Spring 2011 ANNUAL REPORT EDITION 2009-10 Elite without being elitist www.le.ac.uk 2 LE1 · THE MAGAZINE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF LEICESTER · SPRING 2011 Page 3 ‘The strongest we’ve ever been’ Page 16 Introduction by Vice-Chancellor Professor Space to think Sir Robert Burgess Geographers bring new perspectives to current issues Page 4 Page 18 Rec ord success Today’s technologies unlock the Leice ster continues to go from strength to mysteries of the past strength achieving success across the board Leicester academics engage in innovative research into our rich heritage Page 6 Page 22 The floor is yours Research that impacts on public Unive rsity launches Leicester Exchanges, a policy-making new platform for intellectual debate Law centre celebrates ten years of high impact research Page 8 Page 24 Research that gives hope to Zoo’s unfettered thinking heart patients The future of learning is here, now, at N ew £4 .7million investment for heart Leicester research at Leicester Page 10 Page 26 Realising opportunities at d Iran The pursuit of happiness Leicester Leicester at the vanguard of studies Brazil Lebanon Accessing top universities like Leicester is P measuring happiness and quality of life Turkey no longer out of reach for all na Page 12 Page 28 Robo-op that is armed with Success that has changed lives knowledge Leicester at the forefront of diabetes Futuristic technologies enhance research research and patient benefits Page 14 Page 30 Mathematics and the way we Annual Repo rt timeline, live now personalia and statistics How mathema tics helps us understand the world FOCUS OF ATTENTION: Neuroscie ntist s at the University of Leicester have worked with a renowned international artist in order to gain new insights into perception. Thanks to funding from The Leverhulme Trust, Rodrigo Quian Quiroga, Professor of Bioengineering at the University of Leicester collaborated with Argentinian artist, Mariano Molina, as artist in residence studying the principles of perception from both an artistic and neuroscientific viewpoint. Pictured is “The center of gaze,” an acrylic on canvas in which the focus of attention is clearly directed by Mariano Molina’s technique. © University of Leicester 2011 University of Leicester, University Road, Leicester LE1 7RH www.le.ac.uk · Email: [email protected] If you wish to be removed from the database of this publication, please email [email protected] or ring 0116 252 2415 LE1 · THE MAGAZINE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF LEICESTER · SPRING 2011 3 ‘The strongest we’ve ever been’ Introduction by Professor Sir Robert Burgess, Vice-Chancellor his Annual Report illustrates Some of our work that influences public that the last academic year policy includes the activities of our Centre Twas one of great success with for European Law and Integration. In the result that the University of addition, the launch of our new Leicester Leicester is well positioned to face Exchanges initiative is designed to drive the challenges that confront the public policy discussion and debate in the sector as a consequence of new UK. Initiatives like these will continue to national policies. The Government’s ensure our research has impact in a wide response to Lord Browne’s report on range of communities locally, nationally Securing a Sustainable Future for and internationally. Higher Education presents what is arguably the most significant One of the most innovative and exciting challenge to universities in half a pieces of research at the University century. Teaching grants are to be comes from an unlikely partnership cut by as much as 80% and higher between our internationally renowned student fees will mean student Space Research Centre and the choice will play a greater part than Department of History of Art and Film. ever in determining the success of Techniques and tools developed for our institutions in the future. exploring deep space are being applied to unlocking the secrets of the It is reassuring that the University of Reformation through the reconstruction Leicester enters this turbulent of tombs. Professor Sir Robert Burgess environment in the strongest shape in its Vice-Chancellor history. In 2009-10 the University Among all these achievements there is achieved a record financial surplus which one that stands out in comparison with My academic colleagues secured will be used to invest in new high quality other leading universities. Leicester is the record grant awards from academic developments. My academic most socially inclusive of Britain’s top-20 competitive sources to fund their colleagues secured record grant awards universities. A University achievement of research and student applications from competitive sources to fund their which I am particularly proud is our to Leicester rose to their highest research and student applications to success in widening participation and ever level. Leicester rose to their highest ever level. reaching out to students whose families We achieved