/ Full archive

Marie Curie Template Application

A number of you have expressed an interest in seeing a Marie Curie application to get a feel for the form. I have placed a blank version on our I drive so any BU member of staff thinking of submitting can take a look I:\R&KEO\Public\RDU\Marie Curie Form Template . The forms for all the Marie Curie schemes are similar and therefore only one is provided. The form is strictly for internal BU circulation only.

Presenting student research internationally

It’s a long way in place and time from October 2010 in the Media School to March 2012 at the International Public Relations Research Conference at the University of Miami in sunny Florida. That’s the journey that BAPR graduate Lauren Willmott has taken from first thoughts on her dissertation to presenting the results at the conference, along with academics and practitioners from 24 countries and over 100 other papers.

Lauren Willmott and Prof Tom Watson at IPRRC Miami

Lauren’s research on the use of Twitter as a crisis communication tactic was supervised by Prof Tom Watson.  It reviewed two transport crises in 2009 and 2010 and investigated the role and usage of the 140-character medium in keeping passengers, their families and the media abreast of the news.

The investigation won her the Wessex CIPR award for the best public relations dissertation and also helped Lauren gain a position at the leading international PR consultancy A&REdelman in London where she works on Olympics-linked accounts. The firm also sponsored her attendance at the conference.

With Prof Watson’s assistance, an abstract from the dissertation was submitted to the prestigious Miami conference, and chosen for presentation. “This is a highly competitive review process with an acceptance rate of less than 50 per cent. Lauren’s research was pitted against some of PR’s best known academic researchers and so it was a real success that the jointly-authored paper was accepted,” said Prof Watson. “It was also the only paper accepted from a first author/early researcher who was not on a postgraduate or doctoral programme.”

So on Saturday March 10, Lauren presented her paper and got feedback (and applause) on the paper and for next stages of research. Amongst the responses to Lauren and Tom was that the paper’s standard was much higher than expected from US bachelor-level graduates: “Are all your students producing work as good as this?”

“Lauren’s achievement in presenting her paper at this high international level shows that BU students, with supportive supervision, can share the stage with the best researchers. It’s been a rewarding experience for everyone involved,” said Prof Watson.

Lauren’s verdict was, “It was amazing to be given the opportunity to present my dissertation in front of professionals who had inspired my research topic. The conference enabled me to network with a diverse range of PR professionals and as a result I have been presented with several opportunities such as Skyping into a lecture of students at the University of South Florida to talk about working in a London agency.”

Looking for FP7 Health partners or attending an infoday? Then this is unmissable!

Fit for Health and Health-NCP-Net are organising a partnering event in Brussels on 30.05.12  for the next FP7 Health Call for Proposals, due to be published in July 2012.

The main aim of the event is to facilitate consortium building for future bids to the FP7 Health Theme. The day will mainly consist of bilateral meetings which will be arranged between groups interested in the same topics of the forthcoming FP7 Health Call for Proposals.

The European Commission will also hold an infoday on the Call the day before the brokerage event on 29.05.12 which is essential for finding out more about the Call and meeting potential partners.

New EU IPR guidance for SMEs

SMEs can sometimes be  nervous of getting involved in FP7 projects because of the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR). The European Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Helpdesk has published new guidance intended to give SMEs an overview of how IP should be managed within FP7.  The guide addresses issues faced by participants at the proposal stage, during negotiation and implementation, and upon completion of the project. It also contains a glossary and a list of links to useful resources.  The guide can be used in conjunction with the three more detailed guides addressing IP issues at different stages of FP7 projects which were published at the end of 2011.

‘Consensus statement’ on research integrity released

Guidance, Research Integritiy

The UK Research Integrity Office (UKRIO) has welcomed calls for it to be placed at the centre of a toughened research integrity oversight regime in the UK.  Agreed at a high-level meeting organised by the British Medical Journal (BMJ) and the Committee on Publication Ethics and attended by a variety of senior figures from journals, funders and institutions, the Consensus Statement calls upon institutions and research funders to do more to prevent and detect misconduct.

According to a recent BMJ survey, research misconduct is “alive and well” in the UK; 13 percent of UK-based scientists and doctors claimed they had witnessed colleagues fabricating or altering research data ahead of publication in peer-reviewed journals and of the 2,700 scientists and doctors who responded, 6 percent admitted misconduct themselves when preparing or presenting research papers.  Research misconduct is important as it wastes resources, damages the credibility of science, and can cause harm (for example, to patients and the public). 

