island International Film Festival!

Rufus Stone  has just scooped two awards at the prestigious Rhode Island International Film Festival in the USA, the only short to win in two categories at the festival:  the Grand prize in the Alternative Spirit category and the Youth Jury Award for best GLBT film at the festival.

The Rhode Island International Film Festival consisted of six days and nights of screenings, meetings and greetings featured more than 200 films selected from more than 4,000 entrants.

The Youth Jury is a programme that introduces youth to the world of independent film. The youth attend multiple screenings during the Festival, Q&A’s, and festival events. Their goal is to deliberate, and choose a Best Feature, Best Documentary, and Best Short to receive the Youth Jury award.

Just few reactions to Rufus Stone from audience members at earlier screeings:

“Critically the authenticity of the film shone through – the characters were real and genuine”.

  •   “emotionally gripping”
  •   “technically innovative and striking”
  •   “a brilliant way to portray research”
  •   “beautiful and very intense”
  •   “a quite remarkable film”
  •   “a brilliant film, beautifully crafted and full of empathy”

“Rarely does one get the chance of seeing a love affair between two men portrayed on screen credibly and realistically, not to say very movingly”.

“A kind of ‘ To Kill a Mocking Bird’ type film that makes you really think about your morals”.

Bournemouth University’s Kip Jones (The Media School &; HSC) said, “Winning at prestigious film festivals such as RIIFF is important in getting the film seen by a wide audience. This is the kind of impact that we imagined from the outset of the research project itself”. 

“I am particularly pleased for our director, Josh Appignanesi, who took on board the concept of fusion of research and a professional film and visually brought it to life through Rufus Stone.”

“Gay and Pleasant Land? -a study about positioning, ageing and gay life in rural South West England and Wales” was  funded by Research Councils UK.The Rufus Stone microsite gives more information about the film, and the research that inspired it.

Be part of the UK-Taiwan Academic-Industry & Technology Transfer Collaboration Forum

The UK-Taiwan Academic-Industry & Technology Transfer Collaboration Forum, organised by the Science and Innovation Network Taipei and the British Council Taipei, will take place on 14 September 2012 at the Royal Society of Chemistry in London.    The Forum is designed for:

  •     Researchers interested in building academic-industry links with top HEIs from Taiwan.
  •     Academics operating in technology transfer wishing to access manufacturers in Taiwan.
  •     Practitioners involved in university-business collaborations looking to expand networks in greater China.
  •     Administrators experienced in facilitating academics working with commercial sectors willing to exchange views with Taiwanese counterparts.

With support from the National Science Council in Taiwan, the forum provides an opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience of academic-industry cooperation and technology transfer, to generate ideas and forge partnerships. It also aims to identify opportunities for university-business collaborations, develop potential working models and schemes, and explore possible strategies for collaboration in technology transfer between the UK and Taiwan.

Confirmed participants from Taiwan include approximately 20 representatives from the Taiwan Top Universities Alliance, Academia Sinica, Industrial Technology Research Institute of Taiwan (ITRI), National Applied Research Laboratories (NARL) and the National Science Council (NSC).

To participate, read over the Indicative Programme and send the UK-TW Forum Reply Form to Ms Amy Chung at  by 4 September 2012.

Luisa Cescutti-Butler’s Purrrrr-fect PhD

‘Miniature’ cat and my PhD

Luisa Cescutti-Butler, Senior Midwifery Lecturer, Part-time PhD student, School of Health and Social Care

I have two cats but only one of them is the subject of this blog. It is ‘Mini Cat’ who takes centre stage and she is a black moggy. Despite myths and folklore surrounding black cats, Mini is nothing but a delight. She is a voracious killer of birds (I don’t like that characteristic), will eat anything and everything and is very friendly and loving towards her human parents. Why am I blogging about her you may ask, and what has she got to do with my doctoral studies?

I recently had time out from work to catch up on important elements of my research (such as transcribing interviews and getting to grips with NVivo) and would spend all day at my laptop in my study. The photos show Mini sitting beside me whilst I am trying to input data onto NVivo, a computer assisted qualitative data analysis software (CAQDAS). Ah ‘cute’ you might be thinking! Not so cute when she walks over the keys trying to gain your attention as it’s now ‘three o’ clock human mommy’ and ‘I want feeding’ – “purr purr”. If I ignore her because I’m in the middle of coding and am concentrating and don’t want to lose momentum, she will find other ways of attracting my attention. Her next tactic is to jump up onto the window-sill which is directly behind the laptop and start knocking things off it!  If that doesn’t work, she will jump down and start walking over the laptop again– “purr”, and eventually sit and look at me with her big green eyes and give a little meow! It’s no good now; I give up, go downstairs and feed her and Nutmeg, cat no 1.

On the other hand when Mini’s stomach is full she will often come up to the study, find a comfortable spot and sleep. She keeps me company and I find myself talking aloud to her, there’s nobody else I can share my thoughts with. I am not a sad and mad ‘cat woman’ but my other half is out at work as well. It is said that cats can help with studies, I would love Mini to stop murdering all the delightful birds and instead put those hunting skills to good use, such as helping me to find those elusive themes from all the data I have thus collected, but unfortunately her talents do not extend that far.

She is a nuisance sometimes, demanding my attention either for feeding or stroking but I wouldn’t have it any other way. People always say that cats are aloof but until you have one as a pet you will discover that is not true, they like to be with their owners even if their human mommy is battling with the intricacies of NVivo. However if any other PhD researcher knows of a cat with ‘transcribing skills’ give me a call!!!! I have to end this blog because Mini is hungry, ‘meow, meow’!!!