University of St Andrews The StAndard Staff Magazine, Issue 15, November 2008 Professors of Rock The show must go on Courting the big decisions Building team spirit at St Andrews Scotland’s first university Contents Page 1: WELCOME Pages 2-20: PEOPLE 2 In the hot seat 4 Caption fantastic 6 Professors of Rock 9 Courting the big decisions 12 Musical notes 14 On the starting block 17 The show must go on Pages 21-23: TOWN 21 Guess where? 22 StAnza review Pages 24-43: GOWN 24 It’s all academic 27 Reaching out with Physics 40 Combing the collections 42 Field of dreams Pages 44-60: NEWS 44 Going green 46 Investing for a sustainable future 53 News round-up 57 MUSA opens its doors 61 Guess where? Answers The StAndard is financed by the University and edited by the Cover picture: Doing the Abbey Walk - the Buffalo have Press Office. We welcome suggestions, letters, articles, news arrived . and photography from staff, students and members of the Credit: Gayle Cook wider St Andrews community. Image credits: Alan Richardson, Pix-AR, Special Collections, Please contact us at Gayle Cook, Stephen Evans, Peter Adamson, Kaveh Golestan [email protected] or via the Press Office, Foundation, Rhona Rutherford, Mike Day, Mike Fedak, Lars St Katharine’s West, The Scores, Boehme, Ian Bonnell, Ken Rice, Alan Penny, CNES, Allan St Andrews KY16 9AX, Fife Gartshore, Lesley Lind, Heida Gudmundsdottir, Graham Clark, Tel: (01334) 462529. Florian Moellers, Volker Deeke and Michael Walton. Produced by Corporate Communications, University of St Andrews Designed by Reprographics Unit The University of St Andrews is a charity registered in Scotland, No: SC013532 Printed on FSC accredited recycled paper Welcome Welcome to the 15th issue of The StAndard, our last issue of the year, with a special focus on our patron Saint. After all, the University was originally named after Andrew himself and not the town. We pay our own tribute to St Andrew’s Day with two special features. Norman Reid searches the archives for images of the Saint himself, while Historian Gillian MacIntosh examines the rich Records of the Parliaments of Scotland for intriguing references to St Andrews. From Saint Andrew to our very own Saints of Sound, our cover stars this issue are the University’s first band for the Faculty of Arts, Dry Island Buffalo Jump (turn to page 6 for the full story including the source of the unusual name). The fab four kick off a four page spread on our all singing, all acting colleagues, while well-known songster Ian Bradley shares his musical loves on page 12. Talking of well-known faces, this time round we place Alan Miller, Thomas Krauss and Carolyn McAllister in the hot seat, while welcoming four new colleagues to their posts in the Library, Development, Registry and the Music Centre. Sticking with people, Stephen King shares his on the road diary from his gruelling trip from Land’s End to John O’Groats in aid of the Teenage Cancer Trust, turn to page 20 for more. It’s been a busy old summer for sport, but for colleagues in the Department of Sport & Exercise it’s just the beginning, turn to page 42 for a summary of Stephen Stewart’s plans to make St Andrews internationally competitive in the sporting field. And in a new series of features on what goes on behind the scenes we take a look at University Court. Turn to page 9 for Senior Governor Ewan Brown’s insights, plus the thoughts of two non-executive members, Claire Whitehead and Graeme Scott. If research is your thing, our academic profile features for the first time colleagues in the Schools of Geography & Geosciences and Computer Science, turn to page 24 for Ruth Robinson and Tom Kelsey’s summaries of their work here. Staying with research, but this time taking it out of St Andrews and beyond, our colleagues in Physics share their dynamic outreach programme experiences, while John Haldane tells readers the tale of the University’s second-oldest research centre, the Centre for Ethics, Philosophy and Public Affairs, currently celebrating its 25th anniversary. How green are you is a question we will keep returning to, but how many times have you asked yourself how many elephants do we waste in a year? Our five page feature starting on page 44 kicks off with the worrying answer, but shares some more positive news on sustainable issues too. And, finally, as 2008 draws to a close, by the time you see the next copy of The StAndard, the University will have a new and the ones Gayle has sent! Principal, Dr Louise Richardson. Before her arrival in the New Year, we pay special tribute to outgoing Principal Dr Brian Lang, who tells readers why the show must go on for St Andrews. Turn to page 17 for a review of the Lang years and some personal insights into the eight years he will leave behind come January 2008. We wish Brian well in his retirement and hope that you all have a happy and healthy New Year. See you in 2009! 