“Alas alas alas, this blog’s been neglected this last while. Such are the demands on me at the moment (and the time taken up with Twitter!). Anyhow, for the extra hour, the holiday weekend, the Halloween sound-effects that prohibit any work requiring concentration, and the current catch-up with http://9thlevel.ie, a post is forthcoming …” (more)
[Pennybridged’s Weblog …, 31 October]
“The New Zealand-born philosopher Bede Rundle, who has died aged 74, taught for 40 years at Trinity College, Oxford, and made substantial contributions to the philosophy of language, mind and action, to metaphysics and to philosophical theology …” (more)
[Edward Kanterian, Guardian, 31 October]
“Half a century ago Kingsley Amis, aided and abetted by the Times, moaned that ‘more means worse’. A decade later, the notorious Black Papers were published, peddling the same reactionary views. But then the right abandoned its campaign against the expansion of higher education. Now the beast is back …” (more)
[Peter Scott, Guardian, 31 October]
“A British academic with close links to Muammar Gaddafi’s son Saif al-Islam has left the London School of Economics before a report on the university’s relationship with Libya is published …” (more)
[Jeevan Vasagar, Guardian, 31 October]
“The author of an Irish Independent article that the Union of Students’ in Ireland have used to bolster their ‘Stop Fees’ campaign has said a quoted figure of €5,000 for third level fees was purely ‘hypothetical’ …” (more)
[Donie O’Sullivan, College Tribune, 31 October]
“Once again I revisit the question broached by Science is Vital in our recent report Careering Out of Control? A Crisis in UK Science Careers. Last week I participated in a round table discussion about this very issue co-hosted by Paul Nurse, the President of the Royal Society, and David Willetts, the Minister of State for Universities and Science …” (more)
[Jennifer Rohn, Mind the Gap, 31 October]
“The Irish Federation of University Teachers has expressed serious concern about a warning of possible prosecution issued to an academic at NUI Maynooth by the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission …” (more)
[Lorna Siggins, Irish Times, 31 October]
“Trinity College Dublin has secured the go-ahead to turn a former bank off College Green in Dublin city centre into a restaurant. The university has been granted planning permission for the redevelopment of protected buildings at Foster Place and Anglesea Street after a ‘protracted’ planning process which saw the university abandon plans for a super-pub at the site …” (more)
[Michelle Devane, Sunday Business Post, 30 October]
“The process by which hundreds of thousands of teenagers apply to UK universities favours the rich, the organisation that co-ordinates degree applications has admitted. In a review of university admissions published on Monday, Ucas acknowledges that the current system gives an unfair advantage to pupils at private schools …” (more)
[Jessica Shepherd, Guardian, 30 October]
“On behalf of the entire University community, I am delighted to extend our warmest congratulations to Michael D Higgins on his election to the highest office in our nation – the Presidency of Ireland …” (more)
[Education Matters, 30 October]
“Publication of the first round of UCAS figures brings news of an overall fall of 11.9% in home applications to university compared with this time last year. That won’t come as a great surprise to many doomsayers in the wake of the Government’s carve-up of higher education a process which was of course commenced by the previous lot – in case you thought my political biases were showing …” (more)
[hEaD space, 30 October]
“The Guardian science blog ‘Notes & Theories: Dispatched From the Science Desk’ published a post by Sarah Kendrew this week disagreeing with statements made by physicists Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw about whether or not it’s a good idea to blog about research before publishing …” (more)
[Brian Romans, Wired, 28 October]
“Minister for Health James Reilly has shelved plans originally put forward by the previous government to phase out payment for student nurses and midwives during their mandatory 36-week placement period in hospitals …” (more)
[Martin Wall, Irish Times, 29 October]
“The owner of the main bar at the centre of the so-called ‘CIT Christmas Day’ declared yesterday that his premises would no longer have anything to do with the event …” (more)
[Liam Heylin, Irish Examiner, 29 October]
“The crippling costs of preparing children for school and college was blamed yesterday for a new sales slump. Figures showed sales of retail goods dropped sharply in September as under-pressure parents called a halt to what little discretionary spending they were doing …” (more)
[Charlie Weston, Independent, 29 October]
“The QUB Senate today (28/10/2011) announced an initiative to encourage students coming from GB. The university will offer grants to those with high grades in specific subjects. Basil McCrea said: ‘Although this is a step in the right direction, I am disappointed that more could not be done to encourage students from the rest of the United Kingdom to study in Northern Ireland’ …” (more)
[Basil McCrea MLA, 28 October]
“University students will be asked to work harder and longer as part of a radical charter to be introduced next year to coincide with the rise in tuition fees. London Metropolitan University is to introduce a 30-week teaching year next September when its fees rise to £6,800 a year – in the belief that potential recruits will want more for their money …” (more)
[Richard Garner, Independent, 29 October]
“An art historian at Trinity College Dublin has discovered a painting by Spanish master Diego Velázquez, worth an estimated €3 million. Dr Peter Cherry made the discovery after a painting, thought to have been the work of a 19th-century British artist, was sent to him for examination …” (more)
[Cían Nihill, Irish Times, 29 October]
“Queen’s University has announced it will charge students from England, Scotland and Wales fees of £9,000 a year. Fees for Northern Ireland students have already been frozen at £3,465 …” (more)
[Patrice Dougan, Belfast Telegraph, 29 October]
“The USI Grants case has been listed for mention in the High Court again in 3 weeks (Nov 18th) to allow USI to respond to the State’s motion of opposition …” (more)
[USI, Facebook, 28 October]