As part of my role as the Conduct Officer in the RDU, I’m currently undertaking a University-wide ethics review, which will (among other things) actively promote a high level of research integrity in all BU endeavours.  Within this review, I will ensure that the University is compliant with the guidelines agreed in the Consensus Statement and that we are doing our part to educate and inform staff and students on the importance of good research conduct.

Below is an abbreviated list of points agreed at the meeting:

  • The UK’s mechanisms for ensuring good research conduct and investigating research misconduct need to be strengthened.
  • Research misconduct is defined as behaviour by a researcher, intentional or not, that falls short of good ethical and scientific standards (Edinburgh 1999).  Research misconduct includes fabrication, falsification, suppression, or inappropriate manipulation of data; inappropriate image manipulation; plagiarism; misleading reporting; redundant publication; authorship malpractice such as guest or ghost authorship; failure to disclose funding sources or competing interests; misreporting of funder involvement; and unethical research (for example, failure to obtain adequate patient consent). 
  • Primary responsibility for good research conduct rests with individual researchers.  However, institutions have direct responsibility as employers to ensure good research conduct, and funders have a duty to hold institutions to account.
  • Research funders should require research institutions to appoint a senior named person as a research integrity officer and to adhere to an agreed code of conduct for research.
  • The code of conduct should mandate the setting up of effective systems to prevent and detect misconduct and proper investigation of allegations of research misconduct.

UKRIO is an independent body which provides expert advice and guidance about the conduct of research.  They cover all subject areas and help all involved in research, from research organisations, including universities and the NHS, to individual researchers and members of the public.

Come along to the next Fusion Seminar on 21 March!

Fusion

The fourth event in the Fusion Seminar and Conference Series is due to be held on Wednesday 21 March and will focus on the Inspiring aspect of the BU2018 strategy.

The March Seminar will take place between 12:00-1:30pm. Registration will open at 11:45 and the sessions will begin at 12:00. There will be one hour of short and focused presentations followed by 30 minutes of networking opportunities over lunch. The Seminar will be hosted by Deputy Vice-Chancellor Prof Tim McIntyre-Bhatty who will open the seminar with a 10 minute presentation. This will be followed by five brief and succinct presentations by invited speakers, with each presentation lasting no more than ten minutes including questions.

The draft programme is available here: Fusion event – Inspiring – programme

The Seminar will be held in Kimmerdige House and will start promptly at 12pm. Please arrive for registration from 11:45am, ready for the 12pm start.

To book a place at the event visit the booking page here: http://fusionseminar3.eventbrite.com

For an excellent summary of BU’s Fusion strategy, watch this short video from Professor John Vinney:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrUxINNWzjQ&

Call for proposals – Places and Local Labour Markets

Funding opportunities

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has issued a call for proposals for a research project which aims to explore the relationship between living in particular places, poverty outcomes and ethnicity by gaining a more in-depth understanding of why it is the case that:

  • Some areas produce better outcomes for ethnic minority groups in general; 
  • Some areas produce poor outcomes for ethnic minority groups in general;
  • Some ethnic minority groups (and groups within them) have different outcomes in different places.

The research will unpick variations in the structure of opportunities within local labour markets, examine the role of local social networks and take a range of other factors into account, including: how local services are organised, the changing economic context, the migration history of different groups, local political structures and issues around housing and mobility.

There is up to £100,000 available for the project, which will last for 8 months.  The proposed start date is May 2012. 

 The submission deadline is 11 April 2012.

Planning on submitting a proposal?  Then you need to contact beth.hurrell@jrf.org.uk by 15 March 2012

Looking for more information?

Thinking of submitting an Intelligent Energy Europe (IEE) proposal?

The EU Energy Focus team have a wide range of fantastic free services that can help with your submission for May.

Pre-proposal check service – The Commission pre-proposal check service is open until 30th March.  This allows you to submit a summary of your proposal to check that your proposal idea is in principle eligible for Intelligent Energy Europe (IEE)  funding.  Information on how to access the service can be found at the following website. You are encouraged you to submit your proposal ideas to the EU Energy Focus team for initial review so that they can be refined as much as possible to make the most of the Commission service.

Online support – Online support sessions will take place as and when required before the deadline.  The online support sessions will provide you with a comprehensive and interactive presentation on key aspects of the proposal preparation and submission process.   The feedback from those that have taken part in the sessions previously has been very positive and it only takes a small amount of time away from your proposal preparation work and it should save you time in the long run.  The team will be referring to the material from these sessions when they undertake the proposal review process so it is recommended that you take part in the sessions in order to understand the messages fully.  They will notify us of dates soon.