1 PEOPLE Would you like to put yourself or In the hot seat a colleague in the hot seat? Email us at (of learning) [email protected] with your suggestions. NAME: Alan Miller POSITION: Vice-Principal (Research) LAST GOOD BOOK - Alan Alda’s autobiography, Never Have Your Dog Stuffed. I like a humorous book for relaxation; this one starts with “My mother didn't try to stab my father until I was six” and continues with many funny and sometimes very moving anecdotes. FIRST RECORD BOUGHT - It was either Elton John’s very first LP (~1970) or Beethoven’s 7th Symphony. I enjoy a range of music! TOP HOLIDAY DESTINATION - I should MOST PRIZED POSSESSION - I would FIRST LOVE - My reel-to-reel tape say Orlando, the most popular holiday like to believe that the ‘Stradivarius’ recorder from around 1963; taping destination in the world, having lived inscribed on my violin is genuine; everybody else’s records was equivalent there for five years, however Northern somehow I suspect it may not be, to today’s illegal MP3 downloading California has everything; San Francisco, but I do not want to spoil the illusion. / copying, but exposed me to lots of Golden Gate Bridge, Redwoods, Lake Certainly, I cannot produce the good music. Tahoe, Yosemite, Monterey, Big Sur. The appropriate sounds on it! most spectacular place I have visited is ALL-TIME FAVOURITE FILM - I was the Grand Canyon - truly breathtaking. CHILDHOOD AMBITION - Growing up blown away by 2001: A Space Odyssey in the 1960s technological explosion of (1968). Forty years later, I still don’t HAPPIEST CHILDHOOD MEMORY electronics, transistor radios, calculators, understand the ending! - This is either family get-togethers with miraculous events such as the at Christmas/New Year with my maiden flight of Concorde and men CURRENTLY PLAYING ON STEREO twelve cousins, or a walk through the landing on the moon, I was going - Bruch’s Violin Concerto having just Botanical Gardens in Edinburgh with to invent wonderful new electronic listened to some old Beatles tracks. my Grandfather explaining all of the gadgets… I failed! different bird songs. THE PERFECT WEEKEND - After helping FAVOURITE LOCAL HAUNT - The out with DIY for my three daughters in IDEAL MEAL - Mince and tatties when bench by the Castle and Cathedral their various flats in Edinburgh, having I was growing up in Fife. However, my with a view of West Sands beach, golf them serve me with a beer and a good mouth still waters at the memory of courses, Tentsmuir, distant Cairngorms meal. a scrumptious ‘barbeque platter’ in (on a clear day!), all the way round to Lewisville near where I lived in Texas. At Arbroath (where my parents used to one time I would have said Mexican, but live), the cliffs beyond and Bell Rock now that I am back in Fife, I am much lighthouse; a spectacular view. more sophisticated. I love Indian! 2 PEOPLE NAME: Thomas F Krauss POSITION: Professor of Optoelectronics LAST GOOD BOOK – The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. Gripping story, but also an interesting window into the Afghanistan that was before the West took note of it. FIRST RECORD BOUGHT – Some Johnny Cash album. Can’t remember. Had my interest rekindled on an Emirates flight recently however, when I heard Johnny Cash at St Quentin. Excellent album. TOP HOLIDAY DESTINATION – Skiing in Tignes, France, closely followed by Ski Mountaineering in the Jotunheimen, MOST PRIZED POSSESSION – My ALL-TIME FAVOURITE FILM – Dr Norway. Snowy hills is one of the family; Heidi and the boys. Although I Zhivago. The theme tune… The wide- reasons I came to Scotland, but with don’t think of them as possessions they open spaces… global warming, there is none of that are what I don’t want to do without. any more. Build those wind turbines is CURRENTLY PLAYING ON STEREO all I can say. CHILDHOOD AMBITION – Driving – Mike Oldfield, Music of the Spheres. trucks or locomotives, BIG engineering!! A typical Oldfield album (Heidi would HAPPIEST CHILDHOOD MEMORY Why I now enjoy Nanophotonics is a refer to it as “repetitive boredom”) with – Spending summers at the mystery to me. After that, I wanted to hints of Tubular Bells, yet also classically Steinbachtalsperre, a local lake. I used to become a teacher, which I suppose is inspired, and with a Physics flavour: cycle there and spend the entire school closer to home. “Space-Time curvature”?! holidays in and out of the water, which used to get quite warm - not something FAVOURITE LOCAL HAUNT – The Whey THE PERFECT WEEKEND – Taking you’d find around here.