The student ‘news’paper of Imperial College London The Non-Epic Fail Edition Issue 1,416 Friday 21 November 2008 felixonline.co.uk felix Inside Arts - Corpses as art! Page 15 Music - Nickelback review Page 24 Feature - Brighton Run Page 31 Sport - Build up to Varsity Trouble in begins Hammersmith...Imperial College Football Club in trouble after pub crawl in Hammersmith, but are there signs of change? See pages 4 & 5 Page 37 2 felix Friday 21 November 2008 Friday 21 November 2008 felix 3 News [email protected] News News Editor – Kadhim Shubber [email protected] Imperial Bioscientist New stealth tax New postgraduate and Conservatives see 50% target as unrealistic students win gold in increases cost of international positions to Dina Ismali versity participation rate for young News Correspondent people has only risen by 0.6% since worldwide competition living for students 1999-2000 and stands at 39.8%. The government’s approach to univer- The Organisation for Economic Co- Daniel Wan in the project.) industrial procedures, from recon- Kadhim Shubber ernment, said: be created in Council sity expansion is like “trying to drive a operation and Development’s (OECD) News Correspondent Professor Richard Kitney, a Professor structive surgery to the manufacture Deputy Editor “This is a second hit on students, just car with the accelerator and brake both annual evaluation of different educa- of the Imperial team gauged the inter- of eco-clothing. Professor Paul Free- days after the Government’s decision Jovan Nedić pressed to the floor”, says Tory univer- tion systems shows that the UK has An Imperial College team of nine un- national achievement they attained, mont, another of the team’s advis- New laws introduced by the govern- to cut student grants. Gordon Brown’s Editor in Chief sities secretary, David Willetts. slipped from 4th to 12th in the interna- dergraduate bioscientists are celebrat- saying “Our team has performed bril- ing Professors had great hope for the ment as part of the Climate Change Bill bin taxes will punish not just family Willett’s remark was made in a speech tional league table for the proportion ing this week after returning from the liantly and it’s fantastic that we did so future of the biofabricator, saying the shortly to receive Royal Assent, allow homes, but any household with a large Union Council Chair, Afonso Campos at the University of Kent last week, of young people going to university. International Genetically Engineered well when faced with competition from team’s hard work “sets up other engi- the Government to charge for bin col- group of people. Labour Ministers came under the spotlight after certain at a time when the Higher Education One of the countries overtaking the Machines (iGEM) competition with other leading university teams from neers and life scientists from around lections. This charge, called a stealth are so obsessed with picking people’s accusations on Live! that he was not Funding Council for England (Hefce) UK is Poland. In 1990, Poland sent one a gold medal and two additional top the UK and around the world.” the world to use this harmless bacteria tax by critics will increase further the pockets that they now want to raid stu- acting appropriately. After clarifying wrote to all universities asking them in eight of its young people to univer- prizes. The four-month project involved as a chassis for other synthetic biology cost of living for students. dents’ wallets. These new stealth taxes the previous meeting’s minutes on to ‘review their planned recruitment sity, however, today it sends one in two. As reported last week, the team had a team of nine undergraduates from applications.” Groups that are exempt from council will increase the cost of living for cash- Council and on Live! the situation was for 2009/10,’ warning there will be no So while the UK will undershoot the spent a week at the Massachusetts Life Sciences and Bioengineering, four Undergraduates Erika Cule (Bio- tax, students the most prominent ex- strapped students and student nurses, resolved without a hitch. funding for extra university places in 50% target, Poland has already hit it. Institute of Technology competing advisors and two professors with the chemistry 3rd Year), James Chappell ample, will not be exempt from the so who are already struggling to pay their After Council Chair made his points, 2010/11. Although 10,000 additional Government’s aim of widening uni- against the 84 other universities from concept of turning harmless bacteria, (Biochemistry 3rd Year), Tom Adie called “bin taxes”. Government guid- w a y.” there were three main agendas to be student places were to be financed for versity participation may also be ham- 21 different counties, in the renown Bacillus subtilis into efficient biofab- (Biology 3rd Year) and Chris Hirst (Bi- ance