Proposal clinics – The team will be holding proposal clinics (one to one meetings of 1 hour with a member of the EU Energy Focus team to discuss your proposal) on the following dates:

  • Monday 26th March – Manchester
  • Wednesday 28th March – London

Please register your interest in attending a clinic session by sending a proposal summary to energie@enviros.com and indicating which date you would be available to attend a clinic.  IEE will then allocate the sessions and inform you of the time for your meeting. Please let them know if you would like to attend a clinic session but are unable to attend on these dates in these locations as they will try to accommodate you on alternative dates or at other locations if this can be arranged.   

Proposal review – they will be offering a proposal review service between Monday 16th April and the proposal deadline.  Please email the team to let them know if you anticipate that you would like them to review your proposal so that they can keep a note of how many proposals to expect.

Fusion Conference – Wednesday 18 April: Call for contributions and book your place

Fusion, Research themes

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Fusion Conference – Wednesday 18 April:
 
The ‘Fusion’ series of internal conferences and seminars for 2011/12 continues on Wednesday 18 April with a ‘Fusion in Action’ conference hosted by Vice-Chancellor Professor John Vinney in the Executive Business Centre, Lansdowne Campus, from noon to 5pm.

The conference entitled ‘Fusion in Action: Knowledge exchange with students, society and the professions’ is firmly grounded in the context of Vision & Values and seeks to illustrate Fusion at its best. 

The conference will include contributions from staff and students through a combination of presentations, demonstrations and discussions.

The conference aims to showcase examples of staff engaged in academic and/or research-led activities associated with the professions and wider society and to identify:

  • ·         how this helps create a unique academic experience for staff and students at BU
  • ·         how students and staff can share in the learning experience
  • ·         how such knowledge exchange can foster innovative learning experiences, pedagogic developments and research activities.

This half-day conference replaces the previous Education Enhancement Conference and Research Conferences held in previous years.  

Proposals for papers, poster presentations, discussion groups and/or demonstrations related to the theme are now invited.  These should be submitted to: fusionconference@bournemouth.ac.uk by Wednesday 7 March using the abstract form here: http://www.bournemouth.ac.uk/staff_new/edq/conferences/staff_conferences.html

If you wish to discuss possible contributions, please contact Julie Northam on extension:  61208 or Jennifer Taylor on extension: 61271 in the first instance.

The conference is open to all staff contributing to the delivery of programmes and research activities at BU and partner locations and will also involve presentations from the University Executive Team and members of the Students’ Union. 

Link to bookings page:

Martin Kretschmer in the Financial Times

REF Subjects

Professor Kretschmer, Director of the Centre for Intellectual Property Policy & Management at Bournemouth University (BU) has commented in the Financial Times in a full page analysis article on rent-seeking.

The article titled ‘Barriers to break through’ discusses economic rents arising from legal monopolies, such as a limited number of taxi licences, or extended periods of copyright protection. Rents allow some to grow rich at the expense of others, and create an incentive to devote resource to lobbying in pursuit of such rents. On copyright, the article says:

“Martin Kretschmer, a law professor at Bournemouth University in England, helped to fight a losing battle against a colossal creation of rents in Europe last year: the extension of copyright on recorded music from 50 to 70 years. The new law transfers €1bn out of the pockets of European consumers and into those of music companies and ageing rock stars.”

“The social argument for copyright is that it gives an incentive for artists to create work. But, as Mr Kretschmer says, ‘the fact that the extension was retrospective gives the game away really’. The Beatles have already recorded Rubber Soul; another 20 years of royalties will not make them record it again. The consensus among academics who study the term of copyright that would best balance the interests of consumers and creators, he adds, is that ’14 years is not an unreasonable starting point’.”

‘Barriers to break through’, by Robin Harding, US economics editor, 23 February, p. 11:

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/7e316f80-5c80-11e1-911f-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1nyOZZ3Fk

Do you have a smart idea for using technology at BU?

Funding opportunities

If you’re looking for rapid project funding, pitch your idea on a new JISC website and receive feedback from your peers.

The JISC Elevator is a new beta platform for people to pitch ideas for projects up to £10,000 using video and short descriptions.

Once an idea has been submitted to the site, people working and studying in UK higher and further education will be able to vote if they like the idea.

When an idea receives the target number of votes then JISC will decide whether or not to fund the idea.