our fourth consecutive have little tradition or engagement with Times Higher Education Award and the higher education. Our role in schemes University rose to its highest ever league such as the Realising Opportunities table position – ranked 12th out of Initiative has been key to our success. Britain’s 120 universities. As we look ahead to future challenges We have plans to invest in cardiovascular we do so from a position of self research through the creation of a confidence, clarity of mission and a £12.6m Cardiovascular Research Centre. strong track record of academic and This development will bring immense financial achievement – all features that health care benefits to our region as well arise from members of the University as driving internationally significant working together as a very effective research in this area. team. n 4 LE1 · THE MAGAZINE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF LEICESTER · SPRING 2011 Record success Leicester continues to go from strength to strength achieving success across the board – including our highest ever ranking in the world university tables. National Student Survey 2010 Top mainstream English universities Inspirational Teaching University % satisfied Leicester’s reputation for outstanding teaching quality was demonstrated again by the results of the 2010 National University of Oxford 93 Student Survey. For the sixth successive year Leicester was University of Cambridge 91 ranked amongst the top-10 universities in England by full-time finalists for student satisfaction. University of East Anglia 90 University of Exeter 90 University of Sussex 90 University of Leicester 89 Keele University 89 Loughborough University 88 University of Sheffield 88 University of Warwick 88 Leicester’s position amongst mainstream English universities Year Overall satisfaction 2005 1st 2006 1st 2007 1st 2008 2nd 2009 1st 2010 6th LE1 · THE MAGAZINE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF LEICESTER · SPRING 2011 5 World Changing Research QS research impact amongst UK universities September 2010 2009-10 saw Leicester academics secure record levels of research grants to support vital research – £56.1m – up 17% QS’s citation per on the previous year. The work of Leicester academics University academic score continues to impact on the world. Analysis by QS published in University of Cambridge 93 October 2010 revealed the impact of Leicester’s research was the sixth greatest in the UK as measured by citations per University College London 91 academic. This level of impact places us amongst the top 1% of universities in the world. University of Oxford 84 Imperial College London 81 University of Bristol 71 University of Leicester 70 King’s College London 70 University of Edinburgh 65 University of Glasgow 62 University of Dundee 61 A prey’s-eye view of a stickleback, showing rows of small teeth. Image: Mark Purnell, University of Leicester University of Leicester, seen from Victoria Park Climbing League Tables 2010 saw Leicester achieve its highest ever ranking in the Guardian University Guide – ranked 12th out of 120 universities in the UK. It was the third successive year Leicester has been amongst the top-15 universities in the country. The Times ranked Leicester in 15th position and top in the region. Again it was Leicester’s third successive appearance in the top-15. The QS world rankings placed Leicester in its highest ever position amongst the top 2% of universities in the world (Leicester was up 27 places ranked 169). Guardian University Guide Times University Guide 1st 1st 2010 2008 2008 10th 2009 12th 10th 2009 2010 14th 15th 2006 14th 15th 15th 2007 18th 2007 20th 20th 2006 20th 2005 21st 25th 2004 24th 2005 29th 30th 33rd 30th 40th 40th 2004 48th 50th 50th 6 LE1 · THE MAGAZINE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF LEICESTER · SPRING 2011 The Floor is Yours Join the Debate at Leicester Exchanges We are proud to bring you a new, dynamic way to shape public policy in Britain. Leicester Exchanges unites the UK’s highest profile opinion formers with our academic experts and members of the public to seek new approaches to some very real issues. Those issues span areas such as ‘Climate change – deny, prevent or prepare?’; ‘Is Britain Broken?’; ‘Should we punish or reform offenders?’ and ‘Should Man go to Mars?’. So, the floor is yours, will you make the most of it? To make your opinion count, join the debate at www.leicesterexchanges.com Here is a taster of the discussion that you can expect. Dr Angus Cameron Department of Geography The implication is that if Britain is broken, someone must have broken it and that usually draws our attention towards whoever or whatever is ‘new’ or ‘different’ – unruly youth, immigrant communities, benefit claimants, unmarried mothers, the unemployed. LE1 · THE MAGAZINE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF LEICESTER · SPRING 2011 7 s e r u t a e F x e R / e r g e S x e l A Dr Angus Cameron, Geography The short answer to this is clearly ‘no’.