documents state that “a particular If the proposals were unpalatable as resolved firstly there was the bi-elec- 2009/10, those numbers have already pered by its recently discovered £200m undergraduate research synthetic biol- ricators. The hope is that the bacteria otechnology 3rd Year), Krupa Hirani, example might be households of stu- they stand, Labour Deputy Leader of tion to elect ordinary members for the been allocated to universities since funding shortfall. This prompted the ogy competition. They triumphantly will be able to produce self-assembling Yanis Djinnit, Clinton Goh, Qin Qi, dents” as a group which is exempt from the House of Commons has said that faculty unions, which, rather unsur- January 2008. This means that univer- universities secretary, John Denham, came home with the gold prize for organic compounds, such as cellulose, and Prudence Wing-Yan Wong (all council tax but not the bin tax. MPs will be exempt, with taxpayers’ prisingly were all filled, apart for the sity places will be capped for the next to announce Labour’s u-turn on pro- technical excellence, top prize for best on demand, and in a pre-meditated Bioengineering Various Years) will all However there is also significant picking up their tab. Royal College of Science Union seat. two academic years. posals to offer grants to students with a manufacturing-themed project, and pattern. now return back to the day-to-day pro- leeway for local authorities to exempt The cross-party Communities & Lo- The other two agendas covered the Willett’s went on to say: “In 1999, household income of less than £60,000. another for best new ‘part’; which re- The application behind the team’s ceedings of College life. groups who do not pay council tax cal Government Select Committee has creation of two new seats on Council. the government promised to get 50% This has now been reduced to £50,020. fers to Bacillus subtillis bacteria used winning concept will go onto aid many from the new bin tax, stating “authori- slammed the Government’s plans for The first of the two papers to be dis- of young people to university by 2010. This decrease in the limit is expected ties must take account of those groups new bin taxes: cussed was the creation of a new Inter- It is a scandal that the figure remains to affect some 40,000 students starting who might be unduly disadvantaged as “We repeat what we said six months national Student Officer. Council had below 40% and, for men, the chances university next year. a result of the introduction of an incen- ago: it is hard to see why any council to vote on amendments to the paper of reaching university are actually go- Last week university think tank Mil- tive scheme”. will want to set up a complicated charg- first, and decide whether or not all stu- ing downwards.” lion warned that restricting student Eric Pickles MP, Shadow Secretary of ing scheme that earns it no money and dents could stand for the positions, or “It is absurd to have a target for 50 numbers risked damaging widen- State for Communities & Local Gov- risks widespread public disapproval” whether it would only be international per cent participation and specifically ing participation, particularly among students. Before any of this could be to prohibit universities from meeting under-represented groups. A wide- decided, Council first had to agree it.” ranging review of the higher education upon the definition of international Although Labour committed itself funding system is being called for, in students. It was decided that interna- long ago to sending half of all young particular costs and benefits of univer- tional students would be all those stu- people to university by 2010, the uni- sity expansion. dents outside of the United Kingdom. This included the Channel Islands, who College consider as International students and thus pay the full fee. The second amendment to the paper Councillors voting at the meeting on Monday night was deciding whether or not all stu- dents should be allowed to vote. Alex Grisman, who is the Academic Affairs Hannah Theodorou, looked for a re- Again the question of representa- Officer (Taught) for City and Guilds shuffle of postgraduate positions. Miss tion came into question as it was dis- College Union, made the point that Theodorou felt that the current rep- covered that any postgraduate could the role would only effect international resentation of postgraduate students stand for the various positions. Other students and that therefore only inter- was ineffective. The paper suggested Council members commented on the national students should be eligible to removing the current postgraduate po- fact that this method is the best solu- vote. This turned out to be the case sitions from the faculties and placing it tion in the current situation, although and the motion was passed.