Andrew McGregor, who is managing the JISC Elevator, said: “JISC’s remit is to fund cutting edge innovation – so we hope that by creating a different platform for bidding we’ll be able to capture the brainwaves of many more people in colleges and universities, perhaps people who haven’t previously bid for JISC funds.  The voting mechanisms on the Elevator will also allow us to respond directly to what’s important for people in further and higher education.”

The JISC Elevator is open to all kinds of ideas, with suggestions including:

  • Innovate with e-books
  • Start a student led project
  • Open a can of worms – propose a technical project that starts a big conversation in your institution
  • Use gaming principles to improve research or teaching processes
  • Apply work previously funded by JISC to your own situation
  • Create online services to help students make decisions about university
  • Develop cloud solutions to account for and monitor cloud security

For details on what kinds of idea JISC are looking for please see the submission criteria.

Successful projects will be notified in April and expected to complete by the end of July 2012.

Visit the JISC Elevator

Find out about our other funding opportunities

Give your feedback on the JISC Elevator

 

Revised Knowledge Transfer Partnerships Award Criteria

Funding opportunities

KTP diagramThe Technology Strategy Board has made some revisions to the criteria a project has to meet in order to receive a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) grant. This has caused some confusion. In order to obtain clarification, Neil Grice, the local Adviser visited the University last week for a meeting with School representatives.

Listed below are the current key award criteria:

  • Project is for the development of a company capability, not a product.
  • On completion, the company is left with a legacy, e.g. a new capability or process.
  • Innovative – leading edge knowledge is transferred to the company. Can’t be done by employing consultants, needs research.
  • Impact – the project makes a significant difference to the company which would not have happened without the KTP. University also receives significant results.
  • Challenge – Stretching for University and company.
  • Fits in with company strategy.
  • Company is financially sound.
  • Science and technology focussed. Difficult to obtain awards for social care, marketing and business development projects.
  • Awards are most likely to be granted for projects with small/medium sized organisations.

 

If you require any further information on KTPs in general please contact Peter Delgado, Commercialisation and KTP Officer, e-mail – pdelgado@bournemouth.ac.uk

Fuel Cells and Hydrogen JTI: Slides From Information Events Now Available

The 5th call for proposals is currently open for the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Technology Initiative (FCH JTI). The call, which is worth EUR 150 million, closes on 24th May 2012. The slides and recordings are now available from information events related to this call.
A European information event was held in Brussels on 9 February 2012. The slides are now available. Slides 26 to 58 include some useful tips on things to do and things to avoid, based on previous calls. Slide 59 provides a contact email at the FCH Joint Undertaking (JU), which runs the FCH JTI calls on behalf of the European Commission. The FCH JU emphasises that applicants should not hesitate to ask them for help or further information.
In the UK there was also a webinar, which was organised by the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Group of the UK Energy Generation and Supply Knowledge Transfer Network (KTN). This was held on 28 February 2012 and included a presentation from the Head of Unit for the FCH JU. The slides and a recording of the presentation are in the ‘Focus Working Group on the FCH JU 2012 Call’ website of the KTN. To access these documents, you will need be a member of this Group. The group is also intended to facilitate discussion on: preparing a successful bid to the FCH JU Call; exchanging experiences; gaining insights into the 2012 topics; and searching for collaboration partners.

REF Panel Criteria summaries by UOA

Guidance, Research assessment

The final REF Panel Criteria and Working Methods documentation was released by the REF Team (based at HEFCE) at the end of January.

As a handy guide to the information the RDU has summarised the headline information for the UOA in the documents listed below:

Allied Health Professions, Dentistry, Nursing and Pharmacy – UOA 3 panel criteria summary

Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience – UOA 4 panel criteria summary

Earth Systems and Environmental Sciences – UOA 7 panel criteria summary

Computer Science and Informatics – UOA 11 panel criteria summary

General Engineering – UOA 15 panel criteria summary

Geography, Environmental Studies and Archaeology – UOA 17 panel criteria summary

Business and Management Studies – UOA 19 panel criteria summary

Law – UOA 20 panel criteria summary

Social Work and Social Policy – UOA 22 panel criteria summary

Sports and Exerise Sciences, Leisure and Tourism – UOA 26 panel criteria summary

Art and Design – UOA 34 panel criteria summary

Communication, Cultural and Media Studies – UOA 36 panel criteria summary

Happy reading! If you have any questions about the REF then please do let me know.

Presentations from the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) infoday are now available online.

The infoday was organised on the IMI Call for Proposals on the topic “European Lead Factory: Joint European compound library and screening centre”.

Presentations included an update on the revised IMI Strategic Research Agenda and IMI rules and procedures. Among the changes in the rules are:
•the new option for using real indirect costs in addition to the option of the 20% indirect cost flat rate;
•average or actual personnel costs can be used;
•Certificates on the Financial Statements (CFS) are now only due once a threshold of EUR 375,000 is reached;
•and periodic reports are now either due in July or December each year.
A presentation was also given on how to write a successful IMI proposal. This included general advice and participants were taken through the most common mistakes made in previous rounds.

Launch of Elsevier’s Journal of Destination Marketing & Management

In response to the significant growth in the number of publications emerging in the field and an increase in interest from policymakers and practitioners in academic research on the theme of tourist destinations, Professor Alan Fyall (School of Tourism, Bournemouth University), Dr Brian Garrod (Aberystwyth University, UK) and Dr Youcheng Wang (University of Central Florida, USA) have recently launched Elsevier’s new Journal of Destination Marketing & Management (JDMM). The ambitions of the journal are such that it aims to be the leading international journal for the study of tourist destinations by providing a critical understanding of all aspects of their marketing and management, as situated in their particular policy, planning, economic, geographical and historical contexts.

The objective of JDMM is to publish up-to-date, high-quality and original research papers alongside relevant and insightful reviews. As such, the journal aspires to be vibrant, engaging and accessible, and at the same time integrative and challenging. The journal will be of particular interest to those involved in the interdisciplinary approach of marketing and management, economic development and planning, geography, sociology, psychology, anthropology, retailing, policy making and public administration of tourist destinations.

Professor Fyall said: “This new journal provides a really exciting opportunity to consider the truly interdisciplinary nature of tourism destination research. JDMM is the first new journal from Elsevier in the area of tourism studies for more than 30 years which is testament to the increasing interest in the study of tourist destinations and the excellent quality and experience of the journal’s international editorial board”.

As if to confirm this prediction submissions for the first edition look like they will be both an interesting read and of the very highest quality while the journals first special issue on destination experiences (to be published in Spring 2013) has attracted widespread interest from around the world.

Find out more here: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-destination-marketing-and-management/

Re-framing Bournemouth the Town: a symposium and exhibition

An artist and former student has approached the University with a view to organising a symposium and exhibition as part of the 2012 Arts festival.

The symposium will be called Re-framing Bournemouth and will specifically focus on the issue of the visual and conceptual perception of Bournemouth by both residents and visitors, as well as how the resort might be re-imagined for the future. Really it’s thinking about the tourist experience and residents re-experiencing their hometown from a visual and aesthetic perspective.

If this is something that might be if interest please contact John Brackstone (65801/ jbrackst@bournemouth.ac.uk ) in the School of Tourism for a chat.

My EUNF Success

I am delighted to know that my application to EUNF is successful. The award will partially support my academic visit to University Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Lyon, France.

As the France’s 4th university, Lyon 1 attains excellence in the fields of higher education and research. The University is committed to more than 80 European Union projects and participates actively in FP7. Apart from academic activities in Computer Science Department, during the visit, I will focus my networking activities in the Laboratory of Informatics and Image System (LIRIS), a well-known research center with members from Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Université Lumière Lyon 2, École Centrale de Lyon, etc. Research in LIRIS cover image processing, 3D modelling, animation, mobile application, data mining, information retrieval, etc., which matches my research area.

The main objective of the networking is to target two potential FP7 calls. One is Marie Curie Career Integration Grants. Under LIRIS are there a number of research teams, including Simulation, Analysis and Animation for Augmented Reality (SAAAR), Multiresolution, Discrete and Combinatorial Models, Feature Extraction and Identification, Realistic Rendering for Mobile Augmented Reality, etc. Each team has around 10 PhD students. I will identify and meet a few most promising students for potential Marie Curie fellowship.

The other call interesting to me is FP7-ICT-2011-9, Collaborative Projects – small or medium scale focused research projects (STREPs). Particular project directions I’d like to investigate are mobile augmented reality and its application in game and animation. The research teams above mentioned have a number of professors and associate professors, whom I intend to meet and discuss with them about potential collaborative projects.

Another activity I’d like to get involved is the World Conference of Web 2012 (http://www2012.org) which is going to be held in Lyon. It’s the most selective International Conference of the Web. I would like to take the opportunity to attend the part of the conference during the period of my visit, particularly on the presentation of European projects, expecting more networking with European partners.